Couple of Racecar customers in this race - Allan Rennie is running his Lotus 35 Martin F1 - while Rick Hall is racing the De Tomaso 505
The inaugural Hall and Hall-sponsored Return to Power” race for pre-71 3-litre Formula 1 cars at Brands Hatch has attracted some star names and famous cars for its Brands Hatch May 26/27 date.
With an entry growing all the time, race organisers have confirmed that three drivers of the period, Derek Bell, Howden Ganley and Jackie Oliver will be present to do demonstration laps and sign autographs, as well as Clive Chapman demonstrating the iconic Lotus 49.
Bell will drive Roger Wills’ March 701, the car he drove for Tom Wheatcroft in the 1971 Argentine Grand Prix. The engine blew late in the non-championship Grand Prix and Tom Wheatcroft hung the car on the wall of the Donington museum to stop himself from spending money! There it remained until Wills bought it in 2010.
Jackie Oliver, still a prolific historic racer, will demonstrate a BRM P153, the type of car that he guided to his best finish of the 1970 season, fifth in the Austrian Grand Prix. Another former BRM factory driver, Howden Ganley, will be behind the wheel of a Tony Southgate-designed BRM P180, although it was a BRM P160 that Howden guided to fourth in the 1971 US GP at Watkins Glen and the 1972 German Grand Prix at the Nürburgring.
March will play a prominent role in the “Return to Power” race entry, headed up by Roger Wills’ the 701, the ex-Bell car that Chris Amon guided to victory in the 1970 International Trophy, and second place in that year’s French Grand Prix. Andrew Smith will drive his Tyrrell-March 701, the car that fellow Scotsman Jackie Stewart guided to success in the 1970 Race of Champions at Brands Hatch.
Matra fan Abba Kogan has entered his Matra MS120 (the type of car with which Chris Amon won the non-championship 1971 Argentine Grand Prix), while Rob Hall will drive the charismatic Matra MS80 and Tyrrell collector John Delane enters his ex-Jackie Stewart Tyrrell 002.
Allan Rennie’s Lotus 35 with its Martin V8 engine is set to race, the car debuted by Roy Pike at Mallory Park on Boxing Day 1966 before Piers Courage attempted to race it in the 1967 Race of Champions. A blown engine in qualifying prevented it from starting the race.
Race sponsor Rick Hall, who will race the ex-Piers Courage De Tomaso 505 that the British ace drove for Frank Williams Racing Cars, said: “We are delighted to be sponsoring this inaugural Return to Power event. These are cars that don’t get the opportunity to race very often and can be overlooked if they are behind more recent cars. This great initiative gives owners of the cars a chance to race for overall glory and for fans to see an earlier age of Formula 1 car. We are delighted with the response so far and are confident that more cars will be on the grid at Brands Hatch.”
The Formula 1 demonstrations will take place on the Sunday lunchtime of May 27, whilst the “Return to Power” will be run over two legs, with a 20-minute race on Saturday and a 15-minute race on Sunday.
Click here for the Lotus 35 Martin F1 web site - designed and built by Racecar
Click here for the Hall & Hall web site - designed and built by Racecar
