Insane car handling back in the day

That looks awesome. I think the difference is that the cars driven in Australia at the time were basically chosen by the drivers at the dealership and driven to the track and raced. There were very few private racers as most drivers were dealer or factory sponsored but all cars driven in the races were basically showroom models.
My favourite humble little Valiant Charger put out 302bhp in 1972 with a six cylinder.
Of course Fords Falcon XY GTHO made around 450 even though they rated it at 350.
The Valiant Charger was actually designed and made with a budget of $2 million in 18 months and had very little funds for racing. Go the Charger!!!!!!!!!!!