Road Circuit won the
1928 100 Miles Road Race on the Phillip Island road circuit driving an
Austin 7 Motor racing on Phillip Island began in 1928 with the running of the
100 Miles Road Race, an event which has since become known as the first
Australian Grand Prix. It utilised a high speed rectangle of local closed-off public roads with four similar right hand corners. The course length varied, with the car course approximately per lap, compared to the motorcycle circuit which was approximately in length. The circuit was the venue for the Australian Grand Prix through to
1935 and it was used for the last time on 6 May 1935 for the Jubilee Day Races. A new triangular circuit utilising the pit straight from the original rectangular course was subsequently mapped out and first used for the
Australian Race Drivers' Cup on 5 November 1935. The final car event on the circuit was held on
Cup Day (1 November) 1938 and the final motorcycle race meeting was conducted on 30 January 1940. Significant events staged at the Phillip Island road circuit included: •
1928 100 Miles Road Race •
1929 Australian Grand Prix •
1930 Australian Grand Prix •
1931 Australian Grand Prix •
1932 Australian Grand Prix •
1933 Australian Grand Prix •
1934 Phillip Island 100 •
1934 Australian Grand Prix •
1934 Winter 100 •
1934 Victorian Centenary Grand Prix •
1935 Centenary 300 •
1935 Australian Grand Prix •
1935 Jubilee Handicap •
1935 Winter 100 •
1935 Australian Race Drivers' Cup •
1936 Victorian Sporting Car Club Trophy •
1936 Australian Tourist Trophy •
1937 Phillip Island Trophy •
1938 Phillip Island Grand Prix Grand Prix Circuit 1952–1962 In 1951, a group of six local businessmen decided to build a new track. About away from the original circuit, it still bears the corner name signs of the original circuit. As the piece of available land was on the edge of the coast, the track is known for its steep grades – the highest 57 metres – which caused cost overruns and delays in track opening. The new track was opened in 1952 and in 1960 the first
Armstrong 500 production car race was held at the circuit. Extensive damage resulted from the running of the
1962 Armstrong 500, and, with the circuit owners unable to finance repairs, the circuit was closed and the race was moved to the
Mount Panorama Circuit at
Bathurst in
New South Wales, to eventually become known as the
Bathurst 1000.
1967–1978 The circuit reopened in October 1967 In 1989, the
Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix joined the
FIM Road Racing World Championship calendar for the first time, and was held at Phillip Island. The
1989 race saw a race long dice in the 500 cc division between local favourites
Wayne Gardner and
Kevin Magee, along with
Wayne Rainey and
Christian Sarron. The race was won by
1987 World Champion Gardner to the delight of the huge crowd. Gardner would make it two in a row at the Island in
1990 before the race moved to
Eastern Creek in
Sydney for
1991. The Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix would remain at Eastern Creek until it returned permanently to Phillip Island from
1997 onwards. Phillip Island hosted its first
Superbike World Championship round in
1990, taking over from Sydney's
Oran Park Raceway as the Australian round of the series. Local riders
Peter Goddard (
Yamaha FZR750) and
Rob Phillis (
Kawasaki ZXR750) won the two races for what was Round 12 of the season, with Goddard having secured pole position. The World Superbike round continues to be held annually at Phillip Island to this day. In
1990, the Australian Touring Car Championship (ATCC) returned to the circuit for the first time since
1977, this time as a
sprint round.
Dick Johnson won the round in his
Ford Sierra RS500, in what was to be his final ever round victory. The event was not held in 1991 or 1992, but was reinstated to the calendar in
1993, with the sprint format then continuing every year until 2004. By then, the ATCC was known as
V8 Supercars. After not appearing on the calendar in 2004, from
2005 to
2007, Phillip Island hosted the
Grand Finale; the final round of the V8 Supercars season. In each year, the event decided that year's champion, including in controversial circumstances in
2006. From
2008 to
2011, Phillip Island returned to hosting a 500 km race, this time known for sponsorship reasons as the
L&H 500. The Phillip Island 500 replaced
Sandown's
Sandown 500 as the annual V8 Supercar 500 km race, an event which was later reinstated for
2012. Since then, Phillip Island has returned to hosting a sprint round of the championship, which has become known as the
Phillip Island Super Sprint. The Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix has always been more of a promoter event than a profit-raiser in itself. The contract was prolonged until 2026, although tobacco advertising has been banned since 2007.
Important dates •
1951: A historically significant meeting of six local businessmen decided to re-establish motor racing at Phillip Island. •
1952: A steering committee formed and the Phillip Island Auto Racing Club (PIARC) developed with a dream "to build Australia's first international grand prix circuit".The current site was purchased in that year. PIARC calls for 7000 subscriptions at 10 pounds each to assist in the development of the circuit and building work begins. An Alfa was used to measure the three-mile distance required for international certification as an International Circuit. •
1957: Phillip Island stages numerous trophy races including the Australian Motorsport Magazine Trophy Race 1957, the Formula Libre race of 1958 and the Phillip Island Trophy race of 1958. •
1960: The inaugural
Armstrong 500 endurance race is won by Frank Coad and John Roxburgh driving a
Vauxhall Cresta. They completed the race in 8 hours 15 minutes. •
1962: The circuit is damaged during the running of the
1962 Armstrong 500 and is subsequently closed to racing. •
1964: Businessman and former
Australian Drivers' Champion Len Lukey purchases the circuit with a view to redevelopment. Today, a corner on the circuit is named after Lukey. •
1967: The circuit reopens with a newly laid surface at the "Grand Re-Opening Meeting" on 22 October 1967. •
1971: The first
Phillip Island 500K endurance race is held •
1978: The circuit is closed, having become virtually unusable for modern racing and, between 1979 and 1982, it is used only for historic rallies and cub sprints. •
1985: Phillip Island Circuit purchased by Placetac Pty Ltd, with the view to re-introducing racing to the famous facility. •
1988: The circuit is refurbished with a reduced length of 4.449 kilometres and is reopened on 4 December 1988 for the final round of the 1988 Swann Insurance International Series for motorcycles. in action at the
2010 Australian motorcycle Grand Prix at the Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit. •
1990: Phillip Island hosts its first round of the
Superbike World Championship. The circuit also hosts its first sprint round of the
Australian Touring Car Championship. •
1996: Australian superbike rider,
Troy Corser, wins the
Superbike World Championship on board a
Ducati at the October race at Phillip Island. •
1997: The Australian motorcycle Grand Prix returns to Phillip Island, where it becomes a permanent fixture. •
1998: Australian
Michael Doohan wins the
motorcycle Grand Prix. The first corner is named after him. •
2000:
Simon Wills sets a longstanding outright lap record of the circuit in the
Formula Holden category. •
2004: The circuit and surrounding land is purchased by the
Linfox corporation with a view to complement the circuit with facilities such as an 18-hole
Greg Norman-designed
golf course and a 5-star hotel. •
2006: A multimillion-dollar re-development was undertaken in late 2006 by the Linfox Group, including the construction of a new
karting circuit. •
2008: The
Phillip Island 500 is run for the first time since 1977, this time for
V8 Supercars. The race is held four times before once again becoming defunct. •
2012: Australian
Casey Stoner wins his sixth consecutive Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix, as well as his last career Grand Prix victory. Before the race, the third corner of the circuit is named after Stoner. •
2014:
Jamie Whincup becomes the first ever driver to win a sixth ATCC/V8 Supercars title by winning the second Saturday race at the
Plus Fitness Phillip Island 400. ==Events==