Volume 29 No 3

Transcription

Volume 29 No 3

Bulletin
Of the british racing drivers’ club
Bulletin Of the british racing drivers’ club
Volume 29 No 3 • autumn 2008
Volume 29 No 3 • autumn 2008
1 October 1978.
Was it really 30 years ago that the Indy cars (or USAC cars as they were then known) came to Britain for
the first time? The British weather did its best to spoil John Webb’s great initiative and the first three
days were bedevilled by rain so that the race had to be postponed from Saturday to Sunday. But when
they raced they did not disappoint with AJ Foyt, an Indianapolis legend if ever there was one, charging
through from the fifth row of the grid in his Coyote-Ford to be challenging Rick Mears in the PenskeCosworth PC6 for the lead when the rain returned and the race was suspended. On the restart there was
no stopping Anthony Joseph who surged past Rick into Stowe within a couple of laps and stayed ahead
until the rain returned for a second time and that was that. Here we see the great man heading into the
Woodcote chicane on his way to one of his rare wins in Europe. The small matter of the 1967 Le Mans 24
Hours (with Dan Gurney) was the other.
Ian Titchmarsh
THE BRITISH RACING DRIVERS’ CLUB
President in Chief
HRH The Duke of Kent KG
President
Damon Hill OBE
Chairman
Robert Brooks
Directors
Ross Hyett
Jackie Oliver
Stuart Rolt
Ian Titchmarsh
Derek Warwick
Nick Whale
BULLETIN
Volume 29 No 3 • AUTUMN 2008
Volume 29 No 3 • AUTUMN 2008
10
CONTENTS
06
10
16
18
18
BRDC Bulletin Editorial Board
James Beckett (Ed), Ian Titchmarsh, Stuart Pringle
19
22
28
© 2008 The British Racing Drivers’ Club. All rights in and relating to
this publication are expressly reserved. Nothing in this publication
may be reproduced in whole or part without prior written
permission from the BRDC. The views expressed in Bulletin are not
necessarily those of the editor, the BRDC or the publishers.
38
RACING MEMBERS
42
24
26
THE STEPHEN JELLEY DIARY
When the going gets tough…
43
BRDC SILVER STAR
44
BRDC GOLD STAR
MEETING MEMBERS
The Club Secretary chats with
Dick Bennetts
BRDC Members have been on-track around
the world
A NOGGIN AND NATTER
With Robin Widdows
LE MANS COMES TO SILVERSTONE
The ’08 Le Mans Series crown has
been decided
Lewis Hamilton heads the points table
46
OBITUARIES
BRDC RISING STARS
54
SECRETARY’S LETTER
55
MEMBER NEWS
Tim Harvey reports
56
BOOK REVIEWS
TOURING CARS MAKE SILVERSTONE
RETURN
58
REGIONAL AND CLUB EVENTS
Champions have been crowned
BRDC SUPERSTARS
Wheel-to-wheel action at the ‘Home of
British Motor Racing’
DESIGN
Damion Chew
www.brdc.co.uk
FORMULA ONE REVIEW
ROAD TEST
Rob Barff evaluates the new Nissan GT-R
BTCC drivers lead the way
BRDC
Silverstone Circuit
Towcester
Northants
NN12 8TN
Barker Brooks Media Ltd
Barker Brooks House
4 Greengate, Cardale Park
Harrogate
HG3 1GY
Tel: 01423 851150
email: [email protected]
www.barkerbrooks.co.uk
NEWS FROM YOUR CIRCUIT
Peter Windsor writes for the Bulletin
Club Administrator
Jan Stevenson
Tel: 01327 850931
PRODUCED BY
36
The latest from the offices of SCL
Assistant Club Secretary
James Beckett
Tel: 01327 850925
Sponsorship and advertising
Adam Rogers
Tel: 01423 851150
PRESIDENT’S LETTER
Damon Hill
09
Club Secretary
Stuart Pringle
Tel: 01327 850926
PA to Club Secretary
Becky Simm
Tel: 01327 850922
OF THE BRITISH RACING DRIVERS’ CLUB
34
28
THE BRITISH GRAND PRIX
Lewis Hamilton triumphs
32
WHAT A CLASSIC
Classic racing under a blazing sun
Front cover
Wheel-to-wheel
Mat Jackson and Jason Plato go head-to-head at Silverstone as the British
Touring Car Championship returns to the ‘Home of British Motor Racing’
(Photo LAT)
Back Cover
34
UNDER THE SPOTLIGHT
Oliver Turvey is a man in form
Patriotic highlight
British Grand Prix day, July 6th 2008 (Photo Jakob Ebrey)
BRDC Bulletin Vol 29 No 3
3
29 August 1966
Jim Clark, the reigning World Champion, takes the chequered flag at Brands Hatch on August Bank
Holiday to win the Edward Lewis Trophy, a round of the British Saloon Car Championship, in his Lotus
Cortina in front of an estimated 30,000 spectators. Two years earlier the great Scot had won the
championship in an earlier version of the same model. Second to Jimmy this day is current BRDC Director
Jack (ie) Oliver in his Ford Mustang, driving accordingly to one report “in wonderful style”. The main race
of the day is the Guards International Trophy for Group 7 sports-racing cars, won overall by John Surtees
in a Team Surtees Lola T70 but who remembers what Jimmy is driving in this race? Answer on page 58.
Ian Titchmarsh
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DAMON HILL OBE
PRESIDENT’S LETTER
D
ear Fellow BRDC Member, I hope
to Oliver Turvey, who now leads the
secure for the foreseeable future, thanks
you enjoy this end of season
British F3 Championship supported
to Donington and Bernie Ecclestone,
edition of the Bulletin.
by the much appreciated ‘Racing Steps
which is good for all of us.
There have been some incredible
Best wishes,
racing and events at Silverstone over this
programme. We very much want to
summer which we review here, but there
develop this into a leading support plan
are still some choice events to come
for the modern day competitor. I believe
before the winter; championships must
that this is the most pertinent way that
be decided! I am happy to say that the
the BRDC can be useful to our sport and
Grand Prix was a big success for which
play a part in ensuring we remain at the
we should recognise the exceptional
sharp end of all motor sport categories
work of the team at Silverstone for
worldwide. This will in turn be crucial to
putting it all together.
retaining those events in the UK and also,
Damon Hill OBE
of course, at Silverstone. It makes good
President, BRDC
11 July 1993
Superstars and Rising Stars programmes.
the shock news of the granting of the
It should not need reminding ourselves
GP contract to Donington, we must not
that this Club is just as much about
be disheartened. We must still set our
the competitor, especially the British
objectives to be effective in whatever
drivers whom we support and celebrate
we turn our hand to; which means we
through the Club. Last month I took
must have ambitions for Silverstone and
part in the presentation of the very
for motor sport. At least one can be re-
The Fosters British Grand Prix is under way with poleman
Alain Prost not making the best of starts in his WilliamsRenault FW 15C but Damon most certainly does, taking a
lead which he is not to lose, despite intense and relentless
pressure from his World Champion team mate, until his
engine lets go with 17 laps to run. Also charging off the line,
from fourth on the grid in his McLaren-Ford MP4/8, is the
other World Champion hot on Damon’s heels, Ayrton Senna.
A few moments after this picture was taken, Ayrton has
forced his way uncompromisingly past Alain to take second
place into Copse which he holds for six laps before having
to yield to the faster Williams. So Damon does not win his
first Grand Prix at home, nor does he in Germany two weeks
later when a tyre fails while leading with less than two
laps left. It is the race after that, in Hungary, where Damon
scores his long overdue first F1 victory. The British win, which
had always eluded his father Graham, has to wait until the
following year.
first Cambridge ‘Blue’ for motor sport,
assured that the British Grand Prix will be
Ian Titchmarsh
The most important point to make
is that the Club is doing good work
now in supporting young drivers in the
6
Foundation’ and of course the Superstars
business sense to plan for the future.
As for the future of Silverstone after
9 May 1976
Woodcote Chicane. For 1976 the FIA announced a new Group 5 Silhouette category for its World Championship of Makes and Silverstone
played host to the third round. Just 17 cars took the start for a six hour race with one of them, the Jacky Ickx/Jochen Mass Porsche 935 Turbo,
significantly quicker in qualifying than any other. Unhappily for them but happily for everyone else the Porsche’s clutch failed on the very first lap
leaving the race wide open. Here we see in the very early laps the Dieter Quester Schnitzer BMW 3.5 CSL leading the Leo Kinnunen Evertz Porsche
Carrera RSR and the similar BMWs of John Fitzpatrick (Hermetite) and Harald Grohs (Alpina) in pursuit of Ronnie Peterson’s leading BMW 3.5 CSL
Turbo and Bob Wollek’s Kremer Porsche 935. Remember who their co-drivers were? It was a classic all the way. In the end Fitz, after staying in
the car for the final three hours without a break (he had no option, his co-driver had gone off to race at another circuit!), held off Hans Heyer’s
Porsche to win by 1.18 secs. Truly a Silverstone-type finish.
Ian Titchmarsh
A stunning lineup of BTCC legends joined
us at Silverstone
wanted to take this opportunity to
thank all those Members who joined us
for the recent BRDC Forums on 1 and 4
September. We felt that both presentations
were well received and were pleased with
the response and support from those
Members present.
In addition to providing the SHL
Board with an opportunity to present
plans for the continued development of
Silverstone into a world class venue for
motorsport, education and technology,
the Forums also paved the way for greater
transparency between the Members and
the business in the future.
The terms of a new Grand Prix contract
would not have been as favourable as they
had been previously, and we have been
conscious of the need to diversify the
business beyond 2009, with or without the
British Grand Prix. We have looked at, and
will continue to look at, opportunities to
increase Silverstone’s offerings, ensuring
we reaffirm our position at the forefront of
the UK motorsport industry.
Recent successes include strong
alliances with iconic brands such as
manufacturers Porsche, through the
Porsche Driver Training Facility; Nissan,
for whom we are managing a series of
launch and test activities for the new GTR;
and BSM, who have recently launched a
I
rider training school, in association with
Ducati, Suzuki, Harley Davidson and
Kawasaki, here at Silverstone.
We also continue to work closely with
local authorities and governments to
expand our tourism, education and health
offerings.
The business in 2008 is forecast to
deliver operating profit ahead of budget
to the end of 2008 and we are in a strong
position with consistent healthy cash
balances.
Meanwhile, back on track – which is,
after all, at the heart of everything we do
– we enjoyed a strong crowd, despite the
inclement weather, at our recent round of
the British Touring Car Championship.
One of the highlights of the weekend
was the joint celebration of the 50th,
60th and 80th anniversaries of the BTCC,
Silverstone and the BRDC respectively.
A stunning line-up of BTCC legends
and cars joined us at Silverstone on the
Sunday, taking part in ‘meet and greet’
sessions and a historic Parade Lap.
The drivers and cars are all part of this
circuit’s rich heritage, and the feedback
from Members has been extremely
positive. Many have commented on
the spirit of ‘togetherness’, and the
atmosphere in the Clubhouse where so
many friends were reunited. I would like
to take this opportunity to thank all of the
drivers and car owners for their fantastic
support at that event and hope they
enjoyed the anniversary celebrations as
much as we did.
Our attention switches to two wheels at
the end of the month, and I do hope that
you are able to join us for the penultimate
round of this year’s Bennetts British
Superbike Championship.
Legends on parade
Jack Sears is joined by (l-r, back to front) Derek Warwick, Andy
Rouse, Stuart Graham, Jackie Oliver, Anthony Reid, Chris Craft, Sir
John Whitmore, Steve Neal, Tony Dron, Gordon Spice, Jeff Allam,
Barrie Williams, Graham (son of David) Leslie, Vince Woodman and
Martin Thomas
Richard Phillips
Managing Director
Silverstone Circuits Limited
9
FORMULA 1
Peter Windsor observes the Lewis Hamilton bandwagon gaining momentum.
ou’ve probably forgotten it now – now
that the classic is over – but the majority
of British commentators (the old,
Baxter-esque term for the rabble we today
call the “media”) were extremely critical of
Lewis Hamilton in the weeks leading up to
the British Grand Prix. No matter that he is
still young and is in only his second season
of F1; no matter that already he has finished
runner-up in the World Championship, had
by that point won six Grands Prix and had
destroyed the opposition at Monaco. Lewis
had made a mistake in Canada and had
compounded that with incidents in traffic
(from 13th on the grid!) in France. Lewis was
crumbling under the pressure! Lewis was
being eclipsed by his much cooler teammate! Lewis was finished!
McLaren’s ever-efficient media
department being what it is, they naturally
brought all this to Lewis’s attention. Had
they not done so, I dare say that Lewis would
never have known about it: he probably has
as much interest in reading about himself
in the newspapers as he has in catching
up with the soccer results in the back of
the tabloids (ie: zero). Nonetheless, in two
private sponsorship events at which I was
fortunate to be present prior to Silverstone,
Lewis spoke quietly of “everything
happening for a reason” and then confessed
Y
10 BRDC Bulletin Vol 29 No 3
to having been under “a lot of pressure over
the past few weeks” and having to do a lot
of “soul-searching”. And by this, I think, he
wasn’t referring to anything that had taken
place on the race track.
Thus Lewis’s build-up for his home Grand
Prix. It’s sad that the British press have
already decided to squeeze everything from
Lewis and that his popularity in their eyes
Lewis was crumbling under
the pressure! Lewis was being
eclipsed by his much cooler teammate! Lewis was finished!
swings precariously from good to bad and
back to good, depending on his results on
any given weekend. It’s sad, too, that Lewis
cannot be judged for what he is – which is
to say the best new F1 driver of the modern
generation and, taking his inexperience into
account, one of the best you’re ever likely to
see. For proof, watch him drive. Any race,
anywhere, will do: Silverstone in the wet will
do better.
Before we watch from Copse or Becketts,
however, before we take in the subtleties of
his driving at Club, where he had no time for
the “quick-fix”, full-throttle short-shift that
most drivers used on exit, thus avoiding the
issue of having perfectly to match traction
with that corner’s natural tendency towards
oversteer, consider the pressures under
which Lewis now drives. And I’m not only
talking about the effect of the British press.
I speak also of his fellow drivers. In France,
at the preceding round of the championship,
Lewis started mid-field on the softer of the
two Bridgestones, thus putting himself at
variance with everyone around him. As
such, he was a marked man. You saw Lewis
in your mirrors and thus you made an extra
effort to keep him behind. You had Lewis
alongside you and you thought again about
turning into him and taking him out. Lewis,
because of his brilliance, is unsettling them
– and this is something with which Lewis has
never had to deal at any point in his career.
When the tyre warmers were removed from
his car on the grid in France, you can be sure
that everyone took note of his perceived
arrogance. And when Nelson Piquet saw
Lewis behind him, you can be sure that
Nelson thought, “Ok. This is it. This is my
chance. My drive’s on the line. This guy can
try to pass but he’ll never get by...” Even
the “good guys” have fallen into the trap.
In Japan last year, when Sebasitan Vettel
ran into the back of Mark Webber in Safety
Car conditions, both drivers lost no time in
FORMULA 1
Back to back
Lewis followed his patriotic
victory at Silverstone (below)
with another performance
masterclass in Germany (left).
Two races. Two wins. Sheer class
(Photos Jakob Ebrey and LAT)
Lewis, because of his
brilliance, is unsettling them
blaming Lewis Hamilton…
And so it was at Silverstone, at the half-way
point of the 2008 season. Lewis drove out of
the pit lane at the start of Q3 to find Nelson
Piquet on the road ahead of him. What
should he do? If it was Kimi in front, Lewis
would have dropped back a car’s length or
two and driven his lap – likewise with Felipe
or Heikki. Nelson was different. Nelson is
capable of playing games. If Lewis slowed to
give Nelson room, Nelson would probably
do the same. If Lewis tried to pass him,
Nelson would make it difficult and oblige
BRDC Bulletin Vol 29 No 3 11
FORMULA 1
The sky’s the limit (left)
Felipe Massa is firmly in
contention in the World
Championship
PleasING on the eye
Grid girls mark the spot
(Photos LAT)
him to brake late on dirty road. Lewis’s tyres
would thus be ruined.
So Lewis hesitated. This cost him time.
And then he decided. He went for it, went
for the pass – and, sure enough, Nelson
didn’t make it easy. We’re talking an out-lap
here but, in the context of Lewis’s weekend,
it may have been the race. Lewis braked
late, forcing the issue down the inside, and
eventually Nelson moved over. By then it
was too late: Lewis’s tyres were indeed shot.
He left the road after Bridge. With the left
underside of the car damaged, his second,
critical, Q3 lap became just a per centage
lap: he aimed for the second row at worst.
If that little cameo perfectly encapsulated
the sort of problems Lewis is now facing
in his still-young career, consider how
completely the Santander British Grand
Prix summarized the year to date. Heikki
Kovalainen did exactly what he was
supposed to do under the circumstances
– which was to take the pole that should
have gone to Lewis – but then crumbled on
Sunday when the conditions deteriorated.
