Motorsport Australia continues to invest in world-class sporting expertise
Thursday 31 October, 2024
Lisa Crampton brings world-class expertise, from key roles at Formula 1 through to FIA’s World Endurance Championship, to her new role as Sporting & Technical Director at Motorsport Australia. Reporting directly to the CEO, Crampton spearheads the motorsport division at Motorsport Australia.
Lisa Crampton’s return to Australia after 18 years abroad represents a crucial shift in the strategy and leadership of Motorsport Australia’s sporting and technical division. With her extensive experience and well-earned respect on the global motorsport stage, she is poised to make a significant impact right here at home.
The foundation of Lisa Crampton’s esteemed career was laid at a community level in the 1990s, when she first became involved in motorsport as a spectator. At that time, she had no intention of pursuing the sport professionally, but this initial connection would soon blossom into a remarkable journey.
While motorsport was a formative part of her upbringing – Crampton’s father raced Formula Ford and Formula Holden – Lisa was destined for a career in medicine before international opportunities presented themselves.
“I was never intentionally going to work in motorsport. I was planning to become a pediatrician,” Crampton said.
“Fast forward a few more years, and I landed in Dubai at the Dubai Autodrome as Events Manager. I did the GP2 Asia program out of Dubai and then went on and did the first Formula 1 at Abu Dhabi, which was a very big project, seeing that track built from scratch and having the first Grand Prix delivered.”
Her time in Dubai opened doors to opportunities in Europe, where she moved to London and took over as General Manager of SRO Motorsports Group. In this role, she managed British Formula 3 and British GT, further expanding her expertise in the world of motorsport.
Crampton also worked with X-raid, one of the most successful teams in cross-country rally, with MINI and as the works team for the three-time Dakar-winning Audi Sport team including a win with Carlos Sainz Sr. and Lucas Cruz in 2024.
Over the years that followed, Crampton worked across a host of world-class events.
“I moved more into Race Control and Officiating, doing seven years with the World Endurance Championship as the number two to the Race Director at the FIA during the 24 hours of Le Mans and then moving also into European Le Mans Series, Asian Le Mans Series, doing my own licence with the DMSB, moving over to Germany, becoming FIA Race Director for the ETCR,” Lisa said.
“At the same time, I spent the last seven years, working with BMW as their Sporting Manager, looking after the works programs all the way from DTM, Formula-E, World Endurance, Nürburgring, and 24 Hours of Spa.”
Back in Australia, Crampton is eager to apply her extensive experience to her role at Motorsport Australia with her primary focus on revitalising officials training and enhancing the event management structure to support further growth in the sport.
“Motorsport in Australia enjoys a great following and all made possible by a dedicated group of officials working to grow our sport and see it thrive. I am thrilled to join the highly experienced team at Motorsport Australia and look forward to playing a big role in shaping the future of the sport.
“One of the things I’m most grateful for is having some incredible mentors, who I was able to watch and learn from. Hopefully, I can look into those officiating programs here and make sure that all of our senior officials, junior officials, and new officials who want to get involved have a program and a pathway to learn,” she said.
“That has a knock-on effect with all of our safety and sporting aspects at every event. That has a benefit to all of our competitors and licence holders, that we are giving them the absolute best standards when they come racing.”
Crampton is also leading a new approach to event management at Motorsport Australia as it moves from a generalist to specialist management model which will ensure all categories – rally, circuit and off road – receive the resources and attention necessary to grow and thrive.
This strategic realignment allows Motorsport Australia to focus on its core responsibilities as a governing body, building a platform for growth with enhancements to rules, regulations, safety and risk management protocols, as well as developing the best officials in the world.
“Motorsport Australia’s officials were always seen as the best in the world, and we were often sought after to go and do new projects with racetracks and events around the world. I believe we need to focus on this project. We need to bring back some top-level training, seminars, high-performance programs, which is a benefit to all of our competitors and licence holders, that we are giving them the absolute best standards when they come racing.”
“Motorsport Australia is known as a world-leader and sets a global standard in motorsport. I am keen to bring my own extensive experience in the sport and help lead this next phase of development for the organisation across many critical areas.” said Crampton.
Lisa Crampton’s return to motorsport in Australia promises to create a significant impact, enriching the experience for competitors and the wider motorsport community alike.