Grand Prix de Pau

Pau, 7 Jun 1976

All cars are 2-litre F2 unless noted.

Notes on the cars:

1. Martini MK19 [001] (René Arnoux): New for Ecurie Elf for Patrick Tambay to drive at the start of the 1976 European F2 season. After two races,Tambay movd to a newer car. Chassis 01 is then thought to be the car driven by Rene Arnoux at five races in May and June. Believed to be the car used as a test and development car in early 1977, and updated to MK22 specification. Sold to Xavier Lapeyre in June 1977 after he wrote off his earlier MK19.
2. Chevron B35 [35-76-04] (Jacques Laffite): New to Harald Ertl for the European F2 series using works BMW engines, first appearing in plain yellow livery at Hockenheim. As Ertl was also competing in F1, the Chevron was then raced by Rolf Stommelen with Heyco backing in the non-championship Nürburgring race, where he qualified on pole position and led until the engine broke. It was then raced by Ertl at Vallelunga and Salzburgring. When Fred Opert acquired Gitanes sponsorship for F2 in 1976, he struck a deal with Ertl to run his BMW-powered car for Gitanes' F1 star Jacques Laffite and other drivers at the three French F2 races in 1976, and had a spare set of bodywork in Gitanes blue so the car could be easily changed. In return, Opert's team ran Ertl's car at other races for him. Its first race in blue was Pau, where Laffite qualified the Gitanes/Elf B35 third and finished second. It was then put back in its yellow Heyco bodywork for Ertl to drive at Hockenheim, then back to blue for Tom Pryce to drive for Opert at Rouen in a deal arranged by the works. Pryce qualified third and apologised for not taking pole in a car he described as "fantastic". It had its yellow bodywork restored for Ertl at Mugello, Enna and Estoril, where it carried ATS sponsorship. There was another swap to Gitanes blue at Nogaro, where Jean-Pierre Jarier qualified well but disappointed Opert by retiring from the race for no good reason. It was back in Ertl's yellow for him to drive at Hockenheim in September. Ertl drove the car again at two early 1977 races, now with Schnitzer BMW engines and Heyco sponsorship. The car remained with Ertl and Gustav Hoecker, a German tuning specialist who regularly worked with Ertl, until Ertl's death in 1982. Ertl's collection of cars was then broken up, and the B35 ended up with Paul and Madelyn Gutman (Tiburon, CA) in the US. In 1990 or 1991 they sold the car to Dave Vegher of Veloce Motors West (Petaluma, CA) and it remained with him, being rebuilt as time allowed with a fresh BMW engine and its yellow bodywork repainted to Gitanes blue. In 2013 Vegher sold the car to Harindra de Silva (Palos Verdes Estates, CA) who wanted its BMW engine. The rolling chassis then sat at Virtuoso Performance for several years until it was shipped to the UK where it was rebuilt by Hi-Tech Motorsport and fitted with a Geoff Richardson BDG engine. It was raced in blue Gitanes livery by Timothy De Silva at the Silverstone Classic in July 2019, July 2021 and July 2022.
3. Elf (Jabouille) 2J [7603] (Jean-Pierre Jabouille): New for the Elf Switzerland team in 1976, built with new chassis 7603 and fitted with a Renault V6 engine for Formula 2 in 1976. Raced by Jean-Pierre Jabouille at the opening race of 1976, and believed to be his car at every race that season. This car was rebuilt for 1977 as chassis 7701 and sold to the Kauhsen team.
4. Chevron B35 [35-76-05] (Jean-Pierre Jarier): New to Fred Opert Racing for Formula 2 in 1976, and used by Juan Cochésa for the opening four races of the season, until he failed to qualify at Salzburgring. Jean-Pierre Jarier took over the drive at Pau, and and it was raced later in the season by Hans Binder, Hans Meier, Jacques Laffite and Rolf Stommelen. It was then rented by Ian Grob for two races of the Shellsport G8 series at Brands Hatch in October and November. The sister car to this was taken out for the Macau GP and sold in New Zealand, but the next time 76-05 was seen was at the start of the 1977 F2 season, prior to the Opert team's second and third B40s being delivered, when it was driven by Keke Rosberg at Silverstone and by Hans Royer at Thruxton. Subsequent history unknown but a car in France later claimed this identity.
