{"id":52011,"date":"2016-01-05T16:43:37","date_gmt":"2016-01-05T16:43:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.motorsportmagazine.com\/issue_content\/racings-greatest-champion\/"},"modified":"2019-07-19T15:57:27","modified_gmt":"2019-07-19T14:57:27","slug":"racings-greatest-champion","status":"publish","type":"issue_content","link":"https:\/\/www.motorsportmagazine.com\/archive\/article\/august-2015\/68\/racings-greatest-champion\/","title":{"rendered":"Racing’s greatest champion"},"content":{"rendered":"

Some motor sport seasons are defined by intense rivalry, others by one driver\u2019s domination. On an individual level, though, Jim Clark\u2019s 1965 remains unrivalled in terms of its success and diversity: Tasman champion, Indy 500 winner, a second Formula 1 title clinched by August\u2026 not to mention numerous victories in F2, sports and saloon cars. Here we present a detailed diary of his astonishing year, one that is unlikely ever to be matched
\nWriter Paul Fearnley<\/strong><\/p>\n

Jim Clark’s 1965 diary<\/strong><\/p>\n

January<\/strong><\/p>\n

1st<\/strong> Clark celebrates New Year and his almost full recovery from a slipped disc \u2013 the result of a snowball fight in Italy! \u2013 by leading all 85 laps of the South African Grand Prix from pole position in a Lotus 33, its low-slung exhausts indicating the short-stroke, flat-crank version of Coventry Climax\u2019s 1.5-litre V8. He records East London\u2019s first 100mph race lap in the process and wins by 29sec \u2013 despite being shown the chequered flag one lap too early and pausing for a confab with team boss Colin Chapman before completing a banker lap.<\/p>\n

4th<\/strong> The \u2018Wallaby Route\u2019: Johannesburg to Sydney on a Qantas Lockheed Electra turboprop, via Mauritius, the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Perth and Melbourne \u2013 and thence to Auckland.<\/p>\n

6th<\/strong> Unofficial practice for the opening round of the Tasman Series, the New Zealand GP at Pukekohe.<\/p>\n

8th<\/strong> Clark\u2019s one-off Lotus 32B \u2013 an F2 monocoque adapted to accept a 2.5-litre Climax FPF \u2018four\u2019 and a ZF gearbox \u2013 suffers transmission and fuel mixture problems in official practice.<\/p>\n

9th<\/strong> Having won the first 12-lap heat, his GP ends on lap two (of 50) when the Cooper of Bruce McLaren rams him at the hairpin. (Clark will exact \u2018revenge\u2019 on the road south to Levin when his Ford Zodiac accidentally rear-ends McLaren\u2019s BMC 1100 and splits its fuel tank.)<\/p>\n

15th<\/strong> Clark tops the times in practice at Levin. He leads both his eight-lap heat and the 28-lap final from flag to flag, creating a lap record in the former and winning the latter by 11.3sec. He also wins the Flying Farewell, a non-championship sprint race with a rolling start.<\/p>\n

22nd<\/strong> Canterbury\u2019s drought breaks and so practice for the Lady Wigram Trophy begins in the rain. Clark is fastest in the dry afternoon session.<\/p>\n

23rd<\/strong> Though he wins the second 25-mile heat, Clark starts the 44-lap final from third position because the first heat had been the quicker. He takes the lead from the 4-3-4 grid and is 11sec in front after 11 laps. Fading oil pressure forces him to coast around some corners but, although the chasing McLaren equals his lap record, he wins by 10.2sec.<\/p>\n

28th<\/strong> Clark sets the fastest time in unofficial practice at Teretonga\u2026<\/p>\n

29th<\/strong> \u2026and also during a blustery official practice.<\/p>\n

30th<\/strong> Having set a new lap record while winning his six-lap heat, he makes an unusually slow start in the 75-mile final and yet leads by the end of the first lap. McLaren keeps him honest, and an overheating engine causes him concern, but he completes his Tasman hat trick with 13.5sec in hand. Worried about his engine, he is beaten by McLaren in the six-lap Flying Farewell.<\/p>\n

February<\/strong><\/p>\n

1st<\/strong> Back in Australia, Clark spends a great deal of time at Bankstown Airport, regularly arriving at 6.30am in order to cram for his private pilot\u2019s licence; he soon goes solo. He also racks up a \u00a34 laundry bill during his extended stay in Sydney.<\/p>\n

12th<\/strong> Clark and the Brabhams of Graham Hill and local ace Frank Matich beat the Warwick Farm lap record in testing.<\/p>\n

13th<\/strong> They set the official pace, too, with Matich \u2013 his car featuring a duck-tailed rear spoiler \u2013 fastest, from Hill and then Clark. <\/p>\n

14th<\/strong> Matich leads briefly before the overseas stars assert themselves. Despite losing third gear early in the race, Clark maintains the pressure on Hill and takes the lead on lap 34 (of 45). He wins by more than a minute after his perennial rival suffers a late spin.<\/p>\n

