Amaroo Park
Encyclopedia
Amaroo Park was a 1.9 kilometres (1.2 mi) motor racing circuit located in Annangrove, New South Wales
, in the present-day western suburbs of Sydney, Australia
. It opened in 1967, hosting its first motorcycle meeting on 26 February with a 30 lap production race won by Larry Simons on a BSA Spitfire
in heavy rain. The first dry meeting saw the lap record set by Jack Ahearn
at 63.9 seconds. The road circuit served as a host for a variety of competitions including the Castrol 6 Hour
motorcycle race, the Australian Touring Car Championship
, Formula Ford
, Formula 5000
, historic racing and others. The last Australian Touring Car round to take place at the circuit was 1994.
Amaroo Park held its own touring car series at various times, including the Sun-7 Chesterfield Series
in the early to mid 1970’s and the later AMSCAR series.
The complex also had a hillclimb
, a motocross
track, a little used speedway
track and a short circuit track.
The circuit closed forever after the last meeting was held there on 23 August 1998. The meeting was billed as the "Goodbye Amaroo State open Meeting" with a mix of classes including Sports Sedans
, HQ's
and Group N Historic Touring Cars. The final race held at Amaroo Park was a "Butchers Picnic" which included the top 3 cars from the competing classes all in one final race. The race was run as a Butchers Picnic as a salute to the very first meeting at the circuit where the first races run were indeed Butchers Picnics. The race, called "The Last Race, The Main Event, Amaroo's Final Fling" started at 4:30pm and was held over 10 laps. It was won by Sydney driver Ray Lintott driving a Porsche 911 Turbo
with a race time of 9:16.4942. The final driver, Andrew Papadopoulos driving a Alfa Romeo GTV
, crossed the line at 4:40pm bringing the curtain down on one of Australia's most popular race circuits after over 31 years of continuous operation.
At its closing the outright lap record for the 1.94 km circuit was 0:44.36 set by John Bowe
in 1987 driving a 5.8L Chevrolet
powered Veskanda Group A Sports Car
.
A housing estate
now covering most of the site. There is no trace of the road or pit lane of the circuit remaining, with only the lake that was inside the last couple of corners being the landmark identifying the location of the former track.
. The race was won by Peter Brock
driving his Holden Dealer Team
Holden Torana SL/R 5000. The circuit would go on to host 15 rounds of the championship between 1974 and its last ATCC race in 1994. The last race was won by Mark Skaife
driving his Gibson Motor Sport
Holden VP Commodore
giving Holden
the bookends on Amaroo Park's participation in the ATCC.
.
In 1981 AMSCAR was limited to cars with an engine capacity of no more than 3.5 litres. That limit was relaxed from the 1982 series allowing the V8 powered Holden Commodore
's, Ford Falcon's
and Chevrolet Camaro's to race alongside the under 3.5L cars such as the BMW 635CSi
, Ford Capri's and the growing list of Mazda RX-7's. As the increasing national popularity of the ATCC, improvements in the ATCC telecast, and the 1991 economic recession all gradually reduced the grids until the series died after the 1993 season. The series was revived in 1997 and held at the ARDCs two circuits, Amaroo and Eastern Creek but with the major teams holding exclusivity to V8 Supercar events the mostly Sydney based privateers were not enough to make the series viable.
In the early years of the series several Sydney based drivers who regularly competed in the annual four round, three race per round series became household names through the national telecast on Channel 7. This was helped by most of the major ATCC teams at the time usually not competing in the series. Drivers such as Steve Masterton, Terry Shiel, Terry Finnigan and Mike Burgmann got national TV exposure they would otherwise have struggled to get had ATCC headline drivers like Peter Brock, Dick Johnson and Allan Moffat
been regular competitors, although Johnson did race in some rounds in 1983 and 1984.
Annangrove, New South Wales
Annangrove is a suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Annangrove is located 42 kilometres north-west of the Sydney central business district in the local government area of The Hills Shire and part of the Hills District region....
