Sir Jack Brabham RIP

The death of Sir Jack Brabham has given rise to a lot of tributes from all manner of people, and it is almost only in death that many are recognising his contribution to motor sport history. Three World Championships, one Constructor Title, only man to win in car bearing his own name.
We all know his place in the pantheon of greats, but he has never been seen in the same light as many other Champions have been, Clark, Stewart, Piquet, Lauda etc., by most followers of the sport.

I interviewed him on a couple of occasions for our local BBC Radio Station, and he was a genuinely nice person downplaying his success and with no pretentions of greatness. We shared a few memories, and Jack displayed a warm sense of humour, as we spoke, although at the time he was using a hearing aid, which did not help, when Formula 1 cars were out on track. He said that the noise interfered with reception.

So Greg, I expect you are mourning over there in Australia, but what a man to mourn.

Bob.

Yes Bob, Sir Jack was a real hero here.

I grew up in Hurstville, where Jack came from. The Brabham fruit shop was where we bought out fruit & vegs. We regularly spent Saturday nights at the 'Speedway', and saw him at his dirt-track best.

Years later, Jack moved in just a few doors from us a t Sylvania [another Sydney suburb]. David Brabham and our two boys went to Sylvania Primary School, and they were good mates. Chatting with Jack was hard work, as he was almost completely deaf.

RIP Jack

Interesting or, better, surprising what Sir Jack had to say about Jim Clark:

[quote] Jack has no doubts about the greatest driver he raced against.
“I raced Fangio a couple of times, but Moss was the one I had a lot of dices with and learned a lot from. He was the man to beat, and it was a great challenge for me. Moss never, ever had an off day. He was a competitor from when the flag dropped to the end. Some of the others were good on some days but not every day, and things had to go right for them all the time. With Moss it didn’t matter what he was driving. Probably the next best was Rindt.”
And what of Clark? Jack’s view will surprise.
“He was good too, but I don’t think he was in the Moss or Rindt class from a speed point of view. They were two very fast drivers. It was the era when Clark had the best car. Lotus was on top, and Jimmy drove it well. But he would have his off days – he wasn’t fantastic every time he sat in the car, like Moss. [quote]

Which somehow conflicts with the hagiography painted of Clark over the years. It makes one think on how drivers are judged, there is no escape from the fact that their myth is mainly built – or not - by the press as there is no clear defined yardstick to judge them all. It makes one think how someone who won three times the world championship, one of which on his own car, was competitive until the very last year (at 44!), when he really should have won it again, has been unheralded less than meaningless drivers like, say, Coulthard or Barrichello.

http://www.motorsportmagazine.com/f1/history/the-world-according-to-jack/

As some may already know I do not rate Clark as one of the 'all time greats', and agree with Jack's summing up of the man. To be honest I think that while there were a number of very good drivers around at the time, Jimmy did not have any real competition, and consequently it is hard to tell just how good he may have been. I do believe that when under pressure he could make mistakes, even though on his own he was blindingly fast.

Feel free to disagree.

This is for you Greg. I was at Goodwood that year when Jack made his UK debut.