Heikki is a very quick, very able team-mate
McLaren were beaten on the
high-downforce circuits this year
by Ferrari’s superior traction out
of slow corners
for Lewis but the edges remain on his
transitions – from straight line to lateral
load, from lateral load to exit. Heikki “jinks”
at these points; Lewis, like Jarno Trulli in the
dry and Kimi most of the time, is “seamless”.
As a general trend, McLaren were beaten
on the high-downforce circuits this year
by Ferrari’s superior traction out of slow
corners. Given that slow corners on highdownforce circuits make up about 40 per
cent of the driver’s seasonal workload, it is
obvious that Ferrari, in the opening phase
of the year, had something of a major
advantage. At Silverstone it was different.
Thanks to aero pressure shifts, McLaren
made big progress on the slow corners at
Silverstone. They were fastest in the threeday, pre-race test – and Q2 at Silverstone
FORMULA 1
On the road to ruin (left)
Kimi Räikkönen’s engine blew in Valencia
costing him a valuable points haul
Red Bull fighter (above)
The Valencia Grand Prix was David Coulthard’s
final F1 outing in Spain
indicated that Lewis and Heikki had every
chance of qualifying one-two. Kimi and
Lewis ran the same fuel load throughout
most of the Silverstone weekend (Heikki
was usually lighter) and at every checkpoint
Lewis was usually a couple of tenths faster
than the Ferrari.
We know this because Ferrari for the
most part seemed to be genuinely confused.
Felipe Massa crashed heavily at Stowe on
Friday morning but by the afternoon he was
out there again, car rebuilt, morale high.
“The funny thing is that he says the car
now feels even better than it did before!”
said his race engineer, Rob Smedley, in that
un-Ferrari-like Middlesbrough accent of his.
Put this into the context of Felipe ignoring
radio messages from Rob about oil on the
track and Felipe failing to see the two sets of
oil flags on display and you get the weight
of his meaning. We never did find out on
Sunday how the McLaren and Ferrari truly
compared in equal conditions in the dry but
Ron Dennis, pre-race, was adamant: “We’ve
not only closed the gap; we’ve passed them!”
Hockenheim, a fortnight later, would prove
the point.
For a while, though, it was close. As the
clouds grew heavy and the capacity crowd
searched for wet gear and umbrellas, Kimi
drew ever-closer to Lewis. Sector 1 – Copse
and Becketts – belonged to Lewis. The rest
of the lap was Kimi’s. I asked Lewis about
this later and he replied only by saying that
he had felt pretty much under control and
didn’t want to take any chances – given the
light rain – on the big stops.
Then came the double-whammy: Ferrari
blew their wet race apart by not giving
Kimi a new set of Bridgestone wets; had
the conditions remained dry, the scrubbed
wets would have grown ever-quicker (until
they were slicks). In the wet… forget it…
and the Ferrari boys, like most Italians in the
UK during our “summer”, never imagined
it was going to rain. Lewis, simultaneously,
FORMULA 1
drove off in the wet into a world of his own
– into his own, supreme class. Short-shifting,
as I say, is a mug’s game; it’s the easy way
out of traction dramas. Down at Club,
feathering the throttle with the right foot
of a dancer, Lewis annihilated not only his
team-mate but also the best of the rest. Call
it maximizing the torque of the engine and
the car – by a superiority factor of about 10.
The travesty, as I think Alan Henry astutely
pointed out on the Monday after Silverstone,
was that Lewis’s points margin over Nick
Heidfeld for winning this race was only
two. Put another way, Nick Heidfeld did not
deserve eight points for finishing nearly a lap
behind Lewis. As for the rest…
Lewis’s only problem was with vision. You
could see him on the approach to Bridge,
and down Hangar Straight, struggling to
clean his visor. This was because Lewis,
alone of the Arai helmet drivers, chose to
henceforth be decided exclusively by the
team and by the Arai engineers. Lewis, I
think, was happy to concede the point…
just as I was happy to remember, as we filed
out of Silverstone, Lewis’s comment of a few
days before about “everything happening
for a reason”. It was inconceivable, now
that it had happened, that a driver as good
as Lewis was not going to win at race like
Santander Silverstone 2008.
Lewis sustained that momentum, as I say,
at Hockenheim, but in Hungary, where the
Bridgestone prime compound was basically
too hard until about mid-way through the
race and the option so soft that it caused
massive graining (again until about midway through the race) that another trend
was confirmed: when tyres are marginal
(either because of the abnormal stress of
some corners – remember turn eight in
Turkey – or the Hungary-defined relative
Lewis annihilated not only his team-mate but
also the best of the rest
run a single-lens (dry-weather) visor; he
had won Fuji in 2007 with Arai’s brilliant
new double-lens but had felt after that
race that he had still suffered too much
misting. “From now on,” he told the Arai
boys, “I’ll run the single lens and – thanks
but no thanks – I’ll do my own helmet
preparation.”
There’s no doubt that a double-lens visor
would have been mist-free for Lewis at
Silverstone – just as there was no doubt
about Fuji 2007 being about the most
extreme wet race you’re ever going to see.
Post-Silverstone, the McLaren directive
was that Lewis’s helmet set-up would
Lift off (right)
Jarno Trulli celebrates his
podium finish at Magny-Cours
Ferrari lead the way
(centre)
Räikkönen heads Massa at the
start of the French Grand Prix
Dream on (centre, top)
Point-scoring finishes for
Jenson Button this season have
not been a regular occurrence
incompatibility of the two Bridgestone
compounds for the circuit, it is Lewis
Hamilton who will be hurt most. Not
because of his “driving style”. Not because
he doesn’t know how to manage his tyres.
Lewis struggles because he puts more
load through the carcase than any F1 driver
on the planet and because – as in Hungary
– he uniquely manages to maximize both
compounds with apparent ease. In prerace Hungary, Lewis, with his near-perfect
feel for balance and grip, alone was quick
on both the prime and the option. The
problem arose on race day, when track
grip levels finally reached their optimum
and Lewis, with a lower-grip set-up,
inevitably began to put more heat into the
Bridgestone constructions.
In such conditions Lewis also has a
marked tendency to bind the unloaded
front under braking. I say “bind”. I hesitate
to use the word “lock” because Lewis,
like Michael Schumacher, is very good at
almost locking the unloaded front. Give
him a downhill left-hander, though, and
deteriorating grip, and eventually he’s
going to flat-spot a Bridgestone.
That’s what happened in Hungary.
Thus hurt, that left front was thereafter
an obvious puncture target – particularly
when you saw Lewis alone hooking
the left front into a smallish drain on
the apex of a couple of corners. Such a
manoeuvre requires incredible precision
and consistency but brings with it the risk
of damaging the sidewall on the “serrated
edge” of the kerb. McLaren maintain
that Lewis ran over track debris and thus
sustained the puncture. They point to
bodywork damage consistent with an
impact. I suspect, however, that it was the
kerb issue. It adds up.
FORMULA 1
the championship begins
to look more and more like a
straight fight between Felipe
and Lewis
Thus Felipe Massa won in Hungary –
Felipe the Ferrari driver who is much more
than a number two to Kimi. As the season
evolves, and the championship begins to
look more and more like a straight fight
between Felipe and Lewis, we see the
character of Ferrari finally crystallizing:
Felipe, with his ever-growing ability to be
error-free and beautifully precise on slow
corners, is emerging as a Ferrari-backed,
latter-day Niki Lauda. Kimi, with the 2007
championship title achieved, is quite
happy to continue to believe that he is
the world’s fastest racing driver and thus
on four days out of five win the day. The
problem is that Kimi now finds a sweet
spot on only about five days out of 10
and that Felipe, with at least 50 per cent
of the team’s support, is now capable of
cramping the style of the world champion
even on one of Kimi’s good days.
In this context, Lewis is smart enough
to know (even if the British press won’t
like it) that a string of second places can
win him the World Championship – as we
saw in Valencia. Bones aching with ‘flu
symptoms, neck muscles pinched, Lewis
nevertheless finished a strong second to
the ebullient Felipe. Eight good points.
More than he deserved, perhaps, relative
to Felipe that day in Spain – but making
up, I’d say, for the meagre eight-plustwo he had scored that brilliant day at
Silverstone.
Like father, like son (right)
Renault’s Nelson Piquet boxes clever to score his first
F1 podium at Hockenheim
Dust-up
Toyota’s Timo Glock found himself in an unexpected
podium fight at the Hungaroring
RACING MEMBERS
The BRDC badge continues to
dominate on the world’s motor
racing stage... James Beckett
reports on BRDC activities on
the international motorsport
global scene.
fter winning the opening two
rounds of the FIA GT3 European
Championship at Silverstone, the
‘Home of British Motor Racing’, Ian Khan
returned to winning ways in the most
recent round of the series at the Czech
Republic circuit of Brno.
Driving the car of the season, as far as
the FIA GT3 scene is concerned, Ian and
his German team-mate, Thomas Mutsch,
scored their third win of the campaign to
move them back to the top of the points
standings with four rounds remaining – two
at Nogaro in France and two in Dubai.
Bradley Ellis, now fighting fit from the
British GT accident that many feared would
end his career, was also Ford GT-powered
A
in the Czech Republic, sharing driving
duties with his Rising Star squaddie, Alex
Mortimer. Although the duo only recorded
one seventh place finish from their two
outings, they currently stand a fine third
and fourth in the points table.
The BRDC not only wins rounds of
the FIA GT3 European Championship, it
also wins rounds of the flagship FIA GT
Championship. In Brno, Ryan Sharp, the
Silverstone RAC Tourist Trophy winner
back in May, scorched around the circuit
to claim his third win of the season at the
wheel of the Jetalliance Aston Martin DBR9
with his former Grand Prix team-mate, Karl
Wendlinger.
The FIA GT2 class has also seen victory
champagne consumed by BRDC Members
– most notably in Romania, when Andrew
Kirkaldy and Rob Bell were the stars of the
show in their CR Scuderia Ferrari F430.
The FIA World Touring Car Championship
continues to be a haven for BRDC Members,
and Andy Priaulx at the wheel of a BMW, and
Rob Huff in an RML-prepared Chevrolet,
have been upholding the Club’s honour to a
fine degree. Both are right in the mix for the
ultimate Touring Car crown this season, and
with rounds remaining in Italy, Japan and
Macau both could win the title.
Andy and Rob have each won one race
apiece this year, Andy back in June around
the streets of Pau, and Rob under the
Spanish sun in Valencia. Podium finishes
have occurred more recently for the duo at
Estoril and Brands Hatch, and a great British
challenge for the WTCC prize is guaranteed.
The BRDC DTM gang have been
performing well, notably Paul Di Resta and
Jamie Green. The Mercedes Junior Team
drivers have been in the mix alongside
their more established DTM colleagues
throughout, and between them three races
have been won. As with many series, the
finish line is not far away – and although
Audi driver. Timo Scheider is up front, the
BRDC youngsters are not far behind.
Allan McNish rounded out his season of
Le Mans Series racing with a superb victory
in the fifth round of the ACO-sanctioned
category at Silverstone in mid-September.
Teamed with Dindo Capello, Allan
stormed to victory in the Autosport 1000km
(see report on page 44), to lift the famous
BRDC British Empire Trophy as the ultimate
prize. While Allan dominated with his Audi
R10 diesel, the LMS was home to a huge
gathering of BRDC Members. Alongside
Allan, a further 10 BRDC Members took
to the track and they were joined by two
BRDC Superstars and one BRDC Rising Star
– quite a showing! Notably, Rob Bell won
GT2 in his Virgo Ferrari.
While BRDC Rising Star Sean Edwards
won the Porsche Supercup race at the
British and Belgian Grands Prix, Danny
Watts was adding to his CV with a
fine second position at the wheel of a
Lechner-SAS entry on his home track,
while Mike Conway has been a regular
points-scoring finisher in the GP2 Series
following his Monaco victory in May.
Stateside, in single seater racing,
Justin Wilson scored a superb maiden
IndyCar Series victory at “The Detroit
Indy Grand Prix from the raceway at
Belle Isle,” while Dan Wheldon has
also been in the mix with strong drives
that have elevated him to fourth in the
table with one round remaining. The
sportscar scene as far as BRDC Members
are concerned centres on the American
Le Mans Series, David Brabham in
particular in his Highcroft Racing Acura,
and Robin Liddell in the Grand-Am with
his Pontiac – both having done well in
their respective categories.
RACING MEMBERS
Not born in the USA (far
left)
Dan Wheldon leads the British
& BRDC attack in the IndyCar
Series
Dancing in the street
(centre top)
Justin Wilson scored a debut
Indycar Series victory in Detroit
Tequila (centre middle)
David Brabham has been enjoying a fine run of form recently
Watts the story – morning
glory (centre bottom)
A great Silverstone performance from Danny Watts
Congratulations! (left)
Paul Di Resta (left) shakes
hands with Jamie Green
Girls, Girls, Girls! (above)
Motorsport has its fair share of
off-track excitement
Scotland the brave (below)
Allan McNish scored a
memorable win in the BRDC
British Empire Trophy race at
Silverstone
Photos by LAT and
James Beckett
BRDC SILVER STAR
SILVER SEAT FOR JASON?
A
t the time of writing there is just one British Touring Car
Championship round remaining with three races at Brands
Hatch on 21st September to decide whether this year’s
champion will be once again Fabrizio Giovanardi, to whom Jason
Plato lost out so narrowly last year. The task facing Jason this year
is much more daunting but he does head for Brands Hatch as
favourite to win his second successive Silver Star and fourth in all.
In the last Bulletin the BTCC had reached the halfway stage and
2006 Silver Star winner Matt Neal was leading the way following a
good start to the season on his switch to VX Racing’s Vauxhall Vectra
team. The following races have not been so kind to Matt with the
result that he has dropped out of the reckoning behind fellow BTCC
driver Colin Turkington of Team RAC, and Oliver Turvey from the
British F3 International Series.
Oliver’s recent run of success, with wins at Spa and Silverstone,
have brought him into serious contention for the British F3 title
and he heads for the last round at Donington Park on 12 October
with a 12 point advantage over his nearest rival. Unfortunately for
Oliver, there are only two races at each F3 round so that it will not
be possible for him to overhaul Jason’s current “best of 12” total
even if he wins both of them.
In other words the winner of the Silver Star will have been
decided at Brands Hatch with Colin the other contender if his
weekend with the BMW 320si goes particularly well and Jason falls
victim to any of the problems which have beset the Seat Leon TDIs
this year.
In British GT, where the scoring opportunities are even less than
in F3, Luke Hines has held his position in the top 10, thanks to
a strong series of podium finishes with his co-driver and BRDC
Rising Star Jeremy Metcalfe, in the CR Scuderia Ferrari 430GT.
Worthy of mention too is Mat Jackson who only became a Full
Member part way into the season so that all his BTCC results
cannot be taken into account. If they could have been he might
well have been close to challenging Jason and Colin.
Ian Titchmarsh
BRDC SILVER STAR POINTS
STANDINGS AS AT 10 SEPTEMBER 2008
1. Jason Plato
(BTCC)
211 (250)
2. Oliver Turvey
(British F3)
188 (190)
3. Colin Turkington
(BTCC)
178 (224)
4. Matt Neal
(BTCC)
150 (200)
5. Darren Turner
(BTCC)
144 (149)
6. Mat Jackson
(BTCC)
143 (150)
7. Luke Hines
(British GT)
102
8. Tom Chilton
(BTCC)
93
(98)
9. Steven Kane
(BTCC)
62
(63)
10. Michael Bentwood (British GT)
42
11. Piers Johnson
(British GT)
38
12. Bradley Ellis
(British GT)
35
13. Mike Jordan
(BTCC)
35
14. Jonathan Cocker
(British GT)
16
15. Tim Harvey
(British GT)
16
16. Stephen Jelley
(BTCC)
13
17. Anthony Reid
(British GT)
7
18. Stefan Wilson
(British F3)
1
It’s a knockout
Knockhill success for Jason Plato
Uphill battle
Colin Turkington can still win the Silver Star
BRDC GOLD STAR
LEWIS LEADS THE WAY
the three months which have passed
since the last Bulletin brought the
Gold Star points up to date, the
world of international motor racing has, as
ever, produced many changes of fortune
for Members competing at the highest
levels. But what has not changed is Lewis
Hamilton’s lead both in the Formula 1
World Championship and in the Gold Star
points table. While Lewis may be only one
point ahead of Felipe Massa in the World
Championship, he now has an almost
insuperable advantage in the battle for
the Gold Star. Lewis’s wins at Silverstone
and Hockenheim might not have been the
only ones to add to his earlier successes in
Australia and Monaco had it not been for
the machinations of the Belgian Grand Prix
Stewards. Nevertheless his ability to score
in every race has now given him a 76-point
advantage over his nearest challenger, and
former Gold Star winner, Dan Wheldon.