, in the present-day western suburbs of Sydney, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. It opened in 1967, hosting its first motorcycle meeting on 26 February with a 30 lap production race won by Larry Simons on a BSA Spitfire
BSA Spitfire
The BSA Spitfire is a Birmingham Small Arms Company motorcycle made from 1963 to 1968. One of the first BSAs to have 12-volt electrics, the Spitfire was also one of the first "street racers" with two large-bore Amal GP carburettors, complete with velocity stacks.-Development:In 1966 BSA were...
in heavy rain. The first dry meeting saw the lap record set by Jack Ahearn
Jack Ahearn
Jack Ahearn was an Australian former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer. His best season was in 1964 when he won the 500cc Finnish Grand Prix and finished second to Mike Hailwood in the 500cc world championship....
at 63.9 seconds. The road circuit served as a host for a variety of competitions including the Castrol 6 Hour
Castrol 6 Hour
The Castrol Six Hour was a motorcycle race for production motorcycles, held in Australia from 1970 through to 1987.-History:The race was run by the Willoughby District Motorcycle Club and held at Amaroo Park until 1983, when it was moved to Oran Park for 1984 until the final race in 1987...
motorcycle race, the Australian Touring Car Championship
Australian Touring Car Championship
The Australian Touring Car Championship is a touring car racing award held in Australia since 1960. The series itself is no longer contested, but the title lives on, with the winner of the V8 Supercar Championship Series awarded the trophy and title of Australian Touring Car Champion.-History:The...
, Formula Ford
Formula Ford
Formula Ford is a single seater, open wheel class in motorsport which exists in some form in many countries around the world. It is an entry-level series to motor racing....
, Formula 5000
Formula 5000
Formula 5000 was an open wheel, single seater auto-racing formula that ran in different series in various regions around the world from 1968 to 1982. It was originally intended as a low-cost series aimed at open-wheel racing cars that no longer fit into any particular formula...
, historic racing and others. The last Australian Touring Car round to take place at the circuit was 1994.
Sun-7 Chesterfield Series
The Sun-7 Chesterfield Series, also known as the Sun-7 Gold Medal was an Australian touring car racing series run at Amaroo Park in Sydney, during the early and mid 1970s....
in the early to mid 1970’s and the later AMSCAR series.
The complex also had a hillclimb
Hillclimbing
Hillclimbing is a branch of motorsport in which drivers compete against the clock to complete an uphill course....
, a motocross
Motocross
Motocross is a form of motorcycle sport or all-terrain vehicle racing held on enclosed off road circuits. It evolved from trials, and was called scrambles, and later motocross, combining the French moto with cross-country...
track, a little used speedway
Motorcycle speedway
Motorcycle speedway, usually referred to as speedway, is a motorcycle sport involving four and sometimes up to six riders competing over four anti-clockwise laps of an oval circuit. Speedway motorcycles use only one gear and have no brakes and racing takes place on a flat oval track usually...
track and a short circuit track.
The circuit closed forever after the last meeting was held there on 23 August 1998. The meeting was billed as the "Goodbye Amaroo State open Meeting" with a mix of classes including Sports Sedans
Australian Sports Sedan Championship
The Australian Sports Sedan Championship was a CAMS sanctioned national motor racing title for drivers of cars complying with Australian Sports Sedan regulations...
, HQ's
Holden HQ
The Holden HQ series is a range of automobiles that was produced by General Motors-Holden’s in Australia from 1971 to 1974. The HQ was released on 15 July 1971, replacing the Holden HG series...
and Group N Historic Touring Cars. The final race held at Amaroo Park was a "Butchers Picnic" which included the top 3 cars from the competing classes all in one final race. The race was run as a Butchers Picnic as a salute to the very first meeting at the circuit where the first races run were indeed Butchers Picnics. The race, called "The Last Race, The Main Event, Amaroo's Final Fling" started at 4:30pm and was held over 10 laps. It was won by Sydney driver Ray Lintott driving a Porsche 911 Turbo
Porsche 911
The Porsche 911 is a luxury 2-door sports coupe made by Porsche AG of Stuttgart, Germany. It has a distinctive design, rear-engined and with independent rear suspension, an evolution of the swing axle on the Porsche 356. The engine was also air-cooled until the introduction of the Type 996 in 1998...
with a race time of 9:16.4942. The final driver, Andrew Papadopoulos driving a Alfa Romeo GTV
Alfa Romeo Alfetta
Alfa Romeo GTV redirects here. For 916 series GTV see Alfa Romeo GTV & SpiderThe Alfa Romeo Alfetta is an Italian rear-wheel drive executive saloon car and fastback coupé produced from 1972 until 1987 by Alfa Romeo...
