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The Holden Dealer Racing Team was an Australian motor racing team, covertly backed by General Motors-Holden's through their dealer network so as to get around GM's world wide ban on the company being involved in motorsport. The HDRT contested the 1968 Hardie-Ferodo 500 endurance race at the Mount Panorama Circuit, Bathurst, as well as the 1968 London-Sydney Marathon using GMH's latest car, the Holden HK Monaro. Although short-lived, this team was significant as the precursor to a permanent Holden Dealer Team set up the following year which then played a dominant role in Australian touring car racing over the next two decades. ==1968 London–Sydney Marathon== In early 1968, the Holden Dealer Racing Team was set up by David McKay, who already ran the Scuderia Veloce race team in various forms of motor sport in Australia. A motoring journalist with Sydney's ''Daily Telegraph'' and ''Sunday Telegraph'' newspapers (both of which were owned by Sir Frank Packer), McKay learned of the upcoming London–Sydney Marathon which was sponsored by race organiser Sir Max Aitken and his UK newspaper, the ''Daily Express''. The marathon would begin on 24 November in Crystal Palace in London, and finish on 18 December at the Warwick Farm Raceway in Sydney. McKay convinced his own editor David McNicoll and Telegraph owner Packer to get involved in the event, which they did with co-sponsorship (it reportedly took less than 5 minutes to convince the astute Packer). McKay also convinced GMH to get involved by supplying him with three of the yet to be released Holden Monaros in which to run in the event. Contrary to popular belief at the time, the Monaros were actually prepared for the 7,000 mi Marathon that would travel through eleven countries by GMH under the supervision of its Sales Director John Bagshaw and chief engineer Bill Steinhagen, and not by Scuderia Veloce. Also, the cars would not be entered under the name of Scuderia Veloce or the Holden Dealer Racing Team, but instead were entered in the event under the name of their major sponsor, The Sydney Telegraph, with the words "Sydney Telegraph Racing" prominently painted on the side of the cars. While the team did not feature strongly in the results due to mechanical woes, the team's second car driven by leading Australian Rally Championship driver Barry Ferguson finished 12th outright, while the 3rd car driven by triple Australian Grand Prix winner Doug Whiteford finished 14th. The Monaro driven by team leader David McKay failed to finish the marathon. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Holden Dealer Racing Team」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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