Denis Welch (16 March 1945 – 27 July 2014) was a British racing driver and businessman.

Denis Welch Motorsport

Race transport, Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours (France)

Welch founded Denis Welch Motorsport in 1976, specialising in parts for Austin-Healey and Jaguar cars. The company remanufactures parts for classic racing cars which would otherwise be impossible to obtain.[1] His son Jeremy took over the company in 2007.[2]

Historic racing

Welch started racing in 1965. He took motorsport seriously but did not have ambitions to race professionally; he focused on building his engineering company and continued to race on the side.[3]

Welch was particularly noted for his red 1959 Austin-Healey 3000, nicknamed The Bulldog and with registration 6200 NO, which he drove to great success in a flamboyant, oversteering style.[4][5] He purchased the car in 1979 and fully restored it, going on to win a multitude of races including the Eifel Classic at the Nürburgring Nordschleife and events at Bathurst.[6][7] He won the HSCC Pre-1960 Historic Sports Car Championship in 1986 and 1987, and the HSCC Classic Sports Car Championship in 1988, 1991 and 1992.[8][9] Along with son Jeremy, he drove the car to a narrow second in the 1997 Motor Classic Six Hours of Spa, only losing the lead in the final half-hour when a backmarker cost them a penalty.[10] Victories at Brands Hatch in 1993 and Donington Park in 1996 also received magazine coverage.[11][12]

Welch was an accomplished historic Formula Junior racer and drove a Merlyn for many years in the FIA Lurani Trophy, the first officially sanctioned historic motorsport series. He never won the title, but lost out on a tie-break in 2004.[13] His first single-seater race weekend in 25 years came at Donington Park in 1995, where he netted a second-place and third-place finish.[14] A selection of his Formula Junior victories were at Dijon-Prenois in 2001,[15] at the Nürburgring in 2001 and 2004,[16][17] at Pau in 2001,[18] in the wet and the dry at Donington Park in 2004 and 2005,[19][20] at Monza in 2004 for the closest finish ever recorded at the circuit (0.003 s),[13][21] and at Silverstone in 2008.[22] In addition, Welch won the Formula Junior race at the Historic Grand Prix of Monaco in 2000, 2002 and 2006; the victory in 2000 was his first in the category and he was elated after the race:

"I’ve waited a long time for a Junior win, so this is magic. I’d never classed myself as that good a driver, but to see Stirling Moss half out of his car, waving and cheering as I came in, was incredible."[23]

In 2003, the Macau Grand Prix celebrated its golden jubilee by running two races for historic cars: the GP Anniversary Trophy and the Golden Jubilee Cup. Welch finished third in both races, driving a Lotus 23B.[24][25] He had previously won in this car at Donington Park the same year.[26] He won at Estoril in an Elva GT car in 2004.[27]

Death

Welch crashed fatally during the 2014 Silverstone Classic. He had entered a Lotus 18 into the Jack Brabham Memorial Trophy for pre-1966 Formula One cars. Gearbox issues during qualifying had forced him to start toward the back of the field. Two cars ahead of him collided on the opening lap and he was unable to avoid them, making contact and launching his own car into a roll. He was taken to the circuit's medical centre but later succumbed to his injuries.[28][29][30]

References

  1. ↑ Smyth, Rob (16 August 2017). "The 'go to' people to get your hands on a winning race car". Burton Mail. pp. 4–5. Archived from the original on 24 August 2021. Retrieved 24 August 2021.
  2. ↑ "Denis Welch Motorsport – HAAS Automation UK". haas.co.uk. Archived from the original on 23 October 2020. Retrieved 24 August 2014.
  3. ↑ Cartledge, James (28 July 2014). "Denis Welch died in crash at Silverstone Classic as wife Tina watched from the stands". birminghammail.co.uk. Archived from the original on 22 July 2019. Retrieved 28 July 2014.
  4. ↑ Cruickshank, Gordon (November 1983). "50MC Birkett Six Hour Relay Race". Motor Sport. p. 1330. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  5. ↑ "Historic 91 -- The Historic Car Club". Motor Sport. April 1991. pp. 355–357. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  6. ↑ "Service history: racing cars that simply won't stop". Motor Sport. October 2004. p. 105. Retrieved 24 August 2021.
  7. ↑ "6200 NO – 1959 Austin healey 3000 "The Bulldog" | Denish Wel… | Flickr". flickr.com. 26 February 2011. Archived from the original on 24 August 2021. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  8. ↑ "The Champions | Historic Sports Car Club". hscc.org.uk. Archived from the original on 13 August 2021. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  9. ↑ Cruickshank, Gordon (November 1992). "Where there's a Williams..." Motor Sport. pp. 1062–1063. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  10. ↑ "Chevron takes Spa spoils". Motor Sport. November 1997. p. 9. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  11. ↑ "Burning Brands". Motor Sport. July 1993. p. 63. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  12. ↑ Cox, Alan (July 1996). "Donington Park HSCC". Motor Sport. pp. 735–736. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  13. 1 2 "2004 Review -- Part One: The single-seaters". Motor Sport. January 2005. p. 94. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  14. ↑ "Motor Sport concours". Motor Sport. October 1995. pp. 1090–1091. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  15. ↑ "Title goes to wire". Motor Sport. November 2001. p. 8. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  16. ↑ Parker, Paul (October 2001). "A perfect weekend to 'ring in the old'". Motor Sport. p. 6. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  17. ↑ "Around the tracks". Motor Sport. September 2004. p. 24. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  18. ↑ "Around the tracks". Motor Sport. August 2001. p. 10. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  19. ↑ "Around the tracks". Motor Sport. June 2004. p. 22. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  20. ↑ Lawrence, Paul (June 2005). "Wheel to wheel -- the month in historic motorsport". Motor Sport. pp. 100–101. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  21. ↑ "Around the tracks". Motor Sport. July 2004. pp. 32–33. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  22. ↑ "Silverstone Classic Results and Pictures". sportscardigest.com. 28 July 2008. Archived from the original on 22 September 2015. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  23. ↑ Pye, Marcus (July 2000). "Monaco welcomes back historic racers". Motor Sport. p. 4. Retrieved 20 May 2021.
  24. ↑ "Decades of history | Macau Grand Prix". macau.grandprix.gov.mo. Archived from the original on 14 May 2021. Retrieved 14 May 2021.
  25. ↑ "Hadfield reaps eastern promise". Motor Sport. December 2003. p. 24. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  26. ↑ "Around the tracks". Motor Sport. June 2003. p. 8. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  27. ↑ "Gallego's TGP title on home ground". Motor Sport. December 2004. p. 107. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  28. ↑ "NOTICE OF DEATH – DENIS WELCH". brdc.co.uk. Archived from the original on 20 July 2017. Retrieved 14 May 2021.
  29. ↑ MacLeman, Greg (28 July 2014). "Denis Welch dies in Silverstone Classic accident". classicandsportscar.com. Archived from the original on 27 November 2020. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  30. ↑ Lynch, Paul (18 March 2015). "Motor racing ace's death in Northamptonshire was a tragic accident, inquest hears, despite his car's roll-bar collapsing – Northampton Chronicle and Echo". northamptonchron.co.uk. Archived from the original on 5 February 2016. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
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