Yellow Pages Championship Round

Castle Combe, 9 Oct 1971

All cars are 1.6-litre F/Atl unless noted.

Notes on the cars:

1. Chevron B18C [18.A.71.1] (Cyd Williams): New to Graham Eden and delivered just in time for the Oulton Park Formula Atlantic race on 21 March 1971, the second round of the British series. Eden retired from driving shortly after and recruited Cyd Williams to drive the car. Williams won seven championship rounds and finished second in the 1971 championship. Eden ordered Ensigns for 1972 but cancelled the order and bought March 722s instead. Williams continued to drive the Chevron until his 722 arrived and won three of the first six rounds of the 1972 series. The car was later displayed at the London Racing Car show, where it was bought by Canadian Bob Armstrong (Winnipeg, Manitoba) for the Canadian Formula B series in 1973. Armstrong appeared in the early rounds of the series but made little impact and wasn't seen after June. Subsequent history unknown.
2. Brabham BT29 [19] (Norman Cuthbert): Sold to Steve Matchett but remained unraced in 1970. To Norman Cuthbert for 1971 and raced in British Formula Atlantic, at first with a Ford twin cam and then with a BDA later in the season. To John Sabourin for 1972 and continued in Formula Atlantic, and then briefly in libre racing in 1973. Sabourin recalls part-trading it to Bobby Howlings for a Chevron B19/B23. The BT29 is then believed to be the "nipple pink" BT29/35 raced by Mike Chapman (Preston/Blackburn) and Mike Utley (Preston) in sprints, hillclimbs and libre racing from 1974 to 1977. Then firmly identified as the car raced by a southern English hillclimber between 1978 and 1987. Subsequent history withheld.
3. Brabham BT35 [8] (David Morgan): New to Ed Reeves for British Formula Atlantic in 1971, using Wood BDA engines. Also raced by David Morgan at a couple of late season races. Retained by Reeves for Morgan to drive in 1972, and fitted with an 1860cc Wood BDA for the F2 race at Mallory Park in March 1972 which, remarkably, Morgan won. Reeves then bought a new BT38 for Morgan, and the BT35 was sold via Alan Jones to John and Chrystal Millard in Australia, who fitted a Ford twin cam for the ANF2 category, but it was four years before the car ran again. Raced by John Millard until February 1978 when an accident at Sandown Park damaged the chassis. Bought by Denis Lupton in September 1978 still in damaged state and repaired but still not assembled until bought by Bryan Miller (Kiama, NSW) in 1999. Retained by Miller until May 2014 when bought by John Hughes and shipped back to England.
4. March 702 [6] (John Nicholson): Although given the number 702/6 by March, this was the development F2 car built using the very first Arch Motors frame. It raced just once in 1970 when Howden Ganley appeared in it at Mantorp Park in August. At the start of 1971, it was fitted with a Vegantune twin cam for Formula Atlantic, and was driven by David Morgan at the Mallory Park round in March, taking pole position and winning. He was second in the next race at Castle Combe, but then the car was advertised by March, and bought by John Nicholson, who used it for the rest of that season. Advertised by Nicholson (Ashford, Middlesex) in August 1972. Bought from Nicholson in October 1972 by Martin Steele (Faringdon, Oxfordshire) and used in sprints in 1973 and the first half of 1974. Sold in July 1974 to Peter Fisk (Cambridge) who raced it in speed events from 1974 to 1979. The car was fitted with a BDA engine, and Fisk sometimes shared with Robert Glass, also of Cambridge. Fisk advertised the car in October 1980 and sold it back to Steele in March 1981. Steele restored it and used it in UK historic racing in 1985 and 1986. Retained until sold in November 1998 to Mike Scott (Exeter, Devon) who drove it in FORCE events in 2003, and later appeared with it in Masters events in 2006. Sold in 2009 to Satoshi Onishi (Miharuno, Japan) and used by him in Japanese historic events.
5. Lotus 69 [71/69.1] (Chris Oates): Number given in Lotus build record for the car sold to Chris Oates (Kimberley, Notts) for 1971 (an unusual number since it does not include a formula code, and this is not the same car as 71/69.1.FB which was sold in North America). Entered by Alida Else Racing Team for Oates in Formula Atlantic and libre racing in 1971. To Bernard Hunter (Edinburgh, Scotland) for libre and sprints in Scotland in 1972. To John Barr (Edinburgh, Scotland) and used in libre, sprints and hillclimbs in 1973 and 1974. To Bob Rollo (Prestonpans, Scotland) for libre racing in 1975 and 1976.
