Holden HDT Commodore News

A state funeral is being held for the man known as Peter Perfect at St Paul's Cathedral at 11am (AEST). Sporting luminaries and politicians will join the Brock family inside the cathedral, with thousands more expected to pack Federation Square to watch a live broadcast of the service. A new Holden VZ Statesman hearse adorned with BROCKY number plates provided by a fan will travel down Flinders St just before 11am, escorted by six police motorcycle riders. The Brock family, which will include Peter's former partner Bev Brock and new partner Julie Bamford, will follow in a fleet of 12 new Holdens to St Paul's. Fans will be able to say their goodbyes to the nine-times Bathurst winner by lining Flinders St east of the cathedral. Brock was killed when the car he was driving hit a tree during the Targa West rally near Perth on September 8. The funeral service will run for about 90 minutes. Federal MP Fran Bailey will begin the tributes. She will be followed by Collingwood great Peter Daicos and racing caller Neil Crompton. A didgeridoo will play a tribute to the "king of the mountain" and Brock's close friend Dr Eric Dowker will also speak at the service. Daughter Alexandra Brock will pay tribute on behalf of the family and brother Neil Brock will read scripture. The Dean of St Paul's, the Very Reverend David Richardson, will read a sermon and the hymn Abide With Me will bring the memorial to a close. Premier Steve Bracks, Lord Mayor John So and Federal Opposition Leader Kim Beazley will attend the funeral. They will be joined by champion touring car drivers Craig Lowndes, Dick Johnston, Larry Perkins, Allan Moffat and Russell Ingall. Other sporting greats will include swimmer Grant Hackett and basketballer Andrew Gaze, British Open golf winner Ian Baker-Finch and marathon runner Steve Moneghetti. Liberal leader Ted Baillieu is sending Education spokesman Martin Dixon to represent him. Federal Sports Minister Rod Kemp will represent Prime Minister John Howard. Son James Brock said he would carry the casket and Brock's daughter, Alexandra, would carry the state wreath. The racing champion's body will be carried to the cathedral in a simple coffin with one of his helmets on top of an Australian flag. The service will be shown live by channels Seven, Nine and the ABC. James said he was overwhelmed by the show of public support. "Obviously it's just overwhelming. We never expected this much support from all the public. It has been just lovely," he said. The support of fans had helped the family get through the tough time.

The 2007 V8 Supercar calendar seems to have escaped without controversy. Those for the following years might not be so lucky. Sydney's Eastern Creek was re-admitted to the championship but, even so, its future and the future of V8 Supercar racing in Sydney remains cloudy. The way the calendar appears to be panning out, Eastern Creek and Winton will be fighting for one spot on future calendars as soon as 2008. And as 2008 is the last guaranteed year for Oran Park before the area becomes a housing development, if Eastern Creek misses out, so will Sydney. Perhaps none of this would have mattered had Sydney secured the street race around Sydney Olympic Park. But the State Government has ruled that out. Of course the Queensland Government, returned last week for a record fourth term, has no such qualms about motor sport. Not only does Queensland support the huge Indycar event, where the V8s have co-billing, but a street race in Townsville in 2008 is but a stroke of the pen away. The Townsville race threatens the place of either Eastern Creek or Winton on the 2008 calendar. Given Winton was preferred to Eastern Creek this year, the Victorian track appears to have the inside running. However, if it comes to the crunch, the V8s might consider a system that gives the round to each venue in alternate years. That could come down to an auction, putting pressure on motorsport fans to support their local event. Whichever venue comes up with the bigger crowds eventually wins the round permanently. That pre-supposes the V8 bosses have no further expansionary ideas. And that seems unlikely. There seems to be serious interest in South Africa and other nations around the Pacific rim. They never knock back a good idea, but Hawaii? Come off the grass. As for 2007, fears that there would be large gaps in the middle of an expanded season have proven unfounded. While not ideal, there is no more than a month between any two races and importantly there are only three weeks between Sandown and Bathurst. Some rounds will be forced to finish early to allow for the commitments the new TV broadcaster Channel 7 has with AFL games. Just how that goes down with viewers might well be the litmus test for the future. So, too, the response to the June holiday weekend date for Eastern Creek. The success of Bathurst was initially based on the October long weekend date. Could a holiday weekend be just the fillip Eastern Creek needs to pull a decent V8 Supercar crowd? Or do shortcomings in viewing facilities remain a valid criticism?

