John Rhodes

Nationality:	British	Races Entered:	1
Date of Birth:	8 August, 1927	DNQ/DNPQ:	-
Car:	Cooper-Climax (1965)	Best Result:	DNF (38 laps) Britain, 1965

BIOGRAPHY

Before Formula One

In the 50th anniversary edition of Autosport in July 2000, the magazine picked five British drivers and cars which epitomised the five decades from the 50s to the 90s. For the 1960s they chose Paddy Hopkirk and the Mini Cooper S in which he won the 1964 Monte Carlo Rally. An indisputable choice perhaps, all things considered, but if they were looking for someone who was indubitably associated with the Mini, they could have just as easily gone for John Rhodes, from Wolverhampton in Staffordshire. Here was a man who spent most of his career associated with British Motor Corporation (BMC) products, and who made his name throwing a Mini around in tyre-shrieking fashion in the British Saloon Car Championships of the mid-1960s. A late started in motor racing, though, he began his career in 1958, when he had occasional speed event outings in the Turner belonging to John Handley, taking a class win in the Lydstep Hillclimb that year.

In 1959 he embarked upon a single-seater career that would later be overshadowed by his tin-top exploits. He began racing in Formula Junior, the class which ran from 1959 to 1963 as the forerunner to F3, featuring cars with 1.0 or 1.1 litre engines. Rhodes built his own car, intending it to be shared between himself and a friend. But after one solitary drive, his friend decided he had had enough of racing, leaving Rhodes on his own, although he would take the opportunity to go from strength to strength. The next year, 1960, saw Rhodes build three more Formula Junior cars using the Cooper factory at Surbiton. In his own car, fitted with a BMC engine, he took wins at Linton-on-Ouse and Mallory Park, also collecting three other podium finishes. In 1961, with his Cooper entered by a group called the Midland Racing Partnership, he won the Irish Formula Junior title with wins at Phoenix Park, Kirkistown and Dunboyne, and also took four wins in Britain at Snetterton, Mallory Park twice, and Silverstone.

Apart from Formula Junior races, another mode of racing that was in vogue back then and which has since disappeared were Formula Libre races, events open to different classes of cars. Although his Cooper was down on power, in 1961 he still took a win at Mallory Park and four other top-three results. Then in 1962, switching to drive an Alexis and an Ausper Ford in Formula Junior, he won at Brands Hatch. He also took two Libre victories in a Cooper T59 owned by Bob Gerard, both at Mallory Park. For 1963 he returned to driving a works Cooper in Formula Junior, this time for the team run by the great Ken Tyrrell. Having returned to the BMC fold, he also raced a Mini for the first time in the British Saloon Car Championship. But perhaps this commitment in two vastly different forms of racing was too great. In Formula Junior he could manage no better than two 6th places at Oulton Park and Goodwood, and in the Mini he came 8th with Rob Slotemaker at Brands Hatch, and took a 3rd and two 4ths in his class.

However, at the start of 1964 he discovered a way to adapt open-wheeler driving to saloon cars. Rhodes was testing one of Gerard's F1 cars at Silverstone at the same time as the Mini Cooper team. After a run in the F1 machine, he asked to step into the Mini. Naturally finding it comparatively powerless and brakeless, he threw the car into turn one sideways, tyres smoking and wailing. To Rhodes this seemed a perfectly good way to go fast, even if it led to a wonderfully exaggerated 'elbows high' style inside the car. And so in 1964 he attacked the British Saloon Car Championship with gusto, literally. He ended up 9th overall in his Mini, even winning the Motor 3 Hours at Mallory Park with Warwick Banks. He also came 3rd at Brands Hatch, and drove in a few long-distance events with Slotemaker, including the Coppa Europa at Monza, taking a number of class wins along the way. Also continuing to race in what was now F3 in his Cooper BMC, he recorded a best result of 4th at Zandvoort.

But 1965 would be his best year yet in the Mini, winning the 1300cc class in the British Saloon Car Championship with many class victories, including at Crystal Palace and in the Ilford Films Trophy at Mallory Park. In terms of outright results, he claimed 3rd at Silverstone, 4th at Oulton Park and 5th at Brands Hatch, no mean feats considering the engine capacity advantage he gave away. In another BMC product, an MGB, Rhodes also took out the Guards 1000 race at Brands Hatch with Banks co-driving. That year he also made his Le Mans 24hrs debut, driving an Austin Healey Sprite with hard-charging Australian driver Paul Hawkins, coming home a very respectable 12th. In terms of open-wheeler racing, Rhodes had a much-reduced program though. He had one start in a Gerard-run Cooper T73 with an SCA engine in the Italian F2 round at Enna, finishing 5th in heat one but not being classified in the final. In another Gerard car, a Cooper T60 Climax, he was also 4th in a Libre race at Mallory Park.

