Greg Ritter
| Greg Ritter | |
|---|---|
.jpg) | |
| Nationality |  Australian |
| Born | 20 February 1973 Victoria, Australia |
| Supercars Championship career | |
| Championships | 0 |
| Races | 72 |
| Wins | 1 |
| Podiums | 1 |
| Pole positions | 0 |
Gregory James Ritter (born 20 February 1973, in Victoria) is an Australian former racing driver. He was the winner of the 1999 Australian Formula Ford Championship and shared the winning drive at the 2004 Sandown 500 with Marcos Ambrose.[1]
Ritter begun his motor racing career in Formula Ford in 1997. After three seasons, he had become the national champion and thereafter established a partnership with Garry Rogers Motorsport to race in the V8 Supercar category. He would compete in the championship from the end of the 1990s through to the mid-2010s, establishing himself as a solid, dependable co-driver for the marquee endurance events. His final professional racing appearance came in the 2016 Touring Car Masters.
Career summary
[edit]Junior formula
[edit]Ritter made his car racing debut in the Australian Formula Ford Championship in 1997. A strong campaign allowed him to finish fifth in the driver standings with two overall round podium positions at Phillip Island and Mallala. The following year, he returned to the series under the Garry Rogers Motorsport outfit. Ritter struggled for consistency this season and ultimately finished the year fourth overall. Finally, in 1999, Ritter returned to the championship with Inspired Racing. Despite not winning any rounds that season, his consistency enabled him to ward off Steve Owen to win the championship.
V8 Supercars
[edit]Whilst testing Formula Ford at Winton, Ritter was afforded an impromptu test aboard a Garry Rogers Motorsport V8 Supercar. As a result of this, Ritter offered his debut V8 Supercar drive in the Queensland 500 driving alongside Matthew Coleman. After finishing 12th in the event, the pairing would reunite for the Bathurst 1000 where they would finish ninth overall. Ritter would be retained by Garry Rogers Motorsport for 2000 to drive alongside Tim Leahey in the endurance events.
In 2001, Ritter would take part in the first two rounds of the championship with Imrie Motor Sport. He failed to qualify for the opening round at Phillip Island however made the grid for the Clipsal 500 a couple weeks later, finishing 22nd on Sunday. Ritter's primary focus that year however was in the endurance events where he would pilot the second Dick Johnson Racing Ford Falcon.[2] At Queensland, driving alongside Paul Stokell, the duo qualified well but ultimately retired due to engine failure. At the Bathurst 1000, Ritter would be joined by Cameron McLean. The pair were leading late in the race before a series of issues threw them down to fourth at the chequered flag.
Ritter's performances throughout 2001 were enough for the team to retain him for 2002. As well as the endurance events, where he would co-drive with 1980 Formula One world champion, Alan Jones, he would make select one-off appearances in a third DJR car at Phillip Island and Eastern Creek.[3] Although he failed to qualify at Phillip Island, he performed well at Eastern Creek, even managing to finish ahead of the teams main driver, Steven Johnson, in the final race that weekend. At the Queensland 500, Ritter and Jones finished eighth overall and ahead of the teams main car. And at the Bathurst 1000, Ritter qualified the car had initially qualified seventh overall (later overturned due to a penalty) and drew praise for his performances while Johnson and Paul Radisich struggled with their performances. Ritter and Jones ran a largely clean race, but were ultimately let down by a series of mistakes by Ritter late in the race, including almost crashing into the barriers at the final corner, to finish seventh on the road. At the next round at Surfers Paradise, Ritter was afforded a one-off drive for Briggs Motor Sport.[4]
For 2003, Ritter signed with the fledging 00 Motorsport outfit to secure his first full-time gig in the V8 Supercar series. The venture however, was shortlived, as the team struggled for funds and after a few rounds, the team disbanded and Ritter was left to accept an endurance role with Paul Weel Racing.
