Selangor Grand Prix
Batu Tiga, 15 Aug 1976
Results | Laps | Time/Speed | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | John Macdonald | Ralt RT1/75 [5] - Cosworth FVA #11 Rothmans Cathay Pacific Racing Team (see note 1) |
50 | 1h 08m 45.6s |
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2 | Graeme Lawrence | March 76B [17] - Cosworth FVA #1 Rothmans Cathay Pacific Racing Team (see note 2) |
50 | 1h 08m 49.9s |
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3 | Albert Poon | Chevron B29 [29-75-05] - Ford BDM #23 Albert Poon (see note 3) |
49 | 1h 08m 55.6s |
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4 | José "Pocholo" Ramirez | (1.6 2v) 1.6-litre March 732 [723-12?] - Ford twin cam #88 Pocholo Ramirez |
45 | 1st in twin-cam class | |||||
5 | Diana Poon | (1.6 2v) 1.6-litre Brabham BT40 - Ford twin cam Hart #66 Diana Poon (see note 4) |
44 | ||||||
6 | Brian Tyler | (1.6 2v) 1.6-litre March 732 [73B?] - Ford twin cam [not on entry list] (see note 5) |
38 | ||||||
7 | Grant Swartz | Lola T460 [HU8] - Ford BDM #7 Flying Tiger Line (see note 6) |
37 | ||||||
8 | Rad Ocampo | (1.6 2v) 1.6-litre Brabham BT36 [2] - Ford twin cam #- R. Ocampo (see note 7) |
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R | Sonny Rajah | March 732B - Ford BDA Swindon [not on entry list] (see note 8) |
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UNK | Ian Grey | Chevron B20 [72-9] - Ford BDM #71 Ian Grey (see note 9) |
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  | Joey Bundalian | (1.6 2v) 1.6-litre March 722 - Ford twin cam #- Joey Bundalian (see note 10) |
On entry list | ||||||
  | Chong Boon Seng | (1.6 2v) 1.6-litre Brabham BT36 [BT30-14] - Ford twin cam #8 Chong Boon Seng (see note 11) |
On entry list |
All cars are 1.6-litre 1.6 4v unless noted.
Qualifying | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | John Macdonald | (1.6 4v) 1.6-litre Ralt RT1/75 [5] - Cosworth FVA | 1m 21.7s | ||
2 | Albert Poon | (1.6 4v) 1.6-litre Chevron B29 [29-75-05] - Ford BDM | 1m 21.8s | ||
3 | Graeme Lawrence | (1.6 4v) 1.6-litre March 76B [17] - Cosworth FVA | 1m 24.6s | ||
4 | Sonny Rajah | (1.6 4v) 1.6-litre March 732B - Ford BDA Swindon | 1m 26.5s | ||
5 | Grant Swartz | (1.6 4v) 1.6-litre Lola T460 [HU8] - Ford BDM | 1m 27.6s | ||
6 | Ian Grey | (1.6 4v) 1.6-litre Chevron B20 [72-9] - Ford BDM | 1m 27.9s | ||
7 | Brian Tyler | (1.6 2v) 1.6-litre March 732 [73B?] - Ford twin cam | 1m 34.8s | ||
8 | Diana Poon | (1.6 2v) 1.6-litre Brabham BT40 - Ford twin cam Hart | 1m 35.1s | ||
9 | José "Pocholo" Ramirez | (1.6 2v) 1.6-litre March 732 [723-12?] - Ford twin cam | no time | ||
10 | Rad Ocampo | (1.6 2v) 1.6-litre Brabham BT36 [2] - Ford twin cam | no time |
Notes on the cars:
- Ralt RT1/75 [5] (John Macdonald): New to John Macdonald (Hong Kong) and delivered with a Cosworth BDM engine. Macdonald and his mechanic Angus Lamont built their own Ford twin cam engines and Macdonald raced it in Southeast Asian 1600cc 2-valve category racing in 1975, when he won the Penang, Selangor and Macau Grands Prix. Retained for 1976 when 4-valve engines were allowed, so Macdonald bought two new Cosworth FVA engines, built by Cosworth on FVC blocks. With these engines, he won the Selangor and Indonesia Grands Prix in 1976. He ran it again in 1977, and it was also raced by Vern Schuppan at Macau that year. Macdonald then refitted with BDM engine and sold the Ralt to Peter Marshall, who raced it in Formula Pacific in 1978 and 1979, latterly with a Cosworth BDD. It was still in Marshall's ownership when raced by Sonny Rajah in 1980 and 1981. The car was then stored at Rajah's father's house in Kuala Lumpur until 1990, when Marshall retrieved the car and had it shipped to Sydney, Australia. The following year it was taken to Ralt importer Graham Watson to be rebuilt to original specification. It was sold in early 1999 to Peter Mohr (Sydney, Australia) who took it with him to the US when he moved there, and raced it in US historic racing in 2000 and 2001. It was then sold to Dennis D'Angelo and remained with him until 2006. It was then bought by Don Sandy and Art Hebert and raced on the west coast in 2006. In 2012, it was acquired by Harindra de Silva and raced by Timothy de Silva (Rancho Palos Verdes, CA) in west coast historic events. Sold in 2021 to Éric Verdin (Mill Valley, CA), who has continued to race it in historic events.
