Australian Solo Championship
Leigh Adams, ten time winner | |
Sport | Motorcycle speedway |
---|---|
Founded | 1926 |
Most titles | Leigh Adams (10) |
The Australian Individual Speedway Championship historically known as the Australian Solo Championship is a motorcycle speedway championship held each year to determine the Australian national champion. It is organised by Motorcycling Australia (MA) and is the oldest continuously running national speedway championship in the world, having been run since 1926 with the exception of 1942-1945 when racing was suspended during World War II and 1955-1961 when the championship was not held.[1][2]
History
The first Championship in 1926 was held at the Newcastle Showground in Newcastle, which was won by American rider Cecil Brown.[3][4] In the early years of the championship, multiple Australian titles were often held in the same year with some riders winning more than one title per year. Championships were run over anywhere from 2 to 6 laps and/or over 2 miles, often depending on the length of the track used.
Legendary Danish rider Ole Olsen and Australia's own Jason Crump are the only riders who have won the championship while being the reigning Speedway World Champion. Olsen's controversial win at the Liverpool Speedway in Sydney in 1976 was the last win by a non-Australian rider. His win was controversial as many of the riders at the meeting protested his eligibility because of his nationality. However, with Olsen available to ride the promoters of the speedway insisted on his inclusion knowing that he would draw a larger crowd.
From 1979 to 1994, the Championship served as a qualifying round for the Speedway World Championship.[5][6]
Past winners
Multiple championship era
Year | Distance | Venue | Winner | Runner-up | 3rd place |
1926 | 6 laps | Newcastle Showground | Cecil Brown () | Mick Brennan (NSW) | Roy Hindle (NSW) |
1927 | 4 laps | Newcastle Showground | Pat Hamilton (NSW) | Tom Sharp | Ted Rees (NSW) |
1927 | 3 laps | Newcastle Showground | Paddy Dean (NSW) | Ted Rees (NSW) | Harold Murdoch (NSW) |
1927 | 4 laps | Newcastle Showground | Ted Rees (NSW) | Billy Lamont (NSW) | Sprouts Elder () |
1928 | 3 laps | Claremont Speedway | Sig Schlam (WA) | Alby Taylor (SA) | Harry Mangham (SA) |
1928 | 6 laps | Wayville Showgrounds | Alby Taylor (SA) | Vic Huxley (Qld) | Sprouts Elder () |
1929 | 3 laps | Wayville Showgrounds | Frank Duckett (SA) | Paddy Dean (NSW) | Tommy Benstead (NSW) |
1929 | 2¾hp/4 laps | Davies Park | Frank Pearce (Qld) | Frank Arthur (NSW) | |
1929 | 3½hp/4 laps | Davies Park | Max Grosskreutz (Qld) | Alby Taylor (SA) | Frank Pearce (Qld) |
1929 | 2 miles | Claremont Speedway | Sig Schlam (WA) | Cec Walker (WA) | Syd Parsons (SA) |
1930 | 3 laps | Wayville Showgrounds | Jack Chapman (SA) | Jack Ormston () | Frank Arthur (NSW) |
1930 | 6 laps | Claremont Speedway | Arthur Atkinson () | Jack Chapman (SA) | Bill Dunne (WA) |
1930 | 2 miles | Exhibition Speedway | Reg West (Vic) | Lionel Davey (Qld) | Len Woods (Vic) |
1931 | 2 laps | Melbourne Motordrome | Harold Hastings (Qld) | Max Grosskreutz (Qld) | Frank Duckett (SA) |
1931 | 4 laps | Bathurst Sports Ground | Harold Murdoch (NSW) | Ken Kirkman (NSW) | Bruce Webb (NSW) |
1931 | 6 laps | Wayville Showgrounds | Ray Tauscher () | Jack Hanson (SA) | Laurie Packer (SA) |
1932 | 2 laps | Cumberland Oval | Wally Little (NSW) | Ken Kirkman (NSW) | Jim McMahon (NSW) |
1932 | 3 laps | Wayville Showgrounds | Arnie Hansen (SA) | Max Grosskreutz (Qld) | Dick Wise (SA) |
1932 | 4 laps | Exhibition Speedway | Bill Rogers (NSW) | Lionel Davey (Qld) | Frank Apted (Vic) |
1933 | Exhibition Speedway | Larry Boulton () | Bert Spencer (Qld) | Jack Bibby (Vic) | |
1934 | Brisbane Exhibition Ground | Vic Huxley (Qld) | George Greenwood () | Frank Arthur (NSW) | |
1935 | Sydney Showground | Bluey Wilkinson (NSW) | Tiger Stevenson () | Frank Varey () | |
1936 | Sydney Showground | Max Grosskreutz (Qld) | Vic Huxley (Qld) | Jack Milne () | |
1937 | Sydney Showground | Jack Milne () | Wilbur Lamoreaux () | Vic Duggan (NSW) | |
1938 | 3 laps | Sydney Showground | Bluey Wilkinson (NSW) | Jack Milne () | Joe Abbott () |
