+20 Bottas, Brabham & Co. turn heads in Adelaide
The cars were impressive, the stars just as well. With Valtteri Bottas, Hayden Paddon, David Brabham and Stefan Johansson showing up, the Adelaide Motorsport Festival proved a big hit.
The Adelaide Motorsport Festival got off on the wrong foot with a heavy crash by Josh Kean. He was lucky to walk away unharmed, but his 1994 Footwork FA15 Formula 1 was seriously damaged in the accident.
Bottas slides
Luckily, this would prove to be the only big mishap for the Festival, which saw seventeen categories with race cars ranging from Group A over V8 Supercars to F1s. They all drove 10 to 15-minute demo sessions, both in wet conditions and in the dry. One man who appeared to particularly enjoy himself was Alfa Romeo F1 driver Valtteri Bottas, who slid both an Alfa Romeo GTV Group A touring car around the track, and the 2016 Bathurst 1000-winning Holden VF Commodore V8 Supercar.
Brabham show
Stefan Johansson appeared behind the wheel of the Ferrari 156/85 he campaigned in the 1985 Formula 1 season. Craig Lowndes joined him in a 1986 Benetton B186 BMW on the track. And David Brabham and Sam Brabham drove their respective dad and granddad’s 1966 F1-title-winning Brabham BT19 in a Repco demo class. Coincidentally, the last Brabham F1 to score a podium finish – the 1989 Brabham BT58 – was in Adelaide as well, as was the last Brabham F1: the 1992 Brabham BT60B.
See you in 2024
With over 200 cars in action over the course of three days, the 2023 Adelaide Motorsport Festival made a successful return after a four-year hiatus. You can see Vallteri Bottas in action behind the wheel of the Alfa and the Holden. The next edition of the Adelaide Motorsport Festival has just been confirmed for 2024, again taking place in the weekend before the Formula 1 Grand Prix. More info on the event here.
