Jackie
Oliver

Jackie Oliver, whose full name is Keith Jack Oliver, was born in Chadwell Heath on 14 August 1942. He began racing in 1961 in a Mini in British club saloon events. In 1962 and 1963 he drove a Marcos GT for Ecurie Freeze, and in 1964 he ran a Lotus Elan in GT racing. Formula Three then proved frustrating, as mechanical failures held him back. Between 1966 and 1968 he took several class wins in the British Saloon Car Championship.

In 1967 he joined the Lotus Formula Two team. At the German Grand Prix he made his debut in a Formula One field, finishing fifth overall in an F2 car and winning the F2 class, though he was not eligible for points. After the death of Jim Clark, Colin Chapman brought him into the works Lotus team in 1968. He led the British Grand Prix until an engine failure ended his race, and he took third place in the season finale in Mexico. He ended the year 15th in the championship.

He drove for BRM in 1969 and 1970. His only points came from sixth place in Mexico in 1969 and fifth in Austria in 1970, leaving him 16th and 19th in the standings. In 1971 he started three races for McLaren, and in 1972 he made one start for BRM, which ended in retirement.

In endurance racing, Oliver won the 12 Hours of Sebring and the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1969 with Jacky Ickx, driving John Wyer's Gulf Ford GT40 for J.W. Automotive. In 1971 he won the 24 Hours of Daytona and the Monza 1000 km with Pedro Rodríguez. He was the second driver to complete the informal Triple Crown of endurance racing. He made his Can-Am debut in 1969 and won the title with Shadow in 1974.

Shadow entered Formula One in 1973 with Oliver as team leader. He was classified third in the Canadian Grand Prix, his second podium, and finished 14th in the championship. In 1977 he returned to Formula One for one more start with Shadow. At the end of that year he left the team and, with colleagues, founded Arrows. From 1978 to 1996 he was co-founder and team principal. In all, Oliver made 50 World Championship starts and reached the podium twice.

Source: Wikipedia, “Jackie Oliver”. Text licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.