Pukekohe Raceway holds a special place in New Zealand motorsport history, with the first Grand Prix held there back in 1963 before the Australian Supercars started crossing the Tasman in 2001.
Following July’s announcement that Pukekohe Park will cease all motorsport activities from April next year – a decision made by owner Auckland Thoroughbred Racing to turn focus to hosting horses only from 2023 – Supercars confirmed Kiwi fans will get one last outing at the iconic circuit.
This weekend’s swansong hits home for many, but motorsport legend Kenny Smith isn’t letting it slow him down.
The 81-year-old, who first raced at Pukekohe in 1963, will return this weekend for one last ride in the Formula Ford class, seated in the same car Kiwi Craig Baird used to find success at the raceway in the 1980s.
“We wanted to do it because we were there at the beginning,” Smith told 1News.
“We may as well be there at the end - it'll be nice to finish it off. Started there, finish it off there.”
Smith went through a few tune-ups on Wednesday at Hampton Downs before the weekend of racing, which will likely be just as special for those both up in the stands and on the tarmac.
This weekend signals the end of an era for every petrolhead who's walked through Pukekohe's gates such as Supercars superfan Tracy Stenberg.
“My daughter will be going out with me again this year and for the first time we will be taking her four-year-old son as well so it'll be lovely that he can be part of the tradition before the tradition ends,” Stenberg said.
However, that tradition is much more than just a visit to the racetrack for Stenberg and her friends and family, the proud owners of a custom garage, fondly known as “The Pits”, painted red and blue for both Holden and Ford fans, and containing a Supercars collection decades in the making.
Among the memorabilia is a bumper off a Team Kiwi Racing Supercar from the 2000s that was saved from a crash and signed by late Kiwi Supercars favourite Jason Richards.
Richards, who died from cancer at 35 in 2011, spent 10 years in Supercars racing for Team Kiwi Racing, Team Dynamik, Tasman Motorsport and Brad Jones Racing, earning a race win at Winton and notching multiple impressive performances at Bathurst.
Two years after his death, the Jason Richards Memorial Trophy was introduced for the winner of the New Zealand round of the Supercars Championship which was first won by Jason Bright and Brad Jones Racing in 2013 - Richards' last teammate and team, respectively.
While Stenberg has enjoyed keeping the piece of Richards memorabilia, it won’t stay in The Pits for much longer as she is using the Pukekohe farewell as a chance to find it a new home for another motorsport supporter by putting it up for auction with all proceeds going to Bowel Cancer NZ.
“I thought I would put it up for auction for another fan to have the opportunity to enjoy,” she said.
Along with the bumper signed by Richards, a damaged front guard from a Team Kiwi Racing car is also included in the auction.
The auction runs until next Monday evening, a day after the chequered flag waves one last time for Smith, Stenberg and every other New Zealand motorsport fan that has sat on those Pukekohe banks.
SHARE ME