Australian National F1 Championship Race

Wanneroo Park, 31 Mar 1985

All cars are 1.6-litre F/Pac unless noted.

Notes on the cars:

1. Ralt RT4/81 [255] (Ross Zampatti): Ralt sales record says sold to Graham Watson/John Bowe, without delivery date. [Tub no: 80/109; gearbox: FT1469; fuel cell: JM34734 11/80]. Chassis number given for Bowe's car in report of 1981 AGP, 6 Nov 81 [NZMA 23 Nov 81 p4] and presumed to be Bowe's car earlier in the Australian season. Retained by Bowe for the 1982 season and taken by him to the race at Long Beach as well. Report of the Gold Star round at Oran Park says Bowe 'rushed getting car ready after Long Beach' [NZMA 7 May 82 p20]. Chassis number given for Bowe's car at 1982 AGP. [CT]
2. Ralt RT4/82 [81-277] (Geoff Nicol): Ralt sales record says sold to Rajah, without delivery date. [Tub no: 81/138; gearbox: FT1420; fuel cell: JM37200 10/81] Chassis number given for Sonny Rajah's car at Selangor GP 29 Nov 81 [NZMA 11 Jan 82 p3]. Chassis number given for the car of Geoff Nicol at the Malaysian GP, 29-30 May 82. [CT]
3. Ralt RT4/81 [261] (Graeme Head): Ralt sales record says sold to Graham Watson, for own use, no delivery date, but appears in UK August 1981. [Tub no: 81/120; gearbox FT1474; fuel cell: JM36677 4/81]. Chassis number observed on Roberto Moreno's car at Australian GP, 1981, [NZMA 23 Nov 81 p4]. According to Dave McKinney's report of that race, this was the car raced by Watson in the latter stages of the 1981 British season. Chassis number given for Watson's car in NZMA report of the Bay Park race, 3 Jan 82 with a note that it was Moreno's AGP car. AMSYB-82, p167 says that car of Willy Stobart [chassis given as 261] is the car 'Moreno crashed in Macau after the 1981 AGP'. The NZMA report of the Selangor GP says that the car had been rebuilt around a new tub, but it may be that Moreno ran 265 there instead. [CT]
4. Ralt RT4/81 [263] (Graham Watson): Ralt sales record says sold to Graham Watson/Bob Jane, without delivery date. [Tub no: 81/119; Gearbox FT1480; Fuel cell: JM36736 6/81] Chassis number given in NZMA report for the car of Alan Jones at the 1981 Australian G.P, [NZMA 23 Nov 81 p4]. A note in A/S concerning Bruce Allison's entry at the Australian Gold Star Round at Calder [1 Aug 82] says that Allison used 'the car run by Jones at the Australian GP' at that race. Chassis number given for Alain Prost's car at the 1982 AGP. [CT]
5. March 74B [U1] (John Blennerhasset): New to Harry Stiller Racing and entered for Bev Bond in a few late-season 1973 Formula Atlantic races, but only appeared once. Rebuilt by March to 74B specification over the winter and appeared as 74B chassis 'U1' for Bond in 1974, until he announced his retirement in June 1974. Alan Jones took over the drive for the rest of the season and won three races. Advertised by AW Brown (London) in January 1975. Briefly to Frank Blanchard in early 1975 but then to Bill Gowdy (Belfast, Northern Ireland) for Irish Formula Atlantic. To Gerry Kinnane for Des Donnelly to drive in 1976, then to Eddie Jordan (Dundrum, County Dublin, Republic of Ireland) for 1977. Subsequently to Colin Simpson (Dundee, Scotland) for Scottish hillclimbs in 1978 and 1979, when it was fitted with a 1800cc Cosworth BDE. It was then sold to Graham Brown, a Scot who emigrated to Australia and took two Formula Atlantic cars with him. Brown raced it in Scottish hillclimbs in 1980 before it went. Raced by Geoff Nicol in Australian Formula Pacific in 1981, and by John Blennerhasset in 1982. Then to Michael Miller, brothers Peter and Terry Simms, then the Kendall family, then to Bryan Miller in 2002. Sold by Bryan to Richard Carter (Berry, NSW) in September 2018, and shortly afterwards sold to Richard Ellingworth.
6. March 81A [15] (Mick Moylan): New to Phil Dowsett (Chelmsford, Essex) and raced in the British Formula Atlantic championshipmin 1981, with sponsorship from Pinch Plant and Industrial Control Services. Dowsett won two races and finished third in the championship. Sold to Theodore Racing and raced by Vern Schuppan at the Macau GP in November. Then sold to Graham Brown in Western Australia in April 1982 and raced in Australian Formula Pacific. To Michael Moylan in March 1985, then to Jeremy Kenyon (NSW) in January 1991. Sold to Clive Osborne (NSW) in August 1996 and raced by him in 2000, then to Robert Foster (NSW) by 2007 and raced by him from 2007 to 2019. To Barry Wise (QLD) in 2020, and raced by him in 2021 and 2022.
7. Ralt RT4/81 [258] (Richard Davison): Ralt sales record says sold to Bruce Allison, without delivery date. [Tub no: EDA002, a unique style of number in the record; gearbox: FT1426; fuel cell: JM34731 12/80]. Chassis number given for Allison's car at Selangor GP 29 Nov 81 [NZMA 11 Jan 82 p3] and presumed to be Allison's car in the 1981 Australian and South East Asian races. Chassis number given for Allison's car in NZMA report of 1981 AGP [NZMA 23 Nov 81 p4]. Sold to Richard Davison for 1982 Australian season - Davison's car at the Calder race of 28 Feb 82 is described in NZMA as 'ex Allison'. Chassis number given for Davison's car at the 1982 AGP. [CT]
8. Toleman TA860 [HU2] (Ken Shirvington): Invoiced to Peter Williamson 16 Sep 1981. Fitted with a Toyota 2T-G Formula Pacific engine, and raced in Williamson in Australian F/Pacific and in some Southeast Asian Formula Pacific events. In 1982 it was crashed heavily at Oran Park, and rebuilt on a new monocoque produced by Liston & Fisher. Williamson raced the car until the end of 1984 when he crashed the car during practice for the Australian Grand Prix, and abruptly announced his retirement from racing. The Toleman was sold to Ken Shirvington who raced it in 1985. Retained by Shirvington thereafter.

Sources

Note that the identification of individual cars in these results is based on the material presented elsewhere in this site and may in some cases contradict the organisers' published results.

The Australian race results have been provided by Chris Townsend based on material in Autosport and Motoring News reports plus the information supplied by a wide range of contributors.

All comments, clarifications, corrections and additions are most welcome. Please email Allen (allen@oldracingcars.com) if you can help in any way with our research.