The outfit that, like Ferrari, manufactured its own parts including the engine, scored 17 wins and 11 poles between its world championship debut in the 1951 British Grand Prix and its final proper F1 start, as Stanley BRM, in 1977.
Some of the era’s best drivers appeared for BRM and seven won points-paying races.
For this list Autosport assessed the amount of success the drivers scored with BRM, the impact they had on the team and the circumstances of their time there. We didn’t consider their achievements at other teams.
‘BRM starts’ include both world championship and non-championship F1 races, partly because the team persevered with F1 even when F2 became the focus for others in 1952-53.
10. Peter Gethin
Gethin winning the 1971 Italian GP by 0.01s
Photo by: Motorsport Images
BRM years: 1971-73
BRM starts: 23 (15 championship, 8 non-championship)
BRM wins: 2 (1 championship, 1 non-championship)
Gethin was already a multiple Formula 5000 champion when he joined BRM from McLaren partway through 1971. His third race for the team was the Italian GP, which became one of F1’s most famous events and helps to explain Gethin’s place on this list.
After losing the leading pack early on, Gethin worked to get himself back into slipstreaming range of the battle for victory. He then won a remarkable drag race to beat Ronnie Peterson’s March to the line by 0.01 seconds as 0.61s covered the top five. Gethin averaged a then-record 150.76mph.
Race of My Life: Peter Gethin on the 1971 Italian GP
The rest of Gethin’s time at BRM was more troubled as the team gradually lost competitiveness with its ageing V12 engines. He did, however, win the non-championship 1971 Victory Race at Brands Hatch, a contest shortened by the fatal crash of his team-mate Jo Siffert.
9. Jo Bonnier
Bonnier’s time at BRM gave the team much-needed momentum going into the 1960s
Photo by: Motorsport Images
BRM years: 1958-60
BRM starts: 24 (17 championship, 7 non-championship)
BRM wins: 1 (championship race)
Though not of the first rank, Bonnier was a solid performer and will always have a place in BRM history as the driver who gave the team its long-awaited maiden world championship Grand Prix victory.
Bonnier first raced for BRM at the end of 1957 and did so again at the close of 1958 before a full campaign the following season. Reliability was still a problem but the front-engined P25 was competitive, arguably the third quickest car of 1959.
After extensive testing at…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Autosport.com – Formula 1 – Stories…