Adelaide's Motorsport Scene Bends Back Into Shape

There have been some memorable events take place within the state of South Australia, bringing some of the best races to the state.

Motorsport for many within South Australia is not only a passion, but it’s also a lifestyle. Home originally to the Australian F1 Grand Prix from 1985 with the track cutting through the parklands and through the streets of the city, this race really did stop the nation and had every other state at attention.

Adelaide was the proud host of the F1 for the first eleven years of racing, with the pain of losing the event to Melbourne is still felt within the motoring community - over 210,000 spectators turning out for the final day of racing in 1995.

Holding onto the South Aussie pride, the racing continued over the years with the Group A Super Cars and the Group 3A Australian Touring Car Championship at the OG tracks in the North of Adelaide - Mallala Motorsport Park and Adelaide International Raceway (AIR).

These tracks also hosted plenty of other motoring events from circuit racing, time attack and later down the track drifting and burnout competitions. Mallala was the home of motor sport throughout the sixties with new owner Keith Williams taking over in 1971.

Keith at this time also owned Surfers Paradise Raceway and was revamping AIR which he also owned. This track became renowned for its great drag strip bringing some big names to SA, the addition of the sprint car track brought some action-packed events to the already booming scene.

In September of 1998 the Government of South Australia announced the go ahead for the staging of the Adelaide 500 to be run on the shortened former Grand Prix track, with the race inspiring the city once again. Clipsal become the major sponsor locking in a deal till 2017.

After many great years ‘Mad March’ became an annual festival, with the Fringe Festival and WOMADelaide bringing the city to light for the entire month of March, the V8s playing a major part. Only to be announced in October 2020 that the South Australian Tourism Committee would withdraw support for the event, leaving the whole of Adelaide motorsport community shattered with no scheduled race or rally for the future.

It was a heartbreaking couple of years for the automotive industry within Adelaide, having already had the closure of the Mitsubishi Factory years ago, the doors set to closed at the Holden Factory in Elizabeth. The final hurrah a cruise taking place from the car park and out past the front of the Holden factory.

Peter Brock’s wife ‘Bev Brock’ flew the start flag to the sounds of Jimmy Barnes’s ‘Working Class Man’ through the loudspeakers as the cruise departed, leading the cruise was Holden boss ‘Mark Bernhard’ in the very first holden built in 1948 with ‘Mark Skaife’ next to him in one of the last commodores built.

In true Aussie spirit the motor sporting passion could not be suppressed for long, with the campaign to fight starting as ‘Save The Adelaide 500’. Premier ‘Peter Malinauskas’ signing the agreement with Supercars CEO to hold the final race of the Championship for the next five years. This gave the fans the perfect opportunity for a final send off to the Holden badge after being announced in 2020 that it would pull manufacturing from Australia soil completely, the race was extremely emotional for the racers and fans alike.

After all the ups and downs though the years the passion in the car community is stronger than ever, with the opening of ‘The Bend’ in Adelaide’s South-East in March 2016. It’s a unique facility where motorsports of all styles can come together with purpose-built drifting, carting, 4WD and off-road tracks including a circuit racing track for cars and motorbikes.

The biggest and most exciting event is still yet to come, ‘The Spring Nationals’, which is set to be the event of the season. The Bend Motorsport Park is excited to host the National Drag Racing Championship event featuring the Australian Top Fuel Championship at the newly built Dragway, where around 200 of Australia's fastest competitors will battle. Supporting the Top Fuel Championship will be Top Fuel Motorcycle, Door Slammer and Pro Stock Motorcycle and more.

The motorsport culture across the whole industry is booming once again throughout South Australia, amazing events like Bay to Birdwood, Shannon’s Adelaide Rally, ARB Off Road Championship, Extreme Auto Expo with Zippel Cruise, even 120th anniversary National Rally celebrating 40 years of the HOG.

It’s events like these and many more that are what keeps the culture alive. Let’s all support the great events that keep the automotive spirit alive after all these years.