DR. MICHAEL HENDERSON

MARCH 722 HISTORIC F2

Niki Lauda was the driver of this works March 722 International Formula Two car, chassis number 5, during the 1972 European season. He succeeded in winning the John Player British F2 Championship.

Lauda was run by STP-March as the number two works driver to Ronnie Peterson. He had borrowed and paid £43,000 - a fortune at the time - for a joint F1/F2 drive as a stepping stone to a Formula One career. The cross insignia on the car is the logo of the bank that lent him the money.

The first race meeting for this March 722-5 was at Mallory Park in March 1972. In his next appearance with the March, Lauda won at a wet Oulton Park, in only the second race win of his career.

Lauda left March in 1973 for a drive with Louis Stanley's BRM team, and went on to win the World Championship with Ferrari in 1975 and 1977, and with McLaren in 1984.

The March was went through various configurations, including some time as a hillclimb car. It was found by South Australian orthopaedic surgeon Roger Oakeshott in Britain, and restored before he shipped it to Australia. He went quickly into professional racing, and I acquired it in 2000.

It has been restored in accordance with its appearance in 1972, including STP and other sponsorship decals. It is powered by a Cosworth-Ford BDG 1975cc fuel-injected engine.

It is very quick and a blast to drive, but suffers ongoing problems with reliability. It is one of the few March 722s running with the correct 2-litre BDG engine. Most have been fitted with a more reliable BDA.

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