Sandown Raceway—the home of horsepower!
Sandown Raceway, the premier automobile circuit in Melbourne, is home to some of the most spectacular events in Australian motorsports, where you can witness everything from Driver Training, Racing and Driver appreciation experiences in the likes of Lamborghini’s, Ferrari’s or the incredibly dynamic Lotus sports cars.
Annual Australian Championships consistently creates history at Sandown and draws spectators from all over the world, is undoubtedly the highlight of the year.
Motor events isn’t the only thing that happens at Sandown Raceway. Any enthusiast for cars is welcome to visit Australia’s oldest permanent motorsport facility and enjoy a driving experience with Fastrack.
History of Sandown Raceway
An important part of Australian motorsport history is Sandown Raceway. Sandown is not only the oldest permanent motorsport facility in the nation but it also held Australia’s first car race, which happened in March 1904. Sandown was mostly used for horse racing at the time, but by 1931 the racetrack opened its use to motorsport.
In the 1960s, several Victorian turf clubs merged, providing sufficient funds to buy and renovate Sandown into a cutting-edge dual-purpose venue for both horse and motorsport.
Legendary Australian drivers Len Lukey and Neil Marsden formed Sandown Park Motorsport Pty Ltd in 1961 to help promote events at the newly designed track, and by 1962, work on building Sandown Motorsport Park had begun.
1962 saw a star-studded lineup compete at Sandown, including New Zealand champion Pat Hoare, double world champion Jack Braham, Jim Clark, Rob Flockhart, and Chuck Daigh.
The biggest names in high performance motoring gathered at Sandown throughout the 1960s, when it hosted the inaugural Tasman Series, to claim trophies.
The Holden vs. Ford rivalry began to take shape during these early years, and up until 1982, one of the two manufacturers would win every race. In addition, it was Peter Brock’s heyday, as he ruled Sandown from 1973 to 1984. The only competitor to break his winning run was Allan Moffatt, who triumphed with Ford in 1974, and Mazda in 1982.
Sadly, politics prevented Sandown from ever hosting a Grand Prix. Adelaide was able to secure the race for South Australia because the Victorian State Government refused to support the bid.
The 1984 World Endurance Championship final round was instead secured by the LCCA, marking the first-ever FIA World Championship road racing event to take place in Australia in Sports prototype and GT cars, which were often the development
scene for manufactures like Lamborghini, Ferrari and Lotus.
By late 2007, The Melbourne Racing Club, the circuit’s owner, had brought management in-house, landed a long-term contract with V8 Supercars, and invested a sizeable sum of money for pit upgrades and tightened circuit safety.
World Championship at Sandown Raceway
The 1984 World Endurance Championship was a first World Championship motor race for the nation which gave the world Sir Jack Brabham, Alan Jones, and Vern Schuppan, and to mark the occasion all three icons of Australian motorsport took part in the race! All eyes, however, were on Stefan Bellof and Jochen Mass as they vied for the title of Drivers’ champion.
Both were German and both were works Porsche drivers, but that was about where the comparisons ended. Jochen was a veteran of the sportscar scene, having raced at the sharp end since the early ’70s. His driving style reflected his personality: mature and level-headed. Yet is was Stefan Bell who coasted to the chequered flag, shown after six hours.
Sandown Raceway facts
Sandown Raceway’s thrilling features, like front and rear drag straits, have earned it the moniker “power circuit.” The Dandenong Road corner can be quickly entered via the back straight.
The Sandown Raceway circuit is 3.1 km long and has 13 corners.
Sandown is only permitted to host five major motorsport weekends with noise levels no higher than 95 dB due to its suburban location.
Major events held at Sandown include the Shannons Nationals, the State Race Series, the Historic Sandown, the Australian Grand Prix, the Tasman Series, and the World Sportscar Championship.
Where is Sandown Raceway?
Sandown Raceway is situated 25 km southeast of the central business district in the Melbourne suburb of Springvale. Due to its location on the Princes Highway, Sandown Raceway is easily accessible by car.
The closest airport is Tullamarine International Airport in Melbourne, which is situated northwest of the city, about 40 minutes’ drive from the circuit, and has good transportation connections to the city centre.
Sandown Raceway offers parking, but there are also great public transportation choices. Sandown Raceway is equipped with a railway station that offers frequent services on the Pakenham and Cranbourne lines.
Why not join us at Sandown Raceway and enjoy the incredible rush of operating your very own high performance Exotic Supercar. Purchase a gift card or book an experience today.
