The 1959 Australian Drivers Championship was a CAMS sanctioned motor racing title for drivers of Formula Libre cars. The championship winner was awarded the 1959 CAMS Gold Star.
The series was won by Victorian racer Len Lukey driving his Cooper T45 Climax and in the opening round of the series his own much modified Cooper T23 which was known as the Lukey-Bristol. Lukey was one of only a few drivers who attempted to complete the gruelling twelve race schedule, the longest in ADC history. Lukey finished just two points ahead of his season long rival, Alec Mildren from the ACT [1] (Cooper-Climax). Stan Jones was third in the series, using four different racing cars of the course of the series. Race victories were shared around with Mildren taking three wins. Lukey, Jones and Bill Patterson each took two wins, with single victories going to Jack Brabham, Bib Stillwell and New Zealand Maserati 250F racer Ross Jensen.
Contents |
The title, which was the third Australian Drivers' Championship,[2] was contested over a twelve race series.[3][4]
Rd. | Date [4] | Race | Circuit | Location | Winner |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 26 January | South Pacific Championship | Gnoo Blas circuit | Orange, New South Wales | Jack Brabham* |
2 | 22 February | Victorian Trophy | Fisherman's Bend | Melbourne, Victoria | Alec Mildren |
3 | 2 March | Australian Grand Prix | Longford Circuit | Longford, Tasmania | Stan Jones |
4 | 28 March | South Australian Trophy Race | Port Wakefield Circuit | Port Wakefield, South Australia | Stan Jones |
5 | 30 March | Bathurst 100 | Mount Panorama Circuit | Bathurst, New South Wales | Ross Jensen* |
6 | 14 June | Lowood Trophy | Lowood circuit | Lowood, Queensland | Alec Mildren |
7 | 30 August | Queensland Centenary Road Race | Lowood circuit | Lowood, Queensland | Alec Mildren |
8 | 4 October | New South Wales Road Racing Championship | Mount Panorama Circuit | Bathurst, New South Wales | Bib Stillwell |
9 | 12 October | The Advertiser Trophy | Port Wakefield Circuit | Port Wakefield, South Australia | Bill Patterson |
10 | 24 October | Western Australian Road Race Championship | Caversham | Caversham, Western Australia | Len Lukey |
11 | 22 November | Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit | Phillip Island, Victoria | Bill Patterson | |
12 | 13 December | Phillip Island Trophy Race | Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit | Phillip Island, Victoria | Len Lukey |
Championship points were awarded on a 12-7-5-3-2-1 basis to the first six Australian drivers at each race, irrespective of actual race placings gained. Only the best nine race results could be retained by each driver.[5] Additionally only Australian resident drivers could score points which precluded Gnos Blas winner Jack Brabham and Bathurst 100 winner Ross Jensen from being able to score points towards the championship.
Position[6] | Driver [6] | Car | Entrant | Points[6] |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Len Lukey | Cooper T23 Bristol Cooper T43 Climax |
Lukey Mufflers Pty Ltd | 68 |
2 | Alec Mildren | Cooper T43 Climax Cooper T45 Climax |
AG Mildren Pty Ltd | 66 |
3 | Stan Jones | Maybach Special Chevrolet Maserati 250F Cooper T51 Climax Sabakat/Lotus 12 Climax |
Stan Jones Motors | 44 |
4 | Bill Patterson | Cooper T43 Climax Cooper T51 Climax |
36 | |
5 | Arnold Glass | Ferrari 555 Super Squalo Maserati 250F |
Capital Motors | 23 |
6 | Doug Whiteford | Maserati 300S | D Whiteford | 18 |
Note: Only the top six pointscorers are shown in the above table.
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