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#116 1963 British Grand Prix

2021-09-17 01:00

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#1963, Fulvio Conti, Barbara Otgianu,

#116 1963 British Grand Prix

Two and a half weeks have passed since the last race in France and July is the most eagerly awaited time of year for motorsport fans, not only because

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Two and a half weeks have passed since the last race in France and July is the most eagerly awaited time of year for motorsport fans, not only because of the World Championship but because of the presence of other motor races too. In this month full of competitions, another race that excites the motorsport's fan is the Three Hours of Auvergne, held on Sunday 7th July 1963 on the Charade circuit, in which Lorenzo Bandini, present at Silverstone too, wins. The race at Auvergne was extremely exciting and full of twists and turns, with an excellent start by the British driver Hegbourne and the Australian Hawkins, both in Lotus. Due to an error of judgement Hawkins, a few laps before the start of the race, was forced to make a 20-second pit stop, as a result of which his position was taken away from both Hegbourne and Bandini. At this point of the race Lorenzo Bandini started a spectacular fight with Hegbourne, finally overtaking him on lap 10. The Italian secured an advantage of 15 seconds and remained in the lead for a long time, until the British driver decided to attack. On lap 23 Hegbourne managed to pass the Italian driver and conquered the first position, leading the rest of the group. Another mistake of judgement, this time by Hegbourne, turned the situation upside down again; due to a spin of the English Driver, Bandini managed to overtake him and take the lead. Thus, the Italian Lorenzo Bandini, following an excellent defence, managed to take first place in the Three Hours of Auvergne, on board of his Ferrari Sport. A few days later, a common theme seemed to emerge in motorsport circles: the German phenomenon Barth, who - in a Porsche - managed to beat Scarfiotti's record in the Trento-Bondone with a time of 12'18"0.

 

The race held on Sunday 14th July 1963 in Italy, in which 150 Italian and foreign drivers took part, starting from Montevideo, on the outskirts of Trento, and arriving at Vason (a route of 17.300 kilometres, a difference in altitude of 1300 metres and an average gradient of 7%), thus recorded the surprising victory of the German Edgar Barth. Hans Herman, racing for the Abarth team of Turin, also managed to beat Scarflotti's record with a time of 12'22"4, taking second place in the overall classification ahead of the Italian Odoardo Govoni (Abarth) and the Swiss Walter, in a Porsche, preceding Mauro Bianchi (Abarth) and Edoardo Lualdi, of the S. Ambroeus team of Milan, in a Ferrari. However, it should be noted that the absence of Scarfiotti and other champions from previous editions of the Trento-Bondone naturally favoured the German and Swiss competitors, who were the real dominators of the race. The Drivers' World Championship has now been underway for a month and a half and the fifth race takes place on Saturday, 20 July 1963 at the historic Silverstone circuit in Great Britain. After an initial victory by Graham Hill at Monaco, the next three races were dominated by Jim Clark, whose supremacy seemed to mark the early end of a world championship with five races to go. With such a number of victories, the Scottish driver has achieved such a consistent point tally that the standings are unlikely to change, and this knowledge means that we arrive at Silverstone with less curiosity than in previous races. In the history of motorsport, a supremacy like that of the Clark-Lotus duo can only be found in the era of Fangio, or even further back in the days of Antonio Ascari with Alfa Romeo.

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One might wonder what it is that enables Clark to achieve one victory after another, but to date the answer is very simple. The Scottish driver has all the elements that distinguish a driver from a World Champion: strength, daring and sometimes luck. Often the element of luck is underestimated, but to understand it's importance, one need only think of Stirling Moss, considered the most promising and brilliant racing driver of recent years. Despite his undeniable talent, Moss was never able to win a world title due to multiple single-seater failures. The merit is never only of the driver or of the mechanical means, Enzo Ferrari used to say that in the car races every victory is by halves: the merit has to be divided exactly in equal parts between the driver and the car. This perfect combination, this year, is exactly represented by Jim Clark and his Lotus-Climax. Formula 1 single-seaters are extremely delicate mechanisms with insurmountable limits: the skill of a good driver is therefore also found in the ability to obtain maximum performance from the vehicle without exceeding the ceiling of it's mechanical resistance. In this sense, it is necessary to mention great drivers who have marked the history of this sport, such as Nazzaro, Varzi, Ascari and Fangio. Drivers who were so different in their driving style and temperament, but who all had one essential skill in common: a keen sense of driving, which enabled them to push the single-seater close to its mechanical limits without ever exceeding them. In the long run it was just this marked feeling that made the difference in the World Championships; Moss, for example, second to none in terms of skill and daring, often pushed the car beyond its limits thus losing several opportunities to win.

