BROADCAST
YEAH, we say the same thing every year, but what an incredible field of finalists we have assembled for the 2020 running of Valvoline Street Machine Of The Year! The award has an incredibly rich history – we’ve been doing it every year since 1988 – and past winners have included legendary Aussie car crafters like Ron Barclay, Howard Astill, Gary Myers and Peter Fitzpatrick to name but a few.
It’s also rich in terms of cold, hard dollarydoos, with the winner earning themselves a massive $20,000 from the legends at Valvoline, as well as having their name etched into the most iconic dust collector in Aussie street machining.
The SMOTY winner has always been determined by popular vote, and the prize you can win for playing your part in the democratic process ain’t half bad, either. Just by having your say, you could score yourself a VIP trip for two to Street Machine Summernats 34 in the ACT, including return flights, accommodation, Platinum event passes, $1000 spending money and a tonne of SM swag.
The winner also picks up two of the hottest tickets in town to attend our SMOTY VIP party, again courtesy of Valvoline. It’s a moneycan’t-buy opportunity to rub shoulders with the biggest hitters in the industry, and better yet, there’s free beer.
How do you get involved? Turn to page 38 and check out the 16 finalists, as voted by Street Machine staff and contributors. I guarantee you’ll find something in the mix that floats your boat, because there’s everything from corner-carving pro tourers to headkicking pro streeters, mirrors-on-the-ground showstoppers, street cars, purpose-built Drag Challenge weapons, skid cars, straightliners and – somewhat eerily given the events of 2020 – even a Toyota Corona!
Once you’ve chosen your favourite – and it might take a while – visit smoty.com.au to register your vote. Voting closes 25 September, so don’t hang about!
All this SMOTY talk has me reminiscing about the day I got to surprise Sydneysider
WE HOPE MATT MORGILLO HAS ENJOYED THE PAST 12 MONTHS AS SMOTY CHAMPION, BUT NOW WE’RE GOING TO NEED THAT TROPHY BACK!
Ben Judd with the trophy when he won the award in 2018. As the only Nsw-based SM staffer at the time, the responsibility fell to me and snapper Chris Thorogood, and it was an experience I’ll never forget. The look on Ben’s face when the penny dropped was priceless, and spoke volumes for the esteem in which Aussie street machiners hold this all-important award.
And congratulations again to South Aussie Matt Morgillo, who won SMOTY last year with his prodigiously tough big-block Statesman. We hope you’ve enjoyed the past 12 months as SMOTY champion, mate, but I’m afraid I have some bad news for you: We’re going to need that trophy back!