The 1973 Hardie-Ferodo 1000 was the 14th running of the Bathurst 1000 touring car race. This was the first race to be held under the new metricised distance of 1000 kilometres, rather than the 500 miles previously contested. It was held on 30 September 1973 at the Mount Panorama Circuit just outside Bathurst in New South Wales, Australia. The race was open to Group C Touring Cars competing in four engine capacity based classes. It was the third round of the 1973 Australian Manufacturers' Championship.
Allan Moffat claimed his third win in the event and Ian Geoghegan his first. They shared a Ford Falcon GT. It was the seventh and final win for the factory Ford Australia racing team. Peter Brock and Doug Chivas dropped from contention after their Holden Torana ran out of fuel, forcing Chivas to push the car uphill along the pit lane to make it to the Holden Dealer Team pit bay. Brock and Chivas finished on the same lap as Moffat and Ian Geoghegan, ahead of their teammates Colin Bond and Leo Geoghegan, also on the same lap, in third position.
For cars up to 1300cc capacity, it was contested by Datsun 1200, Fiat 128, Honda Civic, Morris Cooper S and Renault R8.
For cars 1301cc to 2000cc, it featured Alfa Romeo 2000 GTV, Datsun 180B, Ford Escort, Mazda RX-3 and Subaru 1400 GSR.
For cars 2001cc to 3000cc, it was contested by 2.8 litre Holden Torana and Mazda RX-2.
For cars over 3,000cc capacity, it featured Chrysler Valiant Charger, Ford Falcon, Holden Monaro and Holden Torana GTR XU-1.
Pole sitter Goss got off to a great start leading the Falcons of Moffat, French and Gibson from Brock's Torana. Gibson went out early with engine trouble and French made an unscheduled stop. This left Goss to make his first stop on lap 43 with a 40 second lead over Moffat and Brock, the later pair hardly separated by more than a few seconds until Moffat spun at Griffins on lap 44, losing about 20 seconds before making his first stop on lap 45 where he handed over to Geoghegan. Brock stopped on lap 54 and handed the car over to Chivas, whom they hoped could run the car long enough to only make one more pitstop in the race and one less than the Falcons, despite Brock reporting that the fuel gauge on the car had failed.[1] Bond momentarily took the lead of the race until making his stop on lap 61, well past a third distance proving that the Torana could do the race on just two stops.
Despite Moffat's spin and the Torana having a minute shorter pitstop than the Falcon, Geoghegan made up the difference to Chivas - taking second place from brother Leo Geoghegan (driving with Bond) and then retaking the lead of the race on lap 78. Bartlett (driving with early leader Goss) pitted on the same lap but Goss would be involved in a collision with Garth's overturned Torana and pitted for repairs on lap 105 putting them out of contention. Geoghegan was able to build a lead over Chivas before stopping and handing the car back to Moffat. Chivas held a 1'40" advantage over Moffat some time after the stop and was given the instruction from his pit board to "get max laps" only to run out of fuel on the top of the mountain and coast back to the pit entry. However, with the start of pitlane being uphill Chivas had to climb out and push the car, he also had to do this unassisted on penalty of disqualification until he himself had gotten the car far enough for his team to be allowed to assist. Moffat and Leo Geoghegan both passed Chivas as he strained to slowly push the car against the gradient after a long stint at the wheel.[2]
