Chris Amon was born into a wealthy sheep farming family in New Zealand and went on to become on the most highly regarded race drivers of his era despite his apparent lack of success. He learnt to drive on the family farm at the age of six and as soon as he had his driving licence he began to compete in local races and hillcllimbs.
BRITISH GRAND PRIX 1976
He acquired a Cooper Climax and took part in the winter series where his driving caught the attention of Reg Parnell who invited Amon to take part in tests in the UK in 1962 where he was able to demonstrate his natural skill. Impressed by what he had seen, Reg Parnell offered him a drive in his grand prix team for 1963. His first race was at Monaco but the car of his experienced team-mate, Maurice Trintignant, suffered mechanical problems so he took over Amon’s car; Amon’s Formula 1 debut had to wait. Despite having to race an elderly Lola he usually qualified in the middle of the field, usually ahead of a variety of team-mates. In 1964 he scored his first championship points but he suffered continual disappointments as the unreliable cars he was given rarely made it to the finish. The following season saw him lose his seat when a change to BRM engines led to the team accepting a BRM-supported driver; Bruce McLaren stepped in and signed Amon despite not having a car for him to race in Formula 1 so he was consigned to the McLaren sports cars team during 1965 with an occasional foray into Formula 2. A deal was agreed to race for the Cooper F1 team in 1966 but he was replaced when John Surtees arrived having suddenly left Ferrari but the year saw Amon partner Bruce McLaren in a Ford MkII at Le Mans. It was to be Amon’s most noteable victory, albeit in controversial circumstances due to Ford’s plan to stage a formation finish. But a win in Formula 1 was proving elusive. This was usually down to back luck in most cases when his car failed when he appeared to be en route to victory. However his driving and obvious talent did not go unnoticed and soon led to invitation to join the Ferrari team for 1967 but it was turbulent year for the Italian marque due to a driver retiring, a fatal accident at Monaco and Mike Parkes breaking his legs. Amon was the team’s sole driver for the year and four podium finishes saw him finish fifth in the championship but he found greater success in sports cars, winning two world championship rounds and, partnered with Jackie Stewart, finished second at the BOAC 500 to secure the title for Ferrari, a single point ahead of Porsche. 1967 was to be his most successful year but he continued to race and took part in 96 grand prix driving for a total of thirteen grand prix teams, including his own team, until 1977 when he realised he was no longer enjoying his racing having accepted his quest for a grand prix victory was not to be.
The photograph shows Chris Amon during the 1976 British grand prix driving an Ensign, a car designed and built by Mo Nunn. He qualified the car in sixth place on the grid and was fortunate to avoid the first-lap mayhem when the two Ferrari’s collided and took out a number of other cars. The race was stopped but following the restart, the Ensign managed to last for just six laps before engine problems forced Amon to retire the car before any serious damage occurred.
From ‘Moments in Motorsport’ by Trevor Legate.
