Alf Barbagallo’s taste for speed and performance saw him irresistibility drawn to the world of racing.
Alf Barbagallo is the most successful sprintcar driver at Claremont Speedway, winning 79.5 feature races after dead heating with Ray Geneve on November 27, 1970.
Alf’s love for racing started in the early 1960’s, when as a 20-year-old he went to Wattle Grove Speedway and was challenged by his then girlfriend to ‘have a go’ – where in a borrowed hot-rod he was forced off the track, over a dirt embankment and into a small pond.
He quickly became a well-known-name on the track, and by the age of 25 he was the idol of Claremont Speedway fans. His racing career was very much a family affair, with son Troy and daughter Mia his biggest fans. In 1983, other drivers ate the dust of the man they called ‘Mr Sprintcar’. In 1986 Alf won his sixth state sprintcar championship. At age of 45, in 1987, he won the inaugural round of World Series Sprintcars at Claremont Speedway.
These wins lead him to become the 6-time Western Australian champion and in the 1999-2000 he was proudly inducted into the Claremont Speedway Hall of Fame. His years in dominating the WA sprintcar scene has meant that he has well and truly made his mark on WA’s racetracks.
We look forward to honouring Alf this Saturday 21st January 2023 at the Perth Motorplex at the Mr Sprintcar 77 Event. We wish all the drivers on the evening, all the best.
