Characters & Character

[GTRMagic]

It’s funny to look back, at how the Australian motor racing world was 35 years ago. Allan Moffat’s 1988 Bathurst assault Here showed what it was like to be completely single minded about motor racing, in servicing the sponsors, in the team’s preparation, in actually putting together a bare bones package with the very best car, prep, team, drivers, tyres available to get the job done.

Now Mr Moffat was always a focused individual across his racing exploits.
He maximised the potential of what he had available to him, certainly in this mini movie. And wasn’t afraid to be sad, in tears, damaged.. by the failure to finish what they had 99 laps doing so bloody well, lead the biggest motor race in the land.

Several times in the movie, Mr Moffat made clear that the only performance he was ever concerned about was his #9 car. People had previously run the race with were littered thru the field. And only his and his team’s own performance were his concern.

Interesting to see a few ANZ corporate types in the pit area as well, the car they owned, the belief they had in their chosen team and team owner obvious from the people looking on, the corporate suites and advertising above the lane..

So how did we get to where we are now.?

With drivers who are saying that it is the responsibility of the sport, that the sport should be making characters out of the driver pool to get the public interested in them.

But you watch that movie.. and you see what it meant to the driver, deeply meant to him, a years planning blown away, finding the money, the support technically and preparation. He is ****ed off, sad, crushed at the failure. Didn’t blame the driver, the team, the Sierra maestro..

And isn’t off to the local cafe to share a latte on his MAMIL outfit on a $10k carbon bicycle. And forget about it as if it is ok because another race is in 2 weeks anyway.

That is what I see as having character. You can love or hate the persona we see, but undeniably it will have an impact to see how it went that day. And that the squad came back in each of the next 4 seasons with that hardware, updated & refreshed.

Does doing the hard yards actually mean something to some of the pilots calling on the sport to do particular things? Does getting a full time gig and all the financial benefit, new notoriety.. take over that true drive to always be the best?

It’s hard to see lots of complete focus & dedication in the cockpits in every team… or the vocabulary to understand the car and how it works is not with too many people…

While some drivers create their own persona and build a strong fan base from that… and some of those absolutely grateful to be there…

If we can’t see the hunger.. how can we see the character..

Broc Feeney was in tears, a wreck, when his gearbox tower broke at Bathurst. He gave a fornication. Others whose cars failed were telling the teev team “See ya on the Gold Coast”

We need to see hunger and drive and pain and sacrifice…
Not matey matey stuff…

[Average Punter]

Good work GTR. And Merry Christmas to you!

Although you focus on Moff, it could be Allan Grice most years.
Bob Morris watching the closing laps in 1976.
DJ in 1980
Or Seto in a dead Falcon in 1995.

The common denominator? These blokes all had their b@lls on the line. Emotionally and financially. Losing really hurt. And they were ok with showing that.

We have seen glimpses of similar public heartache more recently. Broc at Bathurst as you mentioned. Scotty Mac when he pranged the Volvo in 2014. The exhausted and spent Davey in 2018

Got me thinking. ALL of these are at Bathurst.
And that's why the Mountain is such as amazing place.

[Henry]

There's a lot that's changed: look at the public speaking efforts of drivers from the 60's through into the 80's-90's... and then compare that with the sorts of "great effort by the boys, thank youse all" that used to be more common at State of Origin time than Bathurst, but which comprises the bigger part of every snippet recorded when a mic goes in a current driver's snout.

Moffat, Bartlett, Morris, Grice, Brock - they could all give a very good account of themselves without just mindlessly reciting sponsor names and thanking "the team". And while they often wore their commitment to their sport openly, they were reasonably dignified about it most of the time. I bet not one of those named ever called Bathurst "Our Grand Final" on mi with Evan Green either.

Jesus Wept.

[Alan52]

I think a lot of the relative blandness in drivers interviews is because they are employees of the team.In the old days talked about above the drivers were either also the team owners or there because of 1 patron rather than a roll call of corporate sponsors.
It is now considered a success by them if they don’t say anything that upsets anybody.

