Reunion celebrates Richards/Skaife Bathurst wins
Gibson Motorsport has celebrated its back-to-back Bathurst wins in the early 1990s with a special reunion.
The Repco Bathurst 1000 is the next stop on the 2022 calendar.
This year’s race marks the 30th anniversary of Gibson’s second straight win with the Nissan GT-R.
Jim Richards and Mark Skaife combined to win the 1991 and 1992 races.
Gibson and Nissan were the powerhouses of the Australian Touring Car racing during the 1980s and 1990s.
The team won three ATCC titles in a row between 1990 and 1992; two for Richards, and one for Skaife.
Richards and Skaife, along with Fred and Christine Gibson, celebrated the anniversary at Shannons in Melbourne.
There, 200 former employees and friends also joined, with Gibson Nissans on display for the event.
"It was a team and a team effort,” Fred Gibson said of the wins.
“No one stands out and we’re all as equal. All going to do our job and do our job well.
“And I think that bonded together very well and the team was very successful.”
The Nissan era kicked off Skaife’s dominance of the Australian motorsport scene.
Skaife would leave for Holden and won four more titles and four more Great Races.
Skaife won the 1994 title in a Gibson Commodore.
Gibson Motorsport added another Bathurst win in 1999 with Jim’s son Steven and Greg Murphy.
Gibson, along with former Holden ace Craig Lowndes, made a high-profile defection to Ford in 2001.
The team evolved into 00 Motorsport before ceasing operations in 2003.
"The famous nature of what those cars mean to Australian motorsport, but especially to our group, is extraordinary,” the Supercars Hall of Famer said.
“And for Fred in particular, the cars are a very special part of the history of this sport, especially Nissan’s involvement in the game.”
Richards added: "You had guys who could do every job you needed to do.
"Fred and the boys reengineered the GT-R to become ‘Australianised’, you might say.
"So, it was a lot stronger and probably a quicker car than what the Japanese had.”
