Former Australian Sprintcar Champion and Chairman of the Sprintcar Control Council of Australia, Jim Winterbottom, has passed away after a long battle with Leukemia at the age of 76.

Winterbottom, the father of Supercars ace, Mark Winterbottom, won his national titles in 1969 and 1974.

Speedway historian and journalist Dennis Newly paid tribute to Winterbottom today.

“I had so much time for Jimmy, a humble man we all had known for decades,” said Newlyn.

“I got to know him around the time of his first national title win (1969) and right from that very first day he was always the very approachable, humble, quiet man I will always remember.

“I wrote a lot of words about Jimmy over the many years and he was such a quietly spoken man – and even hard to get information out of him for an article because of his modesty.

“That’s how I always found Jimmy – but more  than anything else, I always found him a terrific bloke.”

Mark was estranged from his father for many years and actually tributed his mother June, an accomplished racer herself, for his success after winning Bathurst in 2013.

June passed away from cancer in 2011.

Mark, a very talented junior soccer player, was introduced to motorsport through 50cc dirt bikes and mini-speedcars in which he won NSW and ACT titles.

Speedcafe.com offers its condolences to Winterbottom’s family and friends.