1961 Lotus 18/21

This is a photograph I took during practice for the British Grand Prix at Aintree in July 1961.

It's the UDT Laystall Racing Team's 1961 Lotus 18/21 that was driven in the race by Lucien Bianchi and is chassis #917. The Lotus 18/21 was a development of the Lotus 18 with which many parts were interchangeable, and had a more streamlined body compared to the rather angular Lotus 18. The car had a 1,500cc 4-cylinder inline Coventry Climax FPF engine, and Lucien Bianchi qualified in 30th and last position on the grid, retiring after 45 laps of the 75 lap race with a broken gearbox.

Lotus 19

I took these photographs at Aintree on practice day for the Aintree 200 meeting in April 1961.

It's a 1960 Lotus 19, called the Monte Carlo as a nod to its perceived close rival the Cooper T49 Monaco. The car was one of a pair entered for the sports car race at this meeting by the UDT Laystall Racing team, to be driven by Stirling Moss and Henry Taylor, and this one is Henry Taylor's car. Both cars were powered by the 2½ litre Coventry Climax FPF engine.

The UDT Laystall team was originally formed as the British Racing Partnership in 1957 by Stirling Moss's father Alfred and his former manager Ken Gregory to run cars for Stirling Moss, outside his other racing commitments, and other up-and-coming drivers. In a sponsorship deal the team was renamed Yeoman Credit Racing for the 1960 season and then UDT Laystall Racing for the next two seasons.

Lotus 24

Here are a couple of photographs I took during practice for the British Grand Prix at Aintree in July 1962.

This is Masten Gregory's Lotus 24 Climax, entered by the UDT Laystall Racing Team. He qualified in fourteenth place on the grid and ended the race in seventh position, one lap behind the winner.

Here's the car approaching Waterway corner during practice.