John Rhodes became famous for his exploits at the wheel of his Mini Cooper S during the mid-1960s; it was not hard to spot his car amongst the pack as it was the one with smoke pouring from the front tyres as John flung his Cooper Car Company team Mini into the corners, forever hovering on the fine line between understeer and oversteer in a four-wheel drift.
His technique achieved numerous victories despite destroying tyres at an enormous rate (Goodyear technicians recorded front tyre temperatures of 120C). Despite becoming famous for his Mini exploits, John Rhodes raced a variety of machinery during his career including a one-off grand prix entry at Silverstone in 1965 at the wheel of a privately entered Cooper T60 that sadly failed to reach the chequered flag. He also raced at Le Mans, partnered with Paul Hawkins, scoring a class win in a Sebring Sprite and, with the Finnish rally driver Timo Makinen, finished an impressive ninth overall and first in class at the 1966 Targa Florio in their MGB. He retired from racing in 1973 in order to restore classic cars although he did enter the occasional historic race until an accident eventually persuaded him to hang up his helmet. The photograph shows his Cooper Cars Mini in the Brands Hatch paddock in September 1969.
From the book ‘Moments in Motorsport’ by Trevor Legate
