Supercars to roar around the Island again

By Thomas Miles

Date posted: February 10, 2024

Supercars may not be racing at Phillip Island this year, but some famous touring cars from yesteryear will still roar around the seaside circuit at the upcoming Island Classic.

More than 40 fan favourites from the Group C, Group A, 5 litre, Supercars and SuperToruing eras will all create a blast of nostalgia at the March 8-10 event.

The event is run by the Victorian Historic Racing Register and president Ian Tate said a record field of touring cars is expected.

Peter Brock and Larry Perkins’ 1982 Holden VH Commodore SS is coming to Phillip Island.

“We’ve got a record entry of over 40 entries at the moment,” he told AUTO ACTION.

“We’ve got group ‘C’ and ‘A’ which are Touring cars from the past. These include Group C A9X Toranas and Ford Falcons, Commodores, and plenty of small class cars that raced at Bathurst.

“Same for Group A which will include BMW’s, Ford Sierra’s, Group A Commodores, again cars that raced in our Touring Car Championship and at Bathurst.

“We have five coming from New Zealand. Peter Sturgeon is helping us immensely on that. He’s bringing a couple of his Super Tourers, which are two very fast cars.”

Boost boss serious about Murph comeback - Image: Motorsport Images

Supercars legend Greg Murphy will return to the Island Classic. Image: Motorsport Images

Leading the way will be the pair that won the 1998 Bathurst 1000 together in Greg Murphy and Steven Richards.

Murphy will drive a Nissan Primera SuperTourer, while Steven will fittingly drive the HR31 Skyline his father Jim steered to the 1990 Australian Touring Car Championship title.

Tate also revealed Peter Xiberras will bring two of the most famous cars to ever take on the Mountain.

“Peter Xiberras is bringing two very special cars down. Two of the only three to win Bathurst twice,” Tate said.

“One is the HDT Peter Brock/Larry Perkins Group C Commodore that won in 1982 and again in 1983 with the combination of Brock/Perkins and John Harvey.

“The second win came after the #05 HDT Commodore failed early in the race and Brock/Perkins swapped to the #25 HDT car that Harvey had started the race in.

The last Holden to win the Bathurst 1000 driven by Shane van Gisbergen and Garth Tander in 2022 will be doing a starring role at the Island Classic. Image: Peter Norton Epic Sports Photography

“This car has recently had a full restoration, and this will be one of the first public outings for the car.

“The other significant car is Shane van Gisbergen’s 2020 and 2022 Bathurst-winning Triple Eight Race Engineering ZB Commodore he shared with Garth Tander.

“It was also the last Holden Commodore to win the Bathurst 1000.

“We are also hoping for two or three Ford Sierras, so in combination with all the other historic touring cars it will be a spectacular show.”

Further details can be found on the VHRR website. www.vhrr.com.au

Main Photo by Dirk Klynsmith / LAT Images

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Supercars to roar around the Island again

“We’ve got group ‘C’ and ‘A’ which are Touring cars from the past. These include Group C A9X Toranas and Ford Falcons, Commodores, and plenty of small class cars that raced at Bathurst.

Leading the way will be the pair that won the 1998 Bathurst 1000 together in Greg Murphy and Steven Richards.

“One is the HDT Peter Brock/Larry Perkins Group C Commodore that won in 1982 and again in 1983 with the combination of Brock/Perkins and John Harvey.

“The other significant car is Shane van Gisbergen’s 2020 and 2022 Bathurst-winning Triple Eight Race Engineering ZB Commodore he shared with Garth Tander.

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