Greg Murphy (right) inspired drivers like Scott McLaughlin (left). Photo / Photosport
Greg Murphy (right) inspired drivers like Scott McLaughlin (left). Photo / Photosport
Two of the names most synonymous with Pukekohe come from different eras, but both have had a huge impact on motorsport talent in New Zealand.
Octogenarian Kenny Smith has discovered and nurtured schools of young drivers, while from the early 2000s when the Supercars first raced at the South Aucklandtrack, it was Greg Murphy who inspired a generation of Supercars drivers to have a go.
Smith has raced at Pukekohe every year since the track opened and is one of few who can say they went up against the best open-wheel racers, including world champions, in the 1960s and 1970s.
"What I've always treasured from racing at Pukekohe is back then we raced against the best Formula One drivers of the time," said Smith
"[Stirling] Moss, [Bruce] McLaren, [Denny] Hulme, [John] Surtees and you can keep on naming them. Jim Clark and the Lotus team came out here and all the other stars of the time. Even Max Verstappen's dad Josh raced out here.
"I like the circuit. Some people think it's dangerous, but every track is dangerous, what the hell. There are a few bumps in places, but it's a great circuit. Even today it challenges the modern cars."
Smith, still spritely at 81 years old, won three New Zealand Grand Prix in three different decades — 1976, 1990 and 2004 — and continues to race today. He's wheeled out Craig Baird's old Formula Ford for one last yahoo around the grand old lady of New Zealand race tracks, just to ensure he's part of the circuit's swansong.
He also won three F5000 Revival championships, won the Penang Grand Prix three times, the Formula Pacific International Series twice, the Selangor Grand Prix twice, as well as the Malaysian Grand Prix, the Peter Stuyvesant International Series and the National 1.5 Litre Championship, to go along with his five Gold Star Drivers Awards.
Smith has managed to overcome a serious injury to take to the startline, having broken seven ribs and punctured a lung when falling off a ladder earlier this year.
"I thought we'd come out this weekend in an old Formula Ford car so I can do the last single seater race there," said Smith. "I've done a few miles this week to make sure I'll be fit enough after my crash."
Kenny Smith is still racing at 81. Photo / Photosport
On the other hand, Murphy unfortunately won't be suiting up this weekend at a track he tasted so much success at. He's saving himself for one last punt around Mount Panorama for the Bathurst 1000 in October.
The majority of Kiwi motorsport fans would dearly love to see 'Murph' and the number 51 fizzing around Pukekohe once again. However, those who watched Murphy conquer all-comers in the early 2000s — winning four of the first five rounds held at Pukekohe — will always treasure those days.
"It's sad really. Just the thought of what we've losing," said Murphy. "There are more memories at that track for car racing than there will ever be for horse racing.
"It's very iconic and unique in many ways and has stood the test of time. There are a lot of fans with a huge amount of memories.
"Funnily enough, I never watched a race at Pukekohe as it was too far away [he lived in Hawke's Bay]. My first time there was to race in Formula Ford.
"I don't really know, or have an answer, why I went so well around there. I think there is definitely something in the vibe, support and aura about Kiwi fans at your home event."
Murphy is humbled by the number of drivers - the likes of Shane van Gisbergen, Scott McLaughlin and Andre Heimgartner - who credit watching him at Pukekohe in the early 2000s as an inspiration to go Supercars racing.
The 50-year-old has an enviable track record, chief among his achievements was winning four Bathurst 1000 titles. He is also a NZGP winner, New Zealand Gold Star winner, finished second in class at the Le Mans 24 Hour and is a three-time NZ V8 SuperTourers champion.
"It is very humbling to hear some of the New Zealand Supercar drivers say they got inspiration from watching me at Pukekohe," said Murphy.
"That means more to me than some of the things I achieved in my career. Some of them have gone to do great things in motor racing."
Both of these icons of Kiwi motorsport are sad the inevitable commercial decision to pull the curtain down on the old girl has finally come, but they will always have their fond memories.
