MeRae has decisive win in Wigram grand prix (By A. J. PETRE) In spite of a last-minute engine change, and front-brake pads which wore out in the closing stages of the race, the defending Tasman champion, the New Zealand racing driver, G. MoRae, won the 100 mile Lady Wigram Trophy Race on Saturday by almost a lap from the English driver and European Formula A champion, M. Hailwood (Surtees TS8). McRae's light-weight Leda GMI ¡to improve the handling of, was starting his rapid and recovered the 47 laps in 53 minutes 11.6 markably neat disappearance The race-morning practicelinto the distance. seconds, giving him a race average of session showed the In the eary laps, he lapped sion changes had not worked as fast as 1:06.8 on full tanks 112.93 miles an hour—making the race either, so it was back to the —an average of 114.79 miles the fastest run in New Zealand, and jold settings for the race. probably in the Southern Hemisphere. Bartlett's team was another which had no sleep before the race: they made Bartlett spins The race was run in with an overheating engine sion changes, and fitted new By the fourth, the Leda was fine, warm weather with spent all night changing the mechanics head-gaskets to the engine, nearly three seconds up on easterly Morand-Chevrolet engine in practice. which had blown a gasket in Hobbs, and tremendous wind, and was watched the Leda. They also fitted a battle was developing higher fourth gear. tween Hailwood and Bartlett by i crowd of about when the car was The Eifin-Repco mechanics|for third place, with Matich 24,000-20 centistarted in the early hours, theifitted new engine bearings little more than a car's length better than last year. blewland a new differential pinion behind. A third to the car of J. McCormack, McRae shared his fastest These three moved up on engine, ong with racing miles and altered the suspension on Hobbs, and up to already on it, had to be in. G. Cooper's car. Hobbs's melap of Inin 06.6sec-an aver- stalled by the weary mechan-chanics altered gear ratios and lap the four cars were a fast, age of 115.14 miles an hour. scrapping bunch, with a gap F. ics, and the car did not reach raised the suspension. back to a battle between (Matich Repco), but the track until a bare 30 Noyes and Pilette. The Bel- Matich finished the race in minutes before the start of Grid unchanged gian had moved ahead of place at the rear of the race. Oxton on the sixth lap. In the race-morning practhe field, after a mid-race col. eral who he do ornight or tice, from which McRae was Then on the tenth lap it lision with his fellow Austraand of course, absent, Hobbs did happened — coming out of there were a lot of mechanics a lap in 1:06.0 - only Olsecithe fast, right-handed Bartlett himself finished who got little or no sleep. outside McRae's pole position from the loop. Bartlett spun M. Stewart (Australia) ar- lopped his McLaren in a huge cloud third, a lap behind McRae about 1.5sec off his practicelof blue tyre smoke. and Hailwood, who were the rived at the only ones to complete the full made overnight suspension track having time, but the grid for the race Cars went everywhere, Pilremained unchanged. ette in particular doing a fine The American dri. and tyre changes, and having McRae and Hobbs were off bit of dodging, but losing his ver E. Noyes (McLaren M18) replaced a broken engine pul-the front and seventh place to Oxton in the who finished fourth, 19.5sec a few laps prac- Hailwood the second, Matich process. Matich was the unbehind Bartleth laps, as did pleted only 46 camshaft, and four mechanics mack and Stewart the fourth, stopped tice, his Elfin Repco broke a and Noyes the third, McCor• lucky one: he had almost the fifth driver and the first fell on it and changed the Oxton and Pilette the filth, Repco ran nose-to-nose into for the race. engine in the tivo hours be- Cooper and the Canadian D. the McLaren of Bartlett, damhome, D. Oxton, in his South- McConnell - who withdraw aging the Matich's nose-cone N land-built Begg FM4 Chevro-! The car just made the line his 2-litre G.R.D. with engine and ripping off an aerofoil: 1 before the rolling start, but, trouble before the start - the a front tyre punctured soon Another New Zealander F. sadly the in sixth, Radisich and B. Rob- after. Bartlett escaped with little came sixth with only 45 laps place Stewart came past the seventh, and Nei Doyle Beg& damage, completed; the same distance pits with his thumb down- EM2) and. R. Franicevic (Mc- and the two was covered by the seventh the new. engine was playing Laren MIO) the back. were on their way again in In the familiarisation laps seconds. But Matich had to man, the Belgian driver E. Pil-up, the fuel injection was not pit, and it was 10 laps beette (McLaren MI0B). working as it should, and he before the start, McRae put fore he was back on the The American Formula A had to retire. in one, at 1:05.9 - the same track. champion, the English driver/ as his best practice time brought his Mc- vith the new engine, so he McRae, meanwhile, had in- Laren M22 home in eleventh Unluckly Matich vas clearly going to be the creased his lead to 10 sec Matich was much happier man to beat if his hastily-in- onds, Hailwood was almost place-42 laps completed- side-by-side with Hobbs, and alter a puncture removed with his car than he had been stalled motor stayed together. Hobbs got the best of the Noyes him from a close tussle with in practice: Hailwood for second place on shown broken rear-rolling start, and hit the first fourth. had corner ahead of Hallwood and McRae's win, McRae took again after a brief struggle, his second caused the car's odd handling Hailwood on the fast back and Stewart brought his Eifn on Friday, and with that resuccessive victory at Wig- brisk out for ram, the airfield circuit, gives paired overnight, he hoped straight 14 rather unhappy him not only the $2000 first for better times. wind held his top speed down laps before retiring for good. to 168.5 m.p.h. With McRae clearly the prize and the Lady Wigram His sharing of the fastest the second lap he took Hobbs master of things, and looking Trophy, but a narrow lead in lap with MoRae showed that too. the Tasman championship: he he could have been competi- After two laps the first five utterly at home on the cirnow has 18 points to the 16 tive had with cars - McRae, Hobbs, Hail- cuit and in perfect control of Hailwood, the nine of F. Bartlett not lost him several wood, Bartlett, and Matich- as he lapped the tail-enders, Gardner (Australia)-who did laps. interest centred on the Hobbs Wigram-the were nose to tall, with Noyes, Hailwood duel, and on the seven of Bartlett, and the six Laren's gear-ratios overnight; out), Pllette, Cooper, Noyes had lowered his Mc- Oxton. Stewart (soon to drop flying Bartlett's efforts to get Radisich had fitted McCormack, past Noyes, who was clearlyl clutch and differential; and Doyle and Franicevic follow- away. Robertson, determined to give nothing Mechanics triumph get more power out of their Hailwood's crew had tried to ing Of by the third "lap - moved into fourth and Mo. On the twentieth Bartlett very nearly did not happen. fled exhaust system (it made nose aerofoil in a shunt at the the pits with overheating, to But it was a victory which new engine by fitting a modi• when McCormack had lost his Cormack was in and out of After McRae set the fastest no difference), had lowered loop, and Doyle's clutch was eventually retire after 05.9sc (116.35 miles an hour numere suspension change out a lead of 100 yards and labs. Imin the gearing, By the twenty-fourth, i Hobbs and Hailwood were still locked in their crowd-i thrilling duel. Noyes was having another nibble at' Bartlett's exhausts, and be-r hind the sixth man, Pilette, Oxton was bringing the Begg through in fine style. ninth spot, Cooper in his 5-litre Elfin was having a hard time holding off Robertson's very quick 1.8-litre Brabham, and the two stayed nose to tail until Robertson took the smaller car past on the thirty-second. After 26 laps, by which time McRae had a lead of 30 seconds, Hobb's fine drive came to an end when a front tyre punctured. He lost two laps having the wheel changed the replacement was underinflated and he had to stop again, dropping to second to last ahead of Matich. This left Hailwood a very' secure second, for the third! man, Bartlett, was a good 26 seconds behind him and had no chance of making this up. McRae was still working his way steadily through the held; and with 33 laps gone, passed Bartlett to have only Hailwood on the same lap. Matich lay second on the track but many laps behind distance covered. and snowed his potential by circuiting in equal fastest time of 1:06.6. had 50 seconds With 37 laps gone, McRae lead and looked almost certain to lap Hailwood by the end. his front brake pads were down to metal, and with only rear brakes working he had to ease the pace. He still increased his lead to 55 geconds| by the flaR.