Formula One

However, it was with this very same Cooper T60 with a Climax 1.5 litre V8 engine that Rhodes made his one and only World Championship Grand Prix start at the 1965 British Grand Prix at Silverstone. This was by no means his first race in a Formula One specification car though. In 1962, in that Gerard Cooper T59 with which he won two Libre races, he had also competed in the non-championship F1 International Trophy at Silverstone where he had qualified 17th and finished 13th, 3 laps down. And although he also raced that Cooper T73 in F2 specification in 1965, when it came to the British GP Rhodes was saddled with the much older T60. When you consider that regular Gerard driver Alan Rollinson had both a Cooper T71 and T73 at his disposal, and that the works Cooper drivers, Bruce McLaren and Jochen Rindt, both had Cooper T77s, then it was not hard to realise that John was going to be at a disadvantage yet again. And in qualifying, it showed.

Rhodes qualified 21st and last on the grid with a time of 1:39.4. Pole-sitter Jim Clark, though, had scorched around Silverstone in his Lotus Climax in 1:30.8, and Ian Raby's Brabham BRM which was 20th was on a 1:36.0, some 3.4s faster than Rhodes. But strangely, Rollinson had done a 1:39.0, faster than Rhodes, yet he did not qualify whereas Rhodes did. On the other hand, Rhodes could take comfort from the fact that he had been miles faster than Brian Gubby, who had only managed a 1:45.1 in his Lotus. In a highly uneventful race, Rhodes trundled around at the back for 38 laps before succumbing to ignition problems in his T60, having driven for 179 kilometres. Clark eventually took the victory, ahead of Graham Hill's BRM, John Surtees' Ferrari, Mike Spence's Lotus, Jackie Stewart's BRM and Dan Gurney's Brabham. Subsequently, in what was to be his last open-wheeler race, Rhodes also participated in the non-championship F1 Sunday Mirror Trophy at Goodwood in the T60, coming home 8th.

After Formula One

Continuing in the Mini in 1966, Rhodes once again took out the 1300cc class of the British Saloon Car Championship with a host of class victories. Not surprising considering that his outright results included a brilliant win at Crystal Palace, three 2nds at Oulton Park, Brands Hatch and Goodwood, and a 3rd at Brands Hatch. In addition, he had two sports car outings, finishing 9th outright but 1st in the 1600cc class in the Targa Florio with Timo Mäkinen in an MGB, but retiring at Le Mans in a Sprite with Clive Baker. 1967 saw Rhodes emerge victorious in his class in British Saloons yet again, for the third successive year, despite the fact that he was not as competitive as in previous seasons as newer, more advanced machines emerged, and had only recorded three class wins at Oulton Park, Mallory Park and Brands Hatch. Consistency, though, had been the key. In addition, he had one last sports car outing, driving an MGB with Mäkinen in the Sebring 12hrs, where they came a creditable 12th.

But 1968 would prove to be the crowning glory for Rhodes as far as Minis were concerned. Showing his prowess and experience, he won the 1300cc class of the British Saloon championship for the fourth time, with three more class wins, bringing his class victory tally from 1965 to 1968 up to 19. He then took out the World of Sport Rallycross event at Croft, and also the 1600cc class in the European Touring Car Championship, with class wins at Zolder, Zandvoort, Snetterton and Jarama and 29.5 points in total. This was a remarkable achievement, not least because Rhodes was driving a 1300cc car against 1600cc machines. However, by this stage the Mini was pumping out an amazing 120bhp. In addition, there was Rhodes' ultra-aggressive driving style, that often paid dividends but also ran the risk of burning out his tyres after making good starts, and which earned him the nickname 'Smoky'. Indeed, Dunlop technicians once recorded a temperature of 250 degrees Fahrenheit (120ºC) on one of the tyres he had been torturing!