 

Last year Clark missed out on the world title precisely because of mechanical reliability, but today it is possible to say that the Scottish driver and Lotus have achieved optimum performance, both in mechanical and reliability terms. At least from this point of view, this year Clark seems to be unreachable and he officially joins the list of the great champions with the extraordinary ability of never pushing the single-seater beyond the allowed limits, preserving the reliability of engine, transmission and brakes. Despite being one of the few truly complete drivers, Clark cannot yet rest easy as the world title isn't mathematically clinched. This extreme security could be achieved at the end of this new race weekend, if only Clark could make the en plein at Silverstone. This was anything but an easy task, especially given the great desire for redemption on the part of World Champion Graham Hill and John Surtees. Surtees, who was left alone to defend the name of his team, urgently needed to be reaffirmed, more for Ferrari than for himself. The championship is still to run and the spectators hope to find a new and lively interest in the next Formula 1 races. The British Grand Prix, organised by the British Racing Drivers' Club (BRDC), is nowadays considered a Grand Prix and every year attracts more than 115.000 spectators to whom it offers numerous forms of entertainment. The time available to the Formula 1 teams to enjoy the other motorsport championships was, however, extremely limited. During this short break all the teams have been working at full speed to carry out various tests on the track and prepare themselves in the best possible way for the Silverstone race. The result of these fifteen days of testing is immediately evident, even before the start of the first practice session all the single-seaters are ready to take to the track.

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At 12:00 a.m. on Thursday, 18 July 1963 the first practice session begins with all the drivers ready in their single-seaters. The B.R.M. team - with Hill and Ginther - will use for this race weekend the old single-seater with chassis from 1962, engine from 1963 and 6-speed gearbox, also from the current year. The Silverstone circuit demanded excessively high performance from the new B.R.M. car, which wasn't yet developed enough to meet the mechanical requirements imposed by such a track. Both drivers' cars have been fitted with orange bands around the radiator intakes, which is great for recognition and also matches the rest of the team's season-long suits. There is a third B.R.M in the box too, in the pits, painted completely red as it is destined for Lorenzo Bandini. At the time of the first session, Bandini hasn't yet arrived at the circuit and will therefore be forced to skip practice. At Silverstone the Lotus team fielded both drivers, Clark and Taylor, in cars equipped with Coverty-Climax V8 engines. What distinguishes the two cars, however, is the fuel injection on the engine in Clark's car and one of the first carburettor engines for Taylor, both with ZF gearboxes. Also present was the Cooper team, faithful to the two McLaren drivers and Maggs, and the Brabham team, which arrived at Silverstone with the same cars used at Reims, with Brabham and Gurney at the helm. Scuderia Ferrari had to run the British Grand Prix with only one of its two drivers, Surtees, who had a car with a V6 engine with Bosch high-pressure injection, a six-speed gearbox between engine and final drive, and internal rear brakes.

 

At Reims, ears were used to suck air into the engine intakes, but for the Grand Prix to be held on the Silverstone circuit, this formula was replaced by a new wire mesh cage arrangement over the horns, while the aluminium shield between the cylinder heads and the horns remained unchanged. There are rumours in the paddock that one of the two single-seaters presented by Ferrari for this weekend is actually a special sprint car: the purpose of this would be to obtain the best possible grid position, while the second single-seater would be kept for the race. However, Grands Prix are currently considered sprint events, so it goes without saying that insiders are wondering, especially in the last few hours, what the innovative elements introduced by Ferrari on the single-seater engine might be. Surtees' times in the first test session seem to confirm the general doubts, since the performances obtained by the two Italian single-seaters don't seem to differ substantially from each other. What seems very clear today is the presence of a single-seater stationary in the pits, of which Ferrari's team managers haven't commented on, but their desire to see that seat occupied by Phil Hill seems well known. Speaking of the former World Champion, this further race weekend seems to be yet another wasted opportunity for the ATS, which is unable to reach the English circuit due to a mechanical failure found on the car during final testing. With the ATS withdrawn, the American driver found himself once again wandering around the paddock, with no chance to compete. The BRP team comes into this new race weekend with great news; the hard work done by the mechanics on the cars is undeniable.

