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44-502: There is no exact hue for BRG – currently the term is used to denote a spectrum of deep, rich greens. "British racing green" in motorsport terms meant only the colour green in general – its application to a specific shade has developed outside the sport. In the days of the Gordon Bennett Cup , Count Eliot Zborowski , father of inter-war racing legend Louis Zborowski , suggested that each national entrant be allotted

88-726: A Napier . The Automobile Club of Great Britain and Ireland wanted the race to be hosted in the British Isles, and their secretary, Claude Johnson , suggested Ireland as the venue because racing was illegal on British public roads. The editor of the Dublin Motor News , Richard J. Mecredy , suggested an area in County Kildare , and letters were sent to 102 Irish MPs, 90 Irish peers, 300 newspapers, 34 chairmen of county and local councils, 34 County secretaries, 26 mayors, 41 railway companies, 460 hoteliers, 13 PPs, plus

132-597: A metallic paint due to the limited range of solids offered by today's manufacturers. Paying tribute to the small British roadsters of the 1960s that inspired the Mazda MX-5 (such as the Triumph Spitfire , Austin-Healey Sprite , MG MGB and the Lotus Elan ), Mazda produced a limited edition version of the model in 1991 and 2001 called the "British Racing Edition", which included green paint. Similarly,

176-615: A 137 km mountainous circuit in the Auvergne near to Clermont-Ferrand. After four circuits of the course, a total of 548 km, which he completed in 7hr 2min 42sec, an average speed of 77.78 km/h, the Frenchman Léon Théry on a 96 hp Richard-Brasier won for the second year in a row. Lancia on a FIAT for Italy was fastest over the first two laps, but broke down with radiator problems during his third lap. Théry eventually came in first ahead of Nazzaro , also on

220-620: A FIAT, who finished in 7hr 19min 9sec. Chronographs for timing for the event were again supplied by Stauffer Son & Co. The race took place on the doorstep of the Clermont-Ferrand headquarters of Michelin , and cars fitted with Michelin tyres took the first four places. a. According to Leinster Leader , Saturday, 11 April 1903 , Britain had to choose a different colour to its usual national colours of red, white, and blue, as these had already been taken by Italy, Germany, and France respectively. It also stated red as

264-474: A different colour. Britain had to choose a different colour from its usual national colours of red, white and blue, as these had already been taken by USA, Germany, and France respectively. Reputedly as a concession to Ireland where the 1903 Gordon Bennett Cup race was run (racing was illegal on British public roads), the British adopted shamrock green which became known as British racing green , although

308-451: A different colour. Every component of a car had to be produced in the competing country, as well as the driver being of that nationality. The races were hosted in the country of the previous year's winner. When Britain first competed in 1902, they had to choose a different colour from the national flag colours of red, white and blue, because those had been taken for the 1900 race by America, Germany and France respectively. When Selwyn Edge won

352-647: A lighter olive , moss or emerald green. Later, darker shades became more common, though there was a return to lighter greens by HWM and other teams in the 1950s. Initially the colour use only applied to the grandes épreuves , but was later codified in the Code Sportif International ( CSI ) of the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile ( FIA ) for use in all international-level motor racing events. The foremost British participant in international motor Racing at

396-847: A time of 8h 50m 59s. The 1902 Gordon Bennett Cup was run over a distance of 565 km from Paris to Innsbruck in conjunction with the Paris-Vienna motor car race. The race started in Paris on 26 June. Competing were 30 heavy cars, 48 light cars, six voiturettes, three motorcycles, and three motorcyclettes. Each nation was allowed to nominate up to three cars to compete for the Gordon Bennett Cup, but only six entries were received, three French and three British. The Automobile Club of Great Britain announced that car No. 160 driven by Mr White, and car No. 45, made by Napier & Son of London with Dunlop tyres, driven by Mr Edge would represent

440-639: A very dark shade of BRG. In recent years Aston Martin has also returned to endurance racing, with their DBR9s painted in, a typically Aston, light BRG. Rocketsports Racing also used green for its Jaguar XK in the 24 Hours of Le Mans and American Le Mans Series and other. In 2010 the Lotus name returned to Formula One after a gap of 16 years with the Lotus Racing team's Lotus T127 car liveried in dark green with yellow. Although registered in Malaysia ,

