The Wellington Street Races

Why, you might ask, would the street races of Wellington in New Zealand be of interest to those not on the North Island, let alone outside Oceania? Yet open any page of this 240-pager and you’ll be greeted by the names Steve Soper, Klaus Ludwig, Peter Brock, Dick Johnson, Emanuele Pirro… Not forgetting Jim Richards.

It was the local answer to the Birmingham Super Prix but more of a success, though no less forgotten. Its maiden race, in ’85, was the first Group A encounter in Australasia and the last a V8 Supercars contest in ’96, and it was a feature of the inaugural WTCC. There are gems in every chapter – setting out its stall with Denny Hulme painting track lines and Tom Walkinshaw having nowhere to stay in the debut year.

It’s brilliantly researched, with key driver profiles, race classification capping each chapter, and excellent photos featuring Group A regulars BMW M3, Ford Sierra and ‘Flying Brick’ Volvo 240T, plus interesting locals such as the Holden Commodore. A surprising delight. JP NZ$49.99 Richard Mcgee, Bateman Books. ISBN 9781988538334