In pictures: F1 of yesterday
- Published
This weekend some of the best drivers in the world will once again get behind the wheel of their cars as the 2013 Formula 1 season gets underway in Australia. Here photographer Mike Hayward delves into his archives and recounts some of his experiences beside the track.
Back in the 1960s and 70s photographers could get ridiculously close to the action as here on the inside of Copse Corner at Silverstone where cars passed at well over 100mph. This is Jack Brabham on the way to second place in his Brabham Repco BT24 at the 1967 British Grand Prix.
Former world motor cycle champion Mike Hailwood behind the wheel of a Yardley sponsored McLaren M23 in 1974 waits while a mechanic tops up the water of his Cosworth V8.
Five world champions and not a crash barrier in sight. Jack Brabham leads from Denny Hulme, Jackie Stewart, Graham Hill and Jim Clark during the 1966 F1 Gold Cup at Oulton Park. The sound of the five cars howling round the circuit was amazing. Sadly it didn't last long as the BRMs of Hill and Stewart fell by the wayside.
There was lots of laughter on the grid at Brands Hatch before the start of the 1974 British Grand Prix with a visit from comedian Eric Morecambe. Here he poses for the camera beside Graham Hill who was driving an Embassy Lola Ford. Graham qualified way down the grid in 22nd place and eventually finished 13th.
The start of the 1967 British Grand Prix at Silverstone with the front row lined up four abreast. Jim Clark and Graham Hill in Team Lotus 49 Cosworths lead off the line from Jack Brabham and Denny Hulme in Repco Brabhams. In what would be his last British GP, Jim Clark won the race after Hill retired.
Working on a grass paddock before the 1963 Oulton Park Gold Cup for F1 cars, Rob Walker's team mechanics warm up Jo Bonnier's Cooper.
Looking at today's banks of computers on the pit wall it's hard to imagine team managers doing their own timekeeping. This is Lotus boss Colin Chapman with clipboard and stopwatch timing his cars at the 1970 International Trophy F1 race at Silverstone.
Graham Hill looks straight at the camera at Copse Corner, Silverstone, during the 1967 British GP. In the background are some of the fantastic constructions erected by spectators in those days. Some must have arrived by lorry to accommodate all the scaffolding.
Filming an onboard lap in 1963 meant fixing a large film camera onto the car. This is Jim Clark with a Lotus 25 driving through the paddock. The picture was taken with a Voigtlander Vito B rangefinder camera and the film was developed by the local chemist.
Jackie Stewart's Tyrrell 003 hits the earth bank on the outside of Copse Corner, Silverstone on the first lap of heat two of the 1971 International Trophy. Stewart was unhurt and is passed here by Pedro Rodriguez in a Yardley BRM.
Far away from today’s high-tech pit garages, Gold Leaf Team Lotus mechanics had to cope with an engine failure on Graham Hill’s Lotus 49B at the 1969 British Grand Prix at Silverstone. The job took less than three hours with tools scattered over the paddock.
The start of the 1969 British Grand Prix at Silverstone with Jochen Rindt's Lotus 49B and Jackie Stewart's Matra MS80 edging away from Denny Hulme's McLaren M7A. Note the group of VIPs standing on the grass opposite with no protection at all.
Gold Leaf Team Lotus mechanics fill up world champion Graham Hill's 49B at the paddock pumps at the 1969 International Trophy race at Silverstone. The price on the pump for Super Shell fuel is six shillings and seven pence a gallon.
Dan Gurney's Eagle Weslake V12 before the onset of sponsorship in F1. The Eagle was thought of as one of the best-looking grand prix cars but had clutch failure in the 1967 British Grand Prix.
Druids Hairpin at Brands Hatch is an excellent bend for getting close to the cars. If you wanted to swap to the other side of the track you could hold up your arm to the marshals and they would wave you across when the track was clear. It wasn't unknown for a photographer to drop a lens on the run over. All photographs by Mike Hayward.