Australia - The National Scene

Australia boasts a very well organised Sprintcar scene that is run to the rulebook of the Sprintcar Control Council. All cars adopt a numbering scheme of state abbreviation ( ie, W, S, V, T, N, Q or NT ) and a number from 1 to 99.

There is only 1 national touring series - World Series Sprintcars - www.worldseriessprintcars.com - and the best drivers from all over the country and overseas contract to race on the national series which is conducted through 15 nights of racing over a 7 week period. The series visits every state ( except the Northern Territory which is classed as territory and not a state ) and takes in the majority of the major tracks listed below. Daryn Pittman is the only American to date to win the World Series Sprintcars championship. Max Dumesny has won 7 championships whilst Brooke Tatnell has won 5.

Outside of the national series, each states runs its own State Series with some states focusing on one track, whilst others conduct there racing at many venues in their own state. Sometimes the state body will even incorporate a track from a nearby state if the distance to travel is not too great.

When Is The Best Time To Come Down Under?

The peak racing time is from Christmas through to the end of January. From Boxing day onwards the World Series Sprintcars conduct their annual Speedweek which takes in 5 nights of racing in 7 nights. Parramatta City Raceway and Brisbane International Raceway also hot up for their International Seasons from boxing night as well. In the middle part of January all attention focuses towards Parramatta City Raceway for its $50,000 to win and Outlaws Down Under events. The prestigious Grand Annual Sprintcar Classic then follows on the last weekend in January.

Early February sees the running of the Australian Sprintcar Title which is held year after year in a different state on a rotational basis. The Australian Sprintcar Title is only open to Australian drivers.

March sees the big events in the West run over two weekends with the Krikke Boys race at Bunbury followed by the King of Wings at the Perth Motorplex.

Here is a run down of the domestic scene state by state :

Western Australia - view a map of major roadways

Western Australia is Australia's answer to California. It is a long way from the rest of the Sprintcar action and has some of the most beautiful beaches in the country. The West has long been a constant source of Sprintcar talent and names like Alf Barbagello, Noel Bradford, Ron Krikke, Mark Wells and Ryan Farrell have constantly tormented the travelling World Series Sprintcar ( WSS ) drivers when they come to town much like the PA Posse do when the Outlaws come to visit Pennsylvania.

Capital : Perth - population over 1.5 million
Local body : SAWA - Sprintcar Association of Western Australia
Local series : AHG Sprintcar Series - www.seg.net.au

Major Tracks :

1. Perth Motorplex - Kwinana Beach - www.motorplex.com.au - A purpose built 20 million dollar government funded Speedway heaven. It is a 520 m banked black gumbo race surface.

2. Bunbury City Speedway - Bunbury - This speedway is an icon in Western Australia. It has hosted many rounds of World Series Sprintcars and plays host to the Australia's fun speedway event - the Krikke Boys Memorial race.

3. Kalgoorlie International Speedway - Kalgoorlie - www.kalgoorliespeedway.com.au - Located in the goldfields of WA, Kalgoorlie is a slightly banked 420 metre clay track that is difficult to master.

South Australia - view a map of major roadways

South Australia contains some of the most arid land in Australia in its north and some of the most beautiful wine country in its south. South Australia envelopes the Great Australian Bight. Whilst the majority of the population is found in the capital city of Adelaide, many people enjoy the relaxing lifestyle along the Riverland area along the Murray River. Speedway City is the most frequented Speedway in South Australia and the bigger names in Sprintcar racing in Bill Wigzell, Zeke Agars, John Moyle, Bill Barrows, Phil March and Trevor Green all hail from this great state.

Capital : Adelaide - population over 1.1 million
Local body : SASA - Sprintcar Association of South Australia
Local series : nil.

Major Tracks :

4. Speedway City - Adelaide - www.speedwaycity.com.au - Speedway City is the home of World Series Sprintcars having hosted the more rounds than any other track in the country. Speedway City conducts more races than any other track in South Australia running in the vacinity of 20 meetings a year.

5. Murray Bridge Speedway - Murray Bridge - www.murraybridgespeedway.com - Murray Bridge is a small flat bullring with dollarmite surface that provides a unique challenge for Sprintcar teams. It has an enormous club house and high spectator banks which provide an amphitheatre type atmostphere.

6. Borderline Speedway - Mount Gambier - www.borderlinespeedway.com - Borderline Speedway is located outside the large rural centre of Mount Gambier which is home to a large selection of fine wineries. A free flowing drivers track often listed amongst many teams top 3 tracks in the country. Borderline is best known for its Kings Challenge that runs as a prelude to the Grand Annual Sprintcar Classic much like the Front Row Challenge does for the Knoxville Nationals.

Victoria - view a map of major roadways

Victoria - and in particular Melbourne - is the Sports Capital of Australia. It plays host the Australian Rules Football Grand Final, the Australian Open tennis and the Formula One Grand Prix. The mighty Murray River borders the state in the North whilst the green pastures provide perfect vegetation for the dairying and fruit industries. The Great Ocean Road found on the southern eastern coastline provides tourists with world famous landmarks the Twelve Apostles and Bells Beach. The SRA Series is one of the most travelled and attended series in the country. Some great names of Sprintcar racing that have come from Victoria include Graeme McCubbin, Ray Lacey, Brett Lacey, David Anderson and Max Dumesny.

