Auto Action #1785

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WHEN RACING MIGHT BE BACK

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HOW HOLDEN TOOK ON GROUP A GIANTS AND WON ● GRICEY’S BATHURST BLITZ ● MOFFAT’S MONZA MIRACLE ● BROCK’S MOUNTAIN MAGIC

Issue #1785 May 7 to May 20 2020 $8.95 INC GST

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THE REAL COST OF GOING RACING HOW MUCH IT TAKES TO GET ON TRACK

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RACING RETURNS But it’s state-bystate and there will be no spectators

By BRUCE NEWTON MOTOR RACING will return in Australia mid-May at club level with an expectation professional-level categories such as Supercars could follow by late June.

But with fans almost certainly excluded for the rest of the year, expect to be watching the Bathurst 1000 on television.

This is the road ahead sanctioning body Motorsport Australia envisions as the path to a postCOVID 19 sporting landscape becomes clearer. “I do think the next two weeks are going to be critical for understanding the appetite of state governments for rolling down the restrictions and that is where sport comes in,� MA CEO Eugene Arocca told Auto Action.

The resumption of all sports has become a focus in recent days as the national cabinet and some states and territories signal a relaxation of travel and distancing restrictions, as the COVID-19 pandemic eases.

The Northern Territory has signed off on a May 15 resumption of motor sport while the Queensland government has okayed cross border travel under strict conditions to allow the National Rugby League to resume on May 28.

The Australian Football League is signalling its intention to gets its competition back up and running in June.

Supercars still lists Winton in Victoria on June 5-7 as its recommencement event, followed by the Townsville street race on June 26-28. A mid-May deadline has been set to reveal a new calendar, but

neither event is likely to go ahead.

Australia’s other most prominent professional motor sport series, the Shannons Motorsport Australia Championships, is not expected to resume before July or even August.

All sports including motor sports have to gain approval from a new national sports recovery taskforce and individual states to get rolling again.

MA, as the national sanctioning body of motor sport deal with the taskforce. But individual championships will also be able to present their cases to states and territories.

A set of 15 principles that must be met by sports in the coronavirus era has already been set out by the Australian Institute of Sport, along with a three-stage (A, B, C) process for the derestriction of sporting activities.

Stage A severely restricts sporting activity and is where we are at now, Stage B allows outdoor noncontact sport in groups of 10 or less, while Stage C means all sport can happen in line with eased restrictions.

Those stages and principles offer little hope for motor racing fans they will be able to head to their favourite venue any time soon. If that sounds bad, consider that it could be worse. “My own view as opposed to an educated medical view is we will not have large-scale crowd

gatherings until the end of the year,� said Arocca. “There are those at the extreme level who say until a vaccine is found, we are not going to be able to have large scale crowd gatherings. “I am not of that view. I am of the view everything Australia has done to date suggest a responsible and rational approach. I would think it’s not likely before the end of the year.�

MA has developed a roadmap to recovery for presentation to the states, territories and the federal taskforce, demonstrating its compliance with the 15 principles. “That provides a matrix and a breakdown of the requirements of Motorsport Australia for any form of activity; from a motorkhana right up to Supercars to be able to roll out,� said Arocca.

He explained it made sense to start with club and then state racing before proceeding to national level events. “We can’t go from top down, it has to be from bottom up,� he said. “And it’s going to be measured, controlled, observed, noted, amended, recommended as we go to ensure what we put out as the rules around all this are actually followed. “There is a lot of water to go under the bridge, we need to ensure everyone follows protocol. What we don’t want is a cluster. That would not only set back our sport but all sport.�

Arocca said the efforts of the NRL and AFL to recommence provided guidance to professional motor sport categories such as Supercars about how they would move around the country postlockdown. “You’ll note the NRL and AFL are talking about charter flights so I would think that an appropriate argument around border entry control would be appropriate testing before boarding, appropriate masks at boarding a chartered or restricted flight and further testing after landing. “I am confident even though some borders are closed that that is predicated on normal domestic travel. “If you are able to use the principles and argue that measures have been taken to either get an exemption or to work within those restrictions, then a sport will be given access and allowed to participate.�

The potential challenges of negotiation various state attitudes has been emphasised by the NRL restart.

It gained approval for the New Zealand Warriors to fly into Australia and for teams to cross the Queensland borders for matches. But it could not get the hardline Victorian government to deliver an exemption so the Melbourne Storm players could train in their home state.

Supercars format debate - reverse grids, limited pit stops on the table NO PIT stops and some form of reverse grid racing?

That’s a potential format facing Supercars as it plots what races will look like in the aftermath of the COVID-19 shutdown.

While Australia’s apparent success quelling the coronavirus means Supercars could be up and running again as soon as June, it will be with only limited and socially-distanced number of people allowed in the paddock.

Supercars has been doing a headcount to figure out how it can conduct a for-TV meeting without spectators with no more than 500 people at the track.

An obvious way to manage that would be for teams to take bare bones numbers to events and run sprint races without tyre and/or fuel stops.

The counter argument is that short Supercars sprint races can be tedious, hence the possibility of some form of reverse grid race to stir up things up.

“You don’t want three races that are all brand new tyres and the same grid because it’s probably going to give you the same outcome every time,� said Triple Eight team boss Roland Dane when asked about the prospect. “For sure there are tools we can use – tyres, grids, a combination of both – to provide some good racing.�

The issue is known to have sparked plenty of debate within the category including the Supercars Commission,

where the final call will be made on race formats.

Auto Action understands a compromise proposal is to keep pit stops but use less staff to do them.

Certainly there’s no question Bathurst will retain its traditional 1000km format and therefore pit stops.

Currently, Supercars allows eight personnel into pitlane during pit stops.

This could be cut in half by limiting rattle guns to two and/or only allowing tyre

changes at one stop and fuel at another.

There is an underlying cost issue here, as a smaller pit crew potentially means less staff to transport go races or even employ in the first place.

Payroll is a pressing issue for Supercars teams that has only been exacerbated by the coronavirus.

A move to change the structure of pit stops as a short term counter to coronavirus could have long-term ramifications. BN

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PLAY THE GAME BO SUPERCARS BACKS DRIVERS IN PUBLIC, SU THREATENS THEM IN PRIVATE

By BR BRUCE NEWTON SUPE SUPERCARS HAS publicly played down the aantics of its drivers in the BP All Stars Eseries, while privately threatening them Eseri with immediate digital disqualification if bad behaviour continues. beha The fourth round of the iRacing-based series - created to provide some live racing serie while the Supercars championship is on whil COVID-19 lockdown – at Circuit Giles COV Villeneuve and Watkins Glen featured a Ville vast amount of virtual carnage, especially the reverse grid races. in th Supercars CEO Sean Seamer was S unf unfussed about the display when he spo spoke to media in a telephone hook-up on Ma May 1. ““It changes every week depending on wh which track we are at,” said Seamer. “I tho thought the previous week at Bathurst wa was brilliant. You go to a track that our guys know less they are more ou ch challenging.

“You have got reverse grids in there for eentertainment purposes and when quick g guys come through the field then things aare going to happen.

“I think everybody found it entertaining, ssome people find it frustrating, but at tthe end of the day we are putting some

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pretty good live content out there and I think … the media team are doing a really good job of putting something out there for everyone to enjoy on a Wednesday night.

But in an email seen by Auto Action and distributed to all teams immediately after round four on April 30, Supercars railed against “idiotic behaviour” and “deliberate loophole exploitation/cheating”.

The email stated such displays would “result in immediate disqualification from that round”.

“Loophole exploitation/cheating” is a reference among other things to drivers modulating speed via the throttle in pitlane rather than using the pit speed limiter, allowing them to transit pitlane slightly faster.

The ‘hack’ is said to have been introduced to the Eseries by wildcard Max Verstappen in round two and then adopted by series leader Scott McLaughlin and allegedly others.

McLaughlin’s engineer Richard Harris was heard telling him to “use his trick” on his way into pitlane in round four and McLaughlin was subsequently pinged for speeding in pitlane.

But that was cleared after he appealed to race control, which is the Supercars media team also responsible for producing the racing for broadcast.

The pitlane speed limiter was made mandatory from round five of the Eseries at Spa-Francorchamps onwards (conducted on

‘I’LL LEAVE SIM RACING TO THE PROS’ Image: LATs

Eseries winner Jamie Whincup still prefers real-world Supercars

By BRUCE NEWTON

OYS! Images: Getty Images

Wednesday night May 6) 6).

In another rule change, black flags autogenerated by the iRacing game that apply penalties to drivers will not be cleared at any stage of a race.

Many drivers copped black flags during the round four reverse grid smash-up derbies and were able to have them cleared by appealing to race control.

The email, which is understood to have come from Supercars media boss Nathan Prendergast, is strong in its language, declaring “a tide of complaints and sniping” from the field was received in the wake of round four.

The email acknowledged there had been issues throughout the running of the Eseries, some of which Supercars took responsibility for.

“We are not going to retrospectively pull apart every anomaly for internal or public scrutiny,” the email said.

“The purpose of the Eseries mission is far bigger than proving you can outsmart a computer or any of those trying to help each of you by running a game!”

The email made the point that in a parlous financial time the Eseries served a key role in keeping Supercars connected with broadcasters Fox Sport and Network Ten and engaged with fans.

“Can we please remain united to portray Supercar racing as a global leader in motorsport and entertainment for six more exciting and entertaining programs,” it said.

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HE’S NOW a BP All Stars Eseries winner, but don’t expect Jamie Whincup to become a sim racing regular once real-world Supercars action gets rolling again.

The seven-time Supercars champion is a simulator racing rookie and he’s been on a very public learning curve over the last few weeks in the iRacing series, created to provide some action during the COVID-19 lockdown.

He broke through for his first win in the reverse grid final race of round four at Watkins Glen, afters scoring his first top 10 earlier in the evening at Montreal’s Circuit Gilles Villeneuve.

The Eseries has another five rounds to run, which Whincup is committed to. But while Supercars has spoken positively about a role for the drivers in future digital formats, Whincup is unlikely to be at the front of the queue volunteering for that.

“There is a place for some of the Supercars drivers to be there in the future,” said Whincup. “But will I be there?

Probably not.

“I’ll certainly keep using my sim to make my racing driving better, to get my muscle memory going before I go to a certain track. But doing the full-blown races I think I’ll leave that to the professionals like Shane van Gisbergen, Scotty Mclaughlin and Anton De Pasquale.”

Unlike his Red Bull Holden Racing Team team-mate van Gisbergen who is an Eseries front-runner, Whincup had virtually

no sim racing experience before the Supercars digital series began.

But rather than procure a set-up simulator, Whincup enlisted his Triple Eight team-mates to help him build his own rig from the parts he had collected.

While it has proved a handicap in terms of getting on the pace, Whincup insists he would have done it no other way.

“To be more competitive early, yeah I could have got Simworx to do it and send it out, but that’s not motorsport,” Whincup said.

“I bought all these parts and they were spread out in my car bay at the workshop and I had fabricators, mechanics and engineers and we all put this simulator together.

“It’s a really cool motorsport story. We’ve done exactly what we do in real life; we’ve put something together and then gone and raced.”

From really struggling in the first couple of weeks, Whincup has gradually built up speed and familiarity. By week four he was focussed on fine tuning the set-up to his liking.

But he has not – and says he will not – devote the hours behind the wheel that would elevate his competitiveness further.

“Anyone who knows me knows I hate being inside. I love the outdoors, so you won’t find me on my simulator five hours a day trying to get the most out of my simulator.

“I will never beat the fast guys.”

Whincup derived real satisfaction from

his win, which was completed in his typical style, leading from the front, pitting at the right time and then holding off a charge from US wildcard Alex Rossi at the end.

“It was more of surprise to win than anything, but it was a good feeling to get a win,” he said.

“The main thing is we can hopefully supply some sporting action to deprived fans and I feel like it is ticking that box.

“I have found it a challenge because I couldn’t do more than a lap at the start without running off the track.

“But to actually generate a skill and actually be relatively competitive at the game has been good. It’s been quite enjoyable to understand how to make a car go fast on a simulator, because it’s very different to the way you make a race car go around a track fast.”

Jamie Whincup also confirmed that the COVID-19 pandemic might prompt him to extend his career to at least 2022.

The 37-year old made the admission in response to a question on the Fox Sport Sidetracked program.

“That’s just what’s in my brain at the moment,” he said. “The question asked ‘could this extend your career?’ and the answer was ‘yes it may’.

“I haven’t had this sort of a break away from the sport for 15 years, so it’s a unique thing and it could change my mentality.

“It could mean I keep driving, it could do the opposite. I am not 100 per cent sure yet.”

Surprise Eseries ratings slump SUPERCARS is confident a ratings dive for round four of the BP All Stars Eseries can be turned around.

After three consecutive rounds averaging more than 70,000 viewers, the average slumped to 44,000 on Fox Sport 506 for the doubleheader at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve and Watkins Glen.

The dive in numbers is being attributed to a number of factors. Among them are the late announcement of double champion Marcos Ambrose’s involvement

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and the use of two circuits that don’t have huge fan recognition in Australia.

The Eseries fifth round was at Spa -Francorchamps and Supercars was expecting a boost because of that.

The inclusion of F1 rising star and sim racing ace Lando Norris as one of five wildcards was also expected to provide a boost.

“Everyone knows Spa, it’s got Eau Rouge, it’s fast, it’s big. People have heard of that,” said Supercars TV and

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content boss Nathan Prendergast.

Meanwhile, the ‘expression session’ initiative introduced for round four is unlikely to be seen any time soon. But Prendergast was definite that full grid reverse grid racing would continue despite the amount of crashes.

“It serves a purpose. It allows the guys at the back of the field half a chance. We ran two reverse grids in round four, (but) the likelihood of doing two reverse grids again is very low.”

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VIRGIN VERDICT COULD BE MONTHS AWAY Future of collapsed airline’s naming rights deal with Supercars unknown QUEENSLANDER JACK Sipp has become the Erebus Academy’s newest recruit. He will contest the full V8 Touring Car Series with Erebus Motorsport’s affiliate squad Image Racing, after competing in a sole round at Queensland Raceway last season with Paul Morris Motorsport. Sipp has previously raced in Formula Ford, Formula 4 and the Queensland Gemini Series.

THE TV commentary team for the Seven Network’s coverage of the Shannons Motorsport Australia Championships has been announced. The team will be headed by long-time host, commentator and pit reporter Greg Rust, alongside regular Supercars support category commentators Matt Naulty and Richard Craill. After being substituted in at selected rounds last year, Jack Perkins has been signed up in a full-time pit reporting position alongside former Australian Rally champion and TCR Australia driver Molly Taylor.

THE FIRST LMP3 car has arrived in Australia ahead of the inaugural LMP3 Cup Australia series scheduled to take place this year. The Adess 03 has been bought by Sydney based team Revere Lifestyle, who announced plans to run in the series at the start of the year. The team plan to run test drivers in the car once the COVID-19 restrictions have been lifted.

THE AUSTRALIAN Tarmac Rally Championship has new owners. Australian Tarmac Rally PTY Limited has purchased the four events that make up the ATRC, the Great Tarmac Rally, Mt Baw Baw Sprint, Lake Mountain Sprint and Snowy River Sprint. The series will become the first by a femaleowned motor sport event management company.

By BRUCE NEWTON IT MAY be months before Supercars knows the fate of its naming rights sponsorship with collapsed airline Virgin Australia.

Virgin went into voluntary administration late April owing almost $7 billion. It made the decision after the federal government refused it financial aid to survive the coronavirus shutdown.

Administrator Deloitte confirmed last week there were 20 potential bidders for the airline and expressed confidence a buyer would be secured by July.

It’s probably only then that it will become clearer what the future of the Supercars sponsorship is.

The five-year deal was due to run until the end of the 2021 season and is built around

subsidised travel for the Supercars organisation and its teams.

The Supercars championship is expected to resume around mid-year and CEO Sean Seamer said the priority right now was making sure Virgin could provide transportation.

“Virgin is going through as tough a time as anyone right now. We are in ongoing conversations with them around the permutations of the calendar and the restart plan and when we are ready to get going again we look forward to flying with them,” said Seamer.

“They’ve got a smart team there and I know there are a lot of people working hard to get that airline flying again.”

At the moment Virgin is flying only a skeleton schedule.

Seamer said negotiations were underway for charter options if

they proved necessary.

“They are a good partner and it wouldn’t feel right if we weren’t flying with them,” Seamer said.

Seamer declined to say if Supercars had registered with the administrators as a creditor of Virgin Australia. It is estimated total creditors number more than 12,000, including 9000 airline staff.

But Seamer insisted the longer term sponsorship questions weren’t the focus at the moment.

“The challenge we have is we are working on getting going racing again. That is our number one focus, both internally but also in our discussions with Virgin,” said Seamer.

“The administrators will do what they need to do, but we are talking about operational plans about getting going okay.”

Contacted for its view on the matter, Virgin Australia supplied the following statement: “Virgin Australia is still naming rights partner of the Supercars Championship and we are looking forward to the Championship returning.”

Among the parties to express interest in Australia’s second airline are Melbourne’s BHG Capital and US private equity firms Apollo Global Management and Oaktree Capital Management. Western Australian billionaire Andrew Forrest has been reported as another interested party.

Virgin Australia is 90 per cent foreign owned, with Singapore Airlines, Etihad Airways and Chinese conglomerates HNA Group and Hanshan owning 80 per cent between them. Richard Branson’s Virgin Group owns 10 per cent.

GRM FUTURE CHALLENGED Workers redeployed to restos AUSTRALIA’S LARGEST and oldest race team, Garry Rogers Motorsport, is running out of things for its loyal workforce to do.

Since returning after Easter, GRM has completed preparation and maintenance of its big fleet of S5000s and TCRs, as it awaits the resumption of racing.

The team’s staff is now on a weekto-week roster, with groups of 10-12 rotating for a few days each week.

Others are taking long-service leave.

The main work now is a rampedup restoration of GRM’s collection of heritage Supercars, which team owner Garry Rogers may have to put on the market to keep the squad going.

GRM is the country’s longest

established racing team, tracing its origins back to 1963.

It is also the biggest team, despite its withdrawal from Supercars at the end of last season.

It has 10 S5000s and 11 TCRs – five Peugeots, three Renaults and three Alfa Romeos – and is waiting on ARG and Motorsport Australia to call a resumption of national championship competition, which may not be until July.

“We’re running a skeleton staff on weekly rosters,” Garry Rogers told Auto Action. “We’re doing up a lot of our old cars. We’re finding work for our people to do.

“But if we don’t get a calendar soon, we’ll have to make some very tough decisions. We’re ready to go.”

Rogers, who has been splitting his time between his southeast Gippsland farm and GRM’s factory in Dandenong South in Melbourne’s outer south-eastern suburbs, is doing everything he can to avoid layoffs.

It is a tribute to the longevity of his core staff of 33 that many have been able to take paid long-service leave,

which is accrued every 10 years.

The team is restoring Garth Tander’s 2017 VF Commodore, used in his return to the squad where he started his full-time Supercars career in 1999.

Also getting a freshen-up is the 2018 VF run at the 2018 Sandown 500 retro round in a Allan Moffat/John Harvey WTCC ’87 tribute livery. MF

TV TRAUMA FOR SUPERCARS? DOUBTS ARE emerging that the Supercars championship will be on free to air television in 2021.

According to a report published in Monday’s Australian Financial Review, Network Ten will not seek to renew its joint-deal with Fox Sports to telecast the championship.

The six-years $241 million broadcast deal expires at the end of 2020.

The paper described Supercars as a “loss-making endeavour” for owners ViacomCBS, and that it “was no longer prepared to invest in the sport”.

A statement provided to the AFR by Supercars said: “Supercars’ discussions with Ten are focused on racing again as soon as possible and then the shape of this

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year’s championship.”

At the same time The Australian has reported former Supercar partner, the Seven Network, is also unlikely to pitch for the rights.

Run by former Supercars boss James Warburton, Seven has plenty of cost issues - exacerbated by the coronavirus - without bidding for the Supercars championship.

Channel 9 is the only other Australian commercial free-to-air network.

Also in The Australian Supercars chairman Peter Wiggs, the owner of the category’s majority owner Archer Capital, admitted it had been a “poor investment”.

Archer bought a 65 per cent share in the sport for $137 million in 2011. Supercars

was recently valued by Archer at $34.9 million.

“Supercars has been a poor investment for Archer Capital, and we make no secret of that,” Wiggs is reported to have said.

“But since I got involved as chairman, and have had the benefit of two extremely good CEOs in James Warburton and Sean Seamer and a very good management team backing those guys, and a very good partnership with the teams,

Image: LATes

we’ve managed to turn that around.”

There have reputedly been several bids for Supercars that haven’t succeeded.

Australian Racing Group owner Brian Boyd is said to be a persistent suitor. BN

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FOCUSSED ON THE FUTURE NISSAN’S MOTORSPORT FUTURE REVEALED

New Nissan global motorsport boss Tommaso Volpe says electrification is a priority for the Japanese manufacturer.

Images: Nissan/LAT

NISSAN HAS a new global motorsports boss. His name is Tommaso Volpe and he is now in charge of the Japanese manufacturers investments in Formula E, Japanese Super GT, prototype racing and international GT 3.

Volpe takes over from Michael Carcamo, who during his tenure withdrew Nissan from the disastrous world endurance championship and DeltaWing projects and transitioned into Formula E, where it effectively replaced alliance partner Renault on the grid.

Carcamo was also the global motorsport boss when Nissan pulled the plug on the local Supercars program run by Kelly Racing. In this edited interview, Volpe is clear there won’t be a return to the Aussie V8 category by Nissan any time soon.* On a return date for racing after the COVID-19 pandemic That is a big question and I think no-one really has a real answer … In terms of Formula E there is a determination to finish the championship somehow and not to void it. The advantage of Formula E is five races already happen so it is not that far off from a complete championship and then to focus on the next championship. Of course the safety of everyone involved is primary for everyone; teams, FIA… Once this is secured we will find a way to finish the championship.

On his goals for Nissan global motorsport We take from the great job that has been done so far. It has not been easy the last few years to set a (Formula E) team up from scratch and to be already be performing on-track. The strategy doesn’t change, the objectives are always the same; to prove our expertise in electrification and

mobility in general.

So we start from there. Definitely what we want to consolidate is the value for the brand and so you see that is why my profile is likely different from my predecessor. I have more a business management profile because … we want to consolidate the value this project delivers to the brand and to the business.

The next step when I say value, I mean this is the core of the project. We want to make it clear and strong on the promotional level. So we want to make it as strong, we want to make a difference when we start to promote … for the business, for our audience for the people all involved, using this which is an amazing global platform like very few others to promote our brand as expert in electrification and mobility.

So this is the value we need to extract from what is the core of the project which has been set up.

On the future of the GT Academy, won by Australian Matt Simmons in 2015 The GT Academy was an amazing project. We are so proud of it. It is not going further. It is interesting that we can now use some of the drivers that we had from previous seasons to work with the new racing on the platform that Formula E is putting in place. As you know Formula E is organising this championship for simulator drivers as well and it is interesting they want to distinguish the professional drivers from the simulator drivers.

This gives us the ability use two of the winners from previous GT Academies in the simulator drivers. We have done this already once and will do it for the next eight races. So we take from this experience from the past, but this can help us understand how to evolve and do something more in the future.

We want to see how the Esport world is evolving and what it can be for us. In a way we have experience for this because of the GT Academy.

It’s different but the principle is the same. So we were in a way pioneering in this area so let’s see what the Esport worldd is bending to us as a motorsport.

We can see what Formula E is doing but there might be other areas so we are investigating to see if we can use some of the experience we have in the past to do something as Nissan.

On the prospects of the DeltaWing concept racing again I don’t think so, at the moment we are quite busy with Formula E to be honest, with Super GT and the other categories we are involved in. Our strategy is quite firm now, it is quite strong.

We want consolidate … Formula E is an amazing platform and we have so much to achieve here first before exploring other things.

On Nissan’s focus on electrification and whether it precludes Nisan from involvement in categories like Australian Supercars We do have racing with the internal combustion engine with Nismo in Japan (Super GT). This is very important for us. It gives an answer to the audience of more traditional motorsport … and gives us also a platform to test and exhibit our expertise.

But if you see the priority of the business is now moving across towards electrification, so this is a big priority for us. So Formula E complements our racing categories with internal combustion engine

that we have and prototype category with more advanced technologies.

So at the moment we feel that we are quite complete in the traditional pyramid of motorsport.

Of course we are always open to investigate and it is our job to keep our eye on any category.

On Nissan’s interest in having a Formula E race in Australia We as a brand involved in the sport really look forward to seeing races in all our key markets, so we would welcome the decision to race in Australia or Japan. Of course we would like to see that. it is not our decision, but we are in daily contact with FEO (Formula E Operations – the business that runs Formula E). They have their ideas to select locations.

It is in the interests of everyone toward a global sport like Formula 1. It is in the nature of pinnacle motorsports to be global for many reasons, so I am sure there is the intention and the will to do it, but when it is happening (is not known).

As a manufacturer involved in motorsport you do want to have races where you know there is (interest), you would like that this is the priority.

And Australia, for instance, with its huge tradition of following motorsport – drivers as well – is a big potential audience. *Interview provided courtesy of carsales.com.au.

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CHIP GANASSI Racing has recruited the services of Matt Kenseth to replace Kyle Larson in the #42 Chevrolet for the remainder of the 2020 season.

As reported by Auto Action in the last issue, Larson was fired by the team and suspended from NASCAR after he said the ‘n’ word during a NASCAR e-Series race. It was expected that Ross Chastain would fill the vacant seat, however, Kenseth, now 48 and a former Cup Series and Daytona 500 winner, has been lured out of retirement having last raced in the series in 2018.

THE SECOND running of the FIA Motorsport Games set to take place at Circuit Paul Ricard in France, has been postponed until next year.

Although the FIA and SRO Motorsports Group felt that the French COVID-19 restrictions would have been lifted by October, the two parties elected to push the event back sighting a frantic end to 2019 for teams and drivers globally. The multi-disciplinary competition will now take place on 22-24 October 2021, with the event set to grow from six disciplines to 15. In the inaugural games Australia finished in joint second position.

Image: LAT

IT HAS been confirmed that Ryan Newman has been cleared to return to NASCAR competition, after the Roush Fenway Racing driver suffered a serious head injury when he crashed spectacularly on the last lap of the Daytona 500 earlier this year. The 42-year-old spent two nights in hospital after the accident and has since made a speedy recovery. Early last week NASCAR confirmed that he has been medically cleared to return to racing.

Image: LAT

THE FIA Formula E Championship has signed a five year extension to remain in Rome until at least 2025, following a meeting of the Rome City Council. The all-electric series has visited the Italian capital since season 4 and with approval of the FIA World Motor Sport Council, they will continue to do so until the end of the 11th season.

Rome is one of six Formula E events on the current calendar that has been postponed due to the global COVID-19 pandemic.

Image: Red Bull

THE FIA World Rallycross has pushed back a move to electric powered for a second time, with the regulations now set to be introduced for the start of the 2022 season.

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INTERNATIONAL INTEREST IN S5000 AS PROFESSIONAL motor racing begins to show signs of firing back into life ,national categories are attempting to rejig their calendars to cater accordingly with some series’ considering a switch to a summer series.

Despite the ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic, the popular Australian S5000 Championship has continued to attract international interest.

“My primary role is to attract new faces to come along and build up the grid and I’m pleased to say there is a fair bit of that going on at the moment,” S5000 founder and category manager Chris Lambden told Auto Action.

“We have even had in the last week a very interesting communication from a European team who, having seen what we

are about, are seriously interested in coming here and running an S5000 team.”

AA asked whether Lambden and the Australian Racing Group are considering moving to a summer series going forwards, to enable European teams to come over to Australia and compete during their winter break.

“That is one of the options under discussion. Other than the time frame which does mean Europeans can come here more easily, there are other considerations such as the TV deal and Motorsport Australia, this is just one of the things ARG is looking at at the moment amongst various options,” he explained.

S5000 was originally scheduled to compete at Winton Raceway last

weekend as part of the Motorsport Australia Championship schedule, but after heavy rain much of the paddock and a couple of turns on the race track are under water.

Lambden expressed his personal desire to move S5000 to a summer series, sighting this as a reason.

“Personally I think it is a terrific idea because motorsport in Australia did used to happen across summer, we are the only country that races across winter,” he said.

