By Thomas Miles
Date posted: March 19, 2023
Take a journey back in time and discover what was making news this week over the last five decades as AUTO ACTION delves into its archives.
Shane van Gisbergen was splashed onto the cover of issue #1531 after his Adelaide win.
The Car of the Future era started with a crushing Craig Lowndes win in a rare Safety Car free opening race at Adelaide.
But there was plenty of action on Sunday, with van Gisbergen escaping the chaos to beat both Triple Eight cars.
Although SVG had already scored wins at Hamilton and Hidden Valley with Stone Brothers Racing in 2011, taking the chequered flag on his Tekno Autosports debut was where he announced himself as the next big thing.
Despite a threat of legal action from SBR and all the noise surrounding the story, van Gisbergen was able to push it all aside to beat future teammates Jamie Whincup and Craig Lowndes as less than four seconds covered the podium finishers after a dramatic day.
After his third career win and first for Holden, van Gisbergen said a ‘more calm and happy’ feeling behind the wheel than his SBR days helped him achieve the surprise success.
“Tekno is more of a family team and the atmosphere is really good.
“I did not really train the last half of last year (2012) with no motivation so I did struggle (in the car) but made it to the end.
“That can only get better. Saturday’s DNF made the championship a nit harder, but if we can keep a reliable car and be in the top fives every week we will be within a chance.”
Casey Stoner driving a #27 Triple Eight VE Commodore in his Dunlop Series debut at Adelaide in 2013. Image: Daniel Kalisz/LAT Photographic
The 2007 and 2011 MotoGP world champion tried his hand at touring car racing and made his Super2 debut sporting his famous #27 on a Red Bull and Pirtek backed Triple Eight Race Engineering VE Commodore.
Unfortunately Stoner’s debut weekend ended with a flat tyre as Chaz Mostert took the honours.
Whincup had a personal partnership with Monster Energy which saw its black and green colours on his helmet and race suit, but with Red Bull replacing Vodafone as the major sponsor a change needed to happen.
The dispute went to court and Whincup was at risked of being “dropped” if the court ruled in favour of Monster with team owner Roland Dane admitted the conflict would make the then four-time champion “untenable” at the team.
“We (Monster Energy) has a contract with Jamie to the end of 2013. We expect Jamie to see it out,” said the US-owned brand’s then Australian manager Adrian Hunter.
McLAREN MAGIC was all over issue #1030 after David Coulthard’s AGP glory.
Coulthard started from 11th, but “kept his cool” in his McLaren as the likes of Michael Schumacher, Rubens Barrichello, Kimi Raikkonen, Juan Pablo Montoya and Ralf Schumacher all found trouble.
The eighth Australian Grand Prix to be held at Albert Park was described as one of the best.
“David Coulthard scored his second Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park in one of the most exciting F1 races in years,” read the race report.
“It had its spinners, winners and cock ups.”
Russell Ingall in action on his way to winning race 2 of the V8 Supercars support event at the 2003 Australian GP.
Image: Mark Horsburgh/LAT
Photographic
Team Brock’s Jason Bright and Stone Brothers Racing’s Russell Ingall shared the wins across three action-packed races.
Despite the arrival of the new era of V8 Supercars racing, the 32-strong grid was a mixed bag of cars.
Leading the “General’s” charge was reigning champion Mark Skaife in the #1 Holden Racing Team VY Commodore on pole.
But the older and proven VX Commodore of Bright for in a Betta Electrical backed Team Brock machine got the jump off the line and led the field into Turn 1 where the chaos started.
Although Ingall and team-mate Marcos Ambrose both had the new BA-spec, there were still a AU Falcons in the field with Larkham Motorsport’s Jason Bargwanna and Ford Performance Racing’s David Besnard putting in “star performances”.
The race report described the situation as the new era was put to the test with carnage unfolding in each race.
“Given the late start and minimal testing most teams had made with their new VY and BA machines, everyone was intent more on logging laps, obtaining data and avoiding damage,” read the report.
“By the end of the third wet race that toll had dramatically risen with Paul Morris emerging unscathed from the demolition if his new VY with Paul Dumbrell, while Steve Ellery nursed a shoulder injury.
“In fact the grid for the third was was decidedly bare given Dean Canto had crashed on the warm-up lap.”
A “V8 War” had erupted between Mark Skaife and Alan Jones after the pair’s infamous collision at Tasmania 30 years ago.
The pair engaged in a war of words after Jones spun Skaife out of the lead at the hairpin.
Whilst Jones won both races, he was fined $1000 for the incident and the 1980 world champion was not afraid to vent his frustration.
“It is regretful that it happened, but I have never hit anybody deliberately. It was a racing accident, it was not done on purpose.”
The reigning champion Skaife was convinced he was spun ‘on purpose’.
“I was exiting the hairpin when AJ ran into the back of me, spun me and I have no doubt he did it on purpose.”
In the Formula 1 world, Alain Prost made a triumphant return to the pinnacle at an incident-packed South African Grand Prix.
Despite “botching the start” Prost cruised to lead home Ayrton Senna by more than a minute as the top two were the only drivers to finish on the lead lap with just five cars seeing the chequered flag.
There were “crashes galore” on the cover of issue #314.
After leaving F1 in 1981, Jones lasted one year in the Australian GT Championship before packing his bags are returning to Europe.
At the time two Formula 1 teams were rumoured to be circling Jones with Arrows the clear front runner.
“I am presently waiting for a final decision and when it comes through I will be on the next plane for Europe.
“It is a choice between two teams – one has money; the other has money and the equipment but they have a political problem.”
Local Steve Masterton faced a three-month suspension after the Stewarts charged him with “knowingly presenting an illegal car” while he also spun Allan Grice, not once, but twice.
The cover of issue #55 revealed the messy situation the Australian Rally Championship found itself in half a century ago.
Confusion over which cars are allowed to compete, what modifications were allowed and how the lighting regulations are controlled, dominated the Uniroyal Southern 500 in Adelaide.
Stewart McLoud and navigator Adrian Mortimer won the event in a Torana GTR XU-1.
Meanwhile at Symmons Plains, Allan Moffat dominated the curtain raiser of the 1973 Australian
Touring Car Championship.
His big orange Falcon led the entire race ahead of Peter Brock and John Goss.
For more of the latest motorsport news, pick up the latest issue of AUTO ACTION.
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