Lex Davison
| Lex Davison | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | Australian |
| Born | 12 February 1923 Melbourne, VIC, Australia |
| Died | Script error: The function "death_date_and_age" does not exist. Sandown Raceway, Melbourne, VIC, Australia |
| Related to | Jon Davison (son) Richard Davison (son) Alex Davison (grandson) Will Davison (grandson) James Davison (grandson) |
| Australian Drivers' Championship | |
| Years active | 1957-64 |
| Teams | Ecurie Australie |
| Wins | 11 |
| Best finish | 1st in 1957 Australian Drivers' Championship |
| Previous series | |
| 1964-65 | Tasman Series |
| Championship titles | |
| 1954 1957 1958 1961 1957 1955 1956 1957 |
Australian Grand Prix Australian Grand Prix Australian Grand Prix Australian Grand Prix Australian Drivers' Championship Australian Hillclimb Championship Australian Hillclimb Championship Australian Hillclimb Championship |
Alexander Nicholas Davison (12 February 1923 – 20 February 1965)[1] was a racing driver who won the Australian Grand Prix four times between 1954 and 1961 and won the Australian Drivers' Championship in 1957. He drove HWM-Jaguar, Ferrari, Aston Martin and Cooper-Climax grand prix cars.[2]
Davison won Class A of the 1960 Armstrong 500, forerunner of the Bathurst 1000, driving an NSU Prinz.
In 1961 he won the Aintree Grand Prix, finished third in the British Empire Trophy and placed tenth in the Intercontinental Championship - his only point being a sixth in the Guards Trophy, all whilst racing an Aston Martin.
He competed at the 1961 24 Hours of Le Mans with Bib Stillwell in an Aston Martin DB4GT Zagato. Davison and Stillwell were invited to race for the Essex Racing Stable due to their involvement with Aston Martins in the Australian racing scene. Davison had finished second in the 1960 Australian Grand Prix and fourth in the Australian Gold Star Championship in an Aston Martin DBR4/300. Unfortunately their Le Mans adventure ended prematurely when a blown head gasket saw them retire on lap 25.
On 20 February 1965 Davison died in a crash during practice for the 1965 International 100[3] at Sandown International Raceway. While accelerating through the dog leg of the back straight in his 2.5L Brabham Climax he suffered a heart attack. The car left the road at over 160 km/h, hit a culvert, somersaulted and crashed through a horse railing fence. Davison sustained severe head injuries and was dead when officials reached him.
Davison was the husband of female racing driver Diana Davison and father of Australian racing drivers Jon Davison and Richard Davison and grandfather of Alex Davison, Will Davison and James Davison.
Drivers who win the Australian Grand Prix are awarded the Lex Davison Trophy, so named to honor Davison who was the first 4 time winner of the event (the only other 4 time winner is 7 time World Champion Michael Schumacher). This trophy, designed and made in Britain by Mr Rex Hays to the order of CAMS, incorporates a silver model of the Austin 7 driven to victory in the first Australian Grand Prix in 1928.[4]
Career results
| Season | Series/Title | Position | Car | Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1955 | Australian Hillclimb Championship | 1st | Cooper Mk. IV [5] Vincent | |
| 1956 | Australian Hillclimb Championship | 1st | Cooper Mk. IV [5] Vincent | |
| 1957 | Australian Hillclimb Championship | 1st | Cooper Mk. IV [5] Irving | |
| 1957 | Australian Drivers' Championship | 1st | Ferrari 625 F1 | |
| 1958 | Australian Drivers' Championship | 5th | Ferrari 500 | |
| 1960 | Australian Drivers' Championship | 4th | Aston Martin DBR4 | |
| 1961 | Australian Drivers' Championship | 2nd | Aston Martin DBR4 & Cooper T51 Coventry Climax | Ecurie Australie & BS Stillwell |
| 1962 | Australian Drivers' Championship | 6th | Cooper T53 Climax | |
| 1963 | Australian Drivers' Championship | 4th | Cooper T62 Climax | |
| 1964 | Tasman Series | 13th | Cooper T62 Climax | Ecurie Australie |
| 1964 | Australian Drivers' Championship | 2nd | Cooper T62 Climax Brabham BT4 Climax |
Ecurie Australie |
Notes
- ↑ Australian Dictionary of Biography Online Edition
- ↑ Bill Pitt's website
- ↑ 1965 Tasman Series Sandown International 100
- ↑ 2010 CAMS Manual of Motor Sport - Australian Grand Prix
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 John B Blanden, Historic Racing Cars in Australia, 1979, pages 88-89
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Winner of the Australian Grand Prix 1954 |
Succeeded by Jack Brabham |
| Preceded by
Inaugural
|
Winner of the Australian Drivers' Championship 1957 |
Succeeded by Stan Jones |
| Preceded by | Winner of the Australian Grand Prix 1957 (with Bill Patterson) and 1958 |
Succeeded by Stan Jones |
| Preceded by | Winner of the Australian Grand Prix 1961 |
Succeeded by Bruce McLaren |
- Use Australian English from October 2014
- All Wikipedia articles written in Australian English
- Use dmy dates from February 2011
- Pages with broken file links
- 1923 births
- 1965 deaths
- 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers
- Australian racing drivers
- Racing drivers from Melbourne
- Tasman Series drivers
- World Sportscar Championship drivers
