Team Australia was an
auto racing
Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition.
Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organise ...
team competing in the
V8 Supercars
The Supercars Championship is a touring car racing category in Australia, running as an International Series under Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) regulations, governing the sport.
Supercars events take place in all Australian ...
and
Champ Car World Series
Champ Car World Series (CCWS) was the series sanctioned by Open-Wheel Racing Series Inc., or Champ Car, a sanctioning body for American open-wheel car racing that operated from 2004 to 2008. It was the successor to Championship Auto Racing Teams ...
. It was created in early 2005 when two
Australian
Australian(s) may refer to:
Australia
* Australia, a country
* Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia
** European Australians
** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists
** Aboriginal A ...
businessmen
Craig Gore
Craig Gore is an entrepreneur from Sydney, Australia.
Biography
Craig Kirrin Gore was born in Fairfield, New South Wales on 7 January 1967. He is the son of Sanctuary Cove Developer Mike Gore. Gore spent his early life in the western suburbs o ...
and John Fish bought into
Derrick Walker
Derrick Walker (born 8 April 1945 in Leven, Scotland) is a former British auto racing team owner. In May 2013 Walker became President of operations and competition of IndyCar until the finalization of the 2015 Indycar season.
Career
Formula ...
's
Walker Racing
Walker Racing was a racing team founded by Derrick Walker in 1991 racing originally in the CART Championship Car series. It last competed in the United SportsCar Championship under the name of Team Falken Tire until Falken Tire pulled out of not o ...
operation. After the 2007 the operation was scaled back to just
Will Power
William "Will" Steven Power (born 1 March 1981) is an Australian motorsports driver who currently competes in the IndyCar Series, driving for Team Penske. He is the 2014 and 2022 IndyCar Series champion and the 2018 Indianapolis 500 champion. ...
who joined
KV Racing, before ending entirely a year later.
Origins
After sponsoring young Australian driver Josh Hunt in the
Toyota Atlantic Championship
The Atlantic Championship is a formula race car series with races throughout North America. It has been called Champ Car Atlantics (after its former name), Toyota Atlantics (due to the series' previous history of using Toyota-powered engines) ...
, Australian
millionaire
A millionaire is an individual whose net worth or wealth is equal to or exceeds one million units of currency. Depending on the currency, a certain level of prestige is associated with being a millionaire. In countries that use the short scal ...
Craig Gore
Craig Gore is an entrepreneur from Sydney, Australia.
Biography
Craig Kirrin Gore was born in Fairfield, New South Wales on 7 January 1967. He is the son of Sanctuary Cove Developer Mike Gore. Gore spent his early life in the western suburbs o ...
began to investigate fielding a
Champ Car
Champ Car World Series (CCWS) was the series sanctioned by Open-Wheel Racing Series Inc., or Champ Car, a sanctioning body for American open-wheel car racing that operated from 2004 to 2008. It was the successor to Championship Auto Racing Teams ( ...
team. His empire already included a
V8 Supercar
The Supercars Championship is a touring car racing category in Australia, running as an International Series under Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) regulations, governing the sport.
Supercars events take place in all Australian ...
team competing in Australia, and at the 2004
Surfers Paradise round of the CCWS, on the
Gold Coast, Australia
The Gold Coast is a coastal city in the state of Queensland, Australia, approximately south-southeast of the centre of the state capital Brisbane. With a population over 600,000, the Gold Coast is the sixth-largest city in Australia, the nati ...
, Gore's V8 driver
David Besnard
David Besnard, (born 21 January 1977 in Sydney, Australia) is a retired professional racing driver.
Career history
Starting in karts in 1991, he quickly proceeded into Formula Ford in 1995. After initial success, he had a major accident at Easte ...
made his debut with a WPS sponsored Walker Racing Champ Car. He finished a creditable 7th place, and the seeds were sewn for Gore's assault on the Champ Car series.