His style meant that even if more powerful cars could get away on the straights, Rhodes could close right up and challenge under braking. Once when he was racing head-to-head against Sir Jack Brabham in a Chevrolet Camaro, the Australian pulled away on the straights only for Rhodes to catch up, slide in and most of the time touch his rival's car into the corner. At one stage Brabham got annoyed and shook his fist at Rhodes, only to later apologise for losing his cool! It certainly was a different era back then. But after such wonderful achievements in 1968, for 1969 Rhodes lost his works backing, and his results predictably dropped. However, he did claim outright 4th in the Anerley Trophy at Crystal Palace and at Mallory Park, plus one 2nd and three 4ths in class. He finished 7th overall and 2nd in class with Hopkirk at the Guards 6 Hours, and in rallycross events, he was victorious at Cadwell Park but couldn't defend his World of Sport title at Croft, settling for 2nd.

By 1970, he was already well into his forties, and if anything his time had probably passed as the Mini was no longer a competitive proposition. He still campaigned a Mini in rallycross events, but in saloon cars raced an unreliable Steinmetz Opel Commodore. Subsequently in 1972 he drove a works Group 1 Opel Ascona but achieved little by way of results, and in 1973, as if he had gone full circle, he once again drove cars for John Handley, having occasional outings in his production sports Triumph TR6. Slipping out of competitive racing, Rhodes is still revered by Mini enthusiasts to this day for his giant-killing achievements of the mid-1960s. It is no surprise then that these days he is an Honorary Member of the Mini Cooper Register - a club dedicated to remembering the famous marque. Rhodes often attends this club's meetings and festivals. He has also done promotional work for contemporary models of the Mini Cooper on sale today. You can visit the Register online at MiniCooper.org.

CAREER SUMMARY

Before Formula One
1958	• Competed in speed event outings in a Handley Turner, 1 class win.
1959	• Began competing in Formula Junior.
1960	• Formula Junior, 3 wins in a Cooper BMC.
1961	• Irish Formula Junior, 1st overall, 3 wins in a Midland Racing Partnership Cooper BMC. • British Formula Junior, 4 wins in a Midland Racing Partnership Cooper BMC. • Formula Libre events, 1 win.
1962	• Formula Junior, 1 win in an Alexis and an Ausper Ford. • Formula Libre events, 2 wins in a Gerard Cooper T59.
1963	• Formula Junior in a Tyrrell Cooper BMC. • British Saloon Car Championship in a Mini Cooper.
1964	• British Saloon Car Championship, 1 outright win, numerous class wins in a Mini Cooper. • Competed in F3 in a Cooper BMC.
1965	• British Saloon Car Championship, 1st in the 1300cc class, numerous class wins in a Mini Cooper. • Guards 1000 event, 1st place in a BMC MGB with Banks. • Le Mans 24hrs, 12th place in an Austin Healey Sprite with Hawkins. • Italian F2, 1 start in a Gerard Cooper T73 SCA. • Competed in one Formula Libre event in a Gerard Cooper T60 Climax.
Formula One
1962	• International Trophy, 13th place in a Gerard Cooper T59.
1965	• Bob Gerard Cooper T60 Climax V8, 1 entry at the British GP. • Sunday Mirror Trophy, 8th in a Gerard Cooper T60 Climax.
After Formula One
1966	• British Saloon Car Championship, 1st in 1300cc class, 1 outright win, numerous class wins in a Mini Cooper. • Sport Car World Championship, 2 starts in a BMC MGB with Mäkinen and in an Austin Healey Sprite with Baker.
1967	• British Saloon Car Championship, 1st in 1300cc class, 3 class wins in a Mini Cooper. • Sebring 12hrs, 12th in a BMC MGB with Mäkinen.
1968	• British Saloon Car Championship, 1st in 1300cc class, 3 class wins in a Mini Cooper. • European Touring Car Championship, 1st in 1600cc class, 29.5 points, 4 class wins in a Mini Cooper. • World of Sport Rallycross event, 1st place in a Mini Cooper.
1969	• British Saloon Car Championship in a private Mini Cooper. • Guards 6 Hours, 7th overall, 2nd in class in a Mini Cooper with Hopkirk. • Competed in rallycross events, 1 win in a Mini Cooper. • World of Sport Rallycross event, 2nd place in a Mini Cooper.
1970	• British Saloon Car Championship in a Steinmetz Opel Commodore. • Competed in rallycross events in a Mini Cooper.
1972	• British Saloon Car Championship in an Opel Ascona.
1973	• Competed in production sports racing in a Handley Triumph TR6.

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