484-520: A very pale green. Scottish teams such as Ecurie Ecosse and Rob Walker Racing used a dark blue, which did not strictly conform to the CSI rules but was tolerated by officials. The Australian-owned but British-based and licensed Brabham team also used a shade of BRG, and this was augmented with a gold (later yellow) stripe, gold and green being the national sporting colours of Australia . Another British-based and licensed team, McLaren , made their debut at

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528-594: The 1902 Gordon Bennett Cup race for England in his Napier & Son it was decided that the 1903 race would be held in Ireland , as motor racing on public roads was at the time illegal in Great Britain. As a mark of respect for their Irish hosts the English Napier cars were painted shamrock green. In keeping with these Irish/Napier roots, many of the earliest greens used on British racing cars were of

572-739: The 1954 season in a British racing green Maserati 250F because the Italian-built car was entered by the British privateer teams Equipe Moss and A.E.Moss respectively. Under pressure from a number of teams, most famously the Team Lotus who wished to use the Gold Leaf livery on the Lotus 49 car, in the 1968 season the sponsorship regulations were relaxed in Formula One . Subsequently, Lotus made their debut in this new livery at

616-596: The 1966 Monaco Grand Prix with the McLaren M2B car painted white with a green stripe, to represent a fictional Yamura team in the John Frankenheimer ´s film Grand Prix . Since a country is represented in the motorsport through a team and not through a constructor, British privateer teams entering cars built by constructors from another country before the 1968 season painted cars in the British racing green, e.g. Stirling Moss drove three races during

660-570: The 1968 Spanish Grand Prix , becoming the first works team (second only to Team Gunston entering a private Brabham car at the 1968 South African Grand Prix ) to paint their cars in the livery of their sponsors. In the 1970 season the FIA formally gave Formula One an exemption from the national colours ruling and the previously common green colour soon disappeared, being replaced by various sponsor liveries. This exemption has since been extended to all race series, unless specific regulations require

704-470: The Bishop of Kildare and Leighlin , Patrick Foley, who pronounced himself in favour. Local laws had to be adjusted, ergo the 'Light Locomotives (Ireland) Bill' was passed on 27 March 1903. Kildare and other local councils drew attention to their areas, whilst Queen’s County declared That every facility will be given and the roads placed at the disposal of motorists during the proposed race. Eventually Kildare

748-544: The Gordon Bennett Cup was an annual competition which ran from 1900 to 1905. It was one of three Gordon Bennett Cups established by James Gordon Bennett, Jr. , millionaire owner of the New York Herald . In 1899, Gordon Bennett offered the Automobile Club de France (ACF) a trophy to be raced for annually by the automobile clubs of the various countries. The competition was held until 1905, after which

792-474: The United States such as Alexander Winton driving his Winton automobile . Under the rules, the races were hosted in the country of the previous year's winner. As the races were between national teams, it led to the reorganisation and standardisation of national racing colours . Count Eliot Zborowski , father of inter-war racing legend Louis Zborowski , suggested that each national entrant be allotted

836-662: The World Drivers' Championship ; ( Italics ) Constructor won the World Constructors' Championship Across 32 seasons, only one privateer team contributed to a Formula One World Championship : Matra International in 1969 . The team—later known as Tyrrell Racing Organisation —helped constructor Matra win the World Constructors' Championship with the MS80 , and driver Jackie Stewart win his maiden World Drivers' Championship . This motorsport-related article

880-516: The 'control zones' in each town. The 328 miles (528 km) race was won by the famous Belgian Camille Jenatzy , driving a Mercedes in German colours. The Times reported the 1904 Gordon Bennett motor race took place in Germany on 17 June over 342 miles (550 km), consisting of four laps of a course in the neighbourhood of Homburg. From Saalburg the course ran north to Usingen, where there

924-675: The 1920s Bentley cars were hugely successful at the Le Mans 24h races, all sporting a mid- to dark-green. The first recorded use of the darkest green shades was on the Bugatti of Briton William Grover-Williams , driving in the very first Monaco Grand Prix , in 1929. This colour has become known as British Racing Green . In the 1950s and 1960s British teams such as Aston Martin , Vanwall , Cooper , Lotus , and BRM were successful in Formula One and Sports car racing , all in different shades of green. The British Racing Partnership team used

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968-453: The 2021 season, the team used the iconic British racing green as their livery for the AMR21 , as Aston Martin returned after being away from the sport as a constructor for 61 years. This livery is still in use as of 2024. Imperial Chemical Industries, Belco Car Finishes, Colour Mixing Book 1953, as used on Jowett Cars 1948-1953 Gordon Bennett Cup (auto racing) In automobile racing,

