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1997 Australian Touring Car season
The 1997 Australian Touring Car season was the 38th year of touring car racing in Australia since the first runnings of the Australian Touring Car Championship and the fore-runner of the present day Bathurst 1000, the Armstrong 500.
Two major touring car categories raced in Australia during 1997, V8 Supercar and Super Touring. Between them there were 26 touring car race meetings held during 1997; a ten-round series for V8 Supercars, the 1997 Australian Touring Car Championship (ATCC); an eight-round series for Super Touring, the 1997 Australian Super Touring Championship (ASTC); an unofficial four round series for V8 Supercars, the 1997 ARDC AMSCAR series (the final edition of AMSCAR); support programme events at the 1997 Australian Grand Prix and 1997 Sunbelt IndyCarnival and three stand alone long distance races, nicknamed 'enduros'.
Results and standings
Race calendar
The 1997 Australian touring car season consisted of 26 events.
| Date | Series | Circuit | City / state | Winner | Team | Car | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7–9 Mar | Super Touring GT-P Race | Albert Park | Melbourne, Victoria | Jim Richards | Volvo Cars Australia | Volvo 850 | |
| TAC V8 Supercar Showdown | Russell Ingall | Perkins Engineering | Holden VS Commodore | ||||
| 15 Mar | ATCC Round 1 | Calder Park Raceway | Melbourne, Victoria | Wayne Gardner | Wayne Gardner Racing | Holden VS Commodore | |
| 5–6 Apr | Hog's Breath Cafe V8 Supercar Challenge | Surfers Paradise street circuit | Surfers Paradise, Queensland | Russell Ingall | Perkins Engineering | Holden VS Commodore | |
| 13 Apr | ATCC Round 2 | Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit | Phillip Island, Victoria | Russell Ingall | Perkins Engineering | Holden VS Commodore | |
| 27 Apr | ATCC Round 3 | Sandown International Raceway | Melbourne, Victoria | Glenn Seton | Glenn Seton Racing | Ford EL Falcon | |
| 4 May | ATCC Round 4 | Symmons Plains Raceway | Launceston, Tasmania | Greg Murphy | Holden Racing Team | Holden VS Commodore | |
| 4 May | ASTC Round 1 | Lakeside International Raceway | Brisbane, Queensland | Paul Morris | Paul Morris Motorsport | BMW 320i | |
| 18 May | ATCC Round 5 | Winton Motor Raceway | Benalla, Victoria | Russell Ingall | Perkins Engineering | Holden VS Commodore | |
| 25 May | ATCC Round 6 | Eastern Creek Raceway | Sydney, New South Wales | Glenn Seton | Glenn Seton Racing | Ford EL Falcon | |
| 1 Jun | ASTC Round 2 | Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit | Phillip Island, Victoria | Paul Morris | Paul Morris Motorsport | BMW 320i | |
| 15 Jun | ATCC Round 7 | Lakeside International Raceway | Brisbane, Queensland | John Bowe | Dick Johnson Racing | Ford EL Falcon | |
| 22 Jun | ASTC Round 3 | Calder Park Raceway | Melbourne, Victoria | Geoff Brabham | Paul Morris Motorsport | BMW 320i | |
| 22 Jun | AMSCAR Round 1 | Eastern Creek Raceway | Sydney, New South Wales | Allan McCarthy | West Coast Racing | Ford EL Falcon | |
| 6 Jul | ATCC Round 8 | Barbagallo Raceway | Perth, Western Australia | Peter Brock | Holden Racing Team | Holden VS Commodore | |
| 13 Jul | ATCC Round 9 | Mallala Motor Sport Park | Adelaide, South Australia | Greg Murphy | Holden Racing Team | Holden VS Commodore | |
| 20 Jul | ASTC Round 4 | Amaroo Park | Sydney, New South Wales | Brad Jones | Brad Jones Racing | Audi A4 Quattro | |