20th<\/strong> Practice for Sandown Park\u2019s 100-miler is marred by four-time Australian champion Lex Davison\u2019s death during practice; he suffers a heart attack and crashes his Brabham.<\/p>\n

21st<\/strong> The Dunlop-shod Clark leads in sweltering conditions, but pole man Jack Brabham, benefiting from a new Goodyear compound on his Brabham, overtakes on lap seven (of 54) and wins by 4.6sec. Second place, however, is sufficient to make Clark the Tasman champion.<\/p>\n

26th<\/strong> He is outpaced in practice for the Australian GP at Tasmania\u2019s Longford \u2013 the fastest track of the series \u2013 by Firestone-shod Coopers and Brabhams on Goodyears and Dunlops.<\/p>\n

27th<\/strong> He finishes fifth, his spare Climax down on power, in the 10-lap qualifying race, the Examiner Trophy\u2026 <\/p>\n

March<\/strong><\/p>\n

1st<\/strong> \u2026and is fifth once more, albeit only 8.4sec behind the victorious (and clutchless) McLaren, in the 26-lap GP. Clark\u2019s Tasman winnings amount to \u00a34000. There is no celebration: Davison prot\u00e9g\u00e9 Rocky Tresise\u2019s fatal accident in a Cooper also claims the life of a photographer.<\/p>\n

6th<\/strong> Clark takes pole for the non-championship Lakeside \u201899\u2019.<\/p>\n

7th<\/strong> His dice with Matich is a humdinger. Content to continue their struggle after his rival loses nine laps because of a broken rotor arm, Clark lowers the lap record and wins by two laps from Frank Gardner\u2019s Brabham. When Clark is threatened with disqualification for drinking a post-race beer in the paddock, Matich wades in and the charge is dropped.<\/p>\n

8th<\/strong> From Brisbane to London Heathrow on a Boeing 707: an exhausted Clark arrives at John Whitmore\u2019s London flat in Balfour Place, Mayfair.<\/p>\n

11th<\/strong> Clark has a seat fitting for the Lotus 38 Indycar at the team\u2019s Cheshunt HQ. <\/p>\n

12th<\/strong> He is quickest in both practice sessions for the inaugural Daily Mail F1 Race of Champions at Brands Hatch. In the morning, he uses a 1963-built Lotus 25B, chassis R6, fitted with Goodyears and an old-spec cross-crank Climax. He finds three-tenths during the afternoon in a Type 33 on Dunlops and using a flat-crank engine. He wins 100 bottles of champagne for the venue\u2019s first official 100mph lap. Then it\u2019s back to London for a gala at the Park Lane Hotel, with girlfriend Sally Stokes. <\/p>\n

13th<\/strong> Clark wins the first 40-lap heat at Brands Hatch in a Type 33. The star performer, however, is Brabham\u2019s Dan Gurney, who charges from the fifth row to finish second. Though Clark holds a 20.8sec advantage \u2013 the winner is to be decided on aggregate \u2013 he chooses to battle the American in the second heat. The latter\u2019s Goodyears appear to have more grip and he noses level around the outside of Paddock Hill Bend on lap 12. Clark sits tight through Druids, only to run wide onto damp grass at Bottom Bend and biff a bank at 60mph. Chassis R10, the South African GP-winner, is wrecked and Clark suffers bruising. It\u2019s the end of a so-so day. <\/p>\n

His pole-sitting Group 2 Ford Lotus Cortina, this season fitted with a BRM-tuned 150bhp twin-cam, had earlier wobbled from the lead of the opening round of the BRSCC British Saloon Car Championship when its left-front wheel came loose; though retightened, it parts company a few laps later. <\/p>\n

19th<\/strong> Clark\u2019s new Ron Harris-Team Lotus Type 35-Cosworth SCA, which he drives while wearing a Pac-a-Mac secured at the waist by string, is joint second-fastest \u2013 1sec slower than Mike Costin\u2019s Cosworth Engineering fuel-injected Brabham \u2013 in wet practice for the Formula 2 Senior Service 200 at Silverstone. In contrast, he puts JCB\u2019s Lotus 30, originally entered for Pete Sadler, on pole for the opening round of the British Sports Car Championship; his 4.7-litre Ford V8-powered Group 7 machine is 1.6sec faster than John Surtees\u2019 new Lola-Chevrolet. <\/p>\n

20th<\/strong> The two dice in atrocious conditions, passing and repassing for the lead, before Surtees spins from contention. Both on Dunlops, Clark\u2019s R6 compound in the new R7 anti-aquaplaning pattern is superior to his rival\u2019s R6s and he wins by a lap, even though he, too, spins and the race is halted after 18 (of 25 scheduled) laps. The BARC suspends the meeting before abandoning it 90 minutes later. <\/p>\n

