Johnny Claes

Johnny Claes

Former F1 driver
Name = Johnny Claes
Nationality = flagicon|Belgium Belgian / flagicon|UK British
Years = F1|1950 - F1|1953, F1|1955
Team(s) = Écurie Belge, Gordini, HWM, Maserati, Ecurie Nationale Belge
Races = 25 (23 starts)
Championships = 0
Wins = 0
Podiums = 0
Points = 0
Poles = 0
Fastest laps = 0
First race = 1950 British Grand Prix
First win =
Last win =
Last race = 1955 Dutch Grand Prix

Octave John "Johnny" Claes (11 August, 1916 in London – February 3, 1956 in Brussels) was a racing driver from Belgium, of Scottish mother and Belgian father. He was educated in England at Lord Williams's School.

Claes was one of several gentlemen drivers who took part in Grand Prix racing of post-WWII. His first contact with racing was at the 1947 French Grand Prix, where he served as interpreter for British drivers. He made his debut in 1948, in his own Talbot-Lago, raced under the "Ecurie Belge" banner. Although Claes never scored any points in the World Drivers Championship, he was, like many of his contemporaries, very active in non-Championship Grand Prix races and sports car races. His first win was at the 1950 Grand Prix des Frontières, held at the Chimay race track.

In April 1951 Claes crashed into a crowd while practicing at Sanremo, Italy. He was uninjured but an observer was killed and three onlookers were seriously injured. ["Racing Car Kills Fan", New York Times, April 21, 1951, Page 12.] In 1952 he exchanged his outdated Talbot for a Gordini, and later for a Connaught, always with the Ecurie Belge colours, but he also raced occasionally for works team, including Gordini and Maserati. He also won the 1953 Liège-Rome-Liège Rally and took a class win at the 1954 24 Hours of Le Mans. Claes teamed with Pierre Stasse to finish 12th in the 1954 24 Hours of Le Mans. They drove a Porsche. ["Gonzalez Defeats Rolt-Hamilton In 24-Hour Le Mans Auto Race", New York Times, June 14, 1954, Page 26.] Together with compatriot Jacques Swaters, Claes finished third in the 1955 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Later in 1955 Claes' health problems worsened, as he had contracted tuberculosis. Claes sold his outfit to Swaters, who merged it with his own Ecurie Francorchamps to form Ecurie Nationale Belge. Claes entered occasional events until the end of the year, but finally succumbed to the disease in 1956, aged 39.

Besides motor racing, Claes was also an enthusiast of jazz music, a jazz trumpeter and successful bandleader in Britain.

Complete World Championship Formula One results

()

References


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Johnny Claes — Nom de naissance Octave Jean Claes Surnom « Johnny » Naissance 11 août 1916 Londres Décès 3 février 1956 Bruxelles Nationalité …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Johnny Claes — Talbot Lago T26C Grand Prix (1948) von Johnny Claes im Spa Francorchamps Racing Museum Automobil /Formel 1 Weltmeisterschaft …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Claes — ist der Name von Astrid Gehlhoff Claes (Pseudonym: Astrid Claes; * 1928), deutsche Schriftstellerin Ernest Claes (1885–1968), flämischer Schriftsteller Heinrich Claes (1885–1963), Bürgermeister von Leverkusen Jean Baptiste Claes (* 1937),… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Claes —  Cette page d’homonymie répertorie des personnes (réelles ou fictives) partageant un même patronyme. Le patronyme Claes ou Claeys (Clays) provient du prénom néerlandais Klaas ou Niklaas (comme dans Sint Niklaas), anciennement écrit comme… …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Grand Prix automobile de Belgique 1950 — Grand Prix de Belgique 1950 Circuit de Spa Francorchamps Nombre de tours 35 Longueur …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Grand Prix automobile de Monaco 1950 — Grand Prix de Monaco 1950 Circuit de Monaco Nombre de tours 100 Longueur du circu …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Liste der Biografien/Cl — Biografien: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Grand Prix automobile de Grande-Bretagne 1950 — Grand Prix de Grande Bretagne 1950 Circuit de Silverstone Nombre de tours …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Grand Prix automobile de Suisse 1950 — Grand Prix de Suisse 1950 Circuit de Bremgarten Nombre de tours 42 …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Championnat du monde de Formule 1 1952 — Sport Formule 1 Création 1950 Organisateur(s) FIA Édition 3e …   Wikipédia en Français

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”