When I first discovered the world of Formula 1, its composition was quite different from that of today. One of the significant losses for present day F1 is the extinction of the 'Gentleman Driver'--the sportsman who partook out of pure enthusiasm and who was, more often than not, wealthy to some degree. It could be argued that all drivers of the era were pure sportsmen as the pay they received for risking their lives was nominal. Ferrari went so far as requiring his drivers--John Surtees, for example--to purchase a Ferrari road car for PR purposes. In addition to gentleman drivers, there was one notable 'Gentleman Owner' in Formula 1. His name was Rob Walker, heir to Johnnie Walker Scotch. When I became aware of him, he was campaigning a Cooper-Maserati driven by the Swiss driver Jo 'Seppi' Siffert. He had previously fielded a car for Stirling Moss. In 1966, I attended the Mexican Grand Prix in Mexico City. John Surtees, having left Ferrari, was now driving the vastly inferior Cooper-Maserati as were Jo Bonnier, Jo Siffert and Jochen Rindt. Jack Brabham and Denny Hulme were driving Brabham-Repcos and Jim Clark, Pedro Rodriguez and Pete Arundell were each in a Lotus-BRM. Graham Hill, Innes Ireland and Jackie Stewart were in BRMs. Dan Gurney was in his Eagle-Climax and Bob Bondurant drove an Eagle-Weslake. Richie Ginther and Ronnie Bucknum had Hondas. Bruce McLaren had his McLaren-Ford. Get the feeling? (Continued in comments) #formulaone #robwalker #josiffert #cooper-maserati #johnsurtees #jobonnier #mexicangrandprix #johnniewalker #romance #filmmakerslife https://www.instagram.com/n3actes/p/BwMFoatFnZ-/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=xh703gdupb5m
