V8 Supercars - History

History

In January 1993 the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport replaced the existing Group 3A Touring Car category (formerly based on FIA Group A rules) with a new three-class Group 3A. This encompassed:

• Class A for Australian-produced 5.0 litre V8 engined Fords and Holdens
• Class B for 2.0 litre cars complying with FIA Class II Touring Car regulations
• Class C, valid for 1993 only, for normally aspirated two-wheel drive cars complying with 1992 CAMS Group 3A Touring Car regulations.

Cars from all three classes would contest the Australian Touring Car Championship as well as non-championship Australian touring car events such as the Bathurst 1000; but for the purposes of race classification and points allocation, cars competed in two classes:

1. over 2000cc
2. up to 2000cc

Existing normally aspirated cars such as the BMW M3 could continue to compete under the Class C clause, unlike the turbocharged Ford Sierra and Nissan Skyline GT-R models which the new rules excluded from the category. However the M3 received few of the liberal concessions given to the new V8s and, with the Class C cars eligible for 1993 only, the German manufacturer’s attention switched to the 2.0 litre class for 1994.

From 1995 the 2.0 litre cars, now contesting their own series as Super Touring Cars, became ineligible for the Australian Touring Car Championship. They did not contest the endurance races at Sandown and Bathurst, leaving these open solely to the 5.0 litre Ford and Holden models.

The category acquired the moniker 'V8 Supercars' in 1997 after event-management company IMG won the rights to promote the series in 1997, and led the championship on a rapid expansion. Network Ten began televising the series in the same year, taking over from Channel Seven. The Australian Vee Eight Supercar Company (AVESCO) was later formed to run the series directly and later became an independent organisation from its IMG origins.

AVESCO introduced carnival street-race V8 Supercar events (such as the Clipsal 500) and strove to turn Australian touring car racing into a world-class product. The name Shell Australian Touring Car Championship was replaced by Shell Championship Series. Later the series became known as the V8 Supercar Championship Series after Shell did not renew their sponsorship arrangement of the series. The series acquired FIA International status for the 2011 series and it became known as the International V8 Supercars Championship. In 2005 AVESCO changed its name to V8 Supercars Australia (VESA).

In the Group 3A / V8 Supercar category, from 1993 to 2011, Holden drivers have won eleven Australian Touring Car Championships/Shell Championship Series/V8 Supercar Championship Series titles and Ford drivers have won eight.

• List of Australian Touring Car and V8 Supercar Champions