Dan was only seventh in the table three
months ago, after a relatively modest
start to his IndyCar season by his usual
standards, but a run of good results in
recent weeks has seen him move to fourth
in the IndyCar table and ahead of the WTCC
duo Andy Priaulx and Rob Huff in the Gold
Star. Life has been tough for BMW drivers
in the World Touring Car Championship
this year but, despite no further wins, Andy
has continued to rack up the points and,
with four rounds/eight races still to go at
the time of writing, he is only 13 points
In
behind championship leader and former
BTCC Champion Yvan Muller, who drives
a Seat Leon TDI. A hat trick of WTCC titles
was remarkable enough but could Andy
make it four in a row? In between times
Andy has found time to write a book, as you
may have noticed – available from all good
booksellers and due for review in these
pages soon.
Just as Andy is the best-placed of the
BMW drivers in the WTCC battle, so Rob
is the best for Chevrolet. A measure of just
how established Rob has become is the
fact that his team mates are two of the top
touring car drivers of recent times – Alain
Menu and Nicola Larini. A series of good
results in the remaining races could see Rob
also challenging for the title, lying as he is
just two points behind Andy, and just one
point behind in the Gold Star.
For Andy and Rob there are eight more
WTCC races but only six more Gold
Star-scoring opportunities since, being
in November, Macau counts towards the
following year. That said, they are better off
than David Brabham whose run of great
results in the American Le Mans Series with
the P2 Acura in Duncan Dayton’s team has
seen him rise from 12th to fifth in the last
few months. With only two races left, David
with his co-driver Scott Sharp could well
take the P2 Championship but his Gold Star
tally will soon run out of steam.
So, although the odds are very much
in favour of Lewis winning his second
successive Gold Star, whether this year he
will be able to add his first Formula 1 World
Championship will be decided over the
four remaining races in Singapore, Japan
(Fuji), Shanghai and Brazil (Interlagos).
However, for the first time for many years,
this last race takes place in November and
will therefore count towards next year’s
Gold Star.
Ian Titchmarsh
BRDC GOLD STAR POINTS
STANDINGS AS AT 15 SEPTEMBER 2008
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
16.
17.
18.
19.
20.
21.
22.
23.
24.
25.
26.
27.
28.
Lewis Hamilton (F1)
205
Dan Wheldon
(IndyCar)
129
Andy Priaulx
(WTCC)
103
Rob Huff
(WTCC)
102
David Brabham (ALMS)
101
Paul Di Resta (DTM)
89
Allan McNish
(Le Mans/LMS)
88
Jamie Green
(DTM)
87
Ian Khan
(FIA GT3)
75
Ryan Sharp
(FIA GT)
63
Robbie Kerr
(A1GP/LMS)
58
Mike Conway
(GP2)
47
Bradley Ellis
(FIA GT3)
46
Danny Watts
(Porsche Supercup) 42
Justin Wilson
(IndyCar)
41
Oliver Jarvis
(A1GP/DTM)
40
Peter Dumbreck (Super GT)
38
Marino Franchitti (ALMS)
36
Guy Smith
(ALMS)
29
Mark Webber
(F1)
28
Ralph Firman Jr. (Super GT)
28
James Rossiter (ALMS)
26
Robin Liddell
(Grand-Am)
24
James Thompson (WTCC)
23
Dario Franchitti (Grand-Am)
21
Darren Turner (Grand-Am/FIA GT) 21
David Coulthard (F1)
16
Gary Paffett
(DTM)
13
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BRDC RISING STARS
RISING
STARS
Sam Abay
Tim Bridgman
Tim Blanchard
Oliver Bryant
Tom Bradshaw
James Calado
Will Bratt
Graham Carroll
Jay Bridger
Adam Christodoulou
BRDC RISING STARS 2008
Sam Abay
Brendon Hartley
Matt Nicoll-Jones
BRITISH F3
INTERNATIONAL SERIES
BRITISH F3
BRITISH GT
Tim Blanchard
Andrew Jordan
BRITISH FORMULA FORD
BTCC
BRITISH F3
Tom Bradshaw
Ryan Lewis
Tom Onslow-Cole
FORMULA PALMER AUDI
ALMS
BTCC
Will Bratt
Hywel Lloyd
Martin Plowman
SPANISH F3
BRITISH F3
F3 EUROSERIES
Callum MacLeod
FORMULA RENAULT
EUROCUP
Jay Bridger
BRITISH F3
Tim Bridgman
PORSCHE CARRERA CUP
Oliver Bryant
BRITISH GT
James Calado
FORMULA RENAULT UK
Graham Carroll
BRITISH F3
Greg Mansell
Oliver Oakes
Adrian Quaife-Hobbs
Phil Qauife
FORMULA ATLANTIC
PORSCHE CARERRA
CUP GB
Michael Meadows
Alexander Sims
BRITISH GT
FORMULA RENAULT UK
Jeremy Metcalfe
Dean Smith
BRITISH GT
FORMULA RENAULT
EUROCUP
FORMULA FORD 1600
Andy Meyrick
Adam Christodoulou
BRITISH F3
Dean Stoneman
Jason Moore
Nick Tandy
FORMULA PALMER AUDI
BRITISH F3
FORMULA RENAULT UK
FORMULA RENAULT UK
Sean Edwards
PORSCEH SUPERCUP
Ollie Hancock
BARC FORMULA
RENAULT
Euan Hankey
F3 EUROSERIES
Nigel Moore
GINETTA G50/BRITISH GT
Alex Mortimer
BRITISH GT
Ben Winrow
RENAULT CLIO CUP
Nigel Moore
n a year when British racing drivers and
Members of the BRDC have been starring
in championships around the world, you
may be forgiven in overlooking the Club’s
young talent that has been performing
week-in, week-out. Throughout 2008,
BRDC Rising Stars have been waving the
Club’s flag and upholding the honour of
the much-heralded Rising Star Scheme.
The BRDC badge in the blue roundel is a
sought-after addition to the race suit and
crash helmet of any driver under the age of
twenty-four, and the current class has been
in fine-form this season.
Championship titles have been won
by BRDC Rising Stars already this term.
The winners are: Jay Bridger (British F3
International Series, National Class),
Graham Carroll (Formula Ford 1600), Nigel
Moore (Ginetta G50), Matt Nicoll-Jones
(British GT, GT4 Class) and Ben Winrow (Elf
Renault Clio Cup).
I
BRDC RISING STARS
Sean Edwards
Ryan Lewis
Jeremy Metcalfe
Oliver Oakes
Alexander Sims
Ollie Hancock
Hywel Lloyd
Andy Meyrick
Tom Onslow-Cole
Dean Smith
Euan Hankey
Callum MacLeod
Jason Moore
Martin Plowman
Dean Stoneman
Brendon Hartley
Greg Mansell
Alex Mortimer
Adrian Quaife-Hobbs
Nick Tandy
Andrew Jordan
Michael Meadows
Matt Nicoll-Jones
Phil Quaife
Ben Winrow
BRDC SUPERSTARS
Summer of success
for BRDC Superstars
JOEY FOSTER LE MANS SERIES
T
he 2008 BRDC Superstars have been excelling themselves both on and off the
track throughout the summer. Their success has shown that the BRDC can both
identify and nurture the best of British talent. That we have such an enthusiastic
and appreciative group of young men makes my job as Superstars Director all the more
satisfying. It is wonderful that the drivers wear their Superstars clothing with pride and
are making excellent use of the Clubhouse and the Member network therein. During the
summer the programme has been able to assist drivers with their day to day problems
and pressures, advise on career development, give personalised fitness routines and
broaden their contacts through the membership. They have achieved success both
internationally and at home and in a wide array of machinery. A brief review follows:
JONATHAN ADAM
Bidding to win his second Seat Cupra
championship on the bounce, Jonathan has
recently had 9 wins from 12 races and faces
a final meeting showdown with rival Robert
Lawson for the championship at Brands
Hatch. Consecutive titles will mark Jonathan
out as a potential 2009 British Touring Car
Driver.
and leading the British Formula Ford
Championship.
MAX CHILTON
The youngest Superstar continues to
impress in the British F3 championship.
With poles and fastest laps already, his first
win is surely imminent.
RIKI CHRISTODOULOU
SAM BIRD
Sam, just recently elected a Full Member,
is already well known to many BRDC
Members and is often to be seen in the
Clubhouse. However his focus on his racing
is immense and he has been rewarded with
his first podium in the highly competitive F3
Euroseries when he finished 3rd at Zandvoort.
WAYNE BOYD
The sensation of Formula Ford in 2008.13
wins and counting in his first full UK season
Riki is another hugely enthusiastic BRDC
Superstar. Multiple wins in the Formula
UK Renault championship but sadly a few
retirements have blunted his championship
challenge.
JOEY FOSTER
Joey has impressed both his team, Embassy
Racing, and his more illustrious team mates
with great speed in the Le Mans Series. A
recent 4th place at Nurburgring is his best
finish.
STUART HALL
SAM BIRD F3 EUROSERIES
Also racing in the LMS, Stuart has ben
fighting against the diesel Audis and
Peugeots in the Creation Aim. Stuart is often
among the fastest drivers in the class and is
one of the future stars.
BEN HANLEY
Sadly Ben has lost his drive in GP2 and is
looking at his options for 2009.
MAT JACKSON
With multiple BTCC race wins Mat is now a
household name and potential Independent
champion. He is also a heavy point-scorer in
the Silver Star having become a Full Member
in April.
JON LANCASTER
Jon has made a huge impression on the
International F3 scene with a stirring victory
at Nurburgring which was backed up with 3rd
JON LANCASTER F3 EUROSERIES
BRDC SUPERSTARS
MAX CHILTON BRITISH FORMULA 3
JAMES SUTTON BRITISH GT
STUART HALL LE MANS SERIES
place in the Masters of F3 at Zolder.
JAMES SUTTON
Siverstone has been kind to James with a
magnificent drive to 4th in a one off outing
in the Porsche Supercup at the Grand Prix,
and a deserved victory in the two hour
British GT race also at Silverstone in his
usual Ferrari 430GT.
DUNCAN TAPPY
JONATHAN ADAM SEAT CUPRA
MAT JACKSON BTCC
WAYNE BOYD FORMULA FORD
Duncan has been back in single seaters
with two World Series by Renault outings
resulting in a points finish and most
recently representing Tottenham Hotspur
in the new Superleague formula. Duncan
scored a podium in the first ever race and is
second in the championship.
OLIVER TURVEY
BEN HANLEY GP2
STEFAN WILSON BRITISH F3
Oliver has graduated from Cambridge,
received a full Blue, won four British F3
races two of which were at Spa, and leads
the Championship overall! (see page 34 for
more about Oliver)
STEFAN WILSON
Stefan has found a rich vein of form and has
won the National class three times in British
F3 races in recent weeks.
RIKI CHRISTODOULOU FORMULA RENAULT UK
OLIVER TURVEY BRITISH F3
DUNCAN TAPPY SUPERLEAGUE FORMULA
In addition to their racing activities many
of the Superstars attended the Grand Prix
and were interviewed by Tony Jardine and
introduced to the bumper crowd during
the GP concert. They have also attended
the TAG Heuer celebration of British
Formula 1 drivers photographic exhibition
at the Mall Galleries this month. Here they
were introduced to the media and received
a TAG Heuer watch as recognition of the
part they are playing, and will play, in
present and future British successes.
Tim Harvey
Director, BRDC Superstars
BTCC RETURNS TO SILVERSTONE
RAIN FAILS TO DAMPEN
SPIRITS
The HiQ MSA British Touring Car Championship makes a successful,
and welcome, return to ‘The Home of British Motor Racing’
Up close and
personal (left)
Mike Jordan is
sent spinning
All the fun of the fair
(below left)
The BTCC gets ready
to entertain
Photographs by Jakob Ebrey
wo years since the British Touring Car
Championship was last seen in action
at Silverstone, the BTCC returned to the
‘Home of British Motor Racing’ at the end of
August for an action-packed meeting that
failed to be dampened by heavy rain that fell
throughout race day.
In front of a healthy crowd, the competitors
of the HiQ MSA British Touring Car
Championship didn’t disappoint, providing
three top drawer races around Silverstone’s
superb 1.6-mile National Circuit.
Wheel-to-wheel action, in conditions far
from ideal, saw race victories for BRDC Full
Member, and reigning BRDC Silver Star holder,
Jason Plato, and for BRDC Full Member and
Superstar, Mat Jackson.
Italian touring car ace, Fabrizio Giovanardi,
also tasted the victory champagne on a
day that saw the BTCC back on-track at
Silverstone – a circuit that has played an
important role in the 50 year history of the
British Touring Car Championship. Cheers
– here’s to the next 50!
James Beckett
T
(Right to far right)
Catch me if you can
Jason Plato leads Mat Jackson
And the winner is...
Jason Plato
Round the outside
Colin Turkington attempts the
high line
Lights on
Steven Kane exits Luffield
Out of the gloom
Matt Neal heads into Copse
BTCC RETURNS TO SILVERSTONE
(Left to right)
People’s champion
Mat Jackson rounds Woodcote
The Sun shines brightly
Despite the rain...
High five
Fabrizio Giovanardi heads for
the podium
Something to smile about
Colin Turkington has every
reason to enjoy the BTCC
Best SEATs in the house (left)
Jason Plato leads Darren Turner
Champagne... (above)
Jason Plato celebrates
Jelley wobbles (right)
Stephen Jelley spins out
BRITISH GRAND PRIX REVIEW
Lewis triumphant (far
left)
“The best win of my career”
Cheered on by his faithful
followers
Podium joy (left, centre)
Man on a mission (below)
Rubens Barrichello was in
top form
Lewis in full flight
Flying high (left)
Heikki Kovalainen leads away
but Lewis is making his way to
the front
The BRDC celebrated 60 years
of Grand Prix racing at
Silverstone
ewis Hamilton gave his home fans exactly what
they came to see at a rain-soaked Silverstone when
he performed brilliantly in front of a capacity crowd
to win the Santander British Grand Prix in treacherous
conditions. The race started on a damp track, with the
promise of more rain to come. Lewis touched wheels
with pole-sitting team mate Heikki Kovalainen on lap
one at Copse after making a terrific start, and edged
ahead of him at Becketts on the fifth lap. Thereafter it
was his race to lose, and the most crucial point came
when both he and Kimi Raikkonen, an apparent threat
at this stage, pitted on the 21st lap. But where McLaren
gave their man another set of standard wet-weather
Bridgestones, Ferrari kept theirs on the same set.
Lewis rocketed away from the red car, and
Raikkonen slipped steadily down the order as strong
mid-race performances from Nick Heidfeld and
Robert Kubica put BMW Sauber into the frame for
L
podium finishes. Heavy rain in the middle of the race
created further havoc, however, as driver after driver
slipped and slid off the road. This was where clever
strategic thinking by Ross Brawn at Honda saw the
team risk bringing in both Rubens Barrichello and
Jenson Button for extreme wet tyres on the 35th lap.
The Brazilian made great use of them and was able
to push up into second place until a late switch back
to intermediates. As Heidfeld clung on to a good
second place, after making the right call for fresh
intermediates at his first stop, Rubens recovered
to a podium finish that was a great boost to the
Brackley-based team. Behind them, Raikkonen finally
fought his way out of a late-race battle with Renault’s
Fernando Alonso and Kovalainen to finish fourth.
“That,” Hamilton said afterwards, “was the toughest
win of my career, but definitely the best.”
James Beckett
Lewis (right )
Off grid (far right)
BGP WEEKEND SUPPORT RACES
RAIN, RAIN, GO AWAY...
BUT NOT UNTIL THIS RACE IS
OVER PLEASE!
FLYING HIGH...
HISTORIC PERFORMANCE
FROM MUSTANG ACE
T
A
he rain was falling heavily before the start of the
Porsche Supercup race, but you could easily be
forgiven in thinking that Sean Edwards and Danny Watts
had been undertaking a rain dance to ensure the foul
early-morning conditions.
Sean, a BRDC Rising Star, and Danny, a Full Member,
have intimate knowledge of the Silverstone Grand Prix
circuit. Sean was schooled on the track, and has carried
out instructor work at the ‘Home of British Motor Racing’,
while Danny lives just down the road in Buckingham – and
knows the Silverstone track like the back of his hand.
With torrential rain falling, the two young chargers
stamped their authority on proceedings. On a patriotic
day, the British duo gave the rain-soaked spectators
something to do with their Union Flags, as they crossed
the finish line in first and second positions.
t the wheel of Bob Pepper’s Royal Purple-supported
Ford Mustang, Neil Cunningham kept the BRDCs
winning-streak going, when he triumphed in the Historic
Sports Car Club-organised Historic Saloon Car Challenge.
Losing out at the start to Dan Cox at the wheel of a
Lotus Cortina, Neil, the pole position qualifier set about
clawing back Cox and the lead of the race. With Alan
Mann Racing Mustang driver, John Young, the Mercury
Comet Cyclone of Nick Whale and the BMW of Jackie
Oliver also in the thick of the action, Neil took the top
spot when Cox spun at Club.