1938 | 4 laps | Sydney Showground | Bluey Wilkinson (NSW) | Wilbur Lamoreaux () | Clem Mitchell (SA) |
1938 | 5 laps | Camden Motordrome | Jack Parker () | Cordy Milne () | Frank Woodroofe (SA) |
1939 not held | |||||
1940 | Sydney Showground | Cordy Milne () | Vic Duggan (NSW) | Lionel Van Praag (NSW) | |
1941 | Sydney Sports Ground | Vic Duggan (NSW) | Lionel Van Praag (NSW) | Max Grosskreutz (Qld) | |
1942-1945 not held | |||||
1946 | Sydney Sports Ground | Frank Dolan | Lionel Van Praag (NSW) | Bill Rogers (NSW) | |
1947 | 2 laps | Tracey's Speedway | Bill Rogers (NSW) | Lionel Van Praag (NSW) | Aub Lawson (NSW) |
1947 | 3 laps | Sydney Sports Ground | Vic Duggan (NSW) | Lionel Van Praag (NSW) | Ray Duggan (NSW) |
1947 | 4 laps | Brisbane Exhibition Ground | Andy Menzies (Vic) | Charlie Spinks (Qld) | Keith Cox (Qld) |
1948 | 2 laps | Sydney Showground | Vic Duggan (NSW) | Max Grosskreutz (Qld) | Bill Melluish |
1948 | 3 laps | Sydney Sports Ground | Vic Duggan (NSW)[7] | Norman Parker () | Max Grosskreutz (Qld) |
1948 | 2 laps | Sydney Showground | Vic Duggan (NSW) | Aub Lawson (NSW) | Ray Duggan (NSW) Alec Statham () |
1949 | 2 laps | Sydney Showground | Aub Lawson (NSW) | Jack Biggs (Vic) | Graham Warren (Qld) Eric Chitty () |
1949 | 4 laps | Brisbane Exhibition Ground | Aub Lawson (NSW) | Bill Rogers (NSW) | Charlie Spinks (Qld) |
1950 | 2 laps | Sydney Sports Ground | Aub Lawson (NSW) | Graham Warren (Qld) | Jack Biggs (Vic) |
1950 | 3 laps | Tracey's Speedway | Bill Kitchen () | Bill Longley (Vic) | Aub Lawson (NSW) Jack Biggs (Vic) |
1950 | 4 laps | Sydney Showground | Jack Parker () | Aub Lawson (NSW) | Bill Longley (Vic) |
1950 | cofc | Sydney Sports Ground | Aub Lawson (NSW) | Jack Parker () | Jack Biggs (Vic) |
1951 | 3 laps | Sydney Showground | Jack Parker () | Keith Ryan (NSW) | Aub Lawson (NSW) |
1951 | 4 laps | Sydney Sports Ground | Jack Parker () | Aub Lawson (NSW) Tommy Miller () | |
1951 | cofc | Brisbane Exhibition Ground | Jack Parker () | Aub Lawson (NSW) | Tommy Miller () |
1952 | 2 laps | Maitland Showground | Keith Ryan (NSW) | Aub Lawson (NSW) Lionel Levy (NSW) | |
1952 | 3 laps | Sydney Showground | Keith Ryan (NSW) | Jack Parker () Lionel Levy (NSW) | |
1952 | 4 laps | Sydney Sports Ground | Lionel Levy (NSW) | Aub Lawson (NSW) | Jack Parker () |
1952 | cofc | Brisbane Exhibition Ground | Aub Lawson (NSW) | Lionel Levy (NSW) | Keith Ryan (NSW) |
1953 | 3 laps | Sydney Showground | Aub Lawson (NSW) | Lionel Levy (NSW) | Allan Quinn (NSW) |
1953 | 4 laps | Sydney Sports Ground | Lionel Levy (NSW) | Aub Lawson (NSW) | Don Lawson (NSW) |
1953 | cofc | Brisbane Exhibition Ground | Aub Lawson (NSW) | Lionel Levy (NSW) | Keith Ryan (NSW) |
1954 | 3 laps | Sydney Sports Ground | Aub Lawson (NSW) | Ken McKinlay () | Lionel Levy (NSW) |
1954 | cofc | Sydney Sports Ground | Aub Lawson (NSW) | Lionel Levy (NSW) | Rune Sörmander () |
Key
- cofc (Champion of champions)
Single championship
Medals classification (2 or more titles)
Pos | Rider | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | Leigh Adams | 10 | 4 | 1 |
2. | Aub Lawson | 9 | 7 | 3 |
3. | Billy Sanders | 6 | 1 | 3 |
4. | Jack Parker | 5 | 2 | 1 |
5. | Vic Duggan | 5 | 1 | 1 |
Chris Holder | 5 | 1 | 1 | |
7. | Phil Crump | 4 | 4 | 1 |
8. | Jim Airey | 4 | ||
9. | Craig Boyce | 3 | 1 | |
10. | Max Fricke | 3 | 3 | |
11. | Bluey Wilkinson | 3 | ||
12. | Lionel Levy | 2 | 6 | 1 |
13. | Jason Crump | 2 | 3 | 2 |
14. | John Boulger | 2 | 2 | 2 |
Todd Wiltshire | 2 | 2 | 2 | |
16. | Max Grosskreutz | 2 | 2 | |
17. | Keith Ryan | 2 | 1 | 2 |
18. | Glenn Doyle | 2 | 1 | |
19. | Pat Hamilton | 2 | ||
Sig Schlam | 2 | |||
Bob Sharp | 2 |
See also
- Motorsport in Australia
- New South Wales Individual Speedway Championship
- Western Australian Individual Speedway Championship
- Victorian Individual Speedway Championship
- South Australian Individual Speedway Championship
- Queensland Solo Championship
Statistics
- Jack Milne of the USA won the 1937 Australian Championship and later that year won the 1937 World Championship. Bluey Wilkinson won the 3 & 4 Lap Australian Championships in 1938 before also going on to win the World Championship later that year, Chris Holder also won both the 2012 Australian and World Championships.
