Repco to celebrate 60 years of Brabham BT19

REPCO is getting ready to celebrate one of Formula 1 racing’s greatest achievements in 2026 when it will honour Sir Jack Brabham’s third Formula 1 Drivers’ World Championship, his racing team’s first Formula 1 Constructors’ World Championship, and the Repco-powered Brabham BT19 Formula 1 racing car that took him to these titles in 1966.

Sir Jack’s successes that year remains the only time a driver has won the F1 title in a car of their own make, the Repco Brabham BT19 designed and built in Melbourne by Motor Racing Developments, a company owned by Jack Brabham and Ron Tauranac.

The car was powered by the Repco RB620 3.0-litre SOHC V8 engine, which was designed, developed and produced by Repco in Melbourne, Australia.

When the 1966 Italian Grand Prix concluded at the Monza racing circuit on Sunday 4 September, Jack Brabham had amassed enough points to secure his third and final Formula 1 Drivers’ World Championship.

His team also won their first of two Formula 1 Constructors’ World Championships that year, the second arriving the following season.

Only one Repco Brabham BT19 was produced and it raced in the 1966 and 1967 Formula 1 championships.

“Sir Jack Brabham and the Repco Brabham BT19 are powerful emblems of Australian capability and culture,” said GPC Asia Pacific chief merchandise and growth officer Wayne Bryant.

“Jack Brabham’s mastery as an F1 driver, constructor and team owner remains unmatched to this day.

“The Repco Brabham BT19 that powered him to these extraordinary achievements nearly 60 years ago stands tall amongst Australia’s greatest sporting icons.

Repco will celebrate Sir Jack Brabham’s 1966 accomplishments – and the car he named the ‘Old Nail’ – at a series of events throughout 2026, his centenary year.

These events will allow people to see the car up close and being driven.

The first event will be this year’s F1 Exhibition, which opens on 29 November 2025 at the Melbourne Exhibition and Convention Centre.

The Repco Brabham BT19 will star as one of five special Formula 1 racing cars for visitors to enjoy. Tickets are available here.

Sir Jack Brabham AO OBE (1926 – 2014) was Australia’s most successful Formula 1 driver.

He was the first Australian to win the Formula 1 Drivers’ World Championship, which he won three times: in 1959, 1960 and 1966.

He also won 14 Formula 1 Grand Prix races.

Sir Jack Brabham was respected as an intensely competitive driver throughout his 23-year professional racing career. He was also regarded as an ingenious constructor alongside famed Australian engineer and racing car designer Ron Tauranac.

Sir Jack Brabham was knighted in 1979 for services to motorsport, the first Formula 1 driver to receive a knighthood.