From Gold Star to Grassroots Glory: How the ADC Was Reborn for a New Generation
The Australian Drivers' Championship dates to 1957. After lying dormant, it's back — with a radical new format, a purpose-built Australian race car, and a mission to give talented drivers a genuine shot at it.
The Australian Drivers' Championship has a history that stretches back to 1957 — making it the third-oldest title in Australian motorsport history. Jack Brabham won it. Alan Jones won it. The name meant something.
After the 2023 season, the championship went into hibernation. What brought it back was AASA and a small open-wheel car being built in a Melbourne workshop. In 2024, AASA secured the rights to the Australian Drivers' Championship name and selected the Hyper Racer X1 as its car.
"Under the old stewardship, racing for the ADC was always the domain of the rich or very well connected. Cashless drivers with real talent stood behind the fence for 60 years watching a fortunate few circulate. Then the Hyper Racer X1 was born and the world changed."
The 2024 and 2025 seasons — growing grids, genuine championship battles, nationally televised racing — suggest the claim isn't an exaggeration. The ADC is back. And it arrived in a car built in Melbourne for the price of a family SUV.