This isn’t Frank Maric’s first rodeo – he crewed with Andrew Natoli on his VK Commodore last year, runners-up in the GJ Drivelines Outlaw Aspirated class – but it’s his first behind the wheel of his own angry ride.

Frank’s weapon of choice is a gunmetal HR Holden Special which, like anything else here, is a far cry from the General’s blueprint. “It’s got a 365ci L98 LS with LS3 heads, forged rods and pistons, custom cam and a Holley Ultra XP double pumper carby,” Frank explains. “It’s a budget build, with everything except the paint, engine and gearbox done in my shed at home.”

While the driveline was tinkered together by professionals, it was Frank who drag and dropped it all into position, even developing a specialist tool to install the box. It’s called an ‘armstrong tool’ and it required Frank to balance the gearbox on his chest before bench-pressing it into position. A blacksmith by trade, Frank’s pretty handy, creating his own mini tubs up the back and fitting out all the lines throughout the car. The reverse-cowl bonnet is all-steel, made by a bloke in Queensland.

The HR Holden has been built for about two years now and is well sorted, running 11.1s at 123mph from the 600hp combo. The only drama Frank’s experienced so far was a slight loss of oil pressure heading into Mildura.

“It only dropped by a handful of pounds, and the sender’s high up so if it’s OK up there, it’s
fine down the bottom,” Frank says. “It’s the ride that’s been a bigger thing. It’s pretty low because I’m an idiot, and you really feel it through your back, but I guess it’s not too bad for a car first built 57 years ago.”

Frank was running ITF Hire 235 Aspirated, but pulled out of the event early to support his mate Steve Micallef, who had to head home early for family reasons.