, crossed the line at 4:40pm bringing the curtain down on one of Australia's most popular race circuits after over 31 years of continuous operation.
At its closing the outright lap record for the 1.94 km circuit was 0:44.36 set by John Bowe
John Bowe (racing driver)
John Bowe is an Australian racing driver, presently racing a 1969 Ford Mustang in the historic series, Touring Car Masters....
in 1987 driving a 5.8L Chevrolet
Chevrolet Small-Block engine
The Chevrolet small-block engine is a series of automobile V8 engines built by the Chevrolet Division of General Motors using the same basic small engine block...
powered Veskanda Group A Sports Car
Group A Sports Cars
Group A Sports Cars is an Australian motor racing category that CAMS formulated for sports car racing in Australia. Introduced in 1964, it continues today under the name Group 2A Sports Cars....
.
A housing estate
Housing estate
A housing estate is a group of buildings built together as a single development. The exact form may vary from country to country. Accordingly, a housing estate is usually built by a single contractor, with only a few styles of house or building design, so they tend to be uniform in appearance...
now covering most of the site. There is no trace of the road or pit lane of the circuit remaining, with only the lake that was inside the last couple of corners being the landmark identifying the location of the former track.
Australian Touring Car Championship
Amaroo Park first held a round of the ATCC when it hosted Round 4 of the 7 race 1974 Australian Touring Car Championship1974 Australian Touring Car Championship
The 1974 Australian Touring Car Championship was the 15th running of the Australian Touring Car Championship. It began at Symmons Plains on 4 March 1974 and ended at Adelaide International Raceway on 9 June after eight rounds. The series was won by Peter Brock in a Holden Torana LJ XU1 and Holden...
. The race was won by Peter Brock
Peter Brock
Peter Geoffrey Brock, AM otherwise known as "Peter Perfect", "The King of the Mountain" or simply as "Brocky" was one of Australia's best-known and most successful motor racing drivers. Brock was most often associated with Holden for almost 40 years, although he raced vehicles of other...
driving his Holden Dealer Team
Holden Dealer Team
The Holden Dealer Team was Holden’s semi-official racing team from 1969 until 1987, primarily contesting Australian Touring Car events but also rallying, rallycross and sports sedans during the 1970s...
Holden Torana SL/R 5000. The circuit would go on to host 15 rounds of the championship between 1974 and its last ATCC race in 1994. The last race was won by Mark Skaife
Mark Skaife
Mark Stephen Skaife OAM is an Australian motor racing driver. Skaife is a five time winner of the V8 Supercar Championship Series, including its predecessor the Australian Touring Car Championship. He is also a six-time winner of Australia's most prestigious domestic motor race, the Bathurst 1000...
driving his Gibson Motor Sport
Gibson Motor Sport
Gibson Motor Sport was an Australian motor racing team. Originally established by Howard Marsden as the in-house factory Nissan motorsport operation, the team later passed into the ownership of Fred Gibson., who had won the 1967 Bathurst 500 as a driver, sharing with Harry Firth. In 1993 the team...