| AMSCAR Round 2 | Mal Rose | Mal Rose Racing | Holden VS Commodore | ||||
| 3 Aug | ATCC Round 10 | Oran Park Raceway | Sydney, New South Wales | Greg Murphy | Holden Racing Team | Holden VS Commodore | |
| 10 Aug | ASTC Round 5 | Winton Motor Raceway | Benalla, Victoria | Paul Morris | Paul Morris Motorsport | BMW 320i | |
| 24 Aug | ASTC Round 6 | Mallala Motor Sport Park | Adelaide, South Australia | Cameron McConville | Brad Jones Racing | Audi A4 Quattro | |
| 31 Aug | AMSCAR Round 3 | Eastern Creek Raceway | Sydney, New South Wales | Mal Rose | Mal Rose Racing | Holden VS Commodore | |
| 14 Sep | Tickford Sandown 500 | Sandown International Raceway | Melbourne, Victoria | Greg Murphy | |||
| Craig Lowndes | Holden Racing Team | Holden VS Commodore | report | ||||
| 5 Oct | AMP Bathurst 1000 | Mount Panorama Circuit | Bathurst, New South Wales | Geoff Brabham | |||
| David Brabham | Paul Morris Motorsport | BMW 320i | report | ||||
| 19 Oct | Primus 1000 Classic | Mount Panorama Circuit | Bathurst, New South Wales | Russell Ingall | |||
| Larry Perkins | Perkins Engineering | Holden VS Commodore | report | ||||
| 26 Oct | ASTC Round 7 | Lakeside International Raceway | Brisbane, Queensland | Paul Morris | Paul Morris Motorsport | BMW 320i | |
| 9 Nov | ASTC Round 8 | Amaroo Park | Sydney, New South Wales | Geoff Brabham | Paul Morris Motorsport | BMW 320i | |
| 7 Dec | AMSCAR Round 4 | Eastern Creek Raceway | Sydney, New South Wales | Michael Donaher | Clive Wiseman Racing | Holden VS Commodore |
Super Touring GT-P Race
This meeting was a support event of the 1997 Australian Grand Prix. The thin Super Touring field was bolstered by cars from the Australian GT-Production Car Championship (indicated in italics).
| Driver | No. | Team | Car | Race 1 | Race 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New Zealand Jim Richards | 6 | Volvo Cars Australia | Volvo 850 | 1 | 1 |
| New Zealand Steven Richards | 34 | Garry Rogers Motorsport | Honda Accord | 2 | 2 |
| Australia Geoff Brabham | 83 | BMW Motorsport Australia | BMW 320i | DSQ | 3 |
| Australia Paul Morris | 2 | BMW Motorsport Australia | BMW 320i | DSQ | 4 |
| Australia Brad Jones | 1 | Brad Jones Racing | Audi A4 Quattro | DNF | 5 |
| Australia Alan Jones | 3 | Brad Jones Racing | Audi A4 Quattro | 3 | 6 |
| Australia Bob Tweedie | 79 | IBC Motorsport | Vauxhall Cavalier | 4 | 7 |
| Australia Cameron McConville | 22 | Warwick Fabrics | Porsche 993 RSCS | 5 | 8 |
| Australia John Bowe | 10 | Ross Palmer Motorsport | Ferrari F355 Challenge | 7 | 9 |
| Australia Justin Mathews | 16 | Bob Holden Motors | BMW 318i | 6 | 10 |
| Australia Rusty French | 28 | Porsche 993 RSCS | 8 | 11 | |
| Australia Max Dunn | 46 | Porsche 993 RSCS | 10 | 12 | |
| Australia Ross Palmer | 72 | Ross Palmer Motorsport | Ferrari F355 Challenge | DNF | 13 |
| New Zealand Tony Newman | 37 | TC Motorsport | Peugeot 405 Mi16 | 9 | 14 |
| Australia Guy Gibbons | 33 | Subaru Impreza WRX | 11 | 15 | |
| Australia Ian McAllister | 66 | Volvo 850 T5-R | 13 | 16 | |
| Australia Eric Houghton | 4 | Zega Automotive Group | Mitsubishi Lancer RS-E Evo IV | DNF | 17 |
| Australia Murray Carter | 18 | Nissan 200SX Turbo | 14 | 18 | |
| Australia Colin Osborne | 21 | Osborne Motorsport | Toyota MR2 Bathurst | 12 | 19 |
| Australia Andrej Pavicevic | 31 | Subaru Impreza WRX | DNF | DNS | |
| Australia Peter Hills | 88 | Knight Racing | Ford Mondeo | DNS | DNS |
TAC V8 Supercar Showdown
This meeting was a support event of the 1997 Australian Grand Prix.