“Had COVID-19 not hit us we’d

have been at Winton last week and that would have been a bit grim. I guess it is a little plus in thinking we might return to summer.”

Lambden feels that the COVID-19 situation is the perfect opportunity to make some important decisions moving forwards.

“Whilst there is a rush in some areas to get back on track, I think it is an opportunity to make a couple of solid decisions that will be an upside going forwards,” Lambden said. Dan McCarthy

NT BACK ON TRACK

Image: Russell Martin

VALE: PETER LARNER FORMER OPEN wheeler driver and leading Formula Ford engine builder Peter Larner has passed away.

A frontrunning competitor during the 1970s, Larner was later known for his race engines, which powered the likes of future stars Mark Webber, Craig Lowndes, Will and Alex Davison, Marcos Ambrose and Mark Winterbottom.

Success came for Larner in 1977 when he won the Australian Formula 2 Championship at his home track Sandown, after finishing second to Graeme Crawford the previous year, driving an Elfin 700 Ford.

Previous to that, he had success in the TAA Formula Ford Driver to

Europe Series, finishing runner up in 1975, winning the round at Amaroo Park in an Elfin 620.

He also finished top five in the standings two years earlier, taking victory at Calder Raceway driving a Wren.

He later competed in Formula Pacific in a Kaditcha Ford.

He later built and developed category leading Formula Ford engines, which to this day are used in the growing historic ranks, of which he was heavily involved.

Larner had battled illness in recent years, but was still an attendee at Victorian historic events.

Auto Action sends its condolences to the Larner family. HM

MA LICENCE UPDATE AS RACE events remain prohibited and a planned national return still unknown at this time due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Motorsport Australia has announced changes to the expiration of selected racing licence types.

The Motorsport Australia Board approved the amendments after a month-long consultation between MA members and other stakeholders.

With State and Federal Government restrictions still in place there was a need to ensure licence holders were supported, according to Motorsport Australia president Andrew Papadopoulos.

We are certainly very keen for motorsport to return, but we are currently in somewhat of a holding pattern as we wait for things to improve,” Papadopoulos said.

“As such, over recent weeks, our administration has been working out the best solution for our licence holders, in consultation with State Councils and clubs, and have determined that those with national and clubman licences will automatically have their licences extended as outlined.

THE NORTHERN Territory will be the first area of Australia to hold motor sport events, with the government confirming last week that it is one of a select number of sports given permission to recommence.

Motor sport events can from May 15 after Motorsport Australia lobbied the territory government. Federal lobbying will also continue as Motorsport Australia undertakes to meet strict health and safety guidelines at future events.

It comes after Motorsport Australia recently also announced extensions to current racing licences amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Throughout the last month, Motorsport Australia has worked to achieve both these goals and a return to racing is the result of plenty of work behind the scenes, Motorsport Australia director of motorsport and commercial operations Michael Smith explained.

“We’ve worked closely with Motorsports NT in this case and we are thrilled that motorsport can return as of 15 May in the Northern Territory,” Smith said.

“The return of motorsport to the Territory ahead of some other sports is a terrific show of faith in our plans and we are now looking to make sure that the rest of the country can see a return of events in the near future.

“Our CEO Eugene Arocca, along with many of our hard working staff members, remain in constant contact with governments across the country and hope to be able to see others replicate the Northern Territory’s position in the coming weeks.” HM

“We have also committed to a price freeze on all Speed and Junior licences.

“The changes to the expiration dates also allow us to move National and Clubman licences on to a more regular renewal cycle, meaning that renewals can be processed every quarter, instead of every month, as is the case now. This will ensure our membership team can perform as efficiently as possible, making the annual renewal of a licence as simple as possible for members and reducing any delays.”

Another Motorsport Australia initiative is to give licence holders the ability to buy one, get one free at a Shannons Motorsport Australia Championships round of their choice in either 2020 or 2021.

The changes are: • All Junior and Speed licences to be subject to a price freeze until 31 December, 2021;

• All National and Clubman licence holders whose licence has expired in the period from wh 1 JJanuary to 31 March 2020, and have yet to renew, will be extended to 30 June, 2020; ren •an upcoming expiry in April, May or June 2020 will have their expiry date extended to 30 202 September, 2020; Sep •an upcoming expiry in July, August and September 2020 will have their expiry dates Sept extended to 31 December, 2020; •an upcoming expiry in October, November and December 2020 will have their expiry dates extended to 31 March, 2021; •an upcoming expiry in January, February and March 2021 will have their expiry dates extended to 30 June, 2021; Speed licence holders will receive a $25 Motorsport Australia e-store voucher valid for 12 months if they renew prior to June 30, 2020.

The changes to the expiry dates came into effect on May 1, 2020. HM

BOYS IMPRESSES IN S5000

Image: LAT

NASCAR RETURNS IN MAY THE FIRST major series to return after the COVID-19 pandemic will be NASCAR, after it was announced it planned to return on May 17 at Darlington, but with no crowds.

Races that were to occur during the enforced lay-off at Atlanta, Homestead, Texas, Richmond, Talladega and Martinsville have been postponed.

Darlington will hold two events for NASCAR Cup with a second race being held three days later.

“NASCAR and its teams are eager and excited to return to racing, and have great respect for the responsibility that comes with a return to competition,” said Steve O’Donnell, NASCAR executive vice president and chief racing development officer.

“NASCAR will return in an environment that will ensure the safety of our competitors, officials and all those in the local community.

“We thank local, state and federal officials and medical experts, as well as everyone in the industry, for the unprecedented support in our return to racing, and we look forward to joining our passionate fans in watching cars return to the track.”

NASCAR has also confirmed one of its marquee events, the Coca Cola 600 at Charlotte, will commence as scheduled on Memorial Day weekend, leaving it the sole event as both the Indianapolis 500 and Monaco Grand Prix have been postponed.

Darlington has been condensed to just qualifying and the race. HM

A TEST prior to the current pause in motor sport has whetted Super2 rising star Jordan Boys’ appetite for S5000.

During a test held at Winton Motor Raceway driving the 88 Racingprepared S5000, Boys set times close to the leading contenders in the championship, who regularly test at the venue.

Although maintaining that Super2 is his main priority, Boys is eager to get an opportunity in the V8 openwheelers in the future.

“I would love to try and do that, but obviously Super2 is my main focus,” Boys told Auto Action.

“If it is a possibility I will try and do it. We will have to wait and see what we can and can’t do, and what Albert Callegher from 88 Racing is up to.”

Boys gave a glowing review of the

S5000 after the opportunity to test the 88 Racing example came up through a past acquaintance.

“The opportunity came about through Greg Woodrow, who I did Formula Ford with. We bought our Formula Ford off him and he helped us a lot through Formula Ford,” Boys explained.

“He runs that (88 Racing) car so there was an opportunity there to go and help them out for a day and I got to do some laps. I’d love to be able to race one because they are a really cool bit of kit.”

The dual Super2 race winner is also hoping to be among the Pirtek Enduro Cup driver market later this year.

“I would say stepping into the series is my main focus, but you have to be realistic with that stuff,

there is only so many seats around,” Boys said.

His Super2 team, Image Racing is aligned with Erebus Motorsport, but teammate Will Brown and rival Brodie Kostecki have filled those seats.

This hasn’t stopped the 22-year-old holding discussions with other teams.

“Definitely spoken to a few (teams), at the moment it is sort of on hold a bit, fingers crossed I’ll be on the grid,” Boys said.

“There are drives around but you need to take a bit of cash to get there and that is not something I can generally do.

“I’d say my goal is to try and step up into the main series but if I can’t do that, I’d be looking to be a codriver.”

Boys is featured as the latest Auto Action Young Gun on P42-43. DM

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LATEST NEWS

So what’s like driving a simulated Supercar in the chaotic BP All Stars Eseries?

Castrol Racing’s Rick Kelly invited Bruce Newton along for a wild ride.

RICK KELLY’S Castrol Ford Mustang teeters on two wheels before slamming back to earth and slewing across the track.

“Jack Smith,” he says without anger.

Rather, it’s a resigned, world-weary acknowledgement of the inevitable as he slumps back in that incongruous blue camping chair.

The inevitable being for the third straight race in the fourth round of the BP All Stars Eseries, Kelly hasn’t been able to escape the first lap before being nailed.

This time the 2006 Supercars champion and two-time Bathurst 1000 winner hasn’t even made it past the first corner at Watkins Glen before being tagged by Smith.

A rookie in the pandemic-postponed Information overload. Eseries drivers not only have the sim game to contend with but also are linked real-world Supercars championship, the with Supercars Media and fans via Facebook Live. Images: Bruce Newton/Kelly Racing.

BJR driver clearly isn’t that experienced in the digital version either.

Earlier this Wednesday evening Kelly had Shift to upstate New York for the hit from that have formed his digitised windscreen dodged carnage on much of the first lap Smith and finally another serve into the are blacked out. of the first race at Montreal’s Circuit Gilles His mood isn’t quite as dark, but he’s had armco a couple of corners into race four Villeneuve, until hitting an already spun Fabian courtesy of Jack Le Brocq (probably). happier moments.

Coulthard.

Rick’s understandably exasperated.

“I struggle with it a little bit,” he says of In the reverse grid race two he was in the simulator racing. “I am not enjoying it, but “I’m trying to stay out of trouble. I’ve never wall pretty much straight away as all hell taken anyone out and these f***** idiots I am sure if I was competitive I’d enjoy it broke loose courtesy of slow-starting Joey are just f****** into it aren’t they.” more.”

Logano. The aerial view of this shemozzle is We’re sitting in Rick’s shed, his Rick’s kindly allowed Auto Action to join like watching a bunch of crazed V8 Lemmings increasingly famous wooden-framed race him during the fourth round of the BP All wheelspinning full throttle off a cliff. simulator now shut down. The triple screens Stars Eseries for an inside view of what hundreds of thousands of us have been tuning or streaming into to get our fix of live motorsport since COVID-19 struck.

Sitting a socially distanced few metres behind him, seeing what he’s seeing, is as close as I’m ever going to get to a real Supercar environment in the heat of battle.

There’s actually no heat and not that much noise, but the graphics beaming back into Kelly’s cockpit are intense. Off the line wildcard Angelo Mouzouris erratically veers close, away and then close again. Kelly drives under Nick Percat’s Commodore at another start, He’s in a Shell V-Power sandwich later, going door-to-door with Scott Mclaughlin as the Eseries leader emerges from the pits. Marcos Ambrose shovels up the inside, then gets sideways on the gas at the exit. There are entertaining dices with Kely’s simulator is among the more basic of the setups used by Supercars drivers in the Eseries but still gets the job done.

10 AutoAction

Alex Davison and Todd Hazelwood, but Kelly says it’s not like the real stuff.

“You can only hear the other cars a little bit, not like in the real car, ” he explains. “The mirrors on these cars aren’t great either. It’s not easy to see where the cars are around you. They jump around with the internet, so you can think a car is over there and then it’s right next to you.”

Still, Kelly’s effort can’t be doubted. Even after his chances of a result in a race have been literally knocked out, he’s still there punching away.

There’s a sharp violence to his efforts; stamping hard on the brake pedal, forcing the car down to the apex, getting on the gas as early and hard as possible exiting corners. His big hands hook around the small steering wheel, catching slides and stabbing at the change paddles. It’s weird though, on-screen the car is jolting and moving over ripple strips on the screen but he’s sitting stock still.

Rick’s wearing his full race suit - so all the sponsors get some exposure - and racing shoes. But headphones instead of helmet.

He absent-mindedly scratches his nose – try doing that through a full-face helmet, balaclava and gloves.

Every now and then he mutters, chuckles or quietly castigate himself for a mistake. He is completely absorbed. He looks fast, it’s just that the guns in the field like Mclaughlin and Shane van Gisbergen are faster.

Rick Kelly with his now iconic self-built simulator. It has inspired numerous fans to follow suit, and share their builds with the Catsrol Mustang racer.

Dual screens provide Kelly with a panoramic view of the action for this sim racing rookie.

“A lot of people ask ‘is it like the real thing?’ and the answer is ‘not really’,” Kelly reflects.

“In the real-world I feel the car through my backside and I feel it moving around and hear the tyres locking. I hear it subconsciously because I have done it for so long, I can hear when the engine is performing well or when I need to shift gears and I feel every little thing.

“That’s how the car communicates to me.

“Here, I am sitting in a camper chair and the only way I can feel what the computer car is telling me is through feedback it is digitally creating via the steering wheel and the sound and that’s it.

“My brain hasn’t adapted to all that it is trying to tell me.”

Despite the frustrations, there are good

www.autoaction.com.au

moments. He records his best finish of the series so far of 12th in the night-second race. Then, deep in race three he spies a small dot in the distance and realises its Logano. The NASCAR champ is 6.4 seconds ahead. By the chequered flag Kelly is on his tail. It’s a highlight.

“Another lap I would have been on him, I dunno if I would have got past him.”

They are racing for 23rd place.

“I never give up,” Kelly says. “I have never given up in any race in my entire career. I’ve stuffed a lot of races up but I’ve never given up.

“I’ve always been like that, which is a good trait to have.”

A complete sim racing rookie leading in to the Eseries, Rick always knew he would

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struggle to be competitive. Not only did he have no experience, but full-time work keeping the family Supercar business Kelly Racing up and running during the pandemic shutdown means there’s been little chance to play catch-up.

“It’s a very difficult discipline to master,” he explains. “When this was first announced I thought ‘great I’ll give this a bit of time and I’ll be competitive by the end’. But even if I spent all day on it I can’t see it happening in that timeframe.

“It’s that challenging.”

Some rivals are spending 8-10 hours a day practicing and preparing in their simulator rigs, backed up by their team engineers.

Kelly has been able to spare about 5-6 hours per week and with real-world engineer George Commins temporarily laid off, he is on his own.

Commendably, Commins has offered to ‘spot’ on race nights, but Kelly has declined.

He does look like he needs some help as he settles in to his camping chair and starts switching on computers, laptops, monitors, cameras, speakers, apps … and himself.

Apart from the challenging task of driving the car, he is managing tyres, fuel and pit stop timing, he is communicating with Supercars Media – which is producing the show – via the Discord app, keeping up to date via whatsapp on the schedule and talking to fans via Facebook Live.

He also wants to set up a Twitch account to

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livestream himself during races, as a bunch of his rivals now do. It’s just finding the time and having the know-how to do it.

And that’s a key part of Rick’s story when it comes to sim racing; do it yourself. He knew from the beginning he wasn’t going to be generating publicity with race results, so to engage with fans and sponsors he built his own rudimentary simulator with a wooden chassis. Over the weeks it’s been upgraded, but the core do it yourself ethos persists and has proven popular.

On Kelly Racing’s Youtube channel four videos dealing with the sim-build have been released and attracted about 150,000 views.

That more than racing itself has really given Kelly satisfaction.

“The primary concern for me is not to get good at sim racing, the primary concern is to keep the sponsors happy and engaged in a very unique time and keep the fans engaged.

And I have done that.

“I’ve known coming into this I am going to suck at it, so my idea is to build a simulator, try to relate to everyone at home and try and have a bit of fun in the process.

“One of the cool things is heaps of people have copied my sim build with a camping chair and a lot of people have sent them to me on Instagram and social media and I’ve really loved that; to see people at home say ‘I can see what he’s done and I’m gonna have a crack at it’.

“That side of it has been really great.”

AutoAction

11

with Oscar Piastri

LUCK DESERTS DOOHAN

AUDI TO LEAVE DTM IT WASN’T quite the Formula 3 ‘debut’ I had hoped for – a virtual SIM race at Barcelona instead of the real deal – but it was great to take part as a wildcard in the Australian Racing Group’s eSport Cup recently.

I’ve done more laps around Barcelona than any other circuit, so I had an advantage there, but to take away a race win, a podium, and the overall round win was satisfying.

The ARG series was competitive upfront with only a half-a-tenth across the top three in qualifying – the opposition was first-rate.

As with lots of online races, early on it was more about who could keep their car on the track, but when it settled down it was good fun, and the competition filled the void that the isolation has created.

To have a properly organised race and race like it was real, against talented drivers again, was excellent.

It got me pumped up enough to text the ARG guys immediately afterwards to see if I can take part in its next round.

I’m not expecting a “yes,” but I wanted to let them know how much I enjoyed the night and appreciated the opportunity.

It was pretty cool to line up in a race with drivers like Garth Tander and Steve Johnson, names I’ve watched on TV since I was a little kid – they’re legends.

It was also good to race against talented young guys like Tom Randle, Will Brown, and

Jay Hanson, drivers you know are serious enough but are not there fighting for their lives.

After winning Race 1, I had to start the next race 20th, but I was able to come home with a podium to secure the round – similar to what I did in real life at the same track last year!

I knew there was going to be heaps of carnage with the reversed grid, so I tried not to get taken out on the first lap, but Nic Carroll and I had a little bingle. Luckily, it was just a spin with no damage and only a couple of seconds lost, and I was able to get back on my way quickly and stay out of trouble for the remaining laps.

There were no podium celebrations afterwards, but there was a reward – Mum’s Golden Syrup dumplings that I had waiting for me when the race was over. Being based in Europe, I only get to enjoy them two or three times a year, so they went down a treat!

Ironically, I was supposed to be in Barcelona racing my HP Tuners Prema Racing Dallara in the FIA F3 Championship this weekend.

I’ve been in constant contact with Prema and Renault Sport during the pandemic lockdown, keeping up-to-date about when the season might kick-off.

There’s still a lot of uncertainty, and there’s not much more that they can tell us at this point other than what you’re reading in the pages of this Auto Action issue.

What I do know is that when everything is safe and the time is right, I’ll be ready to go!

Art imitates life. Piastri won the virtual F3 race at Barcelona, like he did in real life in Formula Renault last year.

Oscar’s next column will appear in Auto Action’s issue # 1787 on sale June 4.

12 AutoAction

AUDI HAS announced it is leaving the German-based DTM series at the conclusion of the 2020 season to focus on a green future.

The Board of Audi AG said that its decision was made in light of the economic challenges caused by the Coronavirus pandemic and the German manufacturer push towards a carbon-neutral footprint.

The announcement comes as no great shock, as Audi was discussing its future in DTM at the end of 2019, well before the Covid-19 outbreak.

Audi is following the trend set by parent company Volkswagen, which elected to withdraw from all nonelectric forms of motor sport last year.

“With this energy, we’re going to drive our transformation into a provider of sporty, sustainable electric mobility going forward,” chairman of the board of management of Audi AG Markus Duesmann said.

“That’s why we’re also focusing our efforts on the race track and systematically competing for tomorrow’s ‘Vorsprung.’ Formula E offers a very attractive platform for this, to complement it, (and) we’re investigating other progressive motor sport formats for the future.”

It is the latest blow to the DTM after the R-Motorsport Aston Martin team announced it had dropped its program ahead of the 2020 season, leaving 16 entries on the grid.

The withdrawal of Audi will leave just BMW as the soleremaining manufacturer on the grid for 2021, and series chairman Gerhard Berger has admitted that DTM’s future is entering a critical period.

A mainstay of the current DTM era that began in 2000, Audi has won 114 races, 106 pole positions and its drivers have won 11 titles. Prior to this current DTM formula, Audi contested the former 2.5-litre series from 1990-1992.

“Audi has shaped the DTM and the DTM has shaped Audi. This demonstrates what power lies in motorsport – technologically and emotionally,” said Duesmann.

However next year the brand will focus on the all-electric Formula E Championship as well as various customer racing projects.

Audi has been involved with Formula E since the series began in 2014, with the German brand taking the first ever race win and remains the most successful team in terms of race victories. Dan McCarthy

BTCC ANNOUNCE REVISED CALENDAR

THE BRITISH Touring Car Championship will take in nine events consisting of 27 races, after series organiser TOCA released a revised 2020 calendar.

Provisional events are planned to kick off in August, however government directives and approvals will be taken into account before these events are confirmed.

Donington Park is scheduled to be the season opener on August 1-2, beginning a five-week run that encompasses four events.

Brands Hatch is the next week, Oulton Park a fortnight later and Knockhill in Scotland completes this grouping.

September and October will each feature two events, though a second trip to Silverstone has been ruled out.

However, the traditional finale at Brands Hatch remains in place, but will be held later in the year on November 14-15.

“These are incredibly challenging times for the whole

nation,” said BTCC chief executive Alan Gow. “Through it all we have seen the importance of being both adaptable and pragmatic … and the BTCC is no different. So, it’s entirely logical to draft plans and lock-in our provisional dates, with the ability to amend those if circumstances dictate.

“Obviously this calendar presents a hectic four months, with three separate back-to-back events and four events in the first five weeks alone.

“But our teams and drivers are fully up for the challenge - there’s such enormous energy, enthusiasm and passion for the BTCC that everyone will want to just roll up their sleeves and get the action underway when the time comes to go racing.

“However, the over-arching element will always be to ensure we have the correct procedures and protocols in place, to provide a safe environment.”

Heath McAlpine

F1 NEWS

CRYING WOLF (AGAIN) FERRARI HAS threatened to quit Formula 1 so many times that it is easy to see why team principal Mattia Binotto’s recent remarks – regarding why Ferrari is against lowering the 2021 budget cap to below US$145m – could be misinterpreted.

“The $145m US dollars level is already a new and demanding request compared to what was set out last June,” Binotto, referring to the original cap of $175m, told The Guardian.

“It cannot be attained without further significant sacrifices, especially in terms of our human resources. If it was to get even lower, we would not want to be put in a position of having to look at other further options for deploying our racing DNA.” Once, to prove it was serious about leaving F1, Ferrari actually built an IndyCar to race in the 1986 CART season.

Ferrari was unhappy that the new F1 engine rules for 1988 were for V8 normally aspirated engines that would replace the V6 turbos. Ferrari also said it might quit if the proposed budget cap was introduced in 2010.

But Ferrari issued the following statement to clarify its current position: “We would like to clarify what Mattia said in his interview published last night.

He never mentioned about Scuderia Ferrari quitting F1, on the contrary, he said that we would not want to be put in a position of having to look at further options, besides continuing racing in F1, for deploying our racing DNA in case the budget cap would be even more drastically reduced, putting Image: LAT at risk hundreds of workplaces. The misunderstanding was raised by the misleading headline of the article which was published at first and was immediately than what I want,” Ecclestone told Autocar. “If Ferrari corrected.” wanted to leave, then they should have done it.

Ferrari favours a two-tier budget cap – higher for They never did, and as it happens I have only fond the big teams who need the money for R&D and to memories of Mr. Ferrari. He always told me what build the parts for the customer teams, and lower was really going on, even when he was busy telling for those teams that don’t incur those costs. everyone else the opposite.

Former F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone said he “never “I think F1 without Ferrari isn’t at all good. And took any notice” of Ferrari’s quit threats.

Ferrari’s brand is so strong that they could walk away “I’m not a man to take notice of anything other from F1 and still be huge. Even when they aren’t

NEW DEAL NEEDED

FORMULA 1 and motor sports in general must use these difficult times to make improvements for the future.

That is the opinion of FIA president Jean Todt.

He used the example of the New Deal that United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt enacted during the Great Depression between 1933 and 1939. It was a series of financial reforms, public work programmes and other new regulations, many of which are still in Image: LAT place today.

Indeed, Todt and the FIA have already taken some drastic actions, such as postponing the radical 2021 technical regulations to 2022, and mandating the 2020 cars must be used again in 2021.

Now, given the worldwide impact of Covid-19, the FIA has made a significant change to its International Sporting Code that will allow next year’s F1 budget cap to be reduced despite Ferrari’s objections.

Under the old regulations, by this time of the year any changes to the 2021 rules would require a unanimous vote by all 10 teams. So Ferrari, which is against lowering

the 2021 budget cap below US$145 million, could have effectively vetoed that proposal. The only way that the FIA was able to make instant changes was on the grounds of safety.

Now, with this new safeguard clause added, the FIA can make swift regulatory changes with a majority vote from the teams under exceptional circumstances.

McLaren’s CEO Zack Brown is flabbergasted by Ferrari’s team principal Mattia Binotto’s stance that F1 should take its

winning in F1, you could ask a man in the street who won the world title and he would just say Ferrari.”

Ferrari, of course, is the only team to have competed in every F1 season since the modern world championship began in 1950. Despite that, the team has not competed in every single race. Still, with 991 F1 races in the record books, Ferrari will hit the 1000 mark when the 2020 season eventually begins. Dan Knutson

time deciding what to do.

“I’m almost at a loss of what you say to that,” Brown said. “I think we all recognise that in modern times we’re going through the biggest crisis the world has seen. You have countries shut down. You have industry shut down, and to not be in a hurry to address what’s going on, I think, is a critical mistake.

It’s living in denial.

“I think you would find pretty much every president or prime minister or CEO around the world is operating in a hurry to tackle this issue head on.”

Red Bull team boss Christian Horner believes one way to help the smaller squads is by the big teams selling them “customer” cars. That way they would not have to spend money designing and developing their own cars.

However, Brown is against concept.

“The last time there were customer cars, I believe, was the 1970s,” Brown said. “So, for F1, which is all about being a constructor, I don’t see how that potential solution is consistent with other comments that the DNA of F1 is a constructors’ championship and technology evolution: that feels like a solution from the ‘70s.”

As usual, the teams are not agreeing on things, but now the FIA is taking steps to make sure that reforms will be made for the good of the sport. DN

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ARG READY FOR RETURN OF RACING AUSTRALIAN RACING Group is looking to a return to racing in July or August if health restrictions continue to be eased.

Despite promising signs for a rollback starting as soon as next month, ARG doesn’t want to rush a resumption to give teams and organisers time to prepare.

ARG runs the major second-level categories – TCR, S5000, Touring Car Masters, Trans Am and V8 Touring Cars – that headline the Motorsport Australia Championships.

With the federal government set to approve a phased lifting of the ban on sporting activities on Friday, ARG has prepared plans to be back on track in two to three months.

“There are positive signs the COVID-19 fog is starting to clear and we’re starting to see a way out,” ARG chief executive Matt Braid said. “We’re working hand-in-hand with Motorsport Australia to work with governments on when it will be logical to go racing again.

“It’s now looking like there’s scope to move towards a calendar, in our estimation, starting in July or August. That is the time looking most likely that, with some certainty, you should be able to get going.”

Canberra is expected to recommend that major sports events be allowed to resume in June as TV-only affairs with no spectators and within a mass gathering limit of 500 people, as well as strict health protocols.

However, individual states like hardliner Victoria will still have the right to maintain restrictions, including closed borders.

NSW, Queensland, SA, WA, Tasmania, Northern Territory and ACT have already

started reducing their lockdowns as the coronavirus pandemic abates.

They are likely to be amenable to getting sports going again, especially the AFL and NRL competitions, on the back of which Supercars and other motor sport can plot a comeback.

ARG has developed various scenarios for a return, with dates and tracks for a compressed second half of the year season to be finalised once guidelines are established.

The one event it is not looking to shift is the Bathurst International from November 13-15, incorporating the postponed

Bathurst 6 Hour.

Braid emphasised that a return date and rescheduled calendar wouldn’t be hurried.

“We’ll err on the side of caution about when we’ll start talking about dates so that we can actually confirm a calendar rather than trying to rush back and possibly having to reschedule again,” he said. “That will also allow time for everyone to spool back up and get prepared, but also get some reasonable gaps in between events so we don’t go too rapid-fire.”

Braid, former boss of Volvo Australia and 2IC at Supercars, asserted ARG was in a strong position to survive the economic

strain of the coronavirus crisis – although not without impact.

“It’s going to be a different motor sport landscape,” he said. “I think we’re wellpositioned as a group with the categories we have and the cost base, so we’ll be in a good position in a post-COVID-19 environment.

“It’s going to be a very tough environment, so when I say that we’re going to be able to bounce back, it’s going to be bouncing back relative to a very difficult situation for everybody.

“So it’s not going to be easy by any means.” MF

TRIPLE EIGHT’S UNIQUE VENTILATOR

TRIPLE EIGHT Race Engineering Australia has revealed ‘The Conrod Project’, the second version of its emergency medical ventilator.

This second iteration of Triple Eight Race Engineering’s emergency medical ventilator was unveiled in a behind the scenes Triple Eight mini documentary series on the squad’s social media platforms.

Triple Eight Technical Director Jeromy Moore explained that ‘The Conrod Project’ has a number of unique features that differentiate it from other emergency ventilators currently used in hospitals including a telemetry system.