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The car features an altered rear suspension geometry, with new radial arm mounts and a new type of front spring. Finally, the fuel tanks and the upper part of the bodywork have been modified too. At the helm of this revamped single-seater will be Ireland, while Hall will continue the world championship with his usual Lotus-B.R.M. V8. Bonnier will compete with a 1963 Cooper-Climax of Rob Walker's team, equipped with a Climax engine and a Colotti 6-speed gearbox; however, he will have a spare single-seater too, the one from last year. In the paddock there are also the two Scirocco-B.R.M. V8s, driven by the American Hugh Powell, which stand out from the rest of the cars thanks to their blue and white colour. At the wheel of the original single-seater there will be Settember, while the seat of the brand new car with carburettor B.R.M. engine will be occupied by Burgess. The Parnell family, with Reg and Tim, will be at Silverstone with four single-seaters. A Lola with new Climax V8 injection engine with Chris Amon at the helm, and a Lotus 24 with Climax V8 carburettor engine for biker Mike Hailwood. The other two drivers in the race will be Masten Gregory, in a Lotus-B.R.M. V8 fuel-injected car, and Campbell-Jones, in a Lola with Climax V8 engine. All four single-seaters are equipped with Colotti gearboxes. In the first practice session only Amon and Hailwood enter on the track. It's worth mentioning Hailwood's passage from Lola to Lotus; in fact, the biker made the tests during the last week at the wheel of a Lola, and only at the last minute he decided to race in a Lotus. One last Lola Climax will be driven by Bob Anderson who, after his victory at Rome at the beginning of the season, has completely rebuilt his car in view of the race to be run at Silverstone. 

 

As predictable, the objective of so much work will be, as declared by the driver himself, the title of first private owner to cross the finish line. The Dutchman de Beaufort will remain faithful, for this race too, to his old 4-cylinder Porsche while the Swiss driver Siffert comes to Silverstone with his V8 Lotus-B.R.M. Ian Raby will be racing a Gilby-B.R.M. V8 and completing the entry list will be the well-known non-starter 8-cylinder de Tomaso. The designer and constructor is present in the paddock, awaiting the arrival of his car, of which there is no sign. On the Silverstone circuit the absolute lap record is held by Ireland in a 2 ½ litre Lotus-Climax, in 1'34"2, while with a 1 ½ litre car the record is 1'35"4, always held by the British driver. The first practice session was dominated by Graham Hill and Jack Brabham, both in excellent form, with a time of 1'36"0. It was a different matter for Clark, who spent most of the practice session stopped at the pits because of problems with the water pipe. However, once repaired the failure and absorbed the leaked water, the real engine damage emerged and the British driver didn't have enough time to try to enter the track. Clark is no stranger to this kind of unforeseen event; even during the Belgian Grand Prix the tests were anything but lucky. Yet in the race the situation was literally reversed. Jim Hill and Bonnier seemed to have found new emphasis for this race weekend, as they both recorded the second best time of 1'38"0, before Surtees, leading the Ferrari, could record a time of 1'37"0. But as this is a training car, this time doesn't seem to matter. Ireland seems dissatisfied with the performance of his BRP, to which changes have been made to the chassis that seem to have reduced the single-seater's performance. 

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The first practice session ended at a leisurely pace, without any outstanding time and, fortunately, without any unforeseen event worthy of note. The calendar of practice continued with free practice for the saloons, sports cars, GTs and juniors, to end at the end of the afternoon with one more hour for the Grand Prix single-seaters. For this session there were also Gregory, Bandini and the two Sciroccos, who entered the track to run a couple of laps at a not too fast pace. Clark had the time to fix the engine of his single-seater and entered the track immediately recording a very good time, 1'34"4. Not to be outdone was Graham Hill, with a lap completed in 1'35"4 that announced a long-awaited challenge in tomorrow's race. The Coopers followed, with McLaren recording a time of 1'35"6, much better than his team mate who got a time of 1'38"0. There was also a fierce challenge between Gurney and Surtees who both obtained a time of 1'35"8, respectively in Brabham and Ferrari. Hall and Bonnier confirmed the performances obtained during the morning, till the engine of the Lotus-B.R.M. of the American driver didn't fail. However, the rhythm on the track didn't seem to improve; the only driver who recorded noteworthy times was Clark, who seemed to run a whole second faster than all his rivals. On Friday morning the teams worked on the single-seaters for more than an hour and a half, conscious of the fact that this was the last opportunity to try to improve the performance level of the cars and to give everything in qualifying.

