Photos: The Bruce Wells Collection - The Drivers

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This is the final part in our long running and hugely popular Bruce Wells Collection of Australian motor racing images. The collection ran from 1962 through 1967, and included everything from low-key club events, hillclimbs and Bathurst, right through to the Tasman Series.

Bruce was living in New South Wales when he took these images, and many of them you will recognize from old magazines. He and his wife moved away from NSW in 1967, and hence the photos stopped.

This final part is a focus on the drivers. These are various portrait shots, from a time when racers wore open faced helmets and goggles, and there was a more relaxed environment in the pits. You'll see some of the images have been named, while some haven't. I can name most of those pictured, but not all, and am going to leave this one to you guys to ID.

My thanks once more goes to Bruce Wells, for sharing this beautiful collection of images from a golden era in the sport. I hope you all enjoy them.

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The 'tuner' with Brabham looks like Bob Atkin, but I'm pretty sure it's not...

Second pic is Kingsley Hibbard and his Rennmax BN1 Formula Junior.

Third is Greg Cusack sitting on the Lakeside Grid at the end of November, 1965. Spencer Martin in the 250LM is behind him alongside Frank Demuth's Lola. That was the ATT meeting, Greg was expecting to give Pete Geoghegan a hard time but didn't quite succeed that day.

Frank Matich in the Brabham BT7a is next, not at all sure about the two without helmets, then there's Leo Geoghegan in the Lotus 39 while it still had the Coventry-Climax engine. Like the Brabham photo and the Denny Hulme pic below it, this is on the grid at Warwick Farm in 1967.

Thanks Ray. Fantastic!

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The last one is Geoff Sykes talking to Graham Hill in the Lotus 48 FVA (I think it was the 48) he ran at Warwick Farm in 1967...

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Steve Holmes

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Ok guys just checking you all out. Relaxed as a bear can be

Johnny Muller is the mechanic with Jack Brabham in #12.

Johnny worked with Pete Kerr at Roy Winklemann Racing when they ran F2 Brabhams for Jochen Rindt and Alan Rees - both were invariably near the front with Rindt being a frequent winner.

I think Johnny is still in Tauranga.

I remember visiting John Muller's kiwifruit property at Te Puna in 1990 with a youth group. He was very helpful but did not seem too interested about old motor racing days. He had moved on. Perhaps Grant S knows more about John who must have been an excellent race mechanic.
That first photo of Jack Brabham almost looks like Ron Tauranac at the engine area but I doubt that when I look closer.

Definitely not Taurenac...

It looks, as I said, very much like Bob Atkin. Bob was the Chief Spanner (not to mention General Manager) at Scuderia Veloce, they were about to take over this particular Brabham-Repco for Greg Cusack.