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Tomas Mezera

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Tomas Mezera
NationalityAustralia Australian
Born (1958-11-05) 5 November 1958 (age 65)
Czechoslovakia
Retired2004
ATCC / V8 Supercar
Years active1992-2004
TeamsPeter Williamson Toyota
Tony Longhurst Racing
Perkins Engineering
Holden Racing Team
Daily Planet Racing
Gibson Motorsport
Tomas Mezera Motorsport
Brad Jones Racing
Romano Racing
Imrie Motor Sport
Paul Little Racing
Starts67
Best finish5th in 1995 Australian Touring Car Championship
Previous series
1982-85
1987
1988-89
1990
Australian Formula Ford Series
British Formula Ford
British Formula 3
All Japan Sports Prototype

Tomas Mezera (born 5 November 1958 in Czechoslovakia) is a naturalised Australian racing driver. Mezera won the 1988 Bathurst 1000, and for many years was a member of the Holden Racing Team as both a driver and team manager. Mezera's sporting career began as a downhill skier in his native Czechoslovakia, before he emigrated to Australia to be a ski instructor. Mezera retired from racing in 2004 but continues to hold roles in motorsport, most recently as a driving standards advisor to several domestic motor racing championships.

Personal life

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Born in 1958 in communist Czechoslovakia, Mezera was a skilled tennis player and skier in his youth - qualifying for and placing in national level ski events under the tutelage of his father, a ski coach in his own right. Mezera had an interest in motor racing at a young age and took part in amateur hillclimbs in the family Škoda. Mezera took up a Physics course at university after leaving school and joined their ski team, escaping to Hungary during an event and defecting to Austria via Belgrade. Having spent the second half of 1979 in a refugee camp outside Vienna, he arrived in Sydney prior to Christmas where he moved in with relatives. To make his start in racing, he worked as a garbage man, a panelbeater and a restaurant hand in Kings Cross.[1]

Formula racing

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Mezera quickly was introduced to racing and joined the ranks of Formula Ford in 1982. In November 1983 he was offered a drive for the 1984 FF season in a Reynard FF83, after being spotted by David Haydon of Dalcar Industries. Mezera finished 5th in the 1984 Formula Ford Driver to Europe Series, and won the 1985 Motorcraft Formula Ford Driver to Europe Series driving the Dalcar Reynard FF83 prepared by motorsport enthusiast and team owner David Haydon (with engines supplied by the Frank Gardner run JPS Team BMW). In 1987 he returned to Europe and the British Formula Ford Championship, finishing second. He had two poor years in British Formula 3 compromised by lack of budget. He found work as driving instructor to stay in Europe with hopes of reaching his goal as a professional in Europe.

Touring / Sports Cars

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During 1988 while working as a driving instructor in England, Mezera was able to secure much needed parts for the Ford Sierra RS500 Group A touring car team run by Frank Gardner and Tony Longhurst. As it was Gardner's protest at Bathurst in 1987 that had led to the disqualification of Ford Europe supported Eggenberger Motorsport Sierras and caused them to lose the 1987 World Touring Car Championship to BMW, Ford did not want to supply parts to Tony Longhurst Racing team manager Gardner, and Mezera was asked to buy the needed parts for the team. As a reward Mezera was given the job of Longhurst's co-driver for the Sandown 500 and Bathurst 1000 races.

The pair won the 1988 Tooheys 1000 in their Benson & Hedges backed Ford Sierra RS500, with Mezera driving the car across the finish line. He then returned to Europe to continue his pursuit of racing professionally overseas, returning to Australia for the endurance season, racing for Perkins Engineering from 1989 until 1991. He finished third with Larry Perkins in the 1990 Bathurst 1000, and the pair won the 1990 Nissan Sydney 500 at Eastern Creek Raceway.

This led to racing a Porsche 962 for fellow Aussie Vern Schuppan in the All Japan Sports Prototype Championship and a drive in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1990 finishing 15th with co-drivers Eje Elgh and Thomas Danielsson. He had five races in the British Touring car Championship in 1989 and 1990 with two podium finishes.

When Win Percy returned to England after the 1991 season, Mezera was hired to drive for the Holden Racing Team. He was briefly assumed the role of team manager in 1993 after the departure of Neal Lowe until Jeff Grech was recruited.

Mezera was the first pole sitter when the ATCC became V8 Supercars in 1993 at Sydney's tight Amaroo Park circuit. He continued to race for HRT as teammate to Peter Brock until the end of the 1995 season before being replaced by Craig Lowndes. He was briefly part of John Trimbole's Daily Planet Racing before starting his own team in 1998 with the help of Derek van Zelm and on limited budget ran in the V8 Supercars Championship from 1998 until 2001. His full-time racing career wound down at that point although he continued to get drives as a hired gun for many teams.

In 2001 he made a return to the Holden Racing Team as an endurance driver and finished third in the 2002 Bathurst 1000 and fourth at the 2002 Queensland 500.