“Our ventilator incorporates a telemetry system which means that a qualified doctor or nurse can monitor a patient’s vitals, not only in real time but also analyse

it later. They can download the data like one of our race cars,” Moore said.

The added telemetry function allows the ventilators to function without constant staff in-put.

This frees up health workers to conduct other vital jobs explained team manager Mark Dutton. “Their initial worry in Australia was not a lack of ventilators but a lack of staff to operate the ventilators,” Dutton said.

“We’ve tackled that by installing onboard telemetry, like the race cars, that means one specialist can be monitoring as many patients as they feel comfortable, whether that’s 10, 50 or 100, and with the onboard alarms they can then direct the attention to the patient that needs it.”

Moore explained that building the ventilator is a demonstration

of the team’s capabilities.

“The goal for this project is to demonstrate that we can provide home grown solutions to substantial engineering challenges quickly and effectively and it’s about being able to assist with saving lives if

needed,” Moore said.

After the first prototype was completed, work immediately began to not only fine-tune the existing device, but enhance its capabilities to meet the requirements published by the Therapeutic Goods

Administration (TGA).

Triple Eight also had to match the expectations set by the Queensland State Government for an emergency ventilator for use in a hospital.

“The TGA has put together a specification document which has a ‘required’ list and a ‘desired’ list for Covid-19 ventilators,” said Dutton.

“Our ventilator is currently on track to satisfy both lists fully, but clearly would still need to be approved by the TGA if and when it goes into production.

The new documentary series delves into the partnership between Triple Eight and Australian cooling solutions company PWR, a supplier to the aerospace worldwide, as well as to a wide array of motor sport teams from its Gold Coast location. Dan McCarthy

SMP LIGHTING ON TRACK SYDNEY MOTORSPORT Park’s light tower installation is on track with the first of 132 completed at the Western Sydney venue.

The project, backed by the NSW Government, will allow Sydney Motorsport Park to be Australia’s first permanent motorsport facility to operate both day and night.

NSW Deputy Premier John Barilaro said he was proud to see the NSW Government’s strategic multi-million-dollar investment at Sydney Motorsport Park come to fruition, resulting in permanent circuit lighting and the establishment of Australia’s first and only motorsport Centre of Excellence.

“It’s a new era of racing and the 2020 Lighting Project at the Western Sydney Motorsport Precinct couldn’t have come at a better time,” said John Barilaro.

“We know that COVID-19 is taking its toll on this State, and racing can be a real morale boost for those isolating at home, so it will be fantastic when

motor racing gets back on track.”

Supercars CEO Sean Seamer said the introduction of lights at Sydney Motorsport Park offered significant opportunities for the future of motorsport in Australia.

“Seeing this project come to life is fantastic for Supercars and our fans across the state,” said Seamer.

“To be able to race at night under permanent lights here at SMSP is something we’ve been working towards for a long time. We look forward to getting on track as soon as possible.”

The $33m package of Government initiatives for the broader Western Sydney motorsport precinct saw $16.4 million go towards creating Australia’s first motorsport circuit with permanent lighting.

“ARDC’s strategic direction will build on motorsport engineering excellence to develop a Western Sydney hub for technology innovation and education,” said ARDC President, Andrew Leithhead.

“This lighting project will enable Sydney Motorsport Park to become a 24/7 home for a broad spectrum of stakeholders in motorsport, driver training, tourism, entertainment and manufacturing in the heart of Australia’s fastest growing urban area.”

The Lighting project will see a total of 132 light towers install with 864 individual light fittings placed around the entirety of the four circuit configurations and training skidpan at Sydney Motorsport Park.

Utilising advances in technology including the latest in LED technology it will see a minimum 400LUX lighting for all circuit configurations and 800LUX on

the main Brabham Straight bringing it into line with the same broadcast lighting requirement as other sporting venues.

The unfortunate circumstances surrounding COVID-19 from February this year saw the temporary shutting of the Eastern Creek track, however, this allowed the lighting project to move ahead rapidly while maintaining approximately 100 jobs on site.

The installation of the lighting at Sydney Motorsport Park will continue at pace during this enforced track shutdown, ready for racers to get back on track when current restrictions lift. Rhys Vandersyde

NRL APPROVAL MAY HELP SUPERCARS A QUEENSLAND government decision to allow National Rugby League players to cross borders could speed up a Supercars announcement on its revised calendar and formats.

Supercars CEO Sean Seamer had specified a mid-May deadline for the new calendar forced by the COVID-19 pandemic shut down, because that was the latest date work could start on assembling the Townsville street race.

But if Supercars can gain a similar exemption to the NRL then that would allow southern state Supercars teams to access Queensland and attend the June 26-28 race.

Of course, it would also allow Queensland teams to head south for the June 3-5 Winton event in Victoria, which is currently the first event on the calendar.

Supercars did not officially comment on the NRL announcement, but a spokesperson said it was aware of it and would be investigating the implications.

These could include strict health monitoring of team members, something the NRL has agreed to.

The Queensland government made its NRL announcement in the wake of today’s meeting of the national cabinet, which comprises federal and state leaders drawn together to fight the coronavirus.

The national cabinet today rolled out a 15 principle three-stage plan for professional and recreational

sport to resume.

Prime minister Scott Morrison and his sports minister Richard Colbeck outlined the three stages as stage A – no sport, which is where Australia currently is. The next stage is stage B – outdoor, non-contact sports in groups of 10 or less. Then it’s stage C – all sport.

Presumably, the national cabinet could approve stage B next Friday May 8, where it has signalled various restrictions introduced to quell the virus could be loosened.

But Morrison also made it clear that individual states would be responsible for what level of sport they would allow conducted and when they would allow it.

Among the 15 principles was one that in-part specified “elite sports, if recommenced, should do so in a spectator-free environment with the minimum support staff available to support the competition.”

Speaking earlier today before the outcomes of the national cabinet meeting were revealed, Supercars CEO Seamer said mid-May remained the timing for the category’s revised calendar and formats to be unveiled.

“We don’t anticipate any change to us providing an update for another couple of weeks yet,” Seamer told a motorsport media roundtable.

The Winton event is the earliest theoretical return to real-world racing but remains under serious question.

Townsville has also looked shaky. A calendar stretching out as far as February 2020 has been mooted.

Seamer said many different scenarios for dates, venues and formats were being considered.

“Everything is on the table as you can imagine,” he said. “Ultimately the format of the races will be a combination of what the teams are able to deliver and turn around their cars with from a damage and wear and tear point of view in conjunction with what our broadcast partners are looking for.”

With initial events television-only and likely restricted to maximum 500 people at the venue, including team

personnel, officials and broadcast staff, limited support categories on a racing bill are possible.

“We are working on multiple permutations of Supercars only, Supercars with supports, Supercars with fans. Our plans include everything and it has to because things are going to evolve over time quite quickly.

“Our plans have every circumstance catered for and as government advice and restrictions change we can mould and adapt those plans.”

Border closures are also an obvious current impediment to racing resuming. Unlike the AFL and NRL, gathering teams together in hubs is not a viable option for Supercars.

“Our teams need to be able to get back to base and work on their cars and turn their cars around,” he said. “It is very difficult to be taking that much equipment on the road to fully mobilise our series.

“So our preference remains to start the series at a time when we can start to traverse borders and deliver the championship we set out to.”

One good piece of news is that motorsport will be allowed to resume in the Northern Territory from May 15 onwards. The Supercars round is currently scheduled for July 17-19. Bruce Newton

BATHURST INTERNATIONAL TO GO AHEAD

POWERFUL PROMOTER Australian Racing Group is determined to run the new Bathurst International in November – with or without crowds.

Just don’t expect to see many – or any – international drivers for the event’s showcase TCR 500 km race.

Added to the calendar as a fifth major event at Mount Panorama, the Bathurst International was supposed to feature an end-of-season global TCR showdown.

Also on the packed November 13-15 program are ARG’s other properties – S5000, Touring Car Masters, Trans Am, V8 Touring Cars and the Bathurst 6 Hour production car enduro.

The coronavirus crisis has derailed big plans for foreign stars to compete in the TCR and S5000 races.

Several overseas teams and drivers were set to contest the new-look TCR Bathurst 500, but with Australia closed to international visitors until at least the end of the year, ARG boss

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Matt Braid is resigned to only local – and possibly NZ – entries.

“The international flavour is going to be significantly hamstrung by the virus, so the likelihood of teams and cars coming from Europe, for example, is probably highly unlikely at this stage,” Braid said. “There might be scope for cars and drivers to come from New Zealand (if a trans-Tasman travel ‘bubble’ is agreed).

“And then, if by chance international border restrictions are relaxed, we might see some international drivers participate, but it won’t be to the extent that we were originally aiming for.

“At this stage, it’s looking very difficult, but by November, who knows what’s going to happen. If there is a hope, it could be that maybe just drivers might be able to find their way out to participate.

“But that’s a big if at this stage.”

Even without international drivers in the TCR and S5000 races, Braid is adamant the Bathurst International will go ahead as

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scheduled – hopefully, in front of a live crowd.

ARG is aiming for a July/August resumption of racing, with Bathurst locked in for mid-November, including the postponed 6 Hour.

“The one thing we have set in stone is the Bathurst International event and the 6 Hour in November,” he declared. “So that’s definitely going forward in whatever capacity, depending on what the rules are by the stage.

“We hope to see some spectators back, but you don’t know.

Either way, we’ll be going ahead with that event.”

The Bathurst International is also scheduled to see the return of big-banger open-wheelers to Mount Panorama with S5000 – subject to final Motorsport Australia approval – plus Touring Car Masters, Trans Am and V8 Touring Cars.

The event is due to be shown live across the Seven Network.

MF

LATEST NEWS

NORRIS LATEST WILDCARD IN SUPERCARS ESERIES MCLAREN FORMULA 1 driver Lando Norris will contest Round 5 of the Supercars All Stars Eseries at Spa-Francorchamps on May 6.

Norris will drive a third Walkinshaw Andretti United Commodore, which will feature support from Arrow Enterprise Computing Solutions and Dell, as well as the team’s regular sponsors.

The 20-year-old finished his rookie Formula 1 season in 11th after finishing runner up in the FIA Formula 2 Championship to George Russell in 2018. His previous accomplishments include the 2017 FIA Formula 3 European Championship and a World Karting title.

Noted as one of the leading

Esports competitors in the world, Norris is thrilled to receive a Wildcard after being an avid viewer of the All Stars Eseries so far.

“I’m super excited to announce I’ll be joining the Supercars grid in Spa this week,” Norris said.

“There’s a lot of fast drivers in it, it’s going to be very tough, very competitive, but I’ve watched pretty much all of the races so far in the championship and it looks a lot of fun.

“I’m very excited, I hope you are too, and I hope to see you all on

Wednesday!”

Norris will be joined on the grid by a number of highly respected youngsters including 17-yearold Jack Doohan, the Red Bull Junior open-wheel ace Red Bull Junior has finished as the runner-up in the Asian F3 Championship the last two seasons.

Last season’s Super3 title rivals Broc Feeney and Jayden Ojeda

have both stepped up to the Super2 Series this year and will also compete in Belgium.

“I’m really looking forward to jumping in for Round 5 of the Supercars All-Star eSeries this Wednesday night at Spa. I think it’s going to be great fun, I get to jump in the Boost Mobile Ford Mustang for the first time, so I’m really excited for that,” Feeney said.

Ojeda is also excited to be mixing it with the big boys and is thankful to Supercars for the opportunity.

“I’m excited to see how we go against the Supercars guys, as well as Formula 1 driver Lando Norris,” Ojeda said.

“I’ve been enjoying watching the Eseries racing a lot, it’s something I’m really keen to have a crack at and I am so grateful Supercars has given some of the Super2 racers a go”.

Currently, Scott McLaughlin sits 89-points clear of Cameron Waters, while Shane van Gisbergen is a further 44-points in arrears. HM and DM

TAYLOR TO TAKE ON US FORMER AUSTRALIAN Rally Champion Molly Taylor has announced she plans to tackle two rounds of the American Rally Association, joining renowned team DirtFish when events resume.

Taylor was left without a drive after Subaru pulled out of the ARC at the end of last year, but she will continue with the brand in America where it is a big supporter of the rallying scene.

Last year was a busy season for Taylor, who combined an ARC campaign with a part-season in TCR Australia driving a Kelly Racing run-Subaru Impreza WRX STI in her circuit racing debut.

Prior to her winning the 2016 ARC, Taylor was a member of the World Rally Championship Academy and contested rounds of the European Rally Championship before returning to Australia with Subaru.

Taylor planned to contest two rallies, the first being the postponed Olympus Rally followed by the Oregon Trial Rally on May 29-31.

“Like Australia, America is where there’s regulations that provide a top-level category for the WRX STI, so competing with the Subaru internationally is one of the big draws,” Taylor told DirtFish.

“Rally is also growing a lot over there and there’s a lot of buzz around it [the ARA]. It would be a completely new opportunity and you never know where those things might lead, so I think the appeal of trying something new, throwing in another challenge

and being able to do that at a high level in a Subaru kind of ticked all the boxes for me.”

“I’m still aiming to compete in Australia, and there are some opportunities in the Asia Pacific Championship that I’d like to tackle and add to an international program. Obviously, everything is up in the air given the current situation, but hopefully we will still be able to put something together later in the year.”

DirtFish CEO Justin Simpson hopes Taylor will be able to demonstrate her talent in America once the pandemic situation eases.

“DirtFish Motorsports is really excited about the opportunity for Molly to compete in the 2020 Olympus Rally and Oregon Trail Rally,” said Simpson.

“Our four-wheel-drive Limited Subaru WRX STI wasn’t in the 2019 ARA season and we have been looking for the right opportunity to get back out there.

With Molly’s interest in rallying in the USA, DirtFish as the title sponsor of both rallies, and having our headquarters located in the Pacific Northwest it all seemed like a great fit.

“As you can expect, both rallies are currently on hold but our intentions still remain the same and we look forward to getting back out on the stages once our local governments deem it safe to do so.”

Taylor was also confirmed last week as pit reporter for the Shannons Motorsport Australia Championships TV coverage. Heath McAlpine

FORMAT CHANGE FOR ARG eSPORT CUP FOR THURSDAY night’s round of the ARG eSport Cup drivers will compete in both the open-wheel Formula 3 cars and Audi RS3 LMS TCR pocket rockets for the first time.

Up to this point the different disciplines have not been used at the one event, Rounds 1-3 were run in identical Audi TCR machines, while the most recent two events have seen the Australian Racing Group drivers compete in F3 cars.

Round 6 at Phillip Island this Thursday was set to remain with the Dallara F3 cars for the third straight week, but a passing suggestion from three-time Bathurst 1000 winner Garth Tander prompted the Australian Racing Group to change the format for this Thursday’s event.

The 40-plus grid will conduct a 15 minute qualifying session ahead of a 25 minute race in the Audi TCR cars, before hopping into the F3 car and running another 15 minute qualifying session and 25 minute race with full championship points awarded for both races.

Tander who sits seventh in the ARG eSport

Cup standings is pleased that his idea has been given the green light.

“This will be a real test for all of the drivers, even the guys that we are regularly seeing up the front,” Tander said.

“I’ve enjoyed the F3 races, and they will be awesome to drive around Phillip Island, but I reckon that the TCR cars have provided more entertainment for the fans. This will offer the best of both worlds.

“Having the two different cars on the one night is a real point of difference for the ARG series and I believe it will offer some mixed results and some interesting racing.

“Phillip Island makes the most sense for this. It’s one of our local tracks so almost everyone in our races will know this track really well. As long as I don’t get taken out like I did last week, I think it will be one of the best nights of racing that we’ve seen so far!”

Round 6 of the ARG eSport Cup at Phillip Island will be broadcast live on the TCR Australia and S5000 Facebook and YouTube channels this Thursday night from 8pm AEST. Dan McCarthy

WANNEROO NEW OWNERSHIP FOR AUSTRALIAN MASTER PLAN TARMAC RALLY CHAMPIONSHIP UNVEILED A NEW company has taken over the ownership LAST WEEK the master plan forecast for the of the Australian Tarmac Rally Championship. provisional Wanneroo Raceway upgrades were Australian Tarmac Rally PTY Limited has unveiled and featured an entirely new FIA Grade II purchased the four current events that make circuit adjacent to the current complex. up the ATRC, which includes the Great Tarmac The new precinct was proposed due to the cost Rally, Mt Baw Baw Sprint, Lake Mountain of improvements needed to the current circuit Sprint and Snowy River Sprint. outweighing the benefits and to optimise the parcel of Peter Washington’s Mountain Motorsports land that is to the north of the circuit. organisation has run the AASA-aligned Within the master plan it was stated that Turns 3,4 championship and is delighted by the new and 7 needed to be realigned on the existing circuit. structure.

Also, it was suggested that the circuit needed to be “Ursula and I are very excited for the next lengthened to at least 3km to attract world class chapter of Australian Tarmac Rally, being able international events and widened to 10m, to conform to see the events and brand taken to the next to Motorsport Australia guidelines. level, and we are excited to come along for the The cost of these changes at approximately $2.8 journey,” said Washington. million and the loss of character to the original layout Australian Tarmac Rally is the first fully-owned contributed to the Wanneroo Council favouring an female motor sport event management company entirely new complex. headed by executive directors Pamela Stables and This doesn’t mean the current layout will sit dormant, Brittany Smith. but it will turn into a driver training and club circuit for Smith is hoping the news brings surety to the Western Australian Sporting Car Club. competitor’s plans for when events can be resumed.

The new 4.6km design produced by noted circuit “We are very excited to continue the long tradition designers Apex meets the above stipulations and of Tarmac Rallying in not only Victoria, but Australiaincludes the ability to use various configurations, such wide,” Smith said. as a 2.9km National circuit inspired by recently built “With the recent tough times, we are hoping this will tracks such as The Bend Motorsport Park and Tony give people some light at the end of the tunnel and Quinn’s Highland Motorsport Park in New Zealand. something to look forward to. We have some great A significant pit lane facility featuring corporate and plans for the events, and we are looking forward to spectator viewing points are included. growth in the years ahead.”

The current layout will also receive a birthday with Stables stressed that ATR aim to not mess with the improvement of access into the circuit, an overpass formula that has been successful for the past eight and new fencing included within the master plan. years.

Priority 1 plans tally up to $183.5 million, which is “Our focus here at ATR, will be to continue to provide challenging, exhilarating and affordable tarmac rallies, with an emphasis on friendship and fun,” Stables emphasised.

RACE-WINNING HERITAGE QUALITY VALUE & SUPPORT Tilton Engineering strives to produce the best racing parts and service for drivers and racing teams dedicated to their sport.

Tilton’s wide range of products spans across metallic, cerametallic and carbon/carbon racing clutches, hydraulic release bearings, racing clutch disc packs, racing flywheels, racing pedal assemblies and master cylinders, the renowned Super Starter series, and the accessories that make them all work together.

“I am personally thrilled to again be interacting with made up of the above plus an off-road training course so many like-minded motorsport enthusiasts, and I and an FIM motocross track. really look forward to working with all competitors and Motorsport Australia has suggested the new facility participants to provide great tarmac rally experiences should be run by a private operator, but support the now, and at all future ATR events.” new Keysbrook development also situated in Western AASA business manager and spokesperson Stephen Australia.

Whyte has welcomed the new announcement The Wanneroo Council are estimating the new and is excited for the future developments of the complex, if all plans come to fruition, will be championship. completed by 2030 as the area continues to have “We would like to thank Peter and Ursula for a population boom and eyes an increase in Asian their many years of commitment to AASA through visitation.

Mountain Motorsports,” Whyte said.

It was also highlighted that the Perth SuperNight We are very pleased to continue as sanctioning Supercars event was ranked in the top seven events partner to the new management team at ATR with

by Tourism WA. all their current events. The AASA look forward to These plans also come after the Collie Motorplex working on these and new, exciting projects in the near Bunbury was recently extended and the future with the ATR team.” aforementioned Keysbrook facility, located south of ATR’s first event in charge will be the Snowy River Perth, is currently being assessed. HM Sprint on September 19-20, while the second round, The Great Tarmac Rally is yet to have a date.

A new class structure and the complete 2021 calendar is set to be revealed soon. Heath McAlpine

WEEKLY USA TILTON AIR FREIGHT DELIVERIES

FOX OFFERS MOVIES INSTEAD OF MOTORSPORT

PAY TV service Foxtel is offering Conversely, a Foxtel fan sports subscribers extra content wrote: at no additional cost in an “What is everyone whingeing attempt to convince them to not about everyone that has the A BREAK in last Australian promoters cancel their contracts. sport package have been given week that destroyed have offered fire Because of the coronavirus the movie package free until the fire and rescue equipment and people pandemic, virtually all live end of June and all subscribers equipment at Avalon have offered to help clean sports including all professional got the drama documentaries Raceway is currently up. motorsports have been lifestyle and cartoons package being investigated by “It’s been good.” postponed, leaving Fox Sports free until the end of May so police, but the venue The assailants broke into customers without the content what is everyone’s problem. Oh management are still four buildings including they are paying for.

I see you just want to have a calculating the cost of the one that possessed Fox Sports is the primary whinge!” damage. the security camera telecaster of the Australian Supercars return contact by social channels.

Auto Action contacted the Australian A call from a concerned equipment, taking the championship, Formula One and They can also send a text to 0408 346 Competition & Consumer Commission local last week after hard drive that contained MotoGP, none of which are racing at 733. for clarification. While not commenting spotting a burnt-out footage of their crimes. the moment. It is telecasting the new But complicating this, the network on Foxtel specifically, it issued the support vehicle was just the start of many discoveries on “It was a hell of a mess trying to clean that stuff [fire Supercars All Stars Eseries instead. has cut its call-centre staffing because following statement: April 27. retardant] up,” detailed Drew.

Despite the lack of real-world racing of the pandemic and customers “Where there have been changes to It comes at a time when sporting events are feeling “They went through four buildings, including the pit and many subscribers also losing looking to reduce their spends or the service being provided, the ACCC the pinch during the current COVID-19 pandemic, but office and that was where all the camera gear was so their jobs, Foxtel has not revealed any cancel contracts, are spending hours expects that the business will clearly the recent climate has been particularly hard for Avalon they took the hard drive out of the security system.” relief plan for financially distressed on hold. communicate these changes to its Raceway after rain outs and cancellations stopped its The team at Avalon Raceway are close to completing subscribers.

Meanwhile, upgrades to a customers. three largest meetings of the season from going ahead. the clean-up, but the cost of the robbery is still being Instead it has offered them reviews subscription service can be completed “Your rights in relation to a changed Long-time owners Jeff and Rod Drew shared images calculated. of their situation on a case-by-case online. service will depend on whether on social media showing the extent of the robbery, which “We’ve got everything locked up, we’ve repaired all the basis, as well as free additional An article on the news website The the change is a material change or not only included the ute, but more than $20,000 worth buildings, most are cleaned out and we’re in the process content such as its movie channels.

Daily Mail about the issue drew both whether the change has a minimal of fire and rescue equipment that had either been taken or of finding out what has gone missing at the same time, Auto Action has been querying Fox critics and fans of Foxtel and Fox effect on the business’ ability expelled within a shed. because initially you don’t know what’s been taken,” for three weeks about any specific Sports. to provide the service originally Since the social media post went live the day after the Drew explained. help it is providing to struggling One disgruntled customer wrote: contracted for. robbery, Jeff Drew has been inundated by requests from Police are hopeful of finding the assailants, but it marks subscribers during the pandemic.

“Given the sport i watch wont be on “Where the change is a material fans and businesses that have reached out to help clean the end of a tough season for Drew marked by a spate of “The feedback on movies in lieu for another 12 months at least, and change, you may wish to still continue or provide replacement equipment. vandalism and event cancellations. of sport has gone down well with the fact ive spent over 3 hours of my with the service. However, if you “We lost three major speedway meetings at the end of “It’s been brilliant, it’s very heart-warming that people subscribers, but if people are still miserable life on the phone trying to do not wish to continue, the ACCC the season, which kicks you in the bum a bit,” Drews and services have come forward to try to help out. The concerned they can contact us get through with no success.....when I expects that business will not charge speedway family has been good to us,” Drew told Auto lamented. directly to discuss options,” a Foxtel do i wont be down grading as intended you for the changed service where you Action.

“We’re still ok, our lives are alright, there’s a lot more spokesman told AA late last week. i will cancelling my whole platinum have advised the business that you do “We’ve had people offer stuff from Wollongong, South people worse off than us so we’ll keep on battling.” HM Customers are asked to call the 13 package on principle Foxtel customer not wish to proceed with the changed 19 99 or 1300 657 346 or request service sux ... looking at Netflix now..” service.” Bruce Newton

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F1 INSIDER

with Dan Knutson

Bruce Williams

Editor-At-Large

Mark Fogarty

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THE REAL COST OF GOING RACING TO HOW MUCH IT TAKES GET ON TRACK

Images: LAT, AA Archives.

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BIOSPHERE RACES THE ANSWER? ONE DAY, at the conclusion of a race weekend, the racing fraternity will drive out of the paddock and out of the circuit to find nothing but charred countryside and flattened buildings.

I read that in a magazine a long time ago.

The writer was trying to illustrate just how focused and dedicated people are about motor sports – to the extent that they ignore the outside world.

That’s true even at the club racing level, never mind the top professional series.

When my mates and I raced Formula Vees years ago, we would spend the entire weekend entrenched in the paddock, focused on the cars and cut off from the real world.

No smart phones or internet back then.

When we would finally leave the track on Sunday night or Monday morning, it was always a bit of a reality check that there was a real world out there.

In 2020, however, nobody in motor sports can ignore

Covid-19.

So that is why Formula 1 planning to shut itself away from the real world with its biosphere races?

The plan is to hold grands prix with no fans and as few support staff as possible. No media will be allowed except television. That’s because the fees the TV networks pay to broadcast the races comprises about 30 per cent of the income for the 10 teams and F1’s commercial owners Liberty Media.

The season-opener would be in Austria, with consecutive races at the Red Bull Ring on July 5 and 12. Austria has been relatively lightly hit by the coronavirus.

“One of the logistical challenges is getting everyone tested and cleared to enter the racing environment,” F1’s director of motorsports Ross Brawn said during a podcast.

“Once we do that, it’s very attractive to keep everyone in that environment, within that biosphere that we want to create, for another race.

“It’s also pretty challenging to find the right sort of races

early on, where we can control the environment well enough to ensure the safety of everyone.

“Austria fits that bill very well.

It has a local airport right next to the circuit, where people can charter planes into. It’s not too close to a metropolis.

“It (also) has a great infrastructure around it,” he added. “For instance, there will be no motorhomes, but there will be a full catering facility laid on that the circuit has. We can contain everyone within that environment and therefore once we are there, it is appealing to have another race the following week.”

But there are still many problems to deal with.

The F1 crew members will have to stay at local hotels and have some contact with local residents – people who have not been tested for Covid-19. The plan is to have the crew members fly in by charter flights. But the cars and equipment will still have to be transferred by trucks, so the truck drivers will also come into contact with people who have also not been

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tested for the virus.

The next biosphere races would be in Britain on July 19 and 26.

Britain has been absolutely clobbered by Covid-19. A friend of mine who works for the National Health Service in the UK says that doctors, nurses and other medical staff are being pushed to the absolute limit.

The medical staff at Silverstone are volunteers.

They should only be taken away from their real work – just so 20 guys can drive around the track – if that work overload has eased considerably by July.

It’s good to hear that Silverstone’s manager Stuart Pringle has said that the race will not be staged if it diverts any medical or police resources away from the fight against the virus.

I am as anxious as anybody to see racing resume as soon as possible, but even when ensconced in a biosphere, F1 can’t just ignore the real world.

There are flaws and holes in that biosphere.

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AA’s picky pundit wonders why Supercars isn’t included in the forensic media discussion of when major league sport will be back FOR THE past month, the sporting conversation in mainstream media has been overwhelmingly dominated by discussion about when footy could return. Endless daily speculation and permutations of when and how AFL and NRL would resume.

Cricket, rugby union and soccer are mentioned, but mainly as asides. I’m talking about the nightly TV news bulletins, daily newspapers and major news web sites.

In Melbourne, the fascination with reporting every aspect of how the AFL and the clubs are coping with the national lockdown, and the timing and method of their re-emergence, has been unrelenting. It’s just as persistent and allpervasive in Sydney about the NRL. I imagine the same goes for media coverage in Queensland, SA, WA and Tasmania, plus Canberra and Darwin, just with more localised angles.