Moffat made his final stop on lap 123 of just 1'24", which was over a minute faster than his first, and was able to resume still leading Bond's Torana and cruise home to victory, the only danger being the #35 Mazda RX-2 rolling over ahead of him on his final lap. Any chance of Brock putting pressure back on Moffat was thwarted by the need to make a 15 second stop for more fuel on lap 147. He did however regain second place when Bond's left rear tyre blew across the top and he had to make an unscheduled stop of 30 seconds. Brock would have his own tyre failure with the right rear blowing out on the final lap but he continued to the finish at pace knowing the car only had to survive the remainder of that lap.[3]
Although the best surviving highlight reel of the day available now[4] clearly promotes the narrative of a certain Holden victory being lost due to miscalculation (Chivas running out of fuel) this is questionable at best with the benefit of hindsight (the film is credited to General Motors and their sponsors at the time). Clearly Moffat slowed significantly when no longer challenged for the race lead, so while it is possible he may have had his own trouble if pressed harder, it is certainly a hollow claim that because Brock and Chivas were able to finish within a lap of Moffat and Geoghegan despite running out of fuel they lost a certain race win. The race pace of the Torana's may have been compromised by trying to run to only two stops with Geoghegan able to make up about two and a quarter minutes over Chivas in his stint alone. Brock was the only driver to not haemorrhage time to the race winner but never got close to achieving the fuel economy required for his strategy to work, falling short on both his stints by as much as 16 laps. Brock obviously would have had to slow significantly more to complete the required laps. The real victim of this narrative is the incredible effort by John Goss not being a bigger part of the story. Despite Goss building his race car in his spare time[5] he was able to take pole position, set a new lap record and lead the factory entered cars by 40 seconds at his first pitstop. If not for some small exhaust issue, and a collision with a car that had illegally re-joined the race (after being towed), the 1973 Hardie-Ferodo 1000 may well have been celebrated as a Goss/Bartlett victory in the David versus Goliath style.
| Pos | No | Entrant [6] | Driver | Car | Qual |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pole | 5 | McLeod Ford Pty Ltd - Shell Racing |  John Goss | Ford XA Falcon GT Hardtop | 2:33.4 |
| 2 | 1 | Holden Dealer Team | Peter Brock | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | 2:34.4 |
| 3 | 9 | Ford Motor Company Australia Ltd. |  Allan Moffat | Ford XA Falcon GT Hardtop | 2:34.5 |
| 4 | 4 | Bryan Byrt Ford Pty. Ltd. | John French | Ford XA Falcon GT Hardtop | 2:35.3 |
| 5 | 24 | Holden Dealer Team | Colin Bond | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | 2:35.4 |
| 6 | 7 | Ron Hodgson Motors | Bob Morris | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | 2:36.3 |
| 7 | 6 | Ford Motor Company Australia Ltd. | Fred Gibson | Ford XA Falcon GT Hardtop | 2:38.2 |
| 8 | 19 | Cessnock Motor Works Pty. Ltd. | Allan Grice | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | 2:38.2 |
| 9 | 2 | Bob Jane Racing | Bob Jane | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | 2:39.3 |
| 10 | 3 | Pacific Film Laboratories Pty. Ltd. | Don Holland | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | 2:40.5 |