Holden VP Commodore
Holden VP Commodore
The Holden VP Commodore is an automobile which was produced by Australian automaker Holden from 1991 to 1993. It is the seventh generation Holden Commodore....
giving Holden
Holden
GM Holden Ltd is an automaker that operates in Australia, based in Port Melbourne, Victoria. The company was founded in 1856 as a saddlery manufacturer. In 1908 it moved into the automotive field, before becoming a subsidiary of the U.S.-based General Motors in 1931...
the bookends on Amaroo Park's participation in the ATCC.
| Year | Winning Driver |
Car | Team | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Group C Group C (Australia) In relation to Australian motorsport, Group C refers to either of two sets of regulations devised by the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport for use in Australian touring car racing from 1965 to 1984... |
||||
| 1974 1974 Australian Touring Car Championship The 1974 Australian Touring Car Championship was the 15th running of the Australian Touring Car Championship. It began at Symmons Plains on 4 March 1974 and ended at Adelaide International Raceway on 9 June after eight rounds. The series was won by Peter Brock in a Holden Torana LJ XU1 and Holden... |
Peter Brock Peter Brock Peter Geoffrey Brock, AM otherwise known as "Peter Perfect", "The King of the Mountain" or simply as "Brocky" was one of Australia's best-known and most successful motor racing drivers. Brock was most often associated with Holden for almost 40 years, although he raced vehicles of other... |
Holden Torana SL/R 5000 | Holden Dealer Team Holden Dealer Team The Holden Dealer Team was Holden’s semi-official racing team from 1969 until 1987, primarily contesting Australian Touring Car events but also rallying, rallycross and sports sedans during the 1970s... |
|
| 1975 1975 Australian Touring Car Championship The 1975 Australian Touring Car Championship was the 16th running of the Australian Touring Car Championship. It began at Symmons Plains and ended at Lakeside International Raceway after seven rounds... |
Bob Morris Bob Morris (motor racing) Robert Morris is an Australian former racing driver. Morris was one of the leading touring car drivers during the 1970s and continued racing until 1984. Morris won Australia's premier Touring car race, the Bathurst 1000 in 1976. He also won the Australian Touring Car Championship in 1979... |
Holden Torana SL/R 5000 L34 | Ron Hodgson Motors | |
| 1976 1976 Australian Touring Car Championship The 1976 Australian Touring Car Championship was a series of motor races for Touring cars conforming to the Australia Group C touring car regulations. It was the 17th running of the Australian Touring Car Championship. It began at Symmons Plains Raceway on 29 February and ended at Phillip Island... |
Charlie O'Brien Charlie O'Brien Charles Hugh O'Brien is a former Major League Baseball catcher who played for the Oakland Athletics , Milwaukee Brewers , New York Mets , Atlanta Braves , Toronto Blue Jays , Chicago White Sox , Anaheim Angels and Montreal Expos .While growing up in Tulsa, O'Brien attended and graduated... |
Holden Torana SL/R 5000 L34 | ||
| 1977 1977 Australian Touring Car Championship The 1977 Australian Touring Car Championship was a CAMS sanctioned motor racing championship open to Group C Touring Cars. It was the 18th running of the Australian Touring Car Championship and it began at Symmons Plains Raceway on 7 March and ended at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit on 20... |
Allan Moffat Allan Moffat Allan George Moffat, OBE is an Australian racing driver known for his four wins in the Australian Touring Car Championship, six wins in the Sandown 500 and his four wins in the Bathurst 1000... |
Ford XB Falcon GT | Moffat Ford Dealers Allan Moffat Racing Allan Moffat Racing was one of a number of names used for the Australian-based motor racing team fronted by multiple-championship winning Canadian-Australian racing driver Allan Moffat... |
|
| 1978 1978 Australian Touring Car Championship The 1978 Australian Touring Car Championship was the 19th running of the Australian Touring Car Championship. It began at Symmons Plains and ended at Adelaide International Raceway after eight rounds... |
Allan Grice Allan Grice Allan Maxwell Grice OAM , known to motor-racing fans as Gricey, is an Australian former racing driver and politician, most famous for twice winning the prestigious Bathurst 1000 , and as a privateer driver of a Holden in the Australian Touring Car Championship.Grice also had a successful second... |
