CHASSIS REGISTER

1971 LOLA T212 HU23

All pictures courtesy of Serge Kriknoff.

Night falls at the 2016 Le Mans Classic.

September 1970, the car was ordered new by Jo Bonier the Lola distributor as well as the Lola driver for Scuderia Filipinetti.

Sold new to the German BC Racing Team for their Team Driver Dr. Helmut Marko for his use in the 1971 European Sports Car Championship Season.

Entered by the German BC Race Team in the first seven races of the nine race series comprising the European Sports Car Championship Series.

The following results were achieved in the 1971 Season by Marko as well as his part-time co-driver, Jean-Pierre Jabouille.

RESULTS
April 18th 1971 Paul Ricard 1st overall
May 23rd 1971 Salzburgring DNF
June 5th 1971 Silverstone DNF
July 4th 1971 Hockenheim 1st  overall
Aug 25th 1971 Imola 1st overall
Sept. 5th 1971 Nürburgring 5th overall
Sept. 26th 1971 Zandvoort 4th overall

Following the Zandvoort race the car was shipped to South Africa for the Springbok and Marko completed the Series driving a 1970 T210.

The car then competed in the Springbok Series where it was driven successfully by Marko and South African former F1 driver John Love, winning the Cape Town 3 Hours and the Pietermaritzburg 3 Hours (driven by Love on his own) and taking 3rd at the Goldfields 3 Hours.

In February 1972 HU23 returned to Jo Bonnier's workshop in Gland, Switzerland.

Jo Bonnier tragically died during the 1972 Le Mans 24 Hours. The cars were seized during the whole procedure following the death of Bonnier.

On the track at the 2015 Grand Prix de l'Age d'Or.

HU23 was then sold to Roger Martini in France at the beginning of 1974.

Roger Martini bought a Lola T290 at the beginning of 1976 and sold HU23 to Bernard Balmer from Annecy (Fr). Bernard Balmer raced the car only in hillclimbs. Mr. Balmer died tragically in January 1978 during the trip back after the Rally Monte Carlo.

The wife of Roger Balmer sold the car to André Roussel from Annecy. Roussel damaged HU23 at the first hillclimb he did with the car(Chanaz HillClimb 1979). He then tried to sell it for the parts during the next two years.

In 1982 the car was purchased by Ian Webb of Northdown Racing in the UK. The car was shipped to the Lola factory where it was repaired and then returned to Ian Webb. Webb then sold the car to Richard Eyre in 1984. The car was not fitted at this time with an engine or gearbox. Later that year John Foulston purchased the car and fitted a period correct Cosworth BDA engine and Hewland FF200 gearbox.

In 1997 after many years racing in the UK and on the continent, the car was purchased by Richard Griot and imported into the United States.

Richard gave the car a thorough and complete restoration and routinely serviced and prepared the car to an extremely high standard. Richard successfully campaigned this car in a variety of historic races from 1999 through to 2003.

In 2003 the car was sold to Walt Cox and then in 2008 to Steve Read. In 2010 the car passed to Greg Audi and now, in 2013, the new owner is Serge Kriknoff who will be racing in Classic Endurance Racing and the Masters Historic series.

HU23, now in its original livery as driven by Helmut Marko during the....



....300 kms of the Trophée d’Auvergne, on the Circuit de la Charade, Clermont Ferrand.



20th June 1971, Helmut Marko at Clermont Ferrand.



4th July 1971, Marko again at Hockenheim.



HU23 driven by Helmut Marko and John Love at the Kyalami 9 Hours on the 6th November 1971.



HU23 practicing for the Kyalami 9 Hours.