6. Brabham BT35 [43] (Bob Salisbury): New to Bob Gerard in late 1971 and fitted with a Cosworth BDA engine for Bob Salisbury to race in British Formula Atlantic from October 1971 to April 1973. Then sold to Harry Gilbert (Aberdeen, Scotland), and raced by Gilbert and Ronnie Mackay in libre racing. It was advertised by Johnny Blades in October 1973, and by Bob Howlings' R.D.H. Racing (Bollington, Cheshire) in August 1974 when it was identified as the ex-Bob Salisbury car and was available complete except for engine. It was next seen three months later when John Wingfield raced it in the Boxing Day libre race at Brands Hatch, fitted with a 1.8-litre Cosworth FVC. He retained the FVC engine and ran the car with huge success in libre racing through 1975. In September 1975, it was sold to dealer Bobby Howlings, who raced it a couple of times and then sold it to John Thistlewaite, who entered it for Tim Wood in libre in 1976. By 1978, it was owned by Joe Applegarth, still with the FVC engine in it, and it next appeared in 1986 when Nick Overall used it in the HSCC Pre '71 series. Overall was given an HVIF for this car as BT35-43 in 1988, and many years later, in May 2006, it was advertised on race-cars.com from the UK still with this HVIF. In 2009, it was reported to be with Tim Kuchel in Australia.
7. Kitchiner K4B ['Alie'] (Patrick Sumner): Appears Brands Hatch, May 2, 1971 for Patrick Sumner, where it was described in press reports as ex René Pierre Alié. This means it is the car originally built in 1970 as a K2B for Alié in the French F3 series. Raced until early 1973 when Sumner broke his wrist in a practice accident at Mallory Park and not rebuilt for some time. Patrick Sumner still owns the car, and reports that it was indeed the Alié car, and never carried a chassis number, so the 'Alie' tag is to distinguish this chassis from the one originally built for Albert Badan for the French F3 series, and subsequently run in hillclimbs and Formula Libre.
8. Palliser WDB4 [2] (Vern Schuppan): New for Vern Schuppan to drive as the Palliser Racing entry in the British Formula Atlantic series, built in April 1971. This new car was built on a quite different spaceframe chassis fabricated by Bert Ray, using bigger tubes and with a larger rollhoop. It was first driven by Hugh Dibley at Castle Combe in April but did not start. Then raced by Schuppan to win a libre race at Thruxton two weeks later, and then in Formula Atlantic, winning the 1971 Yellow Pages Championship. It was then sold to Dave Handford (Chingola, Zambia) in January 1972. It was later acquired by Fred Goddard in Zimbabwe, then called Rhodesia, and he raced it in the South African Formula Atlantic series in 1976, using a Broadspeed BDA engine. It was then sold to Ronnie Watt, and in 1980 it was fitted with a Mazda engine for Mike Wesson, whom Watt had been sponsoring in FV, to drive in Formula SA events. It was then retained by Watt until 2010, when he sold it to Ian Hebblethwaite. Stuart Thompson fully restored the car to 1971 specification for Hebblethwaite.
9. Palliser WDB4 (John Gillmeister): A car built for John Gillmeister using a new Atlantic-specification frame fabricated by Bert Ray. Raced by Gillmeister with a Ford twin cam engine in early 1971, then changed to a Richardson BDA later that season. Retained by Gillmeister for 1972. Subsequent history unknown.
10. Brabham BT21 [30] (Jonny Dimsdale): This BT21 was built to F2 specification with a Cosworth FVA engine and BT23 suspension for Alan McKechnie Racing and raced in 1967 by Chris Lambert. It was later damaged in a trailer accident but evidently repaired and is believed to be the car that Don O'Sullivan (Western Australia) bought for 1968, fitted with one of his 2.5-litre Climax engines, and used in libre events at Caversham. If so, the car was sold back to the UK at the end of that year and would then be the "ex-Lambert" car that was used as the basis of a "new" BT21B for Dr Joseph Ehrlich's team which was being built up for F3 in April 1969. Presumably then the car raced for the team by Roger Keele in September 1969. Raced again in 1971 in Formula Atlantic by Johnny Dimsdale (London) with an RES twin cam and advertised by him at the end of that season as a BT21C. Presumably the same car that Bob King of Bob King Motorcycles (Bedford) entered as a BT21C in Formula Atlantic races in 1972 and which he later advertised with a RES Ford twin cam in October 1972, mentioning that it was red. This would then be the red BT21C with RES engine entered by Nick Overall (East Horsley, Surrey) in a Jaybrand libre race at Silverstone in March 1973. Subsequent history unknown.