| Pos | Class | No | Entrant | Drivers | Car | Laps | Qual Pos | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | D | 9 | Ford Motor Company Australia Ltd. | Allan Moffat Ian Geoghegan | Ford XA Falcon GT Hardtop | 163 | 3 | |
| 2 | D | 1 | Holden Dealer Team | Peter Brock Doug Chivas | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | 163 | 2 | |
| 3 | D | 24 | Holden Dealer Team | Colin Bond Leo Geoghegan | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | 163 | 5 | |
| 4 | D | 2 | Bob Jane Racing | Bob Jane John Harvey | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | 161 | 9 | |
| 5 | D | 10 | Lakis Manticas | Bob Forbes Dick Johnson | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | 154 | 11 | |
| 6 | D | 21 | Roamer Watches Australia Pty. Ltd. | Ray Kaleda Peter Granger | Chrysler Valiant Charger R/T E49 | 150 | 18 | |
| 7 | D | 15 | Murray Carter - Shell Racing | Murray Carter Lawrie Nelson | Ford XA Falcon GT Hardtop | 150 | 19 | |
| 8 | B | 49 | A.F. & M. Beninca Pty. Ltd. | Ray Harrison Mal Robertson | Alfa Romeo 2000 GTV | 149 | 23 | |
| 9 | B | 45 | Mazda Racing Team | Mel Mollison Bruce Hindhaugh | Mazda RX-3 | 144 | 36 | |
| 10 | C | 34 | Bernie Haehnle | Bernie Haehnle Wayne Rogerson | Mazda RX-2 | 144 | 36 | |
| 11 | D | 31 | Tony Roberts Automotive Centre | Brian Ovenden Max McGinley | Chrysler Valiant Charger R/T E49 | 143 | 29 | |
| 12 | C | 37 | John Palmer Motors | Bob Beasley Enno Buesselmann | Mazda RX-2 | 143 | 39 | |
| 13 | B | 44 | Camper-Ford Pty Ltd | Geoff Leeds Jim Murcott | Ford Escort Twin Cam Mk.I | 143 | 32 | |
| 14 | B | 41 | Datsun Racing Team | John Roxburgh Doug Whiteford | Datsun 180B SSS | 143 | 40 | |
| 15 | A | 56 | Datsun Racing Team | Bill Evans James Laing-Peach | Datsun 1200 | 142 | 46 | |
| 16 | A | 55 | Formula 1 Europa Garage | Lakis Manticas Peter Lander | Fiat 128SL | 142 | 43 | |
| 17 | C | 33 | W.H. Motors Pty. Ltd. | Herb Taylor Don Smith | Holden LC Torana GTR XU-1 | 141 | 28 | |
| 18 | D | 3 | Pacific Film Laboratories Pty. Ltd. | Don Holland Max Stewart | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | 141 | 10 | |
| 19 | B | 39 | Ray Gulson | Ray Gulson Peter Brown | Alfa Romeo 2000 GTV | 140 | 27 | |
| 20 | D | 29 | Peter Kilmore | Peter Kilmore Kevin Kennedy | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | 138 | 41 | |
| 21 | A | 66 | Clement Motors | David Clement Neil Mason | Morris Cooper S | 136 | 50 | |
| 22 | A | 54 | Lordoco Aust Pty. Ltd. | John Lord Peter Janson | Honda Civic | 134 | 53 | |
| 23 | B | 38 | Chris Heyer | Chris Heyer Peter Mill | Subaru 1400 GSR | 133 | 55 | |
| 24 | A | 63 | Bennet & Wood Pty. Ltd. | Ken Brian Noel Riley | Honda Civic | 131 | 52 | |
| 25 | A | 68 | Bob Williamson | Chick Audsley Bob Williamson | Morris Cooper S | 131 | 56 | |
| 26 | A | 67 | Caroline O'Shanesy | Caroline O'Shanesy Peter Williamson | Morris Cooper S | 131 | 57 | |
| 27 | A | 64 | David Frazer | David Frazer Bob Edgerton | Renault R8 Gordini | 130 | 49 | |
| 28 | B | 43 | Bryan Byrt Ford Pty. Ltd. | Bob Holden Lyndon Arnel | Ford Escort Twin Cam Mk.I | 129 | 44 | |
| 29 | B | 48 | Mazda Racing Team | Geoff Perry Brian Reed | Mazda RX-3 | 126 | 34 | |
| 30 | A | 59 | Phillip Arnull | John Symon Philip Arnull | Datsun 1200 | 125 | 58 | |
| DNF | C | 35 | James Mason Motors | Gary Cooke Len Searle | Mazda RX-2 | 142 | 38 | |
| DNF | D | 8 | Muirs Motors (Ashfield) Pty. Ltd. | Ron Dickson Bob Stevens | Holden HQ Monaro GTS | 130 | 20 | |