What’s struck me in all of this is the almost complete absence of reporting and discussion of when Supercars might return from the coronavirus-inflicted hibernation.

It is just not a part of the national sporting discussion, which for the country’s fourth biggest sport I think is concerning.

I’m not talking about Supercars’ – or even motor sport’s – visibility in these difficult times.

The All-Stars Eseries has gained plenty of

mainstream coverage, as has IndyCar and Formula 1 virtual racing. racing For what it’s worth, I think Supercars has done an excellent job with the Eseries. The production and presentation are impressively realistic.

It is interesting mid-week entertainment and great for Supercars’ profile locally and internationally during this COVID-19 induced absence of live sport. Quite likely, it will help bring back younger followers when real racing resumes, possibly next month and most likely in July.

But it still worries me that in the big discussion of when and how major professional Australian sports would return, Supercars isn’t even in the weekly conversation, much less the daily debate.

I put this to Supercars supremo Sean Seamer during a teleconference with a handful of media last Friday – and he clearly resented it. By his prickly reaction, he interpreted the questioning as an imputation that Supercars had no – or at least a very low – profile during this crisis.

“Just because we’re going about our business quietly doesn’t mean we’re not going about our business,” Seamer snapped. “Don’t worry. Just because you’re not hearing anything doesn’t mean nothing’s happening. We just go about our business slightly differently.

“The feedback that I’ve had from our partners about how we’re approaching the situation has been extremely positive. I’m not concerned about our profile in any way. In fact, I think we’re the only sport that’s doing a good job of keeping our fans engaged with an Eseries at the moment.

“And if you look at the ratings from the Eseries and you look at how much press coverage we’re getting, I think that’s good, positive press coverage rather than speculating about when we’re going to go racing again. That does nothing for anybody.”

Well, you may say so, but the fans want to be updated regularly, as footy fans have been on a daily basis.

Later, Seamer emphasised that viewership of the Eseries was high among the key 18-34 demographic.

“That’s why I’m absolutely not worried about the profile of the sport,” he said. “I think we’re doing a fantastic job at the moment.

“The suggestion that we have a profile issue when I think we have exactly the opposite, is where we’re at odds.”

Seamer also proudly announced he’d be on Channel 10’s early evening news bulletin, addressing Supercars’ plan to announce a revised calendar by May 15.

Leaving aside the fact that 10 is Supercars’ free-to-air broadcast partner, the report with his interview was shown in the Sydney sports segment. It didn’t run – or even get a mention – on 10’s Melbourne news.

Amid extensive reporting of the National Cabinet’s relaxation of restrictions to allow the NRL to resume at the end of the month – and, by extension, the AFL – Supercars’ position certainly wasn’t covered by Seven or Nine.

Look, if you subscribe to Foxtel, Supercars is doing a good job with Supercars Sidetracked, the Erebus Motorsport docuseries and the All-Stars Eseries broadcasts (which are also streamed for free).

But it still worries me that in the big sports conversation, Australian motor sport’s voice is barely being heard.

Sure, huge work is being done behind the scenes, no doubt, but the perception doesn’t match the reality.

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Talking to our own living legends

Part One

AJ UNLEASHED In the first of a new series reminiscing with the heroes of the past, MARK FOGARTY chats with world champion Alan Jones about his colourful F1 career IMAGES: LAT/Autopics.com/AA Archive

ALAN JONES needs no introduction. He was Formula 1 world champion in 1980. That title says it all.

But AJ needs explanation. His main deed falls far short of explaining his extraordinary career, which was not always on the right path.

Indeed, you could argue that apart from his golden years in F1 from 1979-81, his 35 years in racing were not worthy of his innate – but strangely under-rated – ability. In his F1 hay day, he was The Best.

Hard, driven and outspoken, but above all, flat-out fast. F1 was his peak, but his versatility – if not his judgement – was outstanding. Before his world title, Jones was

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a money driven mercenary. Afterwards, he was even more avaricious, trading success for big dollars.

Jones, now 73, admits he made bad choices – but as an F1 world champion in an era of danger and heated competition, his legacy as a racing legend is inviolate. Without question, he was one of the greats, statistics notwithstanding.

He may be a septuagenarian, but AJ has lost none of his fire or honesty. He tells it like it is, political correctness be damned. He. Does. Not. Care.

Which is why a conversation with Jones, the son of 1950s Australian racing star Stan, is so entertaining.

He is the first in our new ‘Living Legends’ series because, to be blunt, he is the most important survivor of our golden era of racing.

F1 world champion, can’t beat that.

Along with the late Sir Jack Brabham and 500cc motorcycle legend Mick Doohan, Jones is our most accomplished racer. But like fellow icon Wayne Gardner, he won just one world title.

In context, Jones’s F1 success was amazing. The rest, not so much. But, typically, AJ owns up to his financially motivated mistakes.

This conversation – and next issue’s second part – reveals Alan Jones as a hard-nosed, pragmatic, take-no-prisoners racer. Which is

exactly why we revere him.

Jones made his F1 debut in a privateer Hesketh in 1975, contesting four races before being drafted by Graham Hill’s team for a further four events. His first full-time F1 drive was a difficult season with Surtees in ’76. He was recalled by Shadow, with whom he was racing Can-Am, in ’77 to replace Tom Pryce, who was killed in the South African GP. Jones sensationally won the rain-affected Austrian GP, leading to offers from Ferrari and Williams. Dudded

by Ferrari, he joined Williams, beginning a successful partnership that culminated in the F1 world championship in 1980. He was competitive in the Williams FW06 in ’78,

Alan Jones was as fierce a competitor as there was on the race track in the early ‘80s.

His peak was a world championship winning partnership with Frank Williams (right). Jones’ first grand prix victory came in Austria for Shadow (below).

when he also won the Can-Am title with Haas Hall Racing in a Lola T333CS, and the following year contended for the F1 title, winning four races to finish third in the world championship. He clinched the crown in ’80 with five wins (six if you count the outlawed Spanish GP, which Jones does) in the pacesetting Williams FW07B. He also won the non-championship Australian GP at Calder Raceway, emulating his father Stan’s 1959 AGP success at Longford. Jones, then 33, was fast but unlucky in ’81, finishing third in the title race with two wins. He retired at what he regards as his peak and returned to Australia after a protracted decision-making process. He made ill-fated – but lucrative – comebacks with Arrows in 1982 and Beatrice in 1985/86.

Let’s start with 1980. Obviously, it was a great year. A classic case of right car, right driver, right time?

Well, isn’t that always the case? Good drivers gravitate to the good teams and some drivers find themselves with a team that has become good, and I think Williams was one of those. I was just lucky enough to have been in the right car at the right time in a team I got on extremely well with, and we all motivated each other and I think that was a very important factor.

Was the Williams FW07 your all-time favourite race car?

Well, yeah. There are certain cars that you used to jump into and you knew immediately that you were going to

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Australia’s last World Champion was fast, agressive and committed. He and the Williams FW07 were the perfect combination in 1980.

Jones was signed by Ferrari but ultimately the Italian icon went with Gilles Villeneuve (top), opening the door at Williams. Jones makes his winning move on Villeneuve at Montreal in the 1979 Canadian GP. The combination of Frank Williams, Patrick Head, Alan Jones and the FW07 became a dominant force in F1 racing. (Below)

be competitive in it or you were going to like it. The ’78 Can-Am car, the minute I got in that, I knew I could do well in it. I just felt very comfortable. All the Williams I felt really good in. A 935 Porsche that I raced here (in 1982, winning the Australian sports car championship), when I hopped in that, it felt good and I felt really confident in that car. The epitome of all that was the FW07. But the FW06 felt good, too. I should have won a grand prix in that.

I should’ve won Long Beach (in 1978). We had a front wing that collapsed, but that really didn’t affect it all that much. It was an electrical problem that actually dropped me from dicing with (future teammate Carlos) Reutemann for the lead back down to seventh at the finish.

It was an interesting combination because when you joined Williams, I don’t think any of you would have foreseen the success lying ahead.

No, I don’t think so. I think you’re pretty right.

Obviously, Frank will tell you that he had the confidence that given the right car and driver, he could have a world championship-winning team.

I think Patrick will tell you that given the right budget and facilities, he could probably design a car that would be as good as, if not better than, any of them. And as a driver, you must have the confidence to know that if you had your arse in the right car at the right time, you’d win grands prix. So I think we all thought that way.

bloody dead. It was like something out of Weekend at Bernie’s. He was as white as a sheet. He spoke very softly, had the sunglasses on, everything you’d expect Enzo Ferrari to be. And, of course, he didn’t speak English, so the conversation was all through Montezemolo translating.

If you had a signed contract, why didn’t you press the point somehow?

Well, what’s the point? Alan Jones who’d won one grand prix against Enzo Ferrari. What was I going to do? At the end of the day, you’re at the start of your career, you don’t want to rock the boat, and at that stage I was talking to a few other teams. I was already talking to Frank and a couple of others, and as soon as I found out that was the situation, I rang up Frank and told him I’d been giving long, hard thought to driving for him and I’d love to do it.

I think it’s fair to say that going into ’78, you were under-rated.

Well, I think so! I knew in my heart that if I were in a Ferrari in ’76, I could have been a front-runner.

Obviously, as a driver, you just hope to Christ that that opportunity presents itself, that you are in the right car to prove your ability.

I imagine that winning the Austrian GP in ’77, in more ways than just the obvious, that changed everything, didn’t it?

Well, yeah, in more ways than one. It facilitated a phone call from (Ferrari team manager Luca di Montezemolo) to ask me to come to Italy to meet Mr Ferrari. That doesn’t do your confidence any harm.

And then, of course, it puts you in the eyes of a few other team owners who think “Well, he’s a grand prix winner and he doesn’t crash” and I think that’s what sort of motivated Frank. He wanted a competitive driver that wasn’t going to crash because I don’t think he could afford to fix the cars then.

That’s the first of two approaches you had from Ferrari, wasn’t it?

Yes, exactly. And the second one was my own stupidity. The first one I went to meet Mr Ferrari and to cut a long story short, he basically said he wanted Mario Andretti to help sales in North America and if he couldn’t get Andretti, I was going to be his boy.

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So when I found out Andretti was going to re-sign with Lotus, I thought “How good’s this?” I rang them up and they basically told me “You know how we told you we wanted a driver from North America?” and I said yes, and they said “Well, we’ve signed Gilles Villeneuve”. My reaction was oh, thanks very much. I actually had a contract. What that facilitated was my Scorpio came out in me in 1982 when they rang up and said that (Didier) Pironi had had that big accident and would I come over and take his place in the team. I deliberately ****ed them around for about a week. In my own stupid childish way, I thought that was somehow getting back at them a little bit for the way they ****ed me around.

But it was stupid because I really should have gone and done it because that car (Ferrari 126C2) was actually very competitive. And the ironic part about was, because they couldn’t get me, they went and got Andretti, who then goes and puts it on pole at Monza, which really pissed me off. But, anyway, that’s the way it goes. You win some, you lose some.

So back in ’77, you went to Maranello and you met Enzo Ferrari.

I went into his office and that in itself I thought was worth it. I didn’t get the drive, but it was a wonderful experience going to Maranello and meeting Mr Ferrari, and going into his inner sanctum. Montezemolo said “This is what he’ll ask you and this is what you have to answer” and it was almost script perfect. So that’s exactly what I did and then I went over to the factory with Piero Lardi, who was Mr Ferrari’s (illegitimate) son, and signed the contract and went back to England, waiting for Andretti to be run over by a bus or something. But, of course, that didn’t happen. And, anyway, he’d re-signed for Lotus and they decided they wanted Villeneuve. Meeting Mr Ferrari was something special, though. What really struck me was how white he was. I thought he was

Jones went to Ferrari HQ in Marenello to meet Enzo himself (left) and team manager Luca di Montezemolo (far left). He had two opportunities at Ferrari but neither eventuated.

At which point he said “We have to keep this fairly secret, I’ll meet you on the side of the motorway and you can follow me back to the factory because I don’t want anybody to know that we’re talking until such time as we make the announcement”. Well, of course, he was talking to other drivers as well - I think it was Gunnar Nilsson and a few other people – and I thought “Oh, Christ, here we go again”. Because Ferrari went through all that bullshit, telling me I’d have to fly to Milan and they’d have to keep it secret, blah, blah, blah. Then when I got to Milan, there was a bloody guy there in pale blue overalls with Ferrari written all over him and holding a great big ‘Alan Jones’ sign over his head. I met Frank on the side of the M4 Motorway and followed him to the factory at Didcot, which we used to call ‘Deadcat’.

I walked into the factory and the FW06 was there, fully dressed, and it had ‘Fly Saudi’ written all over it, which was relatively appealing. The Saudis were the flavour of the month in those days because they were the ones who had all the money. And as that was, and still is, fairly important to me, that made a good first impression on me. Then I met Patrick and spoke with him at length- and that was the thing that really impressed me, even more than the Saudi millions. It all just gelled.

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It certainly turned out to be the right decision.

They said it was only going to be a one-car team, which meant all the attention was going to be focused on me, and I thought with Saudi written on the car, there was obviously no shortage of money. Little did I know at the time, but I think Frank had that signage on the car just to entice them to come in as a sponsor. They weren’t actually in at that stage.

I think we went to the first couple of races on his credit card.

In 1980, Jones was primed for success. He delivered after a seasonlong battle with Brabham’s Brazilian rising star Nelson Piquet, clinching the title with an emphatic win in the Canadian GP. Just for good measure, he won the next – and final – race at Watkins Glen. He returned triumphantly to Melbourne for the non-title Australian GP at Calder, pitting his Williams against Bruno Giacomelli’s Alfa Romeo 179 and the best of the domestic F5000s. Jones beat Giacomelli by a lap.

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By the end of the 1981 season Jones had had enough. He had already decided to retire when he won his last-ever race for Williams, the Ceasar’s Palace Grand Prix in a casino carpark.

He was no fan of teammate Carlos Reutemann (right) after the Argentive ignored contractual orders. At far right, Jones won the 1980 Australian Grand Prix, an event that still remains very special to him.

Jumping ahead to 1980, you officially won five races, so statistically it looked relatively easy.

Was it?

No, it was quite a difficult season. As is always the case with me, I never get anything easy and in Formula 1, anyway, it’s never really easy. There’s always some bastard to spoil the party and that was Piquet. He was keeping me more than honest. It was rocking backwards and forwards there for a little while about who had the lead in the championship. We went to Montreal with only one point separating us. So it was far from a forgone conclusion that whole year. I’d go to a race meeting thinking ‘Just let me get some more points” because I knew if Piquet won a race and I failed to get points, it was going to be extremely difficult. So it was a pretty long hard battle with him all year, really.

You clinched the title in Montreal after a typically forceful AJ move on Piquet.

That happened at the first start. I was pretty comfortably quicker than him in qualifying and then right towards the end, he pulled a second or something stupid out of the bag and I thought “Bloody hell, where did that come from?” Then I was actually quicker than him in the warm-up and I thought that’s a bit strange. When we went to the starting line, I did a couple of burnouts and when I came around to the grid, I made sure my rear tyres were on the rubber that I’d left. I beat him off the line and we rubbed wheels and he went into the Armco and I had my engine cover torn off. But the car was still handling OK, there was nothing wrong with it, but they restarted the race. At the restart, I got a better start than him again and took the lead, and then he passed me down the back straight like I was parked. Of course, what I didn’t realise is that he’d changed to his spare car, which was the car he’d qualified in, which they’d promptly put in the garage after qualifying. The rumour has it that that was a qualifying car with a ‘special’ engine that needed a much higher octane fuel to stop it from detonating. When he’d finished qualifying, they put that away and then readied the race car. But, of course, the race car was rooted in the crash, so they had to switch to the car he qualified in for the restart, which you could do in those days. And they had to use normal fuel because one of things the officials were very strict on was checking the fuel after the race. So they had to put normal fuel in it and, of course, eventually the thing detonated and it shit itself. So karma.

You didn’t mind banging wheels with people, did you?

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Not at all. More famously, I banged wheels with Villeneuve the year before going into the hairpin to get the lead from him (Jones went on to win the Canadian GP from the hometown hero).

Was that when you called him a ‘rock ape’?

Probably. And I said he was never going to die in bed.

To celebrate your world championship, Bob Jane brought you back for the Australian Grand Prix at Calder. It must have been really strange after the glitz and glamour of the F1 circuit to be racing at the old Calder track against Giacomelli and a mob of F5000s.

It was quite bizarre. It was even stranger for the mechanics because I knew what to expect. I think they got a bit of a culture shock with this bloody racetrack out in the middle of nowhere without any trees. On raceday, it was nearly 40 degrees at midday and then at five o’clock it was about 20 degrees. This bloody front came through with a dust storm and the temperature dropped by about 20 degrees in half an hour. They got a hell of a shock with that. It was a Mickey Mouse little circuit and the facilities left a bit to be desired, but I was probably as thrilled to win that as I was any (world championship) grand prix because it made my dad Stan and I the only father and son to ever win the Australian Grand Prix.

Certainly, that was true at the time. Damon Hill won the 1995 AGP in Adelaide (and in ’96 in Melbourne), joining his father Graham, the ’66 winner at Lakeside. Keke Rosberg took the inaugural Adelaide GP in ’85, with his son Nico triumphant in Melbourne in 2014 (and again in ’16). Stan and Alan Jones are not the only father and son to have won their national grand prix. Antonio and Alberto Ascari were Italian GP winners. The Hills and the Rosbergs have the distinction of being the only fathers and sons to be F1 world champions.

Even that wasn’t that easy, Foges, because Giacomelli was at the top of his game at that stage and that bloody Alfa was very, very quick – keeping in mind he’d led at Watkins Glen for quite a long time until the (V12) engine shit itself.

That Alfa had quite a few horsepower and Calder was a horsepower circuit with two straights joined by some wiggly bits. So that Alfa was not uncompetitive, let me tell you. And at one stage he got the lead, and we rubbed wheels with me getting back into the lead. So it wasn’t really easy. Once I got in front of him, then I could pull away gradually

Moving on to ’81. Interesting year. I think you’ve said you drove better than you did in ’80?

You were out of contention for the championship in that title-deciding Las Vegas GP, which you won.

Yep, for sure. I definitely was. I’d won the world championship, the monkey was off my back and the car was good. We had the new regulations where the skirts had to be fixed and not rubbing on the ground, or some shit like that, but Patrick made it as good as anybody’s and I was really happy with the way I was driving. I got really fit for ’81 and to say I was disappointed not to win the world championship in ’81 is an obvious statement. But I was disappointed because I knew all the ingredients were there to do it.

Had I have been in the hunt, I probably would’ve done it because Prost finished second and he was not in contention. And as it was, I only lost the championship by four points. That’s what makes me say, had I won either of those two races that I led (especially the German GP, in which he failed to score points), I probably could have retained the championship.

So you’re at the peaks of your powers, the car was competitive, yet you win only two races – interestingly, the first and last of the season, both in the USA.

Very strange. And then, of course, the Argentinians went on with all this shit about him not having as good a car as me and that I was Frank’s favourite.

But Frank actually went to the trouble of taking four cars to Las Vegas, just to make 100 per cent sure there was no favouritism. We both had a qualifying car, we both had a race car. Carlos was given absolutely everything the same as I was. In fact, my qualifying car bent a valve or something and I actually ended up qualifying in my race car – and I was super-confident because I was only a poofteenth slower than my qualifying car and it felt really good. So I felt very confident going into that race.

But I was leading two other races comfortably.

I was leading Monaco and Germany very comfortably. I was leading Monaco by 20 seconds and had a stupid bloody fuel starvation problem (finishing second to Villeneuve). Had I have won either one of those, I would’ve retained the championship.

The 1981 F1 world title was decided in a strange finale in the car park of the Caesars Palace Casino in Las Vegas. Jones’s Argentine teammate Carlos Reutemann was the points leader, vying with Piquet (just one point behind) and outsider Jacques Laffite.

After beating Jones to the pole, Reutemann inexplicably faded in the race, finishing eighth as Piquet struggled home in fifth to snatch the title by a point. Jones won the race easily in what would turn out to be his first F1 farewell. He was never going to do Reutemann any favours as they had fallen out early in the season and became bitter rivals. They were the first overtly feuding F1 teammates, predating the descent of McLaren duo Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost into war by eight years.

It was a very strange finale, with Reutemann going to water…

Reutemann was not your best friend, was he?

Well, it only came about because when he joined the team (in 1980), unbeknownst to me, he signed a contract that detailed in what circumstances he would have to let me win. I didn’t even discuss it with Frank. He just asked me what I thought about Reutemann and I said “Well, Frank, I don’t care who you hire, I have to race them, anyway”. And besides which, I always put on a bit of a front of bravado, anyway.

I wasn’t going to say “Oh, no, shit, no, he might beat me” and all the rest of it because I would go down in Frank’s estimation if I did that. So I told him I didn’t give a **** who he hired. So

he told me he hired Reutemann, that’s fine, and then he put in the contract – and I didn’t even know the full ins and outs of it ‘till later – some pretty unlikely scenarios to decide who would win if we were running 1-2. Reutemann and myself had to be less than two seconds apart, there had to be fewer than 20 laps to go and the guy that was third had to be more than about 10 seconds behind us. At that point, he had to let me pass in the event that he was leading. Now, you wouldn’t think those three situations at once would be a common happening. And the reason Frank did that is because he said to me, he didn’t want two of his cars racing comfortably in the lead and then have each other off. Frank put that in Carlos’ the contract for that reason. My beef is that Reutemann signed that contract. He had the choice at the time to say “Hey, Frank, I don’t like this paragraph, I don’t think I can cop this”.

He might have tried to negotiate that, but I don’t know and I don’t bloody care. At the end of the day, he signed it. I’m old school. If you shake hands if or you make an agreement, you stick to it – even if you think it’s going to cost you.

When I won Long Beach (opening race in ’81), he had the shits because he was leading and went wide at a corner or made a mistake, and I took him on the inside and went on to win. And then when we went down to Brazil, it was pissing with rain and he was in front of me and I was more or less stuck up his backside for the majority of the race. And I thought, no point taking a punt, no point taking risks, I know what the deal is. If I stay here, that’s fine. He’ll eventually let me past.

Then I thought “Oh, I know what he’s going to do – with about one lap to go, he’s going to make the magnanimous gesture, put his hand out the cockpit and wave me through or something, to say to everybody ‘Look, I could’ve won that, but that is in my contract’”. Which was fine by me. I didn’t care what he did. I honestly did not make a concerted effort to have a major go because I knew he was supposed to pull over and let me win the race. And then, of course, on the very last lap, I realised he wasn’t going to relinquish the lead, which he didn’t. I’d seen the signs that Frank had hung out – Jones/Reutemann. He didn’t honour the contract and that’s why I went off him from that point on, because he wasn’t good to his word. Says something, does something else.

That’s not how I operate.

AJ is obviously still aggrieved and aggravated about the incident because he barely draws breath before continuing, without encouragement.

And as it happens, quite coincidentally, it was pissing with rain and I went to the podium and nobody was there. And I mean nobody. The podium was out the middle of bloody nowhere – no roof, nothing – and I waited what seemed to be a long time and I thought “Well, stuff it, I’m not standing here in the rain, if they can’t get themselves organised, I’m off”. So I went back to the garage to get out of the rain. That was immediately interpreted as me having the shits and walking off in a huff, which I swear to God it wasn’t. If they’d been there and ready to go, I would’ve hopped up on the podium. Mind you, I was pissed off, so it wouldn’t have taken much for me to have done something like that anyway, to be honest. But the fact that it was pissing down with rain and no one was there, I just thought stuff ’em, I’m not waiting around.

Later in the season you were asked if you’d buried the hatchet with him and reportedly you said “Yes, in his back”. Is that true?

I think I was asked would I bury the hatchet and I said “Absolutely, right in his ****ing back”.

You didn’t shy away from speaking your mind, did you?

Well, what else is there to speak?

You’ve never changed, but even back then, you were unusually outspoken.

I think that’s all you can do. If you have a thought, speak it. If you have an idea, put it forward. If you don’t like something, say it. Like I said about Reutemann, don’t say one thing and do another.

Don’t sign a contract or shake a hand if you have no intention of honouring it.

Certainly, Frank and Patrick always appreciated your honesty.

Patrick was a pretty straight forward sport of a bloke, too. He was very comfortable telling you exactly what he thought. I remember cutting wide into the start/finish straight at Long Beach, and the car slid a bit wide and I rubbed the back left hand wheel against the wall. He got stuck into me. I said “Patrick, I didn’t do it on ****ing purpose, mate, the car just slid out”. So Patrick was never backwards in coming forwards.

Next issue: AJ with more revelations about his first F1 retirement and his ill-advised comebacks with Arrows and Beatrice.

AJ AND I

FROM FRACTIOUS TO FRIENDLY IN JUST 40 YEARS

BY THE tone of the interview, you might think Alan Jones and I have been mates for more than 40 years.

Far from it. In the early days, our relationship was strained.

Our initial contact was the 1976 Rothmans International Series, the Australian leg of the former Tasman Series. He was the star in a Teddy Yip-entered Lola T332, cleaning up.

Can’t remember why or how, but I was commissioned to ghost an AJ column in the Melbourne Sunday Press newspaper. Didn’t go well. No rapport, Jones was difficult.

Three years later, on my first overseas trip, I’m at Zandvoort when he wins the Dutch GP. Much rejoicing. Except hardly gives me the time of day.

I duly – and breathlessly – reported his success back to my radio network in Australia. Jones was ruthlessly disinterested, unimpressed that a young Aussie journo had come halfway around the world to glorify his latest feat, winning his third race in a row.

He didn’t put himself out for visiting Australian media, carrying a chip on his shoulder about his home country’s lack of support and interest until he hit the big time.

Ironically, Jones was popular with the F1 press corps because of his brutal candour.

They loved the fact that he spoke his mind and was always good for a salty or sarcastic quote.

In hindsight, his imperiousness was justified. He was a leading F1 driver who the following year would win the world title.

Oddly, I broke the story that he had definitively decided to retire at the end of 1981. I tracked him down to a visit to the (then) Bob Jane Corporation headquarters in inner city Melbourne.

Surprisingly, I got through to him on the phone and he confirmed he’d quit F1. World scoop! Headlined the 6 pm news bulletin on Radio 3XY, then Melbourne’s top-rating radio station.

I followed up with a story in The Age newspaper, negotiating the deal with then sports editor Neil Mitchell, now 3AW’s

talkback king.

Not much changed when Jones dabbled in sports cars and touring cars here. We had an arm’s length relationship. To be fair, he wasn’t always difficult. But he was intolerant and dismissive.

I always had the feeling he resented the fact that Peter Brock was more lauded at home because he’d won multiple Bathursts.

And rightly so. As an F1 world champion, he deserved every accolade.

But to be frank, AJ’s touring car choices in the 1980s weren’t worthy of his standing, much less his skill.

He battled Brock in the ’82 Australian sports car championship – Porsche 935 against Chev Monza – and it was two masters at work. Jones won, making his point. Pity it was such a small stage.

Things were uneasy between Jones and I until the mid-ish 1990s, when age and years of experience mellowed our encounters.

We now get on well, I think – and have done for more than two decades. We appreciate each other’s candour. He tells it, I report it.

I certainly enjoy his humour and colourful, oh-so-Aussie turns of phrase.

AJ’s frankness still astounds me – in the very best way. In these oppressively politically correct times, his is an unvarnished voice. I admire his outspokenness, even if I don’t always agree with his fearless opinions.

He has earned the right to say what he thinks. He is an Aussie sporting legend equal to 1983 America’s Cup-winning skipper John Bertrand or 2000 Sydney Olympics gold medallist Kathy Freeman.

I undersold Jones back in the day, but in the past several years, I have come to understand his F1 brilliance.

Jones doesn’t care, but I do. His standing should reflect his extraordinary achievement.

On reflection, he is an all-time legend. Not conventional, but his quirks – and bluntness – make him stand out from the crowd.

Alan Jones is an F1 world champion. ’Nuff said. Mark Fogarty

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21

FAREWELL HOLDEN MOTORSPORT 1948-2020 - PART FIVE

S V N E D L HO Group A Commodores took on the best from around the world D L R O W E TH In part five of our history of Holden in racing, MARK FOGARTY examines the surprising success of Australia’s Own in the era of international touring car rules

Peter Brock and the HDT lead the development of early Group A Commodores.

Seen here (above) Brock on his way to winning the 1987 Nissan Mobil 500 with his rival turned teammate Allan Moffat.

