Born | 24 April 1934 |
---|---|
Died | 4 April 2017 | (aged 82)
Formula One World Championship career | |
Nationality | British |
Active years | 1959 – 1960 |
Teams | privateer Cooper, Lotus |
Entries | 2 (1 start) |
Championships | 0 |
Wins | 0 |
Podiums | 0 |
Career points | 0 |
Pole positions | 0 |
Fastest laps | 0 |
First entry | 1959 British Grand Prix |
Last entry | 1960 Belgian Grand Prix |
Michael John Clifford Taylor (24 April 1934 – 4 April 2017) was a British racing driver. He participated in two Formula One World Championship Grands Prix, debuting on 18 July 1959. He scored no championship points. He also participated in several non-Championship Formula One races. His racing career effectively ended when his steering column weld failed on his Lotus 18 in the 1960 Belgian Grand Prix at 160 mph (260 km/h). He was thrown from the car, cutting down a tree with his body and broke several bones ( Alan Stacey and Chris Bristow were killed and Stirling Moss was also injured at the event, crashing his Lotus 18 in practice). He was paralysed, [1] [2] but after therapy was able to regain the ability to walk. [1]
Because of his car failure Taylor later sued Lotus successfully, one of the few successful actions against the makers of a racing car. [3]
After his accident, Taylor sporadically competed in long distance rallying, finishing third in the London–Sydney Marathon in 1977 in a Citroën CX with Paddy Hopkirk and Bob Riley. Taylor also had a career in property speculation. [3] He died on 4 April 2017 after a battle with cancer. [4]
( key)
Year | Entrant | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | WDC | Points |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1959 | Alan Brown Equipe | Cooper T45 F2 | Climax Straight-4 | MON | 500 | NED | FRA |
GBR Ret |
GER | POR | ITA | USA | NC | 0 | |
1960 | Taylor-Crawley Racing Team | Lotus 18 | Climax Straight-4 | ARG | MON | 500 | NED |
BEL DNS |
FRA | GBR | POR | ITA | USA | NC | 0 |