Race F

Voitures de Grand Prix de F1 - 3 litres (1973-1978)

Towards six in the evening the Series F took the track for F1 cars from 1973-1978. It was pouring and the cars were lined up with wet-weather tyres. A young Michael Lyons in pole, with his Hesketh 308E, famous for the Penthouse woman painted on the sides of his car. Behind him McLaren M23 with Bobby Verdon-Roe, Surtees TS19 with Oliver Hancock, Hesketh 308E with Cosimo Turizio and Lola T370 Embassy-Hill with Mauro Pane. Among present cars we had two Penskes and one Parnelli, which summarized the experience of American constructors in Formula One, the unlucky but wonderful Lotus 76, set aside after few races in 1974, a same unlucky Amon, first and last experience as constructor for Chris Amon, as usual the Tyrrell P34 six-wheels and an odd Trojan, with its curious front suspension in front of the nose.

Procedures of the start were complicated due to the rain and trouble during the line-up. At a certain moment a thick cloud of steam came out from the M26 of D’Ansembourg, There were twice line-ups before the race direction decision for the rolling start.

Lyons, Verdon Roe, Hancock and Turizio passed in order. Behind the situation was hotter with Nearbourg and D’Asenbourg who began a sort of “ballroom dancing” at Sainte Devote: an endless list of those who took, to the rhythm of “Romagna Mia”, the area behind the famous bend. Others preferred the jump of the Chicane du Port, other very fashionable sports in Monte-Carlo.

On the contrary Verdon Roe preferred a spin on the first lap at the swimming pools, leaving the second place to the Surtees with Hancock and the third place to Cosimo Turizio. The McLaren M23 went out immaculate from a spin and Verdon-Roe did his best to recover some lost positions, while Lyons increased distance strengthening his position in the lead of the race.

The Trojan of Philippe Bonny crashed into the guardrails of the Sun Casino hairpin: it was a long a hard manoeuvre to come out from trouble. By force of bangs against guardrails the French driver got back on right track.

Mauro Pane tried to hold his Lola out of trouble and was steadily running at the fifth place, while Verdon Roe gained the third thanks to overtaking. His McLaren was behind the Surtees of Hancock and was looking for an opening, but the rival occupied the space well. Verdon-Roe seemed to yield to the situation and we had the impression as if he lifted his foot: well it’s ok. Then something happened unexpectedly. On the last lap Hancock lost his control on the low part of the circuit, badly crashed into guardrails and Verdon Roe could pass him.

While Lyons, Verdon-Roe and Pane were crossing the finishing line and gaining podium steps, the race ended with Quaggio, Drake and Higson who piled up at Rascasse creating a heavy traffic jam.

In the category like historic races where the average age is rather high, it makes impression to see a young driver win: an English boy, twenty–one, who is racing both with historic and up-to-date cars, occupying a prestigious flying wheel in a Ferrari 458 GT3. In this Monaco weekend the boy wasn’t alone: coming from a family of drivers, in the same category there was his father Frank running in a McLaren M26, while his mother Judith hasn’t entered the qualifying session of Series E at the wheel of a Surtees TS9.

Well done Michael!

Stefano Costantino
Photos by Giacomo & Marco Zanello

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