1985 Australian GT Championship

Last updated

Contents

The 1985 Australian GT Championship was the eighth Australian GT Championship and the fourth to be decided over a series of races. It was open to GT Cars complying with CAMS Group D regulations with Group B Sports Sedans and superseded Group C Touring Cars competing by invitation. The title was contested over six rounds from 24 March to 25 August 1985.

The championship was won by Bryan Thomson driving a Chevrolet Monza and a Mercedes-Benz 450 SLC Chevrolet for Thomson-Fowler Motorsport.

The Australian GT Championship was discontinued after 1985 however the title was reinstated for 2005. [1]

Schedule

The Mercedes-Benz 450 SLC that Bryan Thomson drove in the 1985 Australian GT Championship. The car is pictured in 2017. Mercedes-Benz 450 SLC of Simon Podlewski.jpg
The Mercedes-Benz 450 SLC that Bryan Thomson drove in the 1985 Australian GT Championship. The car is pictured in 2017.
RoundCircuitDateFormatRace winner(s)Round winnerRound winning car
1 Lakeside International Raceway 24 MarchOne raceBryan ThomsonBryan Thomson Chevrolet Monza
2 Oran Park Raceway 5 MayTwo heats Brad Jones
Kevin Bartlett
Bryan Thomson [2] Mercedes-Benz 450 SLC Chevrolet
3 Winton Motor Raceway 2 JuneTwo heats Kevin Bartlett
Kevin Bartlett
Kevin Bartlett De Tomaso Pantera
4 Adelaide International Raceway 30 JuneOne raceBryan ThomsonBryan Thomson Chevrolet Monza
5 Calder Park Raceway 11 AugustOne race Kevin Bartlett Kevin Bartlett De Tomaso Pantera
6 Surfers Paradise Raceway 25 AugustOne raceBryan ThomsonBryan Thomson Chevrolet Monza

Note : Rounds were run concurrently with those of the 1985 Australian Sports Car Championship.

Points system

For rounds contested over a single race, i.e. Rounds 1, 4, 5 & 6, championship points were awarded on a 30-27-24-21-19-17-15-14-13-12-11-10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2 basis to the top twenty finishers in the round.

For rounds contested over two races, i.e. Rounds 2 & 3, championship points were awarded by allocating race points on a 30-27-24-21-19-17-15-14-13-12-11-10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2 basis to the top twenty finishers in each race, aggregating the points from the two races and then dividing the result by two. (Race points allocated for these races are shown in the table below within brackets)

Championship standings

PosDriverNo.CarEntrantLakOra R1Ora R2OraWin R1Win R2WinAdeCalSurTotal
1Bryan Thomson14
17
Chevrolet Monza &
Mercedes-Benz 450 SLC - Chevrolet
Thomson-Fowler Motorsport30(24)(27)25.5(27)(24)25.5302430165
2Peter Fitzgerald3 Porsche Carrera RSR Peter Fitzgerald / Stanilite Electronics24(27)(24)25.5(24)(27)25.52721-123
3John Bourke77 Toyota Celica TurboBrian Hilton Toyota27(19)-9.5(21)(19)20--2480.5
4 Kevin Bartlett 5 De Tomaso Pantera Paul Halstead / The Toy Shop--(30)15(30)(30)30-30-75
5 Peter McLeod 50 Mazda RX-7 Petrolon Slick 50--(21)10.5(19)(21)2024--54.5
6Gary Scott104 Nissan Bluebird Turbo Tapsall-Scott Racing-(17)(19)18-----2745
7 Brad Jones 17
14
Mercedes-Benz 450 SLC - Chevrolet &
Chevrolet Monza
Thomson-Fowler Motorsport-(30)-15----27-42
8Simon Harrex69 Holden Commodore 21---------21
8Cos Monterosso30 Ford Escort BDG Cos Monterosso-------21--21
8Vic Cameron96 Ford Escort ---------2121
11John Gurney9 BMW 318i Turbo Coolratio Motor Sports-------19--19
11Graeme Whincup6 Chevrolet Monza Graeme Whincup--------19-19
13Peter Finch16 Chrysler Valiant Charger Peter Finch-------17--17
14Brian Callaghan47 Ford XE Falcon Mobile Concrete Pumping-(15)(17)16------16
15Graham Nowland81 Mazda RX-7 -(13)(15)14------14
16Chris Hones91 BMW 318i Turbo -(21)-10.5------10.5
17Robin Doherty27 Holden Torana Robin Doherty-(14)-7------7

Related Research Articles

The 1981 Australian Touring Car Championship was a CAMS sanctioned motor racing title for drivers of Group C Touring Cars. The championship, which was the 22nd running of the Australian Touring Car Championship, began at Symmons Plains Raceway and ended at Lakeside International Raceway after 8 rounds.

The 1982 Australian GT Championship was a CAMS sanctioned Australian motor racing title open to Group D GT cars and Group B Sports Sedans. It was the fifth Australian GT Championship, the first to be awarded since 1963 and the first to be contested over a series of races rather than a single race. The GT championship replaced the Australian Sports Sedan Championship which had been awarded annually from 1976 to 1981. The 1982 title, which was contested over a nine-round series from 16 May to 10 October, was won by Alan Jones driving a Porsche 935/80 entered by Porsche Cars Australia.

