SINGAPORE TITLE FOR THIRD TIME Fine win to Lawrence in grand prix

Press, Volume CXI, Issue 32578, 12 April 1971, Page 18

SINGAPORE TITLE FOR THIRD TIME Fine win to Lawrence in grand prix

(N.Z.PA.-Reuter—Copyright!

SINGAPORE.

The New Zealand driver, G. Lawrence, overcame a series of mechanical problems to produce a brilliant victory and win the Singapore Grand Prix title for the third successive year.

The 30-year-old Hamilton driver, in the Brabham BT 30 which he drove to second place in the Timaru Trophy race in January, led almost from start to finish in the 40-lap race over Singapore’s 3.02-mile Sembawang road circuit.

In spite of a pit stop which cost him 49 seconds, Lawrence still outclassed the field of Formula One cars up to 1600 c.c. He won by 1 min 5.6 sec. from J. Walker of Australia in an Elfin 600 SA. R. Muri (Australia), in a Mildren-Waggott 1600 was third, followed by J. Macdonald (Hong Kong) in a Brabham. The fair-headed New Zealander scorched over the 40 laps at an average speed of 87.41 miles an hour in the time of I hr 22 min 58.1 sec. He said afterwards that it was the hardest of his hattrick of victories. Lawrence’s car had been plagued with machine trouble since the practice stages on Thursday. Collision Lawrence’s fellow New Zealander, K. Smith, from Auckland, drove magnificently in his Lotus 69, and was in fourth or fifth position throughout until he was involved in a collision at the three-quarter stage and had to pull out. Smith was not seriously hurt. Smith was put out of the race when he was in a collision with an 850 formula Honda driven by N. Kinoshita of Japan on the winding “Snakes,” half-way around the circuit Kinoshita was taken to a first-aid post in an ambulance, but was not seriously injured either. Lawrence shot into the lead in the first lap from third position on the starting grid and proceeded to tear away from the opposition. He was 21 sec ahead of Walker when he pulled in to the pits in the eighteenth lap with a loose front wing. Back in front He rejoined the race in fourth position 29 sec behind Walker, Macdonald (Brabham), and Muir. Lawrence caught Muir on the twentysecond lap, passed Macdonald on the twenty-third, and was back in front again after overtaking Walker on the twenty-fifth. From then on the result was never in doubt, and he clocked the fastest lap of 1 min 59.8 sec for an average speed of 90.84 miles an hour on the thirtieth lap. Macdonald, who won the preliminary race on Friday, spun out on the treacherous circus hairpin on the twentyseventh lap and relinquished the third place to Muir.

Muir held on to finish third in 1 hr 24 min 18.3 sec, followed by Macdonald in 1 hr 24 min 41.5 sec.

Another Australian, M. Stewart, in a Mildren Alfa, was second until valve trouble forced him into the pits on the fourteenth lap. He came back again for another eight laps, but then retired.

(N Z PA.-Reuter —Copyright) SINGAPORE. G. Perry, of New Zealand, riding a Suzuki, yesterday won the Singapore grand prix for motorcycles over 40 laps of the Sembawang course. D. Loot, of Singapore, on a Yamaha, was second, followed by S. Soh of Singapore, also riding a Yamaha. T. Discombe, of New Zealand, was leading until the twentieth lap when he was forced to retire after his Yamaha developed engine trouble. Perry's win in the motorcycle event, which had no limits on engine capacity, brought off a New Zealand double. Earlier, his countryman, G. Lawrence, won the grand prix for cars in a Brabham BT3O.

Perry 1st