Historic Tobacco Racing Liveries Endangered By Public Health Law - Jalopnik
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Racing is one of the few sports that has a truly living history. The laws that made change necessary over the years are now making it impossible for vintage machines to race wheel-to-wheel again. Motorsport Australia updated its regulations to comply with current public health law, and these changes barred historic racing cars with period-accurate tobacco sponsorship liveries from competition. The decision was haphazardly made after Fox Sports Australia even refused to broadcast a historic touring car race to avoid falling foul of the law.
Australia first restricted tobacco advertising in 1993, but the country's government updated nearly all of its regulations with the Public Health (Tobacco and Other Products) Act 2023. According to Speedcafe, Motorsport Australia wasn't aware of the amended law until last month, even though it took effect in 2024. The Act featured "a prohibition on the display, publication, or promotion of any regulated tobacco product" on any car's livery. Previously, the law featured carve-outs for historic cars that competed with tobacco liveries before December 24, 1992.
Australia has long had touring car fever, with the decades-long rivalry between Ford and Holden as well as the country's marquee Bathurst 1000 known the world over. With that in mind, there are plenty of vintage Ford Falcons and Holden Toranas plastered with Marlboro, John Player Special, Benson & Hedges and Craven Mild logos still racing today. The owners are rightfully livid that the cars they worked so hard to preserve are no longer eligible to compete.
Fox Sports refusal made Motorsport Australia aware of amended law
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Motorsport Australia changed its regulations after Fox Sports refused to air a Touring Car Masters race at Sydney Motorsport Park in August. Instead, viewers were treated to a replay of a recent Supercars race with the message: "We are unable to bring you [the] Touring Car Masters race due to legal [sic] reasons." Touring Cars Masters features touring cars that raced between 1963 and 1980, when the broadcast resolution was 576i. In a statement, the competition manager Dean Bryant said:
"Foxtel are simply protecting themselves from the lawsuit that would occur from them showing any race car footage that impinged the Australian Government anti-tobacco advertising legislation. Foxtel is not the enemy here."
"Supercars have commercial obligations to Foxtel and as such they can't afford to be involved should the Australian government or a trademark owner decide to take action against Foxtel for showing footage of cars in breach of the legislation. Supercars is not the enemy here!"
"Motorsport Australia is the second-to-last link in the legal chain here should the Australian Government or a trademark owner take action. Motorsport Australia is not the enemy here!"
"The last link in a massive legal chain here is the car owner!"
"Motorsport Australia and Supercars have done nothing more than protect everyone involved here from the real threat of action from trademark holders or government authorities."
It's clear the law needs to change. Tobacco advertising today is rightly banned because of the known harms caused by smoking and tobacco chewing. However, motorsport organizers shouldn't be forced by legislators to censor the sport's past. These historic racing cars aren't the focus of modern advertising campaigns. Funnily enough, Craven Mild was discontinued in the early 1980s. These machines are effectively being displayed in action within the confines of a living museum.