- March 76B [17] (Graeme Lawrence): New to Sonny Rajah with a fuel-injected Hart engine, and run for Graeme Lawrence in South East Asia, under the Team Rothmans banner. Raced by Lawrence in the Penang, Selangor, Indonesia, Macau and Metro Manila Grands Prix in 1976, winning at Penang. Retained for 1977, when he again won the Penang race. Converted to Formuma Pacific specification for 1978 and raced by Lawrence in New Zealand early in the year, then at the Penang, Malaysia, Selangor and Macau Grands Prix. To Romeo David, and raced in events at Shah Alam in 1979, 1980 and 1981. Also raced during David's ownership by Pocholo Ramirez in 1981 and Luis Camus in 1982. Subsequent history unknown, but a car in Lawrence's Rothmans livery was raced by Laurent Vallery-Masson as a 2-litre "Formula 2" March 77B from 2019 to 2023.
- Chevron B29 [29-75-05] (Albert Poon): New to Albert Poon (Hong Kong), and raced in Southeast Asian events in 1975. Raced in Southeast Asian 1600cc 4-valve formula events in 1976, and driven by Kevin Bartlett at the Macau Grand Prix in November 1976. Sold less engine to Chong Boon Seng (Singapore) in December 1976 and raced by him in 1977, 1978 and 1979, It was then retained by him until it was sold to Leif Norberg, a Swede then living in Malaysia, in 1985. Then to Tony Armstrong (Australia) in 1989. To Geoff Weiland (Australia) in 1998, then to Peter Addison (Sydney, NSW), then to John Gale (Sydney, NSW) in 2005. In March 2020, the car was bought from Gale by Peter Brennan (Melbourne, Victoria).
- Brabham BT40 (Diana Poon): New to Albert Poon (Hong Kong) and fitted with a Hart twin cam engine for the Southeast Asian 2-valve 1600cc formula. Raced by Poon in 1973 and 1974 and then, after Poon acquired a newer Chevron B29, the Brabham was raced by Graeme Lawrence in the Malaysian GP in March 1975 and by Kevin Bartlett in the Macau Grand Prix in November 1975. Then raced by Poon's wife, Diana Poon, from 1976 to 1979. At some point, the Brabham was badly damaged, and its tub has been rebuilt by new owner Neville McKay. Reported to be still owned by McKay but in pieces in 2004.
- March 732 [73B?] (Brian Tyler): Brian Tyler, described as a Singapore-based Englishman, raced a March "732" in the Selangor Grand Prix at Batu Tiga in August 1976. Eli Solomon found two pictures of the car for his excellent 'Rides of March - Part 2' article which show that it looked a lot like the Team Rothmans March 73B, the ex-Sonny Rajah car. Tyler raced the car again in two races in 1977, the Malaysian Grand Prix in April and the Penang GP in May. It ran in the 1600cc 2-valve class at Penang, so presumably had a Ford twin cam engine at all three races. It was advertised by Tyler from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, in September 1977 as a March 732 fitted with a "brand new Holbay 1600cc twin cam" and FG400 gearbox. The engine makes it much more likely that it was a 73B, not a 732. One possibility is that it was the March 722/73B that Dieter Quester had taken out to the Macau Grand Prix in November 1973. Nothing more known.