Former motorcycle ace Graeme Crosby shared this VK Commodore at Bathurst with fellow Kiwi Wayne Wilkinson. It was one of the earliest HDT-built Group A racer.

IMAGES: AA Archive/Autopics.com.

IT BEGAN with Brock and ended with Walkinshaw. Holden’s involvement in Group A coincided with the fall of a national hero and the rise of a British entrepreneur that redefined the Lion brand’s performance car business.

Two years into Group A in Australia, Peter Brock split with Holden over his wild ideas for highly modified road-going HDT Commodores. The unthinkable schism led to Tom Walkinshaw’s TWR Group taking over from Brock’s HDT Special Vehicles as the official hot Holden supplier with the creation of HSV. TWR and HSV became the facilitators of the last Holden homologation specials, developing the VL ‘Walkinshaw’ Commodore SS Group A and VN version with Fishermans Bend engineers, and building the limited run models for the factory.

The deal extended the previous collaboration with HDTSV that produced the first two Commodore SS Group As, the VK ‘Blue Meanie’ and VL ‘Permanent Red’ evolution.

Walkinshaw’s involvement saw HSV in the 1990s and 2000s become the pre-eminent Australian performance car brand, as well as re-establishing a full factory squad with Holden Racing Team.

Group A was the international touring car racing formula adopted by CAMS in 1985, replacing the local Group C rules. The switch

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was well-intentioned, integrating Australian tintop racing with Europe and Asia.

The homologation criteria were 5000 base production models and 500 evolution specials.

Even Holden could qualify, making enough V8 Commodores to spin off a high-performance version tailored for racing.

The process was expensive and poorly policed, and prompted wilder and wilder homologation special road cars, culminating in the category killing Nissan Skyline GT-R. It was into this cauldron of controversy that Holden dived in 1984, developing a Group A variant of the VK HDT Commodore for the following year’s new-look ATCC – and also with grand ideas of taking on the world.

Holden persisted against the odds right through to the end of Group A in 1992, running new local-spec Group 3A VNs at Bathurst in preparation for ’93’s return to primarily V8 Commodores and Falcons.

In regular competition in the Group A era, Commodores were rarely competitive against a succession of increasingly optimised overseas rivals – BMW 635CSi, Volvo 240 Turbo, BMW M3, Ford Sierra Cosworth RS500 and R32 ‘Godzilla’ GT-R. But at Bathurst almost every year, Commodores were in contention. After TWR’s Jaguar XJS 1-3 rout in ’85, Euro campaignsharpened Allan Grice blitzed the race in his VK in ’86.

In ’87, Brock ultimately triumphed after

changing cars, finishing third on the road.

Months later, the Eggenberger Sierra Cosworths were excluded for illegal enlarged front fenders, elevating Brock to his ninth – and still record – Bathurst 1000 win.

It was a remarkable effort, nonetheless, as Brock’s Mobil HDT was running on a shoestring without Holden backing and his inspired driving in the wet in the lightly prepared second team entry – his #05 entry broke early – placed him to take over the win.

The result was embarrassing for Holden following its fall-out with Brock. It also the only time since 1968 that Holden did not have a factory backed team in the race, with TWR still gearing up its new HSV operation.

Three years later, the new HRT operation triumphed at Bathurst in the final year of the VL ‘Walky’ SS Group A. Allan Grice and Win Percy ran the Sierras and debutant GT-R into the ground, taking an unexpected – but strategically plotted – victory.

So, ironically, in the most important local race of the year, in the Group A era, Commodore was the most successful model, winning three times. For all their overall dominance of

Although ultimately out-classed by the global Group A models, Commodore nevertheless provided a competitive platform for works teams (below) and privateers (above) alike. 1985 was the first year of the new Group A formula and the VK Commodore was in a battle against world class oposition, that had a three year head start. The HDT flew flag and scored a first up win at the Sandown ATCC round in 1985. Brock battled at Bathurst and raced on despite having to remove front and rear screens during the race. Ultimately, an engine failure blamed on a broken timing chain ended the late charge.

Australian touring car racing in that eight-year period, BMW failed to win at Mount Panorama, and Ford and Nissan had two victories each.

Back in ’84, Holden was debating whether it wanted to continue in racing under the onerous Group A homologation rules. But pressure from the many enthusiasts in the marketing and engineering departments prevailed, and led by senior engineer Ray Borrett – a constant in Holden’s racing efforts over the years – a VK SS homologation variant was developed with HDT Special Vehicles.

The celebrated Brock ‘Blue Meanie’ homologated The Group A rules the VK brought with them a wide variety of cars to touring car racing in Australia.

Here Commodore does battle with Ford Mustang, Volvo turbo and BMW 635CSi.

for Group A, bowing in the second round of the ATCC at Sandown, which Brock won on debut.

It was his – and Holden’s – only victory of the year.

The main VK’s main change for Group A was the slight destroking of the Holden V8, reducing capacity from just over five litres to 4.9 litres for a better weight-tyre size ratio under the rules.

It was a major commitment by Holden as changing the spec of its showcase powerplant was no small move. But there were big plans afoot.

Brock had overseas aspirations, planning an exploratory expedition to the European touring car championship in ’86 ahead of an assault on the proposed world touring car championship in ’87.

He famously teamed up with former arch-rival Allan Moffat, with the pair winning first time out in the Wellington

500 street race in their Mobil HDT VK at the start of the year. Teammates John Harvey and Neil Lowe won the following Pukekohe 500.

Brock and Moffat contested four rounds of the ETCC, but were overwhelmed by the TWR Rover 3500s and Eggenberger Volvo 240 Turbos – and overshadowed by upstart fellow Commodore campaigner Grice (see separate stories).

The MHDT entries of Brock/Moffat/Harvey and New Zealanders Lowe/Kent Baigent/Graeme Bowkett combined with Grice and Belgians Michel Delcourt and Alex Guyaux to win the King’s Cup team prize, finishing 18th, 22nd and 23rd respectively.

Brock won a round of the ATCC at Surfers Paradise (the old permanent Gold Coast track, not the latterday street circuit), but at Bathurst, Moffat’s Friday

crash was a setback from which they never recovered. Grice and journeyman co-driver Graeme Bailey cruised to victory from the second MHDT entry of Harvey and Lowe.

During ’86, Brock’s relationship with Holden deteriorated as he descended into metaphysics, championing the benefits of the Energy Polarizer. He fitted the mysterious box – containing crystals and resin – to HDT Commodores, claiming the device realigned the vehicles’ molecules and made them perform more efficiently and ride better.

It was errant nonsense and Brock’s determination to modify Commodores outside Holden engineering parameters, affecting the company’s ability to warrant HDT models, caused The Big Split. February 20, 1987 will live in infamy as the day Holden cut ties with its racing hero.

In the lead-up to this cataclysm, Holden had been developing a new VL SS Group A, famous for its ‘Permanent Red’ maroon-ish

An early Group A high point for the Commodore came in the Wellington 500 street race in 1986, when the HDT cars went 1-2 (above). At the other end of the era, Larry Perkins campaigned raced his own Perkins Engineering ‘Walkinshaw’ VL Commodore, seen here at Sandown on his way to winning the 1992 500 with Steve Harrington (right).

hue. An upshot of the growing friction between Brock and Holden is that he refused to allow his signature on the standard Holden-endorsed version. It did appear on the Plus Pack HDT upgrade, which featured the infamous Energy Polarizer.

The split threw Holden’s racing plans up in the air. Among those who had to deal with the bust-up were newly appointed Holden Motorsport manager John Lindell and Holden merchandising manager John Crennan.

According to Lindell, “Crenno worked harder than anybody to save the Brock relationship”.

Apart from the VL facelift, and HDT styling and equipment enhancements, the only significant racing-oriented change was the addition of a bonnet scoop to duct cold air to the engine.

Lindell came from manufacturing, where he was program manager of the Nissan-powered VL Calais Turbo and SS Group A, while Crennan

was in in charge of selling the racing sizzle as part of Commodore’s established performance image.

Brock’s big plan for a Holden-supported assault on the inaugural (and subsequently only) WTCC obviously didn’t happen. MHDT built an ‘enhanced’ VL Group A racer that found its way into the hands of the disaffected Harvey and Moffat for their last-minute Rothmansbacked campaign at selected WTCC rounds.

Famously, following the exclusion of the top six finishing BMW M3s for illegal lightweight body panels, Moffat and Harvey were declared winners of the season-opening Monza 500 (see separate story).

Before all this, in November ’86, Walkinshaw had pitched Holden to support a TWR assault on the WTCC with Commodores. He was eying a replacement for the Rover 3500 Vitesse following Austin Rover’s withdrawal.

Holden declined, but the interest was serious enough for a VL and two sets of race parts to be air freighted to the UK. TWR did some development, but after losing its WTCC sponsorship, fielded the car in Herbie Clips (a TWR company) blue and yellow livery at just one event.

However, the aborted program was TWR’s entry to taking over Holden’s Special Vehicles

business, winning the tender in July ’87. Grice and Larry Perkins also put in bids.

In around August ’87, at a dinner with Holden executives, Walkinshaw sketched his vision of a new VL SS Group A for ’88 on a napkin.

Thus began the complicated, trans-world program to develop the bizarre body kit for what became the ‘Walkinshaw’ SS Group A. With its wind tunnel-developed body cladding, huge

UNITED NATIONS GROUP A was off to a promising start, but quickly faded into a disappointing mess.

A combination of manufacturers fudging figures, a low turbo equivalency and the requirement for 500 Evolution models led to its demise.

European-based touring car categories began using the Group A formula in 1982, replacing the Group 2 class that had weakened since the turn of the decade.

In the beginning, Group A proved a success as the BMW 528i four-door saloon won the European Touring Car Championship, however it wasn’t long before the rules were stretched.

Tom Walkinshaw Racing’s fleet of Jaguar XJ-S Coupes joined the party, but there were doubts that the 5000 minimum build quota had been met and it was a coupe rather than a touring car.

CAMS had announced in mid-1983 that international Group A regulations was its choice for 1985 after also considering the stock-standard Group N ruleset. An incentive for the motor sport body was that all the wrangling for upgrades that had plagued Group C would now be passed onto the FIA.

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The regulations were a significant change to Australian Group C. Gone were all the wild wings and splitters, meaning the VK Commodore was a relatively unexciting race car compared to its ‘Last of the Big Bangers’ predecessor.

Engine modifications were limited, pistons and camshafts were free but exhaust manifolds were standard and valve size and lift were restricted (in 1986 lift was released).

Turbo equivalency was placed at a meagre 1.4 x engine capacity, which caused all sorts of problems down the track.

Gearbox and suspension were free if homologated by the manufacturer, though mounting points were not to be changed.

Also, three divisions were devised split between engine capacity: Division 1 under 1600cc, Division 2 1600cc-2500cc and Division 3 over 2000cc.

BMW, Volvo and Rover, plus the occasional appearance of Ford’s Sierra XR4 Ti, competed for outright European Touring Car Championship honours when the first ATCC round under Group A regulations kicked off at Winton in 1985.

The ATCC was dominated by Jim Richards

in his BMW 635csi, but the growth of manufacturers must have been exciting for CAMS as Alfa Romeo, Mitsubishi, Toyota, Volvo, Ford and Holden all widened the variety of the field compared to Group C. Richards won seven rounds including six on the trot on his way to a maiden crown, fellow Kiwi Robbie Francevic took three victories in the rapid Volvo and Peter Brock gave the Holden Commodore its debut Group A win at Sandown’s second round (above).

The Commodore, though, was severely outclassed by its rivals due to its weight and lack of power, caused by dropping the engine capacity in the evolution model released during the 1985 season.

Group A hit its zenith in 1986 when Volvo, Rover, BMW, Ford and a pair of Commodores took on the ETCC, but all went downhill quickly.

A 500 Evolution was brought in ahead of 1985, allowing manufacturers to homologate limited edition models, was exploited by Ford and BMW in 1987, sparking a war that was detrimental to the class.

The Sierra RS500 and BMW M3 brought the end to the regulations across Europe by 1990, while the arrival of the Nissan GT-R really put the final nail in the coffin in Australia encouraging the development of the new V8 formula that remains the basis of our top series to this day. HM

Tr Trevor Ashby and Steve Reed were privateer legends of touring car racing in Australia, fie fielding a varety of Group A Commodores for many seasons (above). Old meets new.

Pe Peter Brock trails one of the new for 1993-specification VP Commodores in the 1992 S Sandown 500, which were allowed to run during the conclusion of the touring car season. (b (below).

rear spoiler and hammerhead bonnet scoop, scoop it was one of the most outlandish Group A homologation specials ever.

Lindell’s Holden Motorsport group oversaw the project, for which the Holden Engine Company developed a fuel injected version of the 4.9-litre V8. The aero package was honed

by WR at the MIRA test facility in the UK. “Once Tom had been approached to replace Brock, there was a high degree of urgency to get the new VL done,” Crennan recalls. “He insisted he play a significant part in that.

“At a dinner, Tom sketched out on a serviette how he felt the look and feel of the car should be, involving the ‘jacuzzi’ on the back.”

The ‘Walky’ was approved by the FIA for Group A homologation in July ’88, with an initial production run of 500 scheduled, followed by a further 250. All were finished in ‘Panorama Silver’, which had a blue-ish tinge.

The original body kit, which included fairings over the C-pillar sixth windows, was toned down by emerging Holden stylist Mike Simcoe, father of the revived Monaro and now GM’s global design chief. The drag-reducing shrouds were ditched as a change-too-far to the Commodore’s signature six-window profile.

Now a collector car, the ‘Walkinshaw’ – which officially was a VL SS Group A SV – was ridiculed at the time for its over-wrought appearance.

Noted Crennan, who Walkinshaw had poached from Holden to run HSV: “I thought it was the greatest thing ever. I drank the Tom Kool Aid.” But, according to Lindell, it was aerodynamically efficient, reducing the liftgenerating disturbance from the rear roofline,

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with the seriously raised rear deck restoring airflow and creating some downforce.

The body kit involved around 25 pieces.

It was made from TWR patterns and produced in fibreglass in Australia – but not without issues.

“It was a struggle to make those parts,” Lindell said. “We had all sorts of problems and we really struggled to get it into production.”

The ‘Batmobile’ ran without distinction at Bathurst in ’88/89. They were fielded by Larry Perkins in a halfway house SV Racing operation. The first year, TWR also sent out its own UK-built VL, which failed early and had also been caught in the pre-race crossfire of Walkinshaw-instigated protests against the leading Australian Sierras.

A more disciplined approach in ’90 under the new HRT banner saw the VL triumph at Mount Panorama in its final year.

“People say it was a lucky win, but that’s not fair on the team,” Lindell said. “We ran the Sierras and Nissans into the ground. It all went to plan.”

Otherwise, the second-generation VL wasn’t successful.

“We struggled to make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear,” Lindell remarked.

HSV built the road-going cars, with the initial 500 selling easily. The second batch of 250 proved hard to move, with many stripped of their body kits by dealers to attract buyers.

The 1990 win also secured the future of the Holden Racing Team, which went on to dominate from 1996-2002.

Crennan saw the commercial and brand benefits of an in-house factory aligned racing

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team, but he had to convince Walkinshaw.

“Tom was very reluctant to get into racing here,” Crenno revealed. “He had a view that if it failed, it would reflect badly on HSV. “But Holden wanted it to happen. They wanted a factory team. Tom trusted me to get the other sponsors (Mobil 1 and Telecom Australia – now Telstra) and we went ahead.”

For ’91, Holden and TWR again worked together, co-developing the VN SS Group A SV. Another car was sent to the UK for wind tunnel testing at MIRA, resulting in a more restrained – but still aero-efficient – body kit.

Production by HSV was limited to the minimum homologation requirement of 500, once more in ‘Permanent Red’. The VN version sold quickly, but as a race car it was no match for the Sierras or GT-R in its full flight.

It was the least successful of the Group A Commodores, which were always hamstrung

by Holden’s status as a far-flung subsidiary of a global giant.

Now 76 and a successful vintner, Lindell agrees that in the Group A era, Holden couldn’t match the homologation might of the European and Japanese manufacturers, nor the rulestretching cunning of the leading Euro teams.

“The formula didn’t really work for the Commodore,” he said. “The tricks that were going on were mind-blowing.”

And yet, those three against-the-odds Bathurst 1000 victories kept the Commodore performance flame alive and helped fan

the later sales revival that regained market leadership from the Ford Falcon.

They were also the last Holden homologation specials – the final genuine race-bred performance road cars.

Each is prized by enthusiasts and their values are rising steeply.

Interestingly, their original retail prices were much higher – taking into account inflation – than the most recent Aussie V8 muscle cars.

They also rose spectacularly: 1985 VK HDT Commodore SS Group A -$21,950 1986 VK HDT Commodore SS Group A -$29,600 1987 VL HDT Commodore SS Group A -$39,750 1988 VL Commodore SS Group A SV $45,000 (first 500) 1989 VL Commodore SS Group A SV $47,500 (last 250) 1991 VN Commodore SS Group A SV $57,184 Lindell’s initial two-year appointment as Holden Motorsport manager lasted 10 years.

He guided Holden into the renewed V8 Holden vs Ford period from ’93 through to the start of V8 Supercars.

Crennan ran HSV and HRT through their years of greatest prosperity and success before retiring in the late 2000s.

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FAREWELL HOLDEN MOTORSPORT 1948-2020 - PART FIVE

K C O T S , K C BRO G N I K O M S O AND TW BARRELS

Innocent Aussies abroad remember strange days when Peter Brock and Allan Grice attacked the European touring car title IT SEEMED like a good idea at the time. Take a Holden Commodore to Europe and show ’em how it’s done.

Made sense. Just under five litres of Aussie V8 grunt versus smaller sixes, turbo fours and an aging 3.5-litre V8. On paper, couldn’t miss.

By the mid-1980s, Australian touring car racers were regarded as among the best in the world.

Drivers, cars and teams that matched the visiting British, Germans, Italians and others at Bathurst.

Peter Brock believed his Mobil Holden Dealer Team could take the fight to the foreigners and put together a limited campaign in selected rounds in the 1986 European touring car championship. He and archrival-turned-teammate Allan Moffat would test the water for a planned Holden-backed assault on the inaugural tin-top world title in ’87.

Meanwhile, Allan Grice had a similar, if grander, idea. His ‘Team Australia’ scheme foundered (see pages 30-33), forcing him to throw together a shoe-string effort with a VK Commodore initially funded by wealthy chicken farmer co-driver Graeme Bailey.

ETCC races were two-driver 500 km affairs, except for the Spa-Francorchamps 24 Hours. There were 14 rounds across the continent, of which MHDT would contest four and Grice – with a variety of paying co-drivers – nine.

The Aussies arrived at Monza, Italy’s temple of speed, in late March full of confidence. They expected their 4.9-litre V8 VKs to have the legs on the Rover 3500 Vitesse, Volvo 240 Turbo, BMW

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635 CSi and Ford Sierra XR4 Ti, especially on Monza’s long (and back then, mostly un-chicaned) straights.

They were in for a rude awakening. They were up against crack European outfits TWR (Rover), RAS Sport (Volvo), Schnitzer (BMW) and Eggenberger (Ford), who knew how to exploit the Group A rules.

Brock’s squad prepared its VK scrupulously to the written regs. Grice’s car, built by clever master mechanic Les Small was perhaps less innocent.

But both were visibly compliant compared with the Euro ‘hot rods’.

I was at Monza – and the following two events at Donington Park in England and Hockenheim in Germany – travelling with former Auto Action editor David Segal. ‘Seagull’, of course, became a journo-turned-PR and driver manager guru, most famously flacking Dick Johnson Racing and later orchestrating Craig Lowndes’s financial windfalls.

Segal and I were best mates – and still are.

He’d moved into PR, learning the spin trade as an employee of Tim ‘Plastic’ Pemberton, the legendary publicist of Brock and Holden Motorsport.

Segal was Holden’s and Brock’s appointed PR rep for the ETCC sojourn, and as I was in Europe covering major sports events for radio networks in Australia, NZ and USA, I piggy backed on his initial ETCC schedule.

At Monza, two things immediately struck us.

Firstly, the Rovers and Volvos, particularly, bore little resemblance to their road car donors, unlike the Commodores. They were pumped, slammed,

cut and shut.

Stretched every which-way, even back then, the panel gaps would never had passed rectification at the factory. The stance of the Rovers and Volvos gave wide-body a new automotive meaning …

The biggest eye-opener, though, was in practice when we watched one of Tom Walkinshaw’s 3.5-litre Rovers walk past Brock’s 4.9-litre Commodore on Monza’s main straight. And remember, the SD1’s V8 was based on an early ‘60s Buick design – same as the twice F1 titlewinning Repco-Brabham engine.

“To my bemusement and horror, the Rover 3500 pulled out and passed the Commodore,” Segal recalled. “I remember thinking ‘We’re in trouble here’.”

He was right. To add insult to injury, Brock was outpaced by Grice, whose Yokohama tyres were also superior on speed to MHDT’s Bridgestones.

The pattern continued, with Grice always faster, but Brock having a much better finishing record.

Grice’s starring speed at Monza, Donington and Hockenheim rattled Brock.

“Grice was a man on a mission to beat Brock,” Segal observed. “He wanted to look like a star – and early on in the races, he did.”

As Segal also noted, the TWR Rovers at Monza were significant upgrades of the 3500s Walkinshaw ran at the Wellington and Pukekohe 500s at the start of the year, both won handsomely by MHDT VKs. “Tom saw how well the Commodore went at

Wellington and Pukekohe,” he said. “The Rovers were very different by Monza.”

Running under the Australian National Motor Racing Team banner, Grice qualified fourth at Monza, ahead of Brock in seventh spot. Neither finished, with Bailey throwing it away and Brock/ Moffat succumbing to rear axle failure.

At Donington in early April, Grice qualified third and was challenging the TWR Rovers for the lead before handing over to Bailey, who again went off the track into retirement. The race was notable for the fact that it was so cold that it started snowing about halfway through.

In the miserable conditions, Brock and Moffat finished a creditable fifth.

Two weeks later, Grice starred. He qualified third and after dicing with the pacesetting Volvos, took the lead on the 25th lap. At the start of the next tour, it all came undone.

Grice arrived at the first turn, only to find a hapless VW Golf GTi parked across the corner after an incident with another backmarker. AG ploughed into the stricken Golf, race over.

Brock and Moffat, who’d qualified 11th, stayed out of trouble and finished fifth.

The MHDT contingent went home, returning in early August with two cars for the Spa 24 Hours.

Long story short, although not front-runners, with Grice’s entry, they combined to win the King’s Cup manufacturer’s prize.

The campaign was a decent effort by Brock, whose relationship with Holden – unbeknown to

IMAGES: AA Archive/Holden Motorsport/an1images.com

outsiders – was already on the skids.

But, according to Segal, it was doomed from the start.

“What sticks in my mind was that the Aussies learned that they were very naive about the Group A rules and what the Europeans could get away with,” he said.

“There was no comparison.

“But a lot was learned and there was enthusiasm to go back the next year with a car that more reflected the European attitude to the rules. Of course, Brock then fell out with Holden, so that was that.

“HDT under-estimated the Europeans’ relaxed interpretation of the rules. But its standard of preparation and presentation were second to none.”

During all this, Brock’s relationship with Holden was coming apart over the Polarizer.

His partner Bev and guru-like chiropractor Eric Dowker were having a profound influence on his attitude.

I first became aware of Brock’s increasing strangeness during the Donington weekend, hearing stories about him sleeping in a pyramid with a lettuce leaf on his head.

Really.

It all turned out to be true, but Segal was initially only vaguely aware of his client’s eccentricities.

“I don’t remember him being especially weird,” he said. “But it was very clear he and Bev and Dowker were very tight-knit. It was them and the team. The dynamic was odd.”

Segal received an unexpected – and unwelcome – indoctrination during the Spa 24, in an intense physiotherapy session at the track.

“That’s when I became aware something wasn’t right,” he recollected.

Segal had suffered whiplash in a road accident back in Melbourne between Hockenheim and Spa, and at the famous Belgian track Dowker attempted to relieve his neck pain.

“He was transferring energy from his wife,” Segal said. “That made it no better, so Brock and Bev joined in, adding their energy.

“There was a lot of weirdness going on.

He got away with it because he was Peter Brock.” Mark Fogarty

Brock leads one of the factory Volvos early in the Spa 24 Hours (above). The HDT combined with Allan Girce’s entry (right) who had been campaigning across Europe independently in 1986 to win the coveted King’s Cup teams prize for Holden.

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27

WORLD-BEATER Holden’s upset WTCC triumph In the wake of Brock’s ousting, former teammates upstaged BMW with its lone VL Commodore AS PETER Brock’s empire crumbled in early 1987, two of his closest associates cut their ties. Long-time lieutenant John Harvey and rivalturned-teammate Allan Moffat abandoned Brock in the days before the Holden axe fell.

Within weeks, Moffat and Harvey were at Monza for the opening round of the inaugural world touring car championship in the VL Commodore Brock had earmarked for a Holdenbacked campaign.

The hurried partnership resulted in a major upset, with the pair winning the race after the six BMW M3s that finished ahead of them were all excluded.

It was Holden’s first – and still only – victory on the overseas stage. In an odd twist, though, it wasn’t its only win in that year’s WTCC, which remained a oneoff until reinstated in 2005 under the Super 2000 rules.

Brock inherited the Bathurst 1000 victory in 1987, which was a round of the WTCC, in his factory shunned VL Commodore after the top two Eggenberger Sierra Cosworth RS500s were subsequently thrown out.

Moffat’s and Harvey’s WTCC foray was built on the bones of Brock’s still-born world title campaign. The rolling chassis had been made by his MHDT from the sobering experience of taking on the best European Group A teams in the ’86 European touring car title.

Sources close to the project have confirmed the car was constructed according to the Euros’ more liberal interpretation of the rules.

Moffat organised last-minute backing from Rothmans for a

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Moffat/Harvey on their way to a surprise win at Monaza.

limited WTCC program and also anonymously arranged the purchase of the VL from Brock, as well drafting Harvey as his co-driver.

“Around my birthday (Feb 21), I got a phone call from Allan out of the blue – I hadn’t spoken with him for a couple of months or something – and he said ‘What are you doing in March?’,” recalled Harvey, now 82. “I said ‘Oh, not much What have got in mind?’ Once he established that I was free, he said ‘All right, we’re going to race at Monza’.

“I said ‘What? Mate, that’s only a month away’. He responded ‘Car’s on its way. I want you to drive with me’. I said ‘You bet I am’. So that’s how that happened.”

Harvey revealed that Moffat secretly bought the car from Brock through intermediaries.

“It was a complete car on four wheels, ready to put an engine and transmission in and go racing,” he said. “All the chassis had been done with special welds here and there, etc. But Brock was broke.

“Moffat had four friends who

were fairly wealthy and one of them rang Brock out of the blue and posed the prospect of wanting to buy the car. So Brock, being keen to get some money because he needed it desperately, he sold it, not knowing it was actually for Allan Moffat.”

The first Brock knew about it was the announcement that Moffat and Harvey were to contest selected rounds of the WTCC with the backing of Rothmans, reviving a link that went back to the Canadian’s Peter Stuyvesant International sponsorship of his Mazda RX-7 in the early ‘80s.

The VL was run by Moffat’s long-time master mechanic/ engine-builder Mick Webb, with Holden Motorsport manager John Lindell also present.

“That car played the game the way the Europeans did,” Lindell recollected, suggesting it wasn’t entirely rulebook legal.

But compared with the fast-and-loose Euros, it was still much, much closer to a standard Commodore SS Group A. Moffat and Harvey qualified

ninth at Monza and finished seventh on the road. Later that night, they learned they’d been promoted to victory after a disgruntled BMW privateer protested the factory supported M3s. The top six finishers were excluded for illegal Kevlar boot lids and thin-gauge aluminium roofs.

“We learned that we’d won back at the hotel restaurant that night,” Harvey remembered. “A BMW driver was finishing his meal when he got a phone call from the track.

“Everyone was jumping out of their skins because we’d won the race. The celebrations went well into night. The hotel owner left the bar open for us on the honour system.”

He rates the win as one of the highlights of his long and distinguished career in speedway, open-wheelers, sports cars, sports sedans and touring cars.

“It was right up there among the best of them,” said Harvey, who shared victory at Bathurst with Brock and Larry Perkins in 1983.

