A wide array of motorsport history will be on display at this year’s Adelaide Motorsport Festival, which is proudly supported by Repco.
Entries already announced represent Formula 1 Group A touring cars and rallying, but the latest round of announcements further widen the disciplines in addition to the history set to be on display in Adelaide.
A new category has been announced sponsored by PremiAir Hire for Bathurst Winners where it was confirmed both Nissan Skyline R32 GT-Rs raced by Gibson Motorsport to victories in 1991 and 1992 will be in attendance.
Another interesting entry for this class is the dual-Bathurst winning VH Commodore constructed by the Holden Dealer Team. After guiding Peter Brock and Larry Perkins to victory in 1982, it was the second entry for the HDT. Brock’s younger brother Phil was paired by loyal HDT deputy John Harvey, but the former didn’t get a drive in 1983 as the lead Commodore failed as the two drivers commandeered this entry. This run of events ensure this is a rare piece of history.
DTM during the early-1990s was spectacular as Mercedes, Alfa Romeo and Opel fought for on-track supremacy. Klaus Ludwig is highly credentialed and raced the Sonax Mercedes-Benz 190E to be displayed at the Adelaide Motorsport Festival to title success in 1992 where it was in Evolution II specification.
Another European performance variant, the ultra-rare Lancia Beta Montecarlo Turbo will also feature in Adelaide. Entering sportscar events in 1979, Lancia developed this beast to win the World Championship of Makes of which it did in 1980 and 1981 right before the Group 5 specifications were banned the next season. Gilles Villeneuve, Riccardo Patrese, rally star Walter Rohrl, Eddie Cheever and many more raced this silhouette Beta during its short competition life.
Finally, Dick Johnson will have a presence at this event through the inclusion of his Zakspeed-developed Ford Mustang. Imported ahead of the introduction of Group A in 1985, the Mustang was potent during its two seasons of competition in Johnson’s hands albeit unlucky. Johnson’s one success in the Palmer Tube Mills Mustang was in Adelaide when he took the flag in the touring car support race at the inaugural Formula 1 Grand Prix.
Speaking of Formula 1, Valtteri Bottas will make his return after thrilling fans at the last edition.
The 2024 Adelaide Motorsport Festival will take place on March 15-17.