5. March 762 [12] (Giancarlo Martini): New to Giancarlo Minardi's Scuderia Everest with BMW engine for Giancarlo Martini to drive in Formula 2 in 1976. Subsequent history unknown.
6. March 762 [U1] (Alex Dias Ribeiro): Built in March 1976 for the works F2 team, initially using parts from the works 752s. Then rebuilt on a new monocoque for Ronnie Peterson to drive at the opening round of the 1976 F2 season. It was then raced by Alex Dias Ribeiro for the rest of the season, with CAIXA sponsorship. It was crashed by Ribeiro at Hockenheim in September and effectively written off. The remaining components of the car were fitted to a new 772 monocoque and given chassis number 772/9.
7. March 762 [5?] (Klaus Ludwig): New to Willi Kauhsen Racing Team with Hart engine for Klaus Ludwig to drive in Formula 2 in 1976. Raced by Ludwig at Hockenheim, the opening round, and "written off" when he crashed into José Dolhem's stationary Chevron B35 on the opening lap. The Kauhsen team had already taken delivery of a third March 762, chassis 762/11, the week before, and Ludwig used 762/11 at the next race. Photographs suggest that he then returned to his original car for the rest of the season. Subsequent history unknown.
8. Ralt RT1/75 [8] (Freddy Kottulinsky): New to Freddy Kottulinsky, fitted with a BMW M12 engine and raced in F2, entered by wealthy German brewer Fritz Lochmann. Kottulinsky debuted the car at Vallelunga in October 1976 but failed to qualify after his first engine ran its bearings and his replacement blew up after an oil line came adrift. The car was loaned to Gernot Lamby for the opening rae of the 1976 season, then Kottulinsky raced it for the rest of the year, winning at the Nürburgring in May. Retained for 1977, when Kottulinsky used Heidegger BMW engines. Sold to Freddy Roland (Mulhouse, Alsace, France) for French hillclimbs from 1978 and 1979, during which time it was substantially modified. After winning at Bagnères-de-Bigorre in July 1979, Roland suffered a motorcycle accident and did not return until May 1980, when he had a newer and more standard Ralt RT1. Photographs indicate that his older 1975 car was sold to Roger Ecoffet, who ran it during the 1980 season, still with a BMW engine. Subsequent history unknown.
9. Chevron B35 [35-76-08] (Gianfranco Trombetti): New to Trivellato Racing Team for Gianfranco Trombetti to race in the 1976 European F2 series. Retained by Trombetti for a few races at the start of 1977. Then raced by Lorenzo Niccolini at Mugello in June, when it was still red with Everest signwriting. Next seen in June 1979 when it was driven in practice by Filippo Niccolini at Mugello but did not start. Subsequent history unknown.
10. March 762 [7] (Eddie Cheever): New to Ron Dennis's Project Four Racing with a standard BMW engine installation. The back end was then stripped off at the factory and the front end was collected by Dennis for fitting of a Lancia-Ferrari Dino V6 engine, as used in the Lancia Stratos. It was driven by Jochen Mass at Hockenheim, the opening F2 round, but it broke a crankshaft almost immediately, and the spare engine broke a piston after a few more laps. The car was rebuilt with a Hart 420R engine for Eddie Cheever to drive for the rest of the season. It was "totally wrecked" in a pre-race testing accident at Mugello in July and rebuilt on an updated 752 monocoque. Cheever then took over the team's new Ralt and the 762 was driven by Mikko Kozarowitzky and Bertram Schäfer at the final two races, but neither were able to qualify. Sold to Michel Lateste for French hillclimbs in 1977 but wrecked at La Forêt-d'Auvray in June 1977. The 762/752 was not seen again.