Holden LX Torana SS A9X | Craven Mild Racing | |
| Group A Group A In relation to motorsport governed by the FIA, Group A referred to a set of regulations providing production-derived vehicles for outright competition. In contrast to the short-lived Group B and Group C, the Group A referred to production-derived vehicles limited in terms of power, weight, allowed... |
||||
| 1985 1985 Australian Touring Car Championship The 1985 Australian Touring Car Championship was a CAMS sanctioned motor racing title for drivers of Touring Cars. It was the 26th running of the Australian Touring Car Championship and the first to be contested using regulations based on the FIA's International Group A regulations... |
Jim Richards Jim Richards (race driver) Jim Richards is a New Zealand racing driver who has spent most of his racing life in Australia. While retired from professional racing, Richards continues to compete in the historic category Touring Car Masters while running a team in the Australian GT Championship... |
BMW 635 CSi BMW E24 The BMW E24 series was the first BMW 6 Series coupé, produced by the German automaker BMW between the 1976 and 1989 model years. The 6 Series name reappeared with the BMW E63 chassis beginning in the 2004 model year. The E24 borrowed heavily from contemporary 5-series cars .- Model history :The... |
JPS Team BMW JPS Team BMW JPS Team BMW is a former motor racing team that ran primarily in Australia and New Zealand mainly in touring car racing but also ran in sports sedans and GT cars as well... |
|
| 1986 1986 Australian Touring Car Championship The 1986 Australian Touring Car Championship was the 27th running of the Australian Touring Car Championship. It began on 2 March 1986 at Amaroo Park and ended on 13 July at Oran Park Raceway after ten rounds.... |
Robbie Francevic Robbie Francevic Robert James Francevic, was a touring car racing driver in New Zealand and Australia in the 1970s and 1980s... |
Volvo 240T Volvo 200 series The Volvo 200 series is a range of large family cars , produced by Volvo from 1974 to 1993, with more than 2.8 million units sold worldwide. The 200 series was essentially an updated version of the 140; both were designed by Jan Wilsgaard. It shared the same body, but included a number of... |
Volvo Dealer Team | |
| 1987 1987 Australian Touring Car Championship The 1987 Australian Touring Car Championship was a motor racing competition which was open to Touring Cars complying with regulations as defined by CAMS and based on FIA Group A rules. The championship, which was the 28th Australian Touring Car Championship, began on 1 March 1987 at Calder Park... |
Jim Richards Jim Richards (race driver) Jim Richards is a New Zealand racing driver who has spent most of his racing life in Australia. While retired from professional racing, Richards continues to compete in the historic category Touring Car Masters while running a team in the Australian GT Championship... |
BMW M3 | JPS Team BMW JPS Team BMW JPS Team BMW is a former motor racing team that ran primarily in Australia and New Zealand mainly in touring car racing but also ran in sports sedans and GT cars as well... |
|
| 1988 1988 Australian Touring Car Championship The 1988 Australian Touring Car Championship was a CAMS sanctioned motor racing title for drivers of Group 3A Touring Cars. It was the 29th running of the Australian Touring Car Championship. Promoted as the “1988 Shell Ultra Australian Touring Car Championship”, it began on 6 March at Calder Park... |
John Bowe John Bowe (racing driver) John Bowe is an Australian racing driver, presently racing a 1969 Ford Mustang in the historic series, Touring Car Masters.... |
Ford Sierra RS500 | Shell Ultra-Hi Racing Dick Johnson Racing Dick Johnson Racing is Australia's oldest operating motor racing team. Founded by Dick Johnson, the team has won seven Australian Touring Car Championship titles and has taken three victories in Australia's hallmark race, the Bathurst 1000... |
|
| 1989 1989 Australian Touring Car Championship The 1989 Shell Ultra Australian Touring Car Championship was the 30th running of the Australian Touring Car Championship. It began on 5 March 1989 at Amaroo Park and ended on 9 July at Oran Park Raceway after eight rounds... |
