1985 Australian GT Championship

The 1985 Australian GT Championship was the eighth Australian GT Championship and the fourth to be decided over a series of races. It was open to GT Cars complying with CAMS Group D regulations with Group B Sports Sedans and superseded Group C Touring Cars competing by invitation. The title was contested over six rounds from 24 March to 25 August 1985.

The championship was won by Bryan Thomson driving a Chevrolet Monza and a Mercedes-Benz 450 SLC Chevrolet for Thomson-Fowler Motorsport.

The Australian GT Championship was discontinued after 1985 however the title was reinstated for 2005.[1]

Schedule

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The Mercedes-Benz 450 SLC that Bryan Thomson drove in the 1985 Australian GT Championship, pictured in 2017.
Round Circuit Date Format Race winner(s) Round winner Round winning car
1 Lakeside International Raceway 24 March One race Bryan Thomson Bryan Thomson Chevrolet Monza
2 Oran Park Raceway 5 May Two heats Brad Jones
Kevin Bartlett
Bryan Thomson [2] Mercedes-Benz 450 SLC Chevrolet
3 Winton Motor Raceway 2 June Two heats Kevin Bartlett
Kevin Bartlett
Kevin Bartlett De Tomaso Pantera
4 Adelaide International Raceway 30 June One race Bryan Thomson Bryan Thomson Chevrolet Monza
5 Calder Park Raceway 11 August One race Kevin Bartlett Kevin Bartlett De Tomaso Pantera
6 Surfers Paradise Raceway 25 August One race Bryan Thomson Bryan Thomson Chevrolet Monza

Note : Rounds were run concurrently with those of the 1985 Australian Sports Car Championship.

Points system

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For rounds contested over a single race, i.e. Rounds 1, 4, 5 & 6, championship points were awarded on a 30-27-24-21-19-17-15-14-13-12-11-10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2 basis to the top twenty finishers in the round.

For rounds contested over two races, i.e. Rounds 2 & 3, championship points were awarded by allocating race points on a 30-27-24-21-19-17-15-14-13-12-11-10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2 basis to the top twenty finishers in each race, aggregating the points from the two races and then dividing the result by two. (Race points allocated for these races are shown in the table below within brackets)

Championship standings

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Pos Driver No. Car Entrant Lak Ora R1 Ora R2 Ora Win R1 Win R2 Win Ade Cal Sur Total
1 Bryan Thomson 14
17
Chevrolet Monza &
Mercedes-Benz 450 SLC - Chevrolet
Thomson-Fowler Motorsport 30 (24) (27) 25.5 (27) (24) 25.5 30 24 30 165
2 Peter Fitzgerald 3 Porsche Carrera RSR Peter Fitzgerald / Stanilite Electronics 24 (27) (24) 25.5 (24) (27) 25.5 27 21 - 123
3 John Bourke 77 Toyota Celica Turbo Brian Hilton Toyota 27 (19) - 9.5 (21) (19) 20 - - 24 80.5
4 Kevin Bartlett 5 De Tomaso Pantera Paul Halstead / The Toy Shop - - (30) 15 (30) (30) 30 - 30 - 75
5 Peter McLeod 50 Mazda RX-7 Petrolon Slick 50 - - (21) 10.5 (19) (21) 20 24 - - 54.5
6 Gary Scott 104 Nissan Bluebird Turbo Tapsall-Scott Racing - (17) (19) 18 - - - - - 27 45
7 Brad Jones 17
14
Mercedes-Benz 450 SLC - Chevrolet &
Chevrolet Monza
Thomson-Fowler Motorsport - (30) - 15 - - - - 27 - 42
8 Simon Harrex 69 Holden Commodore 21 - - - - - - - - - 21
8 Cos Monterosso 30 Ford Escort BDG Cos Monterosso - - - - - - - 21 - - 21
8 Vic Cameron 96 Ford Escort - - - - - - - - - 21 21
11 John Gurney 9 BMW 318i Turbo Coolratio Motor Sports - - - - - - - 19 - - 19
11 Graeme Whincup 6 Chevrolet Monza Graeme Whincup - - - - - - - - 19 - 19
13 Peter Finch 16 Chrysler Valiant Charger Peter Finch - - - - - - - 17 - - 17
14 Brian Callaghan 47 Ford XE Falcon Mobile Concrete Pumping - (15) (17) 16 - - - - - - 16
15 Graham Nowland 81 Mazda RX-7 - (13) (15) 14 - - - - - - 14
16 Chris Hones 91 BMW 318i Turbo - (21) - 10.5 - - - - - - 10.5
17 Robin Doherty 27 Holden Torana Robin Doherty - (14) - 7 - - - - - - 7

References

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  • Australian Motor Racing Yearbook, 1985/86
  • CAMS Manual of Motor Sport, 1985
  • Official Programme, Adelaide International Raceway, 30 June 1985
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  • www.camsmanual.com.au