11. Chevron B35 [35-76-02] (Roberto Marazzi): New to Trivellato Racing Team for Roberto Marazzi to race in the 1976 European F2 series. The car was retained by Trivellato for 1977 and when the team's new Ferrari-engined B40 was not ready in time, the old B35 was raced by Riccardo Patrese in the opening races of the season. Despite being identified as chassis '76-02, it was said to be the car driven by Marazzi's teammate Giorgio Francia in 1976, indicating that the team cars had been swapped around during 1976. Patrese took pole position in the car at the fourth round, at the Nürburgring on 1 May, but crashed in the race and the car was written off.
12. Chevron B35 [35-76-01?] (Giorgio Francia): Used as a test car by Derek Bennett and others during February 1976, including Alex Ribeiro. Then sold to Trivellato Racing Team for Willi Lovato to race in four races at the start of the 1976 European F2 series. Believed to be the car taken over by Giorgio Francia for the rest of the season, although Francia was said to be driving the Trivellato team's spare car at Estoril after a "write off" at Enna. However, it does appear that there was some shuffling of cars, as '01 appears to be the car sold to Andy Barton for 1977, even though it was said to be the former car of Lovato's teammate Roberto Marazzi. Barton fitted a 2-litre BDA engine for Shellsport G8 and libre racing but struggled with the car's handling, and crashed at Croft in April. The car was rebuilt with a new tub and three new corners but was still problematic and he crashed again at Ingliston on 8 May. Barton then raced the Sana for the rest of 1977 but returned to the Chevron for a libre race at Croft in May 1978, only to crash yet again in practice. This time the car was not repaired.
13. Elf (Jabouille) 2J [7602] (Michel Leclère): New for the Elf Switzerland team in 1976, based on the chassis 7502 used by the team in 1975, rebuilt with a Renault V6 engine as chassis 7602 for 1976. Raced by Michel Leclère at the second race of 1976, and believed to be his car at every subsequent race that season. This car is reported to have been rebuilt for 1977 as chassis 7703 and sold to the Kauhsen team.
14. Chevron B35 [35-76-06] (José Dolhem): New to Fred Opert Racing for Formula 2 in 1976, and used by José Dolhem for the opening seven races of the season. Then raced by Riccardo Patrese, Howdy Holmes, Keke Rosberg and Rupert Keegan later in the season. Taken to Macau for Keegan to race in the Grand Prix on 14 November, then sold to Steve Millen who raced it in the New Zealand Formula Pacific series in January 1977, and then in Southeast Asian races later that year. Subsequent history unknown but some reports say that it was badly damaged in a testing accident by its next owner and remains in Southeast Asia.
15. March 762 [R1] (Maurizio Flammini): Built in July 1975 as a test car for the Renault F2 engine, and tested at Goodwood. After three engine blow-ups, the relationship with Renault deteriorated and the car was rebuilt in November/December 1975 with a BMW engine. It was fitted with white 1976 bodywork to use as a show car, then sprayed orange in March 1976, and raced by Hans Stuck in the opening round of the 1976 season. Stuck won from pole. After Stuck raced it again at Salzburgring, it was then sprayed white and allocated to Maurizio Flammini from Pau onwards. Flammini wrecked it at Enna-Pergusa and it was rebuilt on a new monocoque. At the end of the season it was fitted with Stuck's orange bodywork and the chassis plate from 762//U2 and taken to Japan for the German to race at Suzuka in November. Sold in Japan. Subsequent history unknown.
16. March 762 [752-23?] (Gilles Villeneuve): New to Ron Dennis's Project Three Racing and driven in F2 by Bruno Pescia, Vittorio Brambilla, Masami Kuwashima, Tim Schenken and Jean-Pierre Jaussaud in 1975. Retained in 1976 as part of Project Four Racing and thought to be the "762" used as a testbed for the Lancia engines at the start of that season. Then probably the "762" used by Gilles Villeneuve at Pau and by Mikko Kozarowitzky at three later races. Unknown after July 1976.
