Win Percy Stepping
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
WIN PERCY STEPPING ONE OF WIN PERCY'S GREATEST VICTORIES CAME AT SPA IN 1984 (OPPOSITE). A SIGN OF THE AFFECTION FOR WIN - MOTOR RACING OUT GREATS DICK JOHNSON, ALLAN GRICE AND KEVEN BARTLETT GATHERED WITH WIN ON THE GOLD COAST. RUSSELL INGALL JOINED TOO. WIN PERCY IS PERHAPS THE BEST DRIVER TO RACE A TWR XJ-S, AND IS ALSO EXTREMELY WELL LIKED. WE MET UP WITH HIM AGAIN RECENTLY AND FOUND HE IS NOT ONLY FULL OF HUMOUR BUT BACK ON HIS FEET. EDITION 143 JAGUAR MAGAZINE 61 WIN PERCY STEPPING ONE OF WIN PERCY'S GREATEST VICTORIES CAME AT SPA IN 1984 (OPPOSITE). A SIGN OF THE AFFECTION FOR WIN - MOTOR RACING OUT GREATS DICK JOHNSON, ALLAN GRICE AND KEVEN BARTLETT GATHERED WITH WIN ON THE GOLD COAST. RUSSELL INGALL JOINED TOO. WE MET UP WITH HIM AGAIN RECENTLY AND FOUND HE IS NOT ONLY FULL OF HUMOUR BUT BACK ON HIS FEET. EDITION 143 JAGUAR MAGAZINE 61 WIN PERCY 62:1 62:2 62:3 62:1 This was the beginning for Win Percy - his unlikely Anglia provided successes which brought him to the public's attention. 62:2 He moved on through Datsun, Toyota and Ford - but Tom Wakinshaw protested the registration plate! 62:3 They joined TWR to race Mazdas. TOP LEVEL MOTOR RACING 1985, then returned in 1990 with the and he came to realise he still has good is a cut-throat business. There are TWR owned Holden team he set up friends to go with the memories. Against not always a lot of smiles and the in Melbourne. His co-pilot was Alan the odds, he is able to walk again with competitive attitude is obvious. Grice, the Australian he shared a Group the aid of two walking sticks, and while Win Percy is different. His is an C Nissan with at Le Mans in 1988, and he gets tired quickly, he can get around enthusiast who loves his sport, is his Nissan team mate in the World under his own steam. Doctors refused to enormously naturally gifted, and Touring Car Championships. perform operations to assist his mobility, despite being fi ercely competitive Win has had his share of serious set saying his age and problems made it a behind the wheel, leaves the driver’s backs, but prefers to display his relaxed waste of time and money. Win Percy seat with a smile. He sad: “I never and chirpy demeanour. “Look, things defi ed them. dreamed of being a professional racing have been bad at times, but how lucky After the long weekend at Bathurst driver. That was the domain of the am I? Jaguar is the pick of the bunch, at he relaxed at the home of friends Ian 'After rich and I was just a garage mechanic. 66 it is lovely to still be accepted. You and Val Maudsley on the Queensland Bathurst In the late 1950s the only Jaguar I have to look at the bright side.” Gold Coast where industry and racing ever knew was an XK140 owned by a he Everybody remembers that crash at icons including Kevin Bartlett, Russell customer.” relaxed at Le Mans at 240 mph, later he and his Ingall, Dick Johnson, Alan Grice and However, Win succeeded where the home wife Rosemary’s only son was killed, John Crawford joined him. most fail. His achievements are of friends a tragedy which must have been Win refl ected: “I honestly love too numerous to mention, but Joe Ian unspeakably painful, and of course, in Australia, and if we hadn’t lost our son Saward of Autosport magazine once and Val 2003 a botched relatively minor back Matthew I think we would have stayed described him as being "often regarded Maudsley operation left him a paraplegic at the here. Rosemary needed to be close as the world's number one touring car on the age of 59. That was when he had more to the family then and we had a huge driver". He was British Touring Car Gold drive offers than he could satisfy. hole in our lives. Then she got chronic Champion three times, and remains Coast Many people wonder how Win is fatigue syndrome and was just getting on the most successful non-Antipodean coping, so it is delightful to fi nd that his top of that when I had my problem. Our where driver ever to compete in the Bathurst optimistic attitiudue is still there. He daughter was in England so I understand industry 1000 km race. He is also the only was Tom Walkinshaw’s guest at Bathurst why she needed to go back. After the driver from that TWR XJ-S squad to and in 2009 when the team Win founded operation