[Henry]

Originally Posted by Alan52

I think a lot of the relative blandness in drivers interviews is because they are employees of the team.In the old days talked about above the drivers were either also the team owners or there because of 1 patron rather than a roll call of corporate sponsors.
It is now considered a success by them if they don’t say anything that upsets anybody.

Perhaps, but Moffat and Brock were also very aware that they were representing their sponsors in public, but didn't shy away from potentially controversial discussions about the sport and the management of it. The broadcaster was also semi-independent, whereas in this day and age, it's all wrapped up in the one circus... and the circus doesn't like any controversy that it hasn't manufactured itself.

One other glaring difference is that drivers in times past tended to be older and more mature by the time they were reaching the upper echelon of the sport, and life experiences arguably coloured their outlook a bit more deeply than the InstaChat brigade.

[V8 Fireworks]

Originally Posted by GTRMagic

We need to see hunger and drive and pain and sacrifice…
Not matey matey stuff…

Does Barry Ryan not suffice with enough character for the whole grid?

I honestly do not think it would be helpful if every ATCC team had a furious Barry Ryan instead of a bemused Brad Jones or disgruntled Tim Edwards.

[Just Do It!]

Originally Posted by V8 Fireworks

Does Barry Ryan not suffice with enough character for the whole grid?

I honestly do not think it would be helpful if every ATCC team had a furious Barry Ryan instead of a bemused Brad Jones or disgruntled Tim Edwards.

Don't forget Kim Jones. He used to storm down pit lane to see the stewards.

And the likes of David Reynolds - the least biege of driver personalities.

[GTRMagic]

Originally Posted by V8 Fireworks

Does Barry Ryan not suffice with enough character for the whole grid?

I honestly do not think it would be helpful if every ATCC team had a furious Barry Ryan instead of a bemused Brad Jones or disgruntled Tim Edwards.

If you assert from Mr Ryan’s on-screen aggression and regular profanities as a demonstration of actually giving a stuff, no only having one of him or his equivalent is probably nowhere enough.

The team leaders for the most part are vanilla onscreen, the drivers follow along pretty similarly.

It makes for poor television. It doesn’t separate this vanilla from that vanilla. They use the same words, they bring nothing new to the conversations.

Except..

Broc Feeney Bathurst 2023

How to build a following.. being completely real… smashed.. and showing it means something. No doubt in my mind that car was a good shot at the win.
And the brand name copilot was nowhere near as upset…

Show it means something..

Please

[chavez]

Originally Posted by Just Do It!

Don't forget Kim Jones. He used to storm down pit lane to see the stewards.

To protest to the stewards that his number two driver just beat brother Brad.....not Supercars but a classic Kim moment, up there with "my mate out the back"

[Mixer]

Originally Posted by Average Punter

Or Seto in a dead Falcon in 1995.

Bo's tears having built the motor were more touching than almost anything I can think of at Bathurst.

[one five five]

Originally Posted by chavez

To protest to the stewards that his number two driver just beat brother Brad.....not Supercars but a classic Kim moment, up there with "my mate out the back"

Oran Park 1998?

They fixed the #2 up with a set of old tyres for the title decider too from memory?

[V8 Fireworks]

Originally Posted by Mixer

Bo's tears having built the motor were more touching than almost anything I can think of at Bathurst.

Could someone elaborate about Glen Seton Racing no longer using Bo Seton engines in 1996?

I understand that Bo Seton started to build engines for the Tony Longhurst team instead.

I hope it wasn't really a falling out.

[chavez]

Originally Posted by V8 Fireworks

Could someone elaborate about Glen Seton Racing no longer using Bo Seton engines in 1996?

I understand that Bo Seton started to build engines for the Tony Longhurst team instead.

I hope it wasn't really a falling out.

Bo Seton engines also failed Glenn in the final round of the '87 ATCC and the Sandown 500 when leading.

[Umai Naa]

When did he stop building them on the loungeroom floor?