This post was originally created on the Nissan Primera Owners Club forum, and I reproduce it here without any malice or ill-intent, to share the love and admiration of the late, great, David Leslie. Please visit their forum and read the whole article, but I bring over just the part which can relate to RR's Touring Car Week, of the man himself.
All credit goes to the NPOC. Thankyou guys and girls.
www.npoc.co.uk/forum/may-2008-david-leslie-tribute_topic14269.html
Introduction
David Leslie was born in Annan, Scotland in 1953 and was best known to us as a racing driver in the British Touring Car Championship taking nine wins during his career in the ultra competitive Super Tourer era.
Sadly, on March 30th 2008 at Farnborough in Kent, he was killed when a private jet he was travelling on, crashed into a housing estate.
We hope this feature will give some insight into the man, his career especially with Nissan and the sense of loss felt by a nation of fans.
The Earlier Days
David Leslies career began racing Karts in Scotland where unsurprisingly, his talent took him to five championship titles, the first at just 16 years old. This start would see David moving into cars before long where in 1978, he won the Formula Ford 1600 title.
Davids Royale FF1600:
Further title success came his way in Formula Ford 1600 and Formula Ford 2000 before he later moved into the British Formula Three Championship and remained from 1981 through to 1984, involved with the Ecurie Ecosse team.
David Leslie in 1978 Van Diemen RF78, Oulton Park July 1978
David also ran the David Leslie Racing team along with his father which launched the careers of several Scottish drivers such as David Coulthard, Dario Franchitti and Alan McNish.
With Ecosse, he moved to the World Sportscar Championship and drove to many CS class wins, helping the team earn the 1986 Championship. David earned second place in 1987 alongside his teammate Ray Mallock, his future BTCC team boss.
Ecosse would eventually take over the Aston Martin sports car program before David departed in 1990 to become part of the Jaguar team.
BTCC
David made the move into BTCC starting with a BMW in 1990 and 1991.
He was to maintain his links with Ecosse when the team moved into the British Touring Car Championship in 1992.
David was to compete on a partial schedule for the first two seasons before becoming a full-time driver for Vauxhall in 1992. Just one year later, he would take his first win in the Ecosse Vauxhall Cavalier at Thruxton and over two years would earn six pole positions and in both seasons, take a top 10 championship placement. His strong form that year earned RML, which ran the Ecurie Ecosse team, a factory Vauxhall deal for 1994.
Davids 1994 Ecurie Ecosse Vauxhall:
David would have a single season racing for Mazda in 1994 only running selected races due to budgetary issues, and subsequently was chosen by Honda in 1995 to lead their first season in BTCC.
David in the Mazda Xedos 6:
The Accord was late getting onto the track pre season, reliability was initially poor but David still managed to finish 10th overall after a strong ending to that season. Next year in 1996 was to start badly with several collisions but taking a victory at the British Grand Prix support meeting allowed him to take 4th overall at the final round of that season after three wins over the course of the year.
In 1997, Honda handed the 1997 programme over to Prodrive, David Leslie decided to sign up with Nissan, the team ran by Ray Mallock.
Nissan BTCC
Joining Nissan, David drove alongside fellow Scot Anthony Reid for two seaons in 1997 and 1998. After many years of underachieving from Nissan, David Leslie played an integral part in reviving their fortunes, in 1999 the RML Primera was to become the dominant force of BTCC.
Although winning three times over the year, David was to miss out on the championship, missing out to teammate Laurent Aiello who swept the championship during that season. For David Leslie, this was to mean a career best of 2nd in the standings, a tremendous achievement.
Davids 1999 season Nissan Primera:
For Nissan, after winning the manufacturers title that year thanks to David and Laurent, they elected to bow out of BTCC on a high.
If you are driving a Primera GTLE, you will know that this Limited Edition Primera was released to celebrate the success of the 1999 BTCC season, you drive your GTLE thanks to the racing talent of David Leslie.
Life After Nissan
Nissan withdrew their works team in 2000 leaving David to mix occassional privateer outings with sportscar racing until he signed up for Protons debut season in 2002. David was unable to take the uncompetitive Team Petronas Impian to a win, but he did manage to take the car to the podium, taking 2nd place at Croft in 2003.
His two years with Proton proved to be Davids BTCC swansong. A BTCC career that has given him 9 wins, 35 podiums and 16 poles from 220 starts.
After BTCC
He subsequently shared a BMW with Apex Motorsport co-owner Harry Handkammer in the British endurance series, and made several appareanced in historic and club events in the UK including annual outings at the FF1660 Walter Hayes Trophy.
David also became a highly respected commentator for Eurosports coverage of the World Touring Car Championship.
