1959 - Win After Win

’59 saw the return of team stalwart Ron Flockhart starting off the year to a splendid 1^st position win at the Lady Wigram trophy in New Zealand on the 24^th of January, going on to a 2^nd place in Teretonga in February. This was a sign of the success to come, as on the 31^st of May Jo Bonnier Jo bonnier took first for BRM in the p25 at the Dutch grand prix at Zandvoort. It was the first BRM world championship victory in nearly a decade of hard-won effort, and he did so in the lead from start to finish with a lead of fifteen seconds over Australian driver Jack Brabham in 2^nd position.

Not that long after Bonniers’ astounding victory, BRM began work on the next model- The P48.

Bonniers’ Dutch victory was not the only victory the team had that season. On the 18^th of July Stirling Moss took 2^nd position in the British grand prix at Aintree and set the record for the new fastest lap there for the British Racing Partnership whilst driving the P25. Flockhart and Halford joined the victors of ’59 with a fine showing at Snetterton on the 10^th of October which saw Flockhart lifting a 1^st place trophy and Bruce Halford coming in 3^rd.

There was some misfortune this year, however, as in August, one of the P25 cars was destroyed in a massive accident whilst being driven by Hans Herrmann for the British Racing Partnership. It was said that he was thrown from the car and slid along the track, whilst the car somersaulted behind him. He was quoted to have said that all he could think about was that it “Would be a shame to die now when there were so many pretty girls amongst the spectators”. 

Just before Christmas, Alfred Owen requested that all the P25s except for the Dutch GP winner would be dismantled to release components for assembly into the new rear engine chassis in development.

Drivers this year: Ron Flockhart, Jo Bonnier, Harry Schell, Bruce Halford

Cars this year: P25