FANTASY ISLAND
“ONCE THE AUSSIES GOT THE JUMP IT WAS VERY HARD TO CLAW THEM BACK”
THE Island Classic, held each Australia Day long weekend on Phillip Island, celebrated its 25th anniversary in 2018 in fine style. With more than 300 racers entered on over 500 bikes, it is one of the most popular race meetings in Australia of any sort and one of the biggest classic bike race meetings in the world.
The event kicked off in 1994 with avid support from then Australian Motorcycle News editor, the late Ken Wootton. AMCN remains the naming rights sponsor to this day and Ken is remembered through the Ken Wootton Perpetual Trophy for the rider who scored the most points in the four-race International Challenge, which has been the main feature event of the Island Classic since its introduction in 2005.
Initially, the International Challenge —sponsored