| Driver | No. | Team | Car | Race 1 | Race 2 | Race 3 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia Russell Ingall | 8 | Perkins Engineering | Holden VS Commodore | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Australia Larry Perkins | 11 | Perkins Engineering | Holden VS Commodore | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Australia Peter Brock | 05 | Holden Racing Team | Holden VS Commodore | 6 | 3 | 3 |
| Australia John Bowe | 18 | Dick Johnson Racing | Ford EL Falcon | DNS | 5 | 4 |
| New Zealand Greg Murphy | 15 | Holden Racing Team | Holden VS Commodore | 3 | 8 | 5 |
| Australia Wayne Gardner | 7 | Wayne Gardner Racing | Holden VS Commodore | DNS | 7 | 6 |
| Australia Dick Johnson | 17 | Dick Johnson Racing | Ford EL Falcon | 7 | 4 | 7 |
| Australia Alan Jones | 9 | Alan Jones Racing | Ford EL Falcon | 5 | 6 | 8 |
| New Zealand John Faulkner | 46 | John Faulkner Racing | Holden VS Commodore | 22 | 11 | 9 |
| Australia Tony Longhurst | 25 | Longhurst Racing | Ford EL Falcon | 14 | 9 | 10 |
| Australia Mark Noske | 97 | Holden Racing Team | Holden VS Commodore | 9 | 10 | 11 |
| Australia Steve Ellery | 52 | Longhurst Racing | Ford EL Falcon | 24 | 12 | 12 |
| Australia Glenn Seton | 30 | Glenn Seton Racing | Ford EL Falcon | 4 | DNS | 13 |
| Australia Trevor Ashby | 3 | Lansvale Racing Team | Holden VS Commodore | 11 | 15 | 14 |
| Australia Mark Skaife | 2 | Gibson Motorsport | Holden VS Commodore | DNF | 13 | 15 |
| USA Kevin Schwantz | 75 | John Sidney Racing | Ford EF Falcon | 26 | 18 | 16 |
| Australia Tomas Mezera | 47 | Daily Planet Racing | Holden VS Commodore | DNF | 17 | 17 |
| New Zealand Steven Richards | 34 | Garry Rogers Motorsport | Holden VS Commodore | 12 | 14 | 18 |
| Australia Terry Finnigan | 27 | Holden VS Commodore | 15 | DNF | 19 | |
| Australia Kevin Heffernan | 74 | PACE Racing | Holden VS Commodore | 25 | 21 | 20 |
| Australia Mark Larkham | 10 | Larkham Motor Sport | Ford EL Falcon | 10 | 20 | 21 |
| Australia Anthony Tratt | 42 | Holden VP Commodore | 17 | 16 | 22 | |
| Australia Chris Smerdon | 39 | Challenge Motorsport | Holden VS Commodore | 16 | 19 | 23 |
| Australia Malcolm Stenniken | 14 | Holden VR Commodore | 18 | 28 | 24 | |
| Australia Ian Palmer | 20 | Palmer Promotions | Holden VS Commodore | 19 | 25 | 25 |
| Australia Wayne Russell | 62 | Holden VP Commodore | 20 | 24 | 26 | |
| Australia Shaun Walker | 99 | Holden VS Commodore | 23 | 27 | 27 | |
| Australia Mike Conway | 79 | Cadillac Productions | Holden VP Commodore | 21 | DNF | 28 |
| Australia John Cotter | 26 | M3 Motorsport | Holden VP Commodore | DNF | 26 | 29 |
| Australia Neil Crompton | 4 | Wayne Gardner Racing | Holden VS Commodore | 8 | 23 | DNF |
| Australia Mark Poole | 38 | James Rosenberg Racing | Holden VS Commodore | 13 | 22 | DNS |
| Australia Rob Middleton | 66 | Clive Wiseman Racing | Holden VP Commodore | DNF | DNS | DNS |
Australian Touring Car Championship
Main article: 1997 Australian Touring Car Championship
Hog's Breath V8 Supercar Challenge
This meeting was a support event of the 1997 Sunbelt IndyCarnival.