- Leigh Adams was the reigning Under-21 World Champion when he won his second straight Australian title in 1993. Jason Crump would win his first Australian title in 1995 and later that year won the 1995 U/21 World Championship.
- Adams also became the first reigning Australian Under-21 Champion to win the senior title when he won his first championship in 1992. Chris Holder became just the second rider to hold both titles at the same time in 2008
- Phil and Jason Crump are the only father/son combination to win the Australian Solo Championship.
- Billy Sanders holds the record for most title wins in a row, winning four in a row from 1980 to 1983. Sanders also won in 1978 and 1985 giving him 6 titles in 8 years, but lost his title in both 1979 and 1984 to Phil Crump. Vic Duggan (1941, 1947, 1948 [x3]) and Chris Holder (2008, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2014) have both won 5 Australian Championships.
- Leigh Adams holds the record for most title wins overall with 10. Aub Lawson holds the record for most podiums with 19 between 1947 and 1954. Lawson's total includes his record of 4 wins in the Champion of Champions (1950, 1952, 1953 and 1954) and his second place in the 1951 Champion of Champions.
- Mildura rider Jason Lyons holds the dubious record of having finished second the most number of times (5 - 1993, 1994, 1998, 1999 & 2005) without ever having won the Australian Championship.
- The winner of the Championship receives the Billy Sanders Memorial Trophy, named after the speedway rider Billy Sanders.
References
- ^ "Individual Australian Championship". Historia Sportu Zuzlowego. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
- ^ "Australian Speedway Championship Results". Australian Speedway Championship. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
- ^ "The Australian Solo Championship". Vintage Speedway. Retrieved 18 February 2024.
- ^ "Indywidualne Mistrzostwa Australii". Speedway Fansite. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
- ^ "1965 World Championship". Metal Speedway. Retrieved 20 February 2024.
- ^ "1965 World Championship". Speedway.org. Retrieved 20 February 2024.
- ^ "Norman Parker back in form in Championship". South Western Star. 30 January 1948. Retrieved 10 November 2023 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- ^ Oakes, Peter (1981). 1981 Speedway Yearbook. Studio Publications (Ipswich) Ltd. p. 91. ISBN 0-86215-017-5.
- ^ Oakes, Peter (1990). Speedway Yearbook 1990. Front Page Books. p. 10. ISBN 0-948882-15-8.
- ^ "Aussie Title for Batchelor Archived 2013-03-15 at the Wayback Machine", speedway365.com, 12 January 2013. Retrieved 12 January 2013
- ^ Hartshorn, Michael (2015) "Jason Doyle claims Aussie title as Hunter riders dominate final round at Kurri Kurri Speedway", Maitland Mercury, 10 January 2015. Retrieved 10 January 2015
- ^ "Confusing end to Aussie title - Brady Kurtz declared Australian solo speedway champion", Mildura Independent, 10 January 2016. Retrieved 10 January 2016
- ^ "Sam Masters Storms to Aussie Gold", Speedway Grand Prix, 14 January 2017. Retrieved 14 January 2017
- ^ "Tungate Lands First Aussie Title", Speedway Grand Prix, 14 January 2018. Retrieved 14 January 2018
- ^ "Fricke indywidualnym mistrzem Australii! W nagrodę pojedzie w Grand Prix", Gazeta Wrocławska, 12 January 2019. Retrieved 12 January 2019
- ^ "https://www.speedwaygp.com/news/article/8039/fricke-celebrates-aussie-title-double"/Fricke Celebrates Aussie Title Double, 14 January 2020. Retrieved 14 January 2020
- ^ "2020 Australian Solo Speedway Championship Series". Australian Speedway Championship. Retrieved 4 August 2021.
- ^ "Max Fricke retains the Australian Solo Championship". Gillman Speedway. Retrieved 20 January 2023.
- ^ "Holder is Aussie Champ". British Speedway. Retrieved 17 January 2023.
- ^ "Jack Holder set for Aussie title defence in January". FIM Speedway. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
- ^ "2024 AUSTRALIAN SENIOR SOLO CHAMPIONSHIP". australianspeedwaychampionships. Retrieved 11 January 2024.
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