The 1983 Australian GT Championship was a CAMS sanctioned Australian motor racing title for cars complying with Group D regulations for GT cars, with Group B Sports Sedans competing by invitation. It was the sixth Australian GT Championship. The championship was won by Rusty French, driving a Porsche 935.

The 1984 Australian GT Championship was an CAMS sanctioned Australian motor racing title and was the seventh Australian GT Championship to be awarded. It was a series open to grand tourer cars complying with CAMS Group D regulations with Group B Sports Sedans competing by invitation. The series was contested over six rounds from 15 April to 9 September 1984.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Australian GT Championship</span> National championship for grand tourer sports cars in Australia

The Australian GT Championship is a CAMS-sanctioned national title for drivers of GT cars, held annually from 1960 to 1963, from 1982 to 1985 and from 2005. Each championship up to and including the 1963 title was contested over a single race and those after that year over a series of races. The categories which have contested the championship have not always been well defined and often have become a home for cars orphaned by category collapse or a sudden change in regulation.

The 1998 Australian Touring Car Championship was an Australian motor racing competition open to 5.0 Litre Touring Cars,. The championship, which was sanctioned by the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport as an Australian title, was contested over a ten-round series which began on 1 February 1998 at Sandown International Motor Raceway and ended on 2 August at Oran Park International Raceway. The series was promoted as the "Shell Australian Touring Car Championship". The title, which was the 39th Australian Touring Car Championship, was won by Craig Lowndes.

The 1997 Australian Touring Car Championship was a CAMS sanctioned Australian motor racing title open to 5.0 Litre Touring Cars complying with Group 3A regulations. The championship, which was the 38th Australian Touring Car Championship, began on 15 March at Calder Park Raceway and ended on 3 August at Oran Park Raceway after 10 rounds.

The 1981 Australian Sports Sedan Championship was an Australian motor racing competition for Group B Sports Sedans. It was sanctioned by the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport and was the sixth Australian Sports Sedan Championship.

The 1984 Australian Touring Car Championship was a CAMS sanctioned Australian motor racing title for Group C Touring Cars. It was the 25th running of the Australian Touring Car Championship, and the last to be contested by Group C cars as new regulations, based on international Group A, were introduced for 1985. The championship, which began on 18 February 1984 at Sandown Raceway and ended on 1 July at Adelaide International Raceway after seven rounds, was won by Dick Johnson driving a Ford XE Falcon.

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 after having been run under CAMS home grown Group C rules between 1973 and 1984. The championship began on 10 February 1985 at Winton Motor Raceway and ended on 14 July at Oran Park Raceway after ten rounds.

The 1976 Australian Touring Car Championship was a CAMS sanctioned Australian motor racing title for Group C Touring Cars. It was the 17th running of the Australian Touring Car Championship. The championship began at Symmons Plains Raceway on 29 February and ended at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit on 28 November in the longest season in the history of the series. 1976 saw a substantial change to the ATCC calendar which was expanded to eleven rounds, incorporating the end-of-season long distance Australian Championship of Makes races for the first time. These races included Sandown's Hang Ten 400 and the Phillip Island 500K, although notably not the Bathurst 1000.

The 1972 Australian Touring Car Championship was a CAMS sanctioned national motor racing title open to Group C Improved Production Touring Cars and Group E Series Production Touring Cars. The championship, which was the 13th running of the Australian Touring Car Championship, began at Symmons Plains and ended at Oran Park after eight rounds.

The 1999 Australian GT Production Car Championship was an Australian motor racing competition open to cars complying with Group 3E Series Production Car regulations. It was the sanctioned by the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport as an Australian title and was the fourth Australian GT Production Car Championship.

The 2004 Australian Nations Cup Championship was an Australian motor racing competition for modified production-based coupes complying with "Nations Cup" regulations. Contested as part of the 2004 Procar Championship Series, it was sanctioned by the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport as a National Championship with PROCAR Australia Pty Ltd appointed as the Category Manager.

The 1985 Australian Endurance Championship was a CAMS sanctioned motor racing title for drivers of Touring Cars complying with an Australian version of FIA Group A Touring Car regulations. The championship was the fifth Australian Endurance Championship and the fourth to be awarded as a drivers title.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1979 Australian Sports Sedan Championship</span>

The 1979 Australian Sports Sedan Championship was a CAMS sanctioned Australian motor racing title for drivers of Group B Sports Sedans. It was the fourth Australian Sports Sedan Championship.

The 1985 Australian Sports Car Championship was a CAMS sanctioned motor racing title for drivers of Group A Sports Cars. It was the 17th Australian Sports Car Championship and the first to be run concurrently with the Australian GT Championship.

The 1986 Australian Sports Car Championship was a CAMS sanctioned Australian motor racing title for drivers of Group A Sports Cars. It was the 18th Australian Sports Car Championship.

The 1987 Australian Sports Car Championship was a CAMS sanctioned Australian national motor racing title open to Group A Sports Cars, Group D GT cars, FISA Group C1 cars and FISA Group C2 cars.

The 1981 Australian Drivers' Championship was a CAMS sanctioned Australian motor racing title open to racing cars complying with Australian Formula 1. It was the 25th Australian Drivers' Championship. The title winner, Alfredo Costanzo was awarded the 1981 CAMS "Gold Star".

References