Since I will be working the next 14 days and will be unable to post at the appropriate time, I thought I would take this opportunity to point out that the 14th of the month will mark the 93rd anniverary of the birth of Rob Walker.
For those of you unfamiliar with Rob, he was one of the greatest sportsmen England has produced, and one of the most (if not THE most) successful private entrants in Formula 1 history.
He became an entrant in the immediate post-war years and remained one until the early 70s, when he became a partner with John Surtees in the Surtees F1 team. He used Cooper and Lotus chassis, providing Lotus with their first ever Championship race win when Stirling Moss won at Monaco in the Lotus 18.Rob also footed the bill when Coventry Climax enlarged their Formula 2 engine to make it competitive in Formula 1!
Beyond Sir Stirling, Rob employed the services of a long list of illustrious drivers, including Tony Brooks, Jack Brabham, Jo Bonnier, Peter Collins, Graham Hill, John Surtees, Alan Jones, Jochen Rindt and two of my all-time favorites: Jo "Seppi" Siffert and Mike "the bike" Hailwood. Of those, Rindt and Jones were given their first F1 drives through the auspices of Mr. Walker.
Unfortunately, we will probably never see the like of Mr. Walker again, as the ridiculous rule requiring all teams be 2 car efforts and that each team manufacture their own cars makes it virtually impossible that there will ever be private entrants again.
Be that as it may, all true Formula 1 fans can be thankful that we have Mr. Walker in our sport's history. He showed that it was possible to be successful without being ruthless. Indeed, his passport listed his occupation as "Gentleman".
For those of you unfamiliar with Rob, he was one of the greatest sportsmen England has produced, and one of the most (if not THE most) successful private entrants in Formula 1 history.
He became an entrant in the immediate post-war years and remained one until the early 70s, when he became a partner with John Surtees in the Surtees F1 team. He used Cooper and Lotus chassis, providing Lotus with their first ever Championship race win when Stirling Moss won at Monaco in the Lotus 18.Rob also footed the bill when Coventry Climax enlarged their Formula 2 engine to make it competitive in Formula 1!
Beyond Sir Stirling, Rob employed the services of a long list of illustrious drivers, including Tony Brooks, Jack Brabham, Jo Bonnier, Peter Collins, Graham Hill, John Surtees, Alan Jones, Jochen Rindt and two of my all-time favorites: Jo "Seppi" Siffert and Mike "the bike" Hailwood. Of those, Rindt and Jones were given their first F1 drives through the auspices of Mr. Walker.
Unfortunately, we will probably never see the like of Mr. Walker again, as the ridiculous rule requiring all teams be 2 car efforts and that each team manufacture their own cars makes it virtually impossible that there will ever be private entrants again.
Be that as it may, all true Formula 1 fans can be thankful that we have Mr. Walker in our sport's history. He showed that it was possible to be successful without being ruthless. Indeed, his passport listed his occupation as "Gentleman".