In late 2004 and early 2005 Gore, his associate
John Fish and long time Champ Car World Series team owner Derrick Walker, created the Team Australia race program. Obsolete
Reynard
Reynard the Fox is a literary cycle of medieval allegorical Dutch, English, French and German fables. The first extant versions of the cycle date from the second half of the 12th century. The genre was popular throughout the Late Middle Ages, as ...
chassis
A chassis (, ; plural ''chassis'' from French châssis ) is the load-bearing framework of an artificial object, which structurally supports the object in its construction and function. An example of a chassis is a vehicle frame, the underpart ...
were replaced with bespoke
Lola
Lola may refer to:
Places
* Lolá, a or subdistrict of Panama
* Lola Township, Cherokee County, Kansas, United States
* Lola Prefecture, Guinea
* Lola, Guinea, a town in Lola Prefecture
* Lola Island, in the Solomon Islands
People
* Lola (fo ...
units, and the team signed
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
Champ Car veteran
Alex Tagliani
Alexandre Tagliani (; born October 18, 1973), nicknamed "Tag", is a Canadian professional racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Pinty’s Series, driving the No. 18 Chevrolet Camaro for 22 Racing.
Tagliani has competed in a variety ...
and Australian
Formula 3
Formula Three, also called Formula 3, abbreviated as F3, is a third-tier class of open-wheel formula racing. The various championships held in Europe, Australia, South America and Asia form an important step for many prospective Formula One driv ...
driver
Marcus Marshall
Marcus Marshall (born 25 November 1978) is a former Champ Car driver from Australia.
Biography
He began racing in British Formula Three, where he was generally a running outside the top ten, but took a hard-fought win in a wet race. He contest ...
for the 2005 season.
A learning year
With a new chassis to learn, Team Australia was hardly going to upset the establishment in 2005. However, Tagliani's consistent, solid drives took the team to many top-ten finishes and several podiums through the year. Tagliani finished the season in seventh place, equaling his career best finish. Marshall, by contrast, was unspectacular, struggling to break the top ten. By Team Australia's homecoming at the 2005 Surfer's Paradise race, they had announced that a third car would be run for Australian international driver
Will Power
William "Will" Steven Power (born 1 March 1981) is an Australian motorsports driver who currently competes in the IndyCar Series, driving for Team Penske. He is the 2014 and 2022 IndyCar Series champion and the 2018 Indianapolis 500 champion. ...
. Power outpaced both teammates before a collision with Tagliani took him out of the race.
Amongst some controversy it was announced that Marshall's contract had been cut, and he was to leave the team. His attempt to appeal this in court was unsuccessful, and he was dropped in favour of Power, who signed a three-year contract.
The team ran their third car again in the season finale at
Mexico
Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...
, where newly crowned Atlantics champion Dutchman
Charles Zwolsman
Charles Zwolsman (6 August 1955 – 21 January 2011) was a Dutch drug dealer and professional racecar driver and team owner.
Drug dealing
Zwolsman was born in Oostzaan, and started dealing in marijuana in the 1980s. He built an organization ...
made his debut.
2006
Rumours that
Ryan Briscoe
Ryan Briscoe (born 24 September 1981) is an Australian-American professional racing driver from Sydney who has predominantly raced open-wheel and sports cars in Europe and America.
In IndyCar he collected 8 wins and 28 podiums, finishing third ...
would be taking the #15 car were crushed when Tagliani re-signed prior to
Long Beach
Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California.
Incorporate ...
. In 2006, Team Australia's commitment extended not only to two Champ Cars, but a two-car Atlantic squad, all aimed at fostering young talent.
The team showed fantastic pace at the opening round at Long Beach, with Tagliani and Power running third and fourth respectively before a forced error dropped him down the order. He then suffered from brake problems but finished a competitive 9th, while Tagliani took a podium.
The team had consistent top-ten finishes, never really achieving more until Will Power took a pole position at his home race at Surfer's Paradise. He led the race comfortably until
Sébastien Bourdais
Sébastien Olivier Bourdais (born 28 February 1979) is a French professional racing driver. He is one of the most successful drivers in the history of American open-wheel car racing, having won 37 races. He won four successive championships ...
made a move on Power which damaged both cars. Power finished well down the order, but made up for it with a podium at the season finale in Mexico. He also won the Roshfrans Rookie of the Year title, as well as the Bridgestone Passion for Excellence award, the first driver other than Bourdais to win it.
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series
Craig Gore
Craig Gore is an entrepreneur from Sydney, Australia.
