Pitstop: Brabham to drive McLaren's car

By BOB PEARCE

Three-time world Formula One champion Sir Jack Brabham will make a special appearance at the V8 Supercar meeting at Pukekohe in November.

In New Zealand to support the Bruce McLaren Trust, Sir Jack will drive three laps at Pukekohe in the original 1959 Cooper that Bruce McLaren drove to win his first Grand Prix at Sebring, in the United States.

Brabham also will act as the grand marshal for the PlaceMakers V8 International, the 12th round of the V8 Supercar championship from November 7-9.

The Australian first brought the Cooper to New Zealand in 1957, where it was bought by McLaren's father. A year later, Brabham brought out two Coopers - one for him and one for McLaren, then 21.

Brabham went on to win the New Zealand Grand Prix at Ardmore, with McLaren second in the other Cooper. The performance earned McLaren a scholarship to Europe. It launched his illustrious career.

McLaren went on to race for Cooper in 1958 before winning his first Formula One at Sebring the following year at just 22 years old. It is this car that Brabham will drive in a special tribute, which helps to mark 40 years of racing at the circuit.

Brabham won the world championship in 1959, 1960 and 1966 and is the only driver to have won a Formula One championship in his own construction, in 1966.

The Australian won 14 Grand Prix titles as well as winning the Australian and New Zealand Grand Prix titles three times each.

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Aucklander James Cressey, 19, has put himself within range of the Australian Formula Three championship after a stunning performance at Winton, in Victoria.

Cressey qualified on the front row of the grid for both the weekend races and won them easily, fending off challenges from season-long rivals Barton Mawer and Michael Caruso.

The Kiwi has stormed back into contention for the championship, closing within 10 points of joint leaders Caruso and Mawer going into the final round at Wakefield Park in New South Wales on November 8-9.

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Kayne Scott, winner of five national championships in Tranzams, will contest the V8 championship this season in a VY Commodore.

The car will be run by the Petch team, which won a national title in a Ford Falcon driven by the late Ashley Stichbury.

Scott, who in recent years has had one-off drives in a variety of vehicles when his business allowed, drove a Chev Corvette to sixth place at Sears Point, in the United States, earlier this year. He will campaign a similar Tranzam in upcoming races at Timaru and Ruapuna.

With just six weeks until the first round of the V8 championship at Pukekohe, the leading competitors in New Zealand's premier class are beginning to unveil their plans.

The reigning champion, Mark Pedersen, is building a new Falcon and is expected to have the budget for another strong campaign.

The Caltex team will field three Ford Falcons for last year's runnerup, Paul Pedersen, single-seater champion Michael Shepherd and former stockcar champion Gary Boote.

Former champion Paul Manuell will have the latest Commodore and his Orix team have what they claim is the biggest and best in new transporters.

Team Kiwi drivers Andy Booth and new-signing Nick Ross will pilot new Holdens and Dean Perkins will be in the latest Falcon.

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Palmerston North teenager Chris Pither, who won the Bruce McLaren scholarship this year, heads for Britain today to visit the McLaren factory in Woking.

He also will spend time with West Surrey Racing, a British touring cars team, and travel to the British Formula Ford Festival.

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Auckland driver Shayne Windleburn won the inaugural Tasman Cup Revival Series Grand Prix at Pukekohe at the weekend.

A regular in Formula Libre races in the Windleburn family's beautifully prepared Lola T400, he finished third in the first series race on Saturday and spent the first few laps of Sunday's 20-lap Grand Prix behind the Saturday race winner, Stuart Lush (McRae GM1), and runner-up Murray Sinclair (Lola T332).

He took the lead after Lush and Sinclair struck trouble.

Sinclair coasted to a halt with a broken input shaft.

Lush started to slow with a broken exhaust header, allowing Windleburn and Tony Roberts in the newly imported and rebuilt Talon to get past.

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In a one-off Oceania Championship, four New Zealand riders will take on the top four Australian supersport stars at Phillip Island during the Australian Grand Prix meeting next month.

The rider with the most points after the three races on the Friday and Saturday of the GP on October 17-19, will be the Oceania champion.

The New Zealander are Craig Shirriffs, 30, and Dennis Charlett, 28, of Palmerston North, and Jared Love, 26, and Corey Oxenham, 27, of Hamilton. All will ride Suzukis.

The Australian team is Kevin Curtain, 37, of Newcastle, Brendan Clarke, 19, of Brisbane, Josh Brookes, 20, of Bringelly, and Glenn Allerton, 22, of Douglas Park,

Curtain and Clarke are team-mates in the Yamaha factory outfit. Brookes is on a Honda and Allerton is on a privateer Yamaha.