Denyer grabs Top Motorsport Awards

Grant Denyer, who is sponsored by JAXQuickfit Tyres, was recently named the CAMS Motor Sport Personality of the Year at the 2005 Australian Motor Sport Awards, held by the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport (CAMS).

He also took out the Mike Kable ‘Rookie of the Year’ Award at the annual V8 Supercar awards presentation, after finished 10th outright in the points tally for the development series in his first year in Supercars.

The CAMS award is particularly special. Voted on by fans and many motorsport competitors, the Personality of the Year Award acknowledges competitors who are good ambassadors for Australian motor sport, both on and off the track.

Denyer, who competes under the banner of Dick Johnson Racing, says he’s enormously flattered by the Award which pitched him against more well established motorsport nominees such as V8 stars Russell Ingall, Craig Lowndes and Cameron McConville and rally aces Cody Crocker and Simon Evans.

Now he is a very worthy member of the club which includes Lowndes, Evans and Marcos Ambrose amongst its ‘members’.

Denyer knows that to pursue a fulltime racing career, his television career would have to be put aside and he’s made his choice - but while his motorsport career may be part-time, his role as motorsport ambassador is not, and he takes it very seriously.

”I would like to think that I am an approachable sort of guy and if someone wants to talk about motorsport, then I’m only too happy to join in. “Motor sport gets a raw deal when it comes to widespread mainstream media exposure. If I can help improve the situation and educate people along the way then that has got to be good for the sport.”

The ‘Rookie of the Year’ Award is named for the late Mike Kable, one of Australia’s most respected motoring and motorsport journalists who worked for The Australian.

Denyer also won a Rookie of the Year award in 2001, in his first year of racing in the V8 BRutes’ utility race series