| Driver | No. | Team | Car | Race 1 | Race 2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia Russell Ingall | 8 | Perkins Engineering | Holden VS Commodore | 2 | 1 |
| Australia Larry Perkins | 11 | Perkins Engineering | Holden VS Commodore | 5 | 2 |
| Australia Wayne Gardner | 7 | Wayne Gardner Racing | Holden VS Commodore | 7 | 3 |
| Australia Neil Crompton | 4 | Wayne Gardner Racing | Holden VS Commodore | 6 | 4 |
| Australia Tony Longhurst | 25 | Longhurst Racing | Ford EL Falcon | 8 | 5 |
| Australia Alan Jones | 9 | Alan Jones Racing | Ford EL Falcon | 3 | 6 |
| Australia Mark Larkham | 10 | Larkham Motor Sport | Ford EL Falcon | 10 | 7 |
| New Zealand John Faulkner | 46 | John Faulkner Racing | Holden VS Commodore | 9 | 8 |
| Australia Peter Brock | 05 | Holden Racing Team | Holden VS Commodore | 4 | 9 |
| Australia Steve Ellery | 52 | Longhurst Racing | Ford EL Falcon | 13 | 10 |
| Australia Steven Johnson | 49 | Alcair Racing | Holden VS Commodore | DNF | 11 |
| Australia Tomas Mezera | 47 | Daily Planet Racing | Holden VS Commodore | DNF | 12 |
| Australia John Bowe | 18 | Dick Johnson Racing | Ford EL Falcon | DNF | 13 |
| Australia Steve Reed | 3 | Lansvale Racing Team | Holden VS Commodore | DNF | 14 |
| Australia Kevin Heffernan | 74 | PACE Racing | Holden VS Commodore | DNF | 15 |
| Australia Garry Willmington | 41 | Garry Willmington Performance | Ford EB Falcon | 16 | 16 |
| Australia Wayne Russell | 62 | Holden VP Commodore | 14 | 17 | |
| New Zealand Greg Murphy | 15 | Holden Racing Team | Holden VS Commodore | 1 | DNF |
| Australia Mark Poole | 38 | James Rosenberg Racing | Holden VS Commodore | 12 | DNF |
| Australia Danny Osborne | 22 | Colourscan Motorsport | Ford EF Falcon | 15 | DNF |
| Australia Paul Romano | 24 | Romano Racing | Holden VS Commodore | 11 | DNF |
| Australia Glenn Seton | 30 | Glenn Seton Racing | Ford EL Falcon | DNF | DNS |
| Australia Dick Johnson | 17 | Dick Johnson Racing | Ford EL Falcon | DNF | DNS |
| New Zealand Steven Richards | 34 | Garry Rogers Motorsport | Holden VS Commodore | DNF | DNS |
| Australia Terry Finnigan | 27 | Holden VS Commodore | DNF | DNS |
Australian Super Touring Championship
Main article: 1997 Australian Super Touring Championship
ARDC AMSCAR series
Main article: 1997 ARDC AMSCAR series
Tickford 500
Main article: 1997 Tickford 500
AMP Bathurst 1000
Main article: 1997 AMP Bathurst 1000
Primus 1000 Classic
Main article: 1997 Primus 1000 Classic
References
References
- (22 March 1997). "Gold Coast 22 March 1997 1997 Sunbelt Indy Carnival Support Races". National Software.
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