35 replies to this topic

[petestenning]

In the late 60's i remember seeing at Snetterton a F3 race which had an American Steve Matchett driving.

He was a very competetive driver.

He then dissappeared from Britian presumably back to the USA

Whatever happened to him and how long did he race in the uk.?

Did he ever race in F2.?



Pete

[Gary C]

wasn't he a mechanic at Benetton & wrote a book about it about 4 years ago, or I am getting him mixed up with someone else??

[kayemod]

Originally posted by Gary C
wasn't he a mechanic at Benetton & wrote a book about it about 4 years ago, or I am getting him mixed up with someone else??

Yes, you are getting him mixed up. There were multiple Steve Matchetts, including the US F3 driver, the over- opinionated ex-Benetton UK spannerman turned TV pundit, and doubtless others as well.

[David M. Kane]

I think Steve's work on the Speed Channel's F1 coverage is getting better. In fact they did a very good piece last week on fuel cells, sures beats what you apparently are getting on ITV.

Having said that the American F3 driver is someone new to me, so I would love to know more about him.

[RA Historian]

There also was a Steve Matchett who drove Tony Dean's Porsche 908 in the 1971 Can Am. Where does he fit in?

[MWiklund]

Which Steve Matchett drove the 908 Porsche in some CanAm races around 1970 or so?


Edit: I just checked and it was 1971 http://www.classicsc.../canam1971.html

[MWiklund]

Sorry RA Historian for the simultaneous post. I did not see yours until after I had posted mine.

[Jim Thurman]

The American Steve Matchett lived in the northern part of San Diego County (San Marcos to be exact) and participated in F3 in England, some SCCA pro series races and, IIRC, he competed in a Late Model Sportsman race at Riverside in 1973 or 1974.

I have no idea what became of him after that.

He was thought well enough of to have been profiled in "The Encyclopedia of Auto Racing Greats" by Cutter & Fendell. In addition to all the "greats", they included bios of some young up & coming drivers, and Matchett made their grade.

[petestenning]

The F3 race i saw him in was 69 i believe probably a Brabham, front runners at the time were Tim Schenken 'Sports Motors Manchester' car and also i beleive Reine Wissell in a works Chevron , Bev Bond, Roy Pike, ETC



Pete

[Andrew Fellowes]

Originally posted by Jim Thurman
The American Steve Matchett lived in the northern part of San Diego County (San Marcos to be exact) and participated in F3 in England

Funny, I was only talking about him with another TNF'er in relation to a chassis saga this morning. Looks like he had a BT29 in 1969, but thats not F3 so what was he doing with the car? Was he going to take it home?

Andrew

[Andrew Fellowes]

Originally posted by petestenning
The F3 race i saw him in was 69 i believe probably a Brabham, front runners at the time were Tim Schenken 'Sports Motors Manchester' car and also i beleive Reine Wissell in a works Chevron , Bev Bond, Roy Pike, ETC

Pete where would that have been? Thanks Andrew (ooops, we must have both posted about the same time)

[petestenning]

Snetterton ,dont think it was the Good Friday meeting , but later in 69 or early 70.

Pete

[Andrew Kitson]

I first recall Steve Matchett racing in Formula Vee in 1969 at Thruxton, think he had a green Austro.
He had a Chevron B15 in 1970, saw him at Snetterton and Brands in it, black with red crash helmet, with bold white letters MATCHETT USA on cockpit sides. I remember because I took a photo at the time in the paddock, but no idea where it is now!

[petestenning]

Andrew

It was 1970 i saw Steve Matchett he was in a Chevron B15 , i remember the day now the race was stopped due to power failure and had to be re-started .

Your description of the car is the one i saw and if i am correct he started from the right of the grid either pole or the second row , i was a startline marshall that day probably my first year as such.
Having been an avid spectator prior to this.

Pete

[David M. Kane]

Brabham BT-29s were used for the SCCA Formula B races, some of which were Professional races if I recall correctly.

[Jim Thurman]

Originally posted by David M. Kane
Brabham BT-29s were used for the SCCA Formula B races, some of which were Professional races if I recall correctly.

David, correct. I was not sure of the series Matchett competed in, so I covered myself my using the rather vague SCCA pro series. I do believe Matchett made some F/B starts and, as Tom pointed out, the Can-Am races in Tony Dean's Porsche 908.

Also with the confusion over the Benetton mechanic, author and TV commentator, maybe a change of topic header? (perhaps: Steve Matchett - American driver)

As I recall, Matchett was not originally from the San Diego area. I'll have to check, but I believe the last time I saw his name in results was in a 1973 or 1974 Late Model Sportsman stock car event at Riverside International Raceway run as a preliminary to the following day's NASCAR Grand National event. The results listed him as residing in San Marcos, which was how I discovered that. Strangely, I don't recall Matchett competing in 10 NASCAR short track events in order to be allowed participation in the LMS events ("The Follmer Rule"). In earlier years, drivers like Ron Grable, George Follmer and Jerry Titus had dominated races, leading to the rule.

