About 200km west of Brisbane, the rural Queensland town will host the 29th edition of the sprints.
The event harks back to the 1949 Australian Grand Prix when it was held at the nearby Leyburn Airfield.
The Historic Leyburn Sprints take place on a one kilometre course in the town’s centre.
A mammoth 259-car entry list has been released ahead of the event, which features cars of all different disciplines spanning a century.
The Top 10 Shootout is the newest addition to the program. After the seven scheduled timed runs for each class, the fastest 10 cars overall will go head-to-head in a shootout.
The winner of the shootout will not necessarily be crowned the winner, however, with the fastest times over the course of the weekend counting towards the outright result.
The fastest car over the two-day event will win the Col Furness Memorial perpetual trophy.
“Very often the fastest times have been set on the last runs of the weekend when the cooler conditions are favourable,” said organising committee President Tricia Chant.
“So there’s no reason the winner can’t come from a do-or-die effort in the Top 10 Shootout.
“All runs will count, but there will certainly be plenty of incentive for the top 10, including a special winner’s trophy and a new podium ceremony for the final three.
“We canvassed the usual leading drivers and all of them welcomed the idea enthusiastically.
“And there’s a variety of cars among them, from specialised single-seaters to sports and touring cars, so the competition will be fascinating.
“It will be an extra attraction for spectators too, giving them a good reason to stay right to the end and applaud the winners on the podium.”
Dean Amos, vying for his 10th win in the V8-powered Gould GR55B, has been tipped as the early favourite.
Amos’ main rival will be Brett Bull, who has built a Kawasaki-powered car for this year’s event, having previously raced a Van Dieman RF03K.
“It’s a fantastic idea. I usually do my fastest run at the last,” said four-time winner Bull of the Top 10 Shootout.
“I really enjoy the Sprints. It’s one of the things I look forward to all year and it’s a wonderful social event too.”













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