17. March 762 [4] (Ingo Hoffmann): New to Willi Kauhsen Racing Team with Hart engine for Ingo Hoffmann to drive in Formula 2 in 1976. Also driven by Jochen Mass at Hockenheim. The Kauhsen team had a third March 762, used by teammate Klaus Ludwig after he wrote off 762/5 at the opening race, but it is assumed here that Hoffmann drove 762/4 all season. Hoffmann's regular car was also driven by Jochen Mass at Hockenheim in June. Hoffmann crashed his regular car at Enna, the March flying over the catch-fencing and landing nose-first. It was said at the time to have been "totally destroyed". The team then skipped the Misano race as they had no raceworthy cars, and when the "rebuilt equipe" returned to F2 at Nogaro in September, it is unclear which car Hoffmann drove. Then at the final race, the team fielded three 762s, with Hoffmann in a brand new car that had not turned a wheel, and guest driver Jacques Laffite in Hoffmann's Nogaro car. Chassis 762/4 was next seen in early 1978 when Jim Gleave's MRE (Bourne End, Buckinghamshire) had a group of ex-Kauhsen cars. This 762 was sold to hillclimber Godfrey Crompton (Tenbury Wells, Worcestershire) who wanted it for the Hart engine to use in his newly-constructed 772P. The 762 was then sold to Rob Turnbull (Walmley, West Midlands) to replace the Ralt RT1 he had damaged at Le Val des Terres. Run by Turnbull in the BARC British Hill Climb Championship round at Wiscombe Park in September 1978, where it was borrowed by Chris Cramer for the run-off. Raced by Turnbull for the rest of the 1978 season and throughout 1979. It was then sold to Paul Williams (Newcastle, Staffordshire) and used by him in sprints and hillclimbs in 1980 and 1981. Subsequent history unknown.
18. March 742 [30] (Bernard de Dryver): New to Bang & Olufsen late in the 1974 season and used as a training car over the close season by Bernard de Dryver, the son of B&O's marketing director Fredy De Dryver. Bang & Olufsen Team Vaillant bought new March 752s for 1975 but the 742 was kept as a backup, and De Dryver reverted to the 742 for the race at Magny Cours in May. It was also raced by B&O teammate Claude Bourgoignie at Enna in August. Advertised by Brian Lewis for Bang & Olufsen Team Michel Vaillant in November 1975. Retained again for 1976 and raced by De Dryver and by Hervé Regout, B&Q's 1975 F3 driver. Sold after 1976 to Belgian hillclimber Henri Bruixola (Brussels), who raced it in Belgian hillclimbs in 1977. He sold it to Claude Darné in France but the next owners after that are not known. A later owner, Fouché (Foucher?), sold it to Maurice Noel (Cherbourg), who sold it to Alain Prat in 1991. Raced by Alain in French historic events. Sold in 2003 to Ian Jacobs and raced by him in HSCC events. To Mark Dwyer (Huddersfield, West Yorkshire) in 2006, also in HSCC racing, and restored to Bang & Olufsen livery in 2009.
19. Chevron B29 [29-75-10] (Xavier Lapeyre): New to Fred Stalder's Societé Racing Organisation Course (Annemasse, Haute-Savoie, France), and fitted with ROC's Chrysler-Simca-based engines, developed by Max Funda (Geneva, Switzerland) for Formula 2 in 1975. Raced by Xavier Lapeyre (Toulouse, southwest France), starting at Hockenheim in April. Lapeyre left ROC for 1976, but retained the Chevron, fitting a BMW engine and racing it in five events at the start of 1976, failing to qualify for four of them. The last time the B29 was seen was at Pau on 7 June, where Lapeyre failed to qualify, and at the next race, at Rouen three weeks later, he had a new Chevron B35. Sold to Werner Ruckelshausen for Austrian national races in 1977, where it was entered as a "Chevron Swindon" of 2000cc capacity, implying a Swindon BDX engine. Subsequent thistory unknown.