26th<\/strong> Clark\u2019s Cortina beats Alfa Romeos and BMWs to win the Sebring Three Hours for Group 2 \u2018sedans\u2019 by two laps from its Team Lotus-run English Ford Line sister car of Jack Sears. He also collects a $50 ticket for speeding (in a Ford Galaxie) on the interstate and arranges for his spare race engine to be used by a privateer Ginetta in the subsequent 12 Hours. <\/p>\n

30th<\/strong> Clark and Gurney attend the first Type 38\u2019s shakedown at Snetterton. They lap anti-clockwise to compensate for its offset suspension and are limited to 7500rpm (160mph). Only minor adjustments are required and it\u2019s declared a success.<\/p>\n

April<\/strong><\/p>\n

2nd<\/strong> Despite his new Type 33, chassis R11, being under geared for this fast road circuit, Clark leaps to the top of the timesheet in the closing seconds of the first practice session for the non-championship F1 Syracuse GP in scorching Sicily.<\/p>\n

3rd<\/strong> It\u2019s hotter yet and so he sits out all bar the final 20 minutes of practice. No challengers for pole emerge and he saves his machinery for the 195-mile race.<\/p>\n

4th<\/strong> As anticipated, Clark and the Ferrari V8 of Surtees are contenders for victory. The surprise package is Jo Siffert\u2019s Rob Walker-run Brabham-BRM, which leads the first 10 laps and twice repasses Surtees for the lead thereafter. The Swiss sensation is leading on lap 46 (of 56) when a missed gear grenades his V8. Clark has just set the fastest lap (on lap 45) and is lining up Surtees when the Ferrari, after one more lap in front, lapses onto six cylinders. Clark wins by 42.1sec, but admits that he\u2019s been lucky.<\/p>\n

5th<\/strong> The Lotus Indycar is shown to the press at Cheshunt. Clark is absent\u2026<\/p>\n

7th<\/strong> \u2026but he tests both cars in unhelpful weather at Silverstone: the Indy version is halted by a fuel filter problem; the short-oval car, fitted with a lower final drive for the race at Trenton, New Jersey, runs fine. In a car set up to turn left only, he\u2019s 5sec off F1 pace. <\/p>\n

9th<\/strong> Clark qualifies fifth at Snetterton for the F2 Autocar Trophy, 1.2sec off pole. He also qualifies fifth \u2013 behind three Ford Mustangs and a Galaxie \u2013 for the 15-lap saloon car support race.<\/p>\n

10th<\/strong> Having almost dead-heated winner Hill\u2019s Brabham-BRM in the first 25-lap heat, Clark\u2019s Type 35 is leading the second and headed for overall victory when its Cosworth engine begins to fail. A conrod snaps on the last lap and he coasts home sixth, third on aggregate. This follows the disappointment of being overtaken by Gardner\u2019s Goodyear-shod Race Proved by Willment Lotus Cortina midway through the BSCC encounter. All those Mustangs, however, beat them both.<\/p>\n

11th<\/strong> In mixed conditions at Goodwood on Easter Saturday \u2013 dry morning, wet afternoon \u2013 the BRMs of Jackie Stewart and Hill outqualify Clark for the F1 Sunday Mirror International Trophy. The latter is using Climax\u2019s four-valve head and Dunlop\u2019s 13-inch R7s for the first time. His works Cortina and Type 30 Series 2 \u2013 stiffer chassis and 15-inch wheels \u2013 are also beaten to pole: by Mike Salmon\u2019s Mustang and McLaren\u2019s Elva Oldsmobile respectively. Clark is hampered by clutch-slip in the Type 30, now running fuel injection, and briefly tries a Cosworth-engined Cortina.<\/p>\n

19th<\/strong> Three wins and three fastest laps is Clark\u2019s tally at an inclement Easter Monday Goodwood. Even though the St Mary\u2019s Trophy for saloons is halved to five laps because of hail and pressing TV needs, he wins by 22.6sec. Hill leads the 42-lap main event, but Clark, revving to 10,000rpm, passes him on lap six and pulls away to win by 24.2sec. He shares his 107.76mph fastest lap with Stewart, however, and has to cadge a lift to the pits after suffering a front puncture (cover for an engine problem perhaps) on the slowing-down lap. He completes his hat trick by winning the 21-lap Lavant Cup by 20sec in the Type 30; his fastest lap is four-tenths shy of the day\u2019s F1 best.<\/p>\n

21st<\/strong> Clark tests Type 38\/1 at Trenton. But when new team-mate Roger McCluskey destroys 38\/2, Chapman decides to withdraw from Sunday\u2019s 100-mile USAC race. Clark\u2019s car is flown directly to Indy; the wreck is returned to the UK.<\/p>\n

24th<\/strong> His participation in the F2 Pau GP has long been a bone of contention, but now Clark arrives in plenty of time and qualifies third after experimenting with Goodyears on his six-speed Type 35.<\/p>\n

25th<\/strong> He finds grip (on Dunlops) in the rain where others cannot and leads all the way, lapping the entire field. Brabhams are generally quicker than the Lotuses; Clark is the difference. The downside to this trip is the tummy bug that still will be affecting him six weeks later.<\/p>\n

