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1968 Australian Touring Car Championship

Motor racing competition

The 1968 Australian Touring Car Championship was a CAMS sanctioned Australian motor racing title open to Group C Improved Production Touring Cars. It was contested over a single race staged at the Warwick Farm circuit in New South Wales, Australia on 8 September 1968. The title, which was the ninth Australian Touring Car Championship, was won by Ian Geoghegan driving a Ford Mustang. It was the final Australian Touring Car Championship held as a single race, with the title being contested over a series of races from 1969 onwards.

Report

Ian Geoghegan qualified on pole position, half a second faster than Norm Beechey who was now driving a Chevrolet Camaro SS. Bob Jane was third on the grid, with Jim McKeown and Peter Manton rounding out the top five. Geoghegan won the start and took the lead into the first corner ahead of Beechey and Jane, with the latter two almost touching halfway through the first lap. McKeown retired on lap 3 with a broken rear axle. Ian Dawson spun on the following lap while Nick Petrilli lost a wheel; a lap later Rod Coppins slowed with a loose exhaust.

Jane's engine blew on lap 9, leaving Beechey as the sole challenger to Geoghegan. Fred Gibson's pit crew displayed a sign reading 'Jane in' to inform him of Jane's retirement, but Gibson misread the sign. He slowed on the following lap and pitted, losing six positions in the process. Beechey retired on lap 12 with mechanical problems, while Foley followed suit on the next lap. This left Geoghegan with a lead of twenty seconds over Paul Fahey and Manton.

Fahey retired on lap 22, while Gibson had been making his way back through the field. Manton ran into problems on lap 28, allowing the Porsche 911 of Alan Hamilton into second and the Morris Cooper S of Darrell King into third. King attempted to close the gap to Hamilton, but collided with Graham Ryan and backed off to settle for third place. However, on the final lap, Hamilton went off the circuit and damaged a rear guard, folding it onto the tyre. King went through into second and finished over ninety seconds behind race winner Geoghegan, while Hamilton brought his car home with a blown tyre for third.

Results

Class winners are indicated by bold text.

Pos.	Class	No.	Driver	Entrant	Car	Laps
Over 3000cc	1	AUS Ian Geoghegan	The Mustang Team	Ford Mustang	34	59:06.8
1101–1500cc	26	AUS Darrell King	D. King	Morris Cooper S	34	+1:31.0
1501–2000cc	19	AUS Alan Hamilton	Porsche Distributors (Aust./N.Z.) Pty Ltd	Porsche 911	34	+2:07.0
Over 3000cc	2	AUS Fred Gibson	N.E. Allen Competition Pty Ltd	Ford Mustang	33	+1 lap
Up to 1100cc	9	AUS Laurie Stewart	Brian Foley Motors	Morris Cooper S	33	+1 lap
Up to 1100cc	30	AUS John Millyard	Martinz Place	Morris Cooper S	33	+1 lap
1101–1500cc	12	AUS Peter Manton	Peter Manton Racing	Morris Cooper S	33	+1 lap
1101–1500cc	32	AUS Graeme Spence	K. Townsend	Austin Cooper S	33	+1 lap
Up to 1100cc	29	AUS John Humphrey	Humphreys Golden Fleece Service Station	Austin Cooper S	33	+1 lap
Over 3000cc	17	AUS Bryan Thomson	Bryan Thomson Racing	Ford Mustang	32	+2 laps
Up to 1100cc	37	AUS Richard Thurston	A.M.I. Racing Team	Toyota Corolla	31	+3 laps
2001–3000cc	23	AUS Herb Taylor	H.E. Taylor	Holden EH	28	+6 laps
2001–3000cc	24	AUS Graham Ryan	Graham Ryan Auto Repairs	Holden EH	28	+6 laps
Over 3000cc	35	NZL Ian Dawson	I.W. (Red) Dawson	Ford Mustang	23	Tyres
Over 3000cc	6	NZL Paul Fahey	P.B. Fahey	Ford Mustang	21	Gearbox
1101–1500cc	11	AUS Phil Barnes	Phil Barnes Motor Service	Morris Cooper S	19
1101–1500cc	28	AUS Fred Seery	F.R. Seery	Morris Cooper S	15
1101–1500cc	8	AUS Brian Foley	Brian Foley Motors Pty Ltd	Morris Cooper S	12	Mechanical
1501–2000cc	16	AUS Chris Brauer	C.D. Brauer	Ford Cortina Mark I Lotus	12	Steering
Over 3000cc	4	AUS Norm Beechey	Norm Beechey	Chevrolet Camaro SS	11	Mechanical
1101–1500cc	20	AUS Don Holland	Don Holland Motors	Morris Cooper S	8
Over 3000cc	3	AUS Bob Jane	Bob Jane's Autoland	Ford Mustang	8	Camshaft
1101–1500cc	33	AUS Barrie Broomhall	Barrie Broomhall Motors	Morris Cooper S	6
Over 3000cc	10	NZL Rod Coppins	R. Coppins	Ford Mustang	6	Exhaust
1101–1500cc	27	AUS Bruce Jones	Bruce A. Jones	Morris Cooper S	4
2001–3000cc	21	AUS Nick Petrilli	N. Petrilli	Holden EH	3	Wheel
1501–2000cc	7	AUS Jim McKeown	Jim McKeown Motors	Ford Cortina Mark II Lotus	2	Axle
1101–1500cc	38	AUS Howie Sangster	H.G. Sangster	Morris Cooper S	1
2001–3000cc	22	AUS Martin Chenery	M.R. Chenery	Holden EH	0
Up to 1100cc	36	AUS Bob Morris	Bill Buckle Autos	Toyota Corolla	0

Statistics

Pole position: Ian Geoghegan, 1:42.8
Race day attendance: More than 26,000
Fastest lap: Ian Geoghegan, 1:43.0
Race distance: 34 laps, 123.08 km
Average speed: 124.93 km/h

References

''Conditions for Australian Titles'', 1968 CAMS Manual of Motor Sport, pages 70–73.
(2011). "The official history: Australian Touring Car Championship - 50 Years". Chevron Publishing Group.
(8 September 1968). "Event 6, The 1968 Australian Touring Car Championship".
Floyd, Thomas. (November 1968). "Geoghegan Holds Title".
Cooke, Barry. (November 1968). "Touring Car Title - sound and fury".
Mike Kable, Australian Motor, November 1968, page 60

Info: Wikipedia Source

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