Ken Tyrrell

Ken Tyrrell
Born	(1924-05-03) 3 May 1924 East Horsley, Surrey, England
Died	25 August 2001(2001-08-25) (aged 77)
Occupation(s)	Racing driver, Team principal
Known for	Founder of Tyrrell Formula One team

Robert Kenneth Tyrrell (3 May 1924 – 25 August 2001) was a British racing driver in Formula Two and the founder of the Tyrrell Formula One team.

Biography

Originating from East Horsley, Surrey, Tyrrell served in the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. Post-war, he entered the timber trade and began his racing career in 1952, piloting a Norton-powered Cooper in Formula 3. By 1958, he progressed to competing in Formula Two with a Cooper equipped with a Climax engine, securing multiple victories.

Acknowledging his greater aptitude for team management over driving, Tyrrell stepped away from racing in 1959 to lead the works Cooper Formula Junior outfit, operating initially out of his family business’s woodshed. By 1961, he was overseeing Mini Cooper entries and temporarily replaced an injured John Cooper in Formula One.

Tyrrell identified emerging talents including Jackie Stewart, whom he recruited for his Formula Junior squad in 1964, along with drivers like Jody Scheckter and former motorcycle world champion John Surtees. Leveraging the success of the newly introduced Cosworth DFV engine following its maiden victory at the 1967 Dutch Grand Prix, Tyrrell secured sponsorship from Elf, Dunlop, and Ford to enter Formula One in 1968 as team principal of Matra International, a collaboration between his team and French manufacturer Matra. He persuaded Matra to adopt the DFV as an alternative to their V12 powerplant, resulting in the competitive Matra MS10.

With Stewart behind the wheel, Matra International achieved second place in the Constructors' Championship of 1968. The subsequent year saw Matra develop the DFV-powered Matra MS80, which enabled Stewart to claim his first World Drivers' Championship. When Matra insisted on concentrating solely on their V12 engine development, Tyrrell covertly commissioned Derek Gardner to design the Tyrrell 001, paving the way for improved models like the Tyrrell 003 introduced in 1971. Stewart and newcomer François Cevert together secured eight victories during 1971 and 1972, with Stewart capturing the World Drivers' Championship again in 1971.

In 1972, Gardner brought innovations such as inboard brakes featured on the Tyrrell 005, although some challenges persisted.

The introduction of the successful Tyrrell 006, recognizable by its tall airbox design, occurred in 1973, yet Cevert’s fatal crash at that year’s US Grand Prix profoundly impacted Tyrrell and contributed to Stewart’s retirement after securing another championship title.

In response to these setbacks, Tyrrell signed drivers Scheckter and Patrick Depailler for the 1974 season and launched the more stable Tyrrell 007. Scheckter finished third overall in the Drivers' Championship while rookie Depailler placed ninth; this car remained in competition through 1975. Despite fielding talents such as Scheckter, Depailler, and Ronnie Peterson, Tyrrell’s results declined to mid-field positions over subsequent seasons.

Continuing innovation led to the creation of the six-wheeled Tyrrell P34 in 1976 featuring four front wheels—a distinctive concept that achieved one race victory but was discontinued after Goodyear halted development of its specialized smaller tires due to competitive pressures.

During the early 1980s, financial constraints compelled Tyrrell to operate without sponsorship while maintaining an eye for promising drivers like Michele Alboreto, Stefan Bellof, and Martin Brundle. However, limited funding combined with continued reliance on Cosworth DFV engines—while rivals transitioned to turbocharged units—restricted competitiveness. Alboreto earned the final win for a DFV-powered car in 1983 before Tyrrell was excluded from championship competition in 1984 amid accusations of running underweight vehicles—a charge Tyrrell denied, attributing it to bias stemming from his refusal to adopt turbo engines.

By the early ’90s, Tyrrell delegated much operational control to his sons and technical director Harvey Postlethwaite who introduced high-nose chassis designs starting with the car launched in 1990. Under this leadership era, drivers such as Jean Alesi secured podium finishes and led laps; however podium appearances became infrequent thereafter with final points scored at the 1997 Monaco Grand Prix by Mika Salo.

In 1997, ownership of Tyrrell Racing transferred to British American Tobacco and Craig Pollock who established British American Racing (BAR). Tyrrell departed prior to the team's final season under his name (1998) due to disagreements over driver selections—specifically Pollock’s insistence on signing Ricardo Rosset instead of candidates favored by Tyrrell.

Ken Tyrrell passed away from pancreatic cancer on 25 August 2001 at age seventy-seven.

Sources

• Kettlewell, Mike. "Stewart: The Flying Scotsman", featured in Northey, Tom, editor. World of Automobiles, Volume 19, pages 2190–2192. London: Orbis, 1974.
• Setright, L. J. K. "Tyrrell: An Astute Talent Scout", included in Northey, Tom, editor. World of Automobiles, Volume 21, pages 2417–2420. London: Orbis, 1974.
• Twite, Mike. "BRM: Ambitions and Disappointments", found in Northey, Tom, editor. World of Automobiles, Volume 3, pages 246–251. London: Orbis, 1974.

External links

• Ken Tyrrell biography at The 500 Owners Association