G. McRae gets pole position

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32494, 2 January 1971, Page 16

G. McRae gets pole position

(New Zealand Press Association) LEVIN. The national champion, G. Mcßae (Wellington), will start the opening race of the Tasman motor-racing championship, at Levin today, from pole position on the grid of the 1.17-mile circuit.

The best four practice times Mcßae 44.1 sec, N. Allen (Australia), 44.45ec, F. Matich (Australia), 44.75ec, and C. Amon, 44.95ec are all under the existing lap record of 45.35ec, set by the late J. Rindt (Austria) in the 1969 series.

Their cars are all five-litre McLarens, excluding Amon’s ; 21-litre S.T.P. March. ;i In yesterday’s practice sessions, a dozen international

drivers battled for pole position with temperatures in the mid-80s. The reigning Tasman champion, G. Lawrence, was absent from practice yesterday after mechanical troubles delayed him in Hamilton until late in the afternoon. His absence will place him at the rear of the grid. Allen was worried in the late afternoon by an obscure miss in his machine, Mcßae by a fuel tank leakage, while Amon was looking for more acceleration from his 370 h.p. car. A spin-out seemed to have eliminated R. Galloway (United States), who has been a noted European Formula A driver in the last two seasons. CAR DAMAGED He was driving the fivelitre Lola of his team-mate, R. Brown. The car was extensively damaged on the right-hand side, but the driver was not injured. Both Brown and Galloway have damaged cars. The American Formula A champion, J. Cannon (Canada), and the Australian D. O’Sullivan, of the Matich team tangled their cars at the hairpin bend but both cars will race today. The order of lap times was: Mcßae (McLaren M10B), 44.1; Allen (McLaren M10B), 44.4; Matich (McLaren M10B), 44.7; Amon (March Ml), 44.9; K. Bartlett (Australia, Mildren 5000), 46.0; D. Oxton (New Zealand, Lotus 5000), 46.3; Cannon (McLaren), 46.3; K. Smith (New Zealand, Lotus 1800), 46.7; E. Moyes (United States, Brabham 1850), 46.7; T. Pillette (Belgium, McLaren M10B), 47.3.