Bob Jane and Pete Geoghegan hard at it during the Warwick Farm Tasman meeting in February 1966. Jaguar E-Type Lwt and ex-McKay Lola Mk1 Climax. What were the results of these encounters folks?
Warwick Farm’s fabulous panorama below. See here for the Jag:https://primotipo.com/2020/01/03/jano/ and here for the Lola: https://primotipo.com/2018/01/12/bert-and-davids-lola-mk1-climax/
Sonny Rajah, March 712M/732 Lotus-Ford during the 1974 Australian F2 Championship round at Oran Park on June 23.
I wrote about this car, Ronnie Peterson’s 1971 European F2 Championship winning chassis, 712M-7 here: https://primotipo.com/2025/05/05/sonny-and-ronnies-march-712m/
The 31st place Fiat 2300 of Bill Burns, Brian Lawler and Bruce Kaye at the end of the 11,260 km 1964 Ampol Round Australia Trial, Queen Elizabeth Drive, Bondi Beach on June 28.
The event was won by the Ford-works Cortina GT crewed by Harry Firth and Graham Hoinville. See here: https://www.rallypedia.com.au/1964-ampol/ and here: https://primotipo.com/2019/01/29/harry-firths-mg-tc-spl-s-c/
Stirling Moss giving the ex-Jim Clark-Leo Geoghegan Lotus 39 Coventry Climax 2.5 FPF a gallop during the 1984 Tribute to Jaguar meeting at Amaroo Park in the Summer of 1984.
See here for an exhaustive and exhausting feature on this car: https://primotipo.com/2016/02/12/jim-clark-and-leo-geoghegans-lotus-39/
Evan Green and John Bryson await the start of the Southern Cross Rally in 1976, Alfa Romeo Alfetta GT.
The shot below is during the ‘76 Marchal Rallye. See here for a feature on these Autodelta built cars: https://primotipo.com/2025/05/27/alfa-romeo-autodelta-alfetta-gt/
Allan Moffat – who had an open-wheeler phase in his distant past – at the wheel of a Wren Formula Ford during the ‘Race of Champions‘ at Calder on August 15, 1971.
Feature on this event between Australian stars of the day won by Jack Brabham, Bowin P4X; perhaps JB’s last ‘in-period’ win? https://primotipo.com/2018/10/30/calder-formula-ford-race-of-champions-august-1971/
Australian Nationals drags racing meeting at Calder in October 1968. Peter Brock lines up in his famous Austin A30 Holden 179.
He was knocked out by Ken Spence’s Ford Zephyr 289 in the first round, no Top Eliminator that weekend, but there would be plenty of those to come! Article about this car, slightly!, here: https://primotipo.com/2018/05/07/brocks-birrana/
Tim Schenken was living the dream by 1972, his third year in F1 – Surtees that year – and a member of the victorious Scuderia Ferrari 312PB squad in 1972-73.
The shot above shows Tim on the approach to Druids, where the pair were second in the Brands Hatch 1000km run on April 16, a lap ahead was the winning Jacky Ickx/Mario Andretti 312PB.
His driving partner was usually his mate, Ronnie Peterson in ’72. That year the pair won the 1000km of Buenos Aires, Nurburgring 1000km on the way to Ferrari’s crushing World Sportscar Championship victory that season.
They dipped out at Le Mans – that is they piked, didnt enter – knowing the F1 derived Flat 12 engine wouldn’t last the distance, Graham Hill and Henri Pescarolo won there in their Matra MS670, its F1 derived V12 lasting the distance rather well! Noting it wasn’t their first attempt with said engine.
Matra won again the following year with a Ferrari 312PB second, six laps in arrears: Henri Pescarolo/Gerard Larrousse MS670B and Arturo Merzario 312PB.
Article about Tim Schenken here: https://primotipo.com/2019/01/02/tim-schenken/ and the Matras here :https://primotipo.com/2023/09/19/matra-random/
The only things missing are fatties and dice swinging’ from the mirror…two of these HT Holden Monaros were trialled by Victoria Police but rejected as fleet-mainstream additions.
Very hard for the crooks to get out of the back seat I would have thought, but maybe hard to get the corpulent ones in there. The cars would have been nice props on Homicide or Matlock Police…
Len Lukey, Cooper T23 Bristol on the way to fourth place in the Australian Grand Prix at Caversham, Western Australia.
In front of him were the Lex Davison/Bill Patterson Ferrari 500/625, Stan Jones’ Maserati 250F and Jack Brabham’s Cooper T41 Climax. Article about Len Lukey here: https://primotipo.com/2019/12/26/len-lukey-australian-gold-star-champion/
Ellis French tells us the pilots of the first four Humpy Holdens are Messrs Warner, Mather, De Pauli and and Wilcox in this fabulous, panoramic Symmons Plains shot.
Article about the Holden 48-215 and its siblings here: https://primotipo.com/2018/12/06/general-motors-holden-formative/
‘Make sure you keep it on the black-stuff Vern for chrissakes!’ may well have been Sid Taylor’s instructions to his driver: Yip-Theodore-Taylor Lola T332 Chev.
It’s the Oulton Park Euro F5000 round over the March 28 weekend in 1975 I believe folks. Vern was 11th, Gordon Spice won in another T332 Chev. More about Vern here: https://primotipo.com/2022/01/17/vern-schuppan-3/
I’ve bits and pieces about Brabham BT19-1 Repco 620 all over the place, but try here first: https://primotipo.com/2014/11/13/winning-the-1966-world-f1-championships-rodways-repco-recollections-episode-3/
This chassis was Jack’s 1966 weapon of war in the Tasman and F1 championship and non-championship events, owned for decades by Repco Ltd or whatever the retailer is called these days.
The second placed Mauro Baldi/Stefan Johansson Sauber Mercedes C9 5-litre V8 turbo during the Lucas Supersprint Sandown 360 over the November 20, 1988 weekend
While the entry for this race wasn’t as broad and deep as the 1984 Sandown 1000k the scale of the Fiscal Disaster for the Light Car Club of Australia was similar, see here: https://primotipo.com/2024/05/25/sandown-1000-1984/
From the left, third place Martin Brundle and Eddie Cheever, Jaguar XJR9 7-litre V12, winners Jochen Mass and Jean-Louis Schlesser, and second men Johannsson and Baldi, Sauber Mercedes C9.
Jochen had a busy weekend not only racing his hi-tech C9 but also demonstrating a 1937 Mercedes Benz W125 Silver Arrows, very spectacular it was too!
Jochen with the Porsche Museum 550 Spyder in which he had an enjoyable Historic category win in the 1996 Targa Tasmania.
Credits…
Bob Williamson Archive, Ern McQuillan via Jim Strickland, Mike Harding-Auto Action, Ken Devine, Australian Muscle Car, John Shingleton, Stupix, Peter Bowen, John Brock, State Library of Victoria, Stephen Dalton Collection
Tailpiece…
Australian Auxiliary Territorial Services Driver, Gladys Pollard, on assignment in the UK during 1942, summer by the look of it…
Finito…
primotipo... 