1012-439: The 24 May 1903 Paris-Madrid race where more than 200 cars competed over a distance of 800 miles (1,287 km) but which had to be halted at Bordeaux because there had been so many fatalities. To allay these fears, the 1903 race was held over a closed course which had been carefully prepared for the event, and was marshalled by 7,000 police officers assisted by troops and club stewards, with strict instructions to keep spectators off

1056-687: The ACF held the first Grand Prix motor racing event at a road course near Le Mans . The 1903 event in Ireland possibly gave rise to the birth of British Racing Green . The trophy given to the winner was a sculpture of a Panhard racing car driven by the Genius of Progress with the Goddess of Victory as passenger. Competition was intended to be between national automobile clubs, or nations, and not individuals. The first contestants were France, Great Britain,

1100-600: The French Automobile Club who was timekeeper . The chronographs for timing the event were supplied by the Anglo-Swiss firm of Stauffer Son & Co. Officials from the other competing countries were also present. There were 18 starters including three British entrants. The first car started from Saalburg at 7 a.m. The winner was Théry of France, who accomplished the four laps in 5 h 50 min 3 s , an average speed of 58.62 mph (94.34 km/h). Jenatzy

1144-462: The United States, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Belgium, and Italy. Each club was required to pay a Fr 3000 entry fee. Each could send up to three cars; drivers had to be members of the entrant club. A race, once scheduled, had to be held between 15 May and 15 August, with a total distance of between 550 and 650 km (340 and 400 mi). Participating clubs shared the cost of running

1188-607: The adoption of national colours. The history of the famous greens was revived in 2000 by Jaguar Racing in Formula One, but after this team was sold to Red Bull by Ford in 2004, the new Red Bull Racing team used their own colours. Other traditionally British manufacturers have since followed suit. Bentley returned briefly to the Le Mans circuit in 2001, 2002 and 2003, winning with the Bentley Speed 8 , painted in

1232-478: The chassis of another team or constructor in preference to building their own car; the Concorde Agreement now prohibits this practice. Increasingly, the term is being used in a Formula One context to refer to teams, such as Williams , that are not at least part-owned by large corporations . Many privateer entrants compete for the enjoyment of the sport, and are not paid to be racing drivers . From

1276-462: The club. The Times announced on June 30 that Edge had won the Gordon Bennett Cup. It was announced in Vienna on 1 July that M. Marcel Renault had won the Paris-Vienna race, with M. Henri Farman second. On Thursday, 2 July 1903 the Gordon Bennett Cup was the first international motor race to be held in Ireland, an honorific to Selwyn Edge who had won the 1902 event in the Paris-Vienna race driving

1320-517: The color for American cars in the 1903 Gordon Bennett Cup. Privateer (motorsport) In motorsport , a privateer is usually an entrant into a racing event that is not directly supported by an automobile or motorcycle manufacturer. Privateers teams are often found competing in rally , circuit racing and motorcycle racing events and often include competitors who build and maintain their own vehicles and motorcycles . In previous Formula One seasons, privately owned teams would race using

1364-771: The contemporary N78 heading north, then followed the N9 north; the N7 west; the N80 south; the N78 north again; the N9 south; the N80 north; the N78 north again. The official timekeeper of the race was Mr. T. H. Woolen of the Automobile Club of Great Britain and Ireland. Ninety one Chronographs for timing the race were supplied by the Anglo-Swiss firm Stauffer Son & Co. of La Chaux-de-Fonds and London. Competitors were started at seven-minute intervals and had to follow bicycles through

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1408-441: The event. The cars themselves had to have two seats, side by side, with driver and riding mechanic (who were to weigh no less than 60 kg (132 lb) each). Cars were to weigh at least 400 kg (882 lb) empty, and had to be built entirely in the country under whose colours they ran. The Gordon Bennett Cup auto races drew entrants from across Europe , including future aviator Henry Farman , and competitors from

1452-434: The first Concorde Agreement . As of the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix , there have been 20 victories by three privateer teams at Formula One Grands Prix : ten by Matra International/Tyrrell Racing , nine by Rob Walker Racing Team and one by FISA . The first win was achieved by Walker at the 1958 Argentine Grand Prix , and the last win was achieved by Tyrrell at the 1970 Spanish Grand Prix . Key: ( Bold ) Driver won

