Dick Johnson’s link to Holden goes back a long way even though he’s best known for exploits with Ford
He may be best known for his deeds with arch rival Ford but Aussie racing legend Dick Johnson still has a soft spot for Holden and has joined the outpouring of sadness lamenting the brand’s demise.
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Motor racing legend Dick Johnson believes the demise of Holden will leave a trail of broken hearts and reinforce the brutal fact that change is the key to survival in a fast moving world.
Johnson is best known for his deeds with Holden’s arch rival Ford but he started with Holden in 1964 and had deep-seated family connections.
“I remember my first racing car being an FJ Holden and I used to drive it to work the next day,’’ Johnson said.
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“My dad was sales manager for Eagers (Holden), for god’s sake. He instilled Holden in me from day one. To think that there is nothing here – and I mean nothing – is remarkable in that they are not simply pulling out of Holden but pulling out of Australia.
“There is sadness for me. Ford and Holden have been rivals forever and for that to take a back seat will leave a lot of people with broken hearts and memories of what used to be.
“It will be interesting to see how it effects not simply the dealers and workers but people who go to the track to see Ford versus Holden’’.
Johnson pondered whether, away from the race track, Holden would have been saved had they changed more deftly with the times.
“I don’t think Holden foresaw the change of people going from four-door passenger cars into SUV style vehicles where Ford stole the limelight with the Ranger and things like that.
“It is a sign of the times and for me it is a classic example of what I tell all my people that you have to learn to accept change and if you don’t address change you will die on the vine’’.
Supercar Holden great Craig Lowndes, who will commentate for Fox Sports in the season-opening Adelaide 500 this week, declined to speculate on Holden’s future in Supercars.
“Obviously it is early days,’’ Lowndes said.
“I am sure there will discussion in the coming days, weeks for the relevant parties.
“I am feeling for everyone at Holden and their families with the changes and the job losses. My thoughts lie with them. It is an iconic brand that has a place in the hearts of all Australians’’.
Former national cricket coach Darren Lehmann also shares an old connection with Holden having worked on the construction line at a plant in the North Adelaide suburb of Elizabeth.
“It could have been 40 or 50 degrees,’’ Lehmann once told The Courier-Mail of the sauna bath conditions.
“It was like being in India. It was a great experience though to grow up as a young kid and learn about other workers lives and how I should act in the modern world. I really enjoyed my time there. Loved it.’’
Originally published as Dick Johnson’s link to Holden goes back a long way even though he’s best known for exploits with Ford