The inaugural 1957 title was run under effectively Formula Libre regulations, open to the locally built "Australian specials" as well as imported European machinery. Lex Davison won in a Ferrari 500. Through the late 1950s and early 1960s, the growth of the Tasman Series brought factory teams and current Formula One cars to Australia during the European winter, flooding local grids with Coopers and Brabhams and encouraging domestic manufacturers such as Elfin Sports Cars. The series of Tasman-specification cars visible in the champions list — including Kevin Bartlett's twin wins in 1968 and 1969 and Leo Geoghegan's 1970 title — reflected this cross-pollination.
Formula 5000 dominated from the late 1960s into 1981, with fields eventually shrinking to fewer than ten cars. Formula Pacific, later re-badged Formula Mondial, was adopted from the early 1980s and proved immediately successful with Ralt RT4 machinery. John Bowe won back-to-back Formula Mondial titles in 1984 and 1985. The category faded by 1987 and was replaced briefly by Australian Formula 2, then by Formula Holden — a Formula 3000-based formula — which ran from 1989 through 2003. International Formula 3 regulations were adopted in 2005. Dwindling grids led CAMS to withhold the Gold Star in 2015 for the first time in the championship's history.
Bib Stillwell won four consecutive titles from 1962 to 1965, the longest unbroken run in the championship's history. Alfredo Costanzo matched that achievement in the modern era, winning four straight titles from 1980 to 1983. Scott Dixon claimed the 1998 Formula Holden title before going on to a long IndyCar career. Mark Skaife won three successive championships from 1991 to 1993.
In 2020 the Gold Star was revived for the S5000 category, a modern interpretation of the historic Formula 5000 class. The car uses a Ligier JS F3 chassis manufactured by Onroak Automotive, fitted with a 5.2-litre naturally aspirated Ford Coyote V8 — modified by InnoV8 — producing 560 hp and 460 lb-ft of torque, transmitted through a six-speed Holinger gearbox. Tyres are supplied by Hoosier. The complete car was officially designated the Rogers AF01/V8, the "Rogers" name referring to assembler Garry Rogers Motorsport.
COVID-19 prevented any racing in 2020; the first S5000 Australian Drivers' Championship was not awarded until 2021. Joey Mawson won in both 2021 and 2022, and Aaron Cameron took the 2023 title. The S5000 category was suspended at the end of 2023 — primarily because its drivers could not count S5000 starts toward the mandatory race count required by the Supercars Championship's Super2 and Super3 feeder pathway — and in January 2025 was permanently cancelled when Garry Rogers Motorsport announced the sale of its remaining fifteen chassis and parts inventory.
From 2024 the championship has been sanctioned by the Australian Auto Sport Alliance. Seeking to make competition financially accessible and focused purely on driving talent, the AASA selected the Hyper Racer X1 — designed and manufactured in Australia — as the sole specification car. Damon Sterling won both the 2024 and 2025 championships under this format.
While originally conceived as the premier prize in Australian domestic racing, the championship faded in national importance from the 1980s as the Australian Touring Car Championship and V8 Supercars series grew to dominate public attention. From that era the Gold Star functioned primarily as a young driver development title or a springboard to international careers. The 2024 reform under the AASA represented a deliberate effort to reconnect the championship to its original purpose of identifying driving talent rather than rewarding financial resources.
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