Now under pressure from John Young, Neil held the
lead until the Abbey Chicane on the final lap until the
Alan Mann Racing car took the lead, but on the approach
to Bridge Neil regained the lead – holding on to score a
well-deserved, and popular, victory.
Splash down
Sean Edwards leads Danny Watts in the closing stages of the
Porsche Supercup race (Photo James Beckett)
Must hang on
Neil Cunningham narrowly
heads John Young and Nick
Whale during the early laps of
the Historic Saloon Car Challenge (Photo James Beckett)
In character
Top man
Sean Edwards celebrates his memorable Silverstone victory on
the podium (Photo Jakob Ebrey)
Fireball Roberts or Richard
Petty? No, Neil Cunningham!
(Photo James Beckett)
A.C. Special Projects Ltd.
BRDC Clubhouse, 2008 British Grand Pix Ball.
Centauri House, Hillbottom Road
High Wycombe
Bucks, HP12 4HQ
Tel: 01494 838392
Fax: 01494 461024
[email protected]
www.acspecialprojects.com
A.C. Lighting Ltd are proud to be patrons of the BRDC Rising Star programme.
A.C. Lighting Ltd and A.C. Special Projects Ltd are sister companies within the "A.C. Lighting Group".
Hawksworth Commercial Centre
Elder Road, Leeds
West Yorkshire, LS13 4AT
Tel: 0113 255 7666
Fax: 0113 255 7676
Clockwise from top left
The face of the British Grand Prix, Miss Great
Britain
HRH The Duke of Kent was a visitor to the Grand
Prix on the first day of qualifying
Dark skies over Silverstone – 2007 race winner,
Kimi Raikkonen did not enjoy the best of days,
despite setting the fastest race lap
Bjorn Again! Great entertainment at the BRDC
Grand Prix Ball
The right atmosphere –the BRDC Grand Prix Ball
was a sell-out
A spin on the opening lap dented Mark Webber’s
challenge
SILVERSTONE CLASSIC
THE SUN SHINES ON
CLASSIC WEEKEND
ilverstone bathed in glorious summer
sunshine throughout the Classic
weekend – when historic racing took
centre stage.
Three action-packed days provided plenty
of excitement on-track, and family fun offtrack, with the event organisers thrilled with
a sizeable weekend crowd of 57,000.
Roger Etcell, on behalf of Motion Works,
the company responsible for the Classic,
said, “What a weekend! The racing was
superb, and the attendance figures were
strong. This was very much the start of our
plans to return this event to the halcyon
S
days of the International Historic Festival
– plans are already underway for 2009.”
Members of the Club were very much
in evidence on-track, gaining notable
successes, and off-track, with the
Clubhouse busy throughout the duration.
Club Secretary, Stuart Pringle,
commented, “The atmosphere in the
Clubhouse was really good. Members and
their Guests really enjoyed themselves, and
I have a firm belief that the membership of
the BRDC will ensure that Silverstone Classic
will grow in stature next year and beyond.”
Photos by Jakob Ebrey and James Beckett
Above left
Group C Jaguars line up on
the grid
Above
Rob Barff flings his little Alfa
into the Abbey Chicane
Right, top
Neil Cunningham wins the
Royal Automobile Club Woodcote Trophy
Right, centre
The long walk home – Ted
Williams trudges away from his
damaged Ginetta
Right
BRDC Historic Sportscar podium
Right, bottom
Spitfire and Mustang thrill
SILVERSTONE CLASSIC
Clockwise from left
Jon Minshaw rounds Copse in
his Jaguar E-Type
Peter Sowerby at speed in his
Williams
Room with a view –
The BRDC Clubhouse
Dennis Welch celebrates
Formula Junior victories
Andy Wallace, Barrie Williams
and Jack Sears signed
autographs
The voice of F1 – Murray Walker
Great cars, great action
Frank Sytner in his Hesketh
UNDER THE SPOTLIGHT
UNDER THE SPOTLIGHT:
OLIVER TURVEY
the last couple of years Oliver Turvey has risen
from the ranks of talented and successful karters
turned Formula BMW racers to become the next
young British Formula 1 prospect. By any standards his
CV is remarkable.
In 2005, while competing on a shoestring in the
Formula BMW UK championship, Oliver gained a place
at Fitzwilliam College, Cambridge, to read Mechanical
Engineering. In 2006, with no motor racing prospects
for lack of funds, he took up rowing for his College’s first
boat and represented Cambridge in the Varsity cross
country running match against Oxford. Then came a
call from Trevor Powell at SWR Team Loctite to replace
drivers who had left the team. Without any winter
testing, and having missed the first six races, Oliver won
first time back. By the end of the year he was second in
the Championship and a finalist in the BRDC McLaren
Autosport Award – which he won.
A year later he was approached by John Surtees about
the possibility of being supported by the Racing Steps
Foundation set up by Graham Sharp and for which John
is Ambassador. What was on offer was a fully-funded
season in the British Formula 3 International Series with
one of the top teams – Carlin Motorsport. Now, with just
two races left at Donington Park on 12 October, Oliver
leads the Championship class of the Series and is clearly
a favourite to win this most prestigious and competitive
of categories for aspiring Formula 1 drivers.
On the way, Oliver has already collected the first Full
Blue ever to be awarded by Cambridge University for
motor sport; the Dunhill Future Champions Award at
the Goodwood Festival of Speed; and the Mirror.co.uk
In
British F3 Challenge Cup for the best British driver in
the F3 International Series. And he has graduated with
honours from Cambridge University. And he has been
one of the select few BRDC Superstars.
Oliver hails from Penrith which, with no disrespect
to Cumbrians, is scarcely near the centre of any motor
racing universe. But there are some kart tracks in the
area and it was on these that Oliver cut his early racing
teeth from the age of seven. One success led to another,
often at the wheel of less fashionable karts, before he
was spotted by Martin Hines and, after showing what he
could do in the Junior TKM category with a Zip kart, had
his first car race in one of Martin’s Zip Formula cars just
21 days after his 16th birthday. In his second ever race,
with no prior testing and just a Silverstone Racing School
five day course under his belt, Oliver was on the podium
with a third place at Castle Combe.
For 2004, following a successful test at Rockingham,
Oliver was offered a very good deal by Trevor Powell of
SWR Team Loctite but the budget did not stretch to any
winter testing or new tyres for pre-event test days. One
win, also at Rockingham, was achieved but prospects
for 2005 looked bleak until the call came from Trevor to
stand in for a driver who had left. It was a race by race
existence, again with limited testing, so that by the end
of 2005 Oliver was once more faced with nothing to
drive in the following year. So he took up rowing in the
Fitzwilliam first boat at Cambridge coupled with some
driver coaching.
Into 2006 Oliver had no racing in prospect until the
call came again from Trevor Powell who had just lost
the Mansell brothers to Fortec. Despite missing the first
UNDER THE SPOTLIGHT
Clockwise from left
Formula 3, win number one, came at
Oulton Park
Formula BMW provided a strong foundation
Well done – Ron Dennis congratulates Oliver
National Service – On duty for Team GB
in A1GP
Another win – Oliver is in pole position to
win the 2008 British F3 International Series
Out in front – leading at Silverstone
six rounds of the Formula BMW UK championship,
Oliver won his first race back, took four more wins and
finished on the podium in 10 of the 14 rounds which
he contested. All this brought him to second place in
the Championship and to the attention of the BRDC
McLaren Autosport Young Driver of the Year panel.
Oliver describes being nominated for the Award
as “fantastic” and winning it, when his name was
announced as the climax to the Autosport Awards, as
“the best moment of my life”. It took a year for the real
benefit of winning the Award to be felt. In 2007 he used
what money he had to secure a drive in the Formula
Renault Eurocup which has twice as many competitors
as the UK series and visits many circuits unknown to
the likes of Oliver from a British racing background.
After a promising start to the season, the lack of a full
budget led to mechanical problems and a final eighth
place in the Championship. However, there had been
podiums at two F1 circuits – Magny Cours and the
Nurburgring.
One man who had not forgotten about Oliver was John
Surtees who had secured a place for him as the Team GB
Rookie driver in the Shanghai A1GP event in early 2007.
That was a one-off but it was John again who approached
Oliver about becoming the chosen Formula 3 driver
for the newly-established Racing Steps Foundation. A
win first time out at Oulton Park was a superb start but
it took a while for further wins to follow as Oliver had
to devote some of his time and energies to passing his
Cambridge Finals for which the final four projects had
to be completed in four weeks during 12 days – during
which Oliver was taking in three F3 meetings, ie six races.
With those out of the way, Oliver has raised his game still
further, taking wins at Spa and Silverstone and moving
into a 12-point lead in the Championship.
In the next two months Oliver has his sights set
not only on winning the British F3 series but also the
Macau Grand Prix and securing a drive in GP2 for
next year. He is a firm believer in being physically
and mentally prepared for the next step up, devoting
four or five hours a day, seven days a week ,to training
in various ways. He has yet to decide whether to
spend a fourth year at Cambridge for a Masters
degree in Engineering where his focus has been on
aerodynamics. This has already proved very beneficial
in working with his race engineer to develop his F3
car where there is much more freedom than in the socalled “spec” formulae.
Oliver’s progress through karting and car racing
has not been achieved by family funds but by his
commitment and determination to maximise his
talents and opportunities. These have been identified
and supported first by his father Andrew and then
by Martin Hines, Trevor Powell, John Surtees and the
Young Driver of the Year judges who included that year
Damon Hill, Jonathan Palmer and Martin Brundle. At
just 21, the motor racing spotlight will surely be shining
on one of the BRDC’s youngest Members for many
years to come.
Ian Titchmarsh
ROAD TEST
DRIVER’S TOOL
Rob Barff tests the
I’m
almost speechless. I knew the
car would be good but I hadn’t
prepared myself for this. For a road
car, running in completely standard road trim,
this is almost other-worldly. I’ve driven and
assessed some very capable road cars lately.
However, the new Nissan GT-R has just moved
the goal posts.
If you’ve visited Silverstone over the past
six weeks you’ll have noticed an enormous
Nissan branding presence. It’s fair to say that
the Marketing department of Nissan Europe
are all petrolheads. They have a real passion
for driving so it was only right that they chose
Silverstone, and the BRDC Clubhouse, to
launch the GT-R to the British public. Every
UK deposit holder will visit Silverstone, or the
Nürburgring, and sample not only the GT-R
on track but go through a carefully designed
programme to help the owners understand
the GT-R as a ‘driver’s tool’, rather than
something they’ve just read about in the press.
To Silverstone Circuits this is an important
commercial arrangement as this is just the
first stage of the new ‘Nissan Race Academy’
that will be of enormous financial importance
going forward.
But I’m not here as Richard Phillips’
spokesman, I’m here to drive the new GT-R
and try to put down on paper how good this
new Japanese supercar is. Not only does it have
truly astonishing performance figures – 0-62
mph in 3.5 seconds and a top speed of 197mph
– but at “only” £54,800 it represents almost
unbelievable value for money too. To go much
quicker than the GT-R on four wheels you have
to spend a good deal more money, progressing
towards hypercar territory. The new Nissan GTR is a descendant from the legendary Skyline
bloodline and it’s due to this Skyline ‘mythical’
status that the GT-R had dedicated websites
long before its global launch. As such, there is
huge amount of web and media hype regarding
the new car that it needs to live up to. The
customers attending the Silverstone events are
well-informed, experienced sportscar owners
coming out of, for example, Audi R8s, a range
of different Porsche 911s and a wide variety of
other exotic machinery. A very hard audience
to please.
There’s no avoiding the fact that the GT-R is a
big car. Despite use of carbon fibre composites
and die cast aluminium in its construction,
coming in at 1740kgs there’s no doubting
it’s a heavyweight – but everything from the
outside looks well proportioned. It’s low in the
nose, quite high in the haunches, has narrow
windows and a mean, purposeful stance (and
of course those classic Skyline lights at the
rear). I’m told the car has an aerodynamic drag
co-efficient of only 0.27 (that’s better than the
Bullet Train) but parked alongside something
dainty, like a Ferrari F430, it towers above
the Italian opposition. However, intelligent
underbody aero management of the car has
given rise to the very low drag figure.
Under the bonnet is a hand built engine. It is
the build time on each of these units which is
the factor that controls the numbers of GT-Rs
produced. It’s a 3.8-litre twin turbocharged
motor producing over 480bhp and 588Nm
tactile finish of the interior is lovely. Gone is the
plastic façade of the past and the whole feel of
the cabin is much more German than I would
have expected. The GT-R logo is subtly placed
throughout the cabin and the aforementioned
chunky steering wheel is functional and
extremely comfortable. Although the GT-R runs
a standard hydraulic steering arrangement
the feel back to the driver is one of distinct
firmness. Unlike some modern sportscars
Whether in automatic
or manual mode, the torque is
fed to the road with such huge
confidence the car actively
encourages you to drive
quicker.
of torque and the power is laid down to the
road via a rear mounted six speed twin clutch
automatic gearbox. The rear mounting of
the gearbox ensures the GT-R has very well
balanced weight distribution and the twin
clutch transmission system, like most DSG type
’boxes, has two distinct characters: smooth
and refined in ‘Auto’ mode yet punchy and
purposeful in the ‘Manual’ mode.
Powering the car up using the centrally
mounted Start button, it comes to life like
a PlayStation game. No coincidence there
when you consider that the display for the
central information system was designed
by Polyphony, the designers of the GT5
PlayStation game. Adjustment on the thick
rimmed steering wheel allows the driver to get
comfortably close to the car’s controls, and the
whole instrument cluster moves up or down
with the steering wheel to your liking. Tradition
states that the interior of the GT-R, like all other
Japanese manufacturers, will be a good deal
more plastic than leather. Not so! In fact the
there’s no over lightening of the steering here.
The V6 ticks over with a very low frequency
rumble, quiet yet muscular. However, as
you would expect, the car remains very well
mannered unless you provoke it. And in terms
of driver adjustment to the car’s systems, the
transmission, traction control and dampers
have a standard, comfort setting and an ‘R’
performance mode.
Unlike the Mitsubishi Evo X I tested for The
Bulletin earlier in the year, the performance
from the GT-R is apparent from the very
moment you get going. Whether in automatic
or manual mode, the torque is fed to the road
with such huge confidence that the car actively
encourages you to drive quicker. But when it
comes to shedding the momentum, the brakes,
which have been developed by Brembo, are
astonishing too. The front discs are massive
– 384mm in diameter – and regardless of
vehicle speed or brake temperatures the car
ROAD TEST
decelerates like no other road car I’ve ever
driven on steel brakes.
All this performance doesn’t ruin the GT-R
as a useable everyday machine. In fact you
could almost call the GT-R practical! It has four
seats, a quiet and refined cabin, a great Bose
entertainment system and an enormous boot.
The dampers in their ‘normal’ mode ensure
the car soaks up any harshness generated
by the tiny sidewalls of the 20-inch tyres and
maintains adequately comfortable ride quality.
Yes, it’s a really nice ride but it’s not the ride
that’s special. I touched on it a moment ago
– this car’s not just fast, it’s really really fast.
Either on a country road or a fast dual
carriageway the GT-R won’t even begin to feel
like it’s working until you’re doing double the
national speed limit. But it’s not ‘savagely’
quick, it’s just massively capable in all areas.
It’s not until you have access to a circuit that
you can begin to test the GT-R in terms of
how much grip it produces. You simply can’t
go quick enough on the public highway. So
I leave the constraints of the Dadford Road
behind me and am now lined up to enter the
South Circuit of Silverstone. Prior to entering
the track I choose to bring up in line G on the
multi functional instrument display and flick
everything I can find into the ‘R’ mode.
Out of the pits, pulling up through the gears
and then braking hard into The Vale for the
first time, even on a wet track and with cold
brakes the car still pulls over 1G in the braking
area with ease. I have to keep reminding
myself I’m in a road car – on road tyres. The
intelligent 4WD system doesn’t appear to
have noticed the rain and despite a wet,
greasy circuit the car has intergalactic levels
of grip. Out of Club on the favoured ‘wet line’
the acceleration is immense, the combination
of 588Nm of torque and 4WD look good
on paper. However, you have to physically
drive the car to understand and take in its
capabilities. It sounds great too: you don’t get
that from researching the internet! Braking
for Abbey, my opinion of the GT-R remains
the same, the car feels utterly predictable with
just a touch of understeer if you carry too
much speed into the clipping point. It’s rock
neutral through and out of the corner. Not for
a moment does it occur to me that this car
weighs almost 1800kgs. Once through Chapel
and on to the Hangar Straight, 140mph is
easily achieved despite the lower exit speed
from Becketts due to the weather. Braking
for Stowe can be left almost impossibly late,
and the brakes can be carried into the corner
slightly if you do outbrake yourself but, again,
it’s not edge of the seat stuff, it’s totally drama
free. No judder, no fade, nothing.
steady through the centre of the corner and
has very predictable power oversteer to the
exit. Under full throttle the torque delivery is
linear and the car suffers no noticeable turbo
lag, it just goes and goes. Hammering through
the Ireland Esses, a fast, 100mph right, left,
right combination the direction change is
crisp and the level of grip seems unending.
