A change to three litre engine regulations made the 1966 Formula 1 season an unpredictable one. While some teams opted for complex solutions, such as BRM’s H16, Brabham went for a simple but reliable Repco unit. By the time of the British Grand Prix at Brands Hatch team drivers Jack Brabham and Denny Hulme were hitting form.
Brabham 1-2 at Brands Hatch
Jackie Stewart was back in action over the British Grand Prix weekend, having recovered from his nasty crash at Spa earlier in the year. Brabham started the race from pole, with his team-mate Hulme alongside. The race started on a wet track and, although Jochen Rindt challenged for a while, the Austrian eventually dropped back as the track dried. Brabham crossed the line ten seconds ahead of Hulme, with Graham Hill third for BRM. Jim Clark drove back to fourth place after a pit stop to fix a brake problem. Behind him Rindt was fifth and Bruce McLaren sixth.
Brabham Again at Zandvoort and the Nurburgring
At Zandvoort Brabham and Hulme qualified in the same positions they had at Brands Hatch. This time, they met some resistance in the Grand Prix, in the shape of defending World Champion Jim Clark. He led briefly before Hulme got back past. The New Zealander then dropped out of the race with ignition failure. Later, Clark again made it into the lead after passing Brabham. He looked on course for a victory, only to be forced into the pits to top up his Lotus with water.
Brabham won again, but this time it was Hill in second place. Clark recovered to finish third, ahead of Mike Spence in a BRM powered Lotus. The final point went to Ferrari driver Lorenzo Bandini.
At the Nurburgring for the German Grand Prix it was Clark on pole from John Surtees. On a wet track Surtees led early on before being passed by Brabham. Further back disaster struck when John Taylor collided with Jacky Ickx’s Formula 2 Matra (which was running in a separate class as part of the Grand Prix). Taylor, a former officer in the RAF, would die several weeks later from his injuries.
Clark had a rare off day and crashed out of the race, but Brabham had no such problems. The Australian regarded it as one of his finest drives. Surtees finished a distant second, followed by Rindt, Hill, Stewart and Bandini. Brabham was beginning to look unstoppable in the race for the title.
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