Moffat and Harvey contested

a further three rounds of the WTCC before the budget ran out.

The VL couldn’t match the outright pace of the M3s and Sierra Cosworths, hovering around the tail of the top 10 before retiring from both the following rounds at Jarama in Spain (losing a wheel) and Dijon in France (blown engine).

Interestingly, HSV-appointee TWR’s only WTCC appearance with the VL it had been developing independently in the UK was in the fourth round at the Nurburgring GP circuit in July (around the same time it won the hot Holden road car deal).

Tom Walkinshaw and Jeff Allam qualified 14th in their Herbie Clips blue-and-yellow Commodore, retiring from the race due to brake problems. It was never seen again.

Moffat and Harvey returned for the Spa 24 Hours, along with Brock, Neville Crighton and David Parsons in a Mobil HDT entry.

Brock qualified 17th – a spot ahead of Moffat – but his car succumbed to a piston failure before half distance.

Moffat and Harvey went on to finish an impressive fourth, winning their class.

It was the end of Holden’s brief but prominent appearance on the international stage.

The historic Rothmans VL SS Group A was parked. Harvey had joined Holden Special Vehicles’ management while Moffat switched to a Sierra with British ace Andy Rouse at Bathurst and Calder, failing to finish either.

Harvey’s last start at Bathurst was with Kevin Bartlett in 1988.

Moffat stopped driving after winning the ’89 Fuji 500 in Japan with Klaus Niedzwiedz in their ANZ Sierra. MF

PETER BROCK’S 1987 Bathurst victory was the most unlikely of wins, given his much publicised bust up with Holden led to a lack of budget, parts and a staff walkout.

February 20, the Holden Dealer Team was torn apart.

The unveil of the HDT Director led to General Motors-Holden’s issuing a release confirming the unthinkable, it had split from Brock.

Both John Harvey and Allan Moffat were among many staff who departed, just prior to the opening round of the Australian Touring Car Championship at Calder Raceway.

Previous HDT and Nissan co-driver Gary Scott became the second team driver for the year, which proved tough as the Commodore was left behind by the powerful Sierra RS500, the nimble Nissan Skyline DR30 and the complete package that was the BMW M3 E30.

Second proved the Commodore’s best result, which now-factory supported driver Larry Perkins scored at Round 1, leaving Holden winless for the first time since 1972.

There was no joy for Brock either as he failed to score a win in the ATCC, ending a 12-season streak of scoring at least one round victory.

Brock and Scott had battled their way through the season, although a significant setback occurred at Lakeside when the 05 Commodore was severely damaged by Scott in practice.

Post-accident, the second seat was shared by endurance drivers David ‘Skippy’ Parsons and Jon Crooke, with Channel Seven commentator Neil Crompton joining the latter for Sandown.

Before that, though, a commitment to sponsor Mobil meant a trip to Belgium for the

Brock, McLeod and Parsons celebrate their unexpected third place at Bathurst ... later to become first when the winning Sierras were excluded for rule infringements. It was Brock’s last Bathurst 1000 win.

AGAINST THE ODDS

Spa 24 Hour, where Brock was partnered by Parsons and Kiwi Neville Crichton.

That race ended in retirement, though the VL Commodore was about to play a massive part in Bathurst history.

Next on the radar was the Sandown 500 where Brock and Parsons demonstrated strong pace until it ran out of brakes at Turn 1 and was beached. The second Commodore – a converted VK – finished fourth outright.

However, Crompton was to remain on the sidelines for Bathurst as his licence wasn’t upgraded in time for the event, leaving privateer Peter McLeod to take the ride, thanks in part to bringing a spare engine to the team.

The lead up to the race confirmed the Sierra RS500’s complete domination.

Allan Grice and Win Percy’s VL

Commodore was the quickest in fourth position as Brock missed a berth in Hardies Heroes for the first time. A suspension failure during practice for the second entry nearly ended its weekend in the concrete, but McLeod guided it through a gap in the fence to avoid serious damage.

The RS500s dominated the early running, but 05 wasn’t a contender after 34-laps due to an engine failure. The team held little hope of a result as the second car featured 05’s hand-medowns.

Just like in 1983, Brock and his co-driver Parsons took over after McLeod had completed a crucial double stint that elevated the entry into fourth place from 20th position on the grid. It proved to be a pivotal drive.

Crooke, on the other hand, joined Phil Brock as nominated drivers to miss out on driving the winning Bathurst entry.

The pick of the VL Commodores, Allan Grice and Win Percy’s example ended its race with a broken axle on lap 96, leaving the 10 entry to chase Glenn Seton in the lead Nissan Skyline. A storm then descended on the Mountain, leading to some spectacular driving from both Seton and Brock.

Brock changed to slicks late in the race, throwing the Commodore sideways and finishing a remarkable third. Resounding cheers greeted Brock, Parsons and McLeod on the presentation dais in what were emotional scenes.

Then a protest led by JPS BMW team boss Frank Gardner aimed at the Eggenberger Sierra’s ‘jungle juice’ fuel and apparent wheel arch irregularities were lodged post-race. The fuel protest was dismissed but the wheel arches weren’t, handing Brock his ninth victory some four months later and in turn losing Ford the WTCC. Ironically by then, Brock was racing BMWs! HM

Fan sentiment was very much with Peter Brock after the Holden split, and long-time sponsor Mobil stuck with him as well.

FAREWELL HOLDEN MOTORSPORT 1948-2020 - PART FIVE

BROCK BEATER The years that Gricey was on fire

Hard-charger Allan Grice tells MARK FOGARTY how he upstaged Brockie in 1986 and defied the odds at Bathurst in ’90 Images: Autopics.com/AA Archive IF PETER Brock had a nemesis in the mid-1980s, it was Allan Grice. In a succession of Commodores, Gricey had pressured Brock on speed, if not reliability.

After getting dumped by Frank Gardner in 1982, Grice excelled in a variety of privateer Holdens, often let down by his benefactor co-drivers.

With inspired-but-volatile car/engine builder Les Small, Grice took the challenge to Brock. Without factory backing, their downfall was reliability and, in the enduros, journeyman patron co-drivers like Alan Browne and Graeme Bailey.

In 1986, though, Grice was supreme, outclassing Brock in the European touring car championship and then

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finally triumphing in the Bathurst 1000.

Oddly enough, the season started badly for the former Maitland, NSW pastry cook, who’d organised a ‘Team Australia’ assault on the ETCC backed by Foster’s and Qantas. Or so he thought.

“The plan was that I would go over with one car and a spare, and compete in every round of the ETCC,” Grice said. “People like Alan Jones, Vern Schuppan, Allan Moffat, Peter Brock and Colin Bond would go over and do one or two races at a time, with me doing all of them.”

The car would race in the green and gold national sporting livery and Grice even received Australian government permission to be branded as the Australian Motor Racing Team.

Then Brock announced his ETCC campaign, torpedoing Grice’s project.

“Foster’s was very keen and Qantas was quite keen,” Grice recalled. “It was sold with all those names in it.

But at the second last minute, I got ‘Brocked’.

“He announced that he and Moffat would go to Europe with the backing of Holden and, understandably, Fos-

ter’s and Qantas said ‘What the ****’s going on here? Your selling us a deal with these names and these names aren’t in it’.

“So those sponsors dropped out, understandably, because, with all good intentions, I was telling them pork pies. I was ‘Brocked’.”

Under the Australian National Motor Racing Team banner, Grice went

A Allan Grice was at the height of his career in 1986, out pacing Peter Brock in the factory H Holden both in Europe and at Bathurst that year. Wealthy amateur enthusiast Graeme Bailey jjoined him for both, rewarded at Mt Panorama with victory, considered the last in The Great R Race by a truly privateer outfit.

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After trouncing Peter Brock’s factory Holden outfit in 1986, by 1990 Allan Grice was driving for the new Tom Walkinshaw owned Holden factory team. He paired with team boss Win Percy to win the Bathurst 1000 after the Sierras failed (above). At right Grice was a front runner in the ‘86 European Touring Car Championship, but needed to take on finacialy supportive co-drivers including Michel Delcourt. Seen here driving the Grice car at Spa ‘86

ahead with his ETCC plan, initially supported by Chickadee poultry magnate Bailey, who co-drove in the first few races.

“One car was nearly finished and I said ‘Well, bugger it, we’ll do it, anyway’”, said Grice, now a feisty 77. “Just take out another mortgage, that’ll fix it. That’s why I did most of the races over there with wealthy paying co-drivers. They paid most of the bills and I picked up the rest.”

He out-qualified Brock in the four races they went head-to-head. He was fast at Monza and contended for the lead at Donington, where Bailey ended their runs with offs, and famously led at Hockenheim.

After qualifying third, he battled with the pacesetting pair of Volvo 240 Turbos before briefly taking the lead on lap 25. Going into the German GP track’s first turn at the start of the next lap, Grice ploughed into a backmarker Golf that had spun to a stop across the corner, putting him out.

“That was a shitter,” he remarked dryly.

As well as the Small-fettled VK being “a weapon”, Grice’s advantage against Brock was his Yokohama tyres, which he had – and continued to – test to perfection.

“They were the best tyre,” he said. “I developed that tyre all over the world.”

He would be testing every second week with the Japanese tyre-maker, which produced rubber to his requirements because engineers trusted his accurate feedback.

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His efforts resulted in a pinnacle version of Yokohama’s famed E compound, which also served him well at Bathurst.

Grice never begrudged Bailey’s lack of speed and clumsy mistakes.

“He was down on himself because he parked it in the e explained. “I sand several times,”” he n on n yourself, yourself m atte said ‘Don’t be down mate – without you, we wouldn’t be here.

“It was always his dream to drive at places like Monza. ‘I’ll give you a hand,’ he said. That’s how it happened. He was as honest as the day was long.”

Grice contested a further six rounds with a motley variety of British and Belgian co-drivers – again, quick in qualifying, but rarely finishing.

“We were competitive, but when you put the Belgian or the Pom or whomever in the car, she was pretty much all over then,” he said.

At the Spa 24 Hours, although they finished well down the order, Grice combined with Brock’s pair of VKs to claim the prestigious King’s Cup manufacturer’s prize for Holden.

Come the Bathurst 1000, Grice was razor-sharp and ready to dethrone

Brock. dou ubt in the world,” wo orld d ” he said. said “I “No doubt was doing a couple of hundred miles every two weeks. The whole team was dialled in.

“I had the package. I had a few more horsepower and better tyres, and I was red-hot. I was sharp. If you knew the facts, we were always going to be the favourite.”

He was so in command at Mount Panorama that he carried Bailey, who had to do a minimum one hour in the Chickadee Commodore.

“He did 61 minutes,” Grice recalled.

“It was a long day, but it didn’t knock me around. I was match fit and I was always able to relax.”

Grice credits fellow Maitland sports star, Australian Test cricket great Doug Walters, with teaching him how to relax during a long “innings” at Bathurst.

“Dougy explained that to concen-

uh ad d tto o re rel lax lax la trate for a century century, you had relax between overs and refocus,” he said.

“I relaxed on the straights at Bathurst, shaking my hands and just chilling.

“I was in the zone at Bathurst in ’86 – it was all just automatic.”

His victory with Bailey is regarded as the last privateer success in the Bathurst 1000.

“We sure didn’t get any help from the factory,” he remarked.

Four years later, Grice was paired with Win Percy to lead the new Holden Racing Team’s assault in the final year of the VL ‘Walkinshaw’ racer.

Percy had been despatched down under by Tom Walkinshaw to run HRT and had to convince his boss that Grice was the man to do the job.

Grice remembers that although at unbackable odds against the Sierras and new Nissan GT-R, the race went

tto plan for their upset win.

“We reckoned we had a really good shot,” he said. “The bookmakers s certainly didn’t, but we thought so. We c knew the Sierras couldn’t run at full k boost for most of the lap. b “They weren’t allowed to have adjjustable boost, but they had cigarette llighters or something that controlled

the boost. They’d turn it down and cruise until somebody got near them.

“We figured if we could go hard enough for long enough to make them keep the boost up, it’d kill ’em.

And it did.”

He remembers that the team built he and Percy, who did minimal laps because of a shoulder injury, a “bul-

Allan Grice and Win Percy celebrate an unexpected Bathurst victory in 1990, watched

by Liberal Party leader John Hewson on the victory dias.

let-proof” racer.

“We ran the car to 7400 rpm in every gear all day,” Grice said.

“That was a lot for a V8 in those days.

“We ran it flat-out all day. That was the plan. It wasn’t a surprise

to us. We’d planned to break ’em (Sierras and Nissans). They built us a bullet-proof car.”

Grice, later a Queensland politician, was the most successful Holden Commodore driver at Bathurst in the Group A era .

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PIQUET’S MAIDEN WIN

Alan Jones’ title hopes took another dent at Long Beach in the fourth round of the Formula 1 World Championship. DAN McCARTHY recalls Nelson Piquet’s dominant win that vaulted him into title calculations.

Images: LAT BRAZILIAN NELSON Piquet was in a league of his own over the Long Beach Grand Prix weekend.

Not only did the Brabham driver take pole position, but he also set the fastest lap on his way to a lights-to-flag victory.

While Piquet shone, his title rivals faltered around him, suffering various dramas during the gruelling 80 lap encounter.

Entering Round 4, Rene Arnoux led the series after sealing two victories in a row, so Williams driver Alan Jones was on the back foot approaching the tight and twisty street circuit. One saving grace for the Australian was that the Renaults weren’t expected to go well at the tight and bumpy Californian street track.

The turbo power that had benefitted the two Renaults Nelson Piquet controlled the race to earn his first-ever Formula 1 race win (above) while Jones ran into trouble when lapping Bruno Giacomelli (right).

34 AutoAction

when racing at altitude in Brazil and South Africa was expected to be a hinderance around the Long Beach hairpins.

Coming into the weekend Jones felt under the weather as well as he recovered from pleurisy.

At the same time, 1976 World Champion James Hunt had been negotiating a comeback with McLaren to replace the injured Alain Prost. However he broke his leg in a skiing accident and was unable to race, leaving Briton Stephen

South to take the vacant seat but he failed to qualify.

Piquet took pole position to start his perfect weekend, 0.995s clear of Arnoux in what was surprise for the Formula 1 paddock.

The second row consisted of Alfa Romeo driver Patrick Depailler and ATS substitute driver Jan Lammers, impressing as a replacement for the injured Marc Surer.

Jones qualified under the existing lap record but was still 1.125s slower than Piquet in

starting fifth on the grid. Italian Bruno Giacomelli made it two Alfas in the top 6, with Williams’ Carlos Reutemann and Arrows driver Riccardo Patrese on the fourth row.

Off the line Piquet made a good start and led down the long stretch into the incredibly tight Queen’s Hairpin.

Depailler made a reasonable start also and was able to overhaul the slow starting Arnoux Renault out of Turn 1.

Further back it was not so smooth as Piquet’s teammate

Ricardo Zunino, Mario Andretti and Jochen Mass all made contact, forcing the Argentine out of the event.

At the completion of the opening circuit, Piquet led Depailler and Arnoux, as Jones and Giacomelli overtook the retiring Lammers, his ATS encountering a transmission fault.

Jones then quickly despatched Arnoux on lap 3 and set about catching Depailler.

On lap 4 Giacomelli spun under brakes into the final turn and rotated nearly 90 degrees, almost blocking the circuit.

Reutemann was just behind the Italian as the Alfa Romeo driver began to reverse, having to slam on the anchors to come to a complete stop.

“Giacomelli made a big, big mistake. He spun the car before the hairpin and left a gate for all the people behind him to pass. He (then) pulled reverse and closed the gate and the track was blocked for everybody. It was an absolute disaster,” Reutemann told the BBC. In the pandemonium

1980 United States Grand Prix West – Long Beach

Pos 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret R Ret R Ret R Ret R Ret R Ret R Ret R Ret R Ret R Ret R DNQ D DNQ D DNQ D

Alan Jones aboard his FW07B negotiating the bumpy Long Beach streets (above). At right, the 24 car field enters the tight Queen’s Hairpin on the opening lap.

Reutemann was unable to get his car going and retired on the spot, while reigning champion Jody Scheckter nearly speared into the back of the Williams but just stopped in time.

Behind them, Elio de Angelis ran into the back of Eddie Cheever and sprained his foot in the crash, while Jean-Pierre Jarier was also wiped out. Only Giacomelli and Scheckter were able to continue.

The incident shuffled the pack and at the end of lap 4 Piquet led Depailler, Jones, Arnoux, Patrese and Gilles Villeneuve, the Canadian Ferrari driver continued to fly through the field, overtaking both Patrese and Arnoux soon after.

Jones caught Depailler but was struggling to find a place to pass around the tight streets. On lap 18 he made a superb move, forcing the Frenchman to defend, Jones swept around the outside at the final turn.

At quarter race distance Piquet led from Jones, Depailler, Villeneuve, Arnoux and Patrese.

Forty laps into the race it then came alive again. Depailler, who had just been demoted to fourth by Villeneuve, retired from the race with suspension

Driver Nelson Piquet Riccardo Patrese Emerson Fittipaldi John Watson Jody Scheckter Didier Pironi Jochen Mass Derek Daly Rene Arnoux Jean-Pierre Jabouille Keke Rosberg Clay Regazzoni Alan Jones Bruno Giacomelli Gilles Villeneuve Patrick Depailler Jacques Laffite Eddie Cheever Carlos Reutemann Jean-Pierre Jarier Elio de Angelis Jan Lammers Mario Andretti Ricardo Zunino David Kennedy Geoff Lees Stephen South

Drivers’ Standings D 1 1. = 33.

44.

55.

66. = 8. = 10. = =

failure, while on the same lap the French-Canadian made a pit stop for a nose change and a fresh set of tyres. He retired a few laps later with transmission failure.

The biggest twist came on lap 47 when Jones retired after colliding with Giacomelli, making it two Williams DNFs involving the Italian.

“I got behind Giacommelli (to lap him). There was a group of three of them, it was Didier Pironi, Jochen Mass and Giacommeli, and I was scared they were going to hold me up,” Jones recalled to the

Riccardo Patrese stayed out of trouble and collected just his second Formula 1 trophy, coming home in second position.

BBC. BBC “I got a good tow from him (Giacommelli) down the back straight, pulled out of the slipstream down the inside at the Queen’s Hairpin. I got my nose alongside him and then he just turned right and drove over me.”

Jones’ retirement left Piquet miles in front of Patrese, Arnoux, Clay Regazzoni, Emerson Fittipaldi, John Watson and Scheckter.

Tragedy then struck when n the Ensign N180 of Regazzoni

Rene Arnoux Nelson Piquet Alan Jones Didier Pironi Riccardo Patrese Jacques Laffite Elio de Angelis Emerson Fittipaldi Keke Rosberg John Watson Derek Daly Alain Prost

Team Brabham Arrow Fittipaldi McLaren Ferrari Ligier Arrows Tyrrell Renault Renault Fittipaldi Ensign Williams Alfa Romeo Ferrari Alfa Romeo Ligier Osella Williams Tyrrell Lotus ATS Lotus Brabham Shadow Shadow McLaren

18 18 13 8 7 6 6 4 4 3 3 3

Laps 80 80 80 79 79 79 79 79 78 71 58 50 49 47 46 40 36 11 3 3 3 0 0 0

Result 1h 50m 18.550s + 49.212s + 88.563s + 1 Lap + 1 Lap + 1 Lap + 1 Lap + 1 Lap + 2 Laps + 9 Laps Overheating Accident Collision Collision Transmission Suspension Puncture Transmission Transmission Accident Accident Transmission Accident Accident

Grid 1 8 24 21 16 9 17 14 2 11 22 23 5 6 10 3 13 19 7 12 20 4 15 18

Constructors’ Standings 1. = 3.

4.

5. = 7. = 9.

10. =

Renault Brabham Williams Ligier Arrows Fittipaldi McLaren Lotus Tyrrell Alfa Romeo Ferrari

18 18 15 14 8 8 6 6 3 2 2

Two-time champ Emerson Fittipaldi stood on a Formula 1 podium for the final time (above left) alongside fellow Brazilian and winner Nelson Piquet.

lost its brakes on approach to the Queen’s Hairpin and hit the stricken Zunino Brabham, that was parked in the escape road.

The Ensign then ploughed into a concrete barrier head on, rescue crews taking 25-minutes to remove the popular Swiss driver.

It was the last time Regazzoni drove in Formula 1 as the crash left him paralysed from the waist down.

The race still continued with Piquet sealing a dominant 49.2s victory in just his 23rd Grand Prix. He finished ahead of the Arrows of Patrese and two-time World Champion Emerson

Fittipaldi, in what was his final appearance on a Formula 1 podium.

And what of championship leader Arnoux?

The Frenchman held a comfortable second with 12-laps remaining before a puncture dropped him out of the points.

This left Arnoux sharing the lead with Piquet in the title chase.

John Watson clung onto fourth in his McLaren, ahead of Scheckter, who scored Ferrari’s first points of the season and the last of his career, while Pironi completed the top six.

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DOLLAR DAZZLER The Hyundai Excel category follows in the skid marks of past budget one-make series like Daewoos, HQs and Geminis. But what does it really cost? HEATH McALPINE investigates.

Images: S Supplied/Revved li d/R d Ph Photography raphy h

THIS NEW Auto Action feature series sets out to provide a guide to the costs and accessibility of a variety of motor racing categories, kicking off this first instalment with the Hyundai Excel class.

It’s hard to ignore this category as it is already the most populous in the country and fields are continuing to swell.

Victoria was in fact one of the last states to come on board the Excel racing train, but its no surprise to see 60-car fields battle it out at places like Phillip Island.

The popularity of the category is due mostly to its rather basic regulations whicht don’t allow technology like telemetry, and keep the Excels at a moderately stock-level, leaving it to competitors to determine their expenditure.

Just as in any other motor sport category, this is the major difference

Barry basic, that’s a racing Hyundai. Aside from the mandatory safety equipment, the cockpit of a racing Hyundai is stripped out but standard. Under the bonnet the story is the same, with only very minimal modifications allowed to the standard four-cylinder engines.

between cars, and so top-level Excels are now changing hands for $30,000.

Auto Action spoke to Hyundai Excel Association of Victoria treasurer Neville Blight, who provided a ball park figures on the investment required to buy a suitable car.

Blight said that there were three levels of Excels on the market. Top-level cars are priced at $28,000-$30,000, a median car is around $12,000-$15,000 and a basic car is around $6,000$8,000.

If building an Excel is more your go, then a used road car can be bought for between $200-$600. Add a cage, either a basic AGI Sport bolt-in at $1800 or a National-specification cage priced at around $3000 and the you’re well on your way.

36 AutoAction

“(You) just buy them out of the market usually off Ebay, Trading Post, Gumtree or word of mouth,” Blight explained.

“You can pay anywhere from $200$600 for a car, which is the cheapest part of the whole thing. Some of the cars are given to you, because at the end of the day an old Excel is not worth two bob. No-one is going to roadworthy them to put back on the road, there is really no market for Excels whatsoever other than us.”

Blight warned the market for used Excel racecars is as much a ‘buyer beware’ scenario as it is in the roadgoing market, and purchasers need to be mindful of its history and who constructed it.

“Cars become available because people move on and it’s a great training

60 car fields aren’t that unusual in Hyundai Excel racing. Here the pack thunders into turn one at Phillip Island. Despite their relative lack of performance, the racing is always spectacular whether the track is fast or slow.

category, so there is a strong used market,” Blight told Auto Action.

“It depends on the how the quality of the build in the first place as to how much it’s worth, so price ranges from $6000-$28,000. You can buy one for $6000 but the Excel may have been knocked around and never built nicely.”

Next consideration is an engine, which is where the value is thanks to the research and development done by leading engine builders such as Les Small, Cave Hill Engines and Rowse Motors. Motors from these engine builders power many of the leading contenders in the category, with a new a fresh unit costing around $8000.

www.autoaction.com.au

If you were to build one in the garage at home, about $4000 will give you a competitive basic engine.

There are many ways that competitors can go about building an engine, as Blight explained.

“A ‘wrecker’ engine can be installed, one that has around 200,000km on the clock, but can still form the basis of a competitive motor,” Blight said.

“If you’re not a bad steerer, you won’t win a race but you won’t be last either in among the mid-pack.”

Most competitors also fit a reconditioned head at a cost of $1500 that further enhances performance, while other modifications can be made

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Auto_Action

including shaving the head down, reseating the valves and boring it out to its max size.

These, however are strictly controlled in the category, which extends to the ECU that has to remain stock.

The exhaust is free to the first juncture, which has led to plenty of development in this area. The cost of such a system is between $500-$1000. The air intake is also a non-control item as well.

Pump 98 octane fuel is mandatory across the board, and competitors can bring their own supply if the circuit management allows it. Around $50 worth should be enough to get through the weekend.

The gearbox is the Hyundai M5AF3 five-speed found in the road-going car, which can be bought for $500 on the second-hand market or for the same price can be reconditioned.

A trick utilised by some is to shim the gearbox to allow more drive out of both wheels, though the supposed advantage can also induce drag limiting its effectiveness.

Shock absorbers have been a contentious issue for the category, one that is set to become less so with the introduction of control components in the not too distant future.

In Victoria, initially it stuck with a mandatory use of the cheapest brand

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available, XYZ But to conform with other state associations it recently allowed the fitment of MCA and Supashock shock absorbers.

Aftermarket anti-roll bars are allowed, but must be non-adjustable, and not exceed 22mm in length at the front and 18mm at the rear.

Costs start at $1300 for the XYZ set up to MCA and Supashock, at around $2,500.

Bushes and tie rod ends don’t necessarily need to be replaced if to a working standard, as the standard base car was designed to complete many more kilometres than those completed on a race weekend.

Brakes are another item carried across from the road car, although there is a choice within the Hyundai family to decide upon. The stock 242mm Excel rotors or 257mm Lantra J2 rotors can be utilised, however the performance difference between the two is negligible. The latter option is bigger but it weighs more, so it’s purely driver’s preference.

Pads are free with Bremtec and Winmax the popular choices across the field. Depending on the driver, these can last a full season or can be changed after two or three meetings.

Br Brai Braided aide ded d brake brak br ake e lines are also required, costing around $120 a set set.

“You can’t change anything, just recondition and make it new,” Blight emphasised. “All new bearings and seals in the hubs, recondition the calipers, whereas some competitors use the parts already on the car apart from the brake pads.”

Rims are free, so it is up to the competitor how much they pay for the 15x7” rims that can feature different offsets.

Federal produce the 595 RSR control tyre that can last a full-season at $440 a set. Generally, the front running entries will fit new tyres every three meetings or so, though buffing has now been legalised (see breakout).

Expenses on the interior are minimal apart from the roll cage, with telemetry banned in Excel racing as are nonstandard gauges, though a racing steering wheel can be used, with the cost starting at $400.

A 9kg 105BE fire extinguisher is mandatory for the class, with prices ranging from $78-$100, and further safety items including a seat can be bought for anywhere between $600$2500, belts add another $200 and a window net is also compulsory at a $100 cost. Although telemetry

is disallowed, co comp mpet etititor orss ca can n ut util ilis ise e fr free ee a ppss pp competitors utilise apps downloadable to their smartphones to view lap times and sectors sectors.

Installation of radios are up to the competitor’s discretion, as are GoPros, however the use of these is strongly advised and is likely to become mandatory in the future.

Servicing is straight forward for the Excels racecars and takes no more than a couple of hours, unless there is accident damage to repair of course.

Blight told Auto Action he changes the engine and gearbox oil every two meetings, with a freshening of the powerplant after two to three seasons.

Shocks cannot be reconditioned and last two to three seasons, depending on driving style.

Pre-event preparations take two to three hours and consist of a spanner check and not much else to make sure everything is in order.

An 11-event calendar provides plenty of opportunity for a prospective competitor to race their Excel in a mix of sprint and endurance race formats.

The Hyundai Excel Racing Association of Victoria season is split between four events run as part of the Victorian State Circuit Racing Championships, four Club Championship rounds and three ‘special’ weekends.

Brakes are fundamentally carried across from the road Excel, though Lantra rotors are also allowed. Pads are free and can last a full season, however the faster you are the more often pads will be changed. Racers have a choice of shock absorbers between XYZ, MCA and Supashock units.

38 AutoAction

Ge Generally, the Excels compete within the VSCRC at Sandown and with Phill Phillip Island, with the entry fee bein being $420 for each round. The Club Cha Championship is cheaper at $320, but through sponsorship one of these rou rounds will be subsidised dropping $10 $100 of the fee.