I was on many painkillers, drive the Group C Silk Cut Jaguars, racing in 1990 again won the 1000 kilometre but when we went to Spain I reduced usually the exclusive domain of icons race. Returning there again was a huge them by 50% because of the climate, former F1 drivers. He fi nished third joined morale booster. He had not travelled so we moved there. I drive an X-Type at Bathurst with Tom Walkinshaw in him.' that far since the bungled operation, Estate, but would like to upgrade to an 62 EDITION 143 JAGUAR MAGAZINE 63:1 63:1 In 1983 Win Percy teamed with TWR and Martin Brundle for the Spa 24 hour race after leaving the outfit as British Touring Car Champion. Now TWR raced works entered V12 Jaguar XJ-Ss, but the Spa race was unhappy. He would return in 1984 and win the classic. XF diesel because the XF is such a good car.” on my car. It just grew from there, and I have name he had not heard of. “After the race we He was thrilled that David Blackall and Chris never had a manager nor have I had to ask for were all very happy and I was chatting with Lidis at Jaguar Australia not only offered him a drive or any sponsorship.” owners of the car, Pride and Clark, when this a new 3.0 litre XF diesel to use, but they had it In 1964-65 Win came to the attention of burly fi gure barged his way in and said ‘Win, fi tted out with hand controls and allowed Win the wider public when he won sixteen events that’s a funny name.’ I told him it was Winston to use it in an historic speed event in Tasmania outright with other podium placings, still in the actually, but they call me Win. He said: ‘That and Classic Adelaide. He has been associated Ford Anglia which was his means of getting to was your fi rst race in the Championship wasn’t with the former event for many years and said work! In 1966 he won the South of England it?' I said yes, and he went on: ‘You are very the XF was perfect for it. Rally special stage championship over eight good. I will have my own team one day, and Win was born in 1943 near the Dorset village events, then backed it up the next year by taking you will drive for me!’ We shook hands then of Tolpuddle. Until he came along it was only eight fi rst places and four seconds in the Players he walked away, so I had to ask who that was! famous as the home of the Tolpuddle Martyrs, No.6 National Autocross Championship. The They explained it was Tom Walkinshaw the a group of 19th century agricultural labourers Anglia was now out to 1650 cc and ran a twin fellow I had just raced against and who had who were arrested and convicted of swearing cam engine on Webers! just piped me. We remained friends, but I fi led a secret oath as members of a friendly society! His hobby became more serious, and his that conversation away to see what the future That was deemed to be an illegal version of fi rst year of circuit racing was in 1971 with would bring!" In his category Win won ten a trade union and in the 1830s seven were an MG Midget. In 1972 he won all three of the eleven rounds that year, took the class sentenced to transportation to Australia. televised World of Sport Rally Cross events championship and was second outright. He He was apprenticed as a motor mechanic driving a Datsun 180B SSS, and in 1974 and also won his class in the 500 km Silverstone at the local garage, then in the early 1960s he now the proprietor of the garage in Tolpuddle, Tourist Trophy, then backed it up in 1975 with and Rosemary attended a local stock car race he turned professional and won the British the same result in the works Toyota. In 1977 meeting where organisers invited spectators to Modifi ed Sports Car Championship with a he moved on to a Ford Capri and won two bring their cars onto the track and race against Datsun 240Z. other races in an Aston Martin DB5. the clock for a trophy. Win drove his standard In those days being a professional driver He has never had instruction in race driving, Ford Anglia 100E – and cleaned up! in Britain meant being paid £2000 or £3000 his talent is truly natural, and in 1978 he “I had never driven a car sideways, but a year, but in 1975 he contested the British formed his own Toyota Celica team and took thought: ‘How good is this’! I joined the local Touring Car Championship, an event he would out second in class in the BTCC.