30th<\/strong> The new 5.3-litre V8 in his Type 30 Series 2 breaks a conrod and Clark, who drives Vic Wilson\u2019s privateer version in the afternoon, has to make do with fifth on the grid for Oulton Park\u2019s RAC International Tourist Trophy, a round of the World Championship for Makes.<\/p>\n

May<\/strong><\/p>\n

1st<\/strong> Reduced to a 4.7-litre, he inherits the lead of the first two-hour heat due to the misfortunes of others. Then he, too, hits trouble: a loose rear wishbone. He spends 12 minutes (eight laps) in the pits and finishes 16th. Having charged from the back of the grid, he\u2019s leading the second heat when more trouble strikes: terminal gearbox failure after 41 laps. <\/p>\n

3rd<\/strong> Clark\u2019s first day at Indianapolis: he laps at 152.5mph and is pleased by his Type 38\u2019s handling.<\/p>\n

5th<\/strong> AJ Foyt\u2019s modified 1964 Lotus 34 crashes because of a rear hub failure and organisers USAC restrict Team Lotus to 30 laps between crack-tests.<\/p>\n

6th<\/strong> Clark is second-fastest: 154.772mph. <\/p>\n

7th<\/strong> Having finalised their race settings, Team Lotus and engine partner Ford turn their attention to qualifying, when 30 per cent nitromethane will be used. A tyre decision must also be made before Pole Day: Goodyears are 2-3mph faster but have a tendency to chunk; thus Clark demands Firestones. <\/p>\n

8th<\/strong> At 158.926mph, he closes on the lap record. <\/p>\n

9th<\/strong> Parnelli Jones\u2019 Type 34 also suffers a hub failure and all Lotuses and Lolas are grounded.<\/p>\n

10th<\/strong> Foyt (on Goodyears) laps at 158.311mph; Clark manages 157.168mph.<\/p>\n

11th<\/strong> Foyt is quickest again \u2013 159.943mph \u2013 but says his Lotus is \u201cunsanitised\u201d compared to his Lola. Mind games. Clark laps at 157.8mph.<\/p>\n

12th<\/strong> It\u2019s confirmed that Team Lotus will not contest the Monaco GP (May 30). Talk of a Ford jet whisking Clark from Nice to Indy was merely that: talk. Foyt is fastest: 161.146mph; Clark \u2013 clocked at 196mph on the back straight and 149mph through Turn Two \u2013 laps at 160.142mph. <\/p>\n

15th<\/strong> A 200,000 crowd enjoys a thrilling Pole Day. Its running order is decided by ballot for the first time: Clark draws 12. After a late swap of gear ratio, he joins the track moments after rookie Mario Andretti has set a four-lap record in his Hawk-Ford: 158.849mph. Clark, also on Firestones, tops that: 160.729mph. He\u2019s being interviewed when Foyt\u2019s opening lap is announced: 161.958mph. \u2018Super Tex\u2019 takes pole \u2013 at 161.233mph \u2013 before Gurney completes an all-Lotus front row. His place in the race secure, Clark returns to Scotland for a much-needed break. Incessant Indy hoopla is not to his taste.<\/p>\n

27th<\/strong> Final checks on Carburetion Day: back on pure methanol, all goes well.<\/p>\n

30th<\/strong> Team Lotus\u2019s mechanics finish their final preparations unusually early: 10.30pm.<\/p>\n

31st<\/strong> Clark assumes the lead of the 500 at the start when Foyt misses his shift. The latter, reportedly running nitro, takes the lead on the next lap; Clark makes it easy for him, as he plans to follow and assess. But Foyt\u2019s Goodyears seem to have shed some speed in curing their chunking and Clark realises that he can lap faster, without exceeding his 8800rpm limit. <\/p>\n

He repasses on lap three \u2013 and leads a total of 190 laps. His supremacy is absolute. <\/p>\n

His mandatory refuelling stops, on laps 66 and 136 \u2013 using designer Len Terry\u2019s twin-pipe venturi rig and carried out by crack NASCAR crew the Wood Brothers \u2013 are paragons of efficiency. When Foyt\u2019s transmission fails after 115 laps, Clark\u2019s only worries are a strange noise from the rear and a slight soreness in his right wrist. <\/p>\n

He wins \u2013 the first overseas victor since 1916 \u2013 by two minutes, having broken 19 of 20 distance records and averaged 150.633mph for 3hr 19min 05sec. His purse is $166,621, which he shares in usual Lotus fashion: 45 per cent each for himself and the team and the remainder for the mechanics. He also wins free meat for a year (he takes cash in lieu), an engraved Premier watch and a $1000 man\u2019s wardrobe, plus the Plymouth Sport Fury convertible Pace Car. (Ford eventually swaps the latter for a Galaxie 500 after the replacement Mustang earmarked for Clark is accidentally dropped onto the dock at Southampton.) The team celebrates in a local Italian restaurant. Because Memorial Day is \u2018dry\u2019 in Indiana, red wine is served in coffee cups.<\/p>\n