Brock was competing in the Targa West Rally at Gidgegannup about 30km from Perth. The Targa West Rally has racers racing against time over closed public roads and on special stages at race circuits. Brock's car was understood to be so far off the road at the time of crashing that witnesses say six competitors cars had driven past the crashed vehicle without noticing it. Brock's co-driver Mick Hone is said to be in critical condition after their Daytona Coupe hit a tree. Brock is experienced at driving the full roll-caged Daytona Coupe, described as an "odd looking" car that is all front and no back. Witnesses at the scene said a crash investigation unit was called before an ambulance had been despatched. Brock was 61 years old. No other cars are believed to have been involved. The Confederation of Australian Motor Sport (CAMS) said in a statement the accident occurred at about 1.50pm (AEST). Sixty-one-year-old Brock's co-driver, believed to Mick Hone, has been taken to hospital in a stable condition. CAMS said it will conduct a full investigation into the incident. In the meantime, CAMS and event officials are working with the relevant civil authorities. "On behalf of the motor sport community, CAMS offers its sincere sympathy to Peter's family and many friends," the statement said. Targa West is a tarmac special stage rally. Brock was a dominant figure in Australian motor sport, winning the Bathurst 1000, Australia's most prominent domestic motorsport event, a total of nine times through the 1970s and 80s. He won six Bathurst 1000 wins in seven years, including his victory in the 1979 event, which he won by a record six laps. He retired from full-time driving in 1997. Since 1997, he had made two return visits to Bathurst in 2002 and 2004 and returned to top-level touring car racing as a team owner of "Team Brock'' in 2002 in the V8 Supercar category. A year later he sold his share in the team to Kees Weel. In recent years, he occasionally competed in various motorsport events such as the Targa Tasmania.

He was doing what he loved to do but even so, it beggars belief that one week can claim two great Australian icons - both too young. My thoughts and sincere condolences go to his loved ones. Allan Moffat.

His achievements earned him the nickname "King of the Mountain". He was also dubbed "Peter Perfect" after holding more pole positions and winning more races than anyone since the start of the Australian Touring Car Championship in 1960. Brock’s pedigree in racing also ran in the family, his great-great-uncle Henry James the founder of the RACV and organiser of Australia’s first ever motorsport event. Brock debuted in a homemade sports sedan in 1967. The converted Austin A30 - built in a henhouse - put him on the map with more than 100 wins, including the Australian Sports Sedan Championship. The racing driver, who later became synonymous with Holden’s racing prowess, won his big break in 1969, when the new Holden Dealer Team’s manager Harry Firth offered him a seat in a Holden Monaro GTS 350. He was third in that race and three years later driving a Torana XU1, won his first Bathurst title. In 1980, Brock established the Special Vehicles unit, which went on to build 4000 highly sought-after "Brock Special" vehicles. Brock retired from full-time V8 Supercar racing in 1997, firmly establishing himself as one of Australia's sporting greats. The UK Motor Sport magazine rated Peter Brock as among the top 20 most exciting drivers of all time. Brock spent his "retirement" with charity fund-raising and targa-style tarmac racing. He also supported road safety initiatives and created the Peter Brock Foundation, which has a focus on helping disadvantaged youth. For a time, Brock was also on the Australian Grand Prix board, which he joined in 1998, and was sought for his skills as a motivational speaker.

Nickname: Peter Perfect Date of Birth: 26 February, 1945 Resided: Victoria, Australia Sons: James and Robert Daughter: Alexandra Occupation: Professional racing driver Team: Team Brock Vehicle: Holden Commodore (mostly) CAREER HIGHLIGHTS Bathurst Enduro: 9 wins, 1972, 1975, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1987 Australian Touring Car Champion: 3 times, 1974, 1978, 1980 Runner-up: 5 times, 1973, 1979, 1981, 1984, 1990. Sandown Enduro: 9 wins, 1973, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1984 Repco Round Australia Trial: Winner 1979 The five biggest wins at Bathurst 1979 - Brock/Richards Torana beat Janson/Perkins by 6 laps + 1m 36.5s 1975 - Brock/Sampson Torana beat Morris/Gardner by 2 laps + 1m 11s 1984 - Brock/Perkins Commodore beat Harvey/Parsons by 2 laps + 0.6s 1978 - Brock/Richards Torana beat Grice/Leffler by 1 lap + 2m3.4s