20. Chevron B35 [35-76-09] (Jean-Pierre Jaussaud): New to Fred Stalder's Societé Racing Organisation Course (Annemasse, Haute-Savoie, France) and fitted with ROC's Chrysler-Simca-based engines, developed by Max Funda (Geneva, Switzerland) for Jean-Pierre Jaussaud to use in F2 in 1976. Jaussaud finished sixth at Vallelunga but then failed to qualify at Salzburgring, Pau and Rouen-les-Essarts, a run only interrupted by qualifying at Hockenheim but retiring after just two laps. François Servanin took over the drive at Mugello but also failed to qualify. This is probably the car bought from Stalder by Fredy Canin and run in French hillclimbs for the rest of the 1976 season, starting at Échelette in late August. Canin retained the car for 1977, but disappeared after May except for a couple of appearances in July. Sold to Jean Lapierre (Montélimar, Rhône-Alpes) in mid-1978, after Lapierre had wrecked his March 762/772 at Tonnerre, and he installed the BMW engine from the March into the Chevron. Raced by Lapierre for the rest of 1978 as a B35/B40 and most of 1979 as a B40, until he rented a B42 (itself probably an updated B40) from ROC near the end of the season. The B35 is then probably the "ex-Lapierre" 1600cc "B40" raced by Louis Kolly in 1980, 1981 and 1982. Subsequent history unknown but a car with this number was advertised by Mark De Paola (Los Angeles, CA) on eBay in 2006, saying it had been maintained by Chris Fox. A "35-76-09" was advertised by Scott Taylor from New Zealand in March 2022.
21. March 762 [6] (Alessandro Pesenti-Rossi): New to Alessandro Pesenti-Rossi for Formula 2 in 1976, entered by Scuderia Gulf Rondini. Pesenti-Rossi was also racing in F3, and then acquired a F1 Tyrrell as well, so the 762 was taken over by Gaudenzio Mantova from June 1976 onwards. The car was then borrowed by the works for Maurizio Flammini to test at Vallelunga, and he wrote it off after just ten laps. The car was returned to the factory to be rebuilt and its surviving components were used to build his March 772/4 for 1977. The 772 carried the chassis plate from the 762, presumably for carnet reasons. The 762 therefore probably ceased to exist. When 'Pierpaolo' later bought a car with this chassis plate, it was probably 772/4.
22. March 742 [18] (Bernard Chevanne): New for the March Engineering works team, assigned to Patrick Depailler. March records say that it was not raced in 1975, and sold to Pierre Maublanc in November 1975. To Bernard Chevanne for 1976, and raced at Thruxton in April, but he was unable to qualify for any of his others races that season. Subsequent history unknown. Note that the March raced by Joe Henry in WCAR Formula Atlantic in 1984 has been reported to be "742/18" but is more likely to have been a 74B.
23. March 75B [U1] (Ray Mallock): An unnumbered March 75B built for Ray Mallock (Roade, Northamptonshire) and run for him in British Formula Atlantic and some F2 races by Ardmore Racing in 1975. It replaced the second-hand March 742 that Mallock wrecked in the Thruxton Formula 2 race in March, but it is possible that the 75B was still used the chassis plate of the old 742 during this time, as it was listed by Motoring News as "742/12" twice in 1975 and was also described as a 742 by Motoring News at Hockenheim in September 1976. Mallock raced the car in F2 for the last four races of 1975. For 1976, Ardmore Racing bought a Lola T450 for Mallock, but when that proved a flop, fitted the March with a Swindon BDX engine and Mallock raced that car in Formula 2 specification in the European F2 series and in the Shellsport Group 8 series. During the season it was further modified with wider sidepods and its main radiator moved to the front, and from Pau onwards used the nose from one of Ray Mallock's father's Mallock U2s. Ardmore boss Creighton Brown also raced it in a libre race at Oulton Park in October. It was last raced by Mallock at Brands Hatch on 7 November 1976. This is likely to be the 75B advertised by MRE (Bourne End, Bucks) in Autosport four days later, described as "Updated to full F2 spec" with FG gearbox and "2 litre alloy engine". In the same edition of Autosport, Lucien Lampach (Wiltz, Luxembourg) was seeking a F2 car, and photographs indicate that he acquired the modified Mallock 75B and ran it as a March 742 in European hillclimbs in 1977 and 1978. Numerous reports mentioned it having a Swindon engine, so presumably its Swindon BDX. Subsequent history unknown.

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.