So long champ

MOTOR racing champion driver Peter Brock has been killed in a racing accident in Western Australia.

The Confederation of Australian Motor Sport (CAMS) said in a statement the accident occurred at about 1.50pm (AEST).

Sixty-one-year-old Brock's co-driver, believed to Mick Hone, has been taken to hospital in a stable condition. CAMS said it will conduct a full investigation into the incident.

In the meantime, CAMS and event officials are working with the relevant civil authorities.

"On behalf of the motor sport community, CAMS offers its sincere sympathy to Peter's family and many friends," the statement said.

Targa West is a tarmac special stage rally.

Brock was a dominant figure in Australian motor sport, winning the Bathurst 1000, Australia's most prominent domestic motorsport event, a total of nine times through the 1970s and 80s.

He won six Bathurst 1000 wins in seven years, including his victory in the 1979 event, which he won by a record six laps.

He retired from full-time driving in 1997.

Since 1997, he had made two return visits to Bathurst in 2002 and 2004 and returned to top-level touring car racing as a team owner of "Team Brock'' in 2002 in the V8 Supercar category.

A year later he sold his share in the team to Kees Weel.

In recent years, he occasionally competed in various motorsport events such as the Targa Tasmania.