| Mike Beckwith | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | British |
| Born | Michael Geoffrey Beckwith (1935-03-15)15 March 1935 (age 90) Hendon,North London, UK |
| Years active | 1961–1971 |
Michael Geoffrey Beckwith[1] (born 15 March 1935)[2] is a British former racing driver from England who competed in various classes in the 1960s and 1970s including non-championshipFormula One and theLe Mans 24-hour race.
Beckwith was born inHendon,North London.[3]
Beckwith began his racing career in 1961, competing in two races with aLotus 11.His best finish was fourth, in his first race, atGoodwood, in March.[4]
1962 was Beckwith's first full season of racing. Using aLotus 23, entered by Normand, a motor dealership for whom he worked,[1] he achieved 6 victories and 6 other podium finishes out of 15 starts.[4]
In 1963, Beckwith competed in 18 races using the Lotus 23, aLotus Elite or anElva Mk VII. That year, his occasional teammate wasJim Clark.[5] He had one failure to finish and only three other results outside the top five.[4] The season included victories at the Prix de Paris and atMallory Park.[4] He also took part in theOulton Park Gold Cup using aLotus24-BRM entered by theBritish Racing Partnership. He retired after an accident on lap 17.[6] The race was his onlyFormula One entry.
In 1964, Beckwith won theMarlboro 12 hour race in aLotus Cortina, partnered byJackie Stewart.[7][8] He competed in domestic series using aLotus Elan. Although eight entries were made, he took part in five events with a best finish of third at Mallory Park. He also acted as test-driver forBRM.[9]
In 1965, out of six entries, the two events contested both resulted in wins at the Prix de Paris.[4]
In 1966, entries in the Lavant Cup atGoodwood and the Eagle Trophy atBrands Hatch yielded fourth place in the former.[4] However, he also drove inFormula Two (F2), entered by 'The Chequered Flag', with aBrabham-DAF (withVariomatic transmission). 16 races yielded one third- and one second-place.[1]
The Brabham was replaced by aGemini-DAF for 1967 and was slightly more successful with a win as well as other podium finishes. Four entries were also made byBob Gerard using aCooper T82.[1] The same year, Beckwith participated in theLe Mans 24 hour race, competing in the P1.5 class using a Costin-Nathan GT, designed byFrank Costin and Roger Nathan. Co-driven by Nathan, the car retired after five hours with an electrical fault.[10]
In 1968, Beckwith drove forA. G. Dean racing. Co-driven by Dean, in the latter'sFerrariDino 206 S, he retired from theBrands Hatch six-hour race. At theTourist Trophy, he finished 17th in Dean'sPorsche Caerrera 6.[4] In Formula Two, a move to aTecno chassis was not successful. The Tecno was the chassis of choice in 1968 but Beckwith's rivals used conventional gearboxes. He also drove in European Formula Two for David Bridges using aLola T100.[1]
In 1969, Beckwith was entered in the Brands Hatch six-hour race in a worksLotus62 (co-driven byMo Nunn). However they did not attend. An entry alongside Nathan in the Costin-designed car (renamed as Astra RNR1 after Costin withdrew) in the1000 km Monza was also not fulfilled. However, co-driven by Nathan, Beckwith finished 23rd in the car at theNürburgring 1000 km race.[4]
In 1970, Beckwith finished 16th in the Brands Hatch six-hour race in an Astra RNR2. co-driven again by Nathan, but did not finish in anInterserie event atHockenheim using agroup 7 Allegro sports car. An entry at the Nürburgring was not fulfilled.[4] This marked the end of Beckwith's major career, 1971 yielding only a non-finish atCroft in the Lotus 62.[4] He retired to concentrate on his career in the motor trade.[9]
(key)
| Year | Entrant | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1963 | British Racing Partnership | Lotus24 | BRMV8 | LOM | GLV | PAU | IMO | SYR | AIN | INT | ROM | SOL | KAN | MED | AUT | OUL Ret | RAN |