The 1972 New Zealand Grand Prix was a race held at the Pukekohe Park Raceway on 8 January 1972. The race had 20 starters.
| 1972 New Zealand Grand Prix | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 1 of 7 in 1972 Tasman Series | |||
.png) | |||
| Race details | |||
| Date | 8 January 1972 | ||
| Location | Pukekohe Park Raceway, Pukekohe, New Zealand | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 2.82 km (1.76 miles) | ||
| Distance | 58 laps, 164 km (102 miles) | ||
| Weather | Light Cloud | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Leda-Chevrolet | ||
| Time | 55.2 | ||
| Fastest lap | |||
| Driver |
 Frank Gardner | Lola-Chevrolet | |
| Time | 56.9 | ||
| Podium | |||
| First | Lola-Chevrolet | ||
| Second | Surtees-Chevrolet | ||
| Third | McLaren-Chevrolet | ||
It was the 18th New Zealand Grand Prix, and doubled as the first round of the 1972 Tasman Series. Australian Frank Gardner won his first NZGP in his McLaren Formula 5000 ahead of British Grand Prix motorcycle racing champion Mike Hailwood. The first New Zealand driver to finish was Robbie Francevic in the McLaren Formula 5000 who came in 9th place.
The race saw the death of Bryan Faloon who died after an accident on the back straight with Graeme Lawrence in the closing laps of the race.
Classification edit
| Pos | No. | Driver | Team | Car | Laps | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Frank Gardner
|
Lola Cars Ltd. | Lola T300 / Chevrolet 4995cc V8 | 58 | 57min 16.5sec |
| 2 | 2 |  Mike Hailwood
|
Team Surtees | Surtees TS8A / Chevrolet 4995cc V8 | 58 | + 27.0 s |
| 3 | 10 | David Hobbs
|
Hobbs Racing London | McLaren M18/M22 / Chevrolet 4995cc V8 | 58 | + 31.1 s |
| 4 | 5 | Kevin Bartlett
|
Kevin Bartlett Shell Racing | McLaren M10B / Chevrolet 4995cc V8 | 58 | + 31.5 s |
| 5 | 6 | Max Stewart
|
Max Stewart Motors | Elfin MR5 / Repco 4994cc V8 | 58 | + 37.6 s |
| 6 | 34 |  Teddy Pilette
|
Racing Team V.D.S. | McLaren M10B / Chevrolet 4995cc V8 | 58 | + 1:04.3 s |
| 7 | 29 | John McCormack
|
Elfin Sports Cars | Elfin MR5 / Repco 4994cc V8 | 57 | + 1 Lap |
| 8 | 7 |  Evan Noyes
|
Gemco Racing | McLaren M18 / Chevrolet 4995cc V8 | 56 | + 2 Laps |
| 9 | 60 |  Robbie Francevic
|
Wright Machinery | McLaren M10A / Chevrolet 4995cc V8 | 55 | + 3 Laps |
| 10 | 10 | Graham McRae
|
Crown Lynn | Leda GM1 / Chevrolet 4995cc V8 | 49 | + 9 Laps |
| 11 | 11 | Ken Smith
|
Air New Zealand Motor Racing | Lotus 69B / Hart 1860cc 4cyl | 49 | + 9 Laps |
| 12 | 16 | Peter Hughes
|
Town & Country Cars Ltd. | Begg FM2 / Chevrolet 4945cc V8 | 48 | + 10 Laps |
| 13 | 10 | Garrie Cooper
|
Crown Lynn | Elfin MR5 / Repco Holden 4994cc V8 | 48 | + 10 Laps |
| Ret | 18 | David Oxton
|
G.N. Begg Engineering Co. Ltd. | Begg FM4 / Chevrolet 4945cc V8 | 53 | Hit Debris |
| Ret | 14 | Graeme Lawrence
|
Lawrence Racing | Lola T300 / Chevrolet 4995cc V8 | 52 | Accident |
| Ret | 57 | Bryan Faloon
|
Stanton Motors Ltd. | Stanton 1 / Porsche 1981cc 8cyl | 51 | Fatal Accident |
| Ret | 30 |  David McConnell
|
D.W.M. Racing Ltd. | Begg FM4 / Chevrolet 4945cc V8 | 48 | Retired |
| Ret | 88 | Frank Radisich
|
Henderson Central Motors Ltd. | Begg FM4 / Chevrolet 4945cc V8 | 40 | Engine |
| Ret | 3 | Frank Matich
|
Frank Matich Racing Pty. Ltd. | McLaren M10B / Repco 4994cc V8 | 19 | Engine |
| Ret | 12 | Baron Robertson
|
Robertson Racing | Matich A50 / Repco 4994cc V8 | 2 | Engine |
| DNA | 32 | Allan Moffat
|
Allan Moffat Motor Racing Co. | unknown | Did Not Arrive | |
| Source(s):[1][2] | ||||||
References edit
- ^ "1972 Round 1 Pukekohe". sergent.com.au. Retrieved 27 October 2015.
- ^ "New Zealand Grand Prix – Pukekohe, 8 Jan 1972". oldracingcars.com. Retrieved 27 October 2015.