Late racing great Peter Brock should be blocked from the motorsport Hall of Fame due to allegations he was violently abusive towards a former wife in the mid 1970s, says one media commentator.
“Peter Brock was a brilliant racing car driver but a flawed human being,” Susie O’Brien has written in the Herald Sun.
“In my eyes his legacy has been tarnished by allegations he was violently abusive towards his former wife Michelle Downes in the mid 1970s.”
The inaugural Australian Motor Sport Hall of Fame will be held next month, and O’Brien said Brock should not be inducted.
“Downes says she was frequently beaten by Brock during their 12-month marriage, and that the violence began on the honeymoon,” wrote O’Brien.
“Downes says Brock once threw her up against a wall and even forced her to have an abortion. The allegations have been substantiated by the couple’s landlady, who told New Idea she had taken in Downes one night after one such beating.”
Bev and Peter Brock | Image | News Ltd
Brock was never charged or convicted of domestic violence, and the allegations against him were first made two months after he died in a rally car crash in 2006.
Another ex-partner, Bev Brock, has previously defended Peter, saying he was never violent or aggressive, but Downes’ claims have never been “discredited”, according to O’Brien.
“I’d say there are too many questions over Brock’s character for him to receive an inaugural Hall of Fame award,” she wrote.
“Brock’s achievements on the track — which include winning the Bathurst 1000 nine times — justify the award, but his status as an alleged wife beater does not.
“At the very least the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport should make it very clear the award is for Brock, the driver, not Brock the man.”
What do you think – should Peter Brock be in the motorsport Hall of Fame?
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