Capital : Melbourne - population over 3.75 million
Local body : SRA - Sprintcar Racing Association of Victoria
Local series : Eureka Garages and Sheds SRA Series - www.sravic.com

Major Tracks :

7. Premier Speedway - Warrnambool - www.premierspeedway.com.au - Premier Speedway is the home of the Grand Annual Sprintcar Classic. Australia's answer to the Knoxville Nationals. It is the most prestigious race on the Sprintcar calendar and drivers flock from all over the country to contest the Classic on the famed high banks at Premier each January. Premier Speedway is located only minutes from the Great Ocean Road and tourists enjoy the area as much as the racing during the carnival weekend of the Classic. Some of the biggest names both nationally and from the USA have ran and the Classic. It also acts as a qualifier for the World Challenge at the Knoxville Nationals.

8. Avalon Raceway - Geelong - www.avalonraceway.com - Avalon Raceway was founded by and is still to this day operated by the Drew Family in Geelong. The 390 metre racetrack can provide some of the most thrilling action and has played host to many rounds of the World Series Sprintcars and also conducts the opening round of the Easter Trail that follows on to Borderline and Premier Speedway's.

Tasmania - view a map of major roadways

Tasmania, basically an island separated from Australia by the Bass Straight is commonly known as the Holiday Isle. It is probably best known for being the location for the Young Einstein movie and for the horrific events of the Port Arthur Massacre and most recently the Beaconsfield Mine collapse. Hobart is the finishing point for the famous Sydney to Hobart yacht race. Much like the dominance in some areas of the late models in America, the Super Sedans command a major portion of the attention in Tasmania. Some of the better known Sprintcar drivers to come out of Tasmania include Les Redpath, Robin Best, Tim Moncreif, Robin Dawkins, Jason Dawkins and Adrian Redpath.

Capital : Hobart - population over 200,000
Local Body : Sprintcars Tasmania
Local Series : Farmers Union Iced Coffee Sprintcar Series - www.sprintcarstasmania.com

Major Tracks :

9. Hobart International Speedway - Hobart -

10. Latrobe Speedway - Latrobe -

New South Wales - view a map of major roadways

The capital of New South Wales - Sydney - is the largest city in Australia and played host to the 2000 Olympic Games. New South Wales is the hot bed of Sprintcar racing in Australia. The talent pool that New South Wales, and in particular Parramatta City Raceway goes on forever. Much like Pennsylvannia keeps producing Sprintcar stars, so too does New South Wales. The greatest driver ever to pull on a race suit from down under Garry Rush tops the impressive list. Other genuine stars including George Tatnell, Steve Brazier, Dick Britton, Jim Winterbottom and Bob Tunks all hailed from New South Wales. Stars of today Brooke Tatnell, Garry Brazier, Kerry Madsen, Skip Jackson, Peter Murphy and Robbie Farr are all products of New South Wales.

Capital : Sydney - population over 4.2 million
Local body : SANSW - Sprintcar Association of New South Wales
Local series : Parramatta City Raceway Track Championship - www.parramattacityraceway.com.au

Major Tracks :

11. Parramatta City Raceway - Sydney - www.parramattacityraceway.com.au - located right inside the suburbs of Sydney just up the road from the Olympic Stadium on the M4, Parramatta City Raceway remains as one of the very few inner city tracks left in the country. Parramatta City Raceway started the move to 410 c.i. engines in Australia and has flourished as a result. Parramatta City Raceway races weekly and has car counts around the 60 mark each and every week. Parramatta City Raceway also plays host to a number of the biggest races on the calendar namely the Outlaws Down Under and the $50,000 to win Big One. Parramatta plays hosts to a number of high profile American's like Donny Schatz, Steve Kinser, Joey Saldana and many more over a 4 4 week period from Boxing day onwards.

Queensland - view a map of major roadways

Queensland is the Sunshine State and has the wonderful beaches along the Gold Coast and the Sunshine Coast. It is the theme park capital as well with Sea World, Dream World, Movie World, Steve Irwin's Australia Zoo and Wet N Wild all within driving distance of the the capital city Brisbane. Brisbane is often dubbed BrisVegas as the people there liken it to living in Las Vegas. Queensland Sprintcar drivers of recognition have included Bob Kelly, John Kelly, Todd Wanless, Nathan McDonald, Andrew Scheuerle and Darrell Hodges.

Capital : Brisbane - population over 1.8 million
Local body : MSAQ - Modified Sprintcar Association of Queensland
Local series : Comp Cams Series - www.msaq.com

Major Tracks :

12. Brisbane International Speedway - Brisbane -  www.brisbanespeedway.com.au - another of the rare tracks which remains in the suburbs of a major city. BIS has hosted the second most number of rounds in World Series Sprintcars history and has also hosted numerous Australian Titles. The small bullring is a tricky little race track and the tough local competition also make it hard work for the WSS travellers. Brisbane International Speedway run over thirty meetings for the year and nearly twenty of those will include Sprintcars.

13. Toowoomba Speedway - Toowoomba - Toowoomba is the other major track in Queensland that regurlarly hosts open Sprintcars throughout the season.

Northern Territory - view a map of major roadways

The Northern Territory is best known for the great landmark Uluru ( formerly known as Ayers Rock ).

Capital : Darwin - population over 100,000
Local body : NT
Local series : NT Thunder Series

Major Tracks :

14. Darwin Speedway - Darwin -

* This is a brief guide of the major open Sprintcar tracks. There are many more tracks who accommodate 360 and other open events.