Peter Brock: 1945 – 2006

On the 8th of September 2006, the world lost a truly great sportsman, arguably and possibly the single greatest driver in the history of motor sports, anywhere in the world. It is unfortunate, perhaps, that his exploits were largely limited to circuits within Australia, but true motor sport purists from every part of the world knew his name – Peter Brock.

Brock was a champion – on and off the race track. He widely supported youth issues, through his Peter Brock Foundation, and the rights and culture of indigenous Australians. He was an active environmentalist, and was well known for his love of people – spending hours, not only signing autographs for his fans, but taking the time to actually talk to them, and listen to what they had to say.

It was ironic that Peter was killed doing what he loved most – racing a car for the sheer joy of the experience. Winning wasn’t everything for Peter Brock, but he still made a habit of doing so anyway. The lonely country road near Gidgegannup, Western Australia, where his life ended during Targa West will now always be etched in the history of Australian motor sport.

While it would be impossible to do justice to his complete racing record, as it would be too extensive to ever easily make it complete, he will be most remembered for 16 glorious seasons between 1972 and 1987 during which he and his various co-drivers won the Sandown 500 nine times (including seven in a row), and the ultimate, the Bathurst 1000, nine times – 1972, 1975, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1984, and 1987. It is a record that is never likely to be equalled – ever. An image representing each of these Bathurst wins can be seen on this page.

Those nine wins on Bathurst’s Mount Panorama earnt him the title – “King of the Mountain”.