Black Beauty to traverse Auckland Harbour Bridge

An A1GP motor racing car will be fired up and driven in New Zealand for the first time tomorrow morning when Black Beauty zips over the Auckland Harbour Bridge.

The rare opportunity to drive on the famous landmark is to promote the sixth Round of the A1GP World Cup of Motorsport taking place in Taupo from January 19-21.

Transit New Zealand agreed to the request to drive the single-seater car on the Bridge because the two south-bound ‘clip-on’ lanes have been closed over the holiday period for re-sealing.

The remedial work is nearing completion and the lanes will open again for all traffic on Monday morning.

New Zealand driver Jonny Reid, double winner at the most recent A1GP meeting at Sentul, Indonesia in early December, is excited by the prospect of driving Black Beauty on such a unique slab of concrete.

“Having the opportunity to drive over such a famous landmark will be an experience I’ll never forget," Reid said.

“While I won’t be able to put my foot down, it will be an impressive sight even at 100 kilometres per hour. The toughest part for me will be keeping my eyes on the road and not taking in the spectacular views!"

The Bridge drive was originally mooted by the Auckland Car Club – which counts A1 Team.NZL’s foundation drivers, Reid and Matt Halliday, as members – as a way to launch their 75th Anniversary celebrations. A1GP