Peter Nield Whitehead (12 November 1914 – 21 September 1958) was a British racing driver. He was born in Menston, Yorkshire and was killed in an accident at Lasalle, France, during the Tour de France endurance race. A cultured, knowledgeable and well-travelled racer, he was excellent in sports cars. He won the 1938 Australian Grand Prix, which along with a 24 Heures du Mans win in 1951, probably was his finest achievement, but he also won two 12 Heures internationales de Reims events. He was a regular entrant, mostly for Peter Walker and Graham Whitehead, his half-brother. His death in 1958 ended a career that started in 1935 – however, he was lucky to survive an air crash in 1948.
Peter Whitehead | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Nationality | ![]() | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | Peter Nield Whitehead 12 November 1914 Menston, Yorkshire, England | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Died | 21 September 1958 Lasalle, France | (aged 43)||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/3/38/ERA_of_Peter_Whitehead%2C_1938_AGP.jpg/220px-ERA_of_Peter_Whitehead%2C_1938_AGP.jpg)
Early life and pre-war racing
editYorkshireman Whitehead, coming from a wealthy background, gained from the wool industry, started racing in a Riley when he was 19. He moved up to an ERA B-Type the following season and then scored the first major result for the Alta, when he finished third in the Limerick Grand Prix, a Formula Libre race. In 1936, he shared his ERA with Walker, and finished third in the Donington Grand Prix. He took the ERA to Australia in 1938 while touring on business, where he scored his first major victory, winning the 1938 Australian Grand Prix at Bathurst, as well as the inaugural Australian Hillclimb Championship. He returned in England in 1939 and gained a third place in the Nuffield Trophy.[1][2][3][4][5][6]
Post-war racing career
editDuring World War II, Whitehead was a pilot with the Royal Air Force, and he was back in competition as soon as racing was revived, taking his trusty ERA to second place in the British Empire Trophy, held at the Douglas Circuit on the Isle of Man in the summer of 1947. He also raced in the Lausanne Grand Prix, finishing sixth.[2][4][6][7]
In 1948, he survived a plane crash at Croydon Aerodrome, when he was on his way to Milano, to arrange the purchase a Ferrari 125. The accident left him badly hurt and out of racing for a year.[1][2][4][5][6]
Grand Prix racer
editPeter Whitehead and his good friend and co driver Dudley Folland are notable as being the first people to whom Enzo Ferrari ever sold a Formula One car: a Ferrari 125 in 1949. Dudley Folland had the car painted green, with a red Welsh Dragon painted on the bonnet, being a proud Welshman.
Peter won the Velká cena Československa. In doing so, he became the first Englishman to win a major international motor race outside of the United Kingdom since Richard Seaman. The following season, Whitehead made his debut in the Formula One championship at Monaco, but did not start. His next outing in the championship came in the Grand Prix l’A.C.F., where he came close to winning but was slowed with a gearbox problem which he dropped to third. That was to be his only podium finished in 11 championship starts between 1950 and 1954.[2][3][4][5][6][8][9]
During 1950 season, he won two minor Formula One races, the Jersey Road Race and the Ulster Trophy, but the biggest career victory came in Sports Cars. He continued to race and win in Formula Two across Europe. Later, he added victories in the 1954 Lady Wigram Trophy, in New Zealand, and repeated the feat in 1956 and 1957. He also won the 1956 Rand Grand Prix. All four of those victories, he was driving a Ferrari.[2]
Sports car racing
edit1950 saw Whitehead start his first 24 Hours of Le Mans race, together with John Marshall in a Jaguar XK120. The pair finished in 15th place. He teamed up with Peter Walker to win the 1951 race, however, in a Jaguar C-Type, at an average speed of 93.112 mph (149.849 km/h).[2][3][5][10]
In 1953, Whitehead decided to concentrate on sports cars, and in July, he saw more success sharing a Jaguar C-Type with Stirling Moss in the 12 Heures Internationales de Reims. He returned again in 1954, in a full works supported Jaguar D-Type to win the event again partnered by Ken Wharton. Prior to that first win at Reims, he also won the Hyères 12 Hours.[2][5][6][11][12]
Later in 1954, again paired with Wharton, he was placed sixth in the RAC Tourist Trophy road race.[13][14]
Death
