The 1933 Australian Grand Prix was a motor race held at the Phillip Island circuit in Victoria, Australia on 20 March 1933. Organised by the Light Car of Australia, it was the sixth Australian Grand Prix and the sixth to be held at Phillip Island. The race, which was the most important annual car competition in Australia, was open to cars of up to 2300cc engine capacity, the 2000cc limit of previous years having been increased for 1933.
The Grand Prix was won by Bill Thompson driving a Riley Brooklands. Thompson's win was his third Australian Grand Prix victory.
Race format
The Grand Prix was staged as a handicap race with the first car, the Austin of Ken McKinney, scheduled to start 35 minutes before the last car, the Bugatti of Bill Williamson. McKinney was subsequently re-handicapped to 32 minutes. As Williamson's car was withdrawn prior to the race, the Bugatti of Arthur Terdich (off six minutes) was the last car to start.
Race classification
Position | Driver | No. | Car | Entrant | Handicap (minutes) |
Laps |
1 | Bill Thompson | 5 | Riley Brooklands | W Thompson | 8 | 31 |
2 | Harold Drake-Richmond | 12 | Bugatti Type 37 | H Drake-Richmond | 16 | 31 |
3 | Les Jennings | 19 | MG Magna | L Jennings | 24 | 31 |
4 | Clarrie May | 16 | Austin 7 | Austin Distributors P/L | 19 | 31 |
5 | Ken McKinney | 20 | Austin 7 | K McKinney | 32 | 31 |
6 | Bill Lowe | 14 | Lombard | WH Lowe | 16 | 31 |
FO | Norman Putt & Jack Clements (relief driver) |
10 | Bugatti Type 37 | Britannia Motors P/L | 14 | 31 |
DNF | Neil Gullifer | 6 | Ballot | Britannia Motors P/L | 10 | 24 |
DNF | Carl Junker | 7 | Bugatti Type 39 | EG McKay | 12 | 24 |
DNF | Merton Wreford | 8 | Bugatti Type 39 | M Wreford | 12 | 20 |
DNF | Geoff Disher | 17 | Salmson | G Disher | 21 | 9 |
DNF | Jack McGrath | 11 | Bugatti Type 37 | J McGrath | 14 | 6 |
DNF | Cec Warren | 9 | Bugatti Type 37 | Britannia Motors P/L | 12 | 4 |
DNF | Arthur Terdich | 2 | Bugatti Type 37A | AJ Terdich | 6 | 1 |
DNF | Wally Mullett | 15 | Lea-Francis | Britannia Motors P/L | 16 | 1 |
DNS | Bill Williamson | 1 | Bugatti Type 43 | LG Jackson | Scratch | - |
DNS | Doug Shepherd | 3 | Frazer Nash | DF Shepherd | 7 | - |
DNS | Jack Clements | 4 | Bugatti Type 38 | J Clements | 8 | - |
DNS | Alan Chamberlain | 18 | Chamberlain | A Chamberlain | 23 | - |
Key
- FO: Flagged off. (completed the full race distance but not within the allocated time limit)
- DNF: Did not finish
- DNS: Did not start
Notes
- Race distance: 324.280 km (31 laps x 10.478 km)
- Winner's race time: 3h 9m 05s (102.90 km/h)
- Only six cars completed the course within the allotted time limit.
- Fastest Time: Bill Thompson, 2h 45m 51s
- Fastest lap: Merton Wreford
References
- ^ John Blanden, 1933 Australian Grand Prix, A History Of Australian Grand Prix 1928-1939, pages 91 to 100
- ^ Australian Grand Prix - Mr. W. B. Thompson's Success, Sydney Morning Herald, Thursday March 23 1933, page 5, trove.nla.gov.au Retrieved on 4 March 2014
- ^ 1933 Grands Prix, www.teamdan.com, as archived at web.archive.org
- ^ 1933 - Bill Thompson, Riley Brooklands, The Official 50-race history of the Australian Grand Prix, pages 60 to 65
- ^ The Official History of the Australian Grand Prix - 80 Races, Chevron, ISBN 9780958846400, page 61
- ^ Kent Patrick, Bill Thompson - Australian motor racing champion, 2011, page 193
External links
- Australian Grand Prix, Sunday Times, Sunday, 12 March 1933, Page 8, as archived at trove.nla.gov.au
- Grand Prix. Won by a Riley. The Sydney Morning Herald, Tuesday, 21 Mar 1933, Page 9, as archived at trove.nla.gov.au
- Motor Racing at Cowes, The Argus, Tuesday 21 March 1933, as archived at trove.nla.gov.au
- Thompson wins his third Grand Prix, The Referee, Wednesday, 22 March 1933, Page 1, as archived at trove.nla.gov.au
- Australian Grand Prix is on Again: Bill Thompson wins 200 miles handicap on Philip Island course (video), www.gettyimages.com.au, as archived at web.archive.org
Preceded by1932 Australian Grand Prix | Australian Grand Prix 1933 |
Succeeded by1934 Australian Grand Prix |