June<\/strong><\/p>\n

4th<\/strong> Clark qualifies fourth for the Player\u2019s 200 at Mosport in the works Type 30 Series 2.<\/p>\n

5th<\/strong> His race ends because of a broken driveshaft in the first 100-mile heat.<\/p>\n

7th<\/strong> After another transatlantic flit, he loses his rag when a rival baulks his Cortina, fitted with new BRM rods and pistons, during the short morning practice at the Whit Monday Crystal Palace meeting. He regains his composure to qualify second (behind Gardner\u2019s Cortina) for the Norbury Trophy, and wins his class by finishing second overall to Roy Pierpoint\u2019s Mustang. He also qualifies second for the F2 London Trophy, but wins both 25-lap heats in a Type 35-Cosworth. The latter result earns him \u00a3150.<\/p>\n

11th<\/strong> The first two-hour practice session (for works teams only) at Spa\u2019s Belgian GP is complicated by a leaking oil pipe that sidelines his four-valve Type 33 and forces Clark into team-mate Mike Spence\u2019s 16-valve flat-crank car. He\u2019s fourth-fastest nevertheless.<\/p>\n

12th<\/strong> More frustration. Team Lotus is swapping from peg location to knock-off hubs and track time is lost because of ill-fitting wheels. Back in chassis R11, Clark digs deep to qualify second, albeit 2sec slower than Hill\u2019s BRM.<\/p>\n

13th<\/strong> Rain. Hill gets the jump, but Clark passes him despite the spray and holds a big lead after one lap. \u201cLifting off less than the others,\u201d he laps all bar Stewart\u2019s BRM and wins by 44.8sec, despite a bout of clutch-slip towards the end.<\/p>\n

15th<\/strong> Ford GB invites Clark, Stewart and Whitmore to a PR stunt at Brands: driving a D300 truck loaded with one ton of concrete blocks. Clark sets fastest time on the short circuit before bald tyres end the fun. <\/p>\n

17th<\/strong> Indy winners Clark, Chapman and Type 38 are the star attractions in Ford\u2019s Product Salon at the World\u2019s Fair in New York. Clark commits a PR gaffe by slating \u201clousy\u201d Le Mans before remembering how much money his host is spending trying to win that weekend\u2019s race.<\/p>\n

24th<\/strong> Clark, Stokes, Chapman and Spence fly to Clermont-Ferrand for the French GP. On arrival, they bump into Yuri Gagarin, who has jetted from the Paris Air Show at Le Bourget. The Russian cosmonaut is a fan of Clark\u2019s and jollity ensues. Thus delayed and dashing to the hotel, Chapman crashes the hire car into a ditch. Clark is knocked unconscious momentarily. The incident is kept secret and the injuries are treated at a doctor\u2019s surgery gone midnight.<\/p>\n

25th<\/strong> Clark thumbs a lift from Surtees after the Type 33\u2019s rear suspension fails during the first two-hour practice session. Fifth, he\u2019s the fastest newcomer to this challenging five-mile circuit.<\/p>\n

26th<\/strong> Matters go from bad to worse when the four-valve engine snaps a camshaft as Clark begins his pole bid. Jumping into the spare car \u2013 chassis R6, fitted with an old high-exhaust V8 \u2013 he grabs pole from Stewart by five-tenths.<\/p>\n

27th<\/strong> \u201cA typical Clark race,\u201d according to Chapman. Still in R6, he leads all 40 laps, sets a new lap record, wins by 26.3sec \u2013 and collects \u00a3660. Had it not been for Stewart, his nearest challenger would have been two-and-a-half minutes distant.<\/p>\n

July<\/strong><\/p>\n

3rd<\/strong> America\u2019s IRS is withholding half of Clark Indy winnings, the Daily Express reveals. An appeal is under way. In the meantime, he qualifies third for the F2 Reims GP.<\/p>\n

4th<\/strong> A typical Reims slipstreamer, the top four separated by six tenths after 191 hectic miles. Clark\u2019s Type 35 finishes third behind Jochen Rindt\u2019s Brabham and the Lola-BRM of Gardner; he reckons that he has been \u201cduffed up\u201d by the opposition.<\/p>\n

5th<\/strong> He flies to Zurich for a lunch meeting with Ford bigwigs\u2026<\/p>\n

6th<\/strong> \u2026and then flies to Paris and drives to Rouen\u2026<\/p>\n

7th<\/strong> \u2026where he practises for the F2 race before returning home for the British GP.<\/p>\n

8th<\/strong> Though forced by an engine shortage to use a two-valve Climax, he tops the morning practice session at Silverstone. He goes two tenths faster in the afternoon, but Hill\u2019s BRM pips him by a tenth to the \u00a3100 on offer for the day\u2019s fastest lap. <\/p>\n

