It has evolved into one of the great ongoing battles in Australian Motorsport; Two thundering, awesome Sports Sedans going wheel to wheel at lap-record pace, driven by two fiercely driven competitors at the top of their game. In this feature, first published in 2014, Garry O’Brien investigated one of the most underrated yet compelling rivalries in the sport’s recent history.

WORDS: Garry O’Brien IMAGES: Nathan Wong

IT MIGHT have been a somewhat brief chapter in the history of Australian Sports Sedan Racing, but the promise of a clash between long-time rivals Tony Ricciardello and Darren Hossack always got the heart pumping and tongues wagging.

When both were racing, Sports Sedans at a national level was a far more enticing spectacle than when one or both were missing. More often than not, their racing has been close and uncompromising. There is respect too but that came after a dark period at the end of 2008 and into the 2009 season.

Their respective cars represent the finest in Sport Sedan technology. Ricciardello’s Alfa based spaceframe winged beast was built over 20 years ago but apart from the inherit chassis design of the period; it is as new as any other car out there.

Sports Sedan GOAT Ricciardello says it was all about refinement, chasing improvement in mere tenths of seconds rather than full seconds. Up against the Audi/Chev of Hossack, his car was better at places like Mallala and Wakefield Park, but not so on the fast circuits like Sydney Motorsport Park, Phillip Island and Sandown.

After racing a Chev-powered Saab for John Gourlay, Hossack garnered renewed interest in the category with the debut of the teams Audi A4 for the 2007 season – not only in its stunning look, its new chassis technology but also in the sound of the Chev V8 nestled somewhere near the front of the vehicle.

Hossack agrees with Ricciardello about the pros and cons of their respective mounts, but maintains that the Sydney circuit is probably where they would be most even.

“I am quick around Corporate Hill but if I am behind him, there is no way I can’t get past, whereas at Phillip Island he appears to be all arms and steering wheel while I am driving, virtually with my arm out the window.

“One thing for sure Tony’s car rotates better in the tighter corners – the one onto the old back straight at Winton is a great example of that,” Hossack said. “Better rotation means faster cornering and quicker exits.”

“There has been a strong rivalry between us for a while now, but Darren is not the first. We have had on-track clashes with the Monterossos’ and they are family friends, also with Kerry over the years,” Ricciardello offered.

LONG HISTORIES

Ricciardello and Hossack have been around the category a long time.

Ricciardello started in 1998, winning the championship at his first tilt in the Chev-powered Alfa Romeo which was prepared by his father Basil and had been driven successfully by Brian Smith.

Meanwhile Hossack who had been competing in the Australian Touring Car Championship and V8 Supercars, debuted in the ASSC in 2000 finishing fifth overall a Saab 900 Aero, with Chev V8 power, entered by now long-time mentor Gourlay. Hossack would eventually collect the gold for the first time in 2004.

Yet It was actually 2002 when they starting vying for the Sports Sedan title and finished first and second that year, albeit with a significant points spread between them.

“I knew of Darren from the V8s. We both raced at Bathurst in 1999,” Ricciardello said. “But in Sports Sedans we were racers and that was that.”

In the first seven years of the new millennium that is what they did, although Ricciardello had a year (2006) out racing in the V8 Supercars. He came back the following year and kicked off where he left off – by winning another title. Hossack in the meantime, split his time in karts and the speedway.

THE RIVALRY BUILDS

The 2008 season sparked the controversy: It was the final round at Sandown. With two races down and one to go, defending title holder Ricciardello and Hossack were locked together equal on points.

Ricciardello led at the start, had a little over a second’s advantage when there appeared to be some issues with leading Alfa. They rubbed panels in exchanging the lead and then Ricciardello had a further moment at turn three which caused further mechanical issues, ultimately relegating him to be the series runner up.

“Started off good, had the pace and pulling a gap and then at the end of the back straight through the sweeper, something happened to fourth gear – it started playing up. Then we had a little incident coming onto the front straight,” Ricciardello reported at the time.

“From there things got worse and we started picking up other gears. Then it jammed gears and became stuck in third for four laps. So anyway, one of those things we did as good as we could and ah, something let us down like that – it is part of motor racing,”

He was somewhat guarded, wanting to take the reserved attitude. Hossack on the other hand was expectedly elated, especially when the TV camera was shoved in his face.

“My brain is still out there on the track, I still can’t believe it,” he said at the time. “I mean everything was going on out there.

“First time Tony and I have rubbed . . . in probably eight years of racing. We went out there even on points and as far as I am concerned it was to be fibreglass that won the championship. Not saying was going to hit him but if it came down to it, and it did, um that is what had to be done.

“Unfortunately for him he has had some sort of issue but you know, we have had our bad luck too. What comes around goes around and whoever did the job this weekend was going to win. He was better at the start of the weekend and we were better when it counted,” he continued.

BOILING POINT

If the kettle was simmering then, it boiled over at Mallala six months later.

It was round one for an unusually late start to the 2009 season and again the third of three races. They shared the front row and there had been a shower across the circuit. Ricciardello led Hossack narrowly until midway through the race where they would clash at turn one.

After both ran off the road at turn seven – Hossack following Ricciardello wide – they ran side by side through the final chicane and along the front straight before the clash at turn one.

“Yeah, I came away quite heated after that one. There was a dry line which I was on, Darren went to go down the inside on the wet part of the track and understeered into me,” Ricciardello recalled.

“He was able to keep going and I went to the pits to see if we could fix the steering, and managed to finish ninth a couple of laps behind.”

A heated war of words followed in pit lane following the race, both with their own viewpoints.

“These days I would probably not say what I did at Sandown . . . and I still have my own opinion on what happened at Mallala,” Hossack admitted. “We don’t go out there to crash, not that it doesn’t happen or could happen again, but I don’t want to make enemies – it is all about having a good time.”

Time has moved on and since then, while they have diced fiercely on track, the relationship dramas of that period have eased.

“I think we both overdrove in those days but have matured with the realisation that we are not racing for sheep stations. We have to do this, get the cars home, repair and maintain them ourselves and then attend to our businesses and jobs,” Ricciardello confirmed.

“Back then we didn’t talk outside the cars. I don’t think we will ever be good friends but we talk, in the dead times at the track, about things other than motorsport,” Hossack added.

Interestingly the two men in the background, Basil Ricciardello and John Gourlay, seemed laid back and more forgiving than their respective racers.

It is apparent that these driving rivals have learnt more about themselves and each other as well as the other top contenders. While they have businesses to run, Ricciardello maintains that you have to be fully focused for the five weekends of the series, and you must block out outside distractions in order to do that.

Hossack summed it up: “We are not racing Formula One here and as John (Gourlay) has said in the past ‘the day this stops being fun is the day we stop doing it.”.