The Lakeside ATCC round was an Australian Touring Car Championship motor racing event held at Lakeside International Raceway in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. The event was held 29 times from 1964 to 1998, with only seven circuits having hosted more events in championship history as of 2021.
History The Lakeside round of the championship was first held in the era of single-race championships, deciding the Australian Touring Car Championship in 1964 and 1967 for two of Ian Geoghegan's five championship wins. The circuit held two further events as part of a multi-round championship in 1970 and 1971, the second of which was a replacement event for the Warwick Farm Raceway event due to concerns over the circuit's safety barriers. The circuit did not return to the calendar until 1975, but then remained on the calendar for an uninterrupted spell which continued until 1998.
The circuit hosted championship deciders in 1975, 1981 and 1983. The 1981 decider was notable for a famous race-long duel between local driver Dick Johnson's ailing Ford XD Falcon and Peter Brock's Holden VC Commodore. Johnson prevailed and won the first of his five championships in what is considered one of the greatest races in championship history. The 1983 finale was a more controversial affair, in which Gibson Motorsport boycotted the final round, resulting in championship contender George Fury forfeiting any chance of taking his maiden title. Instead, Allan Moffat won his final championship title and the only title for Mazda. Fury went on to win the Lakeside event in 1984, Nissan's first championship round victory, and 1986.
Tony Longhurst won three of his five career rounds at Lakeside in the late 1980s and early 1990s. This comprised winning the only round not won by Dick Johnson Racing in 1988, winning one of the two championship events the circuit held within the 1991 season and winning the final ATCC round to date for BMW in 1992. The circuit's proximity to Lake Kurwongbah saw two events postponed due to flooding, the 1989 event by a fortnight and the 1996 event by one week. In 1994, Larry Perkins, already a four-time Bathurst 1000 winner, won his first championship round.
In 1999, Queensland Raceway, near Ipswich, replaced Lakeside on the championship calendar. Lakeside then appeared on the second-tier V8 Lites calendar in 2000 and 2001, before the circuit closed for eight years in 2001.
Winners Year Driver Team Car Report 1964 Ian Geoghegan Total Team Ford Cortina Mk.I GT Report 1965–1966 not held 1967 Ian Geoghegan Mustang Team Ford Mustang GTA Report 1968–1969 not held 1970 Norm Beechey Shell Racing Holden HT Monaro GTS350 1971 Allan Moffat Allan Moffat Racing Ford Boss 302 Mustang 1972–1974 not held 1975 Colin Bond Holden Dealer Team Holden LH Torana SL/R 5000 L34 1976 Colin Bond Holden Dealer Team Holden LH Torana SL/R 5000 L34 1977 Peter Brock Bill Patterson Racing Holden LH Torana SL/R 5000 L34 1978 Allan Moffat Allan Moffat Racing Ford XC Falcon GS500 1979 Bob Morris Ron Hodgson Motors Holden LX Torana SS A9X 1980 Peter Brock Holden Dealer Team Holden VB Commodore 1981 Dick Johnson Dick Johnson Racing Ford XD Falcon 1982 Allan Moffat Allan Moffat Racing Mazda RX-7 1983 Peter Brock Holden Dealer Team Holden VH Commodore SS 1984 George Fury Gibson Motorsport Nissan Bluebird Turbo 1985 Jim Richards JPS Team BMW BMW 635 CSi 1986 George Fury Gibson Motorsport Nissan Skyline DR30 RS 1987 Jim Richards JPS Team BMW BMW M3 1988 Tony LonghurstLoGaMo Racing Ford Sierra RS500 1989 Dick Johnson Dick Johnson Racing Ford Sierra RS500 1990 Colin Bond Colin Bond Racing Ford Sierra RS500 1991 Jim RichardsGibson Motorsport Nissan Skyline R32 GT-R Tony LonghurstLoGaMo Racing BMW M3 Evolution 1992 Tony LonghurstLoGaMo Racing BMW M3 Evolution 1993 Alan JonesGlenn Seton Racing Ford EB Falcon 1994 Larry PerkinsPerkins Engineering Holden VP Commodore Report 1995 Glenn SetonGlenn Seton Racing Ford EF Falcon 1996 Craig LowndesHolden Racing Team Holden VR Commodore 1997 John BoweDick Johnson Racing Ford EL Falcon 1998 Russell IngallPerkins Engineering Holden VS Commodore
Notes – Lakeside hosted two rounds of the 1991 Australian Touring Car Championship, Round 4 and Round 8.
Multiple winners By driver Wins Driver Years 3 Allan Moffat 1971, 1978, 1982 Peter Brock 1977, 1980, 1983 Colin Bond 1975, 1976, 1990 Jim Richards 1985, 1987, 1991-1 Tony Longhurst 1988, 1991-2, 1992 2 Ian Geoghegan 1964, 1967 George Fury 1984, 1986 Dick Johnson 1981, 1989
By team Wins Team 4 Holden Dealer Team 3 Allan Moffat Racing Gibson Motorsport LoGaMo Racing Dick Johnson Racing 2 JPS Team BMW Glenn Seton Racing Perkins Engineering
By manufacturer Wins Manufacturer 11 Ford 10 Holden 4 BMW 3 Nissan
Event names and sponsors 1964, 1967, 1970–71, 1975–77, 1979–85, 1987–98: Lakeside 1978: Round 7 Presented by Rothmans 1986: Motorcraft 100
See also List of Australian Touring Car Championship races
References