Brands Hatch
For decades, this charismatic circuit alternated with Silverstone in hosting the British GP, and its Twisting unculations provided a remarKable contrast to its airfield-derived rival. Perhaps as a consequence, the races here were seldom less than dramatic.
Brands Hatch is one of the great circuits that have been left behind as Formula One has sought ever greater levels of safety for its drivers. In its heyday in the 1970s, it was where the World Championship was at its most vibrant, with its grandstands and spectator banking packed to capacity to watch racing that was seldom less than enthralling thanks to the complexity of the circuit, with numerous challenging corners. This was a track on which drivers really had to earn their keep.
All of this was a far cry from its early days. Its setting had been used first of all by cyclists in 1926 after they spotted that the natural bowl that was being used as a field to grow mushrooms would be ideal for racing. By 1928, pedal power gave way to motorbikes and a kidney-shaped track layout was marked out at the foot of the bowl.
Car racing finally arrived in 1950 after the track was given a bitumen surface. It was an instant hit, and Brands Hatch's proximity to London meant that it drew large crowds of spectators. Wanting to host national races rather than just club ones, the track was widened and lengthened for 1954, with the climb to Druids hairpin added. The track direction was reversed at this point too, becoming clockwise.
The biggest change came in 1960, when the grand prix loop was opened, more than doubling the lap length to 4.3km (2.7 miles). This gave the lap a two-part feel by taking the cars left when they reached the end of what was then known as Bottom Straight and leading them onto a rising and falling run through six more corners through the woods. The route then returned the drivers to the original amphitheatre midway through the final sweep of corners, and back onto the start/finish straight.
With dynamic entrepreneur John Webb running the show, he pushed Brands Hatch forward and was behind many of the investments that propelled it onto the world stage, with the creation too of a non- championship F1 event, the Race of Champions (1965-83), in the years that it wasn't hosting the British GP.
Good enough by the early 1960s to host F1, it replaced Aintree as the alternative host of the British GP in 1964 (sharing with Silverstone) and Jim Clark led all the way for Lotus to win from BRM's Graham Hill. Of the grands prix that followed, the one in 1970 stands out for Jack Brabham losing the lead when his Brabham ran out of fuel at Stirling's on the final lap, letting Jochen Rindt through to win; there was drama of a disappointing kind in 1974, when Niki Lauda needed a punctured tyre replacing but then couldn't leave the pits because an official's car was blocking the exit; there was then unrest in 1976, when James Hunt's McLaren was damaged in a first corner melee triggered by the Ferrari drivers and only the crowd's fury enabled him to take the restart; then there was the start of Mansellmania in 1985, when Nigel Mansell finally scored his first F1 win in the European GP, followed up a year later by another win at the Kent venue for Williams.
In all, there would be 14 grands prix held at Brands Hatch through until 1986, after which Silverstone had a deal to host the British GP exclusively. Many drivers were sad about this, but Gerhard Berger summed up the situation when he reckoned that it was then "the best circuit in the world, but a bit dangerous now for F1".
Since losing the grand prix, Brands Hatch has been reduced to holding largely national race meetings, with a few international events augmenting its diet. A chicane was inserted at Dingle Dell Corner, and Graham Hill Bend was later reprofiled, but any dreams of Brands Hatch ever hosting a grand prix again are long gone. The topography that makes it so interesting means that too much work would be required to enlarge the run-off to modern standards as well as the expensive requirement to relocate the pits; the current paddock is far too small and space is limited. With houses nearby, there are also considerable noise restrictions.
