Gerry Marshall – man and myth

Today is the anniversary of the passing of a giant of British motorsport, the only thing taller than this man are the tales he inspired. Gerry Marshall won a record 625 races between 1964 and 2004 becoming a near-mythic racing character long before he left us for the great racetrack in the sky while at the wheel of an IROC Camaro at Silverstone on April 21st 2005. Ordinarily you would describe his passing from natural causes as peaceful, but I imagine that the cockpit of a V8 muscle car is anything but serene, although it would be accurate to say he went doing what he loved best, so he was certainly at peace in that regard.

My folks have always been partial to sport of the automotive variety, they recently shared this timely little glimpse into another era with me. Back when Gerry was hauling Vauxhalls around the great circuits of Britain my parents were fortunate enough to enjoy his company and his insights into top level saloon and sportscar racing. The year was 1976, but even in the time of Sheens and Hunts Gerry Marshall was unique. A man who was as big and burly as the cars he tamed, you could say that in the mid-1970s he was at his peak, but truth be told he was at his peak for 40 years. When I watched him race TVRs and Aston Martins in the 1990s it was the same supreme talent that my parents had witnessed in Vauxhalls and Minis when I was merely an apple in their eyes. The cars still danced to his tune and Gerry still looked and behaved like the antithesis of the modern sportsman, something he was loved for.

Gerry Marshall drove more cars than even he could care to remember, but the image that most readily comes to mind is of him manning the controls of a beastly Vauxhall such as the fire-breathing Firenza. My Mum was working for a Vauxhall dealership at the time and this consummate ambassador for the sport was very much the face of the marque during the 1970s. While visiting the garage he regaled them with stories from the pits and paddocks of the country, all delivered in his booming voice that always commanded attention. They cared to ask how he was beating all the young whipper-snappers coming up through the ranks, the answer was certainly not the full story, but it was as good an illustration of the times as it gets.

Before a race Gerry said he would invite some of the youngsters out for a drink with him so he could impart a little knowledge and get to know his soon to be vanquished competition. He got the rounds in while insisting that he always drinks a bit on race weekend and it never slows him down. The learner drivers presumably went against their instincts and thought that if Gerry did it, they all could. Come race day all the youngsters were nursing hangovers while Gerry was rested, well and prepared for a spot of opposite locking. Gerry Marshall was not your average racer; unlike all the other jockeys he was as big and burly as the cars he wrestled around the track and he could take his ale. It certainly seems as wise a strategy as anything Ross Brawn could come up with!

At the top of the page you can watch some magic footage from the custodians of British racing history at Duke Video. It’s a taster of what Gerry Marshall was all about as he takes you for a ride with him around Oulton Park. The man himself is your guide, sounding laid back on the commentary but driving with aplomb. The Vauxhall Firenza bucks and leans on its soft suspension, gliding high over the crests and dips of Cheshire’s mini-Nurburgring, every slide is caught by his outstretched arms almost before they’ve happened. This is Marshall at his best – there is no corner on the British motorsport calendar that he didn’t know as well as his own driveway and he wasn’t afraid to push on every lap. Seeing him behind the wheel of his beloved ‘Baby Bertha’, the car that came to define him, is an evocative and sorely missed sight for any British petrol-head.

If you want to read an awful lot more about this legendary character then take a look at Only Here For The Beer, his biography from 1978, available here on Amazon. The Marshall family also keep a very informative website running in the big man’s memory, the least you should do today is stop by www.gerrymarshall.com to read a little about his astounding career.

The 2009 BTCC title – it’s been emotional

Turkington and Plato tough it out into Paddock Hill

Phew, did you see the final meeting of the British Touring Car Championship at Brands? It was quite something, the best championship finale for the British tin toppers since Cleland and Soper got acquainted at Silverstone back in 1992. Colin Turkington took the title, but boy did he have to work hard as he diced with fellow contenders Fabrizio Giovanardi and Jason Plato for the crown over the final three race meeting. It was like the good old days of the BTCC; there was even a Ford battling it out at the front and to top it off there was a crowd of nineties proportions with over 35,000 packing into Brands’ natural amphitheatre.

Before taking to the majestic Brands GP circuit it was nice guy Turkington who held a narrow lead in the drivers championship in his West Surrey Racing BMW ahead of the Vauxhall of the gloriously unhinged double champion Fab Gio and the unlikely lad Plato in his reasonably priced car. Watching from the pitlane were four generations of the Northern Irish Turkington clan; this was going to be emotional.

In race one Tom Chilton led away from his shock pole position in the aforementioned Ford, but Jason Plato in his Racing Silverline Chevy Lacetti was putting him under pressure the entire way. Plato was the surprise member of the three championship protagonists, he only got the drive with days to go before the start of the season, but he gamely went down fighting ’til the bitter end. Tom Chilton’s Team Aon Ford Focus dominated the race from lights to flag. Almost. With only one corner to go Plato pounced and scored the narrowest BTCC victory of all time as he pipped Chilton by a mere 0.015s. Team Aon were denied their first win, but the spiky coiffured Chilton wasn’t done yet and continued to figure at the sharp end all day. Turkington was down in eighth which allowed Giovanardi and Plato to close that gap.

Race two and the championship tightened up still further as Plato once again had to find a way past Chilton who gamely fought to keep a train of quicker cars behind him. Alas, they soon bundled Tom out of the way with Plato starting the Ford’s demise by nudging him wide at Druids. I can’t get over how Jason gets away with so much rough stuff, but this time it did have the effect of prolonging the title battle to the final round as Giovanardi and Turkington followed the Chevy home. It was great to see the top three in the championship proving their status by locking out the podium. It was clear that with Gio’s Vauxhall teammate Matt Neal on the pole for race three that Turkington would need to deliver the drive of his life to hold onto his slender title lead.

After a thrilling Nascar-style side-by-side duel between almost everybody on lap one, leader Matt Neal played the team game and held up Turkington to put him within reach of Giovanardi. This put Plato in striking range too though and the old fox wasn’t out of the championship chase just yet.

Eventually Colin Turkington made a move on Matt which ended in contact, an unusual sight for the BMW pilot in ’09. Although Colin now had the lead he was visibly slower and did an incredible job of hanging onto the top spot until lap 15 when, you guessed it, Plato snatched it from him. But a rare three wins from three races wasn’t quite enough for Jason as championship leader Turkington refused to give in and took his wounded car to second, enough for the title.

Colin’s first BTCC championship brought out the cheers and tears from the team, the family, the man himself and me. Yep, I got all emotional about it, which I think is about right. It took me back to the halcyon days when I was first watching touring cars intently and a nice bloke scooped the honours. Let’s hope next year delivers more of the same.

Well, things won’t quite be the same next year as Vauxhall are leaving the sport after 20 years on the trot. The marque gathered all their previous works drivers except race-a-holic James Thompson who was off racing whatever touring car he could get his hands on, as per usual. From Jeff Allam to Yvan Muller, they were all there to pose by a selection of Vauxhall’s most successful 2 litre touring cars.

Vauxhall were the last of the works efforts in the BTCC, it looks like it will be all privateers next year as the big boys tighten their belts. That makes it seem rather apt that two independent runners, Turkington and Plato, took the first two spots on the leaderboard by season’s end. I doff my hat to both for putting on a mighty show at Brands and bravo to Vauxhall for supporting the sport so loyally for so long.

Those in Britain can still catch all the action on ITV4’s website.