Biography
Craig Kirrin Gore was born in Fairfield, New South Wales on 7 January 1967. He is the son of Sanctuary Cove Developer Mike Gore. Gore spent his early life in the western suburbs o ...
expanded the Team Australia stable of global motorsport interests with a partnership with Wood Brothers/JTG Racing that included the naming-rights sponsorship of
Marcos Ambrose
Marcos Ambrose (born 1 September 1976) is an Australian former racing driver and current Garry Rogers Motorsport competition director. He won the Australian V8 Supercar series' championship in 2003 and 2004.
In 2006, Ambrose relocated to the Un ...
's entry in the
NASCAR
The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and hi ...
Craftsman Truck Series
The NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series is a pickup truck racing series owned and operated by the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, and is the only series in NASCAR to race production pickup truck based stock cars. The series is one of th ...
in 2006.
The sponsorship was weaved into a nationwide marketing campaign designed to promote quality Australian and Australian-themed products and Australia as a tourism destination. The new green and gold
Ford F-150
The Ford F-Series is a series of light-duty trucks marketed and manufactured by Ford since the 1948 model year. Slotted above the Ford Ranger in the Ford truck model range, the F-Series is marketed as a range of full-sized pickup trucks. ...
truck carried Team Australia, Aussie Vineyards and
R. M. Williams
Reginald Murray "R.M." Williams AO CMG (24 May 19084 November 2003) was an Australian bushman and entrepreneur who rose from a swagman to a millionaire. He was born at Belalie North near Jamestown in the Mid North of South Australia, north ...
signage.
Driving the #20 Aussie Vineyards Ford F-150, Ambrose had best finishes of 3rd in Kansas and Nashville and took the pole position in Kentucky.
Atlantic series
In their first year of Atlantic, the team won their first title, with young
French driver
Simon Pagenaud
Simon Pagenaud (born 18 May 1984) is a French professional racing driver. He is contracted to drive the No. 60 Honda for Meyer Shank Racing in the IndyCar Series. After a successful career in sports car racing that saw him taking the top class ...
. He was partnered by
James Davison
James D. Davison (born 28 August 1986) is an Australian professional racing driver who drives an Aston Martin Vantage GT3 in the Blancpain GT World Challenge America. He has also competed in the NTT IndyCar Series, NASCAR Cup Series, and NASCA ...
initially, until the underperforming Australian was dropped in favour of countrymate
Michael Patrizi
Michael Patrizi (born 4 May 1984) is an Australian racing driver.
Biography
Starting off in karts in his native Western Australia, he moved to Formula Ford in 2004, then to Formula BMW in Asia 2005, then UK in 2006. In 2007 he joined the compet ...
.
Team details
The team gained most of its sponsorship from the businesses of Gore and Fish. Gore's financial company, Wright Patton Shakespeare, features on the sides and nosecone of the cars,
Fish Liquor are sponsors and their wine business
Aussie Vineyards was the title sponsor. The team was also sponsored by the
Queensland
)
, nickname = Sunshine State
, image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, established_ ...
State Government,
Visa credit cards,
R. M. Williams
Reginald Murray "R.M." Williams AO CMG (24 May 19084 November 2003) was an Australian bushman and entrepreneur who rose from a swagman to a millionaire. He was born at Belalie North near Jamestown in the Mid North of South Australia, north ...
, and
Qantas
Qantas Airways Limited ( ) is the flag carrier of Australia and the country's largest airline by fleet size, international flights, and international destinations. It is the world's third-oldest airline still in operation, having been founded ...
. The relationship ended in early 2008 and Gore, Fish and Walker are no longer directly involved, with Walker announcing that Walker Racing will not contest the unified 2008 IRL season.
Walker Racing won't be making switch from Champ Car to IndyCar Series
Associated Press, 9 March 2008 Gore has taken driver Will Power and the Team Australia name to KV Racing.
Drivers who have driven for Team Australia
;IndyCar (2008) ( KV Racing)
* Will Power
William "Will" Steven Power (born 1 March 1981) is an Australian motorsports driver who currently competes in the IndyCar Series, driving for Team Penske. He is the 2014 and 2022 IndyCar Series champion and the 2018 Indianapolis 500 champion. ...
