Win Percy
Encyclopedia
Winston "Win" Percy is a former motor racing driver from England
. He competed in many classes of motorsport during his long career, but is perhaps most famous as one of the greats of touring car racing
. Joe Saward
of Autosport
magazine once described him as being "often regarded as the World's Number One Touring Car Driver". Percy was British Touring Car Champion three times, and remains the most successful non-Antipodean
driver ever to compete in Australia
's premier national motorsport event: the Bathurst 1000
km.
1200. He won, beating drivers of far more powerful cars in the process. While initially he pursued competitive driving as a hobby, his innate talent quickly resulted in many high-placed finishes in national-level races, including taking all three victories in the 1973 televised rallycross
races at Cadwell Park
. On the back of these results he turned professional in 1974, driving a Datsun 240Z in the British Modified Sports Car Championship. Once again, he won.
for the first time, a race series that he would come to dominate in the years ahead. His first race in the BTCC would also be the first time he encountered Tom Walkinshaw
, after Percy had not only won his class in the Toyota he was driving, but also put up a spirited attack on Walkinshaw's Ford Escort in the class above. In 1983, Percy won the Willhire 24 Hour
in a Porsche 928S
.
He stuck with Toyota for the next four years, but the Walkinshaw-Percy partnership finally came together in the same team when Walkinshaw offered Percy a drive in his Tom Walkinshaw Racing
-run Mazda RX-7
for the 1980 season. True to form, Percy won the 1980 Championship for TWR, and then went on to repeat the feat in the following year. Unfortunately, owing to a misunderstanding of Walkinshaw's off-beat sense of humour, Percy agreed to move back to Toyota for 1982. This did little to stop his march to championship glory however, as he once again won the BTCC crown for the 1982 season in the Toyota Celica
.
Despite remaining with Toyota during the 1983 BTCC season, Percy maintained his links to TWR with occasional drives in their Jaguar XJS
coupé, and Walkinshaw managed to tempt him back full-time in 1984. However, rather than a return to the BTCC, TWR entered the big Jaguars for Walkishaw and Percy in the European Touring Car Championship
. Naturally the team won, Walkinshaw also taking the drivers' title. The following year saw the team switch to works-backed Rover Vitesse
cars, again competing for the ETCC title. Walkinshaw and Percy this time took joint third in the drivers' championship. Along the way they scored victories in seven of the 500 km rounds: Donington
; Silverstone
; Monza
; Vallelunga; Nogaro
; the Österreichring
; and Salzburg
. 1985 also saw the Walkinshaw-Percy partnership in Australia for the first time, in the old XJS, for the Bathurst 1000
.
Once again, the TWR Vitesse cars were entered for the ETCC in 1986. However, 1986 also saw TWR running Jaguar's works C1
entry for the 24 Hours of Le Mans
race; Percy was a natural choice for one of the driving slots. Percy's Jaguar XJR-6 lasted for 10 of the 24 hours, partnered by Gianfranco Brancatelli
and Hurley Haywood
at the wheel, before a drive-shaft failure dropped the car out of the race from second place. Percy entered Le Mans again the following year, but suffered a horrific crash when a tyre exploded at full speed (approximately 240 mph) on the long Mulsanne Straight, tearing off the rear bodywork and flipping the car into the air "up above the trees". The wreckage finally came to a halt 600 m down the road but, despite almost obliterating the vehicle, Percy walked away from the crash with nothing more than a badly battered helmet.
He continued to race in national and international competitions with a variety of teams until the end of the decade.
works Holden
entry for the Australian Touring Car Championship
, the Holden Racing Team
. Not only did he prepare the cars and manage the team, but as a driver he won the coveted Bathurst 1000
race in 1990
and finished second in 1991
. After 1991 he led a peripatetic lifestyle, with drives in many series around the world. Despite acting as team manager in the Mazda
entry for the 1994 BTCC, and chief tester and latterly team manager for Harrier between 1995 and 1997, he managed to squeeze in the Jaguar XJ220
's first race win.
In the late 1990s he became a familiar figure on the historic motorsport stage, often seen getting his Jaguar D-type
XKD 505 very sideways in fiercely contested historic sports car races. More often than not Percy would emerge victorious. In 2002, driving XKD 505, he won all four races at the Le Mans Classic meeting. Sadly, this spectacle was not to last long.
