Brock-buster Torana A9X stars at Top Gear Live
The famous Marlboro Holden Dealer Team Torana A9X in which the late Peter Brock and Jim Richards delivered the most crushing of all Bathurst victories will be one of the stars of the 2010 Top Gear Live Bathurst Legends presented by Shannons Insurance at Sydney’s Acer Arena from February 11-14.
Establishing a commanding lead from the start, Brock and Richards were never headed for the race’s entire 163 laps, eventually winning by an astonishing six laps, with a further seven A9X models in their wake.
And to rub further salt into the wound, Brock set the fastest lap of the entire race on his final lap!
A victory by that margin is unlikely to be repeated in ‘The Great Race’, following the introduction of the Safety Car to close the field in the event’s modern era.
It was Brock’s fourth Bathurst win for Holden in seven years and his second in succession with Richards.
The race climaxed a year of intense controversy during which both Ford and Holden withdrew their involvement in racing, with the race marking the fifth and last victory by a Torana before the new Commodores took over the winning mantle in 1980.
That famous Torana A9X is one of 12 iconic Bathurst cars – including nine actual race winners – assembled by Shannons for the top Gear Live Bathurst Legends display. Each is a significant model in the history of The Great Race.
Sharing the spotlight with the Brock/Richards 1979 Torana A9X are: –
• the 1977 race-winning Moffat Ford Dealer Team Falcon XC coupe of Allan Moffat and Jacky Ickx and its sister car driver by Colin Bond and Alan Hamilton that was instructed to relinquish its lead and fall in behind in a controversial ‘form finish’
• the ‘tribute’ Commodore racecar built personally by Peter Brock to replicate the now-destroyed 1980 winning VC model that he shared with Jim Richards
• the 1981-winning Dick Johnson/John French ‘Tru-Blu’ Falcon XD
• the Brock/Larry Perkins Commodore VH that won back-to-back Bathurst races in 1982 and 1983
• the 1984 race-winning Brock/Perkins Commodore VK
• the 1985-winning John Goss/Armin Hahne Jaguar XJS
• the 1987 race-winning Brock/David Parsons/Peter McLeod-winning Commodore VL
• the 1989-winning Johnson/John Bowe Ford Sierra RS500
• The 1992 Bathurst-winning Nissan GT-R of Jim Richards/Mark Skaife.
This spectacular line-up will also be joined by the Chevrolet Camaro of Kevin Bartlett/Colin Bond that was dubbed the ‘Channel 6 Camaro’ after it bowed out on its roof in the 1982 Bathurst.
Paul Gates, National Sales Manager of Shannons Insurance, said the display would represent probably the greatest number of Bathurst winning and legendary vehicles in one place at one time.
“Top Gear Live has given us this opportunity that may never be repeated,” he said. “We encourage patrons to leave time before or after the TGL show to view these legendary vehicles and reminisce about the great days of The Great Race.”