The hugely popular Scot continued to race successfully until his death. Taking advantage of adverse weather conditions at Silverstone to take an unexpected Britcar victory, sharing a BMW M3 E46 with Handkammer at Silverstone in his final race on March 22nd.
In 2004 , David drove the Le Mans Legend Race. He pedalled the car with all the skill of a professional driver to the very last lap when he was lying 7th overall when disaster struck. The oil warning light came on and David, being sensitive to the car rather than seeking success, immediately withdrew on the side of the track. It was a bitter disappointment to Bryan Wingfield, whose ambition was to see the car perform well at Le Mans again, but at the end of the day, the car was in one piece and the damage to the engine, though significant, was not fatal.
"After an expensive engine rebuild we were back at Donington for the last race of the season with everyone's favourite - the Swiftair Ecosse. Will she nail her colours to the mast by proving her pedigree? We are again thrilled to have David Leslie at the wheel, but he was unable to make practice as he had a previous engagement at Snetterton. Starting from the back of the grid did not bode well, but we need not have worried because David's superb skill soon saw the little red car filtering its way through the back of the field. The excitement was tremendous and David eventually brought the Ecosse home in 2nd position overall and first in class in the final race - what a triumphant end to the Season!"
This is a beautiful photo of David at the 2007 Silverstone Classic driving his stunning MK1 Lola, restored by himself:
At the same event, David driving the Ford C100 Group C car, very rare to see this car out and it's first time out for years:
Tributes
To honour David, a bend at the Knockhill circuit has been named 'Leslies Bend'. It was officially named at the British GT Championship by Davids wife, his sons Graham and James and his father David. The meeting was also attended by Davids close friend Anthony Reid:
Touring cars being driven round Leslies bend:
"A minute's silence was held at Nogaro, venue for the FIA GT3 performance balancing tests that was the intended destination for the Apex men, and the team members presented their own very personal and moving tribute."
David as development driver for Apex Motorsports, was on his way to a Jaguar XKR GT3 test in France when the plane he was travelling on crashed.
F1 driver David Coulthard paid tribute to his former mentor:
"I was shocked to hear the terrible news of the plane crash yesterday. Of the passengers on-board David Leslie was a friend and was instrumental in helping me make the transition from kart racing to cars.
Throughout the winter of 1988 and all through 1989, both David and his father coached and guided my career to the point where I entered a multi-year contract with Paul Stewart Racing in 1990, which led to me making my grand prix debut four years later. He was selfless in his help and advice and would regularly jump in my Formula Ford race car to show me the correct techniques and driving lines required for single seaters. My thoughts are with all the families involved and of course David's wife Jane and their two sons."
Damon Hill OBE, President of the British Racing Drivers Club, said, �On behalf of all BRDC Members, I would like to extend our sincere condolences to the family and friends of David and Richard at this very sad time. Both men were much loved Members of our Club. This accident is a shock to all of us and we can only think of all those that have been touched by this tragedy. On a personal note, it was my great pleasure and privilege to have known both men, and Richard generously gave me an opportunity to drive one of his cars at Le Mans in 1989 at a time when I had no money and no prospects. I am entirely grateful to him for that. Both men were a credit to the Club and motor sport but above all they were thoroughly decent men who loved the sport. They will be much missed.�
All credit goes to the NPOC. Thankyou guys and girls.
www.npoc.co.uk/forum/may-2008-david-leslie-tribute_topic14269.html
Introduction
David Leslie was born in Annan, Scotland in 1953 and was best known to us as a racing driver in the British Touring Car Championship taking nine wins during his career in the ultra competitive Super Tourer era.
Sadly, on March 30th 2008 at Farnborough in Kent, he was killed when a private jet he was travelling on, crashed into a housing estate.
We hope this feature will give some insight into the man, his career especially with Nissan and the sense of loss felt by a nation of fans.
The Earlier Days
David Leslies career began racing Karts in Scotland where unsurprisingly, his talent took him to five championship titles, the first at just 16 years old. This start would see David moving into cars before long where in 1978, he won the Formula Ford 1600 title.
Davids Royale FF1600:
Further title success came his way in Formula Ford 1600 and Formula Ford 2000 before he later moved into the British Formula Three Championship and remained from 1981 through to 1984, involved with the Ecurie Ecosse team.
David Leslie in 1978 Van Diemen RF78, Oulton Park July 1978
David also ran the David Leslie Racing team along with his father which launched the careers of several Scottish drivers such as David Coulthard, Dario Franchitti and Alan McNish.
With Ecosse, he moved to the World Sportscar Championship and drove to many CS class wins, helping the team earn the 1986 Championship. David earned second place in 1987 alongside his teammate Ray Mallock, his future BTCC team boss.
