# Pukekohe 500

The Pukekohe 500 was an endurance motor racing event first held in 1963 at Pukekohe Park Raceway, Pukekohe, New Zealand.

## History

The Pukekohe 500 had its origins in the Wills Six-Hour race that was first held in 1963 as a production car race, soon after the circuit opened. From 1967, the event mandated that New Zealand-built production cars can only be entered into the race. Through the first decades of the race, the event became recognised as the second most significant race on the New Zealand motorsport calendar behind the New Zealand Grand Prix. In the early 1980s, a three race endurance series was held with races also at Bay Park Raceway and Manfeild.
In the mid 1980s, the race rose to international prominence when it adopted Group A touring car regulations and was linked with the Wellington 500 street race. The two races attracted Group A racing teams from Australia, Europe and Asia though until the end of the Group A era in the early 1990s. The 1988 round was part of the Asia-Pacific Touring Car Championship with Wellington, the Bathurst 1000 in Australia and the Fuji 500. The 1993 and 1994 events were held to Super Touring regulations before dropping off the calendar altogether with the demise of the Wellington 500.
From 2001, the predominant touring car event at Pukekohe was superseded by the Auckland SuperSprint, a round of the Australian Supercars Championship series held at the circuit. However, the Pukekohe 500 name was revived in 2012 as a V8SuperTourer endurance event, albeit held over three races. The meeting proved popular with large crowds attending. Greg Murphy rekindled his success from the V8 Supercars era at Pukekohe by winning two of the three races. The V8SuperTourer series folded in 2015 and with it the running of the Pukekohe 500.
The event was revived in 2019 as a production event. In 2020, Mark Leonard and Peter Sprague, descendants of Leo Leonard and Ernie and Gary Sprague who won the race a combined 14 times, entered the race. After the 2021 race was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the event was held for a final time in 2022 prior to the circuit's closure in 2023.

## Winners

| Year | Driver/s | Car | Team | Report |
| Six hours |||||
| 1963 | Ray Archibald Tony Shelly | Jaguar Mark 2 | | |
| 1964 | Jim Palmer Paul Fahey | Lotus Cortina | | |
| 1965 | John Ward Rod Coppins | Jaguar Mark 2 | | |
| 1966 | Ray Archibald Tony Shelly | Jaguar Mark 2 | | |
| 1967 | Ernie Sprague Gary Sprague | Ford Zodiac | | |
| 500 miles |||||
| 1968 | Leo Leonard Brent Hawes | Vauxhall Victor | | |
| 1969 | Leo Leonard Ernie Sprague | Vauxhall Victor | | |
| 1970 | Leo Leonard Ernie Sprague | Chrysler Valiant | | |
| 1971 | Leo Leonard Graeme Richardt | Chrysler Valiant | | |
| 1972 | Jim Richards Rod Coppins | Chrysler Valiant Charger | | |
| 1973 | Jim Richards Rod Coppins | Chrysler Valiant Charger | | |
| 1974 | Wayne Wilkinson Brian Innes | Chrysler Valiant Charger | | |
| 1000 kilometres |||||
| 1975 | Leo Leonard Gary Sprague | Chrysler Valiant Charger | | |
| 1976 | Jim Little Graeme Richardt | Chrysler Valiant Charger | | |
| 1977 | Leo Leonard Ernie Sprague | Chrysler Valiant Charger | | |
| 1978 | Wayne Wilkinson Roy Harrington | Chrysler Valiant Charger | | |
| 1979 | Rod Coppins Jerry Clayton | Volkswagen Golf Mk1 | | |
| 1980 | Rod Coppins Jerry Clayton | Holden VB Commodore | | |
| 250 miles |||||
| 1981 | Leo Leonard Gary Sprague | Ford Fairmont | | |
| 1982 | Wayne Wilkinson Neville Crichton | Holden VH Commodore | | |
| 1983 | Denny Hulme Ray Smith | Holden VH Commodore | | |
| 1984 | Kent Baigent Neal Lowe | BMW 635 CSi | H. Kent Baigent | |
| 1985 | Neville Crichton Wayne Wilkinson | BMW 635 CSi | John Andrew Motorsport | Report |
| 1986 | John Harvey Neal Lowe | Holden VK Commodore SS Group A | Holden Dealer Team | |
| 1987 | Larry Perkins Denny Hulme | Holden VK Commodore SS Group A | Perkins Engineering | |
| 1987 | Gianfranco Brancatelli Allan Grice | BMW M3 | Mark Petch Motorsport | |
| 1988 | Andrew Miedecke Steve Soper | Ford Sierra RS500 | Miedecke Motorsport | |
| 1989 | Dick Johnson John Bowe | Ford Sierra RS500 | Dick Johnson Racing | |
| 1990 | Peter Brock Andrew Miedecke | Ford Sierra RS500 | Mobil 1 Racing | |
| 1991 | Jim Richards Mark Skaife | Nissan Skyline R32 GT-R | Gibson Motorsport | |
| 1992 | Emanuele Pirro Joachim Winkelhock | BMW M3 Evolution | Schnitzer Motorsport | |
| 1993 | Paul Radisich Glenn Seton | Ford Mondeo Si | Rousesport | |
| 1994 | Julian Bailey | Toyota Corona | Toyota New Zealand | |
| 1995 – 2011 | Not held | Not held | Not held | Not held |
| 2012 | Greg Murphy Jack Perkins | Holden VE Commodore | M3 Racing | |
| 2013 | Scott McLaughlin James Moffat | Holden VE Commodore | Scott McLaughlin Racing | |
| 2014 | Simon Evans Shane van Gisbergen | Holden VE Commodore | Team 4 | |
| 2015 – 2018 | Not held | Not held | Not held | Not held |
| 500 kilometres |||||
| 2019 | Alastair Wootten Greg Goudie | Toyota MR2 | |
| 500 miles |||||
| 2020 | Karl Gaines Karl Weber Lance Gerlach | Honda Integra | | |
| 2021 | Not held | Not held | Not held | Not held |
| 500 kilometres |||||
| 2022 | | | RC Racing | |

### Notes

* ^1 – Two separate events were held in 1987.

## Multiple winners
### By driver

| Wins | Driver | Years |
| 7 | Leo Leonard | 1968, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1975, 1977, 1981 |
| 5 | Rod Coppins | 1965, 1972, 1973, 1979, 1980 |
| 4 | Wayne Wilkinson | 1974, 1978, 1982, 1985 |
| 4 | Ernie Sprague | 1967, 1969, 1970, 1977 |
| 3 | Jim Richards | 1972, 1973, 1991 |
| 3 | Gary Sprague | 1967, 1975, 1981 |
| 2 | Ray Archibald | 1963, 1966 |
| 2 | Tony Shelley | 1963, 1966 |
| 2 | Graeme Richardt | 1971, 1976 |
| 2 | Jerry Clayton | 1979, 1980 |
| 2 | Neal Lowe | 1984, 1986 |
| 2 | Neville Crichton | 1982, 1985 |
| 2 | Denny Hulme | 1983, 1987 |
| 2 | Andrew Miedecke | 1988, 1990 |

### By manufacturer

| Wins | Manufacturer |
| 9 | Chrysler |
| 8 | Holden |
| 6 | Ford |
| 4 | BMW |
| 3 | Jaguar |
| 2 | Vauxhall |
| 2 | Toyota |

## Event sponsors

* 1963–67: Wills
* 1968–84, 1987: Benson & Hedges
* 1988: ProMo
* 1989–93: Nissan-Mobil
* 2012: Woodstock
* 2013: Mike Pero
* 2014: Fuchs