editWhitehead's last great performance was at Le Mans in 1958 where he came second in an Aston Martin DB3S, sharing the driving with his half-brother, Graham. A couple of months later, on 21 September 1958, Peter and Graham were competing together in the Tour de France, when their Jaguar 3.4-Litre crashed off a bridge into a 30-foot (9.1 m) ravine at Lasalle, near Nîmes after overturning twice, with Graham at the wheel. Graham escaped with serious but not life-threatening injuries, but Peter was killed instantly.[2][3][4][5][15][16]
Racing record
editCareer highlights
editComplete Formula One World Championship results
edit(key)
Year | Entrant | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | WDC | Points |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1950 | Peter Whitehead | Ferrari 125 | Ferrari V12 | GBR | MON DNS |
500 | FRA 3 |
ITA 7 |
9th | 4 | ||||
Scuderia Ferrari | Ferrari 125 | Ferrari V12 | SUI DNA |
BEL | ||||||||||
1951 | Peter Whitehead | Ferrari 125 | Ferrari V12 | SUI Ret |
500 | BEL | FRA Ret |
GER | ITA Ret |
NC | 0 | |||
Ferrari 375 | Ferrari V12 | ESP DNA |
||||||||||||
G A Vandervell | Ferrari 375 Thinwall | Ferrari V12 | GBR 9 |
|||||||||||
1952 | Peter Whitehead | Alta F2 | Alta Straight-4 | SUI | 500 | BEL | FRA Ret |
NC | 0 | |||||
Ferrari 125/166 | Ferrari V12 | GBR 10 |
GER | NED | ITA DNQ |
|||||||||
1953 | Atlantic Stable | Cooper T24 | Alta Straight-4 | ARG | 500 | NED | BEL | FRA | GBR 9 |
GER | SUI | ITA | NC | 0 |
1954 | Peter Whitehead | Cooper T24 | Alta Straight-4 | ARG | 500 | BEL | FRA | GBR Ret |
GER | SUI | ITA | ESP | NC | 0 |
Source:[56]
|
Non-Championship Formula One results
edit(key)
Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans results
editYear | Team | Co-Drivers | Car | Class | Laps | Pos. | Class Pos. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1950 | P.C.D. Walker | John Marshall | Jaguar XK120 | S5.0 | 225 | 15th | 8th |
1951 | Peter Walker | Peter Walker | Jaguar C-Type | S5.0 | 267 | 1st | 1st |
1952 | Jaguar Ltd. | Ian Stewart | Jaguar C-Type | S5.0 | DNF (Head gasket) | ||
1953 | Jaguar Cars Ltd. | Ian Stewart | Jaguar C-Type | S5.0 | 297 | 4th | 3rd |
1954 | Jaguar Cars Ltd. | Ken Wharton | Jaguar D-Type | S5.0 | 131 | DNF (Gearbox) | |
1955 | Cooper Cars Co | Graham Whitehead | Cooper-Jaguar T38 | S5.0 | 36 | DNF (Oil pressure) | |
1957 | D. Brown | Graham Whitehead | Aston Martin DBR2 | S5.0 | 81 | DNF (Gearbox) | |
1958 | A.G. Whitehead | Graham Whitehead | Aston Martin DB3S | S3.0 | 293 | 2nd | 2nd |
Complete 12 Hours of Reims results
editYear | Team | Co-Drivers | Car | Class | Laps | Pos. | Class Pos. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1953 | P.N. Whitehead | Stirling Moss | Jaguar C-Type | S+2.0 | 243 | 1st | 1st |
1954 | Jaguar Cars Ltd. | Ken Wharton | Jaguar D-Type | 222 | 1st | 1st |
Complete 12 Hours of Hyères results
editYear | Team | Co-Drivers | Car | Class | Laps | Pos. | Class Pos. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1953 | P.N. Whitehead | Tom Cole | Jaguar C-Type | S+3.0 | 204 | 1st | 1st |
1954 | Peter Whitehead | Duncan Hamilton | Cooper-Jaguar T33 | DNS (Broken crankshaft) | |||
1955 | Graham Whitehead | Graham Whitehead | Aston Martin DB3S | DNF (Cooling) |
Complete 12 Hours of Pescara results
editYear | Team | Co-Drivers | Car | Class | Laps | Pos. | Class Pos. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1953 | Peter Whitehead | Duncan Hamilton | Jaguar C-Type | DNF (Steering) |
Complete 12 Hours of Casablanca results
editYear | Team | Co-Drivers | Car | Class | Laps | Pos. | Class Pos. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1953 | Graham Whitehead | Graham Whitehead | Aston Martin DB3 | S+2.0 | 5th | 4th |
References
edit- ^ a b c Brown, Allen. "Peter Whitehead". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i "Grandprix.com". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ a b c d "THE GOLDEN ERA OF GP RACING 1934-40 - DRIVERS (W)". Archived from the original on 12 September 2021. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ a b c d e "Peter Whitehead". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ a b c d e f "Peter Whitehead - Historical Research, in memory of David McKinney". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ a b c d e http://www.historicracing.com/driver_az/cfm?typer=drivers_alpha&tStartRow=1&AlphaIndex=W&driverID=1265[permanent dead link]
- ^ Galpin, Darren. "1947 Grands Prix". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ Richard Williams, “Enzo Ferrari: A Life" (Yellow Jersey Press, ISBN 0-224-05986-6, 2002)
- ^ "Grandprix.com". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ Two Britons Drive Record 93.112 M.P.H. For 24 Hours to Capture French Auto Race, New York Times, 25 June 1951, Page 24.