In 2004, Ritter signed with Stone Brothers Racing and would co-drive with defending champion Marcos Ambrose for the endurance events. Despite spinning a turn one and narrowly missed out becoming bogged in the excessively muddy outfield, the pairing drove a strong race to hand Ritter his first and only V8 Supercar race win at the Sandown 500.[5] At the Bathurst 1000, Ritter and Ambrose were leading the race with 15 laps to go before Ambrose was forced to pit with a delaminating tyre, thus forcing them out of contention, finishing fourth overall. He also competed in the final round of the Konica Minolta V8 Supercar Development Series at Mallala with Speed FX Racing. He dominated the round, winning two out of the three races that weekend. Ritter's performances with Stone Brothers Racing led to him signing for Ford Performance Racing as a full-time driver for 2005.[6] Immediately, issues arose regarding the car setup and completion. The car was incomplete for the first round at Adelaide and didn't have an adjustable rear sway bar. Further issues stemming around reliability inhibited Ritter's season and for the final two rounds, he would be replaced by David Brabham.
The following season, Ritter would return to Garry Rogers Motorsport, establishing an endurance-drive partnership that would last for the duration of his V8 Supercar career. He would be joined once again by Cameron McLean.[7] Results were lukewarm but the pair would be retained for the 2007 season. At the Bathurst 1000, the pairing went a lap down early in the race. After clawing their way back onto the lead lap, the team made a gamble for wet weather tyres in the final laps of the race when rain started to descend upon the circuit. With the majority of the field remaining on slick tyres and the track becoming increasingly treacherous, Ritter began to rapidly ascend through the order. However, the track began to dry and stunted Ritter's charge. They would ultimately finish the race in ninth place.
In the years that followed, Ritter continued driving for Garry Rogers Motorsport in the V8 Supercar endurance events with varying levels of success. In the 2009 Bathurst 1000, he and teammate David Besnard led a sizeable chunk of the race and were in contention for the overall win. But they were ultimately undone by a badly-timed safety car that threw them out of circulation. His best result at The Great Race thereafter came in 2012 when he finished fifth with Michael Caruso. He would also deputise for regular driver Alexandre Prémat at the following round on the Gold Coast.[8] He played an integral role in the development of the Volvo S60 racecar for GRM and would be retained once again for 2014.[9] Ritter's last race in the V8 Supercar category came in the 2014 Gold Coast 600.
Touring Car Masters
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After his V8 Supercar career had come to an end, Ritter returned to racing in the Touring Car Masters category in 2015 for the final round at Phillip Island.[10] He started his debut TCM race from pole position after officials elected to void the results of a shortened qualifying session.[11] He returned to the category for the first two rounds of the 2016 season. He won the opening two races at Adelaide and secured pole position at Sandown.
Following this round, Ritter would not return to the championship and marked his final professional motor racing appearance.
Career results
[edit]Career summary
[edit]Complete Supercars Championship results
[edit]Complete Bathurst 1000 results
[edit]
References
[edit]- ↑ "2004 Sandown 500: Ambrose and Ritter drive through the mud". Auto Action. 11 September 2024. Retrieved 20 August 2026.
- ↑ "Bumper field for first enduro". Go Auto. 22 August 2001. Retrieved 20 August 2026.
- ↑ "V8 title contenders ready to roll". The Age. 14 March 2002. Retrieved 20 August 2026.
- ↑ "Ritter given new chance to impress". The Age. 25 October 2002. Retrieved 20 August 2026.
- ↑ "Ambrose, Ritter top of the heap after smash-fest". The Sydney Morning Herald. 13 September 2004. Retrieved 20 August 2026.
- ↑ "Greg Ritter joins FPR for 2005". Motorsport.com. 25 November 2004. Retrieved 20 August 2026.
- ↑ "GRM sign Ritter, Scifleet for enduro events". Motorsport.com. 12 July 2006. Retrieved 20 August 2026.
- ↑ "Greg Ritter replaces Alex Premat for Gold Coast". Speedcafe. 11 October 2012. Retrieved 20 August 2026.
- ↑ "Volvo team bosses are expecting the marque to have a solid V8 Supercars debut in six weeks". News.com.au. 16 January 2014. Retrieved 20 August 2026.
- ↑ "Greg Ritter to make racing return in TCM". Speedcafe. 16 November 2015. Retrieved 20 August 2026.
- ↑ "Ritter handed TCM pole after qualifying annulled". Speedcafe. 20 November 2015. Retrieved 20 August 2026.