9th<\/strong> Reunited with chassis R11 and its four-valve engine, Clark is the only man to dip below 1min 31sec and so claims pole. In America, meanwhile, the cover of Time features his portrait \u2013 by Austrian-born American artist Henry Koerner \u2013 beneath the headline The Quickest Man on Wheels.<\/p>\n

10th<\/strong> Clark holds a 30sec lead with 20 laps (of 80) remaining in the British GP when a crankshaft seal fails and the oil pressure dips alarmingly during surge; he has to freewheel around certain corners to save the engine. BRM alerts Hill, who begins to charge despite his spongy brakes. Though the latter sets the fastest lap on the last lap, his Lotus quarry escapes capture by 3.2sec. Clark, Chapman, Spence and Stokes dash to Luton Airport, where Chapman\u2019s private plane is ready for the short hop to Rouen. They land as darkness descends. <\/p>\n

11th<\/strong> The Brabhams of Brabham and Hill claim pole and the fastest lap respectively, but Clark\u2019s Type 35 wins the F2 Rouen GP by 14.5sec. He decides to stay overnight to celebrate his Troph\u00e9es de France title with a glass of champagne, followed by a meal with the mechanics at a local restaurant.<\/p>\n

12th<\/strong> He then flies to London in \u201cfilthy weather\u201d and spends the remainder of the day catching up on paperwork. His Daily Express column reveals that he\u2019s thinking of retiring and denies any secret arrangements between Chapman and Ford to build a 3-litre F1 engine for the new 1966 formula.<\/p>\n

14th<\/strong> Clark and Chapman receive BARC Gold Medals from athletics golden girl Mary Rand at London\u2019s Grosvenor House Hotel.<\/p>\n

15th<\/strong> \u201cNothing could ever induce me to leave Scotland permanently,\u201d writes Clark in the Daily Express.<\/p>\n

16th<\/strong> It\u2019s bitterly cold at Zandvoort as Clark\u2019s Type 33 tops the timesheet in morning practice for the Dutch GP. It rains in the afternoon.<\/p>\n

17th<\/strong> Despite better conditions, any hope of his improving on that Friday lap ends when the four-valver dumps its oil. He will contest the race in Spence\u2019s 16-valve, flat-crank car, chassis R9, and start from the middle of the front row.<\/p>\n

18th<\/strong> After passing Richie Ginther\u2019s Honda and Hill\u2019s BRM before six laps are complete, Clark controls proceedings to win by 8sec. That he sets the race\u2019s fastest lap as early as lap five suggests that he has speed to spare. The day ends on a sour note, however, when Chapman is arrested for punching a policeman. The prize ceremony is cancelled and Clark alters his travel plans \u2013 he\u2019d been scheduled to judge a competition at London\u2019s Lyceum \u2013 to act as a witness. Chapman faces a \u00a3500 fine or a two-year prison term\u2026<\/p>\n

19th<\/strong> \u2026but is released without charge by a court in Haarlem. During his night in the cells he has sketched a new Formula 3 design on the back of the writ!<\/p>\n

30th<\/strong> Any thoughts of clinching the drivers\u2019 and constructors\u2019 world championships at the German GP are put on hold as Clark\u2019s Type 33 bounces and scrapes around the N\u00fcrburgring. A raised ride height and different shock absorbers cure this and he\u2019s almost 4sec faster than his rivals in the afternoon.<\/p>\n

31st<\/strong> He keeps a wary eye during the final two-hour morning session, but nobody comes close and he will start from pole.<\/p>\n

August<\/strong><\/p>\n

1st<\/strong> Finding good grip on the concrete pit apron, Clark jumps into a lead that he\u2019s never to relinquish. His standing lap is a lap record, and he lowers the mark again on laps two and three. Though Hill\u2019s BRM matches him on the latter, Clark pulls away at a rate of three seconds per lap thereafter. Having set fastest lap on lap 10 \u2013 at more than 101mph \u2013 he senses a change of engine note and backs off, yet wins by 15.9sec. He\u2019s thus world champion for a second time. It\u2019s also his first victory on the Nordschleife. Both achievements are celebrated in the restaurant beneath the main grandstand.<\/p>\n

8th<\/strong> A failed transistor box halts Clark\u2019s Type 35 after seven laps of the F2 Kanonloppet at Karlskoga, Sweden. Although Brabham wins, the Daily Express headline reads: \u201cJim Clark Loses\u201d.<\/p>\n

10th<\/strong> Clark tests the latest Type 38 Indycar, chassis 4 \u2013 though it\u2019s actually the fifth built \u2013 at Snetterton. Its symmetrical suspension (to suit right- as well as left-handers), larger brakes and five-speed ZF gearbox allow him to lap at F1 speeds using just two gears.<\/p>\n

14th<\/strong> Clark puts the venerable chassis R6 on pole by four tenths for the F1 Mediterranean GP at Sicily\u2019s Enna-Pergusa speedbowl. <\/p>\n