In the summer of 2003 Win Percy suffered a serious accident in his garden. He was taken to hospital, where a medical error led to him being paralysed from the waist down. Although no longer able to compete, he is still a regular visitor to motor racing events around Britain.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. He competed in many classes of motorsport during his long career, but is perhaps most famous as one of the greats of touring car racing
Touring car racing
Touring car racing is a general term for a number of distinct auto racing competitions in heavily-modified street cars. It is notably popular in Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Germany, Japan, Scandinavia and Britain.-Characteristics of a touring car:...
. Joe Saward
Joe Saward
Joe Saward is a British Formula One journalist. He was educated at Haileybury College and attained a degree in history at Bedford College, University of London. In 1984 he joined Autosport magazine in London. He began reporting on Formula One in 1988, working alongside Nigel Roebuck and remained...
of Autosport
Autosport
Autosport is a weekly magazine covering motorsport, published in the United Kingdom every Thursday by Haymarket Consumer Media. It was first published on 25 August 1950 by Gregor Grant, immediately prior to the Silverstone International Trophy meeting of that year...
magazine once described him as being "often regarded as the World's Number One Touring Car Driver". Percy was British Touring Car Champion three times, and remains the most successful non-Antipodean
Australasia
Australasia is a region of Oceania comprising Australia, New Zealand, the island of New Guinea, and neighbouring islands in the Pacific Ocean. The term was coined by Charles de Brosses in Histoire des navigations aux terres australes...
driver ever to compete in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
's premier national motorsport event: the Bathurst 1000
Bathurst 1000
The Bathurst 1000 is a touring car race held annually at Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst, New South Wales, Australia...
km.
The early years
Percy found his way into motor sport through his first employment as a motor mechanic at his local garage. His first race was in 1964, in a local time-trial event driving his own road-going Ford AngliaFord Anglia
The 1949 model, code E494A, was a makeover of the previous model with a rather more 1940s style front-end, including the sloped, twin-lobed radiator grille. Again it was a very spartan vehicle and in 1948 was Britain's lowest priced four wheel car....
1200. He won, beating drivers of far more powerful cars in the process. While initially he pursued competitive driving as a hobby, his innate talent quickly resulted in many high-placed finishes in national-level races, including taking all three victories in the 1973 televised rallycross
Rallycross
Rallycross is a form of sprint style automobile racing, held on a closed mixed-surface racing circuit, with modified production or specially built road cars, similar to the World Rally Cars, although usually with about stronger engines, due to e.g. their 45 mm turbo restrictor plates. It is...
races at Cadwell Park
Cadwell Park
Cadwell Park is a motor racing circuit in Lincolnshire, England, south of Louth. It is owned and operated by Jonathan Palmer's Motorsport Vision company....
. On the back of these results he turned professional in 1974, driving a Datsun 240Z in the British Modified Sports Car Championship. Once again, he won.
Enter the BTCC
The following year saw Win Percy enter the British Touring Car ChampionshipBritish Touring Car Championship
The British Touring Car Championship is a touring car racing series held each year in the United Kingdom. The Championship was established in 1958 as the British Saloon Car Championship and has run to various rules over the years – "production cars", then FIA Group 1 or 2 in the late 1960s...
for the first time, a race series that he would come to dominate in the years ahead. His first race in the BTCC would also be the first time he encountered Tom Walkinshaw
Tom Walkinshaw
Tom Walkinshaw was a Scottish racing car driver and the founder of the racing team Tom Walkinshaw Racing...
, after Percy had not only won his class in the Toyota he was driving, but also put up a spirited attack on Walkinshaw's Ford Escort in the class above. In 1983, Percy won the Willhire 24 Hour
Willhire 24 Hour
The Willhire 24 Hour was an endurance race for production cars held at Snetterton Motor Racing Circuit in Norfolk, England between 1980 and 1994. Over the years, the race included both sports cars and saloon cars. Latterly, it was contested by competitors running in the FIA Group N specification...
in a Porsche 928S
Porsche 928
The Porsche 928 was a sports-GT car sold by Porsche AG of Germany from 1978 to 1995. Originally intended to replace the company's iconic 911, the 928 attempted to combine the power, poise, and handling of a sports car with the refinement, comfort, and equipment of a luxury sedan to create what some...
.
He stuck with Toyota for the next four years, but the Walkinshaw-Percy partnership finally came together in the same team when Walkinshaw offered Percy a drive in his Tom Walkinshaw Racing
Tom Walkinshaw Racing
Tom Walkinshaw Racing , was an auto racing team and engineering firm founded in 1976 by touring car racer Tom Walkinshaw.-History:TWR started by modifying BMW 3.0 CSLs, but soon was contracted to head Mazda's works program in the British Touring Car Championship. The TWR developed RX-7, with Win...