 

The results of this work are visible from the very first laps, as the pace increases considerably compared to the previous practice session and it is no longer so far from the standards of the Grande Epreuve. For the British Grand Prix Lotus brought out a new Type 25 with a 6-speed Colotti gearbox, driven by Taylor and fitted with an air-stream windscreen. The only flaw was that the Lotus gearbox specialists made several mistakes during assembly, forcing Taylor to stay in the pits while the different parts of the single-seater were removed in order to assemble them correctly. A veteran of assembly problems is certainly Jim Clark, who over the past year has often had to deal with technical hitches, particularly with ZF gearboxes. Now these problems seem to be only a distant memory and the Scottish is enjoying the power and speed of his car, which allows him to complete a series of fast, regular and clean laps. Jim Clark himself kept on recording the fastest time on track, even if in this session he seemed to run 0.2 seconds slower than his previous record. A bad moment also for Ireland, who didn't seem to find the right alchemy with his BRP car, in spite of a better manoeuvrability in comparison with the previous races: the engine problems didn't seem to give him any respite. Since the first practice sessions it has been possible to make a prediction of those who will dominate the British Grand Prix and the qualifying times seem to confirm such predictions. The challenge is completely open between Surtees, Hill, Gurney and Brabham.

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To be precise, Surtees posted a time of 1'35"2, Hill posted a slightly better time of 1'34"6, while the Brabhams posted a time of 1'34"6, with Gurney, intent on equalling Clark, and 1'35"0 with Jack Brabham himself. Behind this challenge there was immediately Bruce McLaren, while there was some regret for Ireland who, in the absence of the problems found during the day, could have fought for the first places on the grid; instead he had to use the old V8 engine Lotus-B.R.M., with which it wasn't possible to fight for the first positions. The battle that animated the whole qualifying session ended with the first position of Clark in Lotus-Climax, followed by Hill in B.R.M., Brabham and Gurney in Brabham-Climax. Bandini was certainly worthy of attention: in a red B.R.M. he set an extraordinarily good time of 1'36"0, equalling Ginther's performance in the official car. To tell the truth, it seems that the official driver went down the track with a poor engine, hypothesis confirmed by the breakage of an tappet a few minutes before the beginning of practice. Saturday 20 July 1963, at 10:30 a.m., the Silverstone circuit is in total excitement and the fans, who have come from all over the world to watch the British Grand Prix, can enjoy a long series of events and entertainment organised by the BRDC. Shortly before 2:00 p.m. the twenty-three single-seaters were lined up on the grid and started their engines for the reconnaissance lap, but when it was time to clear the line-up of mechanics, officials and photographers, only twenty-two cars were ready to start. 

 

There were only a few moments before lowering the flag when Maggs, in agitation, raised his arm to signal a problem to the engine of his Cooper, hoping to be noticed and avoided by the other drivers at the start. The start of the British Grand Prix didn't present too many side effects and, once the smoke of oil and rubber had cleared, the British team's mechanics did their best to push Maggs' Cooper back into the pits, getting to work in accordance with FIA regulations. The first lap was an exciting spectacle, especially for the anti-Lotus and B.R.M. clan, as both Brabham and Gurney soon found themselves in first and second position, with McLaren third and, surprisingly, Hill and Clark fourth and fifth respectively. However, already from lap 2 Clark started his comeback, finding himself at only four laps from the start not only in first position, but also with such a gap to adopt a conservative driving style. On lap three Maggs, with the Cooper-Climax back on track thanks to a cap change, finally made it back to the track to contest the British Grand Prix. With only five laps to go, the single-seaters were divided into three distinct grids. First of all Clark, who with his unstoppable Lotus steadily increased the gap from the rest of the group, lap after lap. Behind Clark there were five single-seaters fighting for the second position, among them the two Brabhams, McLaren in Cooper, Hill at the wheel of his B.R.M. and Surtees in Ferrari. The second group of single-seaters, engaged in a very close challenge, was made up of Taylor in a Lotus, Bonnier in a Cooper, Ireland at the wheel of a BRP, Ginther in a B.R.M., Hall also at the wheel of a Lotus, Bandini in his B.R.M. and Amon at the wheel of a Lola.