He retired from racing in 2004 and later served as a Driving Standards Official for Confederation of Australian Motor Sport and V8 Supercars Australia.[2]

Career results

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The Reynard FF83 with which Mezera won the 1985 Motorcraft Formula Ford Driver to Europe Series
The Ford Sierra RS500 Mezera drove to win 1988 Tooheys 1000
Season Series Position Car Team
1982 TAA Formula Ford Driver to Europe Series 19th Carlboro - Ford Tomas Mezera Motorsport
1984 Formula Ford Driver to Europe Series 5th Reynard FF84 - Ford Dalcar Racing - David Haydon Motorsport
1985 Motorcraft Formula Ford Driver to Europe Series 1st Reynard FF83 - Ford[3]
Elwyn 003 - Ford
Dalcar Racing - David Haydon Motorsport
1987 British Formula Ford Championship 2nd Van Diemen RF97 Ford Van Diemen
1988 British Formula 3 Championship 12th Reynard 873 - Volkswagen Peter Lea Racing
Asia Pacific Touring Car Championship 7th Ford Sierra RS500 Benson & Hedges Racing
1989 British Touring Car Championship 42nd Ford Sierra RS500 Team Labatt's
1990 Australian Endurance Championship 2nd Holden VL Commodore SS Group A SV Perkins Engineering
All Japan Sports Prototype Championship 18th Porsche 962C Omron Racing Team
1992 Australian Touring Car Championship 16th Holden VN Commodore SS Group A Holden Racing Team
1993 Australian Touring Car Championship 7th Holden VP Commodore Holden Racing Team
1994 Australian Touring Car Championship 9th Holden VP Commodore Holden Racing Team
1995 Australian Touring Car Championship 5th Holden VR Commodore Holden Racing Team
1998 Australian Touring Car Championship 21st Holden VS Commodore Challenge Motorsport
Gibson Motorsport
ATCC Privateers Cup 2nd Holden VS Commodore Challenge Motorsport
1999 Shell Championship Series 45th Holden VT Commodore Tomas Mezera Motorsport
2000 Shell Championship Series 55th Holden VT Commodore Tomas Mezera Motorsport
2001 Shell Championship Series 28th Holden VX Commodore Tomas Mezera Motorsport
Imrie Motor Sport
Holden Racing Team
2002 V8 Supercar Championship Series 34th Holden VX Commodore Imrie Motor Sport
Holden Racing Team
2003 V8 Supercar Championship Series 51st Holden VX Commodore Perkins Engineering
2004 V8 Supercar Championship Series 37th Holden VY Commodore Paul Little Racing

Complete Asia-Pacific Touring Car Championship results

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(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Team Car 1 2 3 4 DC Points
1988 Benson & Hedges Racing Ford Sierra RS500 BAT
1
WEL PUK FJI 7th 20

Complete British Touring Car Championship results

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(key)

Year Team Car Class 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 DC Pts Class
1989 Trident Motorsport Maserati Biturbo A OUL SIL THR
Ret
DON THR SIL
DNS
SIL BRH SNE 42nd 4 16th
Labatt's Team Ford Sierra RS500 BRH
3
BIR
JQF Engineering DON
Ret
SIL
4
1990 Labatt's Team Ford Sierra RS500 A OUL DON
3‡†
THR SIL OUL SIL BRH SNE BRH BIR DON THR SIL NC 0 NC

‡ Endurance driver.

† Not eligible for points due to being an endurance driver.

Complete Bathurst 1000 results

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Year Team Co-drivers Car Class Laps Overall
position
Class
position
1985 Australia Peter Williamson Toyota Australia Peter Williamson Toyota Celica Supra B 32 DNF DNF
1988 Australia Tony Longhurst Racing Australia Tony Longhurst Ford Sierra RS500 A 161 1st 1st
1989 Australia Perkins Engineering Australia Larry Perkins Holden VL Commodore SS Group A SV A 158 6th 6th
1990 Australia Perkins Engineering Australia Larry Perkins Holden VL Commodore SS Group A SV A 161 3rd 3rd
1991 Australia Perkins Engineering Australia Larry Perkins Holden VN Commodore SS Group A SV 1 65 DNF DNF
1992 Australia Holden Racing Team Australia Brad Jones Holden VP Commodore C 131 15th 2nd
1993 Australia Holden Racing Team United Kingdom Win Percy Holden VP Commodore A 107 DNF DNF
1994 Australia Holden Racing Team Australia Peter Brock Holden VP Commodore A 138 DNF DNF
1995 Australia Holden Racing Team Australia Peter Brock Holden VR Commodore 32 DNF DNF
1996 Australia Holden Racing Team Australia Peter Brock Holden VR Commodore 160 5th 5th
1997 Australia Daily Planet Racing Australia John Trimbole Holden VS Commodore L1 25 DNF DNF
1998 Australia Tomas Mezera Motorsport Switzerland Alain Menu Holden VT Commodore OC 0 DNF DNF
1999 Australia Tomas Mezera Motorsport Australia Tony Ricciardello Holden VT Commodore 41 DNF DNF
2000 Australia Brad Jones Racing Australia Brad Jones Ford AU Falcon 159 DNF DNF
2001 Australia Holden Racing Team Australia Jason Bright Holden VX Commodore 126 DNF DNF
2002 Australia Holden Racing Team Australia Jason Bright Holden VX Commodore 161 3rd 3rd
2003 Australia Perkins Engineering Australia Paul Dumbrell Holden VX Commodore 155 14th 14th
2004 Australia Paul Little Racing Australia Anthony Tratt Holden VY Commodore 157 18th 18th

Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans results

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Year Team Co-drivers Car Class Laps Pos. Class
pos.
1990 Australia Team Schuppan
Japan Omron Racing
Sweden Eje Elgh
Sweden Thomas Danielsson
Porsche 962C C1 326 15th 15th

References

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  1. ^ "TOMAS MEZERA: V8 SLEUTH PODCAST | V8 Sleuth".
  2. ^ Tomas Mezera Speedcafe 16 July 2010
  3. ^ Reynard Owners Listings Archived 17 December 2017 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved on 24 August 2011
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Sporting positions
Preceded by
Ron Barnacle
Winner of the Motorcraft Formula Ford Driver to Europe Series
1985
Succeeded by
Preceded by Winner of the Bathurst 1000
1988
(with) Tony Longhurst
Succeeded by
Preceded by
Winner of the Nissan Sydney 500
1990
(with) Larry Perkins
Succeeded by