Graham Hill's BRM

The BRM P261s were Formula One cars designed and built by the British Racing Motors team in Bourne, Lincolnshire. Drivers such as Jackie Stewart, Richie Ginther, Pedro Rodriguez and Graham Hill sat in their cockpits. With a total of 18 victories, including 6 in Grand Prix, the P261 was the most successful car built by BRM. In Brno, the BRM P261/2 car will be presented by Swiss driver Philipp Buhofer.
The BRM P261 was introduced for the 1964 season. The car was a further development of the BRM P61, which designer Tony Rudd designed for the 1963 season and was built to compete with the successful Lotus 25. The BRM P61 had a frame attached to the body which carried the engine and rear suspension. Handling problems, however, necessitated a design change in late 1963 to strengthen the car. The second version of the car with a self-supporting body was designated as P261. Tony Rudd created a self-supporting body by covering tubular steel profiles with an aluminum skin. The 1.5-liter V8 was reworked to produce around 200 horsepower.
The second production car, designated P261/2, was used by Graham Hill for testing and preparation for the season. He raced it for the first time at Snetterton on 14 March 1964 in the Daily Mirror Trophy race. It was a cold and rainy day but Graham Hill led until lap 6 when he skidded in an ever-deepening puddle, went off the track and hit an embankment. As a result of this trip, the bodywork was considerably, but repairably, bent. Fortunately, Graham Hill escaped unhurt. Meanwhile, P261-3 and 4 were completed and the damaged bodywork from the 'two' became a decoration at a club in Birmingham. Cars number P261/4 and P261/3 made their first start at the Monaco Grand Prix, where Graham Hill and Ritchie Ginther finished first and second respectively.
In the 1970s, P261/2 was purchased by BRM enthusiast Mr. John McCartney, who restored the car to working condition.