-run Mazda RX-7
Mazda RX-7
Series 1 is commonly referred to as the "SA22C" from the first alphanumerics of the vehicle identification number. This series of RX-7 had exposed steel bumpers and a high-mounted indentation-located license plate, called by Werner Buhrer of Road & Track magazine a "Baroque depression."In 1980...
for the 1980 season. True to form, Percy won the 1980 Championship for TWR, and then went on to repeat the feat in the following year. Unfortunately, owing to a misunderstanding of Walkinshaw's off-beat sense of humour, Percy agreed to move back to Toyota for 1982. This did little to stop his march to championship glory however, as he once again won the BTCC crown for the 1982 season in the Toyota Celica
Toyota Celica
The Toyota Celica name has been applied to a series of coupes made by the Japanese company Toyota. The name is ultimately derived from the Latin word coelica meaning "heavenly" or "celestial"....
.
The World Stage
Jaguar XJS
The Jaguar XJ-S is a luxury grand tourer produced by the British manufacturer Jaguar from 1975 to 1996. The XJ-S replaced the E-Type in September 1975, and was based on the XJ saloon. It had been developed as the XK-F, though it was very different in character from its predecessor...
coupé, and Walkinshaw managed to tempt him back full-time in 1984. However, rather than a return to the BTCC, TWR entered the big Jaguars for Walkishaw and Percy in the European Touring Car Championship
European Touring Car Championship
The European Touring Car Championship was an international touring car racing series organised by the FIA. It had two incarnations, the first one between 1963 and 1988, and the second between 2000 and 2004...
. Naturally the team won, Walkinshaw also taking the drivers' title. The following year saw the team switch to works-backed Rover Vitesse
Rover SD1
Rover SD1 is both the code name and eventual production name given to a series of large executive cars made by British Leyland or BL through its Specialist, Rover Triumph and Austin Rover divisions from 1976 until 1986....
cars, again competing for the ETCC title. Walkinshaw and Percy this time took joint third in the drivers' championship. Along the way they scored victories in seven of the 500 km rounds: Donington
Castle Donington
Castle Donington is a village, with a population of around 7000 in the North West of Leicestershire, part of the Derby postcode area and on the edge of the National Forest. It is the closest town to East Midlands Airport.-Transport and housing:...
; Silverstone
Silverstone Circuit
Silverstone Circuit is an English motor racing circuit next to the Northamptonshire villages of Silverstone and Whittlebury. The circuit straddles the Northamptonshire and Buckinghamshire border, with the current main circuit entry on the Buckinghamshire side...
; Monza
Autodromo Nazionale Monza
The Autodromo Nazionale Monza is a race track located near the town of Monza, north of Milan, in Italy. The circuit's biggest event is the Formula One Italian Grand Prix, which has been hosted there since the sport's inception....
; Vallelunga; Nogaro
Nogaro
Nogaro is a commune in the Gers department in southwestern France.-Population:-References:*...
; the Österreichring
Österreichring
The Red Bull Ring is an Austrian race circuit in Spielberg, Styria.The race circuit was founded as Österreichring and hosted the Formula One Austrian Grand Prix for 18 consecutive years, from to . It was later shortened, rebuilt and renamed the A1-Ring, it hosted the Austrian Grand Prix again from...
; and Salzburg
Salzburg
-Population development:In 1935, the population significantly increased when Salzburg absorbed adjacent municipalities. After World War II, numerous refugees found a new home in the city. New residential space was created for American soldiers of the postwar Occupation, and could be used for...
. 1985 also saw the Walkinshaw-Percy partnership in Australia for the first time, in the old XJS, for the Bathurst 1000
Bathurst 1000
The Bathurst 1000 is a touring car race held annually at Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst, New South Wales, Australia...
.
Once again, the TWR Vitesse cars were entered for the ETCC in 1986. However, 1986 also saw TWR running Jaguar's works C1
Group C
Group C was a category of motorsport, introduced by the FIA in 1982 for sports car racing, along with Group A for touring cars and Group B for GTs....
entry for the 24 Hours of Le Mans
24 Hours of Le Mans
The 24 Hours of Le Mans is the world's oldest sports car race in endurance racing, held annually since near the town of Le Mans, France. Commonly known as the Grand Prix of Endurance and Efficiency, race teams have to balance speed against the cars' ability to run for 24 hours without sustaining...
