1976 McLaren M26

This is a photograph I took in the paddock at Oulton Park at the Gold Cup meeting in August 2003.

The programme of the event shows it as a 1976 McLaren M23 to be driven by Frank Lyons in the Force Classic Grand Prix Cars race, but it looks more like a McLaren M26, one of which at that time was also owned by Frank Lyons. James Hunt won the World Drivers' Championship in 1976 in a McLaren M23, but his team mate Jochen Mass drove a McLaren M26 that year, finishing in ninth place in the Championship with his best results being a couple of third places.

1977 McLaren M26

 This is a photograph I took at the Donington Park Museum in March 1996.

These are two McLaren F1 cars, the nearest one being the 1977 McLaren M26 as driven by James Hunt for the second half of the 1977 season and in the 1978 season, and has a 2,993cc V8 Ford Cosworth DFV engine. James Hunt finished in fifth place in the World Drivers' Championship in 1977 with his team-mate Jochen Mass in sixth place, and McLaren took third place in the World Constructors' Championship. In 1978 James Hunt finished equal thirteenth with his team-mate Patrick Tambay in the Drivers' Championship, and McLaren were eighth in the Constructors' Championship.

The car behind it is the 1976 McLaren M23, the car with which James Hunt won the 1976 World Drivers' Championship. The McLaren M23 also had the 2,993 V8 Ford Cosworth engine and was raced by the McLaren team for five seasons from 1973, Emerson Fittipaldi winning the World Drivers' Championship in 1974, as well as finishing in second place in both 1973 and 1975. In 1976 James Hunt won six races to finish one point in front of Niki Lauda in his Ferrari in the World Drivers' Championship, the title being decided at the last race of the season, the Japanese Grand Prix, where James Hunt finished in third place and Niki Lauda withdrew before the end of the race because of the hazardous weather conditions.

1977 McLaren M26

I took this photograph at the Ferrari & Maserati Festival of Racing meeting at Donington Park in May 2003 where there was a race for Classic Grand Prix Cars, dating from 1967 to 1977. The car isn't listed in the programme of the event and I can't remember whether it took part in the race or not.

It's a 1977 McLaren M26 as driven by James Hunt for the second half of the 1977 season and in the 1978 season, and has a 2,993cc V8 Ford Cosworth DFV engine. James Hunt finished in fifth place in the World Drivers' Championship in 1977 with his team-mate Jochen Mass in sixth place, and McLaren took third place in the World Constructors' Championship. In 1978 James Hunt finished equal thirteenth with his team-mate Patrick Tambay in the Drivers' Championship, and McLaren were eighth in the Constructors' Championship.

McLaren M26

This, I think, is Frank Lyons' 1977 McLaren M26 seen at the Silverstone Historic Tribute meeting in June 2004.

It's a bit confusing because it's numbered 65 but according to the programme of the meeting the car should be number 9. A record of the results of the meeting by the Historic Sports Car Club and available online show the car number to have been 55 and number 65 is shown to be a Surtees TS9-03 driven by Judy Lyons, although that car is shown in the programme as number 8.

The McLaren ran as number 65 and is shown in the photograph below at Luffield Corner.