Weissach's single Grand Prix win
Authors
- Mattijs Diepraam, Felix Muelas
Date
- 8W February 1999 issue
Related articles
- Joakim Bonnier - Bonnier takes BRM by the horns, by Felix Muelas/Leif Snellman/Mattijs Diepraam
Who?Dan Gurney (Jack Brabham) What?Porsche 804 (Brabham Racing Organisation Lotus-Climax 24) Where?Rouen-les-Essarts When?1962 French GP |
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Why?
With the possible exception of the fifties, when Alfa, Ferrari, Mercedes and Maserati ruled the roost in F1, manufacturers have never played a dominating role among constructors - and you could even question the inclusion of Ferrari and Maserati in this list. They're hardly your regular car manufacturer, are they... A look at the all-time winners list of constructors shows us that since the garagiste revolution only Renault featured as a championship contender, narrowly missing out on the 1982 and 1983 titles.
Porsche is one of the few manufacturers having tried to take on the specialists from Britain but it did much better as the engine builder of the successful TAG turbo unit which powered McLaren to two consecutive constructor titles in 1984 and 1985. In its six years as a constructor Porsche won just once - and it was a lucky win as well. It came in its closing season, courtesy of its final F1 design (the 804 powered by a new flat-eight) and its star driver Dan Gurney.
Up until the French GP the 1962 season had brought little success to Porsche System Engineering, Gurney and Bonnier lining up mid-grid, with the Swede only scoring at Monaco in the old 718. This was a disappointment after an encouraging finish to the 1961 season, Gurney finishing second twice. The team skipped Belgium where the American tried to enter for a one-off in Parnell's Lotus-BRM, to return to France hoping that the latest Stuttgart tweaks would prove successful. Qualifying resulted in a satisfying 6th for Gurney and 9th for Bonnier, none of them expecting a maiden Porsche win on Sunday. But when Clark's Lotus, Surtees' Bowmaker Lola and Hill's BRM all retired from the lead Gurney inherited victory.
Gurney's new Eagle project also saw a single win - at Spa in 1967, the American crossing the line first in his Anglo-American Racers-run Eagle-Weslake T1G. Until recently, Gurney still led the AAR team, which later came to stand for All-American Racers. A Toyota faithful since blitzing the IMSA GT series with Toyota-powered Eagles, AAR entered the 1999 ChampCar season with a single Eagle 997 chassis for ChampCar sophomore Alex Barron before calling it quits.