This shot of John Surtees out front of his business in Fircroft Way, Edenbridge, Kent took my fancy.
I’ve been writing‘Australian Racing Random’ posts for a few years now, they seem to have hit the spot, so I thought I’d do the same thing with some international photographs.
The photo of John Surtees was posted on Gabriel Brizuela’s Team Surtees Facebook site. Peter Connew, co-designer of the Surtees TS7 Ford communicated with Brizuela about his time at Surtees and about his own Connew GP car.
‘Hi Gabriel, I am so pleased with your interest of the history of the F1 car that I built and raced with Francois Migault.’
I have followed your stories and pictures of the Surtees Team history and are very impressed with your knowledge and enthusiasm about the Surtees Team history.
They were fortunate times for me when John Surtees decided to build his own F1 car in 1970 … the TS7 … and I was lucky to be there at that time.
I have many fond memories of that time and are happy to share them. John Surtees was a very special person, and his engineering expertise and kindness is an example to us all.’
The Connew story is well told here: https://www.hagerty.co.uk/articles/motorsport/the-likely-lads-in-a-lock-up-who-made-it-to-the-f1-grid/
The erotic rear quarters of Pat Hoare’s Ferrari 256 3-litre V12 circa 1961, Ardmore perhaps.
The story of the last front-engined car to win a World Championship Grand Prix – as a Dino 246/58 – is an interesting one, see here: https://primotipo.com/2020/02/07/pn-hoare-440-papanui-rd-christchurch-nz/
Pat Hoare on the way to victory in the Waimate 50, New Zealand, in November 1961 and below, George Begg shot it in its ‘Fugly GTO’ phase in a race paddock, date and place unknown.
Pat’s best results in the car are as follows: 1960- NZ GP Ardmore eighth, Dunedin Road race and Waimate 50 second 1961- NZ GP Ardmore seventh, Dunedin Road Race second, Teretongaa International fourth, Waimate 50 first 1962- Dunedin Road Race first, Waimate 50 second.
It can only be Targa, even at a glimpse…
The Chaparral 2F Chev raced by Phil Hill and Hap Sharp during the 1967 event, DNF after eight of the 10 laps. The classic was won by the more nimble works-Porsche 910/8 crewed by Paul Hawkins and Rolf Stommelen below. It was a 910 one-two-three with Cella/Biscaldi second and Elford/Neerpasch third.
If only the 2F had an ‘automatic’-transaxle with the durability and reliability to match the quality of the rest of the car. A mighta-been indeed, see here for a lengthy feature on the car: https://primotipo.com/2014/06/26/67-spa-1000km-chaparral-2f/
Later Chaparral pilot and rather successful entrepreneur, Roger Penske aboard Teddy Mayer’s Cooper T59 Ford FJ during the 1962 Daytona Continental 3-Hour meeting on February 11.
Penske was filling in for Tim Mayer, who had been drafted into the US Army at the end of 1961. That weekend’s Formula Junior ‘Count Lurani Cup’ was won by Pete Lovely’s Lotus 22 Ford; Penske wasn’t entered, it appears to have been a test session. Penske raced a Cooper T57 Climax in the 3-Hour but withdrew when his oil pressure plummeted.
Mind you, Tim had time enough to win the ‘62 USA-SCCA Interdivisional Championship. He prevailed in many Formula Junior races aboard big-brother Teddy Mayer’s RevEm racing Cooper T59 Ford including those at Marlboro Raceway, Maryland where Mark Donohue’s Elva was second, and Cumberland Airport, in front of teammate Peter Revson in Maryland, Bridghampton, Road America, Meadowdale Raceway, Illinois, and Thompson Raceway, Connecticut.
Penske raced the car once at Virginia Raceway, Danville where he was second behind Walt Hangsgen’s similar car over the April 28/29 weekend.
He’s being looked after by Teddy Mayer on the grid at Virginia above. Car #1 is the Charlie Kolb Merlyn Mk3 Ford, while the front-engined red/white Stanguellini Fiat has Pierre Mion at the tiller.
Jim Culp reports from practice over the 1970 Belgian Grand Prix weekend. ‘On Saturday I arrived in the spectator parking area to discover a Team Lotus van with a brand new Lotus 72. Alex Soler-Roig arrived in slacks and polo shirt, climbed in, and after a brief orientation, pulled on his helmet and drove out for a slow lap of the circuit.’
Soler-Roig was entered by Team Lotus at home (above), Spain, Jarama (Lotus 49C Ford), where he was a DNQ, at Spa (72C Ford) DNS, and in France, DNQ (49C Ford).
He started four races in a March 711 Ford in 1971, two in a BRM P160B in 1972 and failed to finish in all of them.
After the futility of the five or so car 1972 BRM team became clear to him he ended his career in fine fashion racing works and quasi-works Ford Capri RS2600s in the European Touring Car Championship.
A Zandvoort Trophy win with Dieter Glemser and Jochen Mass, third at Spa with Dieter Glemser, third at Paul Ricard with Mass and Gerard Larrousse and a rousing win at home – Jarama – with the same crew were great results. See here: https://www.f1forgottendrivers.com/drivers/alex-soler-roig/
Doesnt the Maserati 250F look great from every angle?
Maria Teresa De-Filippis entering La Source at Spa in 1958, Q19 and tenth place, her best result in three Championship GP starts. See here: https://primotipo.com/2016/09/23/maria-teresa-and-stanguellini-fj/
De Filippis at the September 1, 1949 Aosta–Gran San Bernardo hillclimb where she was fifth in the under 750cc class in a Meccanica Taraschi built Urania BMW 750 Sport.