- Lola T460 [HU8] (Grant Swartz): New to American Grant Swartz for racing in Southeast Asia. Retained for 1977. Unknown after the 1977 Macau GP.
- Brabham BT36 [2] (Rad Ocampo): New to Rondel Racing for Graham Hill and Bob Wollek to race in F2 in 1971. To John Macdonald (Hong Kong) for 1972, and fitted with a Hart 416 twin cam on carbs for Southeast Asian racing. To Eddie Marcello (Philippines) in 1973, and then to Rod Ocampo (Philippines) 1975, who last raced it in 1976. It then went to Romeo David in 1977, but the engine failed during practice and it did not race again. Later given to Louis Camus. Acquired from Camus by Leif Norberg, a Swede then living in Malaysia, in 1988, and it was restored for him in 1996 by Peter Denty Racing (Thetford, Norfolk). Sold to Andrew Fellowes (Benowa, Queensland, Australia) in 2004. To Alan Telfer in 2011.
- March 732B (Sonny Rajah): Sonny Rajah (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia) raced a March in Southeast Asian 4-valve formula racing in 1976, then in Formula Pacific from 1977 to 1981, but it is not yet clear whether this was his updated March 712M or his March 73B.
- Chevron B20 [72-9] (Ian Grey): New to John S Green in Formula B specification but there is no evidence of this car being delivered before the end of 1972. Green ran it in the Gap Hill Climb in January 1973, but only circuit raced it once, in the Singapore Grand Prix in April 1973. Green died in early 1974, and the Chevron was sold to David Schollum for Steve Millen in South-East Asian races that year. Then shipped to New Zealand and fitted with a 1980cc Cosworth FVC engine for the 1975 Tasman series. Used by Millen in 1600cc form at Batu Tiga and Macau later in 1975. Sold to Ian Grey in 1976 and raced with a Cosworth BDM at Macau in 1976 and 1977. Later sold to Dick Ward (Perth, Australia) and George Stacey about the end of 1979, and then to Harry Hickling (ACT, Australia). Sold to David Innes late 2014.
- March 722 (Joey Bundalian): Filipino driver Joey Bundalian drove a March in Southeast Asian racing from 1974 to 1981. The car was described as a March 732 when it raced at Macau at the end of 1974, but was also described once as a 752 and several times as a 722. Eli Solomon published a picture of Bundalian's car in his excellent 'Rides of March - Part 2' article. It was taken at Greenhills on 14 July 1974, Bundalian's first known outing in the car, and shows it with dark 73B bodywork and forward-facing stays. It appears very plausible that Bundalian had acquired the ex-Purley March 722/73B that Team Harper had run for Dieter Quester at the Macau GP in November 1973. Nothing more known.
- Brabham BT36 [BT30-14] (Chong Boon Seng): Sold new to Ecurie Ecosse and run for Graham Birrell in F2 in 1970. Also raced once by Peter Gethin and by Richard Attwood later in the season. To Peter Westbury early 1971 and raced in several F2 races (also raced once by Dieter Quester) until the team's BT36 was delivered. Sold to Dunnett's Garage, converted to F/Atlantic specification and entered for Ronnie Mackay in libre and F/Atlantic in 1971 and 1972, run by MRE. To Chong Boon Seng for south east Asian racing in 1973 and used by him until 1976. Then to Del Schloemer and raced by him and by Cherie Schloemer in 1977 and 1978. To Wybe Valkema around 1980 and retained to 1982. Then to Australia and with Brian Wilson by 1988. Wilson sold it to Art Valdez (Torrance, CA) and from Valdez it returned to Australia when he sold it to Bob Ilich (Perth, WA) in 2010.
Sources
Note that the identification of individual cars in these results is based on the material presented elsewhere in this site and may in some cases contradict the organisers' published results.
All comments, clarifications, corrections and additions are most welcome. Please email Allen (allen@oldracingcars.com) if you can help in any way with our research.
Individual sources for this event
RacingCar News September 1976 pp48-49, by Graeme Lawrence. The Straits Times 16 August 1976 p27. Entry list and other programme details provided by Richard Coe.