North Shore Times (New Zealand)
Rutherford wins on return to race seat
A North Shore pensioner has joined the growing list of Kiwi drivers who are having an impact on international motorsport this year.
Tony Rutherford, 66, from Northcote Point, is one of New Zealand’s latest international motor-racing champions.
After a nine-year break from racing, Rutherford got behind the wheel of a 1967 Ford Mustang and claimed the 2017 Australian Trans-Am Sportsman title.
In an unfamiliar car, on unfamiliar tracks in Queensland, Rutherford won four of the six rounds and came second in the other two rounds in the race category that pays tribute to the American Trans-Am Series of the late 60s and early 70s, catering for 2-door, 4-seat, rear-wheel drive, V8 American sedans built from 1963 to 1974.
Driving a car owned by Australian motorsport veteran John English, Rutherford had instant success in his first attempt at the championship, and he sewed up the title with a round to spare.
‘‘It wasn’t easy going, a few of the guys kept me honest, but they let a pensioner come over and take away the goods,’’ Rutherford said of his series win.
Rutherford has an extensive background in motorsport, from driving a Mazda RX2 Coupe to many records and championship wins during the 1980s, to involvement in rally driving and endurance racing. He has numerous titles to his name, be he remains a quiet achiever.
‘‘I grew up during a great era of motorsport,’’ he said. Now he believes he has the best job on the local scene, as New Zealand’s top safety car driver. For about 12 years, Rutherford has been leading drivers around the North Island’s race tracks in his role as safety car driver. Such is Rutherford’s dedication to the safety car responsibilities, he will miss the Australian Trans-Am awards evening as he will be in New Zealand working at the Australia Supercars Championship, when the ITM Auckland SuperSprint comes to Pukekohe in November.
After his successful return to racing, Rutherford said he is not finished yet. ‘‘It was good to get out there. You don’t ever lose the bug and I have shown I can still do it competitively,’’ the avid car collector and owner of Glenfield’s AutoShift Transmissions said. Rutherford’s next race could be at Phillip Island in late November.