"I WAS born and bred in a little Victorian country town called Hurstbridge, and my family didn't have a whole lot of money. "My dad was a very gifted mechanic and he taught me all about machinery; the fundamental basics of a car, mechanical sympathy. "He also took me to car races, but we never had any money, so I built myself a car. "It was me and my mates out in the chookhouse at mum and dad's house. We got this rocket together, it was a real rocket, and we made it there in the old chookhouse and every now and again dad would come out and give us the nod. "I was fortunate to have a father who supported me no matter what I did, who allowed me to be myself, and a mother who instilled in me a sense of achieving a goal. "Mum was a very competitive person, she was an excellent sportswoman, a Victorian tennis champion. "Mum, I guess, was one of those people who was brought up in a household where if you didn't succeed in doing something, you weren't exactly flavour of the month with your parents and I guess that rubbed off on me. "It gave me that need to strive to achieve those levels in order to gain recognition from my parents. "That's not necessarily a healthy thing in many respects, but to give my parents their due, it made me, me. "When I was growing up I think I was a wildly enthusiactic child. "I was into running the fastest, jumping the highest and if someone gave me a double dare, I'd take it. "Fortunately my parents allowed me to be me and although thery surely despaired sometimes at the risks I took, I would have to say I owe then a great deal of debt because they allowed me to explore life without any sense of guilt or recrimination. "So when it came to to getting behind the wheel of a racing car, I took to it like a duck to water. "That car we built in the chookshed was a little Austin A30, with a Holden engine, and while it certainly wasn't a slick piece of machinery, it got me racing, it got me on the track and it got me noticed by the people who counted". One of those people was Holden Team manager, Harry Firth, who spotted the Brock talent early and asked the young gun to drive for Holden in the 1969 Bathurst 500. "I was in my early 20's and when he said "I'd like you to race at Bathurst", I knew it was my big break. "I got out there and took that opportunity by the throat. "I listened, I watched, I absorbed and I did what I was told. "That was when a great change came over me and knew I could no longer be this brash young kid who knew it all. "I had a sense of the occasion and I respected the race. I decided to go from an intuitive sense of just getting out there and doing. "I saw it a bit like an artist, I saw the race track like a canvas and I was painting it. So yes, I think I saw it a bit differently from the other kids." Brock quickly rose through the ranks, and with each win his fame grew, both on the circuit and off. The 1970s and 80s were heady times for the young driver and he admits there were times when he didn't handle the pressure well. He credits his wife Beverly and his three children James, Robert and Alexandra for bringing a healthy perspective into his life. "As you go through life, you have these moments of floundering. You go though one relationship after another (Brock has been married once before to former Miss Australia, Michelle Downes) and there's all this drama in your life. "It's very difficult to have a relationship with someone like me who has an all-consuming passion. "If you love someone who is right into something, it's most difficult for a partner to understand that, no matter how much they love you. "It occupies every facet of your being, so I was very fortunate finding Bev, because she understood. "Bev came along and I don't know, I had some sort of innate sense that said; "This woman is a very good woman and will give you some direction in your life'. "I thought: 'She's going to give me a sense of steadiness and understanding. She will give you a sense of harmony and balance rather than just running from pillar to post and hoping it works'. "So Bev's made an enormous difference in my life. "When we first met she was going through a marriage break-up with a guy interstate and a guy who worked for me knew her former husband "We knew each other socially for a year or two before we got together and gradually found ourselves together. "We were as surprised as anybody to find we were together. "She wasn't the woman I held as the ideal woman in my eyes and I probably wasn't the ideal man in hers. "She came from an academic background and here was this race driver and here's Bev who is a very attractive, but unglamorous sort of woman I had known. "She's instilled in me a sense of compassion and concern for others, which I didn't have as a young man. I'd crush over anyone to get what I wanted." But if Bev keeps him sane, his kids keep him young. "Oh my kids are full-on." * Peter Brock Excerpt from The Sunday Telegraph written by Frances Whiting