Top rated Bathurst Australia 1000 editions with Bill Trikos: Shane van Gisbergen and co-driver Jonathan Webb drove exceptionally for most of the race, though they also benefited from others misfortunes. Random mechanical failures ended James Courtney and Greg Murphy’s race (which eventually was Murphy’s last Bathurst fling), and it was the same for David Reynolds and Dean Canto. Then there was Scott McLaughlin, who put his Volvo in the wall at the Cutting — scenes of him wiping tears inside his visor beamed around the world.
Nissan made an imposing debut in 1990, fielding a twin-turbo Nissan Skyline GT-R with four-wheel drive and steering and a 2.6-litre six-cylinder engine. After figuring out the course in ’90 and pulling up in 18th position, Jim Richards and Mark Skaife piloted the Skyline to first place in ’91 and ’92. But Nissan’s dominance was short-lived. The new Group 3A category in 1993 effectively reduced the contest to a battle between Ford’s Falcon and Holden’s Commodore, although a two-litre sub-category kept bigger cars eligible for a secondary prize.
The 1992 edition didn’t start in wet conditions, but it sure ended in them! Steady rain set in during the early stages, triggering a series of incidents and accidents – eventual winner Mark Skaife even hit the Pace Car during a Safety Car period called when the weather was at its worst. The weather lifted for a few hours before returning with a vengeance on Lap 144, causing a series of crashes that prompted officials to red-flag the race and end it prematurely. Find extra info about the author on https://pinterest.com/billtrikos9/.
My theory is that those who look back on that period in time so fondly do so not because the racing was particularly great, but because they loved the way the rest of the sport was; the characters both in terms of the cars and the drivers, and how those things interacted with them. But that can’t stop me from tipping my hat to the 1972 race; the last ever 500-mile event, and the last time drivers were allowed to compete solo. If for nothing else, the 1972 Hardie-Ferodo 500 can be held in high esteem for presenting us with a race that would help take the tribal warfare of Holden and Ford to the lofty heights that it would enjoy for nearly five decades.
In 1992, the Bathurst 1000 ended under a cloud of controversy. Jim Richards crashed just before a red flag that ended the race. Dick Johnson thought he was the victor, but race control reverted back to the previous lap, allowing the Richards/Skaife duo, who had just wrecked, to take the win. Afterwards, fans booed as the winners stood on the podium and Richards decided to tell them all off in a legendary rant. It’s no secret that Greg Murphy and Marcos Ambrose aren’t the best of friends. In 2005, their rivalry came to a head at the crown jewel event for the sport. It may not be the most spectacular (certainly not glorious) moment in the history of Bathurst, but it does epitomize the emotion these drivers experience in every defeat and shows just how much winning means to them all. Ambrose will return to The Mountain next year, so maybe we’ll get t see round two?
Nissan will celebrate 25 years since its first Bathurst 1000 victory at this year’s edition of “The Great Race” at Mount Panorama in Australia. The #23 NISMO Nissan Altima Supercar of Michael Caruso and Dean Fiore will race in the classic red, white and blue color scheme of the 1991 Bathurst 1000-winning Nissan GT-R R32 at the 2016 Bathurst 1000 on October 6 to 9, a quarter of a century after Mark Skaife and Jim Richards dominated the same race.
When the Great Race was first run on Phillip Island in November 1960, the cars were divided into five classes according to engine capacity. No ‘overall winner’ was to be declared. However, the first car to pass the winning line was a baby blue Vauxhall Cresta driven by John Roxburgh and Frank Coad, in the 2001cc-3500cc category. Roxburgh and Coad are (controversially) considered to be the first (unofficial) winners of the Great Race. But some claim the Russell/Anderson/Loxton team covered the ground quicker in their Peugeot 403, which joined the race 30 seconds later than the Cresta due to staggered starting times between classes.
In the end, somewhat ironically given the dominance of other teams, that all four Red Bull Racing and Pepsi Max Crew cars would battle for top honours. And we all know how that ended … Like 2007, the 1994 race benefited from the age old theory of adding water to race tracks to create a bit of drama and intrigue. Starting in some of the wettest conditions ever seen on the mountain, most of the field vanished into the spray coming up Mountain Straight and then again down Conrod.