Below she is pictured during the August 4 Stella Alpina together with Giuseppe Ruggiero in a Squadro Taraschi machine operating from Berardo Taraschi’s base in Teramo. They were sixth with a time of 4 min 52.41, the winning Stanguellini S1100 did a 4:43. More about the company here:https://www.cortilepittsburgh.org/taraschi.html
And below nearly a decade later in a Maserati 250F during practice for the 1958 Monaco Grand Prix where she was one of 15 drivers who didn’t qualify; Maurice Trintignant won in a works-Cooper T45 Climax.
I get Derek Bell being at Le Mans for shooting The Film with Steve and all of the boys, but I don’t get the presence of his Brabham BT30 Ford FVA at La Sarthe on July 18, 1970.
Any clues folks? Show and tell perhaps? Did Steve do a few laps in the Brabham?
Derek was second in the 1970 European F2 Championship in the Wheatcroft Racing Brabham with Clay Regazzoni the victor in works-Tecno 69 and 70 Ford FVA machines.
It may well be that the car was kept in France during this period, as there were two French Euro F2 rounds back to back: on June 28 at Rouen-les-Essarts (seventh) and Paul Ricard on July 26 (DNF accident).
Aston Martin DP155 at New Zealand during the Kiwi Internationals in the summer of ’56.
Reg Parnell drove the experimental DB3S-based Grand Prix monoposto well but was blown off by the ex-works Ferrari 500/625 3-litre machines raced by Peter Whitehead and Tony Gaze. Note the rego-plate, it would have been quite an Aston-Roadie!
See here for a feature on this car,where is the shot of Reg above, Kiwis?: https://primotipo.com/2019/09/05/the-gp-aston-martin-dp155/ and here: https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/articles/single-seaters/f1/aston-martins-failed-first-f1-attempt-the-dp155/
Start of the 1970 JAF Japanese Grand Prix at Fuji International on May 3, 1970. The three cars at the front, sorta, are Leo Geoghegan’s Lotus 59B Waggott TC-4V 2-litre, Tetsu Ikuzawa’s Mitsubishi Colt F2-D R39 1.6-litre and Jackie Stewart at the far right, Brabham BT30 BDA, capacity uncertain.
70,000 spectators watched the reigning World Champion, Stewart, win the 50 lap, 300 km race in the John Coombs Brabham BT30 Ford raced by Jackie and Jack Brabham in Euro F2 races that year.
Max Stewart’s Mildren Waggott TC-4V 2-litre was second, 50 seconds adrift of his much shorter namesake, and Kuniomi Nagamatsu was third in a Mitsubishi Colt F2-D 1.6.
Other notables who started the race included 1969 fourth placegetter Graeme Lawrence aboard the howling Ferrari Dino 246T in which Graeme and Chris Amon won back-to-back Tasman Cups in 1970-69, Leo Geoghegan’s fifth placed Lotus 59B Waggott TC-4V, and sixth placed Alastair Walker’s Brabham BT23C Ford FVA.
BRM mechanic, Willie Southcott, fettling a BRM 1-litre P80 four-cylinder twin-cam, fuel-injected Formula 2 engine circa 1965.
Power was quoted at 128 bhp @ 9750 rpm with bore/stroke of 71.555/61.595 mm in 1965, and increased to a claimed 136bhp @ 10,500 rpm when the bore-stroke changed to 74.63/56.95 mm in 1966.
The interesting bit for OCDers like me is that the inlets and exhausts of this engine are on the opposite side to most photographs of the unit; and yes, the shot isn’t being shown arse-about.
See here: https://primotipo.com/2017/11/06/jim-clark-lotus-35-and-the-cosworth-sca-f2-engine/ Part of the development process, I guess…
The eagle-eyed may have picked up ‘A&M’ on the head casting ‘facing us’. A&M was/is Automotive & Marine Foundry Ltd, based in Grantham, Lincolnshire, England. This company was a key supplier of precision sand castings for BRM during the 1950s and 1960s.
Credits…
Peter Connew, George Begg, Bernard Cahier, Eric Stevens, Jim Culp, Bill Reynolds, GP Library, Alex Sievers, Dariel-Paris, Repco, Russ Cunningham
Tailpiece…
Did he catch it?…
This shot popped up in my BRM P80 research adventures. It’s Graham Hill doing his best to cut the Rouen-Les-Essarts grass during the 1965 meeting aboard John Coombs’ Brabham BT16 BRM P80 1-litre; Graham was a works-BRM pilot then.
Understandably so, as Hill is trying to catch Jim Clark’s victorious Lotus 35 Cosworth SCA, unsuccessfully as it transpired. Graham was second and Jack Brabham third in a BT19 Cosworth SCA; Brabham knocked the Honda S800 F2 engine into shape that season, then went and pulverised F2 with it the following year. Jack used the SCA for a while mid-season after dispatching the Japanese to go home and try again…they did a mighty fine job! See here:https://primotipo.com/2015/07/30/xxxii-grand-prix-de-reims-f2-july-1966-1-litre-brabham-hondas/
There is an Australian aspect to this story. At the end of the ’66 season Frank Gardner bought the car on behalf of Alec Mildren in Sydney. The chassis was fitted with a Coventry Climax 2.5 FPF four and raced by Gardner successfully in the 1967 Tasman Cup, here at the Levin International on January. The car is still here, see this piece: https://primotipo.com/2020/03/13/brabham-bt16-climax/
Finito…
primotipo... 