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| Born | (1913-03-15)15 March 1913 Horley,Surrey, England, UK |
|---|---|
| Died | 7 February 2002(2002-02-07) (aged 88) Rugby,Warwickshire, England, UK |
| Formula One World Championship career | |
| Nationality |  British |
| Active years | 1953,1955 –1961 |
| Teams | HWM,Connaught,BRM,Cooper,Ferguson |
| Entries | 13 (12 starts) |
| Championships | 0 |
| Wins | 0 |
| Podiums | 0 |
| Career points | 5 |
| Pole positions | 0 |
| Fastest laps | 0 |
| First entry | 1953 British Grand Prix |
| Last entry | 1961 Italian Grand Prix |
John Eric George "Jack" Fairman (15 March 1913 – 7 February 2002) was a Britishracing driver fromEngland.[1] He participated in 13Formula One Grands Prix, making his debut on 18 July 1953. He scored a total of five championship points, all of which came in the1956 season.[2]
Fairman was born inHorley, and was only an occasional racing driver, his main source of income coming from running the family precision tool manufacturing company. He got his first taste of motorsport beforeWorld War II, driving anAlvis 12/50 intrials andhill climb events from 1934. He quickly moved on to races at theBrooklands circuit, but the war intervened and he spent the duration on active service in theTank Corps.
Postwar, Fairman's reliable and dogged driving attributes saw him achieve many successes insports car racing, particularly in endurance events. He drove for a number of top-rank teams during this time, includingBristol,Jaguar,Ecurie Ecosse, andAston Martin. It was with Aston that Fairman won his most significant events, partneringStirling Moss in the 1959Nürburgring 1000 km, andTourist Trophy atGoodwood. He also made a briefFormula One debut at the1953 British Grand Prix, driving and retiring anHWM 53.
His engineering experience and dependable driving made him an obvious choice for constructors to contact when they needed a test driver. His most significant contribution in this role was during the development ofConnaught'sFormula Two and later Formula One cars. Between sports car commitments and his own factory, Fairman managed to fit in occasional Formula One starts, usually at theBritish orItalian Grands Prix. He took aConnaught Type B to two points finishes during the1956 Formula One season, his only points in a very long Formula One career, finishing tenth in the World Championship that year.
FollowingBernie Ecclestone's purchase of the remains of Connaught in 1958, Fairman continued with his sporadic Formula One career in a wide variety of machines. His only notable entry in the years that followed was when he became simultaneously the last man ever to start a Grand Prix with afront engined carand the first to drive afour-wheel drive car, at the1961 British Grand Prix. The car in question was the experimentalFerguson P99, designed byFerguson Research Ltd. and run by theRob Walker Racing Team. Unfortunately for Fairman, his RWR teammate Stirling Moss suffered brake failure in hisLotus 18 and took over the 4WD machine in Fairman's stead. Moss was then later disqualified for receiving a push start, which also ended Fairman's race. Fairman's last Formula One race was in the 1963 non-ChampionshipImola Grand Prix event, driving aPorsche forEcurie Maarsbergen.
Fairman died, aged 88, inRugby, Warwickshire. The pub chainWetherspoons has opened a pub named The Jack Fairman in his birthplace of Horley. Opened on 12 February 2007, it occupies the buildings in Victoria Road which originally housed Fairman's garage and has pictures of him around the walls and details can be located on their website. Prior to the pub opening, it was the localKwik Fit for many years.
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