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On the other side, the third group was made up of private owners, led very amiably by Anderson in his Lola, also privately owned. While Clark was still gaining half a second each lap over the rest of the group, behind him the challenge suddenly turned on and it seemed almost impossible to make predictions about who would accompany the Scottish driver on the podium of Silverstone. On lap 7 the first surprise: McLaren was forced to retire because of an engine failure, close to Chapel curve. Ireland gained ground, managing to move away from the tussle that seemed to animate the drivers behind him, while Taylor went back to pits because of the electric fuel pump problems. Ten laps before the start of the Grand Prix, Clark had already gained ten seconds over Brabham, pursued in turn by Gurney, Hill and Surtees. More behind they followed Bonnier, Ginther and Bandini, of whom nobody seemed to want to let go, at the cost of attacking hard in search of an overtaking. A spectator of this incredible challenge was Chris Amon, who, even if he ran a solid and clean race, seemed, for the moment, to be in the shade with respect to the rest of the group. Hall, in spite of the powerful 1963 B.R.M. engine, didn't succeed in giving that extra something that could allow him at least to attack his rivals, while Siffert, Anderson and Hailwood took advantage of it to engage him in a clean and orderly fight. Clark was by then unrecoverable and, excluding possible mechanical and reliability problems, no other driver on the track could be able to take the win away from him. Behind him Gurney managed to gain the second position, Surtees managed to overtake Hill, while Ireland was obliged to stop at the pits, just like Gregory, Settember and Raby.

 

The trio Bandini, Ginther and Bonnier found themselves engaged in a heated challenge, in which the young Italian driver had the opportunity to show he was up to the challenge of drivers much more experienced than him. Maggs, after an unlucky start, managed to recover his position lap after lap, even if he was aware of not being able to aim at one of the first positions in the classification. Taylor re-entered the race on lap 19, after changing the fuel pump, while Ireland, in spite of the pit-stop, didn't seem to get back in tune with the engine of his single-seater. McLaren was obliged to retire because of reliability problems on his Cooper, a destiny shared by Brabham, who on lap 29 witnessed the explosion of the Climax engine. On lap 30 the positions were clear: Clark was first with an unbridgeable gap, followed by Gurney and Hill with Surtees behind him, who, even if not fighting with the two drivers before him, was still in contention for the third position. After a rather long break, Bandini, Ginther and Bonnier returned to the racetrack. Amon, in eighth position, was obliged to go back to pits shortly before being lapped by Clark. At this point it seemed that everything was already decided, above all with reference to the unbridgeable gap that the Scottish driver created with respect to the rest of the group; however, we weren't even half way through the race and behind Clark anything could still happen. The gap from the rest of the group allowed the Lotus driver to adopt a more conservative driving style, which would favour a better balance of the car, put in crisis by a section of the rear tyres smaller than the front ones. This change was adopted by Team Lotus to slightly reduce the gear ratio and improve acceleration coming out of corners.

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However, the engineers did not take into account the multitude of races that took place on the Silverstone circuit just before the start of the Formula 1 Grand Prix. With each race the circuit became more and more rubbery and the asphalt was covered with a layer that made it oily and slippery, making the strategic changes adopted by Lotus dysfunctional. However, this small complication didn't seem to stop Clark's race and with 35 laps to go he was 15 seconds behind the rest of the pack. While a Lotus driver was getting closer and closer to winning the British Grand Prix, his teammate didn't seem to have an easy time of it: Taylor was forced to go back to the pits to try to solve some gearbox problems, which cost him the withdrawal from the race. Bandini's excellent driving was hindered by gearbox problems: the Italian driver's single-seater spun off and, although not damaging other cars, cost him two positions in the classification, in favour of Ginther and Bonnier. The 41st lap marked the first half of the race, which for regulations issues will last 82 laps to ensure a coverage of more than two hours, and Clark - with 16 seconds' lead - seemed already ready to celebrate the umpteenth win in his career. In the second half of the race challenges seemed to be suddenly extinguished, while Clark kept on driving conservatively even if gaining tenths of second at each lap, preceding Gurney and Brabham. On lap 60 Gurney's Coventry-Climax engine shattered, covering the circuit with oil. Fortunately, this incident didn't compromise the race for the other drivers thanks to the timely intervention of the track officials. This unforeseen event, however, allowed Clark to increase his lead by a good 50 seconds, while behind him a heated challenge between Hill and Surtees reinvigorated the cheers of the British fans.