(2008)
;Champ Car (2005–2007) (Walker Racing
Walker Racing was a racing team founded by Derrick Walker in 1991 racing originally in the CART Championship Car series. It last competed in the United SportsCar Championship under the name of Team Falken Tire until Falken Tire pulled out of not o ...
)
* David Besnard
David Besnard, (born 21 January 1977 in Sydney, Australia) is a retired professional racing driver.
Career history
Starting in karts in 1991, he quickly proceeded into Formula Ford in 1995. After initial success, he had a major accident at Easte ...
(2004)
* Alex Tagliani
Alexandre Tagliani (; born October 18, 1973), nicknamed "Tag", is a Canadian professional racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Pinty’s Series, driving the No. 18 Chevrolet Camaro for 22 Racing.
Tagliani has competed in a variety ...
(2005–2006)
* Marcus Marshall
Marcus Marshall (born 25 November 1978) is a former Champ Car driver from Australia.
Biography
He began racing in British Formula Three, where he was generally a running outside the top ten, but took a hard-fought win in a wet race. He contest ...
(2005)
* Will Power
William "Will" Steven Power (born 1 March 1981) is an Australian motorsports driver who currently competes in the IndyCar Series, driving for Team Penske. He is the 2014 and 2022 IndyCar Series champion and the 2018 Indianapolis 500 champion. ...
(2005–2007)
* Charles Zwolsman
Charles Zwolsman (6 August 1955 – 21 January 2011) was a Dutch drug dealer and professional racecar driver and team owner.
Drug dealing
Zwolsman was born in Oostzaan, and started dealing in marijuana in the 1980s. He built an organization ...
(2005)
* Simon Pagenaud
Simon Pagenaud (born 18 May 1984) is a French professional racing driver. He is contracted to drive the No. 60 Honda for Meyer Shank Racing in the IndyCar Series. After a successful career in sports car racing that saw him taking the top class ...
(2007)
;V8 Supercars (2004–2007) (WPS Racing
WPS Racing was an Australian motor racing team that competed in Australian V8 Supercar racing between 2004 and 2007. It was owned by Queensland businessman Craig Gore and sponsored by his Wright Patton Shakespeare company.
History
In 2003, W ...
)
* David Besnard
David Besnard, (born 21 January 1977 in Sydney, Australia) is a retired professional racing driver.
Career history
Starting in karts in 1991, he quickly proceeded into Formula Ford in 1995. After initial success, he had a major accident at Easte ...
(2004–2006)
* Mark Noske
Mark Noske (born 25 July 1975) is a former Australian racing car driver. He has scored round wins in various Australian championships including the Australian Drivers' Championship, the Australian Formula Ford Championship and the Australian N ...
(2004)
* Owen Kelly
Owen Kelly (born 12 March 1977) is an Australian professional racing driver. Son of Chas Kelly, he has competed over the course of his career in V8 Supercars and NASCAR among other series.
Racing career
Kelly started his circuit racing career ...
(2004)
* Alex Yoong (2004)
* Charlie O'Brien
Charles Hugh O'Brien (born May 1, 1960) is an American former professional baseball player. He played in Major League Baseball as a catcher for the Oakland Athletics (1985), Milwaukee Brewers (1987–90), New York Mets (1990–93), Atlanta Bra ...
(2004)
* Neil McFadyen
Neil is a masculine name of Gaelic and Irish origin. The name is an anglicisation of the Irish ''Niall'' which is of disputed derivation. The Irish name may be derived from words meaning "cloud", "passionate", "victory", "honour" or "champion".. ...
(2004)
* John McIntyre (2004)
* Marcus Marshall
Marcus Marshall (born 25 November 1978) is a former Champ Car driver from Australia.
Biography
He began racing in British Formula Three, where he was generally a running outside the top ten, but took a hard-fought win in a wet race. He contest ...
(2005)
* Alex Tagliani
Alexandre Tagliani (; born October 18, 1973), nicknamed "Tag", is a Canadian professional racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Pinty’s Series, driving the No. 18 Chevrolet Camaro for 22 Racing.
Tagliani has competed in a variety ...
(2005)
* Craig Baird
Craig George Baird (born 22 July 1970) is a New Zealand former racing driver who now is the driving standards observer for the Australian Supercars Championship.
Honours
In the 2010 New Year Honours, Baird was appointed a Member of the New ...