Entry En to the endurance events is m more expensive at around $5 $500, however this can be split be between two drivers, making it very rea reasonable for the amount of track tim time.

There T is an association membership m but as Blight explained, this th is handed back to the competitor c thanks to supporters of the th class.

“Club membership $100 but we try t raise sponsorship,” said Blight.

“The association owns the front guards and and above the windscreen. Our series sponsors spon pay $600 a year and where possible, poss we try to subsidise an entry once a year, (effectively) giving the membership back.”

Generally, a weekend consists of a practice session, qualifying and three races. VSCRC rounds are threeday events, while events where the association can control scheduling are two-day or one-day meetings, with plans on the table to increase the latter to keep competitor costs down.

Due to its popularity, many Victorian competitors also contest the annual Excel Nationals and the Bathurst 6 Hour support at Mount Panorama during Easter.

These add considerable costs because Bathurst uses an MRF tyre, which costs $520 a set, and the entry fee there is $2350 alone.

However due to the Excel’s simplicity, the car can be run with minimal human support, in fact some competitors do it on their own. Most have mates that come along to help, with a strong comaraderie between competitors ensuring a helping hand isn’t too far away.

As for getting the Excel to and from the track, the majority of competitors do this on their own, containing costs in that area.

All up across a race weekend, the cost of running an Excel is around $1200 including entry fee, accommodation ($200-$300) and transport, making for a frugal weekend of racing.

The category has already provided a starting point for a number of the sport’s rising stars, including Toyota 86 racer Jaylyn Robotham, TCR rookie Michael Clemente, plus thirdgeneration racers Jett Johnson and Ben Bargwanna.

Not only that, but the likes of professional drivers Steve Johnson, Jason Bargwanna, Paul Morris, Jonathan Webb, John Faulkner, Tim Slade and Steve Richards have all either competed in the category or are aiming to join in the near future.

This affordable formula continues to grow nationally, with the aim of keeping it as basic as possible and not allow the budget required to skyrocket.

CO$T$ GUIDE DONOR CAR ROLL CAGE

A FRONTRUNNING PACKAGE ADAM BYWATER is one of the current leaders in Excel racing nationally.

Having built eight of the Korean buzz boxes for competition, he’s well versed in how to construct a well-developed example.

To run at the front, Bywater’s Excel features the latest Les Small-built engine that is priced at $8,000, a cost that covers the countless hours of development and research into components such as the exhaust.

“The amount of hours we’ve spent to figure out a recipe, which at the moment we’re back doing another exhaust again and that takes hours of development,” explained Bywater.

The engine is a reliable unit, Bywater hasn’t encountered a mechanical fault yet, and hopes that pattern continues.

“I’ve never actually blown an engine. We’ve had to pull it down at the end of the year for scrutineering checks but it’s basically gone back together,” he recalled. “We’ve just built a new one now, as the old engine was three-four years old.”

Bywater services his Excel before each event with good synthetic

fuel that costs $70 - $80, while the $350 a set Winmax brake pads he uses last two meetings, and Bywater uses $120 of fuel across a weekend.

There is no radio fitted to Bywater’s Excel, but he does have a GoPro for judicial purposes.

New rules allowing buffing the tyres have been introduced, which has decreased tyre life considerable, Bywater believes a new set each round is an accurate estimate.

Suspension of Bywater’s Excel has been upgraded to the Supashock system, which on certain circuits provides a significant advantage over its opposition.

“We went to the Supashock and most of the front guys are on that now,” Bywater explained.

“At the high-speed tracks like Phillip Island there won’t be too much of an advantage, but at a place like Winton it is worth another second, if not 1.5s - 2s. In saying that, the Supashock is double the price of the XYZ.” At a state meeting, Bywater regularly has mates help him out, although he has run the Excel on

his own and has received help from fellow competitors when the brakes needed bleeding or stringing up the car for set-up.

The larger interstate trips are where costs rise, as there’s days off from work to be considered as well as the normal fees associated with a race meeting.

“The biggest killers with interstate racing is the travel, accommodation and the time away from work. It’s a day either way for travel, so if you’re doing the Friday practice it’s five days away,” Bywater said.

Bywater has used AGI and Brown Davis bolt in cages in the past, but with the next build may design his own.

“The bolt in ones are readily available and if you happen to crash a car, it’s a cheap way to re-shell and get back on the track,” he said.

Development is rapidly increasing, but Bywater still believes the category remains an inexpensive class.

“After every round if you don’t keep developing, you fall behind, but that’s part of motor racing,” Bywater admitted.

“It’s still the cheapest, bang for buck, it’s still good.” HM

$200-$600 $1300 (basic DIY bolt in) $3,000 to $4,500 (National-spec welded) ENGINE $4000-$8000 (service before each event) SUSPENSION $1,300 (XYZ) $2,500 (Supashock) GEARBOX $500 (reconditioned or replacement) BRAKES Stock rotors and calipers.

Drum rear, pads free ($250 - $350 a set every 2-3 meetings) EXHAUST The exhaust sytem is free from the headers WHEELS/TYRES Free 15x7”/Federal 595 RSR tyres - $440 a set ENGINE MODIFICATIONS Baisic reconditioning is permitted Reconditioned head($1,500), reseat valves, bore to max size,surfacing the head is permitted FUEL 98 Octane pump fuel ($50 - $120 per weekend) ENTRY FEES $250 (Club Championship)-$420 (VSCRC)

UPGRADE AS YOU GO

EXCEL RACING is one category where the competitor can control their spending. As a class based around driver development, it is easy to upgrade progressively.

Hyundai Excel Racing Association of Victoria treasurer Neville Blight has been through this process with son Nathan, a former Victorian Excel champion, and told Auto Action that it was not only a costeffective way of racing, but also of helping driving development. ”The first year is to learn the car and race craft, then as the improvement grows, upgrades to the car can be introduce progressively,” Blight explained.

“It might start off as an $8000 car, but after two to three years it might be worth $18,000 because of the upgrades that have been made.

“That’s the best way to go about it for anyone. Start off with the basics by learning how to drive the car, and study the race craft because the Excel is front-wheel drive and most drivers have only driven rear-wheel drive.” HM

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AN INSIDE VIEW

A long-time competitor, current Supercars team co-owner and co-founder of the GT3 Cup Challenge, Sven Burchartz has an insider’s view of the world of motorsport. He is also a lawyer with more than 30 years experience. In this first instalment of a series BRUCE WILLIAMS and HEATH McALPINE talk to Burchartz about the importance of the right legal advice and its application in the world of motor sport.

Images: TCM hub/AA staff/supplied EXPERIENCE IS one thing Sven Burchartz brings to the table in both a legal and a motorsport sense.

As an owner of Melbourne-based law firm Kalus Kenny Intelex and part-owner of Tickford Racing, Burchartz has a unique perspective on the role law plays in motorsport, with things like driver contracts, team acquisitions and various deals for sponsors, manufacturers and suppliers.

Sven kicked off his motorsport career in sprints organised by the Porsche Car Club Victoria, before joining the Porsche Driver’s Challenge, a class within the Australian GT Championship.

Linking up with Sonic Motor Racing Services, Burchartz not only raced competitively but also formed

40 AutoAction

relationships with rising stars like David Reynolds and James Moffat for whom he provided legal advice in exchange for driving tuition.

These tips must have helped, as he won the 2007 Porsche Driver’s Challenge title.

When the Porsche Driver’s Challenge broke away from Australian GT to form the GT3 Cup Challenge in 2008, it was Burchartz and fellow competitor Jon Trende who worked to get the class off the ground with Porsche’s support.

After six years with Sonic, Burchartz embarked on a joint Touring Car Masters campaign alongside Chris Stillwell in a Ford Mustang, before returning to the Stuttgart marque racing a Porsche 911 RSR in TCM and still remains a regular competitior in the category.

Throughout his competition history,

Burchartz worked with a variety of motorsport identities on various legal and commercial issues, and this is when he identified a need for advice and expertise in the motorsport industry.

While Burchartz advises several key players at the highest levels, he also helps everyone at all levels of the sport, as well as in many cases their nonmotorsport businesses and ventures.

Does the fact you’re actively involved in motorsport as a competitor also give you an insight into how the sport works?

Yes, it does. Motorsport is a business as well as a sport. Its product is seen as an entertainment output, but it’s a business and it lives in a highly regulated environment at a FIA or Motorsport

Australia level, or at the Supercars level if that’s the competition.

There are so many components and relationships within that, including sponsorships, brand management, reputation, intellectual property, people issues, drivers, suppliers, manufacturers.

I ran a race series, I race, I now own part of a team and yet I’m still acting for other teams including in Supercars. I act for vehicle and component manufacturers both locally and overseas. Certainly, on the ground, not just with the race suit on, I am talking to the people that are invested, including the administrators and owners of cars and teams.

The networks you make are very important because what that allows me to do for my clients is that I can call on a whole bunch of people I have come to know over the last 15 to 20 years. So the

Sven Burchartz is very active at the track, whether it’s racing in TCM, seen here in a Ford Mustang he shared with Chris Stillwell, or as legal advisor and co-owner of Tickford Racing.

W What sort of legal work d does the sport require?

cut through is much faster and I don’t have a comprehension issue, which is important.

Talking about the understanding you have in the field. I imagine that helps with a new client because you don’t have to invest an enormous amount of time into discerning what they’re talking about?

It’s a comfort factor and a communication factor. If someone is having a fight about a broken front upright, well I know what it is and how they look. So, for things that are industry specific it means you get straight to the problem without having to learn about the business or the environment. That’s valuable to the client, it means you push past the education and get straight into finding the solution.

There’s lots of challenges for race teams, from the economic environment, the money that filters through from the TV deal Supercars negotiates, the ebbs and flows of sponsorship, drivers, the whole thing. It’s not free from frustration.

But the reality is, it is enjoyable and gives me a unique experience.

As a part-owner of Tickford, it must be difficult working on behalf of rival teams?

I think it’s a privilege to act for anyone in helping them sort out issues, but doing that for other Supercar teams is very satisfying as it shows trust. I take what I do seriously and they know that. They come to me because they know I can do the work. And I keep my mouth shut – including within Tickford!

I sspend a lot of time making su sure the agreements and do documents that deal with re relationships, like driver ag agreements, sponsor ag agreements, intellectual property licensing, people, pro acquiring parts - all the things acq that are unique in the way tha they operate in sport, let alone motorsport - are done. mot There are also things like Th engineering agreements, eng technology agreements, buying tech technology and acquiring parts, tech because teams do business beca amongst one another, so there’s agreements along those lines. I have interactions with Supercars when RECS change hands, which is also an important part of what I do.

I get calls about wanting to get into the sport, asking “how does a REC work?”.

It’s a unique structure, which people don’t fully understand.

And then there’s the business structures, shareholder agreements, how they fund it, staff, leasing, safety and what their legal compliance obligations are. These are commercial law issues that I apply for many clients in a range of industries, motorsport being one of them.

What other elements are involved in the sport from a legal perspective?

How did you become a Tickford partowner?

I got the call from Rod Nash to help with the Prodrive acquisition and did that for him. He asked me to join their advisory Board, so I sat with the Board and the management for two or three years and really enjoyed the experience. One day Rod asked me out to coffee and I thought ‘what is going on here?’ He popped the question. He said ‘would you like to be a partner in the business?’ It was a no-brainer. If I’m going to be in, I should be all in.

Sven Burchartz was a co-founder of the GT3 Cup Challenge, having won its predecessor, the Porsche Driver’s Challenge.

There are a myriad of things that come up in motorsport from the regularity framework right down to premises, leases and equipment. Teams like Tickford, Triple Eight, Walkinshaw and many others have massive investments in capital infrastructure and machinery. These things aren’t cheap, so they need financing contracts. The myriad inputs are no different for a motorsport business as they are to any other manufacturing business.

Then there’s the big one which is the product itself. The intellectual property that arises around that is huge, making sure you get the sponsors receiving the benefits that they’re paying for. Making sure they get not just the high speed billboard, which is the car, but the corporate experience and the B2B opportunities.

But these issues also apply to all levels of motorsport from club level, and not just what you might call the ‘professional’ side of things. In overall terms, there are far more people competing and operating in the lower levels of motorsport than those we see at national and international events.

They each have some, if not all, of the issues that face what you might call the ‘professional’ teams and these need taking care of as well.

Being a category owner previously, you have experience with Motorsport Australia. Does that knowledge also help?

Negotiating the Competition Management Agreement was always a unique experience dealing with Motorsport Australia, or CAMS as it was then known. That said, CAMS were terrific when we got it off the ground.

It saw an opportunity and it didn’t hurt that Porsche was behind it as a brand.

From an administration stand point, you certainly understand it’s a regularity environment – both sporting and technical.

Motorsport Australia is about safety, training, a motor sport environment as a workplace, but it’s also a business.

In Auto Action #1787 (on sale 4 June) we continue our in-depth discussion with Sven Burchartz. He talks about contractual matters around sponsorship, drivers and teams.

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BOYS A CONTENDER

After nearly failing to make the grid during the year, Jordan Boys was a race winner in Super2 by the end of 2019. Boys chatted to Dan McCARTHY about his journey.

Images: Insyde Media AN EMOTIONAL victory at Sandown in November 2019 made all the hard work worth it for Jordan Boys, taking the against the odds victory with Image Racing.

“It was pretty emotional. I’m not really much of an emotional person but deep down that meant a lot. It validated all of the suffering we had gone through for the past two years,” Jordan Boys explained.

“As much as it was special on the day, it was on the drive home and the days after when it started to sink in. I thought ‘oh yeah’ I’m really glad I stuck with this.”

Not coming from an affluent background, Boys hasn’t been blessed with a big budget and in mid-2019 it became a struggle to make it to each event.

“I would say 2019 started even more disappointingly than 2018. In my head we were going to be really competitive straight off the bat and it didn’t quite happen,” Boys told Auto Action.

“It took me a bit longer to get used to that full Erebus style of car.

“I went up to Townsville and didn’t get past the second corner, which is always the way when you are qualifying down the back, you are putting yourself in that danger zone.

42 AutoAction

“If you’d have asked me post Townsville round, I if we were going to be at the next round would have said probably not because we had a fairly sizeable damage bill.

“I just got really lucky with the people that have supported me. A lot of the companies I get backed by, don’t need exposure through the TV that we get, they are just backing me to try and get me to the next stage.”

Convinced the following round at

Queensland Raceway would be his last, last however, he made it to the next round at Bathurst after all. A test day prior to that event and upgraded parts helped everything click, which was demonstrated at The Mountain where he charged from the back to finish seventh.

The best was yet to come when Boys scored a breakthrough pole and win at Sandown, before backing it up with another

victory on the streets of Newcastle. v It was just reward for the successful karter from Albury, who like so many k aims to join the Supercars grid. a “I always wanted to be a racing car driver.

Even though I followed Formula d 1, 1 that was never really something I even ev looked towards. It was always V8 Supercars where I wanted to go, that was Su always the goal, and still is,” Boys said. alw Formula Ford was the first test for F Boys Bo as he and his father ran a small operation competing under the Jordan op Boys Bo Motorsport banner, against the likes of Will W Brown and Jayden Ojeda, plus established teams such as Sonic Motor esta Racing Rac Services.

“We “W did it as father and son for the most part,” part Boys told AA. “We bought a car, ran it and an that for me was the most rewarding racing racin I’ve done to date.

“It was w a tough gig working, going home, working on the car, but at the end of it you look back and the people we were racing against and the results we got, were really cool.”

Boys finished an impressive third in the national series and planned to make the step into the unofficial third-tier of Supercars racing, the V8 Touring Car Series in 2018.

However a lack of budget appeared to

Jordan Boys celebrates victory with the Image Racing team on the streets of Newcastle (above).

In action around the Adelaide Parklands circuit at the 2019 opener. (left).

cement him in Formula Ford until, two weeks before the start of the V8 Touring Car season, Boys secured a drive with Terry Wyhoon’s Image Racing squad.

After a pre-event private test, Boys however wondered what he had gotten himself into.

“In some ways it was everything I thought it would be and in other ways it was a lot harder to get used to,” Boys said.

“My first couple of laps, whilst they were enjoyable, I went away from the day saying what have I gotten myself into to some extent.”

Boys won the opening round and scored a number of podiums thereafter, and with one round to go he received a

call to see if he’d like to step up with the team and fill the Super2 seat left vacant

by Renee Gracie.

“I got a phone call saying ‘Would you be keen to transfer the rest of your budget over to do the rest of Super2?’”

Boys recalled.

“In Super2 you are running against 20 of the best drivers that aren’t in Supercars. I thought it was better for me to do that and get beaten pretty soundly, because I’d be able to learn a whole lot from it.

“My thinking was that there was more to gain than there was to lose by going there and doing those remaining rounds, and I think it was a good decision.”

In the final rounds of 2017, Boys impressed by collecting two top 10 finishes. Despite this, it was followed by a disappointing full-season campaign in 2018, finishing 22nd.

“I would sum 2018 up as a lot of ifs and buts,” Boys told AA. “I think we just fell short of what we needed to be competitive, budget wise, and that meant the rest of the field took a bit of a step forwards with the quality of their equipment.”

After his breakout season in 2019, Boys was offered a test drive of a Brad Jones Racing Supercar-spec Commodore at Winton Raceway, where the experience further enhanced his appetite for Supercars.

“It is really cool when you get to drive a main series car, to work with the

engineers and the mechanics,” Boys said. “Brad has always been good to me and looks after me wherever he can.

“That was a really good opportunity to go and do some extra laps, learn off some of his guys and I really appreciated it.”

Earlier this year Boys was also presented another good opportunity to jump behind the wheel of a V8 powered open-wheel S5000 monster, an experience he enjoyed greatly.

“It was really cool, they are such a different bit of kit to what I’m used to with a Supercar. It is not that similar to a Formula Ford, either, so it definitely took some getting used to. It has lots of horsepower and is fairly physical on your body as well, but I was really glad I went and did it,” Boys explained (more on Boys’ S5000 test in News).

The 2020 Super2 season started solidly for Boys finishing fourth in the opening round at Adelaide, just behind new teammate Will Brown. Boys believes the 21-year-old will push him forwards when racing resumes.

“It is great to have someone in the team who isn’t happy until they are winning. So far it has been really good working with him, he is a great yardstick,” he told AA. “Erebus really rate him, they’ve already signed him for next year and it is great for me to go out and focus on trying to beat him.

“It should put a light on what I can do and to make the next step”

Jo ord rdan an Boys Boy oys had h d success ha succ su ccccess cces eesss in n Jordan Formula Ford (above). Boys on his way to winning in Newcastle (below) and getting ready for the next session at the Adelaide 500 (far left).

RACING ON A SHOESTRING In his 50th year in motorsport, perennial battler Garry Willmington is the focus of Auto Action’s first feature on the privateers of Australasian touring car racing. Willmington discusses how he got started, the controversial homologation of the XD Falcon, his Jaguar stint and joining the turbo brigade with HEATH McALPINE. Images: AA Archive/Autopics.com.au INVOLVED IN motor sport to this very day, Garry Willmington wouldn’t have it any otherr way.

He first took to the track in 1970 driving a self-built Ford Anglia sports sedan, at his local Sydney circuits Amaroo Park and Oran Park.

It was the start of a long association with the Blue Oval that would prove important 10 years later but, initially, Willmington was simply living out his childhood dream.

“I wanted to race cars since I was five or six years old, that was all I wanted to do,” Willmington told Auto Action.

“I started in a little Ford Anglia Sports Sedan, which I ran at Oran Park, Amaroo Park and all over the place. It went alright, I didn’t have much money then so it was tough, very tough, but we managed to do it.”

He further modified it, installing a Ford 2899 V8 into the small Anglia, however it was sold before Willmington drove it.

A burnt out XA Falcon Hardtop shell was purchased as a replacement, and led inadvertently to a stint in touring cars.

“I bought a burnt out XA Falcon Hardtop shell which I was turning that into a Sports Sedan and rang up Gossy [John Goss] to talk to him about some parts. But he then said theat his whole (Touring Car) car was for sale, so I ended up buying the ex-Goss Bathurst winning Falcon,” Willmington recalled.

The battling Sydneysider suddenly found himself taking on the Touring Car stars of the day operating on a miniscule budget by comparison, but performed solidly.

44 AutoAction

Garry Willmington built the EB Falcon in his own workshop, a limited budget meaning he made its componetry himself rather than purchase it off the shelf.

“Talk about way beyond my means. I didn’t have a lot of experience and I didn’t have the money trying to race a top-end Group C car against the top drivers,” explained Willmington.

“It was tough, but we were there. I won a race in it at Amaroo and got some pretty good results, including sixth in the Rothmans 300 at Oran Park.

“I did a lot of good things in it.”

Willmington raced the 1974 Bathurst winner until mid-1978 until selling it to Russell Kramer,

who converted it to a road car.

Next he built up an XC Falcon in his Willmington Performance workshop out of Luddenham (Sydney). He and Jeff Barnes took iit to finish 23rd at Bathurst, which w was the first of Willmington’s 22 sstarts in The Great Race.

The new for 1980 touring ccar regulations threatened to eend Ford’s representation, but W Willmington and Victorian privateer M Murray Carter set out to homologate th the new XD Falcon before both co contested the opening round at Sy Symmons Plains “N “No one wanted to know about the homologation of it and Ford said tha that it didn’t want the car to race,” Will Willmington explained.

“I (still) have the letter from Edsel Ford saying that he didn’t want the car tto race (but) I wanted to race one.

I couldn’t get one (from Ford) so I went and bought a road car, stripped it out, turned it into a race car, (and) did all the homologation for it.”

Unbeknownst to Willmington at the time, he had a part to play in the future of Ford Racing’s success in Australia by knocking back a potential purchaser of the XD at a later ATCC event.

“Dick [Johnson] came over to us at Lakeside and asked if I wanted to sell it, but I said ‘nah’,” Willmington said.

“One of his mechanics, Roy McDonald, at the very first race I ran at Oran Park he came down and worked with us. He had been with Dick for a long time. He came down and learnt

a lot about the car, plus helped us a lot.”

The XD Falcon-era gave Willmington his best Bathurst finish of 9th in 1981, alongside Mike Griffin. He also set the Amaroo Park lap record with it, before Steve Masterton later broke it in an upgraded XE Falcon.

When CAMS turned to Group A in 1985, Willmington followed a more obscure path by choosing the Jaguar XJS. Described today by Willmington as a “bloody good car”, the Jaguar was the only viable option when he didn’t want to make a move to Holden and the Mustang too expensive.

Help wasn’t forecoming from global Jaguar guru Tom Walkinshaw, however.

“None at all,” Willmington said.

“He classified me as opposition, which really pissed me off because I had no money and were just (barely) doing it. We built that car pretty cheap and ran it pretty cheap compared with what you’d expect.

“We didn’t have to spend a lot on race engines because they had steel cranks and rods, good valves, we didn’t have to change much. Just put some camshafts in them, give it compression and pistons, and away they went. It was just magic.”

Late-1985 was when Willmington and the Jaguar really clicked, winning an AMSCAR heat at Amaroo Park, followed by a competitive performance in the Pepsi 300 at Oran Park, which led to the flamboyant

Willmington made a left-field choice for the switch to Group A regulations, a Jaguar XJS which today he describes as a “bloody good car”. He enjoyed two successful outings at Bathurst sharing with the colourful Captain Peter Janson.

Captain Peter Janson joining the team for Bathurst in 1985 and 1986.

“It was good because he (Janson) bought some budget with him, so it gave us some money to make the car more competitive, which it was,” Willmington said. “It was certainly different (racing with Janson).”

After winning his class driving a Toyota Sprinter alongside Bob Holden and Bryan Bate in 1987, Willmington went to the dark side, The Lion.

In fact, Willmington debuted the second itineration of the VL Commodore Group A, ironically developed by TWR, much to Holden and Walkinshaw’s displeasure.

“We did a lot of work with that and I was actually the first person to run that car in the

world, which Tom Walkinshaw had the shits about,” Willmington said.

“Holden didn’t want it to run at Oran Park but rather at Sandown, however I always liked to support Oran Park. It was my home track and they always looked after me, so I tried to do the same. I couldn’t get engine parts, but I had a customer in my performance workshop who had a Walkinshaw Commodore, who let me use their engine.”

Moving on from the Commodore, if the Jaguar wasn’t an obscure enough choice, Willmington then closed-out the Group A-era with a turbocharged Toyota Supra, an oddity even outside its native Japan.

“They were a magic handling car,” Willmington enthused.

“I blew a lot of engines at the start because I

didn’t have a lot of experience with turbos.

We learnt a lot and, in the end, we got to a stage where we could do a couple of thousand kilometres with an engine. It was good in the end, it was great.”

When the new 5-litre formula came in for 1993, it provided a platform for a Ford homecoming for Willmington.

“Dick Johnson helped me a lot with the development of the EB Falcon. He gave me all the blueprints of the floorpan, bodyshell, everything, I got all that off him,” Willmington recounted. “Both he and Glenn Seton were good helping us. ““It was great, we built all our own stuff including a floating rear diff, we did all that, everything ourselves. We didn’t go and buy Harrop stuff, we built all those parts, we built arms for the front of it, there was a lot of our own gear in that car.”

Willmington rounded out the decade competing against fellow Supercar privateers Simon Emerzidis and Gary Holt, before stepping away from driving and taking on a management role at Wakefield Park.

He then launched the original Australian Motor Racing Series and the grassroots Independent Race Series.

Willmington then built the Marulan Driver Training Centre in 2009 for driver development in response to the loss of Oran Park, since renamed the Pheasant Wood circuit.

He now oversees his son Braydan’s S5000 campaign.

Fords have been at the heart of Willmington’s racing. Above left is the XC Falcon hardtop, above the EB Falcon and below the XD which he pioneered along with Murray Carter (following here), against Ford’s wishes.

AutoAction

45

HIDDEN AMONG THE TREES In this first instalment of Short Circuit, GARRY O’BRIEN discovers what the Pheasant Wood track in New South Wales has to offer

Nestled among the trees, Pheasant Wood is a multi faceted facility offering a number of track layouts including a Rallycross circuit.

UNLESS YOU know the area, finding Pheasant Wood Circuit isn’t the easiest of tasks.

Located 1.1km along Prairie Oak Road, which itself is located 3km along Jerrara Road which runs off the Hume Highway, it is five minutes from the township of Marulan and around 35km north of Goulburn.

From Sydney that’s around an hour and 45 minutes south west and just over an hour heading north from Canberra.

The beginnings of the circuit date back to 1992 as a project started by Garry and Natalie Willmington who saw the need for a replacement for Oran Park, primarily for non motor sport activities.

Opened in 2008, by 2009 it had been quietly in operation for a year as a driver training and vehicle testing venue, as well as for other motoring-related activities.

On January 18 of that year, the facility was officially revealed to the public in conjunction with the launch of the nowdefunct Independent Race Series (iRace).

Competitors, guests and enthusiasts had

their first look at what was then called the Marulan Driving Centre, a picturesque 1.2 kilometre-long, eight-metre wide circuit reminiscent of Amaroo Park.

It featured an amenities centre with an excellent view of the circuit, along with garages and a 360m dirt oval in the centre.

The facility was designed for defensive and advanced driver training, race driver training, kids’ driver training from the age of eight, corporate events, skid circuit hire, vehicle manufacturers’ evaluation and launch days.

The driving centre was also available for staff and team bonding days, car club track days, company fleet programs, private venue hire and race licence tests.

Over the ensuing 11 years, all sorts of events have been held at the circuit including time trials, regularities, car club nationals, hillclimbs and rallycross.

There was even a round of the iRace Series and from 2015 onwards, the Cheap Car Challenge became a regular event.

In 2016 the facility was purchased by Steve Shelley, whose background is

Shelley soft drinks, initially developed by his great grandfather.

Shelley worked in the business for 12 years and then developed Aero-Care, which provided skilled staff, before going on to develop Deputy.com, a cloud-based software (with smartphone app), which organises staff and rosters.

He came to Marulan with a vision to upgrade the facility to a world class venue and undertook a $7,000,000 transformation. This included removing the speedway track from the middle of the circuit and extending the original layout.

Steve’s brother and now General Manager Cameron Shelly, who had been in civil earth moving for 18 years, undertook the job of overseeing a team of local contractors to remove the old track and create a new one.

The circuit has thus been dramatically upgraded in layout, safety and amenities.

