Christopher Adrian Craft (17 November 1939 – 20 February 2021) was a British racing driver who competed in many different forms of motor sport.

Biography

Craft was born in Porthleven,

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

and began his career in 1962, with a

Ford Anglia The Ford Anglia is a small family car that was designed and manufactured by Ford UK. It is related to the Ford Prefect and the later Ford Popular. The Anglia name was applied to various models between 1939 and 1967. In total, 1,594,486 Angli ...

and became recognised as a leading saloon car racer, particularly with the Team Broadspeed Escort which he campaigned from 1968 to 1970. Having also previously driven a Tecno in

Formula Three Formula Three (F3) is a third-tier class of open-wheel formula racing. The various championships held in Europe, Australia, South America and Asia form an important step for many prospective Formula One drivers. History Formula Three (adop ...

, he moved to sports cars from 1968, initially with a Chevron and then joined forces with Alain de Cadenet to drive his Porsche 908 and McLaren M8C. It was this association that led to his participation in two World Championship

Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...

Grands Prix, in 1971, driving a

Brabham BT33 The list below summarizes Brabham racing cars built by Motor Racing Developments in the United Kingdom. Note that many of the earlier models are badged as Repco Brabhams. References

{{reflist British racecar constructors, Brabham Brabham ...

prepared by Cadenet's team ''Ecurie Evergreen'', but he failed to score a championship point. He did not qualify for his first World Championship race (the 1971 Canadian Grand Prix at

Mosport Park Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (formerly Mosport Park and Mosport International Raceway) is a multi-Race track, track motorsport venue located north of Bowmanville in Clarington, Ontario, Canada, approximately 75 kilometers (47 miles) east of To ...

) but would have been able to start the race following the withdrawal of two other drivers due to accidents in the raceday warm-up sessions. However, his own car suffered engine trouble, denying him the opportunity. His second Grand Prix, at Watkins Glen ended with a suspension failure and tyre problems during the race. Craft continued to compete in many other forms of motor racing, including saloon cars, notably with a Ford Capri; sports cars, including a period with the

Dome A dome () is an architectural element similar to the hollow upper half of a sphere. There is significant overlap with the term cupola, which may also refer to a dome or a structure on top of a dome. The precise definition of a dome has been a m ...

team in the early 1980s;

Formula 3 Formula Three (F3) is a third-tier class of open-wheel formula racing. The various championships held in Europe, Australia, South America and Asia form an important step for many prospective Formula One drivers. History Formula Three (adop ...

and

Formula 5000 Formula 5000 (or F5000) was an Open-wheel car, open wheel, single seater auto-racing formula that ran in different series in various regions around the world from 1968 to 1982. It was originally intended as a low-cost series aimed at open-wheel ...

. Craft won the 1973 European Sportscar Championship in a Lola T92. One of the highlights of his career was a third-place finish in the 1976 24 Hours of Le Mans. After his race career Chris Craft started the Light Car Company with F1 designer Gordon Murray to build the Light Car Company Rocket.

Racing record

Complete British Saloon Car Championship results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap.) † Events with 2 races staged for the different classes.

Complete Formula One results

( key)

References

External links

Profile at www.grandprix.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Craft, Chris 1939 births 2021 deaths English racing drivers English Formula One drivers British Touring Car Championship drivers People from Porthleven Sportspeople from Cornwall 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers World Sportscar Championship drivers 20th-century English sportsmen