 

Bandini tried in every way to recover the positions lost because of the spin, while Anderson was obliged to go back to pits because of a cramp on the right foot, caused by an excessive strain on the calf, which didn't allow him to press the brake pedal effectively. Once recovered his mobility, thanks to a massage and cold water, Anderson managed to return to the track, leaving the pits in thirteenth position. A few laps from the end of the British Grand Prix Bonnier noticed serious problems with the oil pressure and went back to the pits to avoid irreparable damage to the Climax engine of the Cooper. Chris Amon made a short stop to refuel his single-seater, while Siffert was obliged to retire losing the eighth place. Beyond any possible prediction, Maggs was still racing among the top ten: after running three laps driving in a very clean and orderly way, the South African driver managed to overtake Hailwood and gain the eighth position. With just a few kilometres to go, Clark was focused on fuel economy: the Scottish rider was running in the highest gear, and running with the kind of throttle opening that would do credit to the Mobilgas Economy Run. Despite his extremely conservative driving, his gap to the rest of the pack didn't seem to diminish, remaining consistently around 35 seconds ahead of Hill, meaning that at the moment Clark was going through Stowe corner, Hill was still about to pass Woodcote corner near the pits. When the green Lotus, with its wide yellow stripe, came down towards Woodcote a few metres from the chequered flag, the fans at the circuit let out a thunderous cheer. Meantime, on the other side of the circuit, Hill suddenly found himself living a nightmare when the B.R.M. ran out of fuel and let Surtees, without too much effort, conquer the second step of the podium.

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Jim Clark's victory celebration at Silverstone is unprecedented: the Scottish driver returns to the track in a farm tractor pulling a four-wheel trailer, with the victorious Lotus on top. Meanwhile, a fellow Scot plays Scotland the Brave on bagpipes, accompanied by a smiling and jubilant Colin Chapman. But then the winner is greeted with the notes of God Save the Queen: a Scottish nationalist display that draws attention to the existence of long-standing racial problems in the British Isles. With four consecutive wins at the Grand Epreuve, following an unforgettable second place at Indianapolis, Jim Clark has every right to enjoy the sight of a huge crowd paying tribute to an extraordinary champion. The British Grand Prix at Silverstone opened, once again, with the attention of fans, journalists and Formula 1 engineers focused entirely on the Clark-Hill challenge. This race weekend, however, held some surprises in store, as a surprising Brabham settled in between the two British manufacturers. Surtees, on the other hand, was a different matter. The Ferrari driver, even though he is one of the drivers on the track with more knowledge of the circuit, plays once again the role of the outsider; moreover, in this weekend, with the disadvantage of racing alone. Nevertheless, the British driver's race was excellent and he recorded the fastest lap on the track, placing second after Hill's engine failure. The duel between Surtees and Hill undoubtedly marks one of the most interesting moments of this race weekend, a battle played out over a few meters. Surtees was never more than 200 metres from his rival's car, exchanging positions over and over again. If the challenge between Surtees and Hill gave life to the most exciting stages of the race, with the latter arriving third on the finishing line, not less important was the duel between Bandini and Ginther for the fourth position. Bandini was the author of a regular and satisfying race, a good revenge after his retirement last year, even if the challenge on track was won by the American driver at the wheel of his B.R.M.

 

The British weekend was however full of novelties, as for the first time the Americans took the track on Silverstone circuit with two single-seater Scirocco cars powered with B.R.M., driven by Burgess and Settember. On the other side the big absentees were the ATS cars driven by Phil Hill and Baghetti, who, owing to a delay of the team in the preparation of the single-seaters, couldn't take the track. Jim Clark, cheered on by the home crowd, dominated the British Grand Prix, taking one more step towards the 1963 World Championship title. The British Grand Prix ended with Clark's victory in a Lotus with an average of 172.75 kph, followed by Surtees in a Ferrari with an average of 172.20 kph and the third position occupied by Graham Hill in a B.R.M., with an average of 171.94 kph. Ginther followed, in fourth position with an average of 170.19 km/h and a surprising Bandini in B.R.M. In the drivers' championship, Jim Clark is leading with 36 points, followed by Ginther with 14 points, Graham Hill and John Surtees with 13 points, Gurney with 12 and McLaren with 10 points. In the constructors' championship, the Lotus Team powered by Climax is in the lead with 37 points, followed by B.R.M. with 18, Cooper with 16, Brabham and Ferrari with 13, BRP with 3, Lotus-B.R.M. with 2 and Porsche with only one point. During the meetings surrounding the Formula 1 Grand Prix there were several accidents, none of which were fortunately fatal. The 26-year-old Australian driver Ampt escaped a terrible crash that could have cost him his life, and was admitted to hospital, while Mike Parkes, who was at the wheel of the new 18-cylinder 4-litre Ferrari built on the type of the one that won at Le Mans, had to retire in the last race: at the start he had been run over by the car of another competitor who had made a false start, and after a courageous pursuit he had engine trouble.


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