[Jesper OH]

Originally Posted by William Dale Jr

1986 Australian Touring Car Championship
Round 1 - Amaroo Park, NSW (2/3/1986)
also Round 1 of the Better Brakes AMSCAR Series

Circuit Length: 1.964 km
Race Distance: 52 laps
Weather: Overcast

What a difference 12 months makes! Many more competitive cars rock up for the first round of the ATCC than a year ago. Reigning champ Jim Richards has the pick of either his trusty 635CSi or the new 325i, eventually going with his championship-winning 6-series. Garry Rogers ends up in the 325i, waiting for the. The HDT have their first race meeting of what will be a busy year, combining a full mostly-2-car ATCC campaign with their European adventures. Also aboard Commodores are former Celica campaigner Graeme Bailey and former motorcycle champion Graeme Crosby. Meanwhile, the factory Nissan team are back with their new Skyline for George Fury.

This race is on YouTube, and it's a pretty good one! Again, words don't suffice, so have a watch.

A few updates on car numbers. This race was once available as a ca. 50 minute VHS (haven't seen a DVD version, though). I'm regarding those not included in the 14 finishers as not classified - either DNFs or not completed a required minimum distance.

Position	Number	Entrant	Driver	Car	Class	Race Time/Laps	Retirement Cause	Fastest Time	Qualifying Time	Grid Position
1	10		Robbie Francevic	Volvo 240T	B	49m16.88s		0m55.13s	0m54.29s	2
2	62	JPS Team BMW	Jim Richards	BMW 635CSi	C	52 laps/49:17.90		0m55.94s	0m54.80s	4
3	25	JPS Team BMW	Tony Longhurst	BMW 325i	B	52 laps/49:28.50		0m55.94s	0m55.29s	8
4	17	Palmer Tube Mills	Dick Johnson	Ford Mustang	C	52 laps/49:37.00		0m55.50s	0m54.73s	3
5	05	Mobil Holden Dealer Team	Peter Brock	Holden Commodore VK	C	52 laps/49:59.30		0m55.81s	0m54.93s	5
6	7		Charlie O'Brien	BMW 635CSi	C	52 laps		0m55.98s	0m55.81s	11
7	33		Mike Burgmann	Holden Commodore VK	C	51 laps		0m56.90s	0m55.80s	10
8	27		Alf Grant	Holden Commodore VK	C	51 laps		0m57.18s	0m56.91s	18
9	47		Brian Callaghan	Holden Commodore VK	C	51 laps		0m56.85s	0m55.89s	13
10	71		Graeme Hooley	Holden Commodore VK	C	50 laps		0m58.77s	0m58.94s	21
11	13	Bob Holden Motors	Bob Holden	Toyota Corolla AE86 Liftback	A	50 laps		0m59.03s	0m59.05s	23
12	24		Gerald Kay	Holden Commodore VK	C	49 laps		0m57.91s	0m57.57s	20
13	19		Ken Mathews	Holden Commodore VK	C	48 laps		0m58.31s	0m57.43s	19
14	9		Kevin Bartlett	Mitsubishi Starion	B	38 laps		0m56.74s	0m56.45s	15 (rear)
	12		Garry Willmington	Jaguar XJ-S	C					12
	29		Ken Davison	Ford Mustang	C					22
			Laurie Hazelton	Ford Capri	B					24
DNF	23	JPS Team BMW	Garry Rogers	BMW 325i	B	45 laps	engine			17
DNF	8		Terry Finnigan	Holden Commodore VK	C		engine			16
DNF	20		Graeme Crosby	Holden Commodore VK	C		gear lever			14
DNF	30		George Fury	Nissan Skyline DR-30	B		hub bearing		0m54.20s	1
DNF	3		John Harvey	Holden Commodore VK	C		harmonic balancer		0m55.77s	9
DNF	75		Colin Bond	Alfa Romeo GTV6	B		suspension		0m55.22s	7
DNF	2		Graeme Bailey	Holden Commodore VK	C		tailshaft vibration		0m55.00s	6
DNS	77		Peter Williamson	Toyota Supra	B		engine			25

I have taken the liberty to copy'n'paste the revised result for future editions. Hope you're alright with that, William.

A general question about Oran Park would be if it was limited to 25 cars? Most grid pictures of 25 car grids ends in the final corner, and the general tight and twisty nature, more than 25 cars would be a bit excessive.

Jesper