Ari Vatanen - Group 1

Borehams Apprentice

Ari Vatanen and Peter Bryant were victorious on the 1976 Tour of Britain in their works Gp1 Ford Escort RS2000 leading Brian Culcheth's Dolomite Sprint home after three days of competition.

Starting from Birmingham’s Post House Hotel, 6.45am Friday 9 July, the Tour raced at Silverstone and Snetterton before tackling a rally stage set up at Cadwell Park which, among others, claimed 1973 winner James Hunt, co-driven by Radio DJ Noel Edmunds, who connected with a tree, then the law and exclusion.  Other top drivers retiring early included Ford’s Roger Clark and Timo Makinen with clutch woes and Tony Pond’s Dolomite Sprint with low oil pressure.

Saturday started early for competitors on the daunting and dark mid-Wales rally stages, including the formidable Mynydd Epynt ranges before a welcome breakfast halt at M4 Aust services, followed by a rally stage at Doddington and quickfire races at Castle Combe from 9.30-11.30am.  More stages followed at Cirencester Park, Cheltenham Racecourse, Long Marston and Donington, not reinstated a circuit until 1977.  After overnighting at Birmingham’s Post House, Sunday saw more stages at Weston Park and Loton Park before the final races at Mallory Park and the finish at the NEC.

Billed as the traditional ‘Race v Rally’ needle match, the Tour’s competitive mileage was weighted towards stages, perhaps favouring the rally men, who also seemed to race well. The records show that talented Finn, Ari Vatanen, won in a Ford RS 2000 by 1m 52s from Brian Culcheth’s Dolomite Sprint.  Will Sparrow’s Vauxhall Firenza was third and Gerry Marshall’s Vauxhall fourth and first racing driver home. Deny Hulme – 1967 F1 Champion – finished 12th in the Mayfair Opel Commodore and in the autumn of 1976, James Hunt would become Britain’s fifth F1 world Champion.

All the Colour Prints featured are generated from original oil or water based artwork by the highly respected motorsport artist Keith Davies, who's work many of you will have come across.

All Colour Prints are individually Signed and Numbered by the Artist and measure 640mm x 450mm (25 x 18 inches approx.) unless otherwise stated.