race; Percy was a natural choice for one of the driving slots. Percy's Jaguar XJR-6 lasted for 10 of the 24 hours, partnered by Gianfranco Brancatelli
Gianfranco Brancatelli
Gianfranco Brancatelli is a former racing driver from Italy. His racing career began in 1973, in the Formula Abarth series. In 1975, he advanced to Italian Formula 3 racing...
and Hurley Haywood
Hurley Haywood
Hurley Haywood is an American race-car driver who won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1977 , 1983 and 1994 and is the most successful driver at the 24 Hours of Daytona with 5 wins . He won the 12 Hours of Sebring in 1973 and 1981...
at the wheel, before a drive-shaft failure dropped the car out of the race from second place. Percy entered Le Mans again the following year, but suffered a horrific crash when a tyre exploded at full speed (approximately 240 mph) on the long Mulsanne Straight, tearing off the rear bodywork and flipping the car into the air "up above the trees". The wreckage finally came to a halt 600 m down the road but, despite almost obliterating the vehicle, Percy walked away from the crash with nothing more than a badly battered helmet.
He continued to race in national and international competitions with a variety of teams until the end of the decade.
Win Percy - Team Manager
In 1990, at the behest of Tom Walkinshaw, Percy took charge of the General MotorsGeneral Motors
General Motors Company , commonly known as GM, formerly incorporated as General Motors Corporation, is an American multinational automotive corporation headquartered in Detroit, Michigan and the world's second-largest automaker in 2010...
works Holden
Holden
GM Holden Ltd is an automaker that operates in Australia, based in Port Melbourne, Victoria. The company was founded in 1856 as a saddlery manufacturer. In 1908 it moved into the automotive field, before becoming a subsidiary of the U.S.-based General Motors in 1931...
entry for the Australian Touring Car Championship
Australian Touring Car Championship
The Australian Touring Car Championship is a touring car racing award held in Australia since 1960. The series itself is no longer contested, but the title lives on, with the winner of the V8 Supercar Championship Series awarded the trophy and title of Australian Touring Car Champion.-History:The...
, the Holden Racing Team
Holden Racing Team
The Holden Racing Team is a Melbourne based motor racing team. HRT is the most successful V8 Supercar racing team in the history of the category, having won the drivers championship six times, and the series signature race the Bathurst 1000 seven times...
. Not only did he prepare the cars and manage the team, but as a driver he won the coveted Bathurst 1000
Bathurst 1000
The Bathurst 1000 is a touring car race held annually at Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst, New South Wales, Australia...
race in 1990
1990 Tooheys 1000
The 1990 Tooheys 1000 was the 31st running of the Bathurst 1000 touring car race. It was held on 30 September 1990 at the Mount Panorama Circuit just outside Bathurst, New South Wales, Australia. The event was open to cars eligible under CAMS Group 3A regulations, commonly known as Group A Touring...
and finished second in 1991
1991 Tooheys 1000
The 1991 Tooheys 1000 was the 32nd running of the Bathurst 1000 touring car race. It was held on 6 October 1991 at the Mount Panorama Circuit just outside Bathurst. The 1000 km race was held for cars complying with the provisions of Australian Group 3A Touring Car regulations with the field...
. After 1991 he led a peripatetic lifestyle, with drives in many series around the world. Despite acting as team manager in the Mazda
Mazda
is a Japanese automotive manufacturer based in Fuchū, Aki District, Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan.In 2007, Mazda produced almost 1.3 million vehicles for global sales...
entry for the 1994 BTCC, and chief tester and latterly team manager for Harrier between 1995 and 1997, he managed to squeeze in the Jaguar XJ220
Jaguar XJ220
The Jaguar XJ220 is a mid-engined supercar produced by Jaguar in collaboration with Tom Walkinshaw Racing as Jaguar Sport between 1992 and 1994. It held the record for the highest top speed of a production car , until the arrival of the McLaren F1 in 1994...
's first race win.
In the late 1990s he became a familiar figure on the historic motorsport stage, often seen getting his Jaguar D-type
Jaguar D-type
The Jaguar D-Type, like its predecessor the C-Type, was a factory-built race car. Although it shared the basic straight-6 XK engine design with the C-Type, the majority of the car was radically different...
XKD 505 very sideways in fiercely contested historic sports car races. More often than not Percy would emerge victorious. In 2002, driving XKD 505, he won all four races at the Le Mans Classic meeting. Sadly, this spectacle was not to last long.
In the summer of 2003 Win Percy suffered a serious accident in his garden. He was taken to hospital, where a medical error led to him being paralysed from the waist down. Although no longer able to compete, he is still a regular visitor to motor racing events around Britain.