John Bowe John Bowe (racing driver) John Bowe is an Australian racing driver, presently racing a 1969 Ford Mustang in the historic series, Touring Car Masters.... |
Ford Sierra RS500 | Shell Ultra-Hi Racing Dick Johnson Racing Dick Johnson Racing is Australia's oldest operating motor racing team. Founded by Dick Johnson, the team has won seven Australian Touring Car Championship titles and has taken three victories in Australia's hallmark race, the Bathurst 1000... |
|
| 1990 1990 Australian Touring Car Championship The 1990 Shell Ultra Australian Touring Car Championship was the 31st running of the Australian Touring Car Championship. It began on 25 February 1990 at Amaroo Park and ended on 15 July at Oran Park Raceway after 8 rounds... |
Jim Richards Jim Richards (race driver) Jim Richards is a New Zealand racing driver who has spent most of his racing life in Australia. While retired from professional racing, Richards continues to compete in the historic category Touring Car Masters while running a team in the Australian GT Championship... |
Nissan Skyline HR31 GTS-R | Nissan Motorsport Australia Gibson Motor Sport Gibson Motor Sport was an Australian motor racing team. Originally established by Howard Marsden as the in-house factory Nissan motorsport operation, the team later passed into the ownership of Fred Gibson., who had won the 1967 Bathurst 500 as a driver, sharing with Harry Firth. In 1993 the team... |
|
| 1991 1991 Australian Touring Car Championship The 1991 Shell Australian Touring Car Championship was the 32nd running of the Australian Touring Car Championship. It began on 24 February 1991 at Sandown Raceway and ended on 11 August at Oran Park Raceway after nine rounds... |
Tony Longhurst Tony Longhurst Tony Longhurst is an Australian former racing driver and Australian Champion water skier. He is most noted for his career in the Australian Touring Car Championship and V8 Supercar series.... |
BMW M3 Evolution | Benson & Hedges Racing Tony Longhurst Racing Tony Longhurst Racing is a former V8 Supercar team. The team, based on Queenslands Gold Coast at the Longhurst family owned Dreamworld adventure park, made its debut in Group A touring car racing in the 1988 Australian Touring Car Championship at Melbourne's Calder Park Raceway and made its last... |
|
| 1992 1992 Australian Touring Car Championship The 1992 Australian Touring Car Championship was the 33rd running of the Australian Touring Car Championship. It was a CAMS sanctioned motor racing title for drivers of Group 3A Touring Cars, commonly known as Group A cars... |
Mark Skaife Mark Skaife Mark Stephen Skaife OAM is an Australian motor racing driver. Skaife is a five time winner of the V8 Supercar Championship Series, including its predecessor the Australian Touring Car Championship. He is also a six-time winner of Australia's most prestigious domestic motor race, the Bathurst 1000... |
Nissan Skyline R32 GT-R | Winfield Team Nissan Gibson Motor Sport Gibson Motor Sport was an Australian motor racing team. Originally established by Howard Marsden as the in-house factory Nissan motorsport operation, the team later passed into the ownership of Fred Gibson., who had won the 1967 Bathurst 500 as a driver, sharing with Harry Firth. In 1993 the team... |
|
| Group 3A 5.0L Touring Cars V8 Supercar V8 Supercars is a touring car racing category based in Australia and run as an International Series under Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile regulations... |
||||
| 1993 1993 Australian Touring Car Championship The 1993 Australian Touring Car Championship was the 34th running of the Australian Touring Car Championship. It began on 28 February 1993 at Amaroo Park and ended on 8 August at Oran Park Raceway after nine rounds.... |
John Bowe John Bowe (racing driver) John Bowe is an Australian racing driver, presently racing a 1969 Ford Mustang in the historic series, Touring Car Masters.... |
Ford EB Falcon Ford EB Falcon The Ford EB Falcon is a car which was produced by the Ford Motor Company in Australia between 1991 and 1993.Visually the 1991 EB remained nearly identical to its predecessor. The most noticeable change was the transfer of the Ford emblem from the tip of the bonnet to the grille... |
Shell Racing Dick Johnson Racing Dick Johnson Racing is Australia's oldest operating motor racing team. Founded by Dick Johnson, the team has won seven Australian Touring Car Championship titles and has taken three victories in Australia's hallmark race, the Bathurst 1000... |
