William Pitt (1926–2017) was an Australian former racing driver and motor racing official. For most of his racing career Pitt was associated with

Jaguar The jaguar (''Panthera onca'') is a large felidae, cat species and the only extant taxon, living member of the genus ''Panthera'' that is native to the Americas. With a body length of up to and a weight of up to , it is the biggest cat spe ...

s, competing with

XK120 The Jaguar XK120 is a sports car manufactured by Jaguar Cars, Jaguar between 1948 and 1954. It was Jaguar's first sports car since SS Jaguar 100, SS 100 production ended in 1939. The XK120 was launched in open two-seater or (US) Roadster (automo ...

and D-Type sports cars, a Mark VIII rally car and a

Mark 1 Mark 1 is the first chapter of the Gospel of Mark in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. It recounts the proclamation of John the Baptist, the baptism of Jesus Christ, his temptations and the beginning of his ministry in Galilee. Text ...

touring car with the assistance of

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

's Jaguar agents Cyril and Geordie Anderson of Westco Motors. Pitt first became involved in racing as an official at the

1948 Australian Grand Prix The 1948 Australian Grand Prix was a motor race held at the Point Cook Aerodrome,Programme, Australian Grand Prix, Australia Day 26 January 1948, Point Cook Aerodrome a Royal Australian Air Force base at Point Cook, just outside Melbourne in Victo ...

, but gradually moved into competing himself. By the mid-1950s he was a front running sports car driver. Pitt co-drove a

Jaguar XK120 The Jaguar XK120 is a sports car manufactured by Jaguar between 1948 and 1954. It was Jaguar's first sports car since SS 100 production ended in 1939. The XK120 was launched in open two-seater or (US) roadster form at the 1948 London Motor Sho ...

to a four lap victory in what for 48 years was Australia's only 24-hour motor race, the 1954 Mount Druitt 24 Hours Road Race, driving with Geordie Anderson and Charles Swinburne. In 1956 Anderson purchased a

Jaguar D-Type The Jaguar D-Type is a sports racing car that was produced by Jaguar Cars Ltd. between 1954 and 1957. Designed specifically to win the Le Mans 24-hour race, it shared the straight-6 XK engine and many mechanical components with its C-Type ...

in which Pitt placed fourth behind two factory-entered

Maserati Maserati S.p.A. () is an Italian luxury vehicle manufacturer. Established on 1 December 1914 in Bologna, Italy, the company's headquarters are now in Modena, and its emblem is a trident. The company has been owned by Stellantis since 2021. Ma ...

s and a

Ferrari Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello. Founded in 1939 by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988), the company built Auto Avio Costruzioni 815, its first car in 1940, adopted its current name in 1945, and be ...

in the

Australian Tourist Trophy The Australian Tourist Trophy is a Confederation of Australian Motor Sport-sanctioned national motor racing title, contested between 1956 and 1979 by Group A Sports Cars, Sports Cars and, since 2007, by Australian GT Championship, GT cars. The t ...

at Albert Park in November of that year.John Blanden, Historic Racing Cars in Australia, page 178 The car was badly damaged the following weekend, but was rebuilt and, with Pitt driving, became the dominant feature of Australian sports car racing. Frequently, because of his domination of sports car racing, Pitt raced the D-Type against Grand Prix type machinery in search of competition, finishing third in the 1957 Queensland Road Racing Championship, a race which counted towards the

1957 Australian Drivers' Championship The 1957 Australian Drivers' Championship was a CAMS-sanctioned Australian motor racing title for drivers of Formula Libre cars. The championship was contested over a nine race series with the winner awarded the 1957 CAMS Gold Star.The CAMS G ...

.1957 Gold Star race results, dandsshaw/images
Retrieved via web.archive.org on 11 September 2013 The D-Type was sold in 1959 and Pitt and Anderson next invested in a

Jaguar Mark 1 The Jaguar Mark 1 is a British luxury saloon car produced by Jaguar between 1955 and 1959. It was referred to in contemporary company documentation as the Jaguar 2.4 Litre and Jaguar 3.4 Litre. Its designation as Mark 1 was retroactive, follow ...

Saloon to race in the growing touring car category. After finishing second behind David McKay in the

1960 Australian Touring Car Championship The 1960 Australian Touring Car Championship was a Confederation of Australian Motor Sport, CAMS sanctioned motor racing title for drivers of Appendix J Touring Cars. The title, which was the inaugural Australian Touring Car Championship, was c ...

, Pitt became the first

er to win the title, achieving the victory at his home circuit,

Lowood Lowood is a rural town and Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in the Somerset Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Lowood had a population of 4,082 people. Geography The town is on the Brisbane River, west of th ...

, in

1961 Events January * January 1 – Monetary reform in the Soviet Union, 1961, Monetary reform in the Soviet Union. * January 3 ** United States President Dwight D. Eisenhower announces that the United States has severed diplomatic and cons ...

.Graham Howard & Stewart Wilson, The Australian Touring Car Championship, 30 Fabulous Years, 1990, pages 26-32 Pitt retired from racing in 1963 but continued in his role as a

representative of the National Control Council of the

Confederation of Australian Motor Sport Motorsport Australia, formerly the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport (CAMS), is the nationally recognised governing and sanctioning body for four-wheeled motorsport Motorsport or motor sport are sporting events, competitions and relate ...

until 1964.

Career results

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pitt, Bill 1926 births 2017 deaths Australian Touring Car Championship drivers Racing drivers from Brisbane Racing drivers from Queensland