OldRacingCars.com

Molson Formula Championship

Circuit Ste-Croix, 10 Oct 1971

ResultsLapsTime/Speed
1 David McConnell Lotus 69 - Ford twin cam Hart
#86 Jim Russell (see note 1)
30 ??m ?2.5s
2 John Powell Chevron B17b - Ford twin cam
#30 (see note 2)
30 37m 14.0s
3 Bill Alsup (FF) 1.6-litre Caldwell - Ford Kent
#37
28
4 Terrance Douglas Palliser - Ford twin cam
#145
28
5 Wilson Southam March 71BM [10?] - Ford twin cam Greatorex
#24 (see note 3)
28
6 Jean-Pierre St Jacques (FF) 1.6-litre Magnum - Ford Kent
#77
27
7 Reg Scullion (FF) 1.6-litre Magnum - Ford Kent
#19
27
8 David Westgate (FF) 1.6-litre Hawke - Ford
#63
26
9 Richard Doran (FF) 1.6-litre unknown - Ford
#70 Nettoyeur RD
25
10 Serge Savard (FV) 1.2-litre unknown
#44
24
11 Bill Eagles Chevron B9/B15b - Ford twin cam
#46 (see note 4)
23
R Andrew Melville Titan - Ford twin cam
#67
2
R Maurice Beauregard (FF) 1.6-litre Lotus 69F - Ford Kent
#88
0
DNS Randy Fraser March 71BM - Ford twin cam Greatorex
(see note 5)
Did not start
(blew engine)
DNS Brian Robertson Brabham BT35 [10] - Ford twin cam Hart
(see note 6)
Did not start
("scratched")
DNS L Lahaie (FF) 1.6-litre Lotus - Ford Kent
#25 Gresko Automobile
Did not start
DNSC Jacques Couture Lotus 69 - Ford twin cam Hart
(see note 7)
Did not start (crashed)
DNSC Ian Coristine March 71BM [1] - Ford twin cam Hart
(see note 8)
Did not start (crashed)

All cars are 1.6-litre FB unless noted.

Qualifying
Qualifying information not available

Notes on the cars:

  1. Lotus 69 (David McConnell): Raced by David McConnell (Montréal, Quebec) as part of the Jim Russell Racing Team in the Players Formula B Championship and the Molson Formula Championship in Canada in 1971. McConnell won one round of the Players series and four rounds of the regional Molson Championship, which he easily won. McConnell bought a new GRD for the 1972 Tasman championship, and the subsequent history of the Lotus 69 is unknown.
  2. Chevron B17b (John Powell): Peter Broeker (Pointe-Claire, Montréal, Quebec) raced a Chevron B17b in Canadian Formula B in 1970, often descibing it as a Stebro. It replaced Broeker's earlier B14, so the two cars were often confused. The B17b was raced by Craig Fisher and John Powell (both Toronto, Ontario) in 1971, entered by Penguin Racing Enterprise. The later history of the car is not known. Although it has been suggested that this was the car Broeker raced in 1974, when he returned to Formula Atlantic, that car appears to have been his older B14 updated.
  3. March 71BM [10?] (Wilson Southam): Wilson Southam ran a team in Canadian Formula B in 1971. He bought two March 71BMs and raced this one himself. Southam was expected to run the car again in 1972, and it was fully updated to 722 specification by Tom Greatorex, well known in Canada as Kris Harrison's Can-Am mechanic. In February 1972, he loaned the car to Gus Hutchison for the two Formula B races in Bogotá. Southam sold his operation to Ecurie Canada for 1972, and this car is believed to have gone with it. Subsequent history unknown, but believed to be the car driven by Ian Coristine for Ecurie Canada in 1972 and 1973.
  4. Chevron B9/B15b (Bill Eagles): Bill Eagles (Lasalle, Quebec) raced a Chevron "B9/B15B" in Molson events in 1970 and in the Players FB series in 1971. This may have been the ex-Wayne Kelly B9 but could also have been Peter Broeker's "B9/B14/B15" that he raced in 1969 and then retured to briefly in 1974. Nothing more known.
  5. March 71BM (Randy Fraser): Wilson Southam acquired two red March 71BMs for Canadian Formula B in 1971, one for Randy Fraser and one for himself. Fraser's was the first to appear, running as the #54 Tartan Fraser entry and is most likely to have been 71BM-8. In early 1972, the car was sold to Gilles Léger (Lachute, Quebec) and updated to 722 specification by Tom Greatorex, who also prepared the car for Léger. Then to Patricia Smith (Montréal, Quebec) in 1973 entered as #51 by P.S. Translations. Subsequent history unknown.
  6. Brabham BT35 [10] (Brian Robertson): New to Brian Robertson (Brockville, Ontario, Canada) and raced by him in the Canadian Formula B series in 1971, entered by Fred Opert Racing. To Al Justason (Toronto, Ontario) for Canadian FB in 1972 and 1973. To Fred Beyer (Ottawa, Ontario) for the Players (Canadian) Formula Atlantic series in 1974 and 1975. History then unknown until it was acquired from Bobby Brown in November 2006 by Kent Copeland (Dallas, TX). Brown is believed to have acquired it from Frank Costey in 2004. Copeland commented that it had been owned in Colorado in 1988, and its last races were believed to have been in 1986. It was red when acquired, but restored to a blue colour. Copeland died in July 2014 and, in May 2015, Todd Upp was advertising the car on behalf of his wife Holly. Sold in August 2022 to Stephen Temple (Santa Cruz, CA).
  7. Lotus 69 (Jacques Couture): Raced by Jacques Couture as part of the Jim Russell Racing Team in the Players Formula B Championship and the Molson Formula Championship in Canada in 1971, winning rounds of both, and in the Seattle round of the SCCA Continental Championship. Unknown in 1972, but advertised by Fred Opert in October 1972 and again in February 1973. Thought to be the car driven by Opert customer Julio César Hidalgo in the FB race at Autodromo de San Carlo, Caracas in March 1973. Subsequent history unknown, but may be the Victor Gagliano/Bob Silvestro car from 1974 onwards.
  8. March 71BM [1] (Ian Coristine): Gordie Dewar was appointed March importer into Canada for 1971 and his first purchase, chassis 71BM-1, went to Delta Racing Developments for Ian Coristine (Montréal, Quebec) to race in the Players FB series. Coristine finished the season fifth in the red #50 March but crashed in practice for the final race, at Circuit Ste-Croix in October. The car went to Reg Scullion (Dollard-des-Ormeaux, Montréal, Quebec) for 1972 and it was entered for him by Kris Harrison's Ecurie Canada, and prepared by Andy Roe and Tom Greatorex. Ecurie Canada had also bought Wilson Southam's engine manufacturing business, acquiring Greatorex with it, and were preparing the engines in Scullion's car. Scullion started the season racing in Nationals in Texas before returning to Canada for the Players season. He ended the Canadian season in ninth place but then returned to the US to finish second in the SCCA Run-Offs. He retained the car for 1973 as a Scullion-Donolo Racing entry, and it was raced by partner Louis "Lou" Donolo (Montréal, Quebec) once or twice. 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.

The 1971-1973 Canadian Formula B race results have been compiled by Chris Townsend based on material in Canadian Motorsport Bulletin, results sheets where available and from information drawn from Canadian newspapers.

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

The Montreal Gazette 11 Oct 1971 p20 and 13 Oct 1971 p16.