|
| 1994 1994 Australian Touring Car Championship The 1994 Australian Touring Car Championship was the 35th running of the Australian Touring Car Championship. It began on 27 February 1994 at Amaroo Park and ended on 24 July at Oran Park Raceway after 10 rounds.-Teams and drivers:... |
Mark Skaife Mark Skaife Mark Stephen Skaife OAM is an Australian motor racing driver. Skaife is a five time winner of the V8 Supercar Championship Series, including its predecessor the Australian Touring Car Championship. He is also a six-time winner of Australia's most prestigious domestic motor race, the Bathurst 1000... |
Holden VP Commodore Holden VP Commodore The Holden VP Commodore is an automobile which was produced by Australian automaker Holden from 1991 to 1993. It is the seventh generation Holden Commodore.... |
Winfield Racing Gibson Motor Sport Gibson Motor Sport was an Australian motor racing team. Originally established by Howard Marsden as the in-house factory Nissan motorsport operation, the team later passed into the ownership of Fred Gibson., who had won the 1967 Bathurst 500 as a driver, sharing with Harry Firth. In 1993 the team... |
|
AMSCAR
One of the features of Amaroo Park's life has been its in-house touring car series. Popular with spectators and easy for nearby ATN-7 to telecast, it became the backbone of the Sydney touring car scene, a scene which has evaporated since it died with the major touring car teams now operating from Melbourne and south-east Queensland. On many occasions AMSCAR events held larger and better quality grid than the national Australian Touring Car ChampionshipAustralian Touring Car Championship
The Australian Touring Car Championship is a touring car racing award held in Australia since 1960. The series itself is no longer contested, but the title lives on, with the winner of the V8 Supercar Championship Series awarded the trophy and title of Australian Touring Car Champion.-History:The...
.
In 1981 AMSCAR was limited to cars with an engine capacity of no more than 3.5 litres. That limit was relaxed from the 1982 series allowing the V8 powered Holden Commodore
Holden Commodore
The Holden Commodore is an automobile manufactured since 1978 by the Holden subsidiary of General Motors in Australia, and, formerly, in New Zealand. In the mid-1970s, Holden established proposals to replace the long-serving Kingswood nameplate with a smaller, Opel-based model...
's, Ford Falcon's
Ford Falcon (Australia)
The Ford Falcon is a full-size car which has been manufactured by Ford Australia since 1960. Each model from the XA series of 1972 onward has been designed, developed and built in Australia and/or New Zealand, following the phasing out of the American Falcon of 1960–71 which had been re-engineered...
and Chevrolet Camaro's to race alongside the under 3.5L cars such as the BMW 635CSi
BMW E24
The BMW E24 series was the first BMW 6 Series coupé, produced by the German automaker BMW between the 1976 and 1989 model years. The 6 Series name reappeared with the BMW E63 chassis beginning in the 2004 model year. The E24 borrowed heavily from contemporary 5-series cars .- Model history :The...
, Ford Capri's and the growing list of Mazda RX-7's. As the increasing national popularity of the ATCC, improvements in the ATCC telecast, and the 1991 economic recession all gradually reduced the grids until the series died after the 1993 season. The series was revived in 1997 and held at the ARDCs two circuits, Amaroo and Eastern Creek but with the major teams holding exclusivity to V8 Supercar events the mostly Sydney based privateers were not enough to make the series viable.
In the early years of the series several Sydney based drivers who regularly competed in the annual four round, three race per round series became household names through the national telecast on Channel 7. This was helped by most of the major ATCC teams at the time usually not competing in the series. Drivers such as Steve Masterton, Terry Shiel, Terry Finnigan and Mike Burgmann got national TV exposure they would otherwise have struggled to get had ATCC headline drivers like Peter Brock, Dick Johnson and Allan Moffat
Allan Moffat
Allan George Moffat, OBE is an Australian racing driver known for his four wins in the Australian Touring Car Championship, six wins in the Sandown 500 and his four wins in the Bathurst 1000...
been regular competitors, although Johnson did race in some rounds in 1983 and 1984.
