Around the tracks 17 December 2010

DICK Johnson and Colin Bond have been awarded Confederation of Australian Motor Sport (CAMS) life membership. Johnson, 65, and Bond, 68, join 23 other distinguished officials and competitors who have been recognised since the Life Membership program was introduced in 1982. Johnson drove touring cars from the mid-60s until 2000, when he retired to concentrate on the running of his iconic Ford team Dick Johnson Racing. He won five Australian Touring Car Championships and three Bathurst 1000 crowns. Bond was renowned in a variety of motor sport disciplines, winning the '75 ATC, three Australian Rally Championships the 1969 Bathurst. Both have also been inducted into the V8 Supercar Hall of Fame.

EIGHT former champions have been inducted into the V8 Utes Hall of Fame including: Rod Wilson (2001), Warren Luff (2002/03), Marcus Zukanovic (2004/05), Damien White (2006/07), Grant Johnson (2007/10), Layton Crambrook (2008) and Jack Elsegood (2009). Luff is now driving for Lucus Dumbrell Motorsport in V8 Supercars. The top three drivers of the season were Grant Johnson, 2009 champion Jack Elsegood and Andrew Fisher who also claimed the title for the best driver aged over 40. The most improved driver Award went to Gary Carson who improved nine spots from his Rookie year in 2009.

THE winning Bathurst 12-Hour BMW will front a three-car assault on the February 6 race. GWS Motorsport will return with the BMW 335i Turbo that won the 2007 and 2010 races outright. It will be driven by Garry Holt, John Bowe and Paul Morris. The team will also enter a pair of BMW 130i models to battle for class victory. The 2011 Bathurst 12 Hour will include GT vehicles with 31 manufacturers eligible to compete.

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WORLD under 21 speedway champion Darcy Ward, of Brisbane, will take on an international field on Saturday in Brisbane. The 25 top solo riders competing at the Mick Doohan track including two Swedes and four from England in a five-team tournament over 26 heats. Many of the riders are aged between 16 and 20 and will use the match to get a feel of the track in preparation for the Australian Under 21 Solo Championship staged there on January 8.

SYDNEY driver Andrew Cowin has been dubbed the "comeback kid" of top-fueler drag racing heading into round three of the ANDRA Championship at Willowbank Raceway, Ipswich, on January 2-3. In 1999 Cowin became the world's quickest and fastest teenager and the youngest US Nationals finalist in history at age 19, going on to appear in multiple NHRA finals. After a hiatus from drag racing, he is making a full-on assault on Top Fuel this season. He scored a shock first-round loss but won the second event in October to be second in the points. Cowin last raced at Ipswich in 2002, running a 4.7 second pass which was the first 500km/h top fuel run and his first win. In testing before this season he ran a 4.59-second pass.