Australian motor racing legend and inaugural Bathurst winner Bob Jane has died aged 88.
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Jane died on Friday night “after a long and brave battle” with prostate cancer, his family confirmed on Saturday.
He partnered with fellow racing legend Harry Firth to win the Armstrong 500 (forerunner to the Bathurst 1000) when it was first raced on Mount Panorama in 1963 and won it again a year later with co-driver George Reynolds.
“It was our privilege to have had him as our dad, whom we loved and cherished. We will miss him deeply and he will forever be in our hearts,” Jane’s children Courtney, Charlotte and Robert Jane said in a statement.
“As his family we ask for privacy at this devastating time.”
Along with four wins in the Armstrong 500 endurance motor race (including two at Phillip Island), Jane also won four Australian Touring Car Championships between 1962 and 1972.
After he retired from driving he remained involved in the sport through his Calder Park circuit complex.
He set the foundations for Australia's first Formula 1 Grand Prix in Adelaide by bringing big-name F1 stars to compete in the Australian Grand Prix at Calder in the early 1980s, and also invested in Calder's Thunderdome oval, which held NASCAR races for over a decade from 1988.
In 2000, Jane and fellow race car driver Norm Beechey were each inducted into the V8 Supercars Hall of Fame. He was also included in Bathurst’s new Legends Lane last year.
A statement from Supercars Australia called Bob Jane “one of the greatest race car drivers the Australian Touring Car Championship has seen”.
“Driving in one of Australian motorsport’s greatest eras, his accomplishments on and off the track will long be remembered,” the statement read.
“Few will ever win four Championships and Bathurst crowns, let alone four 1000 titles a row, the first two of those coming when the Great Race was first held at Phillip Island.
“As the very first winner at Bathurst in 1963, he went on to become a familiar and long-time partner of the Great Race through the Bob Jane T-Marts brand. We will ensure we pay our respects to the Supercars Hall of Famer and his family at Mount Panorama next weekend.”
However, Bob Jane is perhaps best known for his tyre chain Bob Jane T-Marts, which first opened in Melbourne in 1965.
But the multi-millionaire icon was mired in controversy in recent years.
His son Rodney took control of the company after his father suffered a stroke in 2006, and Mr Jane subsequently filed a $2.9 million lawsuit against his son in 2013, which was thrown out by the Victoria supreme court.
He declared bankruptcy in 2016.
With additional reporting from Australian Associated Press