15th<\/strong> A slow start puts him on the back foot, however, and it\u2019s team-mate Spence who takes the fight to Siffert\u2019s Brabham-BRM \u2013 until a stone in the face causes the Englishman to crash. Clark\u2019s two-valve engine has sufficient grunt to set fastest lap, but it falls four tenths shy in the final dash to the flag; for a second consecutive year, the feisty Swiss denies him victory in this race.<\/p>\n

20th<\/strong> Clark and Chapman fly in the latter\u2019s plane (soon to be sold to Clark) from North London to Del\u00e9mont, capital of Switzerland\u2019s Jura canton.<\/p>\n

21st<\/strong> Starting at 6.30am, Clark completes six practice runs of the winding St-Ursanne-Les Rangiers hillclimb \u2013 in a 495bhp Indycar! His best beats the old record, but Siffert\u2019s nimble Brabham-BRM is 3.6sec faster yet.<\/p>\n

22nd<\/strong> Rain makes Clark\u2019s task even more difficult. Despite mud on the road, his second run \u2013 2min 43.9sec \u2013 is 7sec faster than his first. Siffert\u2019s FTD is 2min 25.1sec and he wins on aggregate over two runs.<\/p>\n

28th<\/strong> An up-and-down day at Brands Hatch. Clark qualifies second in his Cortina (behind Brabham\u2019s Mustang) and third in his F2 Type 35, but his new 5.7-litre V8 (an extra 100bhp) Lotus 40 sports-prototype is barely finished and he can do no better than the seventh row after five minutes of seat-time. He then dashes to contest the Swiss GP \u2013 a round of the world sportscar championship at Ollon-Villars hillclimb \u2013 in the Indycar.<\/p>\n

29th<\/strong> Having missed official practice, he undertakes three trial runs of the five-mile course that rises from the Rh\u00f4ne valley. A cracked suspension upright is discovered after the first and is welded. He clocks 4min 34.5sec on his second, but a misfire ruins the third. That problem persists and blights his run proper: 10.8sec slower than in practice, he\u2019s 35.5sec behind Lodovico Scarfiotti, overall winner in a Ferrari Dino 206P.<\/p>\n

30th<\/strong> Chapman collects Clark from Heathrow and flies him to Brands Hatch for its inaugural August Bank Holiday meeting. The latter will soon be wondering if the rush has been worth it. Though his Type 35 wins the F2 Eagle Star Trophy, he suffers four incidents\/accidents elsewhere. <\/p>\n

The Type 40\u2019s Hewland gearbox \u2013 in place of the 30\u2019s ZF \u2013 suffers gremlins in the first 30-lap heat of the Guards Trophy and Clark spins on two occasions when it selects neutral; he finishes eighth, two laps down. A locking front brake \u2013 a Lotus development of three-pad calipers clamping vented discs \u2013 deposits him in the ditch at Clearways during the second heat. To cap it all, his Cortina team-mate Sears spins him on the opening lap of the Ilford Films Trophy. On its fourth lap, Clark cuts cheekily across the grass at Bottom Bend to pit because of a puncture. He\u2019s allowed to resume and sets a spectacular lap record before being halted by an ignition short. This is fixed trackside by a mechanic \u2013 a disqualification offence \u2013 but he pits again, this time to complain about the steering.<\/p>\n

September<\/strong><\/p>\n

10th<\/strong> Clark divides his time between chassis R11 and R6, the latter still fitted with its old-spec V8, during the three-and-a-half-hour afternoon practice session for the Italian GP at Monza. He sets second-fastest time in the former.<\/p>\n

11th<\/strong> In the four-valve R11, he is the only man to go below 1min 36sec and so wins the 200,000 lire on offer for pole.<\/p>\n

12th<\/strong> Though he leads the first two laps, it\u2019s apparent that he cannot shake off the slipstreaming BRMs of Stewart and Hill. Clark leads 19 laps in total and sets the fastest lap \u2013 133.427mph on lap 46 \u2013 before dropping from the lead battle on lap 64 (of 76) because of a malfunctioning fuel injection pump.<\/p>\n

17th<\/strong> Clark qualifies fourth for the F2 Oulton Park International Gold Cup \u2013 its afternoon session ruined by rain \u2013 and is beaten to the BSCC pole by Brabham\u2019s Alan Brown-run Mustang.<\/p>\n

18th<\/strong> A parachute display is cancelled because of high winds, but the racing goes on. From the outside of the front row, Clark is leading the Gold Cup when he spins under heavy pressure at Cascades on lap eight (of 40). He rejoins in 16th place and sets joint fastest lap during a brilliant recovery drive that sees him finish sixth and claim the point that wins him the Autocar British F2 Championship. He leads the 19-lap BSCC race, too, but is soon overtaken by Brabham. The latter wins on the road, only to be disqualified one week later for using non-homologated engine parts. Of more immediate concern to Clark is the fact that Brabham\u2019s plane seems dangerously low on fuel. A young Geoff Brabham breezily tells everyone not to worry and they make an unscheduled but very necessary stop at Coventry en route to London. In other news: Ford is to fund a 3-litre F1 engine built by Cosworth for Team Lotus.<\/p>\n

