Car Racing 1966

The rich iconography displayed in the two first volumes of the Car Racing collection was drawn from the unpublished archives of the DPPI photo agency, started in 1965, impelled by the passion of a handful of men for photography and cars—preferably of the racing variety. In Car Racing 1966, as in the previous volume, Car Racing 1965, the photographic reproductions are accompanied by the anecdotes and recollections of photographer Manou Zurini and journalist Johnny Rives, two similarly legendary figures from the period. The formerly restricted access limited to professionals—most of these press photos were never published—is lifted to welcome the general public. Legendary drivers, awe-inspiring constructors, snapshots of the most celebrated races in the world... Those with a passion for motorsport and lovers of photography will enjoy immersing themselves in these events as they unfurled. A third volume, Car Racing 1967, which will be the first to feature colour photographs, is currently in the works.

The Work

Car Racing 1966 focusses especially on drivers, at a moment when these daredevils held hero status. The year 1966 saw the continued rise of the new French hero, Jean-Pierre Beltoise, who faced off against the young Jackie Ickx and another stranger to fear, Henri Pescarolo. The legends of French motorsport were already on the scene.

Of course, there is no shortage of talent from elsewhere in these pages, names like Jack Brabham, Graham Hill or Bruce McLaren... The kings of road-racing also attracted crowds, who waited at mountain passes and on backroads to watch drivers like Timo Makinen, Rauno Aaltonen, Pauli Toivonen, Tony Fall, Gilbert Staepelaere and Jean Rolland.

Turning to the cars themselves, the Ford GT 40, Alpine, Ferraris, BRM, Lotus, Mini Cooper and more, apotheoses of design and mechanical thunder, outdared each other continuously in pursuit of the top spot, in rallies and endurance races such as Le Mans. Indeed, it was in 1966 that one of the authors of this work, Johnny Rives, got to drive the n° 53 car down the Hunaudières straight. The drivers, whether at Le Mans, in hill-climbs or on the first circuits of what had not yet become the full circus that is Formula 1, were universally accessible and welcoming, smiling at amateurs and the media, who were not yet clustered in droves around the route or track. Amazing memories!

The authors

Johnny Rives remains the ultimate specialist of motor- sport since he first joined L’Équipe in 1960. A former Formula 1 commentator on the TV channel TF1, he has published a number of works dedicated to his passion for sports cars and racing. Here, he sketches several moving portraits of great drivers that echo the photographs taken by DPPI.

A former driver himself, Manou Zurini is the oldest photographer of automobile racing, and was a fixture on the tracks from the early 1960s, notably as a member of DPPI. Many of his shots were seen all over the world. Today retired from the track, he is a world-renowned sculptor, and shares his deep knowledge of automobile racing in the captions for this book.