Steve Ouvaroff

In the thread on The Green Helmet, there was mention of Steve Ouvaroff.

Can anyone tell me more about this driver's career and background?

He raced in Australia as Steve Ames in an Alfa Romeo Tipo B (Ex-Lex Davison) in the mid-1950s (1955 from memory) before heading overseas.

I later saw him referred to as "Count Steven Ouvaroff".

Does anyone know how long he was in Australia? Why was he here?

Funny you should raise this question Barry. I, too, started thinking about him again after the Green Helmet memory jog. Even tried a search on him, without much success.
As I recall it, the story goes something like this. Born in Russia, taken to NZ by his mother at age of 10 or thereabouts, then on to Oz. As your countrymen (and mine) at that time were a bit unimpressed by fancy foreign names and titles, he adopted the name of Steve Ames, racing first an Austin-Healey in Qld, and then, as you say, the ex-Davison P3. I think he won the Qld Road Racing Championship with it, and I think it was indeed 1955. I also think he was about 19 at the time.
Went to the UK and raced T43 Coopers (I think he may have had one for F2 and another with 1750cc engine for F1/libre). Best result seems to have been fourth in the Vanwall Trophy F2 race at Snetterton 27/7. In 1959 raced a Willment-Climax sportscar without much success, and then became involved in the Ausper FJ project (via Tom Hawkes). I think he also did a world sportscar race or two, but again without much success.
I believe Count Stefan Ouvaroff is still around - contacting him has been one of the many things on my "will get around to it one day" list.

Strange career...

Starting with big cars (the Alfa Romeo) then F2 1.5 L then Formule Junior 1 L...

Count Steve was seen as a hope when he raced in FJ in the early 60's.

Best result in F2 was indeed the Vanwall Trophy. Just add a 5th at Crystal Palace (Anerley Trophy, July 5th, 1958), a 10th at Brands Hatch (BRSCC F2 race, June, 8th). He also appeared in a mixed F1-F2 event, the 1958 International Trophy at Silverstone where he finished an incredible 20th (and last) in the Cooper T43.

I'm at work right now, so can't check my data, but I think SO was in the F1 section of the 1958 International Trophy, with the "big" engine, which he also used in UK libre events

In WSC the only trace I found of him is at the 1960 Nürburgring 1000km. He was entered with british driver Neil mcNab in Frederick Clifford’s 2 litre Cooper Monaco Climax but they did not appeared.

Indeed David, he was driving the big-engined version. Sheldon shows him as running F2-8-57 in the International Trophy and F2-9-57 in his F2 races.

I don't have any FJ data, but David Hodges says Ouvaroff and the Ausper "showed promise" in 1961. I wonder if Ouvaroff would have had anything to do with the abortive Ausper F1 project and the Clisby?