| Year | Winning Driver |
Car |
|---|---|---|
| 1981 | Steve Masterton | Ford Capri V6 |
| 1982 | Allan Grice Allan Grice Allan Maxwell Grice OAM , known to motor-racing fans as Gricey, is an Australian former racing driver and politician, most famous for twice winning the prestigious Bathurst 1000 , and as a privateer driver of a Holden in the Australian Touring Car Championship.Grice also had a successful second... |
Holden VH Commodore Holden VH Commodore The Holden VH Commodore, an evolution of the previous Holden Commodore VC model, was released in October 1981. The frontal appearance was mildly facelifted with a new horizontal-slat grille and new lighting components designed to give a lower, wider look, and for interest of aerodynamics... |
| 1983 | Terry Shiel | Mazda RX-7 |
| 1984 | Steve Masterton | Ford XE Falcon Ford XE Falcon The Ford XE Falcon is a car which was produced by the Ford Motor Company of Australia between 1982 and 1984. Introduced on 11 March 1982, the XE was a revised version of the XD Falcon, which it replaced... |
| 1985 | Jim Richards Jim Richards (race driver) Jim Richards is a New Zealand racing driver who has spent most of his racing life in Australia. While retired from professional racing, Richards continues to compete in the historic category Touring Car Masters while running a team in the Australian GT Championship... |
BMW 635 CSi BMW E24 The BMW E24 series was the first BMW 6 Series coupé, produced by the German automaker BMW between the 1976 and 1989 model years. The 6 Series name reappeared with the BMW E63 chassis beginning in the 2004 model year. The E24 borrowed heavily from contemporary 5-series cars .- Model history :The... |
| 1986 | Tony Longhurst Tony Longhurst Tony Longhurst is an Australian former racing driver and Australian Champion water skier. He is most noted for his career in the Australian Touring Car Championship and V8 Supercar series.... |
BMW 325i BMW E30 The BMW E30 was a compact executive car produced by BMW. It was replaced by the BMW E36 in 1990. BMW continued to produce the cabriolet E30 well into 1993. The Touring remained in production until 1994 when the E36 touring replaced it... |
| 1987 | Tony Longhurst Tony Longhurst Tony Longhurst is an Australian former racing driver and Australian Champion water skier. He is most noted for his career in the Australian Touring Car Championship and V8 Supercar series.... |
BMW M3 |
| 1988 | Colin Bond Colin Bond Colin John Bond is a retired Australian racing driver. Bond reached the highest levels in Australian motorsport in 1969 when he was recruited by Harry Firth to the newly formed Holden Dealer Team... |
Ford Sierra RS500 |
| 1989 | Tony Longhurst Tony Longhurst Tony Longhurst is an Australian former racing driver and Australian Champion water skier. He is most noted for his career in the Australian Touring Car Championship and V8 Supercar series.... |
Ford Sierra RS500 |
| 1990 | Tony Longhurst Tony Longhurst Tony Longhurst is an Australian former racing driver and Australian Champion water skier. He is most noted for his career in the Australian Touring Car Championship and V8 Supercar series.... |
Ford Sierra RS500 |
| 1991 | Tony Longhurst Tony Longhurst Tony Longhurst is an Australian former racing driver and Australian Champion water skier. He is most noted for his career in the Australian Touring Car Championship and V8 Supercar series.... |
BMW M3 Evolution |
| 1992 | Jim Richards Jim Richards (race driver) Jim Richards is a New Zealand racing driver who has spent most of his racing life in Australia. While retired from professional racing, Richards continues to compete in the historic category Touring Car Masters while running a team in the Australian GT Championship... |
Nissan Skyline GT-R R32 |
| 1993 | Mark Skaife Mark Skaife Mark Stephen Skaife OAM is an Australian motor racing driver. Skaife is a five time winner of the V8 Supercar Championship Series, including its predecessor the Australian Touring Car Championship. He is also a six-time winner of Australia's most prestigious domestic motor race, the Bathurst 1000... |
Holden VP Commodore Holden VP Commodore The Holden VP Commodore is an automobile which was produced by Australian automaker Holden from 1991 to 1993. It is the seventh generation Holden Commodore.... |
| 1994-1996 not held | ||
| 1997 | Mal Rose | Holden VR Commodore Holden VR Commodore The Holden VR Commodore of July 1993 came with an updated, sleeker and more modern design, as well as safety enhancements such as anti-lock brakes . From the side, the biggest change was the use of a round rear wheelarch, instead of a squared-off shape used on the previous VN and VP model Commodores... |