1966 Australian Drivers' Championship
Introduction The '''1966 Australian Drivers' Championship''' was a CAMS sanctioned Australian motor racing title for drivers of racing cars complying with either the Australian National Formula or the Australian 1½ Litre Formula. The winner of the title, which was the tenth Australian Drivers' Championship, was awarded the 1966 CAMS Gold Star.The championship was won by Spencer Martin driving a Repco-Brabham BT11A Coventry Climax for Bob Jane Racing.
Calendar The Lotus 32B with which Greg Cusack won the Examiner 1000 at Symmons PlainsThe championship was contested over a six-round series with one race per round. Round Race  Circuit State Date Round winner Car 1 Governor's Trophy Lakeside Queensland 10 July Spencer Martin Repco Brabham BT11A Coventry Climax 2 Surfers Paradise Trophy Surfers Paradise Queensland 14 August Spencer Martin Repco Brabham BT11A Coventry Climax 3 Country Club Trophy Mallala South Australia 10 October John Harvey Repco Brabham BT14 Ford 4 Victorian Trophy Sandown Victoria 16 October Spencer Martin Repco Brabham BT11A Coventry Climax 5 Examiner 1000 Symmons Plains Tasmania 13 November Greg Cusack Lotus 32B Coventry Climax 6 Hordern Trophy Warwick Farm New South Wales 4 December Kevin Bartlett Repco Brabham BT11A Coventry ClimaxEach round also incorporated a round of the 1966 Australian One and a Half Litre Championship.
Points system Championship points were awarded on a 9-6-4-3-2-1 basis to the first six finishers in each round. Only the best five round results could be obtained by each driver.The championship was open to holders of a General Competition License issued by CAMS.
Results  Position Driver Car Entrant Lak. Sur. Mal. San. Sym. War. Total 1 Spencer Martin Repco-Brabham BT11A Coventry Climax Bob Jane Racing 9 9 - 9 - 6 '''33''' 2 John Harvey Repco-Brabham BT14 Ford RC Phillips  4 (1) 9 3 6 4 '''26''' 3 Kevin Bartlett Repco-Brabham BT11A Coventry Climax Alec Mildren Racing 6 - - 6 - 9 '''21''' 4 Greg Cusack Lotus 32B Coventry Climax Castrol Team - 4 - - 9 3 '''16''' 5 Mike Champion Repco-Brabham BT2 Ford Competition Cars - - 6 2 - 2 '''10''' 6 John MacDonald Cooper T70 Coventry Climax Bill Patterson Motors - 3 - 4 - - '''7''' 7 Leo Geoghegan Lotus 39 Coventry Climax Total Team - 6 - - - - '''6''' 8 Garrie Cooper Elfin Mono Mk2B Ford Elfin Sports Cars 3 2 - - - - '''5''' Mel McEwin Elfin Mono Mk1 Ford Mel McEwin 2 - - - 3 - '''5''' 10 Jack Hunnam Elfin Mono Mk1 Ford Jack Hunnam Motors - - 4 - - - '''4''' John McCormack Repco-Brabham BT4 Coventry Climax J McCormack - - - - 4 - '''4''' 12 Stan Keen Elfin Mono Mk1 Ford Stan Keen - - 3 - - - '''3''' Glyn Scott Lotus 27 Ford Glyn Scott Motors - - - - 2 1 '''3''' 14 Dean Rainsford Elfin Catalina Ford Tudor Accessories - - 2 - - - '''2''' 15 Ian Ferguson Elfin Catalina Ford Ian Ferguson 1 - - - - - '''1''' Jim Orr Austin Special Jim Orr - - 1 - - - '''1''' Bob Jane Elfin Mono Mk1 Ford Bob Jane Racing - - - 1 - - '''1''' Lyn Archer Elfin Catalina Ford L Archer Motors - - - - 1 - '''1'''Note:* Kerry Grant placed sixth at Lakeside  however the New Zealand driver  was not awarded championship points. * Roly Levis placed sixth at Surfers Paradise  however the New Zealand driver  was not awarded championship points. * Frank Gardner (Repco-Brabham) won the Hordern Trophy but was not awarded championship points as he was not classified as an "Australian Resident".
Notes and references
Further reading * Jim Shepherd, A History of Australian Motor Sport, 1980* Australian Motor Racing Annual, 1967* Martin the Master at Lakeside, Racing Car News, August 1966, pages 20–21* Martin Scores Magnificent Gold Star, Racing Car News, September 1966, pages 34–36* Harvey Wins by Large Margin, The Advertiser, 11 October 1966* Harvey Heads for 1½ Litre Title, Racing Car News, November 1966, page 34* Solid Sandown, Racing Car News, December 1966, page 18* Cusack's Luck Changes, Racing Car News, December 1966, pages 34–35* Spencer Martin – Australia's Champion, Racing Car News, January 1967, pages 28–29
External links * Australian Gold Star 1966, www.oldracingcars.com* 1966 Gold Star images, members.optusnet.com.au/dandsshaw, as archived at web.archive.org