(2005–2006)
* Max Wilson
Max Wilson (born August 22, 1972 in Hamburg, West Germany) is a racing driver of Brazilian parentage.
Racing career
Junior formulae
Wilson started his motor racing career in 1985 in go-karts. He moved into single-seaters in 1993, when he was o ...
(2006–2007)
* Jason Bargwanna
Jason Eric Bargwanna (born 26 April, 1971) is an Australian motor racing driver. Best known as a Supercars Championship competitor, Bargwanna raced in the series for 25 years, the pinnacle of which was winning, with Garth Tander, the 2000 Bathu ...
(2006–2007)
* Michael Caruso (2007)
* Grant Denyer
Grant Craig Denyer (born 12 September 1977) is an Australian television and radio presenter and motor racing driver, who has worked for several television networks, including Seven Network and Network 10, mostly serving as a presenter.
In 2018 ...
(2007)
;Champ Car Atlantics (2006–2007) (Walker Racing)
* Simon Pagenaud
Simon Pagenaud (born 18 May 1984) is a French professional racing driver. He is contracted to drive the No. 60 Honda for Meyer Shank Racing in the IndyCar Series. After a successful career in sports car racing that saw him taking the top class ...
(2006)
* James Davison
James D. Davison (born 28 August 1986) is an Australian professional racing driver who drives an Aston Martin Vantage GT3 in the Blancpain GT World Challenge America. He has also competed in the NTT IndyCar Series, NASCAR Cup Series, and NASCA ...
(2006)
* Michael Patrizi
Michael Patrizi (born 4 May 1984) is an Australian racing driver.
Biography
Starting off in karts in his native Western Australia, he moved to Formula Ford in 2004, then to Formula BMW in Asia 2005, then UK in 2006. In 2007 he joined the compet ...
(2006)
* Ryan Lewis
Ryan Scott Lewis (born March 25, 1988) is an American record producer, DJ, videographer, photographer, graphic designer, music video director, rapper, and songwriter. Along with producing his own album, ''Instrumentals'', Lewis produced the alb ...
(2007)
* Simona de Silvestro (2007)
;NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series (2006) (Wood Brothers/JTG Racing
Wood Brothers Racing is an American professional stock car racing team that currently competes in the NASCAR Cup Series. The team was formed in 1950 by eponymous brothers Glen Wood, Glen and Leonard Wood (racing), Leonard Wood. From 2006 to 200 ...
)
* Marcos Ambrose
Marcos Ambrose (born 1 September 1976) is an Australian former racing driver and current Garry Rogers Motorsport competition director. He won the Australian V8 Supercar series' championship in 2003 and 2004.
In 2006, Ambrose relocated to the Un ...
(2006)
;NASCAR Busch Series (2007) (Wood Brothers/JTG Racing
Wood Brothers Racing is an American professional stock car racing team that currently competes in the NASCAR Cup Series. The team was formed in 1950 by eponymous brothers Glen Wood, Glen and Leonard Wood (racing), Leonard Wood. From 2006 to 200 ...
)
* Marcos Ambrose
Marcos Ambrose (born 1 September 1976) is an Australian former racing driver and current Garry Rogers Motorsport competition director. He won the Australian V8 Supercar series' championship in 2003 and 2004.
In 2006, Ambrose relocated to the Un ...
(2007)
Complete motorsport results
V8 Supercar
to be completed
(key
Key or The Key may refer to:
Common meanings
* Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm
* Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock
* Key (map ...
)
* Bold indicates pole position.
Champ Car Atlantic Championship
(key
Key or The Key may refer to:
Common meanings
* Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm
* Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock
* Key (map ...
) (results in bold indicate pole position) (results in italics indicate fastest lap)
Champ Car World Series
(key
Key or The Key may refer to:
Common meanings
* Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm
* Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock
* Key (map ...
) (results in bold indicate pole position) (results in italics indicate fastest lap)
NASCAR
(key
Key or The Key may refer to:
Common meanings
* Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm
* Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock
* Key (map ...
) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)
Craftsman Truck Series
Busch Series
Overall stats
References
External links
Team Australia Motorsport
WPS Racing
Walker Racing
{{Champ Car teams
Australian auto racing teams
Champ Car teams
Atlantic Championship teams