Leading Australian Doorslammer team Fabietti Racing will return to the track for the first time since the crash that claimed the life of their much-loved driver Sam Fenech at Willowbank Raceway in January 2023.

The team has refurbished their championship-winning Holden Monaro, raced by Mark Belleri, which landed their maiden Australian Slammer title in 2017. Fenech also ran the same car before updating to a factory-backed Chevrolet Camaro for the 2022-2023 season.

“The re-emergence of the ACDelco Monaro drag car is a fitting tribute to Sam Fenech. It's a car he raced in himself,” said team owner Maurice Fabietti.

"His family believe it's the right thing to do, as that's what he would have wanted. It's an appropriate legacy to a sport he loved so much and was himself such a big part of."

The return of Fabietti Racing, a stalwart of the category since the early 2000s and one of the most respected teams in Aussie Doorslammer ranks, is a boost to the category that has seen the retirement of reigning champ Kelvin Lyle in the off-season.

Fabietti has also sprung a surprise move in signing little-known Sportsman racer Ronnie Palumbo to drive for the team.

The opening round of the 2023-2024 Doorslammer season commences on October 21-22.