Okay - here's the deal - These three liveries are basically the rarest of all the liveries that were used on the short tail F1 GTRs during 1995 & 1996. One was used in two races, the others in only one. There are very few pictures of any of these out there that I have seen. In fact, the best pictures available seem to be these shots of the corresponding 1/43rd diecast models that were created to commemorate them - imagine that.
Anyway, I'd love to complete my collection of F1 GTR photos with some decent shots of these three cars, so if you have any please share them with me.
= = = = =
The first one appears in two small photos in "Driving Ambition" (pg 217, photo #9 - it's on the far left next to the wall & pg 237, photo #8 - trailing the Harrods F1 GTR through a turn) but I haven't seen any other shots of it in print or on the internet.
It's the "Davidoff Watches" livery and it was used in two different races on the same car. The first race was the 1995 BPR 3-hour race in Zuhai, China where it looked identical to this diecast model. The car finished 2nd overall in that race with Thomas Bscher and John Neilsen as the drivers. The second race it appeared in was the 1996 1000kms of Suzuka where it wore a "BMW of Japan" windshield banner and it wore race #1 instead of #8. The car finished that race in 4th overall with Bscher and Neilsen as the drivers once again.
The F1 GTR this livery was featured on at both races was GTR #03R which normally wore the "West Competition" livery and was painted white and red. For a short time in 1996 this was also the "Sal Oppenheim Jr. & Cie" liveried car, but it retained it's red and white appearance with that livery (though the areas of white & red were reversed for that livery) and it still had some "West" logos on the car.
= = = = =
The second one I have is also seen in two photos from "Driving Ambition" (pg 217, photos 6 & 7) and I have two very small photos of the car I found on the web. Other than that, I've never seen any other shots of it.
It's the "San Miguel/Jacadia" livery and it was only seen one time - at the 1995 BPR 3-hour race in Zuhai, China. Note the Chinese characters on the door as well. This car was the overall winner of the Zuhai race, which happened to be the last event of the 1995 BPR series, and the car was driven by Andy Wallace and Olivier Grouillard. They had actually scored three first place finishes in a row in that car to end their season.
The F1 GTR this livery was used on is actually GTR #06R - the Harrods/Mach One Racing car. It was normally painted Yellow with green accents and sponsorship logos. I'm sure that most of you are familiar with that GTR.
= = = = =
Last, but certainly not least is the one F1 GTR I have never seen a real photo of anywhere. I'm sure some photos exist, as whomever built this diecast model needed to have some kind of reference for it, but I've never come across a single image anywhere. This livery is basically identical to what was used on the 1996 Gulf GTC F1 GTRs as far as the placement of decals and sponsorship logos, however as you can see, the body lacks the blue and orange paint scheme that immediately distinguished those cars as Gulf McLarens.
This livery was only seen at the start of the 1996 BPR season at the Paul Ricard 4-hour race. It was used on GTR #08R - which had been a Gulf GTC team car the through the 1995 BPR season, and it was apparently brought in as a last minute replacement when their new '96-spec GTR #15R was crashed in qualifying. The drivers for this race were Lindsay Owen-Jones and Pierre Henri Raphanel. Because they were using a replacement car, they were forced to start at the back of the grid, and because they did not have time to properly set up the car for the race that day they remained there. According to the poster included with "Driving Ambition", the car failed to finish the race and I found some info on the web that stated the car only lasted 31 laps before retiring due to suspension failure. It has to be the shortest racing career for any livery used on any F1 GTR, hence the lack of photos.
If you've seen any photos of this car in a magazine or anywhere, I'd love to have them. As much a fan of the famous blue & orange Gulf paint scheme as I am, I find this white Gulf car to be very unique and I'd love to have some real images to add to my collection
= = = = =
BTW: Sorry for the long post, but I figured the thread would be a little more interesting if I could include the actual history associated with the livery along with the photos. Hopefully everyone learned something from the thread as well - that's what I strive to do when I post information on these forums so I hoep some of you are feeling the benefits.
>8^)
ER