22nd<\/strong> Clark receives the freedom of the Burgh of Duns. <\/p>\n

25th<\/strong> He qualifies third for the F2 race at Albi.<\/p>\n

26th<\/strong> Although Brabham\u2019s 16-valve Brabham-Honda starts from pole and sets the fastest lap, Clark\u2019s Type 35 pips it to victory by eight tenths after 192 miles.<\/p>\n

October<\/strong><\/p>\n

1st<\/strong> Another oil leak on his four-valve Climax forces Clark to swap to Spence\u2019s 16-valve Type 33, chassis R9, during the opening four-hour practice session for the United States GP at Watkins Glen. He sets second-fastest time in it but also suffers a grassy moment when he selects the wrong gear.<\/p>\n

2nd<\/strong> His engine not yet fixed, he begins this session in Mexican team-mate Moises Solana\u2019s chassis R6 \u2013 and ends it back in Spence\u2019s after the repaired engine strips its timing gears. Despite setting the day\u2019s best time in R9, Clark elects to start from second on the grid in R11, after the four-valver is re-repaired using parts from the Brabham unit rejected by Gurney.<\/p>\n

3rd<\/strong> Clark battles the pole-sitting BRM of Hill for the lead until his Lotus suffers a broken piston on lap 12.<\/p>\n

22nd<\/strong> Those engine woes continue when the re-re-repaired four-valve Climax goes bang during first practice at the Mexican GP. Clark is two hundredths slower in Spence\u2019s requisitioned car than the pace-setting Brabham of Gurney.<\/p>\n

23rd<\/strong> His Type 33 fitted with the \u2018old nail\u2019 cross-crank V8 that took him to victory at the French GP, Clark bucks the trend of a hotter and supposedly slower session with a successful last-minute dash for pole. He is also named by America\u2019s ABC TV channel as Man of the Year of its Wide World of Sports.<\/p>\n

24th<\/strong> His \u2018trusty\u2019 V8 feeling tight from the start, Clark makes a slow getaway and retires after eight laps when it seizes. His F1 winnings for the year amount to \u00a313,340.<\/p>\n

31st<\/strong> A $50,000 purse attracts a stellar sports car field to the 200-mile LA Times GP at Riverside. Clark\u2019s Type 40, now fitted with a 5.8-litre V8, lines up only 13th and finishes 10th in the 20-lap qualification race. In the 77-lap GP, however, he moves stealthily through a dwindling field and finishes second, 5.8sec behind Hap Sharp\u2019s Chaparral.<\/p>\n

November<\/strong><\/p>\n

1st<\/strong> Clark and Stewart land at Prestwick Airport, Glasgow, where the assembled press ask the latter about his first-born son Paul, then just four days old, and Clark about his father, Jim Sr, who had collapsed recently at Berwick market.<\/p>\n

4th<\/strong> A dapper Clark attends Zandvoort for a Ford Corsair V4 \u2013 and tractor! \u2013 media launch\u2026<\/p>\n

12th<\/strong> His father improving, Clark opens the Scottish Motor Show at Glasgow\u2019s Kelvin Hall\u2026<\/p>\n

19th<\/strong> \u2026attends the annual dinner dance of the Scottish Motor Racing Club at Ingliston\u2019s McRobert Pavilion\u2026<\/p>\n

24th<\/strong> \u2026and is voted second to world champion road cyclist Tom Simpson in the Daily Express Sportsman of the Year.<\/p>\n

26th<\/strong> During a riotous West Essex Car Club dinner dance at Park Lane Hotel, Clark, Chapman, Hill and Les Leston re-enact \u2018Zandvoortgate\u2019 and de-bag \u2018policemen\u2019 Peters Arundell and Jopp.<\/p>\n

December<\/strong><\/p>\n

11th<\/strong> Clark receives five awards at the BRDC\u2019s dinner dance at The Dorchester in London. He wears a kilt of Cameron of Erracht tartan for the occasion.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":744,"featured_media":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","categories":[],"tags":[167,199],"issue_decade":[121600],"issue_year":[121672],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.motorsportmagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/issue_content\/52011"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.motorsportmagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/issue_content"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.motorsportmagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/issue_content"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.motorsportmagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/744"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.motorsportmagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=52011"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.motorsportmagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/issue_content\/52011\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":225810,"href":"https:\/\/www.motorsportmagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/issue_content\/52011\/revisions\/225810"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.motorsportmagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=52011"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.motorsportmagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=52011"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.motorsportmagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=52011"},{"taxonomy":"issue_decade","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.motorsportmagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/issue_decade?post=52011"},{"taxonomy":"issue_year","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.motorsportmagazine.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/issue_year?post=52011"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}