Despite the weather, the IROC Camaro proved capable on both the oval track at Rockingham and Silverstone’s club circuit. Photo: Pete Austin
Since the dawn of motor racing there have been those who continually ask the question, “Who is the best driver?” Some give very qualified opinions, others are dogmatic that the man they have supported over many years is the best and then there are those scholars and mathematicians who believe a complicated algorithm, taking in all the various disciplines of the sport and the cars driven, will ultimately yield a definitive answer. Interestingly, the sport itself thought of a much easier answer, put these drivers on a track and let them fight it out between themselves.
In the UK the “Race of Champions” was an F1 race held at Brands Hatch where teams would go head to head, not for a Grand Prix crown, but to find the champion driver. The first of these races was held in 1965 with Mike Spence taking the honors (over two heats) in a Lotus 33, beating teammate Jimmy Clark, after Clark’s car failed in Heat Two. From 1965 to 1983, there were 14 editions of this race—the last being won by Keke Rosberg in a Williams. However, while the first running included the top drivers of the day, by 1983, it had become somewhat diluted and meaningless. Ultimately, it didn’t prove a great deal and simply became a test session prior to the onslaught of the European rounds of the F1 World Championship series of races.
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