Coulthard drives Clark's Lotusposted in F116 | 05 | 2013
Grand prix winner David Coulthard lives his dream as he drives double F1 world champ Jim Clark's iconic Lotus 25. Hugh Hunston witnessed the emotional drive at Silverstone
SCOTS GRAND PRIX winner, and current BBC F1 analyst, David Coulthard, lived a boyhood dream at Silverstone when he drove his idol and fellow countryman Jim Clark’s iconic 1963 Lotus 25. The near priceless car was the very one in which the late double world champion dominated that year’s world championship (see more photographs of DC driving JC's Lotus).
Easing his lanky frame into the narrow exposed cockpit of the spindly 1.5-litre V8 green and yellow Lotus-Climax, chassis number 25/R4, Coulthard, a winner of 13 Grand Prix, struggled to keep the beaming smile from his face.
"This is a real racing car but I am both terrified and exhilarated at the thought of driving it," he admitted. "These cars were so rudimentary and minimalist compared to the modern safety-conscious machines, but it is a thing of beauty: a legend driven once by a legend.”
But after a series of laps round the Northamptonshire track, where Clark scored his second out of five British Grand Prix victories 50 years ago, Coulthard's smile was even broader.
“I hope I've honoured the Lotus badge and Jim Clark’s legend," he said. "This car is simply brilliant and it's the first time I have whooped with delight along Hangar Straight, something I didn’t even do when I won two grands prix here.”
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Coulthard, a TW Steel ambassador, was completing the labour of love in his capacity as BBC F1 commentator to mark Clark’s 1963 Silverstone victory in an item likely to be screened during the Beeb's coverage of the Canadian Grand Prix on June 9, previewing the British race, which will be held 21 days later.
“It's just as well I am wearing an open face helmet because a closed one would not contain the width of my smile," he beamed.
"Now I feel like a real racing driver. This car’s steering is so sensitive, and you have to make fine adjustments to the wheel all the time because it has no aerodynamic downforce.
“It also has a real gear lever to shift, and I confess to having graunched one gear. And there's actual suspension travel, whereas today’s cars are bolted to the road.
"Silverstone is pretty level and flat, so I don’t know how they guys in that era coped with the challenges of Spa and the old Nurburgring with their roller coaster changes in elevation.
"You feel exposed in the open cockpit and ultra aware of what is going on around you. But it fitted like a glove, even if I could not adopt the great man’s totally laid back straight arm driving style.”
On hand to fettle the car, owned by retired Australian investment manager John Bowers, was 77-year-old Bob Dance, the spritely former chief Lotus mechanic, who established Classic Team Lotus to run historic Lotus racing cars.
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Coulthard’s retro session came during the media day for July’s Silverstone Classic race meeting where the pre-1966 historic F1 event carries Clark’s name, and his Lotus 25 will be driven by former touring car racer Andy Middlehurst. This car carried Clark to seven wins out of the 10 1963 championship races.
Whereas Coulthard won 13 grand prix during a career spanning 246 races between 1994 and 2008 Clark, the Duns farmer — who died in a Formula 2 race at Hockenheim in April, 1968 — was the most successful driver of his era, recording 25 F1 title race victories from 72 starts. Clark also won the 1965 Indianapolis 500 in the States.
Coulthard won the British Grand Prix at Silverstone in 1999 and 2000, while Clark was victorious at the former wartime RAF aerodrome in 1963, 1965 and 1967, with wins in the UK rounds at Aintree (1962) and Brands Hatch (1964).
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Hugh Hunston
Photo Copyright: Felix Bloomfield