Roy Pierpoint (15 May 1929 – 12 January 2023) was a British racing driver who drove in saloons and sports cars.
Racing career
His first race was in 1949, at a
BARC meeting driving a
Fiat 1100
The Fiat 1100 is a small family car produced from 1953 until 1969 by the Italian manufacturer Fiat. It was an all-new unibody replacement for the Fiat 1100 E, which descended from the pre-war, body-on-frame Fiat 508 C Balilla 1100. The 1100 wa ...
special, which he built himself: "very neat was Pierpont's (sic) F.I.A.T. 1,100 with aerodynamic but not all-enveloping bodywork, two
Amal Amal may refer to:
* Amal (given name)
* Åmål, a small town in Sweden
* Amal Movement, a Lebanese political party
** Amal Militia, Amal Movement's defunct militia
* Amal language of Papua New Guinea
* ''Amal'' (film), 2007, directed by Richi ...
carburetters, a neat silencer in its straight exhaust pipe and an oil-cooler ahead of the main radiator." He finished seventh in a 3-lap handicap.
Pierpoint raced very little after that until 1961. In 1962 he drove in several events including the
BRDC Trophy at
Silverstone
Silverstone is a village and civil parish in Northamptonshire, England. It is about from Towcester on the former A43 main road, from the M1 motorway junction 15A and about from the M40 motorway junction 10, Northampton, Milton Keynes and B ...
, the Guards Trophy and the Brands Six Hour Race where he finished third in his class alongside
Bruce Halford
Bruce Henley Halford (18 May 1931 – 2 December 2001) was a British racing driver from England. He was born in Hampton-in-Arden (then in Warwickshire) and educated at Blundell's School
Halford drove in Formula One from to , participating i ...
. Also that year, he achieved some success at
Hill Climb
Hillclimbing, also known as hill climbing, speed hillclimbing, or speed hill climbing, is a branch of motorsport in which drivers compete against the clock to complete an uphill course. It is one of the oldest forms of motorsport, since the firs ...
events. He continued in sports car racing in 1963 and 1964, again in the Guards Trophy. In 1968 he was in the
Nürburgring 1000 km race in a
Ford GT40
The Ford GT40 is a high-performance endurance racing car commissioned by the Ford Motor Company. It grew out of the "Ford GT" (for Grand Touring) project, an effort to compete in European long-distance sports car races, against Ferrari, which ...
, but did not finish. He competed in 1968 and 1969 at Denmark's
Jyllands-Ringen
FDM Jyllands-Ringen is a motor racing circuit
Circuit may refer to:
Science and technology
Electrical engineering
* Electrical circuit, a complete electrical network with a closed-loop giving a return path for current
** Analog circuit, ...
, with two wins from four races.
Pierpoint was best known for his time driving in the
British Saloon Car Championship
The Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship is a touring car racing series held each year in the United Kingdom, currently organised and administered by TOCA. It was established in 1958 as the British Saloon Car Championship and was renamed as ...
, with a total of fourteen race wins. In his first year in 1965, he won the Championship for
Alan Mann Racing
Alan Mann Racing was a British Motor sport, motor racing team organised by Alan Mann (22 August 1936 – 21 March 2012), who was a part-time racing driver and team manager. The team ran a substantial part of the Ford Motor Company, Ford works ra ...
, driving a V8 4.7-litre
Ford Mustang
The Ford Mustang is a series of American automobiles manufactured by Ford. In continuous production since 1964, the Mustang is currently the longest-produced Ford car nameplate. Currently in its sixth generation, it is the fifth-best selli ...
: "After a struggle throughout 1965 against the Austin Mini-Cooper S of
Warwick Banks
Warwick Banks (born 12 July 1939) is a British former racing driver. He was a race winner in British Formula Three for Tyrrell Racing during the 1960s and was teammate of Jackie Stewart during his first season in 1964. He won the European Tour ...
,.."
[''Racing Car Show 1966, Official Catalogue and Guide'', Page 11.] The championship was won after a protest against the car of
Jack Brabham
Sir John Arthur Brabham (2 April 1926 – 19 May 2014) was an Australian racing driver who was Formula One World Champion in , , and . He was a founder of the Brabham racing team and race car constructor that bore his name.
Brabham was a R ...
, which was found to have illegal modifications. He raced a
Ford Falcon
Ford Falcon is an automobile nameplate applied to several vehicles worldwide.
* Ford Falcon (North America), an automobile produced by Ford from 1960 to 1970.
* Ford Falcon (Argentina), a car built by Ford Argentina from 1962 until 1991.
* For ...
the following year, which was not competitive enough to defend his title. He stuck with the Falcon for another three years. In 1968 he finished fifth on points and in 1969 he finished third in the championship. He spent two more years in the BSCC, but did not come close to winning the title in a
Chevrolet Camaro
The Chevrolet Camaro is a mid-size American automobile manufactured by Chevrolet, classified as a pony car. It first went on sale on September 29, 1966, for the 1967 model year and was designed to compete with the Ford Mustang. The Camaro sh ...
.
Racing record
Complete British Saloon Car Championship results
(
key
Key or The Key may refer to:
Common meanings
* Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm
* Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock
* Key (ma ...
) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap.)
† Events with 2 races staged for the different classes.
References
External links
BTCC.net official profileHistoric Racing profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pierpoint, Roy
1929 births
2023 deaths
People from Weybridge
British Touring Car Championship drivers
British Touring Car Championship Champions
English racing drivers
12 Hours of Reims drivers