Even when riding the concrete apex kerbs
the GT-R remains unflappable. Again, I find
myself leaning more and more on the car, not
just tolerating it like some road cars on track.
Braking for Becketts is completely drama
free, the ABS chatters effectively yet the rate
of deceleration is still comfortable. Down
two gears with the left paddle, turn in, again
just a touch of understeer on the entry is the
car’s natural state. However, a momentary lift
will balance the chassis and the car remains
The GT-R leaves you in no doubt that this
is an extremely capable track car. It was fine
tuned around the Nürburgring (achieving a lap
time of 7m29s as it went), so you can see where
the track pedigree comes from. I’m keeping
my fingers crossed for a dry opportunity to test
the car on the Nordschleife when we go there
next month. How close the GT-R will get to its
maximum of 197mph we’ll have to wait and
see but just the thought of what the car will be
like down through the Wippermann section
makes my hair stand on end.
So in conclusion, yes, it’s a great car,
a worthy successor to the Skyline. The
Nissan may lack the outright prestige of a
Lamborghini or a Ferrari but for a practical
everyday supercar I can’t think of anything
that could, pound for pound, top it. And
given the choice of a Maserati GranTurismo
S or the GT-R of course my ego would take
the Maserati, but deep down I’d know that
it’s not as good a car as the latest offering
from Nissan.
MEETING MEMBERS
DICK BENNETTS
Stuart Pringle meets Dick Bennetts – Member number 644
Club Secretary Stuart Pringle continues
his quest to find out more about the
Members who make up the British
Racing Drivers’ Club.
ick Bennetts is a name that is well
known within the Club for all that he
has achieved in Formula Three and
the British Touring Car Championship. His
success over a sustained period of time is,
however, an almost shrouded secret to all
but those at the very centre of motor sport.
I am keen to understand this apparent
contradiction and it is partially answered
by Dick asking for a microphone to speak
to an audience of just 30. He is not a loud
self publicist, but rather a quiet, down to
earth perfectionist who lets the results do
the talking. That he is prepared to give up
an evening of the Silverstone BTCC round
to talk to a group of the Club’s Rising Stars is
typical of the man; generous in the extreme
and particularly where young drivers are
concerned.
It is with a wry smile that Dick talks of
his two year working holiday from New
Zealand 37 years ago extending somewhat.
Experience in his native New Zealand as an
D
engine builder, with more than a passing
interest in motorsport, led him to offer
to assist a friend, David Oxton, who was
coming over to race a Formula Ford car in
the UK. They started winning and Dick,
keen to develop an engineering interest
beyond engines, took a position at March
on the chassis side, after spending two
years with Spike Winter & Ken Brittain at
Racing Services (Engines) Ltd.
In short, thanks to spells at March,
Fred Opert Racing and with Ron Dennis
at Project 4, Dick developed himself into
a very rounded motor sport engineer.
Unsurprisingly, he had offers from F1
teams, but was perceptive enough to
recognise that the huge demands of the
travel worked against the attraction of the
engineering challenges.
West Surrey Racing was born in 1981
when Jonathan Palmer, with the support
of his backer Mike Cox of West Surrey
Engineering Ltd, acquired the Ralt RT3 with
which Dick had guided Stefan Johansson to
the British Formula 3 title the year before
and persuaded Dick to run it for him. The
formative years, not to mention others
at various stages of the company’s life,
were challenging although success came
quickly, if not easily, on the track. It was
the young Jonathan Palmer who, thanks to
some judicial issues, had to win the 1981
Formula 3 Championship twice for WSR in
their first year in business. It was a success
born of mutual skill and appreciation that
was to launch both Jonathan and WSR
on to greater things. Indeed, it was in the
fastidious JP that Dick found a fellow fan of
attention to detail and there, it is said, the
legendary long Dick Bennetts debrief was
born.
More success followed and names that
were to become among the biggest in
Formula 1 passed through WSR and Dick’s
tutelage. Ayrton Senna, Mika Hakkinen,
Rubens Barrichello, Mauricio Gugelmin and
Eddie Irvine are just five of the 14 drivers
from WSR’s F3 period who went on to drive
in Formula 1. That such a group of names
should pass through WSR en route to the
highest echelon of the sport is not simply
impressive – it is staggering. Moreover, this
is not down to chance but rather, I would
suggest, a combination of factors which are
intrinsically linked to Dick, his personality
and his approach.
That Dick is meticulous is well known.
He has all his debrief circuit diagrams and
maps featuring track temperatures, wind
speeds and directions, from racing and
testing days and more importantly – or
perhaps incredibly – he can lay his hands
on them in an instant. It is this level of
detail which ensures nothing is missed, but
also, just occasionally, will offer a serious
competitive advantage thanks to lessons
learnt previously. This meticulous approach
is still used at WSR today, even though Dick
himself doesn’t spend so much time in the
workshop, due to having a very good team
of people around him.
Another key strength is his superb
technical and supremely practical ability
as an engineer. Be it an innovative and self
designed development, or a five minute
repair to a damaged car before a restart, as
was required to secure Jonathan Palmer and
WSR’s inaugural F3 Championship, Dick is
one of the very best guys in the business.
Finally, the fact that there is a very
strong and thinly disguised desire to win,
or perhaps simply that he is, by his own
admission, a bad loser has driven Dick
forward, when undoubtedly times have on
occasions been hard. This winning streak,
perhaps more often associated with drivers
MEETING MEMBERS
than engineers, has spurred on a relentless
desire to innovate, particularly during
the Super Touring era of the BTCC, with
considerable success it has to be said, too.
After 15 years in the British Formula 3
Championship Dick was tempted by the
idea of a new challenge and that was to be
the British Touring Car Championship. It
should be stated for the record that during
their time in British Formula 3 WSR won
Ayrton Senna, Mika
Hakkinen, Rubens Barrichello,
Mauricio Gugelmin and Eddie
Irvine are just five of the 14
drivers from WSR’s F3 period who
went on to drive in Formula 1
the Championship title five times - an
enviable ratio that has only more recently
been overhauled by the likes of Carlin and
Double R, under Trevor Carlin and ‘Boyo’
Hyett, both of whom are WSR protégés and
“reason enough not to return to F3” Dick
says with a large grin!
Easing, if that is the right term, WSR into
an entirely new type of racing was the Ford
works contract, although the Blue Oval’s
expectations were understandably high.
The switch to front wheel drive was not
without its challenges and Dick admits to
having found it hard for the team to settle,
occasionally even doubting the wisdom
of the move. Running Will Hoy was a great
help to getting the team established in
BTCC although success generally eluded
them. There was no shortage of attention
when Nigel Mansell came out of retirement
for three races and Dick admits to having
been impressed by the way Nigel so quickly
adapted to Touring Cars.
Two years of running Super Touring
Honda Accords included the challenge of
trying to set cars up for Tom Kristensen
and James Thompson, both of whom had
different driving styles. It was a time when
unchecked development and innovation
was at its height in Super Touring, which
provided no end of exciting challenges for
Dick and his team. They thrived on the
innovation that the era provided, but like all
others involved, were wincing as the costs
ran out of control.
Landing the contract to run the works
MG team in late 2001 saw a five year
association with the marque, albeit
latterly as privateers under the banner of
Team RAC. The engineering side was well
understood and WSR by that stage could be
considered to be front wheel drive experts
so the cars handled well, and predictably
well at that. WSR were rewarded with the
2004 Independents titles thanks to the
endeavours of Anthony Reid, which was
a much appreciated tonic following the
demise of MG Rover as a manufacturer.
The story is brought up to date with WSR
retiring the long serving MGs at the end of
2006 and replacing them with a brace of
new BMW 320si’s for 2007 which continue
to be run under the ‘Team RAC’ banner.
Colin Turkington made a significant
impression in the first year and could yet
finish second overall this year, although the
hard charging Mat Jackson is pushing him
hard for Independent honours.
A simple chronological run through of
WSR does not do justice the time that Dick
has committed to the Marlboro sponsored
Race Academy of the 1980s and 90s that
helped the likes of Bertrand Gachot, Eddie
Irvine, Allan McNish and Mika Hakkinen
progress on through the sport. The stability
that Marlboro financial support for
eight years provided far outweighed the
downside of having to walk around dressed
like a cigarette packet for that time, says
Dick! In addition, Dick has been a long time
supporter of the McLaren Autosport BRDC
Young Driver of the Year Award, supplying
the MGs for several years for the test days
and assisting with the judging process.
This is further evidence, if any is needed
after consideration of all of the above, that
Dick undoubtedly does feel that he can
make a difference to young drivers and
history proves him very much correct.
One senses, when you hear him talking
about working with the young Ayrton
Senna in particular, that the rewards of
helping shape a career very much work
both ways. Senna is perhaps an extreme
example, for it would take a hard individual
not to be enthused by what they saw in
that particular case, but there are very
few people who have passed through the
WSR stable who do not feel they owe Dick
a debt of gratitude. Dick tells the story of
how Ayrton, despite an offer and pressure
from Eddie Jordan to run with his team,
elected to go with WSR having seen the way
in which Dick had mentored the initially
rather wayward Argentinian Enrique
Mansilla to second place in the 1982 British
F3 Championship behind the uniquely
talented Tommy Byrne. That endorsement,
one suspects, is one of the accolades
received during his career that Dick is,
quietly, most proud of.
Understanding people and particularly
ambitious young drivers at such an early
stage of their careers requires the ability to
mix the correct proportions of carrot and
stick. This, when you analyse the results,
appears to be Dick’s forte. He is a natural
people person and his undeniable warmth
thinly covers the determination of a man
who does not like to lose – at all - ever.
Experience has taught him when to put an
arm around the shoulder and when to lay
down the law.
“Like all successful team owners and
managers in sport, the results come from a
team effort,” he says, “from the engineers,
mechanics, data guys, truckies, office girls,
catering crew and our marketing guys.”
But pressed further he admits that there
are four vital factors to winning in motor
sport: a good car, good driver, good engine
and good team. “You can win races with
just three of the four,” Dick says, “but
you need all four to be present to win the
championship.” He should know.
THE STEPHEN JELLEY DIARY
Part 3
he BTCC’s calendar this year contained
a six week gap during the summer
from June 1st to July 13th. The reason
for the gap was because of the Euro 2008
football tournament and ITV’s coverage of
the event. At first I thought it was strange to
have a gap, when the weather is supposed
to be at its best, but during the period it
seemed to rain nearly every day.
My girlfriend, Jenny, had quickly latched
onto this six week break and informed me
that we had not been on a summer holiday
for three years and if we did not use this gap
then I was in trouble. I managed to get away
for a week in the sun and arrived back for
the beautiful weather of the British Grand
Prix weekend.
The British Grand Prix was the first race
I’ve been a spectator at when I’ve not been
racing for a long time, and the experience
was very different to the extreme heat of
Malaysia and Bahrain earlier in the year.
This time I found myself trying to shelter
under an umbrella in extreme rain with
a cup of coffee, half full with rain water.
However, as everyone who went to the
Grand Prix will agree, the rain made it a
great race to watch.
My racing season so far has been
challenging, and changing category has
given me a new respect for drivers not
just in Touring Cars but every category.
I’ve been watching lots of racing I would
not normally watch, and looking at the
differences between formula and the way
drivers get round various problems and
challenges. I realise that nearly every single
seater driver underestimates Touring Cars,
and probably every other category apart
from their own, but I guess that’s a healthy
way to be when you’re a relatively immature
driver tying to conquer the world.
I’m finding that I’m learning and re
learning many things, especially during the
races, like driving defensively in a Touring
Car. While driving offensively in most single
seaters if you see a gap you have to go for
it as the opportunity may not come again
during the race, and if the move does not
come off you’re probably not going to get
overtaken.
In the BTCC if you make a move you have
to barge your way through in the first place
and if it doesn’t work you will normally
lose three places yourself due to losing
momentum, so patience, and making sure
the move sticks, is key.
Because of the large break, we had a test
at Snetterton. These were by far the most
productive two days I have had this year as
it allowed to actually test the car, try things
out, and get some mileage. Having had two
very productive test days at Snetterton I felt
confident going into the first race weekend
of the second half of the campaign.
I arrive at the majority of the circuits
having never had the opportunity to drive
a Touring Car, or even a road car, at the
track, so I often find myself with an unfair
disadvantage – and so the Snetterton test
was a major boost for me.
Qualifying progressed, and I ended up
tenth feeling a little disappointed after
being blocked on a potentially faster lap,
still it beats P11 where I seem to qualify all
too often!
Race 1: I started well using the traction
of the Team RAC BMW to good effect,
getting up to eighth and passing last year’s
champion Fabrizio Giovanardi. However,
on the second lap I was used as a brake,
pushed out wide at Coram narrowly
avoiding going off, but losing four places in
the process. I then got into a fight with Mat
Jackson and Adam Jones, managing to pass
them both at the same time! This salvaged
some valuable Independent points.
Race 2: Again a good start, and again
I managed to pass an ex champion in
a Vauxhall (this time Matt Neal), but
unfortunately as I am learning, ex BTCC
champions seem to know how to fire you
off. On the third lap I was sent into a spin
at Russell chicane. I dropped to last and
started my fight back through the grid. I got
my head down and managed to get back up
to eleventh when the safety car came out
near the end. I managed to get a good run,
and almost into tenth place but was barged
out of the way loosing my rear bumper in
the process. I felt very frustrated at this
point as I felt I had driven well all day and
had a chance of points removed by bandits.
Race 3: Was very enjoyable, getting a
A NOGGIN AND NATTER
mega start and slotting in behind Colin [Turkington] then
getting into a race long battle with just about everyone. If
you don’t get taken out, Touring Car racing is very enjoyable
– finishing eighth.
The next meeting was Oulton Park, a circuit where I have
always gone well and started on the front row for the last two
years in F3. Qualifying followed the trend, where the BMW is
not so suited over one flying lap. I ended up three-tenths of a
second from Colin and rather frustratingly, one thousandth
behind Mat Jackson, which my engineer worked out as 46mm in
distance around Oulton.
Race 1: Was difficult for me as the car developed a clutch
problem, it didn’t work. As soon as I got the car in a gear it tried
to drive off. This made the start was a bit tricky! For the green
flag lap I was told to ram it into gear and try to drive off – this
worked. The race start however, the car stalled at the five second
board, and I just got it fired up as the lights went out so luckily
I just drove off at the perfect moment picking up one position
in the prosess! The race was a damage limitation exercise,
although I wish now that I hadn’t been as cautious with my
machinery in the opening laps – as it was not that bad once I
had adapted.
Race 2: With a new gearbox and clutch fitted between races
the cars pace was awesome. I was up to seventh after three laps
but unfortunately I failed in my attempt to overtake the sixth
placed car and lost the inevitable three spaces in the process.
I also badly flat spotted my tyres meaning I couldn’t fight back
and finished tenth with the tyre delaminating as I crossed the
line. These sorts of things you just have to put in the bank for
next time and use what has happened as experience.
Race 3: In the final race, after a good start, I was unfortunately
in the wrong place when a multi car pile-up materialized into
the Knickerbrook Chicane. I dropped to to the back.
Unfortunately this was not the end of my woes, when after
the Safety Car a back marker indicated to the left and moved
over – normally this means your being let through but in this
case it meant come through so I can drive into you leaving me
spinning and a long way back...
I have had some terrible fortunes this season, however, from
every situation, I have learnt something invaluable so is this bad
luck or mega preparation for the future?
Stephen Jelley
A NOGGIN AND NATTER WITH.....Robin Widdows
ROBIN GOES BOB, BOB, BOBBIN’ ALONG....
If any one driver encapsulates the ethos of fun
throughout a career in motor racing it has to
be Robin Widdows.
An enjoyable lunch at his regular haunt of
yesteryear ‘The Green Man’, just a stones throw
from the gates of Silverstone Circuit resulted in
him recalling great tales of daring-do, and the
antics that he and fellow contemporaries took
part in on a weekly basis at, and en-route to,
Europe’s finest race circuits. Sadly many can’t be
included in print!
On track, off track and on the slippery slopes
of the bobsleigh runs – Widz was one of the true
enthusiasts involved on the international scene at
that time. When not risking life and limb on the race track,
Widz was to been seen as a member of the British Olympic
bobsleigh team between the years of 1965-68.
Behind the wheel, Robin’s Grand Prix career may have
been short, the British Grand Prix at Brands Hatch in 1968
in a Cooper T86 his only appearance, but Widz was a
‘whizz’in other machinery – Formula 2 especially.
Graduating from Formula 3 in 1966, Widz scored a
memorable victory in 1967, in only his second year in the
category, at Hockenheim, when he won the Rhein Cup
– establishing an outright lap record along the way.
He recalls, “It was a great feeling to win such an
important race – we didn’t have traction control in those
days! Hockenheim was a blast, literally.”
In 1968 he drove the Chequered Flag McLaren Racingentered McLaren Formula 2 at Pau, the first outing for the
car, finishing second around the French city streets behind
Jackie Stewart and ahead of Jean-Pierre Beltoise.
