Perth SuperSprint
_track_map.svg.png) | |
| Race Information | |
| Venue | Barbagallo Raceway |
| Number of times held | 39 |
| First held | 1973 |
| Race Format | |
| Race 1 | |
| Laps | 50 |
| Distance | 120 km |
| Race 2 | |
| Laps | 83 |
| Distance | 200 km |
| Last Event (2016) | |
| Overall Winner | |
 Craig Lowndes | Triple Eight Race Engineering |
| Race Winners | |
| Craig Lowndes | Triple Eight Race Engineering |
| Mark Winterbottom | Prodrive Racing Australia |
The Perth SuperSprint is an annual motor racing event for Supercars, held at Barbagallo Raceway in Wanneroo, Western Australia. The event has been a regular part of the Supercars Championship—and its previous incarnations, the Australian Touring Car Championship, Shell Championship Series and V8 Supercars Championship—since 1973.
Format
The event is staged over a three-day weekend, from Friday to Sunday. Two one-hour practice sessions are held on Friday while a fifteen-minute practice session is held on Saturday. Saturday features a fifteen-minute qualifying session which decides the grid positions for the following 120 kilometre race. A single twenty-minute qualifying session is held on Sunday to decide the grid for the following 200 km race.[1]
History
Barbagallo Raceway first hosted a round of the Australian Touring Car Championship (ATCC) in 1973, with Allan Moffat taking victory over Peter Brock. It was the first ATCC event ever held in Western Australia and featured the only appearance of a Subaru in the history of the ATCC. The championship did not return to Barbagallo until 1978. The event that year consisted of two heats and the Holden Dealer Team scored a 1-2-3 finish in the overall results, with Brock taking victory over John Harvey and Wayne Negus.[2]
During practice for the 1983 event, Moffat found that his Mazda RX-7 struggled on the rises in the circuit compared to the other cars. To compensate for this, he started the race with the petrol tank only half-filled and made a pit stop during the race. The strategy worked and Moffat took victory, despite almost colliding with Brock when the latter spun in the closing stages.[3] Under Group A regulations, from 1985 to 1992, the event was dominated by Nissan Skylines and Ford Sierras, with Nissan taking three wins and Ford taking four. Mark Skaife took his first ATCC race victory in the 1991 event.[2]
The Holden Racing Team controlled the event from 1996 to 2000, taking victory in all five years. Craig Lowndes won all twelve races across the 1996, 1998, 1999 and 2000 events but missed the 1997 event as he was racing overseas.[4] Brock took his final ATCC round victory that weekend despite not winning any of the races during the event. Paul Radisich interrupted the Holden Racing Team's success in 2001, winning for Dick Johnson Racing, before Jason Bright returned the Holden team to the top step of the podium in 2002.[2]
The 2011 event saw one of the biggest accidents in the history of the championship take place. Karl Reindler, 13th on the grid, stalled at the start and was hit by Steve Owen, who had started 25th and was travelling at 150 km/h. The impact ruptured the fuel tank in Reindler's car, engulfing both cars in flames. Reindler suffered superficial burns to his hands and face as well as smoke inhalation, while Owen escaped serious injury.[5] Lowndes took his 91st career race victory in the ATCC and Supercars Championship during the 2013 event, breaking Skaife's previous record of 90.[6] In 2014, Scott McLaughlin gave Volvo its first race victory in its return to the series, having last competed in 1986.[7]
Winners
Multiple winners
By driver
| Wins | Driver | Years |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | Craig Lowndes |
1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2015, 2016 |
| 5 | Peter Brock |
1978, 1979, 1981, 1990, 1997 |
| 3 |  Allan Moffat |
1973, 1983, 1984 |
| Jamie Whincup |
2009, 2011, 2013 | |
| 2 | Allan Grice |
1980, 1982 |
| John Bowe |
1989, 1992 | |
 Jim Richards |
1985, 1993 | |
| Glenn Seton |
1987, 1995 | |
| Jason Bright |
2002, 2004 | |
| Steven Richards |
2005, 2006 | |
| Mark Winterbottom |
2008, 2012 | |
By team
By manufacturer
| Wins | Manufacturer |
|---|---|
| 20 | Holden |
| 13 | Ford |
| 3 | Nissan |
| 2 | Mazda |
Event sponsors
- 1986: Motorcraft
- 2002–04: Victoria Bitter (VB)
- 2007–09: BigPond
- 2011–12: Trading Post
- 2013: Chill
- 2015: Ubet
See also
References
- ↑ "Supercars Operations Manual 2016 - Division A - Administration Rules" (PDF). Supercars. 27 July 2016. Retrieved 4 August 2016.
- 1 2 3 4 Greenhalgh, David; Howard, Graham; Wilson, Stewart (2011). The official history: Australian Touring Car Championship - 50 Years. St Leonards, New South Wales: Chevron Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0-9805912-2-4.
- ↑ "The Top 10 Aussie Touring Car races of all time – Part one". Auto Action. 30 May 2015. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
- ↑ Crehan, Riana (30 April 2015). "Can we rename Barbagallo 'Lowndes Raceway'?". V8Supercars.com.au. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
- ↑ Noonan, Aaron (4 May 2013). "Saturday Sleuthing: The Barbagallo BBQ". V8Supercars.com.au. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
- ↑ "Lowndes scores record V8 race win in Perth". ABC News. 4 May 2013. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
- ↑ "Victory for Scott McLaughlin and Volvo". Garry Rogers Motorsport. 17 May 2014. Retrieved 8 July 2015.