11. Brabham BT35 [BT28-2] (Mike Stow): Delivered March 1969 to Clarke Mordaunt racing team for Mike Beuttler in UK F3 in 1969. To Jim Edwards for UK F3 in 1970. To Mike Stow for Formula Atlantic in 1971 when it was said to have been updated to BT29/35 specification. Sold to Dick Barker at the beginning of 1972 when it was said to have been 'brought up to FB BT29 specification last year'. However, Motoring News identified Barker's car as chassis number BT28-20 twice early in 1972 instead of BT28-2. BT28-20 was a different ex-Stow car with a clear history up to this point, implying MN's reporter made a mistake. Barker's car was heavily damaged at Crystal Palace at the end of May 1972 and was not seen again. Barker advertised a 'BT29/35' in April 1973 but the identity of that car is unknown.
12. Lotus 69 [59-XB/F3-38] (Peter Wardle): New to Peter Wardle (Wimbledon, London) for European Formula Ford in 1970. Rebuilt to Formula Atlantic specification for 1971, and raced by Wardle in the British series that season, winning one round at Oulton Park in August. Retained by Wardle for 1972. Sold to Garry Ainscough (Bulawayo, Rhodesia) for 1973, and fitted with a 1800cc Cosworth FVC engine for the F2 class of the South African national championship. Retained for 1974 and 1975, after which it was sold to Richard Baker (Johannesburg, South Africa), and raced by him with the HRCR in South Africa. It was restored in 1999, and sold to England in 2000, where it has been used in historic racing. From 2011 to 2016, it was raced by David Hampton (South Leverton, Nottinghamshire) fitted with a 2-litre Cosworth BDG engine.
13. Brabham BT35 [6] (Nick Cook): New to Nick Cook and used in the British Formula Atlantic series in 1971. Retained for early 1972, but Cook does not appear in the UK after the end of April and this is probably the car taken to the USA to use in the SCCA series in 1972. Used by Rob Turnbull in British hillclimbs in 1973, 1974, 1975 and 1976. Sold to Andrew Fraser (Newton Abbot, Devon), and shared by him and Tim Painter in Sprints in 1977. Retained by Fraser for 1978 and 1979, and appeared at Wiscombe Park events in 1980 and 1982. Then via David McLaughlin to Keith Norman about 1984 and used by him in HSCC events in the 1980s and 1990s. To Rob Haze (Netherlands) between 1992 and 1995, and then back to Norman again for Historic F2 in 1999. To John Dunham (Basingstoke, Hampshire) April 2001, then to Ben Tyler 2003, then Peter Shaw 2004, then Dr John Monson 2007.
14. Brabham BT28/35 [BT28-8] (Tom Belsø): New to Jörgen Ellekaer and raced in Scandinavian F3 in 1969 with Holbay engines. Ellekaer has a new car, chassis BT28-27, for 1970 so the usage of BT28-8 that season is currently unclear. To Tom Belsø (Copenhagen, Denmark) for 1971 and fitted with a 1600cc Ford BDA for British Formula Atlantic. Converted to BT35 specification during the year. Advertised during 1972 and sold to Jimmy Fuller (Guyana), who raced it in Guyana in late 1972 with a Vegantune twin cam. By February 1973, it was owned by Mike Gill who used a BDA engine when he raced it at Bushy Park in Barbados. The car was known as a BT35 during its time in the Caribbean. It was later owned by Richard Knox in Trinidad, and he recalls that it took him "to many, many, race wins, a group championship, and a few lap records". He sold the car to Bobby Howlings together with his newer BT40. Subsequent history unknown.
15. March 713S [1] (Reg James): New for James Hunt to race in F3 in 1971 as part of the Rose Bearings-sponsored March Racing team. Won its first two races but then crashed by Hunt at Silverstone on 8 May, when the car went airborn and hit the sleepers. The March was rebuilt at the factory and raced by Hunt at Zandvoort a week later, only for Hunt to crash again, the car this time overturning and ripping off the rollhoop. Rebuilt as any effectively new car for Dave Morgan, initially appearing as a Formula Atlantic car at Snetterton in late June, and then as F3 car for the GP meeting in July. Raced by Morgan and by Reg James in F/Atlantic later in 1971. Sold in May 1972 to Jack Cavill (Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire), the owner of Mike Wilds' car, and converted back to F3 spec for Wilds until his new Ensign was ready. Retained by Wilds in 1973. Likely to be the "ex-Hunt" car raced by Chris Pilborough in Formula 4 in 1974, and then the "ex-Hunt/Morgan" F4 car of Mark Pritchard in 1976. Maybe Richard Penny's F4 car in 1977. Subsequent history unknown.

Sources

Note that the identification of individual cars in these results is based on the material presented elsewhere in this site and may in some cases contradict the organisers' published results.

The British race results have been compiled by Chris Townsend based on material in Autosport and Motoring News reports in the UK plus the information supplied by a wide range of contributors.

All comments, clarifications, corrections and additions are most welcome. Please email Allen (allen@oldracingcars.com) if you can help in any way with our research.