Adding, “That was the first outing for the McLaren car. It has never been well documented and I feel very proud
to have been at the wheel on that day.”
LE MANS SERIES
AUDI’S FOUR
RINGED CIRCUS
Audi secure race and
championship victory in the
BRDC Empire Trophy race. 53,000
weekend spectators descended
on Silverstone to watch the
final round of the 2008 Le Mans
Series. James Beckett reports
on proceedings at the ‘Home of
British Motor Racing’…
S
ilverstone was the title decider. The
battle lines drawn. Diesel car against
diesel car. Peugeot versus Audi.
At the end of 1000km, 195 laps of
Silverstone’s breathtaking Grand Prix
Circuit, it was the ‘four rings’ of Audi
that triumphed – scoring both race and
championship victory.
At the start of the weekend the story
had looked like it would finish somewhat
differently. The Peugeot 908 HDi FAP
cars dominated the Le Mans Series
before arriving at Silverstone. The French
manufacturer team cars had been
victorious in the opening four rounds,
and a sensible run to the finish in the
BRDC Empire Trophy race by the number
7 car of Marc Gene and Nicolas Minassian
would secure the LMS title – but it proved
not to be.
Under pressure from the start of the
race, the Peugeot strategy was called
into question, and the number 7’s title
challenge came to an end on lap 45 when
the car, with Nicolas Minassian at the
wheel, struck a slower GT2 car on the
Hangar Straight. The damage caused to
the Peugeot was enough to rule the car
out, and with the number 2 Audi of Mike
Rockenfeller and Alexandre Premat – the
only other title contender – circulating
strongly until the finish, the title was
sealed in Audi’s favour.
With the focus resting on the
championship battle, it was almost easy to
overlook the lead car, a car driven by BRDC
Member, Allan McNish. With his Italian
team-mate Dindo Capello again putting
in a sterling drive, the number 1 Audi R10
TDI streaked to victory – two laps ahead of
the Aston Martin-powered Lola of Stefan
Mucke and Jan Charouz. The Pescarolo
Judd driven by Romain Dumas and
Jean-Christophe Boullion, for Honorary
Winners (above)
The lion roars (right)
Out in front (below)
Allan McNish (right) and
Dindo Capello proudly hold
the BRDC Empire Trophy aloft
Peugeots lead at the start –
but it wasn’t to last
Allan McNish on his way
to victory
Member Henri Pescarolo’s team, finished
third a further two laps back.
With 10 BRDC Members, two BRDC
Superstars and one BRDC Rising Star
taking part – the BRDC British Empire
Trophy race was full of Club interest.
Notable performances came from Jamie
Campbell-Walter and Stuart Hall who
finished sixth overall in their CreationAim, and Mike Newton who debuted
RML’s new Lola MG coupe, with an 11th
place finish – just one place off the LMP2
podium.
After Allan’s superb victory, the highestranking Club performance came from
Rob Bell, who at the wheel of the Virgo
Motorsport Ferrari F430 finished first in
GT2, with his Brazilian team-mate Jaime
Melo, to claim his second successive LMS
GT2 title.
Photographs: James Beckett and
Jakob Ebrey
LE MANS SERIES
Sheer class (far right, top)
Rob Bell – double LMS GT2
champion
The eyes have it (far right,
middle)
AUTOSPORT 1000KM OF SILVERSTONE
BRDC BRITISH EMPIRE TROPHY
14 SEPTEMBER 2008
1. Allan McNish/Dindo Capello
Audi R10 TDI
2. Stefan Mucke/Jan Charouz
Lola Aston Martin
The Le Mans Series has its
attractions
3. Romain Dumas/Jean-Christophe Boullion
Pescarolo Judd
Crowded house (far right,
bottom)
4. Alexandre Premat/Mike Rockenfeller
Audi R10 TDI
The Strakka Racing Aston Martin passes the BRDC Clubhouse
5. Peter Van Merksteijn/Jos Verstappen
Porsche RS Spyder
Yes! (centre top)
6. Jamie Campbell Walter/Stuart Hall
Creation Aim
Dindo Capello celebrates
victory
7. Harold Primat/Christophe Tinseau
Pescarolo Judd
Right (top to bottom)
Silverstone favourite
8. Stephane Ortelli/Soheil Ayari
Courage-Oreca Judd
9. Fredy Lienhard/Didier Theys/Jan Lammers
Porsche RS Sypder
10. Miguel Amaral/Olivier Pla
Lola AER
11. Tommy Erdos/Mike Newton
Lola MG
Members on parade
12. Casper Elgaard/John Nielsen
Porsche RS Spyder
Alan van der Merwe and Tim
Sugden drove the GT2 Aston
13. Warren Hughes/Jonny Kane
WF01 Zytek
Champions
14. Joao Barbosa/Vanina Ickx/Charlie Hollings
Pescarolo Judd
Alexandre Premat and Mike
Rockenfeller – Le Mans Series
champions 2008
15. Karim Ojjeh/Claude-Yves Gosselin/Adam Sharpe Zytek 07S
Joey Foster was cheered
throughout
Superstar
Stuart Hall drove well
OBITUARIES
Obituaries
PHIL HILL
By Alan Henry, Courtesy of The Guardian
hil Hill, who has died aged 81 following
a long battle against Parkinsonism (a
variant of Parkinson’s disease), was the
first of only two US drivers to win the world
championship, achieving that distinction
in 1961 driving for Ferrari, some 17 years
before the Italian-born Mario Andretti won
at the wheel of a Lotus.
No driver before or since can have
clinched the title in such traumatic
circumstances. Phil did so by winning the
Italian Grand Prix at Monza after a race
in which his Ferrari team-mate Wolfgang
von Trips, his only rival for the crown,
was killed, along with more than a dozen
P
French Grand Prix 1961
(right)
The Ferrari trio of Phil Hill,
Wolfgang von Trips and Richie
Ginther lead away at the start
of the race. Can you spot the
winner?
Belgian Grand Prix 1961
(below)
Phil Hill leads Ferrari teammate
Wolfgang von Trips into La
Source hairpin en route to a 1-2
finish for the Scuderia in this,
Phil’s World Championshipwinning year
OBITUARIES
spectators, following a horrifying collision
with Jim Clark’s Lotus.
It was a profoundly shocking moment
for Phil, who would come to be widely
regarded as one of the most intelligent and
deep-thinking drivers of his generation,
and he subsequently seemed to wrestle
within himself as to whether or not
winning the world championship had
been quite worth the effort in such
emotionally fraught conditions.
Phil was born in Miami, Florida, but
brought up in Santa Monica, a leafy
enclave of Los Angeles on the edge of the
Pacific ocean. His father was a postmaster.
He began racing in the late 1940s at the
wheel of his own MG TC and, having
dropped out of the University of Southern
California business administration course,
went to Coventry in 1949 as a trainee
with the Jaguar company. He returned to
California with one of Jaguar’s sleek new
XK120 sports cars, at the wheel of which
he quickly gained a reputation as a man to
watch in West Coast national level races.
His results caught the eye of wealthy
Ferrari owner Allan Guiberson, who
entered him in the 1952 Carrera
Panamericana road race through Mexico.
It was a wild and woolly affair in which he
co-drove into sixth place. The following
year he returned at the wheel of a 4.1-litre
Ferrari, sharing with his friend and future
Formula 1 team-mate, Richie Ginther, but
this outing ended spectacularly when they
skidded (unhurt) off a cliff.
Luigi Chinetti, Ferrari’s importer for
the US and owner of the North American
Racing Team, then offered Hill several
drives in his own cars before advising
Enzo Ferrari that he should invite the
Californian to drive at Le Mans for his
factory team in 1956. Hill would enjoy
considerable success in international
sports car events and won Le Mans
in 1958, 1961 and 1962, on all three
occasions sharing the driving with
the Belgian Olivier Gendebien. In his
homeland, he won the Sebring 12-hour
race in 1958, 1959 and 1961.
Hill’s Formula 1 debut finally came in
the 1958 French Grand Prix at Reims,
where he drove a Maserati 250F hired from
Swedish private entrant Jo Bonnier to
finish seventh. Ferrari had been vacillating
over whether or not to promote Phil to
their Grand Prix squad, but this result in
the French race had the effect of hurrying
them up. He drove a Formula 2 Ferrari in
this “second division” class of the German
Grand Prix, then moved up to Formula 1
with the Maranello squad for the Italian
and Moroccan races, helping team-mate
Mike Hawthorn become the sport’s first
British world champion driver by waving
him through to finish second behind
Stirling Moss’s race-winning Vanwall.
In 1959 Phil remained a member of the
Ferrari team, but it was not until the 1960
Italian Grand Prix that he scored the first
of his three Formula 1 victories, driving
the Dino 246 to an easy win at Monza in a
race boycotted by the British teams over
the use of the bumpy banked section of
the circuit.
For 1961, Ferrari were well prepared for
the new 1.5-litre Formula 1 regulations
which came into force at the start of the
season. However, Ferrari’s reluctance
to nominate a team leader meant that
Hill, von Trips and Ginther spent much
of the time racing each other, a draining
experience for all concerned. Phil won the
Belgian race at Spa-Francorchamps before
experiencing that emotional roller coaster
at Monza.
“When they told me the news that [von]
Trips was dead, and more than a dozen
spectators with him, I was stunned, deeply
shocked,” he said. “The papers reported
that I broke down and sobbed, but that
was not true. When you’ve lived as close
to death and danger as long as I have,
then your emotional defences are equal to
almost anything.”
Phil stayed with Ferrari in 1962, but the
team was eclipsed by a new generation
of challengers from the British Lotus
and BRM teams. As far as Formula 1 was
concerned his career was in decline, and
spells with the disastrously uncompetitive
ATS and fading Cooper teams, in 1963 and
1964 respectively, heralded the twilight of
this sensitive man’s frontline racing career.
He continued racing sports cars and
rounded off the 1967 season with a fine
win in the BOAC 1000km race at Brands
Hatch, sharing the Chaparral 2K with Mike
Spence. At the start of 1968, he suddenly
realised that he had forgotten to renew his
international competition licence. In his
own words, he found that he “had become
a retired racing driver”.
Phil returned to Santa Monica to a life
of contentment, still living in the richly
furnished Moorish-style house willed to
him by his aunt in 1959. He married late,
at the age of 44 in 1971, finding great
happiness with divorcee Alma Varanowski,
who had a young daughter, Jennifer. They
had a daughter, Vanessa, and a son, Derek,
who also tried his hand at motor racing in
the 1990s.
He is survived by Alma, his son and
daughter, his stepdaughter and four
grandchildren.
OBITUARIES
PETER JOPP
Courtesy of www.historicracing.com
eter Munro Jopp was a highly
entertaining character and a very good
driver. A leading light in Cliff Davis’
legendary ‘Filth Nights’ in the early 1960s,
he was also a great friend of Graham Hill.
Peter began racing 500s in 1952 driving
a Mk VI Cooper before switching to an
Emeryson in 1953. He had a number of
reasonable results including a win in the
consolation final at Brands Hatch finishing
second to another Emeryson driven by
Harold Daniell. In 1954 he finished a
creditable fifth in the Whitsun meeting at
Goodwood.
In 1953 Paul Emery turned his attention
to Formula 2 and an Alta-engined prototype
began appearing in British events that
summer with Emery driving. The car also
appeared with an Aston Martin engine
that year and was driven by Peter and Alan
Brown. Peter didn’t have much success on
his few outings in the car with retirements
and poor finishes. A fourth in the Curtis
Trophy at the end of the year was his only
result of any note.
He was down to drive at Le Mans in the
tragic 1955 edition with Colin Chapman and
Ron Flockhart in a Lotus Mk IX but the car
was disqualified for reversing and Peter didn’t
get to drive. He had a lucky escape shortly
after another round of the World Sportscar
Championship, the TT race at Dundrod.
Peter was driving a Lotus Mk IX with Mike
Anthony. However 20 minutes after the
start of the race Jim Mayers crashed while
passing Henri de Barry’s Mercedes-Benz
300SL at the bottom of Deer’s Leap. His car
P
left the road and caught fire. The first car on
the scene was W.T. ‘Bill’ Smith’s Connaught.
Trapped between the steep banks at that
section of the road it was impossible to avoid
the burning wreckage, and Smith perished
along with Mayers. Lance Macklin, Franz
Kretschman, Ken Wharton and Peter were
also involved in the tragedy but survived.
He was back at Le Mans in 1956 with a
‘wide chassis’ Lotus Eleven powered by an
1100cc Climax FWA engine. Sharing the car
with Reg Bicknell, they finished 7th overall,
won the 1100cc class and were 4th in the
Index of Performance. He also competed on
the Monte Carlo Rally with a Jaguar.
Motor sport was severely affected by petrol
rationing in 1957 brought about by the
Suez crisis. However, Le Mans went ahead
and Peter teamed up with Dickie Stoop in a
Frazer Nash Sebring, only to retire in the final
hour of the race with an oil leak.
He had a fine drive at Le Mans in 1958 with
Percy Crabb driving a Peerless GT Coupe.
They finished 16th overall and fourth in class
in what was essentially a production car. In
rallies he again took on the Monte with Peter
Garnier in a Sunbeam Rapier. The Coupes
des Alpes had been cancelled in 1957 but
was back in 1958. Peter teamed up with Peter
Harper for the event in a Sunbeam Rapier
and finished sixth.
At Le Mans in 1959 he drove with Dickie
Stoop once more in a works Triumph TR3S.
Unfortunately they retired late in the race
with overheating. Had they been running
they would have been classified in 13th spot
and class winners. In rallying he finished
sixth again driving a Sunbeam Rapier with
Les Leston in the Coupes des Alpes, while
also racing an Elva in Formula Junior taking a
win at Silverstone.
He was absent from Le Mans in 1960 but
in October he was responsible for Ausper’s
competition debut at Brands Hatch, finishing
ninth. In the early 1960s he became a Group
Consultant to BSM and its associated
company J. Coryton Ltd. He entered a
number of rallies including the Monte with
Gawaine Baillie in a Sunbeam Rapier.
In 1961 driving with Sir Gawaine, he
finished runner up in the touring car
category of the motor Tour de France, an
event that lasted 10 days with six circuit
races, nine mountain climbs and two hours’
racing round the public roads of Corsica.
Back at Le Mans he drove a Sunbeam
Alpine with Paddy Hopkirk, unfortunately
being disqualified for having to take on oil
outside the permitted window. Another oil
related problem struck the pair the following
year as well when their Sunbeam Alpine had
to undergo a bearing change in the pit lane.
The oil was drained, the engine dismantled
and the big end bearings replaced. The oil
then had to be filtered through a pair of
ladies’ tights as fresh oil was not permitted
to be added at that point in the race. They
rejoined the race but the engine failed in the
18th hour.
He talked Graham Hill into having a go at
the Monte Carlo Rally that year. The Rootes
Group offered Graham £50 to participate and
Peter persuaded a television company to pay
another £50 to film them. They finished a
respectable 10th.
He was back behind the wheel of a
sportscar at Brands Hatch later that
season, driving Sir Gawaine’s Aston Martin
DBR1. Peter also raced in the British
Saloon Car Championship in 1962 driving
one of Alan Fraser’s Sunbeam Rapiers
– taking a number of class podiums and
a class win at Brands on his way to sixth
overall in the series.
He made his last visit to Le Mans in 1963
with Ed Hugus in an AC Cobra, but once
again oil proved to be his downfall as they
were disqualified for requiring oil inside
of 25 laps, and he also regularly partnered
Baillie in his Galaxie 500 during 1963 in
endurance events.
Peter spent more and more time rallying
and in 1963 entered the Monte Carlo Rally
with Trant Jarman, finishing 34th overall
and 1st in the over-3000cc class in a Ford
Falcon. For the RAC Rally he was partnered
by Les Leston again in a Falcon. However,
they retired with mechanical problems,
and in 1964 Peter drove with Alain Bertaud
in a Falcon.
He took on the Acropolis Rally in 1965
with a Lancia Flavia, and for the 1968
Monte Carlo Rally, three Austin 1800s were
prepared in Group 2 single carburettor
form. Peter drove with Willy Cave but the
car was well off the pace.
At the Monte Carlo Rally in 1969, with
Tommy Wisdom as his co-driver, they were
the highest placed British crew finishing
25th overall. Driving a BMC Austin 1800
Mk II (Reg: NOB 292F) entered by Special
Tuning, the car ran a big end bearing on the
last stage and only just managed to crawl
over the finish line on three cylinders before
expiring with a seized engine.
The London-Mexico World Cup Rally with
Mark Kahn and Willy Cave in a Morris 1800
was also on the agenda. The London-Mexico
Rally was a marathon event that started at
Wembley Stadium in London on 19 April
1970 and finished in Mexico City on 27 May
1970, covering approximately 16,000 miles
through Europe and South America. It was
won by Hannu Mikkola and Gunnar Palm,
driving a Ford Escort.
