Ferrari Race History

"1961-RAC-TT-250-GT-SWB..."

This year, 2011, is the 50th anniversary of Stirling's 1961 RAC Tourist Trophy win racing a Ferrari 250 GT SWB. To celebrate this anniversary we look back in detail at Stirling's career racing the cars that carried the famous prancing horse of Maranello.
 

He raced a Ferrari on 14 occasions, winning 12 of the races he entered and taking 10 fastest laps, a remarkable driving record, below we have provided the key facts in tabular form on every single race he contested in the marque.

"250-GT-SWB-1961-Le-Mans..."

Of the two races Stirling did not win, the first was the 1961 Le Mans when the radiator hose was cut by a fan blade, boiling all the water away, a consequence of the team leaving a road going cooling fan in the car which blew apart. At the time he was third overall with team mate Graham Hill, leading the GT Class in a Ferrari 250 GT SWB.



 

"Ferrari-250-TR62-Sebring..."

The second occasion was in a Ferrari 250 TR 62 he was racing with Innes Ireland at Sebring 12 Hours, which was disqualified because the mechanics put in fuel when in fact the car had come in for brake linings.



Of all the Ferraris Stirling raced, the one that stood out was the Ferrari 250 GT Sperimentale, chassis 2643GT, the prototype 250 GTO. He raced this car to a class win in the Daytona 3 hours in February 1962. On reflection, Stirling recalls that this race was part of the process of integrating himself with the Ferrari family in readiness for the 1962 season.



 

"250-GT-Sperimentale..."

At the end of 1961, Enzo Ferrari approached Stirling about the possibility of driving for Ferrari in 1962. Despite the animosity that had existed between Ferrari and Stirling over the years, they agreed to a secret meeting and letting bygones be bygones came up with a compromise for the 1962 season.


The plan was for Stirling to race a works Ferrari Formula 1 car, in the Rob Walker Racing colours, and a Ferrari 250 GTO in the light green of the British Racing Partnership (BRP). In addition he would also be given a Ferrari 246S sports car to drive.

"246-S..."

Stirling was looking forward to the prospect of racing a F1 Ferrari and was pleased that Enzo had accepted that Rob Walker could run the car, with Alf, his mechanic, looking after it, with the car based at Maranello. The Ferrari 250 GTO, chassis 3505GT, Stirling was to race across the 1962 Easter weekend was delivered directly to Goodwood by the Ferrari UK agents, Maranello Concessionaires. Stirling drove the GTO in a wet practice on the Saturday, fate then intervened, and his Ferrari and racing career was ended all too abruptly.

"1961-Monza-250GTO-2053GT..."