Lotus Cars Australia to relive the glory days with star cars and drivers at the Eastern Creek Tasman Revival.
Lotus Cars Australia has announced it has formed a partnership with the upcoming Repco Tasman Revival Meeting at Eastern Creek later this month.
Lotus is sponsoring the Sports Cars category of the weekend's racing, while the Lotus marque will also be represented across the many other categories of racing taking place at the Tasman Revival event.
With its motor racing history established and deeply rooted in the 1960s, and Lotus and Jim Clark being the dominant force in the 1960s Tasman Cup, it was a natural choice for Lotus Cars Australia to associate with the event that draws on the rich history of classic cars and famous drivers who competed in the antipodeans-based series.
The Repco Tasman Revival is a nostalgic re-enactment of motor racing in the 1960s. In 1961, Australia and New Zealand formed a string of single-seat races named the Tasman Series, which later evolved into the Tasman Cup.
This attracted most of the European-based Formula 1 teams of the day, who escaped the European winter to enjoy the atmosphere and weather afforded by the Australian summer. Associated names include Jack Brabham, Jackie Stewart, Stirling Moss, and Dan Gurney, along with Aussies such as Leo and Pete Geoghegan, Norm Beechey, Bob Jane, Kevin Bartlett, Allan Moffat and John Harvey. In fact every world champion driver from the 1960s raced in Australia during the period.
Lotus has arguably the strongest link to the era with drivers such as Jim Clark and Graham Hill, Colin Chapman and his young Lotus company an emerging force in motorsport at the time.
Sales & Marketing Manager of Lotus Cars Australia, Jonathan Stretton, is proud to be a part of the historic event: "Lotus is a marque that's constantly moving forward with new market leading products and technology, but we occasionally need to remember our glorious motor sport orientated past. It’s very satisfying to be associated with the Tasman Revival given our strong ties to the cars and drivers of the 1960s, an era when Lotus was at the forefront of top tier international motorsport.
"The 1960s were an integral part of Lotus history and it is exciting to be involved with the event that has been hugely popular in years past, and the past few years since the Tasman Revival began in 2006.
"We're also quite proud that Lotus won 22 of the races over the time of the 1960s Tasman Series, and with a number of Lotus cars entered for the racing, naturally we'd love to see history repeat itself."
There will be a total of 20 Lotus vehicles racing at the Revival, eight have been brought in from overseas specifically for the event.
Chairman of the 2008 Repco Tasman Revival Steering Committee, Ed Holly has embraced the association. "The Revival is delighted that Lotus Cars Australia has become a significant sponsor. Lotus cars have always been a very competitive marque in Australian motor racing. Lotus and Jim Clark won the Tasman 2.5 litre Championship an incredible three times in 1965, 1967 and 1968 and took out the Australian Grand Prix in 1968 - an amazing win ratio considering the Championship only ran from 1964 to 1969.
Holly added: "With such a rich heritage and ties with Australia through all these years, it is most fitting that Lotus has come on board to relive past glories with the cars and the Legends of this Golden age. During this period, Lotus was the only manufacturer of Sports and Touring cars, as well as Racing cars, to carry the winner of Australia's highest award, the Gold Star for the legendary Leo Geoghegan. Leo, in a beautiful Lotus Elite also took out the Australian GT Championship in this period."
Leo Geoghegan will be one of the stars appearing at the Repco Tasman Revival, along with other big names such as Frank Matich who at various times owned almost every lap record for Sports Cars in his Lotus 19.
Kevin Bartlett will be the event patron, while Vern Schuppan, John Goss, Spencer Martin are all attending. "With 20 Lotus cars entered (eight from overseas) across the categories, the Lotus Marque is strongly represented," said Holly who is very proud to have another very special driver: "Sir John Whitmore will be seen in two of these cars, a Lotus Cortina and a Lotus Elite. Sir John's exploits in both these Lotus types was legendary in the 1960s."
Between 1964 and 1969, of the 46 Tasman Series races held over eight tracks. Australia hosted 22 races, between Sydney's Warwick Farm, Melbourne's Sandown Park, Brisbane's Lakeside Raceway, and Tasmania's Longford tracks; the remaining 24 races were contested at New Zealand's Christchurch, Pukekohe, Levin and Invercargill tracks.
Impressively, Jim Clark and Lotus were the dominant force in the Tasman Cup, Clark winning 16 of the races - more than one third - and three Tasman Cup championships and claiming the most wins (five) in one eight-race season.
The Tasman Revival event includes races for formula cars, sedans, Formula 5000s and sports cars, replicating the meetings of the 1960s whilst remembering historic motorsport in general. Entry numbers are around 400, including those from the UK, USA, Japan and New Zealand.
Sunday's racing will include each of the historic categories racing over 8-10 laps, with demonstrations of significant cars, a driver's parade and the main event, the Tasman Revival Race starting at 1pm and running a full 15 lap distance.
The Repco Tasman Revival meeting is at Sydney’s Eastern Creek Raceway for three days from November 28-30.
For more information on the event, visit www.TasmanRevival.com.au .
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