John Goss OAM, Remo Luciani, Victor Bray and the late Joan Richmond are the latest set of accomplished individuals to be inducted into the Australian Motorsport Hall of Fame.
The quartet were officially announced as the newest members of the prestigious club in front of a strong crowd at this year’s Formula 1 Rolex Australian Grand Prix with Australian Motorsport Hall of Fame Legend Mick Doohan in attendance to present the medallions.
All four have contributed greatly to the sport with Goss and Richmond having excelled in car racing, Luciani in karting and Bray in drag racing.
Goss would be familiar to many racing fans due to being the only driver in history to have won both an Australian Grand Prix and a Bathurst 1000.
His first major trophy came in 1974 when he won the Bathurst 1000 behind the wheel of a Ford Falcon XA GT alongside Kevin Bartlett before repeating the feat 11 years later when he and Armin Hahne guided the Tom Walkinshaw Racing prepared Jaguar XJ-S to Bathurst victory in 1985.
Just two years after he claimed his first major crown in 1974, Goss made history by claiming victory in the 1976 Australian Grand Prix over Vern Schuppa by five tenths of a second.
Richmond’s success may not have been as unique as Goss’, but her impact on the sport was just as significant as she was a pioneer for not just women, but for Australian international motorsport.
Amassing race wins in Australia, the UK and around the world, Richmond’s first major notable triumph came in 1932, where English ace Elsie Wisdom won the first ever Brooklands 1000 motor race.
A works driver for Riley, Singer, Triumph, MG, Aston Martin, HRG and AC throughout her career, she was part of MG’s class winning 1935 Le Mans 24 Hour team and competed in seven Monte Carlo Rallies.
Unfortunately, Richmond passed away in 1999, with her medallion accepted by representatives from the National Museum of Australia.
Unlike Goss and Richmond, Luciani and Bray didn’t have as much success on an international scale but were highly accomplished on home soil.
For Luciani, the 62-year-old active veteran picked up seven national Karting titles over his career, the NS Karting Championship and amassed over 70 state titles.
A late starter to karting, Luciani began first raced at 21-years-old and showcased a natural talent for the sport, which ultimately contributed to his decision to stay in karting for what has been a highly successful career.
As for Bray, one of his most notable achievements was being the first driver to break the six second barrier in the Australian National Drag Racing Association’s annual National Top Doorslammer Drag Racing Championship competition.
Bray was also instrumental in getting the popular competition recognised as a national event before going on to win the first six titles in consecutive years.
The four inductees join just 84 Australian motorsport in the Hall of Fame, whose achievements over a 123-year period have contributed to the rich history of Australian motorsport.
The exclusive Hall of Fame now consists of 81 competitors and seven administrators, promoters, and broadcasters.