| DNF | B | 50 | Chesterfield Filter Racing | Herb Vines Chris Batger | Ford Escort Twin Cam Mk.I | 116 | 54 | |
| DNF | D | 5 | McLeod Ford Pty. Ltd. - Shell Racing | John Goss Kevin Bartlett | Ford XA Falcon GT Hardtop | 110 | 1 | |
| DNF | D | 4 | Bryan Byrt Ford Pty. Ltd. | John French Bob Skelton | Ford XA Falcon GT Hardtop | 91 | 4 | |
| DNF | A | 57 | Geoff Newton | Geoff Newton Cam Richardson | Morris Cooper S | 89 | 51 | |
| DNF | D | 17 | G. Ryan | Graham Ryan Ray Lintott | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | 89 | 14 | |
| DNF | D | 26 | Ray Thackwell Racing | Ray Thackwell Barry Coleman | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | 89 | 22 | |
| DNF | A | 58 | Jack Haywood | Lynn Brown Paul Hamilton | Morris Cooper S | 77 | 45 | |
| DNF | C | 36 | McLeod Kelso & Lee Pty. Ltd. | Bruce Stewart George Garth | Holden LC Torana GTR | 75 | 31 | |
| DNF | D | 12 | Dustings of Burwood | Rod McRae Tony Niovanni | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | 64 | 21 | |
| DNF | B | 42 | Strapp Ford | Graham Ritter Tony Farrell | Ford Escort Twin Cam Mk.I | 64 | 25 | |
| DNF | D | 27 | Leo Leonard | Leo Leonard Ernie Sprague | Chrysler Valiant Charger R/T E49 | 62 | 17 | |
| DNF | D | 30 | John Stoopman | John Stoopman Dennis Martin | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | 61 | 30 | |
| DNF | D | 23 | Bob Holden Motors | Jim Hunter Phil Ward | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | 58 | 16 | |
| DNF | A | 53 | Rolls Motors Pty. Ltd. | Ian Cook Terry Finnigan | Honda Civic | 56 | 48 | |
| DNF | D | 16 | Formula 1 Europa Garage | Tony Allen Phil Brock | Chrysler Valiant Charger R/T E49 | 45 | 13 | |
| DNF | D | 19 | Cessnock Motor Works Pty. Ltd. | Allan Grice Keith Murray | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | 42 | 8 | |
| DNF | D | 13 | Bruce McPhee | Bruce McPhee Tom Nailard | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | 41 | 15 | |
| DNF | B | 47 | W.D. Electrics | Warren Thompson Rod Dale | Ford Escort Twin Cam Mk.I | 36 | 33 | |
| DNF | A | 60 | Fourway Motors Pty. Ltd. | Gary Leggatt Bob Wedd | Morris Cooper S | 27 | 42 | |
| DNF | D | 20 | Chas Tierney Pty. Ltd. | Ray Strong Ron Gillard | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | 25 | 37 | |
| DNF | D | 11 | Geoghegans Sporty Cars | Des West Bill Brown | Chrysler Valiant Charger R/T E49 | 17 | 12 | |
| DNF | D | 6 | Ford Motor Company Australia Ltd. | Fred Gibson Barry Seton | Ford XA Falcon GT Hardtop | 17 | 7 | |
| DNF | B | 40 | Grace Bros. Racing Team | Christine Gibson Sue Ransom | Alfa Romeo 2000 GTV | 5 | 24 | |
| DNF | D | 7 | Ron Hodgson Motors | Bob Morris John Leffler | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | 4 | 6 | |
| DNF | A | 66 | Mini Bits | John Dellaca Jon Leighton | Morris Cooper S | 3 | 47 | |
| DNF | D | 25 | D & P Traders Pty. Ltd. | Pat Peck Darrylyn Huitt | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | 3 | 26 | |
| DNS [9] | D | 14 | Freds Treads Pty. Ltd. | John Duggan Gordon Rich | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | |||
| DNS | D | 28 | B. Nitschke | Bill Nitschke John Lewis | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | |||
| DNS | B | 46 | Alan Cant | Alan Cant Tony Maw | Ford Escort Twin Cam Mk.I | |||
| DNS | D | 32 | Gosford Motors Pty. Ltd. | Kingsley Hibbard Brian Shead | Holden LJ Torana GTR XU-1 | |||
| DNS | B | 51 | Barry Lee | Barry Lee Ron McPhail | Ford Escort Twin Cam Mk.I | |||
| DNS | A | 62 | Pete Mac's Towing Service Pty. Ltd. | Geoff Wade Robin Dudfield | Morris Cooper S |