Peter was a regular competitor on the RAC
OBITUARIES
NEIL EASON GIBSON
By James Beckett
eil Eason Gibson, who has died, was the son of
former Club Secretary John Eason Gibson.
Motor sport and motoring was in his blood, and
although he was not a racer, Neil spent his life at the
very heart of the motor racing industry.
From an early age, it became clear that Neil would
follow his father into the high-speed world of motor
sport and he accompanied his father to many racing
events.
Neil first helped the Club, via his father, in 1946 with
the Racing Car Show and the following Victory Parade.
Eventually Neil became a fulltime BRDC employee,
dealing with racing matters on behalf of the Club.
Working alongside his father, Neil began to collate
archive material for the Club and helped gather Club
material at the Silverstone offices.
Upon leaving the BRDC, Neil went to work for the
N
Rally. He co-drove with Henri Gréder between
1971 and 1973 in a variety of Opels. After
retiring for some years, he returned to racing
in the early years of the Metro Challenge
when he shared a car with Henry Lascelles,
the son of BRDC President, Gerald Lascelles.
He became heavily involved with the BRDC
and acted as a well-liked, and respected,
Director from 1971 for over 20 years.
Peter died peacefully in his sleep at home
on 13th August 2008.
Peter Jopp (third from right)
with Jeff Uren and the Monte
Carlo Rally Ford Falcon team
of 1964
Neal Eason Gibson stands shoulderto-shoulder with the British Grand
Prix winner of 1973, Peter Revson
RAC MSA, as it was then, and he became Secretary
of the Meeting at Grand Prix events, standing on the
Grand Prix podiums alongside legendary race winners
such as Peter Revson at Silverstone in 1973 and Niki
Lauda at Brands Hatch in 1984.
Neil was to become the Association’s Technical
and Historic Executive, dealing with homologation
paperwork and Historic Technical Passports.
Invited to become an Associate Member of the
BRDC in 1993, Neil returned to his ‘spiritual home’ in
1998 when the Club invited him to act as a Consultant
Archivist.
Upon his retirement, Neil took time to indulge his
passions of collecting motor racing books, adding to his
vast military history archive and model car collection.
Neil is survived by his wife, and lifelong soulmate,
Wendy, and children, Shona and Andrew.
OBITUARIES
PETER BOLTON
By Neville Hay
n the late eighties, when my wife Dorothy
asked if I would phone back a Mr Peter
Bolton in the Isle of Man I had no idea
that my life would be changed by this
telephone call.
Peter Bolton explained that he had lived
on the island for some years and although
he still retained motor trade interests back
in Leeds, where he had run a very successful
motor business, he, and a chap he kept
referring to as ‘my friend Robin Northesk’
were involved in bringing back four wheeled
motor sport to the island. Peter Bolton
wanted me to meet Robin and he would buy
me a ticket to fly to the Isle of Man. They
named a date the same week!
Peter Bolton and Lord Northesk, as I soon
found out, were very professional about
what they wanted to achieve and they made
it happen. They had both had a successful
motor racing careers as drivers, Robin with
the Fitzwilliam team all over Europe, while
Peter had a successful 20-year career in
rallies, road races and circuits throughout
the 50s and 60s.
Peter was a Yorkshireman and he could
charm birds off trees. What I liked most
about Peter was that he was an absolutely
straight man to deal with. If Peter said it
was going to happen, it did! He was devoted
to his wife Peggy, his two sons and their
families. He was a respected businessman.
It was Peter, Nick Cussons, Graham Warwick
and others who convinced me to try living in
the Isle of Man, and I have never regretted it!
He hated school and left aged 14, first
working in a dental laboratory. The Royal
Navy was a side of Peter’s wartime service
I
which saw him survive the ravages of being
sunk twice, become re-educated, and while
watching aircraft created a fascination which
saw him transfer service to train as a pilot
in Canada. He was able to indulge in this
love of flying both at home and abroad for
virtually the rest of his life
Peter raced and rallied for many years
because he loved it. He had started with
sand racing in 1948, around the time that
he was learning how the motor trade
functioned. He trained first as a mechanic
and then gained experience in all sides
before, with some help from his father,
buying the garage himself. In time, the
Bolton organisation spread throughout the
county taking in motor auctions as well as
retail outlets. He found time to marry Peggy,
his wife for over 50 years, and to father two
sons, Graham and Stephen.
Whilst all this was happening Peter
competed at Le Mans 10 times, starting in
1956 with an XK140 Jaguar and finishing
with a Triumph Spitfire in 1965. The XK
Jaguar was in 11th place when, in what
is still a confusing decision, the car was
Le Mans 1963
Peter Bolton at full speed in the
AC Cobra he shared in the classic endurance race with Ninian
Sanderson (Photo LAT)
disqualified for an alleged refueling error.
Rob Walshaw and Peter had already
completed 20 hours of the 24 and after
a further delay of over an hour the car
was declared out of the race – it was a
remarkable drive by both of them. By far
his most successful Le Mans races were in
his beloved ACs. He was 10th in 1957, eighth
in ’58 and he was the first British car and
driver home and, managed by one S. Moss,
he was in the first British car home again in
7th place in 1963 with the Cobra.
A year later, Peter and Jack Sears made
headline news when, as they had missed
the Le Mans test days, the AC team
decided to use the M1 to check out tyre
temperatures etc. This was of course
before the days of the 70 mph limit, so the
odd motorist may therefore have been a
little surprised to be overtaken at around
190 mph. For this, Peter was named in the
national press and in Hansard. Perhaps, with
hindsight, we may not have been cursed
with this 70 mph restriction if they had not
done it!
A year later, once again Peter was in the
headlines when, deputizing for his friend
Donald Campbell who was ill, the throttle
linkage on Bluebird, the Land Speed Record
car, failed at about 150 mph during a run
at RAF Debden. In the ensuing accident
the car took off before crashing down in
an adjoining field. This was much to the
embarrassment of its driver and the bank
balance of the insurer (one hopes there was
one!). Once again he made national news!
Peter was a member of the ‘works’
Triumph team, he drove for TVR on its
debut at Le Mans and enjoyed numerous
successes in the UK. He raced at Sebring
in the USA and at Daytona. He also had
a distinguished rally career including
works drives in the Monte and a very fine
performance in the Alpine in the 50s. These
were just some of the other achievements
that this extraordinary ex Fleet Air Arm pilot
was capable of. Peter was still flying until
quite recently, and my, how he loved his cars,
particularly his very rare Bristol.
Peter Bolton was a truly remarkable man.
He played golf, learned to ski on both snow
and water and was beloved of all his family.
He was proud to be elected a Full Member
of the BRDC in 1960. Peter loved his visits to
the Grand Prix at Silverstone, usually with
his sons, and we shall all miss him.
Peter Bolton’s last two years were faced
with courage and concern, courage to face
his own declining health and concern for his
beloved wife Peggy who has been ill for some
time. To all his family, his grandchildren and
all who knew Peter we offer our condolences.
OBITUARIES
RODNEY BLOOR
By Ian Titchmarsh
R
odney Bloor, who died recently after
a distressing illness, was synonymous
in the 1960s in particular with Sports
Motors of Manchester, not only as the
entrant of cars which Rodney drove to
considerable success himself but also of
Formula 2 and 3 cars which helped launch
Peter Gethin and Tim Schenken towards
Formula 1. There should have been a third
but tragically Gerry Birrell lost his life in
qualifying at the Rouen F2 event in 1973
when a Tyrrell drive was on the horizon.
Rodney began racing, principally on his
local circuits at Oulton Park and Aintree,
in the late ’50s, in a succession of Lotus
ranging from a Mk 6 (with a Ford Consul
engine!), a Mk 9 and a Mk 11, interspersed
with various outings in an Austin A35 and
an A40, before acquiring his first singleseater, a Formula Junior Lotus 18, in 1960.
The car arrived late and, although the
Cosworth writing was already on the wall,
Rodney stuck with what he knew – the
BMC ‘A’ series engine as in A35 and A40.
The lesson was learned for 1961 when a
Lotus 20, with Cosworth Ford engine, was
the chosen tool when Rodney became
a familiar and successful competitor in
Formula Junior events, particularly in the
North of England.
By this time Sports Motors had become
a flourishing sports car dealership with
agencies for Lotus and Alfa Romeo
amongst others. An 1100 cc Lotus 23 in
1962 was followed by a 1600 cc 23B the
following year, the cars always turned out
in Rodney’s preferred shade of light blue.
Into 1964 Rodney’s plans became even
more ambitious as, with the announcement
of 1-litre F2 and 1-litre F3 to replace FJ,
he acquired a Lotus 32 for the former but
moved to Brabham with a BT9 for F3. The
BT9 achieved several “podiums” (as they
were not then called!) but the 32 was a
disappointment, its only claim to fame
being a win in the hands of Brian Hart
round Lake Pergusa when on loan to Ron
Harris Team Lotus.
The Lotus dealership continued but
not for racing purposes, for Rodney,
having disposed of the 32 and the BT9 for
good money, invested in a BT14 with 1.5
litre Lotus/Ford twin cam motor which
rendered it eligible for Formula 1. Two
non-championship races were entered “for
the glamour and the starting money”– the
first Race of Champions at Brands Hatch
and then the last contemporary F1
race at Goodwood, the Sunday Mirror
International Trophy, in which he finished
12th, one place behind his old mate John
Cardwell in a similar car. At this point
Rodney realised that, with his tremendously
supportive wife Denise pregnant with their
first daughter, he was in danger of being
more deeply involved as a driver than was
good both for his family and the business.
So, for the time being at least, Rodney
retired from driving but not from racing.
Another North West institution, Derek
Bennett’s Chevron company in Bolton, was
making an increasingly strong impression,
first with Clubmen’s sports cars, then the
GTs before the B7 F3, one of which Rodney
acquired for Peter Gethin to drive in 1967
in succession to the Brabham BT18 which
Peter drove under the Sports Motors banner
in 1966. When the opportunity for Peter to
move up to F2 with Frank Lythgoe came
along, Rodney did not stand in his way and
Left
Rodney wrestling with the Ford
Consul-powered Lotus Mk6
around Lodge Corner at his
beloved Oulton Park
Below
Rodney in his Brabham BT14
with which he contested two
Formula 1 races in 1965
instead he plucked Tim Schenken from an
uncompetitive Lotus 22 with which Tim
had been working wonders in ’67.
It was a dominant season with Tim
securing the British F3 Championship to
accompany his victory in the first British
Formula Ford Championship. For 1969 Tim
stayed with Rodney but with a Brabham
BT28 in opposition to Reine Wisell’s works
Chevron B15. The following year Sports
Motors and Tim moved into F2 with a BT30
at the same time running Gerry Birrell
in all the major F3 races with a BT28, the
Scotsman another Formula Ford “find”. It
was back to F3 and Chevron, the B18, with
Barrie Maskell in the first year of the 1600
cc formula in 1971 before Rodney dropped
out for a few years, only to return as a driver
in Historic Sports Car Club events with a
Chevron B8 in the late ’70s.
In between times Rodney took up eventing
on horseback but could never keep away
from competition cars. A few years ago
he purchased a replica lightweight E-type
Jaguar for historic rallying and then last year,
now well into his 70s, with another old friend
from Manchester, Brian Classick, he took
on a Formula Ford Merlyn Mk 11A, “just for
fun”. Sadly Rodney hardly had the chance to
compete with the car before his final illness
took hold.
Rodney was never someone to make a
noise or trumpet his achievements from the
rooftops but he quietly and meticulously,
with the support of Denise and his faithful
mechanic John Schofield, produced one
of the best F3 teams of the last years of the
seminal 1-litre F3 era. Not a few Members
will surely remember him with the utmost
affection and gratitude.
OBITUARIES
IAN WALKER
By Marcus Pye/Ian Titchmarsh
an Walker was a well-known driver and
later team owner. He had been suffering
heart problems for some years, but
nonetheless, he remained enthusiastically
behind son Sean’s racing to the last.
Beginning in rallies with a Ford Prefect
in 1954, Ian competed in club events to
internationals, from 1956 to 1960. Realising
that the Prefect was not an ideal racing car,
Ian acquired the ex-Graham Hill Lotus 11 XJH
902 with which he promptly won the second
Autosport Series Production Sports Car
Championship in 1956 after installing a Ford
1172 engine equipped with a Willment ohv
conversion. The “Yellow Peril” as it became
known set a colour trend which continued,
with some green trimmings, through to 1963.
As a result of this early success it was
perhaps inevitable that Ian became a good
friend of Lotus founder Colin
Chapman. Late in 1956 Colin showed Ian
the drawings of his new brainchild, the Elite,
with the result that for the 1957 season Ian
was the proud possessor of the first Elite in
private hands. With this car EL 5 Ian came
close to winning his second successive
Autosport title, going into the final round,
the Snetterton 3 hours, leading overall.
Unfortunately, after contesting the lead of
the race with Dick Protheroe’s Healey 100S
for the first hour or so, various electrical and
suspension problems set in and, as the light
faded so did the lights of the Elite which had
to be retired with an hour to go.
1959 was not a good year, a fresh Elite
catching fire at Silverstone on the same day
as Ian’s Lotus 17 sports racer suffered major
engine failure. Some races in a Formula
I
Junior Lotus 18 followed in 1960 without
notable success but, taking a sabbatical from
Lotus, 1961 was very much better. The Ian
Walker Sebring Sprite was almost unbeatable,
winning every time out bar one with its Don
Moore tweaked engine, both at home and
abroad. Ian also did a few races in Willment
and Elva sports racers but, at the end of that
season, decided to hang up his helmet.
For 1962 Ian Walker Racing was formed as
a very well equipped four-car professional
team – one of the first in the UK to be
immaculately presented, with a flash
transporter – which ran Lotus sports cars and
single-seaters throughout Europe and the
USA in the familiar yellow colours enhanced
by the triple green band in recognition of the
Lotus link.
Drivers initially were Mike Spence and
promising Canadian Pete Ryan in Formula
Junior Lotus 22s, although Ryan lost his
life at Reims. IWR’s Lotus 23 Sports cars
were handled by Australian Paul Hawkins,
South African Bruce Johnstone and former
Lola star Peter Ashdown. Although the
immaculate little 23 normally ran with an
1150 cc Cosworth Ford engine in British
races in the hands of Hawkeye, whom Ian
had first encountered and been seriously
impressed by when they had shared the
Sprite in the Nurburging 500 Ks the previous
September, it was with a l-litre Ford motor
fitted that Peter and Bruce finished not only
first in class but a remarkable eighth overall
out of some 67 starters in the Nurburgring
1000 Ks. Ian’s commitment to immaculate
preparation, overseen by Hawkeye with
support from ex-Lotus foreman John
Pledger, was paying dividends.
Mike Spence moved into the Ron Harris
Team Lotus Formula Junior team for 1963,
by the end of which he had graduated to
Formula 1 in a works Lotus 25 at Monza,
whilst Ian switched to Brabham for his single
seaters with a pair of BT6s for Hawkeye and
ex-works Brabham driver Frank Gardner.
Frank also drove the BT5, the Ron Tauranac
answer to the Lotus 23B although a 23B was
retained and used by Graham Hill to take
second place in the Canadian GP – in those
days a sports car race – at Mosport Park.
Yellow gave way to gold for 1964 when the
IWR team famously fielded the stunning
‘Gold Bug’ Elan 26Rs with considerable
success, principally in the hands of
reigning World Champion Jimmy Clark
ably supported by Peter Arundell and John
Whitmore. IWR later developed its own
aluminium- bodied Elan fastback with an eye
on Le Mans. It didn’t get there, because it was
crashed by Mike Spence at Montlhery when
the brakes failed.
Also in ‘64 under the Ian Walker Team Lotus
banner Jimmy debuted the first 4.7-litre V8
Lotus 30 in the Sports car race supporting
the Aintree 200 when the car finished a lurid
second to Bruce McLaren’s Cooper ZerexClimax. In the hands of anyone else the car
would probably have gone off on the first lap.
In fact the days of both the car and Ian
Walker Racing were numbered for, in practice
for the Sports car race supporting the first
British Grand Prix at Brands Hatch, Tony
Hegbourne had the car break beneath him at
Dingle Dell, the resulting accident scattering
the 30 around large parts of Kent, Tony
fortunately emerging unscathed. Although
the Gold Bugs were still winning, at this point
Ian decided to withdraw from racing, not
least because John Pledger, by now the team’s
chief mechanic, had been quite seriously ill.
At the time there were rumours that IWR
would return in due course in Formula 1 but
it wasn’t to be and IWR closed in 1968. Its
expertise was morphed into the Ian Walker
Service garage group, which was renowned
in the tuning field as a specialist supplier
of uprated cylinder heads and the like.
Respected as a manufacturer of automotive
equipment, this enterprise laid the
foundations of FAI Automotive plc, the UK’s
largest independent supplier of replacement
auto parts, which Ian’s son Sean, himself a
BRDC Member, has run for some years.
Ian was a colourful, larger than life
character, an engaging fellow who gained
respect. He’d been there, racing alongside and
with the greats.