- ^ French Auto Races To British Drivers, New York Times, 6 July 1953, Page 22.
- ^ Article 3-No Title, New York Times, 5 July 1954, Page 15.
- ^ "Tourist Trophy 1954 - Race Results - Racing Sports Cars". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ Laureau, in French Car, Takes Ulster Trophy, 12 September 1954, Page S9.
- ^ "British Driver Killed On Tour in France". The New York Times. 21 September 1958. p. C2.
- ^ The Manchester Guardian, 22 September 1958, Page 2.
- ^ "F2 Register - Index".
- ^ a b c http://www.kolumbus.fi/leif-snellman/dw.htm[permanent dead link]
- ^ http://www.driversdb.com/championships/standings/australian-grand-prix/1938/[permanent dead link]
- ^ "F2 Register - Index".
- ^ "1948 British Empire Trophy - ChicaneF1.com". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ "1949 Czech GP - ChicaneF1.com". Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ "1949 Richmond Trophy - ChicaneF1.com". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ Galpin, Darren. "1949 Formula Libre Races". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ "1949 French GP - ChicaneF1.com". Archived from the original on 26 May 2018. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ "1950 Jersey Road Race - ChicaneF1.com". Archived from the original on 28 March 2016. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ "1950 Ulster Trophy - ChicaneF1.com". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ http://www.racingsportscar.com/results/Dundrod-1950-09-16-2063.html[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Results 1950 Formula 1 Grand Prix of France - F1-Fansite.com". www.f1-fansite.com. 2 July 1950.
- ^ http://www.chicanef1.cpm/race.pl?year=1950&gp=BRDC%20International%20Trophy&r=1&type=final[permanent dead link]
- ^ "1950 F1 Results & Standings Schedule - F1-Fansite.com". 16 January 1950.[permanent dead link]
- ^ "Le Mans 24 Hours 1951 - Race Results - Racing Sports Cars". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ "F2 Register - Index".
- ^ "F2 Register - Index".
- ^ Galpin, Darren. "1951 Formula Libre Races". Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ "1951 Non-World Championship Formula One Races". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ "Formula 2 1951 - GP Rouen". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ "Hyères 12 Hours 1953 - Race Results - Racing Sports Cars". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ "12 h Reims 1953 - Race Results - Racing Sports Cars". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ "Formula 2 1953 - Oulton Park". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ "Formula 2 1953 - RedeX Trophy". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ a b "Formula 2 1953 - AMOC F2, Snetterton". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ "9 h Goodwood 1953 - Race Results - Racing Sports Cars". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ "1954 Other Races". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ "12 h Reims 1954 - Race Results - Racing Sports Cars". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ "Circuito do Porto 1954 - Race Results - Racing Sports Cars". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ "1955 NZGP". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ a b "1956 Other Races". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ http://teamdan.com/archive/www2/flibre/56fibre.html[permanent dead link]
- ^ "GP Ardmore 1956 - Race Results - Racing Sports Cars". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ "1956 NZGP". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ http://www.driversdb.com/championships/standings/australian-grand-prix/1956/[permanent dead link]
- ^ a b c "1957 Other Races". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ "1957 NZGP". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ "Le Mans 24 Hours 1958 - Race Results - Racing Sports Cars". Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ Small, Steve (1994). The Guinness Complete Grand Prix Who's Who. Guinness. p. 400. ISBN 0851127029.
Further reading
edit- Small, Steve (1994). The Guinness Complete Grand Prix Who's Who. Guinness. p. 400. ISBN 0851127029.
External links
edit- Peter Whitehead: 1954 Formula One Season By Jeremy McMullen [1]
- Peter Whitehead summary of driving career with Jaguar Cars