Rockynats 06, Rockhampton Regional Council, Media Release, 23 April 2026

As the last of the smoke drifted from the Buddy’s Fire Burnout pad, the lights on Quay Street’s drag strip flicked green one final time, and cars were carefully loaded onto trailers, the curtain officially closed on a record-breaking Rare Spares and Repco Rockynats 06, which saw a staggering 65,000 people through the gates across the weekend.

The spotlight quickly turned from the street to the stage, as entrants gathered at the FMX Kaos Showgrounds precinct on Sunday night for the highly anticipated Full Throttle Awards ceremony, celebrating the best of the best from a record field of 1,900 entrants.

With categories spanning everything from bikes and street awards to burnouts, drags and dyno, Summernats Director, Andy Lopez, acknowledged that competition was tough across the board, showcasing the depth of talent and calibre of builds that continue to define the event.

“The quality of cars and the level of skill we’ve seen across the weekend has been exceptional. No matter where you looked, from the burnout pad to the Elite Hall, the street drags to the Show N Shine, there was depth, there was passion, and there was serious talent on display,” Andy said.

The biggest honour of the night, the Rockynats 06 Grand Champion title, was awarded to Gold Coast’s Grant Pollard and his VC Commodore ‘Helbent’, who took out the ultimate all-rounder award despite only unveiling the car at the Elite Pavilion 48 hours prior. 

“I’m a spray painter by trade, but I do fly in-fly out for work now, meaning I have only been able to work on it two weeks out of every six,” explains Grant. “So, I teamed up with my mate Russell and the guys from Weavers Autobody Restorations who did all the bodywork and I did the paint. It’s been a great build over seven years.”

The prestigious accolade celebrates the vehicle, and entrant, that excels across multiple disciplines from elite build quality and street appeal to performance on both the burnout pad and the drag strip.

The equally coveted People’s Choice Award went to Peter Misfud (1972 Ford XA Falcon), as voted by fans across the weekend, while Robert Cottrell claimed the Pro Burnout title in his 1982 Ford Falcon ‘4DH8RS’, taking home the $20,000 top prize, the largest in the event’s history. In the street drags, the Pro Street competition was won by B Wood (1994 Holden Commodore), while Mark Peachey (1977 Chrysler Centura) took out the Super Street category and Nathaniel Lehr (3014 Yamaha MT09) the Bike category.

Rockynats Chief Judge, Owen Webb, said the record number of entrants, combined with the exceptional standard of craftsmanship on display, is a testament to Rockynats’ status as one of Australia’s premier automotive festivals.

“Across almost every category, it came down to the smallest details, the finishes, the consistency, how well competitors performed across multiple disciplines,” Owen commented.

“The level of competition we’ve seen this again year shows just how much this event means to our entrants, and it’s only raising the bar for the years to come.”

Momentum is already building for Rockynats 07 next year, with the event confirmed to return from April 2–4, 2027. Entrant registrations officially opened yesterday. Those wanting to lock in their Rockynats 07 experience can register at: https://www.rockynats.com.au/Entrants.

Spectator tickets and program information will be made available closer to the event.

Rockynats 06 by the numbers:      

• 1900 entrants
• 65,000 total attendees across the weekend
• 1379 street parade participants
• 400 Show N Shine entrants, with 200 cars on display each day
• 8 cars and 2 bikes unveiled at the Meguiars Elite Pavilion
• 60+ Mulletfest entrants ranging from 1 to 70 years old, and 24 Tattoo Competition entrants