His team’s standards of preparation, and
particularly presentation, were ahead of their
time. They inspired others to follow a path
towards what is today’s professional norm.
Having won in everything from FF1600 to
a Thoroughbred GP Lotus 87, Sean returned
to racing with a recreation of a ‘Gold Bug’ a
few years back. He currently races Formula 2
March 782.
To Mavis, and to son Sean and all Ian’s
family we offer our condolences.
Ian Walker (pictured right) was successful on the stages,
as this picture shows, when in 1961 he won his class on
the Monte driving a Ford Zephyr (Photo LAT)
SECRETARY'S LETTER
SECRETARY’S LETTER
A
s has been discussed in previous editions of the
course the BRDC is immensely proud to own. I believe
both single seaters and GTs, his opinion has been hugely
Secretary’s Letter, it is a challenge to get the balance
also that the BRDC could and should take more of a lead
valued by many of his fellow members of this committee.
of what the Club is offering to its membership
as the voice of racing drivers.
Henceforth the BRDC (and Andrew)will assume the role
right, on account of the broad spread of age and interest;
There is the Grand Prix Drivers’ Association
of an observer at MSA Race Committee meetings and I
making the Club all things to all men (and women
representing the interests of those in the very top flight,
believe that the Club should now start to speak with more
of course!), if you like. There is the obvious common
but very little below that. It would be entirely appropriate
authority on behalf of its Members – the competitors
denominator of achievement at the highest level of motor
for the BRDC, as a unique Club of premier drivers, to
– and the very best and most successful of the 35,000
sport, but this alone is not always sufficient to keep the
be their mouthpiece. It has happened to one degree or
MSA licence holders, at that.
whole membership ‘pointing in the same direction’.
other from the earliest days of the Club, but I believe that
Indeed, this spread of interests and aspirations is a
There may be a lot to be learnt from other sports and
there is more which the Club could do for its Members
the President has already met with the Professional
challenge to cater for within the Bulletin, never mind the
who are active on the circuit, week in, week out. Getting
Footballers Association, to better understand what they
Club as a whole. The place and role of history within the
a consensus of opinion within the membership can at
do for their members. I hope that these sorts of issues
Club is, for example, always a slightly contentious issue.
times be difficult, but there are undoubtedly some issues
are amongst the many that the membership of the BRDC
For me personally, history is the DNA of a Club – it makes
that the Club can lead on to the benefit of its racing
can discuss further at the forthcoming Forum on ‘Club
the Club what it is. It should be respected, celebrated
Members and indeed the wider motor sport competitor.
matters’ which was agreed at the recent Members’ Forum
and followed but it should not be allowed to lead the
The Club’s longstanding seat on the MSA Race
at Silverstone on 4th September. A date for this Club
Club forward. That is a job for the “now”. I hope that we
Committee has recently been withdrawn by the
Forum has now been set for 2pm on 27th November in the
have the balance right in the Bulletin and I hope that we
governing body on account of the Club no longer
Jimmy Brown Centre and I hope that as many Members
have the balance right in the Club.
organising race meetings. Whilst on one level
as possible will be able to attend to give their input. In
this is perhaps understandable, it is none the less
the meantime, any competitor concerns that Members
serve a current purpose within the sport and be relevant
disappointing. Twenty years ago, nearly all the members
may have should be forwarded either direct to Andrew or
– and be seen to be relevant – to motor sport as a whole.
of this committee were also BRDC Members thereby
via me for representation at future MSA Race Committee
For the BRDC this is primarily achieved through the
ensuring that the Club, and current racing drivers, were
meetings.
discharging of the responsibilities that comes with
well represented. Most recently, Andrew Kirkaldy has
running and promoting international and national motor
represented the Club on the Race Committee and as a
Stuart Pringle
sport events at the country’s premier circuit, which of
current top flight GT driver and team manager/entrant in
Secretary, BRDC
I am also very conscious of the need for the Club to
MEMBER NEWS
MEMBER NEWS
VICTORY NUMBER TWO
THE RACE IS ON
BRDC Rising Star and former FIA GT Champion, Sean
Edwards, scored his second victory of the 2008 Porsche
Supercup season at Spa-Francorchamps over the
Belgian GP weekend.
Driving for the Konrad Motorsport team, Sean
again showed his worth as a GT driver, by dominating
proceedings in difficult conditions to stamp his
authority on the race and claim an impressive win.
By also winning at Silverstone in July, Sean entered
the final round of the season at Monza in seventh
position in the points standings – with every hope of
rounding out the season in the top six, and the highestplaced British driver.
The Secretary’s Challenge, a race exclusively for BRDC
Members, BRDC Superstars and BRDC Rising Stars,
will take place on Sunday November 2nd at Silverstone
during the Walter Hayes Trophy meeting.
All closed-wheel sports and saloon cars are eligible
for this race around the 1.6-mile National Circuit, and
again the Club hopes for a high turnout of Members
driving a wide-variety of machinery.
In the past, the race has witnessed everything
on-track from an MGB to a state-of-the-art Le Mans
Prototype, and this year promises to be no different.
Further information, and an Entry Form, can be
obtained from: [email protected]
FRANCHITTI RETURNS TO INDYCAR SERIES
2007 Indianapolis 500 winner, and IndyCar champion, Dario
Franchitti, will return to the IndyCar Series next season after taking
a break from the US-based single-seater series to try his hand at
NASCAR.
Sadly Dario’s switch into the world of stock cars was not as
successful as he had hoped, and after the closure of his team, due
to financial problems, the Scot has announced a return to the
IndyCar Series for 2008.
Dario will line-up alongside Scott Dixon, this year’s Indy 500
winner and IndyCar champion, at the wheel of a Target Chip
Ganassi Racing Dallara-Honda.
Dario’s arrival at Target Chip Ganassi Racing has been facilitated
by Dan Wheldon’s switch to the Panther Racing squad.
Dario commented, “The Target Chip Ganassi team are well
known for winning races. By signing for them, I am able to return to
the IndyCar Series with the best possible chance of success.”
Dan said of his move to Panther, “I am really looking forward to a
new challenge next year. The Panther Racing team are making strong
advances, and it will be great to be part of their expanding project.”
First past the post – again (left)
Sean Edwards scored Supercup victory number 2 at Spa
Up for the cup (above)
Martin Short’s Le Mans prototype is a Secretary’s
Challenge crowd favourite (Photos Jakob Ebrey and LAT)
Members racing in the USA (right)
Dario Franchitti is set to race away from NASCAR
and take over Dan Wheldon’s seat at Target Chip Ganassi
BOOK REVIEWS
Book reviews
The Bulletin team recommend worthy additions to your library
Shelby – The Man. The Cars.
The Legend
Wallace A Wyss
Iconografix Inc., ISBN: 158-388-1824
If you haven’t caught up with this book yet,
which was published in April last year, and
you have an interest in the career of one of
motor sport’s true icons, then it’s worth the
effort to track it down at the astonishingly
modest cover price of $19.95, say £11.
Some 30 years ago the author, Wallace
A Wyss, whose name will be familiar to
readers of Car and Driver magazine to which
he is a regular contributor, wrote a book
entitled Shelby’s Wildlife: The Cobras and
the Mustangs which sold 50,000 copies but is
long out of print and much sought after. This
latest book is its eminently worthy successor
which covers not just the cars but also Carroll
Shelby the racing driver who won two SCCA
championships in the mid ‘50s, had his
first Formula 1 drive in a Maserati 250F at
Siracusa in 1955 and, with Roy Salvadori,
won Le Mans for Aston Martin in 1959
following which he was made an Honorary
Member of the BRDC.
Beset by heart problems, Carroll Shelby
called time on his race driving in October
1960 and looked for fresh challenges. Enter
“The Wildlife” – not just the Cobra and the
Mustang but also the (Sunbeam) Tiger and
the (Dodge) Viper with a major involvement
in Ford’s Le Mans project with the various
versions of the GT and winning the FIA GT in
1965 with the glorious Daytona Coupe.
This is a no frills paperback of some 208
pages crammed with stories, well-captioned
monochrome photographs and detail.
Wallace Wyss clearly knows the American
automotive and racing scene intimately and
has done his research as the Bibliography at
the back (there is no index, sadly) bears out.
His style is highly readable and entertaining
but his bias is noticeably towards the
American version of events, for example
when it comes to describing the birth of
the AC (sorry, Shelby American) Cobra. His
grasp of the European scene also seems at
times a little shaky as this passage perhaps
exemplifies:
“The Le Mans race, an annual event run
partly on the village streets of a French village
called Le Mans, was a veritable institution
in sports car racing. Jaguar had won it three
times in the ’50s…”
But don’t let that put you off! The
personalities of the US road racing scene of
the ‘50s and ‘60s are brought to life by the
stories while Carroll Shelby’s later years with
such as the Oldsmobile-powered Series 1 and
assorted Cobra copies, continuation cars,
replicas are all documented. Rather like the
original Cobra itself, this book delivers much
more than the basic appearance and format
might suggest.
Ian Titchmarsh
Winning is not enough
Sir Jackie Stewart OBE
Headline Publishing Group, ISBN: 978-0-7553-1537-6
Being asked to write a book review is not
something I would normally agree to,
but Sir Jackie Stewart’s autobiography,
“Winning Is Not Enough” made such an
impact on me that when asked by the
BRDC I didn’t hesitate to say “yes”.
The book covers not only the iconic
career of this living legend, but tells the
complete story of his upbringing in the
West of Scotland through to the present
day. In that time the reader discovers that,
both professionally and personally, Jackie
has achieved and experienced more than
many people could in several lifetimes.
The reader is drawn into the book
because it covers such a wide variety of
subjects; you don’t need to be a motor sport
enthusiast or a fan to enjoy it.
For me it was not simply learning how
Jackie dealt with the great successes in
his life, but also the way in which he dealt
with the great tragedies too, no more so
than racing in an era when death was ever
present.
As a driver, I found many parts of the
book could almost be used as a guide on
how to be the complete professional in
our sport and for that very reason I keep
referring back to it and have marked several
of the pages. I feel any driver, whether from
the lowest formula or the very pinnacle
of racing, can capture something from
this book, be it in the car out of the car
or simply how to conduct themselves in
business. Certainly for any young driver
planning to pursue a career in motorsport
it’s a “must read”.
The DVD that accompanies the book
is first class and features rare and unseen
footage of his racing career as well as many
personal photographs. The interviews with
Jackie, business leaders, friends and family
should not be missed.
Put simply, buy this fantastic book.
Marino Franchitti
1969
1971
1973
MEMBER NEWS
CLASSIC SET TO GROW IN 2009
fter a successful 2008 Silverstone
Classic, where over 57,000 visitors saw
21 races and enjoyed three days of
family entertainment both on and off the
track, Event Director Roger Etcell unveiled
some of the plans for next year’s Silverstone
Classic in a press conference held in the
International Media Centre.
A
Murray Walker – Silverstone
Classic Ambassador
Murray Walker, who was the special guest
this year, agreed to become the Ambassador
to the Silverstone Classic, coinciding
perfectly with the launch of his new book
and his long association with Silverstone.
Murray Walker said: “I have been very well
aware over the past few weeks or so that
Motion Works, who have been organising
this whole magnificent extravaganza, have
been putting an absolutely gargantuan
amount of hard work into this event. The
work has been done with pleasantness,
cheerfulness and gigantic efficiency
and I am genuinely impressed with the
whole thing. I’m sure you won’t speak to
anyone, whether they are a competitor or
a spectator, who won’t say the same thing.
I’ve been talking to a lot of the punters, the
people who have paid money to come here,
and I can tell you that they all have smiles
on their faces. This is the first time Motion
Works has done it and I don’t know how it
can get better when it is absolutely fabulous
already. I’m delighted to be associated with
the Silverstone Classic.”
Dates for 2009
The 2009 Silverstone Classic will take place
on 24/25/26 July, retaining the traditional
date of the last weekend in July. After
successfully attracting a crowd of over
50,000 this year, in 2009 Motion Works is
looking to attract at least 65,000 three-day
visitors with a bigger and even better event
that will feature further enhanced racing,
a greater number of car clubs and classic
cars, more live music, a bigger exhibition
area with more themed trade malls, more
air displays and other family-orientated
entertainment.
Live TV and online streaming
Pan European broadcaster Motors TV has
confirmed two days of live TV coverage for
next year’s event. New for 2009 will be the
online streaming of the live TV coverage on
the Silverstone Classic website, giving the
event worldwide coverage.
Jaguar, the celebrated
marque
The celebrated marque next year will be
Jaguar, 60 years after the company first
went racing with the XK120, winning first
time out here at Silverstone. In 1949 Jaguar
factory workers arrived at Silverstone in
coaches, paying 16 shillings to watch their
car win.
Michael Quinn, Patron of the Jaguar
Daimler Heritage Trust and grandson of
As the sun sets over Silverstone, the World Sportscar Master grid prepares to set off
for their evening race (Photo Jakob Ebrey)
Jaguar founder Sir William Lyons, said:
“Obviously we are delighted that Jaguar
has been chosen to be the featured marque
next year. It is wholly appropriate that
60 years after the XK120’s first ever race,
where they came in first and second, this
is an anniversary well worth celebrating.
I was quite interested and amused to
hear that the factory workers paid 16
shillings to watch their company race as
my grandfather didn’t give anything away.
On a personal note I have been competing
and I would just like to add to Murray’s
comments about the organisation of
this event. I love the fact that the event
is designed to be approachable and is
appealing to families. There are a lot of
children here and drivers are putting them
in their cars and showing them around. It
is extremely important, especially in the
historic racing world, that we appeal to the
younger generation. We are really looking
forward to being a part of the 2009 event.”
New race for Super
Touring Cars
New for the 2009 event will be a completely
new race format for mid 90s Super Touring
Cars, capturing some of the great days of the
BTCC. Organisers will be targeting at least
30 cars to take part and as many original
drivers as possible competing for the annual
David Leslie Memorial Trophy.
CLUB & REGIONAL EVENTS
10 September 1961.
CLUB AND REGIONAL EVENTS
For the latest details please visit: www.brdc.co.uk
SEPTEMBER
25
SOUTHERN REGIONAL LUNCH
GINS FARM, BEAULIEU RIVER
CONTACT: Rex Woodgate
Tel: 02380 849 264
26
SOUTH EAST REGIONAL LUNCH
OLD TOLGATE HOTEL, BRAMBER
CONTACT: Les Thacker
Tel: 01293 773997
26-28
BRDC HISTORIC SPORTSCARS
SPA FRANCORCHAMPS, SIX-HOURS
CONTACT: Duncan Wiltshire Tel: 01379 678101
OCTOBER
12
SOUTH WEST REGIONAL LUNCH
FARTHING COUNTRY HOUSE
CONTACT: John Woodington Tel: 01271 890204
15
BRDC MEMBERS’ LUNCH
CLUBHOUSE
CONTACT: Aspire Hospitality
24
Tel: 01293 773997
Tel: 01327 855100
BRDC ANNUAL AWARDS
Booking information for this end-of-season Club
event will be available shortly.
The late Phil Hill, the USA’s first Formula 1 World Champion, pounds
his Ferrari Dino 156 round the infamous Monza banking on his way
to the title. As yet he is unaware that his Ferrari team mate and
championship rival ‘Taffy’ von Trips has already lost his life together
with 13 spectators in an horrific accident, also involving Jimmy
Clark’s Lotus 21, at the Parabolica on the second lap of the Italian
Grand Prix.
Phil had won his first World Championship Grand Prix at Monza just
12 months earlier in the front-engined Ferrari Dino 246, also on the
banked circuit but in the absence of the top British teams. He won
at Spa with the little Dino and arrived at Monza four points behind
von Trips with only his home race at Watkins Glen still to run.
The Monza banking had first been used for a World Championship
Grand Prix in 1955 and again in 1956 before being resurrected for
1960. Although not involved in the fatal accident, the banking was
never used again for Formula 1 cars but continued to be the scene of
World Championship sports car racing until 1968.
Phil Hill never won another Grand Prix but continued in Formula 1
until the 1966 Italian Grand Prix when he failed to qualify one of
Dan Gurney’s Eagle TG101s. Many British fans who were there will
surely remember him best for his last ever race – the 1967 BOAC 500
at Brands Hatch – when he shared the high-winged Chaparral 2F
with Mike Spence to take a spectacular victory.
Ian Titchmarsh
NOVEMBER
1
WALTER HAYES TROPHY FORUM
CLUBHOUSE
CONTACT: James Beckett
Tel: 01327 850925
19
BRDC SOCIAL LUNCH
CLUBHOUSE
Tel: 01327 855100
DECEMBER
4
Tel: 01293 773997
8
BRDC ANNUAL AWARDS
CAFÉ ROYAL
CONTACT: Club Office
Tel: 01327 850922
BRDC CHRISTMAS LUNCH
CLUBHOUSE
Tel: 01327 855100
18
Answer from page 4: Felday-BRM 4

Volume 29 No 3

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