1496-463: The first to reach Lyons, arriving at 12:23 p.m. M. Girardot finished second at 2 o'clock. In 1901 the Gordon Bennett Cup race was run in conjunction with the Paris-Bordeaux race on 29 May over a distance of 527.1 km. The race was won by Henri Fournier driving a Mors with a time of 6h 10m 44s. The first of the Gordon Bennett Cup contestants was Leonce Girardot, driving a Panhard with

1540-544: The highest echelons both before and after the Great War was Sunbeam (from 1920 part of STD Motors ). Green liveried Sunbeam racing cars won the 1912 Coupe de l’Auto as well as being the first (and last for several decades) British team to win the European Grand Épreuves Grand Prix in both 1923 and 1924. The green Sunbeams driven by the likes of Henry Segrave and K.L Guinness were during prominent competitions. In

1584-469: The inaugural 1950 season until 1981 , several privateer teams entered chassis at Formula One Grands Prix . Some of them—such as Tyrrell and Williams —later began to build their own chassis and thus became constructors , as well as works teams . At the 1981 Spanish Grand Prix , Equipe Banco Occidental became the last privateer team to enter Formula One, using a Williams chassis. Privateer entries have been prohibited in Formula One since 1981 under

1628-592: The modern BMW -owned Mini Hatchback marque, which is assembled at their Oxford , Birmingham and Swindon factories, includes a BRG colour option. Originally a somewhat murky dark olive, this was updated to a fresher shade of metallic green in the 2011 version. In 2020 Lawrence Stroll , owner and founder of the Racing Point F1 Team , purchased a stake in Aston Martin and by next season Racing Point would be rebranded into AMR GP F1 team . For

1672-459: The new team is based in Britain and chose BRG with the aim of "striking an emotional chord with young and old alike and evoking memories of some of motor racing most iconic moments". With the many successes of British racing teams through the years, British Racing Green became a popular paint choice for British sports and luxury cars. Originally a solid colour, British Racing Green is increasingly

1716-560: The roads and away from corners. The route consisted of two loops that comprised a figure of eight, the first was a 52-mile loop that included Kilcullen , The Curragh , Kildare , Monasterevin , Ballydavis ( Portlaoise ), Stradbally , Athy , followed by a 40-mile loop through Castledermot , Carlow , and Athy again. The race started at the Ballyshannon cross-roads ( 53°05′07″N 6°49′12″W  /  53.0853°N 6.82°W  / 53.0853; -6.82 ) near Calverstown on

1760-399: The winning Napier of 1902 had already been painted olive green, and green was well-established as an appropriate colour for locomotives and machinery, in which Britain had led the world during the previous century. The international motor car race from Paris to Lyons for the Gordon Bennett Cup took place on 14 June 1900. The start from Paris was made at 3 o'clock in the morning and Charron was

1804-423: Was a control point (an inhabited or built up area where the cars had to travel slowly under the supervision of course officials) then through Graefenwiesbach to Weilburg, where there was a second control point, then past Allendorf and Obertiefenbach to Limburg. This section was reported to be the best part of the course for high speed and in practice some cars travelled at 150 km/h (93 mph). At Limburgh there

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1848-484: Was another control, then the course ran through Kirberg to Neuhof, where there was a very bad turn, and then to Idstein where there was another control. It then ran through Glashuetten to Koenigstein (control), then via Friedrichshof and Oberursel (control) to Homburg (control) and back to Saalburg. Officiating were Baron von Molitor of the German Automobile Club, the official starter, and M. Tampier of

1892-515: Was chosen, partly on the grounds that the straightness of the roads would be a safety benefit. As a compliment to Ireland the British team chose to race in Shamrock green which thus became known as British racing green although the winning Napier of 1902 had been painted Olive green. There was considerable public concern about safety after the 1901 Paris-Bordeaux Rally , in which at least eight people had been killed, and severe crashes during

1936-516: Was second, driving a Mercedes. The only British competitor placed was Sidney Girling driving a Wolseley . Australia's S. F. Edge, the 1902 winner who again drove a Napier , was reported to have held a good position during the first two laps, but was disqualified on lap three after receiving outside assistance due to tyre problems. In 1905, The Times reported on the last of the six Gordon-Bennett Cup Races, which took place in France on 5 July over

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