[Andrew Fellowes]

Originally posted by David M. Kane
Brabham BT-29s were used for the SCCA Formula B races, some of which were Professional races if I recall correctly.

Granted. However 2 were delivered to the UK, BT29-19 and BT29-20. The suggestion is that Steve had ordered both cars and may or may not have cancelled his order.

#19 went to Cuthbert in 1971, then Sabourin in 1972 and possibly Utley in ’74.
#20 went to ?

Woven into the story are 2 BT28s, its possible chassis plates got mixed but since 1975 one of the BT 29 chassis plates was sitting a box of bits here in Australia.

Sooo, it would be interesting to find Steve, not that it will answer any of the subsequent history but it could provide a starting platform.

Andrew

[ErleMin]

Steve Matchett, an American probably drove an Austro Formula Vee but certainly won the 1969 UK Formula Vee Championship in the only Veemax in the UK (tying with Fred Saunders).

[petestenning]

Erle ,
Is that the Mermaid racing Fred Saunders a deep sea diver, who had a Crossle F5000?.


Pete

[roger saretzki]

hello pete
interessting that you ask for steve matchett . next week i see martin stephani again , he used to race with/against him . i let you know what martin will tell me about steve .
are there any f3 pictures from steve availible ??????????

regards roger

[Andrew Kitson]

Originally posted by petestenning
Erle ,
Is that the Mermaid racing Fred Saunders a deep sea diver, who had a Crossle F5000?.


Pete

Yes Pete.

[Giraffe]

hello pete
interessting that you ask for steve matchett . next week i see martin stephani again , he used to race with/against him . i let you know what martin will tell me about steve .
are there any f3 pictures from steve availible ??????????

regards roger

By giraffe138

Well 2 years later, and It's not really been a pic worth waiting for! Here, American F3 driver Steve Matchett probes the 1 litre Lucas unit in his Chevron B15 as I acknowledge the photographer...................(May 1970, Oulton Park).

Edited by Giraffe, 16 May 2009 - 16:39.

[petestenning]

By giraffe138

Well 2 years later, and It's not really been a pic worth waiting for! Here, American F3 driver Steve Matchett probes the 1 litre Lucas unit in his Chevron B15 as I acknowledge the photographer...................(May 1970, Oulton Park).

Well worth waiting for that is the car i saw in 1970 , i remember his name on the car and U.S.A.

Good to know my memory still works nearly 40 years on.


Pete

[Simon Taylor]

I knew Steve well in the late 1960s when I was editing Autosport. He was born in Japan, because his American father was working there at the time, but was raised in the US and first indulged his love of motor racing by getting a gopher's job with Dan Gurney's Eagle operation. That brought him to England, where he determined to go racing himself, although at first his budget only ran to Formula Vee.

In February 1970 I was at Daytona covering the 24 Hours (a great weekend: Rodriguez/Kinnunen 917 first, Siffert/Redman climbing back to 2nd after long delays and brilliant driving by both, Andretti/Ickx 512S 3rd, Jack Brabham and Francois Cevert sharing a V12 Matra). Also run at Daytona that year was a weird event billed as the Formula Vee World Championship, run on the full combined road and banked track, with 100 entrants and three heats to sort out the 60 starters for the final. Then the weekend after the 24 Hours there was a further 200-mile event for 70 starters, with $30,000 in prize money. That developed into a nine-car slipstreaming group battling for the lead, buzzing round the banking at all of 95mph. Fuel tank size was fixed by the regulations to ensure everybody would need to make refuelling stops, but a few clever guys cooled their fuel with dry ice and managed to squeeze just enough fuel into their legal-size tanks to make it to the end without stopping, although the race deteriorated into something of an economy run by the end.

Steve, hoping to raise his profile in America, arranged an entry as the foremost (probably the only) American FV driver running in Europe, driving a borrowed American machine. But, as I remember, it was one of those weekends when everything went wrong, and the race brought him no glory. I travelled home with Steve and his English mechanic Brian Spalding on a complicated trip (because it was cheaper) which took us on several different short-haul planes from Miami to Atlanta to Newark. Then Steve somehow thumbed a lift for the three of us in a light plane over New York City, at low altitude at night, to JFK where we caught a plane to Frankfurt. It all took nearly two days, but that flight over Manhattan in the dark among the brightly lit skyscrapers, which certainly wouldn't be allowed now I assume, was the high point of the trip.

Steve then found some money from somewhere to buy Howden Ganley's F3 Chevron, which is the car illustrated above. Although he displayed plenty of talent during 1970 the money soon ran out and he returned to the USA somewhat disillusioned. As detailed above he did some racing in the seasons that followed, including buying a CanAm drive with Tony Dean in the 908, but I don't know what happened to him after that. If any American TNFers know how or where he is I'd love to hear: we had some fun on that Daytona trip. If you have access to 1970s Autosports, Steve wrote an amusing account of the trip called Innocents Abroad, which I ran in the March 5th 1970 issue. The Daytona Formula Vee races were reported in the February 19th 1970 issue.

