It was a gray Sunday 32 years in the past when Mark Skaife and Jim Richards stood on the highest step of the rostrum. It was an emotional second; not solely had the Bathurst 1000 been lower quick by a torrential storm, the drivers had realized solely hours earlier that Denny Hulme, who was racing a BMW within the occasion, had died of a coronary heart assault whereas on the wheel.
Richards and Skaife had piloted Nissan’s Skyline GT-R to victory however that didn’t sit properly with lots of the followers under, having been led to consider – wrongly – that some other automotive within the race stood an opportunity of beating ‘Godzilla’. As they booed, Richard retorted; “You are a pack of arseholes!”
That second stayed with many for a very long time. Actually, it stayed with Sean Hanley, now Toyota Australia’s Vice President Gross sales, Advertising and Franchise Operations. Final week he acknowledged: “We frequently questioned if we went out and received this race, what would actually occur. It was in all probability extra dangerous to win it than to not play in any respect, again within the tribal days.”
That 1992 race was the beginning of what grew to become the V8 Supercars period. The Australian V8-powered Holden Commodores and Ford Falcons had been the centrepiece of what had been touring automotive racing and, when it was professionally commercialised in 1997, grew and continued to develop.
Its most well-liked backstory was a well-known one; Australian households grew up with both a Holden or a Ford within the driveway and, on the odd likelihood that they did not, nonetheless adopted one model or the opposite. It was Purple versus Blue, tribal rivalry.
Besides… largely, it actually wasn’t like that. Whereas the idea performed properly for just a few followers who accepted it, that rivalry was opposite to one in every of Supercars’ different ambitions – to entice different producers into the class. That labored for some time, with Volvo in for 3 years, Nissan for 5 and Mercedes-Benz coming in, on a purely buyer foundation, servicing the Erebus Motorsport workforce, for 3.
Volvo, Nissan and Mercedes arrived a decade in the past to disrupt the Holden versus Ford combat, however none lasted the course
Photograph by: Daniel Kalisz / Motorsport Photographs
What we all know now could be that whereas Toyota was sitting on the sidelines, wanting laborious at getting into the fray twice (in 1999 and once more in 2010), the Purple vs Blue backstory was one of many causes it stayed away – till the new-for-2023 Gen3 period.
“I’ve little doubt that that tribalism nonetheless exists,” says Hanley, “however there’s now room for a brand new participant, and I believe it’s well timed.”
So it’s that Toyota will enter Supercars in 2026, with the Walkinshaw Andretti United squad as its homologation workforce and chief, and one other but to be nominated squad every working two GR Supras.
For now, this information underlines that the outdated Supercars – Commodore and Falcon four-door sedans – is useless
That is huge and game-changing information for Supercars. For all of the rhetoric surrounding the Holden-Ford rivalry, the reality is that the Supercars period has seen these manufacturers’ market shares diminish – and the Holden model vanish solely.
Toyota topped the Australian automotive marketplace for 21 straight years, as households migrated from household sedans, which had been manufactured domestically, to high-riding SUVs and ‘utes’, which weren’t. Toyota dominated with none seen want to return and play Supercars racing, preferring extra low-profile programmes within the Australian Rally Championship and the one-make Toyota Gazoo Racing Australia 86 Collection.
Credit score the place credit score is due. If the brand new Gen3 platform is performing in some methods under expectations – parity and value to call two still-problematic areas – Supercars deserves credit score for making a framework that lastly hooked Toyota.
The timing couldn’t be higher. Not solely is the class’s present broadcast deal up for renewal on the finish of subsequent yr, host cable and streaming service broadcaster Foxtel itself is believed to be available on the market. The arrival of Toyota, Australia’s largest automotive advertiser by far, ought to make the class a extra priceless asset – an necessary issue when the Gen3 automobiles are mentioned to be costing as a lot as A$800,000 (£410,000), far past what was initially deliberate.
Because the mud settles on Toyota’s arrival, Ford might be eager to certain up its groups and make sure the second Toyota squad comes from GM’s secure
Photograph by: Edge Photographics
Toyota already has a big footprint throughout Australian sport, because the naming rights sponsor of the most important soccer code (the AFL), in Rugby League, Cricket Australia and the nationwide Olympic and Winter Olympic groups. Its 86 Collection is already supported by a stable TV promoting spend; whichever broadcaster lands the post-2025 Supercars broadcast deal can have purpose to be optimistic that dedication would increase.
There might be rather a lot to play out earlier than the opening race of 2026. Ford might be shedding one in every of its 5 two-car groups and might be eager to make sure that whichever workforce runs the second pair of Supras, it is going to be a defector from GM’s ranks, not one in every of its personal. In truth, Ford may go trying to find a brand new partnership itself to keep up its 10-Supercar fleet. Doubtlessly, two Chevrolet groups could possibly be altering manufacturers for 2026.
WAU might want to run parallel programmes for a bit over a yr, one to race its Fords in 2025 and one to develop the brand new Toyotas. Supercars must work the Supra into its technical framework, to ensure that the difficulties which have hindered the event and technical parity of the Mustangs and Camaros don’t prolong to a 3rd mannequin.
All that lies sooner or later. For now, this information underlines that the outdated Supercars – Commodore and Falcon four-door sedans – is useless.
The brand new Supercars are sporty two-door Camaros, Mustangs and, quickly, Supras; a sort of Down Below model of GT3. ‘Win on Sunday’ remains to be a legitimate mantra however the autos the manufacturers might be making an attempt to Promote on Monday now bear no resemblance to these on the monitor. Occasions change, and Supercars has carried out simply that – hopefully for the higher.
Toyota’s new GR Supra Supercar will debut in 2026
Photograph by: Toyota Australia