Besides being widened, it has been lengthened considerably to 1.6 kilometres, still within the perimeter of the original layout.

The track from the top to the bottom has an elevation change of 13 metres.

To create this multi-tiered elevation, 2.3 million tonnes of compacted material was brought in over a five-month period, along with 227 tonnes of locally sourced road base.

The circuit contains corners, camber and character not seen at any other Australian race track, the corner cambers alleviating to an extent the worry of competitors contacting many of the concrete walls.

Using the existing main straight, the clockwise-direction track that averages a healthy 14 metres (and up to 18 metres) in width, heads uphill towards Turn 1. It is a challenging, late-apex hairpin with five degrees of positive camber and plenty of runoff area. It then plunges downhill towards a long, banked, constant-radius right-hand hairpin, which is faster than it looks.

The circuit doubles back on itself through another cambered corner, diving to the left as it heads slightly downhill in an openingradius corner that sees cars increase

Pheasant Wood was originally created by long time racer Garry Willmington and his wife, and has since been reimagined in a $7 million rebuild by Steve Shelley. The well-equipped venue is busy year round with corporate and club events, driver training and other edicational activities. Images: supplied

46 AutoAction

speed peed on corner exit. The road opens up and d gently tl curves tto th the lleftft th through hT Turn 4, before climbing uphill into Turn 5 – a right hander with a good inside passing opportunity.

From there a short straight ends at the 90-degree to the right Turn 6, before dropping downhill towards the fast, right hand Turn 7. The kink can be tricky as at that part of the track, one has to brake and set up for the left handed Turn 8, that has negative 1.5 degrees of camber.

The track sweeps right at Turn 9 which is cambered 17 degrees at the apex, and allows for a fast exit back onto the startfinish straight.

It’s not a long lap, but is exiting as it holds the drivers’ attention throughout.

The best lap time has been recorded

by Garth Walden in a Radical at 50.3 seconds. The quickest to circulate in a RWD production car to date is Matt Cole in a Mazda RX7, while the best achieved in an AWD is Greg Boyle aboard a Nissan Skyline GTR R32.

The ffacility broad Th ilit continues ti tto cater t tto a b d mix of motorsport and motoring activities, both on and off-road, as well as corporate events, drive days and club events through to fully-blown motor sport events on a larger scale.

The Track-Side Cafe provides freshly cooked food on order for dining, casual meals, coffee, drinks and more, either within the premises or the adjacent undercover area which overlooks the circuit.

There are also covered pit carports and an event air-conditioned race control and operations suite.

Besides the improvements, the facility also undertook a name change from Marulan Driver Training Centre to now become the Pheasant Wood Circuit.

The name has an interesting origin.

Shelley’s great grandfather Herbert Thomas Bolt, nicknamed Nutsy, was a World War I casualty, killed in action along with over 5300 others at Fromelles,

France on July 20, 1916.

The military cemetery in Fromelles, where Nutsy was laid to rest, is called Pheasant Wood.

The Pheasant Wood facility has a community conscience as well. c The Learner Driver School Holiday program involves parents and students, p learning together. It offers a safe, le controlled environment for teaching c correct behaviours and ensuring c learners are confident and competent le behind the wheel, before tackling public be roads. ro Clients can hire one of the circuit’s C Volkswagen Polos, or bring their own Vo vehicle.

A one-day program starts from ve $150 $15 and ranges up to $800 (including car hire) for three days. The locals are particularly well looked after with a 15 per cent discount for residents of the Goulburn Mulwaree district.

Pheasant Wood has a variety of other uses and applications including and not limited to defensive driving, new vehicle testing, car club days, media release days, motorcycles and sidecars.

Official timing for most events is provided by Eldee Timing with five loops around the circuit.

There are many accommodation options within a 40-kilometre radius, with Maulan the closest. With Bundanoon to the north and Goulburn in the other direction, there are a host of hotel, motel and home-style offerings.

Not prepared to sit on its laurels, there are now plans for further expansion to the Pheasant Wood facility.

These are set to be revealed down the track – so to speak.

FAST FACTS

Track Length: 1.6 kilometres Track width: 12 to 18 metres Track Corners: Nine Track camber: -1.5 to +7 degrees Track Density: Sprints 25 cars, Regularity 30 cars

Track licence: Motorsport Australia clockwise for Sprints, Supersprints and Regularity; anti-clockwise for Hillclimb pitlane to T4, AASA held events as well Nearest major town: Goulburn NSW, 35 kilometres Minimum race licence requirements: Pheasant Wood Event Licence (obtained by completing an Observed Licence Test).

Biggest event held: Beyond Blue Charity Hillclimb with over 200 competitors on the new circuit.

Australian Rallycross Championship held as well.

General Manager: Cameron Shelley Track Manager: Scott Hill Web: www.pheasantwood.com.au Phone: 02 4841 1422

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LATEST e-Series RACE COVERAGE

MCLAUGHLIN MAINTAINS LEAD Report: Dan McCarthy Images: Clive Rose – Getty Images DESPITE ONLY winning one of the seven races held during Rounds 3 and 4 of the Supercars All Stars Eseries, Scott McLaughlin remains the comfortable title leader.

Sim set-ups and racing quality stepped up a level from opening two rounds, with more drivers becoming competitive.

A number of Wildcards joined the grid for the third round at the familiar Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst, including Aussie IndyCar star Will Power, simulator expert Brodie Kostecki and Super2 driver Tom Randle.

Triple Eight driver Shane van Gisbergen snatched pole by 0.009s in the Top 10 Shootout from Kostecki, while series leader McLaughlin was in an unfamiliar eighth.

The Kiwi was forced to defend the lead from Kostecki on the opening lap, then the Super2 driver pitted early on lap 3 in an attempt to undercut van Gisbergen, but when the Triple Eight driver stopped a lap later he emerged back out in the lead.

At race end van Gisbergen held on beating Kostecki, Anton de Pasquale, Randle, Chaz Mostert and Power, with McLaughlin recovering to seventh after receiving a drive-through-penalty for a collision at the Chase which included Penske teammate Power.

The second race was a reverse grid encounter. Both Kostecki and van Gisbergen received damage on the first lap and elected to pit early.

Out front Fabian Coulthard converted pole into a dominant win from Cameron Waters, Will Davison and McLaughlin. Van Gisbergen recovered to finish seventh, while Kostecki spun at the final turn and finished 10th.

The starting order of Race 3 was determined by the finishing order of the previous race, at the end of lap 1 Coulthard held a 2.2s lead while van Gisbergen and

50 AutoAction

Sim racer guru Brodie Kostecki was a Wildcard at Bathurst and nudged Scott McLaughlin out of the lead at the last corner but was penalised post-race.

There was lots of carnage as usual further back (below).

Kostecki entered the lane.

McLaughlin remained on the track until the end of lap 9. When he emerged from the pits he found himself fighting for the lead with van Gisbergen and Kostecki.

With three laps remaining van Gisbergen allowed Kostecki through to hunt down and overtake the Penske driver.

Kostecki caught and hounded McLaughlin on the final lap, forcing the Kiwi to defend at almost every turn. At the final corner Kostecki nudged McLaughlin wide and into the wall, though the #17 driver still managed to finish second ahead of van Gisbergen.

After the race Craig Baird awarded McLaughlin the win and demoted Kostecki

to second following the last corner incident.

Supercars drivers then visited the Gilles Villeneuve Circuit in Canada and the Watkins Glen Circuit in America, for Round 4.

De Pasquale qualified on pole for Race 1 in Canada but ran in too deep at Turn 1, taking a trip through the grass which allowed van Gisbegen to take the lead.

The new leader was the first of the fromt running trio to pit on lap 4 and was followed by McLaughlin a lap later and de Pasqule on lap 6. In the stops McLaughlin leapt ahead of de Pasquale and set about catching van Gisbergen.

He caught the 2016 Supercars champion on the last lap, bumping him wide at Turn 2

to take the lead but was told to redress the position. As he did so de Pasquale snuck around the outside and reclaimed second.

That was the way it stayed, van Gisbergen from de Pasquale and McLaughlin.

Race 2 was absolute carnage with most of the field involved in an accident of some description. The top three finishers in the opening race were all forced to make an unscheduled extra pitstop, burying them in the pack.

Mostert took his first win of the e-Series from Waters and Zane Goddard, while de Pasquale finished 15th and McLaughlin and Gizzy finished outside the top 20.

Van Gisbergen took pole for Race 3 at ‘The Glen’ however he made an awful start and dropped to seventh by the first turn.

Out front, de Pasquale and McLaughlin pulled out a significant margin and remained unchallenged finishing in that order, while Van Gisbergen recovered to third.

Race 4 was another reverse grid encounter, the opening lap up front as frantic as always but once that had been completed it settled down nicely.

Whincup found himself in the lead early and despite pressure from wildcard Indy 500 winner Alexander Rossi, the seven-time champ held onto the win.

Rossi finished an impressive second ahead of McLaughlin, van Gisbergen and Tickford Racing driver Waters, who won the round overall.

Supercars Standings 1 McLaughlin 2 Waters 3 van Gisbergen 4 Heimgartner 5 Mostert 6 Coulthard 7 Davison 8 de Pasquale 9 Fullwood 10 Jacobson

759 670 626 572 540 537 497 464 430 430

HABER AT FRONT OF ARG CUP Report: Dan McCarthy Images: ARG

Chaz Mostert picked up his first Eseries win at the American Watkins Glen track.

IN ROUNDS 4 and 5 of the ARG eSports Cup, Harley Haber won half of the races and leapt to the top of the standings.

Competitors had traded TCR Audis for Formula 3 machinery for Round 4, which took place at the home of the Italian Formula 1 Grand Prix, Monza.

In qualifying, Wildcard Luca Giacomin took pole position from Dutchman Niels Langeveld and Haber.

It was a great opening lap for Haber who leapt into the lead ahead of Giacomin, John Martin, Nathan Herne, Langeveld and Dylan O’Keeffe, as pandemonium took place behind.

On lap 2 Langeveld unloaded series contender Herne at the second chicane and Jett Johnson takes a tumble (top) while Oscar was awarded a 30s penalty for the incident. Piastri made a guest appearance at Barcelona and won.

Out front Haber cruised to victory from Giacomin, Martin and O’Keeffe.

Race 2 was a reverse top 20, and in the first Trans Am driver Herne was now in second two laps polesitter Langeveld, Randle and and started to close the gap to the leader but it Herne were able to pull away from the pack. was to no avail, Piastri set some blistering laps Langveld began to gap Randle and Herne, late to the win by 3.2s from Herne, O’Keeffe who became locked in a titanic slipstreaming and Randle. dual for second place, which allowed Haber to Starting the reverse grid race from seventh, catch the pair late on.

Haber jumped into the lead by the end of lap Haber quickly dispatched Herne at the 2, while Randle also shot though the pack Parabolica and moved past Randle at Turn 1 jumping from 16th to second within the first with a great dummy up the inside. five minutes.

Langveld took the win from Haber and Herne ARG Standings after Randle locked the rears and spun all on 1 Haber 288 his own late in the race.

2 Herne 272 For Round 5 at Barcelona series regulars 3 O’Keeffe 248 were joined by reigning Formula Renault 4 Ransley 238 Eurocup driver Oscar Piastri, who dominated 5 Sutton 234 the opening race.

6 Cox 207 Piastri and Giacomin made an even jump off 7 Tander 182 the line and ran side by side into Turn 1, but 8 Cameron 174 around the fast right the open-wheel star swung 9 Giacomin 171 outside to take the lead up the inside at Turn 2.

10 McReynolds 169 In the opening laps Giacomin was pushing hard to keep on the rear of Piastri, but into the Turn 10 hairpin on lap 2 he locked the rear wheels and spun out of contention.

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51

LATEST e-Series RACE COVERAGE

Scott McLaughlin scores the biggest win of his iracing career, victory at Indianapolis. Behind him Askew and Ferrucci crash out.

MCLAUGHLIN’S ‘BRADBURY’ VICTORY Report: Dan McCarthy THE INDYCAR iRacing Challenge concluded with two thrilling races, with Formula 1 star Lando Norris taking the win in the penultimate round at the Circuit of the Americas and reigning Supercars champion Scott McLaughlin gifted the Indianapolis 175 victory as his rivals took each other out.

For the final race of the Indycar iRacing Challenge season, drivers located around the world competed at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

In the lead up to the 70 lap race around the Brickyard, the traditional Indy500 qualifying format was used to work out the 33 starters.

Once again McLaughlin impressed by taking pole position from popular McLaren F1 driver Norris, who made his second guest appearance in as many weeks.

McLaughlin made a stunning start and comfortably led into the opening sequence of corners but was hauled in on the back straight by Aussie James Davison and Norris.

Despite an early safety car on lap 4 the first 50 laps ran very smoothly, but as the race reached the final stages, the intensity wound up a notch.

With 18 laps to go Scott Speed made contact with Davison and Stefan Wilson, firing them into the inside wall and causing a caution to be thrown.

Soon after the race went back to green, reigning series winner Josef Newgarden along with Takuma Sato, Sage Karam and others collided, causing another safety car.

When racing resumed there were nine laps remaining. Within two laps the three McLaren youngsters, Norris, Pato O’Ward and Oliver Askew all found their way to the front. Just behind this trio was McLaughlin,

52 AutoAction

Aussie James Davison starred at the Brickyard again, here battling with Lando Norris.

who picked up some front wing damage on the restart and became easy pickings for former F1 driver Marcus Ericsson, who swept around the outside of him with five to go.

With three to go leader Norris was out after a colliding with backmarker Simon Pagenaud. Just behind, Santino Ferrucci overhauled McLaughlin and began to catch the leading trio.

On the final lap Ericsson passed both Arrow McLaren racing cars into Turn 3, O’Ward made a desperate lunge at the

The Indy iracing battle in typically intense at Indianapolis, especially among the mid field.

final turn to retake the lead and tapped the Swede into a spin. This left Askew with a clear run to the line, however just metres from victory Ferrucci tapped him, sending both cars into a violent crash and handing McLaughlin an incredible second win in the series.

“I saw a whole bunch of crashing,” McLaughlin said.

“Unbelievable to get the Pirtek car into Victory Lane. It was really cool. From that last caution, my front wing was damaged, so I was just literally trying to hope there

was a wreck at the end, and there were two.

“We were at the right place at the right time. I thought we were going to get third, and then the two wrecked in front of us, and we got the win.”

Conor Daly finished second ahead of the still flipping Ferrucci and Askew, with O’Ward in fifth.

At the Circuit of the Americas one week earlier, Norris made his first guest appearance. The Englishman took pole by 0.4s, however the race proved not to be so easy, taking the win by just 1.4s.

Just after completing his first pit stop Norris spun but was able to recover to second position, and this became the lead when Felix Rosenqvist spun with four laps remaining.

Norris took the win from O’Ward, Rosenqvist and McLaughlin.

“It was not easy at all, which was all down to myself and obviously the spin in the second stint,” Norris said.

“It was a tough race, especially with Pato closing down with the new tyres at the end.

I didn’t think I was going to get back to the lead.”

This issue Auto Action kicks off a new feature called ‘What’s In The Workshop’ that will showcase just that. If you have a new racing project during this enforced break in on-track action, drop us a line at editor@autoaction.com.au Please attach images, contact details and a short explanation of the project.

ALTHOUGH THERE’S no racing at the moment, teams aren’t being idle behind the scenes as they attend to long-term projects.

One such example is the Porsche Carrera Cup Australia series winning team, McElrea Racing.

Team owner Andy McElrea explained that the squad was currently working on two polar opposite projects.

The first major project is the restoration of the Objective Racing McLaren 650S GT3 for owner Tony Walls.

The McLaren was shared by Walls, Warren Luff and Andrew Watson in the 2019 Bathurst 12 Hour and competed at Challenge Bathurst last November.

Now superseded by the 720s GT3, Walls plans to place this chassis in his collection after the restoration is complete.

“The owner Tony Walls is a very specific sort of guy, he likes everything being immaculate,” McElrea told Auto Action.

“We had always planned to give the car a freshen up this year, so he could put it back on display in his collection.

“He has (now) been decent enough to get us to do a proper restoration job on it, which is a significantly bigger job.

“It keeps the boys busy while we’re quiet, (so) it’s been a bit of a life saver for us.”

By the end of the restoration, the McLaren will be immaculate, having been stripped back to the bare shell.

“We’ve been pulling everything apart and cleaning it, replacing all the nuts and bolts, oil lines, fuel lines, completely stripping all the body parts, re-painting and just making it look all brand new again,” The other project McElrea is working on is a peculiar but interesting assignment.

McELREA RACING

The Tony Walls owned McLaren 650S is being fully restored for display in his collection.

Image: supplied “A customer who wants to remain anonymous, his child has a soap box derby race later in the year at school, so we’re designing and building a billy cart,” McElrea said.

When asked if the design has received the CAD treatment, McElrea replied “It hasn’t yet”.

Aerodynamic effects and weight distribution are key considerations of the build.

“We have to get a bit clever with aero-

dynamics of the body and things like that, but it’s a real fun project,” McElrea explained.

“We’ve got the concept in place now, (and) we’re working out what we are going to do for wheels and brakes because it’s not just downhill, it has to handle well.”

Some go-fast items from a race car could be installed onto the billy cart, but it’s mainly mountain bike hardware such as calipers, rotors, wheels and tyres. All

will be utilised ahead of a comprehensive testing program.

“Test program will be as busy as a normal one, because we have to try to create the incline on the hill and the surface, then play around with the centre of gravity and weight distribution,” McElrea concluded.

Currently the team has its eight Porsches prepped and ready for when racing resumes, with the crew working three-day weeks in the interim. HM

MITCHELL RACE XTREME HAMILTON-BASED Mitchell Race Xtreme has a distinguished record in New Zealand motor sport.

Having started as a classic car restoration shop in the 1980s by Derek Mitchell, it expanded into race cars in 1993.

Derek’s son Nick started with the shop 18 years ago, during which time Mitchell Race Xtreme has undertaken large engineering projects including the development of the New Zealand Touring Cars TLX chassis, which have spawned the Holden Commodore, Ford Falcon, Toyota Camry and Nissan Altima.

But the squad’s latest project is something of a shock.

From the outside it appears to be a regular Ferrari 458 GT3, but a peak through the glass engine cover reveals the words Chevrolet on the engine. Yes, a Chevrolet Indycar engine.

“The 458 is an ex-GT3 Ferrari that got crashed, was badly damaged and got parked,” Mitchell

explained to Auto Action.

“A customer bought it and gave it to us. We straightened the chassis, cut and fabricated our own front rails to the bare chassis, there was nothing bolted to it.”

Yes, it’s a Chevrolet Indycar-engined Ferrari 458 set for the Endurance Championship in New Zealand! Image: supplied Although its heart is kind 458 GT3 is expected to 700hp engine, which has the wing mold to have more aggrescourtesy of Chevrolet, compete in the North and South alternator, oil pump, water pump sion, as we weren’t constrained much of the rest of the compoby GT3 regulations, so we mount- all built in. The thing fitted in mag- Endurance Championship in New nentry is Ferrari-sourced, and is Zealand, as well as some GT-One ically and was 60kg lighter than ed it a bit higher.” effectively a hybrid of two sets of events.

Fitting an IndyCar engine wasn’t the Ferrari engine.”

GT regulations.

Other projects that Mitchell Race A factory Ferrari Hewland gearthe original plan, but the opportu“We started shopping around Xtreme is currently working on box was purchased and mated nity presented itself. for Ferrari parts because the 488 includes a Mustang that started perfectly to the flywheel of the “The original idea was to get had come in, replacing the 458,” life as an electric drag car project IndyCar motor through a 20mm a LS and twin-turbo it,” Mitchell Mitchell continued. with the aim of having 2000hp. adapter. The bolt pattern and explained.

“Kessel over in Switzerland that However, parts have proved diameter were the same.

“We started looking around, built the car had plenty of parts, The car hasn’t raced yet or even expensive and it will be converted but found an IndyCar motor. We (so) we mated our fabricated instead into an extremely powerful found a guy that had 100 of these been started, as it was sent to the arms to Ferrari uprights. electrician just prior to the country road-car.

Chevy IndyCar motors, so we “The customer found bodywork Another is a rare Saker rear-enbeing sent into lockdown. from the GTE model and the back bought four of them! gine sports car. HM Once completed this one-of-a “It’s a 3.5-litre, 11,500rpm, half is GT3. We designed our own

AutoAction

53

Alan Jones career crossword We take a look back at who and what was making news in the pages of Auto Action 10, 20, 30, 40 years ago 1980: PETER BROCK clinched his third Australian Touring Car Championship at Surfers Paradise, which wasn’t a shock. What was though, the man writing that report was none other than AA’s very own Foges! The Monaco Grand Prix provided plenty of drama including a spectacular crash for Derek Daly.

1990: AFTER NOT holding a round of the ATCC for some time due to a sponsorship agreement, Sandown appeared set to re-enter the fray. The agreement was struck between the Light Car Club of Australia and Victorian Health Promotion Foundation, after the LCCA had to buyout a Phillip Morris contract. Colin Bond took a surprise victory at Lakeside, the second last of his career.

2000: A STRONG endurance line-up was announced by Dick Johnson Racing with Jason Bright and Cameron McLean joining the team. Bright was racing Indy Lights in America after driving with Stone Brothers Racing the previous year, while McLean was one of the top privateers. The VT Commodore was still dominating with Skaife leading the title.

2010: A DOMINATING weekend in Spain lifted Mark Webber’s chances in the Formula 1 World Driver’s Championship. The Australian started the season strongly, and his latest victory had junior teammate Sebastian Vettel admiting “Mark’s in a league of his own”.

ACROSS

3. Jones competed in the Australian round of the World Sportscar Championship in 1984, but at which track was the race held?

7. At the Bathurst 1000 in 1989 and 1990 Jones teamed up with which other Formula 1 World Champion? (full name) 8. Where was the non-championship 1980 Australian Formula 1 Grand Prix held?

9. How many championship Formula 1 races were held in 1980?

10. Jones made his final Bathurst 1000 start in 2002, who was his co-driver that year?

12. Jones’ final Formula 1 race was in what country?

14. In 1984 Jones drove for which brand in the Le Mans 24 Hours?

15. What was Jones’ highest championship finishing position in the ATCC/V8 Supercars Championship?

16. At which American venue did Jones win his final Formula 1 race?

19. Jones raced in a one sole IndyCar race, in what position did he finish?

24. How many race victories did Jones take in his championship winning year?

25. In 1993 Jones famously collided with Wayne Gardner and Mark Skaife in the same race, at what circuit was this?

54 AutoAction

Moss Crossword Answers #1784

26. Jones took five wins in his ATCC/V8 Supercars, where was the last victory taken in 1997?

27. The 1980 season was the only year that did not feature which legendary F1 circuit?

28. In 1983 Jones made a one off return at Long Beach with which team?

DOWN

1. With what team did Alan Jones take his first Formula 1 race win in 1977?

2. In 1979 Jones couldn’t quite catch Jody Scheckter who won the F1 title that season, what nationality is Scheckter?

4. In which country did Jones take his first Formula 1 victory?

5. Who was Alan Jones’ teammate in the 1980? Formula 1 season? (surname only) 6. Who is the only other Australian Formula 1 World Champion? (surname only) 11. At what circuit did Jones win his first race for Williams?

13. Jones finished a career high second in the 1995 Bathurst 1000, who was his co-driver in the race? (full name) 15. Jones entered the Le Mans 24 Hours in 1984 with Vern Schuppan and Jean-Pierre Jarier, in what position

did they finish?

17. With what team did Alan Jones win the 1980 Formula 1 World Championship?

18. Which driver finished second to Jones in the 1980 F1 championship? (full name) 20. In a Ford Sierra Jones finished the 1988 Bathurst 1000 in third, who did he co-driver with?

21. Jones made his full-time racing F1 return in 1986 with which American squad?

22. In 1985 Jones made his Australian Touring Car Championship debut, what brand of car did he drive in that season?

23. After retiring from Formula 1 at the end of 1981, Jones was offered a drive at which team mid-way through 1982?

1 down – zero 2 down – second 3 across – Audi 4 down – Dunlop 5 across – France 6 down – tenth 7 across – Vanwall 8 down – Albert Park 9 down – Mercedes 10 down Switzerland 11 down – Aston Martin 12 across – sixteen 13 across – Fitzpatrick 14 across – Hawthorn 15 down – thirty two 16 down – ninety

17 down – Jenkinson 18 down – Monte Carlo 19 across – Jack Brabham 20 down – Torana 21 down – England 22 down – Fangio 23 down – three 23 across – thirty seven 24 across – New Zealand 25 across – Jaguar 26 across – Gurney 27 across – Aintree 28 across – four 29 across – Goodwood

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Relive the golden era of Australian motor sport with these fantastic ’Bathurst Photographic History’ books These A4 landscape books are full of rare action images taken by some of Australia’s best motorsport photographers, which you won’t see published anywhere else. Start your own library or give as a gift.

BATHURST GROUP A COMMODORES 1985 TO 1992.

MOFFAT AT THE MOUNTAIN A PHOTOGRAPHIC HISTORY

With over 180 colour and black and white images this 192-page book capturers Allan Moffat’s stellar Bathurst 500/1000 career as both a driver and a team owner – from 1969 to 1996.

Or buy any 3 and pay only $99.00 plus $10 postage, saving $23.00

This 192-page book features imagery of every Group A Commodore that started in the 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991 and 1992 Bathurst 1000 races. The book has a Foreword by Graham Moore and has a great mix of black and white and colour images.

BATHURST 500 1963 - 1964 - 1965 - 1966 - 1967 192 page book features imagery of every car that started in the Bathurst 500 races from 1963 to 1967.

HARDIE FERODO 500 - 1970 A PHOTOGRAPHIC HISTORY 160 page book features imagery of every car that started in the 1970 event.

PHILLIP ISLAND TO BATHURST - THE TRADITIONAL YEARS RESULTS 160 page book features detailed information on every car that started in the original/traditional Phillip Island and Bathurst 500/1000 races from 1960 to 1999.

BATHURST XU-1 TORANAS A PHOTOGRAPHIC HISTORY OF THE GIANT KILLING XU-1s

This 176-page book features imagery of every XU-1 Torana that started in the 1970, 1971, 1972 and 1973 Hardie Ferodo Bathurst 500’s. Foreword by Colin Bond and a good mix of colour and black and white images.

BATHURST ROTARY MAZDAS A PHOTOGRAPHIC HISTORY This 176 page book features imagery of every Rotary Mazda that started in the Bathurst Hardie Ferodo and James Hardie races from 1969 to 1985. The book is foreworded by Don Holland.

BATHURST HARDTOP FALCONS A PHOTOGRAPHIC HISTORY This 192 page book features imagery of every Hardtop Falcon that started in the 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, and 1979 Bathurst Hardie Ferodo 1000 races.

The book is foreworded by Kevin Bartlett.

A mix of colour and black and white images.

BATHURST XD AND XE FALCONS This 160-page book features imagery of every XD and XE Falcon that started the 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983 and 1984 Bathurst 1000 races. Bob Morris and Garry Willmington have written the Forward to this colourful book with a great mix of colour and black and white images.

BATHURST A9X TORANAS BATHURST GT-HO FALCONS A PHOTOGRAPHIC HISTORY A PHOTOGRAPHIC HISTORY This 176-page book features imagery of every This 160 page book features imagery of A9X Torana that started in the 1977, 1978 and every GT-HO Falcon that started in the 1979 Hardie Ferodo Bathurst 1000 races.

1969, 1970, 1971 and 1972 Hardie Ferodo 500 races at Bathurst – with a good mix of With a Foreword by Bob Morris, it features an colour and black and white. The foreword interview withJim Richards who won Bathurst three years in a row with Peter Brock in the is by John Goss. mighty A9X Torana.

BATHURST GTS MONAROS This 144-page book features imagery of every Monaro that started in the 1968, 1969, 1970, 1973 and 1974 Bathurst Hardie Ferodo races.

The book has co-Forewords by Bruce McPhee and Colin Bond and has a good mix of colour and black and white images.

BATHURST CHARGERS AND PACERS This 160-page book features imagery of every Charger and Pacer that started in the 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972 and 1973 Hardie Ferodo Bathurst races. The book’s Forwarded is by Leo Geoghegan and has a good mix of colour and black and white images.

To place an order via email send to: bruce@autoaction.com.au or give us call at Auto Action HQ on 03 9563 2107

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