If anyone is in touch with Steve, please say hello for me.

Edited by Simon Taylor, 17 May 2009 - 06:47.

[Adrian Beese]

I saw him racing a white F3 car (make unknown) at a llandow clubbie, I thought it was late 60's but may be early 70's.
Robin Darlington was racing a red Lola T70 at the same meeting

[Adrian Beese]

I am beginning to think it was the late 60's and that the car was a LeGrand.
Just googled it and a picture of a white single seater with a blue stripe (very sixties)
was in an article about LeGreand race cars

[Andrew Fellowes]

In 1970 Steve bought the ex Howden Ganley F3 Chevron B15, F3.69.9 see page 33 'In the Mind's Eye' by 'Hodge'

I spoke to Steve a couple of months back about the BT29 I mentioned earlier and he said Brabham BT29-20 was shipped to Fred Opert in the States, (subsequent history unknown.)

[raceannouncer2003]

I spoke to Steve a couple of months back

Here is a thread with more info on this Steve Matchett:

http://www.alfabb.co...986-post53.html

Is he still in Charlotte, Andrew?

Vince H.

[Ian Smith - Diz]

Granted. However 2 were delivered to the UK, BT29-19 and BT29-20. The suggestion is that Steve had ordered both cars and may or may not have cancelled his order.

#19 went to Cuthbert in 1971, then Sabourin in 1972 and possibly Utley in ’74.
#20 went to ?

Woven into the story are 2 BT28s, its possible chassis plates got mixed but since 1975 one of the BT 29 chassis plates was sitting a box of bits here in Australia.

Sooo, it would be interesting to find Steve, not that it will answer any of the subsequent history but it could provide a starting platform.

Andrew

A pal of mine has just bought BT29 - 19

[Giraffe]

A pal of mine has just bought BT29 - 19

Not Aintree veteran Stu Baird by any chance, Ian? He told me he was looking at BT28/29's.

[Ian Smith - Diz]

Not Aintree veteran Stu Baird by any chance, Ian? He told me he was looking at BT28/29's.

No, it has been bought from Matthew Watts of Retro Track and Air,who will run Martin Cowburn in it.
Martin has sent me a current photo of it and some scans of an Autosport article from 5 March 1970 on Steve's Daytona F Vee adventure and an ad for the Brabham from 21 January 1971 - but I haven't got a scooby doo how to post them on here.

Martin Cowburn is a seventy something FF1600 driver who started racing NW regional FF1600 as a sixty something.

[Andrew Fellowes]

Here is a thread with more info on this Steve Matchett:

http://www.alfabb.co...986-post53.html

Is he still in Charlotte, Andrew?

Vince H.

Yup, he's still there but often away for a couple of months!

[Andrew Fellowes]

.... an ad for the Brabham from 21 January 1971 - but I haven't got a scooby doo how to post them on here.

Do you mean this one? I don't think that's BT29-19. Steve didn't take delivery of #19, it went to MRE then Cuthbert then Sabourin.
Steve took delivery of only one BT29 which he only tested at a very damp Thruxton with Tim Schenken, he then told me it went to Mid North West he thinks via Fred Opert but not sure, and wait for it, the Frank Williams car was a different one again! What happened next I really don't know but it looks as though the chassis plate for BT29-20 went from the US to Melbourne in Australia.

Edited by Andrew Fellowes, 04 November 2009 - 04:31.

[250 F]

A pal of mine has just bought BT29 - 19

Hi Diz,
you certainly started a hare running with that quote!
This is what we discovered and
here is the current history* of my BT 29.
1.
Opinions vary but believed to be:-
BT 29-20 AM 69 L 65.
1969/71 Matchett/MRD (Brabham).U.K.
2.
The chassis and parts were then sold
by Brabham to the Crozier Brothers
and every fact is confirmed:-
!971/72 Crozier Brothers Cambrai,France.
used as copy for Narval single seater cars.
1972/87 Gilbert Bec,Marseille.France. (as F3 1600cc car).
1987/88 Francis Aubert,Allauch France. "
1988/95 Gerard Bertholon,Nice,France.(as F3 1litre car)
1995/00 Bruno Legein,Baelen,Belgium. "
2000/04 MEC AUTO,Baelen,Belgium. "
On display at Spa Museum,Stavelot,Belgium.
2004/09 Matthew Watts,Cam,Dursley,Gloucester.U.K.
restored to original BT 29 specification.
2009/-Martin Cowburn,Lytham,Lancashire.U.K.

*I acknowledge much skilled help in producing this information.
__________________
I find most motor racing circuits and racing cars are unsuited to my driving style.- 250

[Ian Smith - Diz]

Hi Diz,
you certainly started a hare running with that quote!

Welcome Martin and enjoy your time here on TNF
Happy browsing, but beware, it can become very addictive.
Diz

[mfd]

Welcome Martin and enjoy

Indeed welcome on board