Ecosse would eventually take over the Aston Martin sports car program before David departed in 1990 to become part of the Jaguar team.
BTCC
David made the move into BTCC starting with a BMW in 1990 and 1991.
He was to maintain his links with Ecosse when the team moved into the British Touring Car Championship in 1992.
David was to compete on a partial schedule for the first two seasons before becoming a full-time driver for Vauxhall in 1992. Just one year later, he would take his first win in the Ecosse Vauxhall Cavalier at Thruxton and over two years would earn six pole positions and in both seasons, take a top 10 championship placement. His strong form that year earned RML, which ran the Ecurie Ecosse team, a factory Vauxhall deal for 1994.
Davids 1994 Ecurie Ecosse Vauxhall:
David would have a single season racing for Mazda in 1994 only running selected races due to budgetary issues, and subsequently was chosen by Honda in 1995 to lead their first season in BTCC.
David in the Mazda Xedos 6:
The Accord was late getting onto the track pre season, reliability was initially poor but David still managed to finish 10th overall after a strong ending to that season. Next year in 1996 was to start badly with several collisions but taking a victory at the British Grand Prix support meeting allowed him to take 4th overall at the final round of that season after three wins over the course of the year.
In 1997, Honda handed the 1997 programme over to Prodrive, David Leslie decided to sign up with Nissan, the team ran by Ray Mallock.
Nissan BTCC
Joining Nissan, David drove alongside fellow Scot Anthony Reid for two seaons in 1997 and 1998. After many years of underachieving from Nissan, David Leslie played an integral part in reviving their fortunes, in 1999 the RML Primera was to become the dominant force of BTCC.
Although winning three times over the year, David was to miss out on the championship, missing out to teammate Laurent Aiello who swept the championship during that season. For David Leslie, this was to mean a career best of 2nd in the standings, a tremendous achievement.
Davids 1999 season Nissan Primera:
For Nissan, after winning the manufacturers title that year thanks to David and Laurent, they elected to bow out of BTCC on a high.
If you are driving a Primera GTLE, you will know that this Limited Edition Primera was released to celebrate the success of the 1999 BTCC season, you drive your GTLE thanks to the racing talent of David Leslie.
Life After Nissan
Nissan withdrew their works team in 2000 leaving David to mix occassional privateer outings with sportscar racing until he signed up for Protons debut season in 2002. David was unable to take the uncompetitive Team Petronas Impian to a win, but he did manage to take the car to the podium, taking 2nd place at Croft in 2003.
His two years with Proton proved to be Davids BTCC swansong. A BTCC career that has given him 9 wins, 35 podiums and 16 poles from 220 starts.
After BTCC
He subsequently shared a BMW with Apex Motorsport co-owner Harry Handkammer in the British endurance series, and made several appareanced in historic and club events in the UK including annual outings at the FF1660 Walter Hayes Trophy.
David also became a highly respected commentator for Eurosports coverage of the World Touring Car Championship.
The hugely popular Scot continued to race successfully until his death. Taking advantage of adverse weather conditions at Silverstone to take an unexpected Britcar victory, sharing a BMW M3 E46 with Handkammer at Silverstone in his final race on March 22nd.
In 2004 , David drove the Le Mans Legend Race. He pedalled the car with all the skill of a professional driver to the very last lap when he was lying 7th overall when disaster struck. The oil warning light came on and David, being sensitive to the car rather than seeking success, immediately withdrew on the side of the track. It was a bitter disappointment to Bryan Wingfield, whose ambition was to see the car perform well at Le Mans again, but at the end of the day, the car was in one piece and the damage to the engine, though significant, was not fatal.
"After an expensive engine rebuild we were back at Donington for the last race of the season with everyone's favourite - the Swiftair Ecosse. Will she nail her colours to the mast by proving her pedigree? We are again thrilled to have David Leslie at the wheel, but he was unable to make practice as he had a previous engagement at Snetterton. Starting from the back of the grid did not bode well, but we need not have worried because David's superb skill soon saw the little red car filtering its way through the back of the field. The excitement was tremendous and David eventually brought the Ecosse home in 2nd position overall and first in class in the final race - what a triumphant end to the Season!"
This is a beautiful photo of David at the 2007 Silverstone Classic driving his stunning MK1 Lola, restored by himself:
At the same event, David driving the Ford C100 Group C car, very rare to see this car out and it's first time out for years:
Tributes
To honour David, a bend at the Knockhill circuit has been named 'Leslies Bend'. It was officially named at the British GT Championship by Davids wife, his sons Graham and James and his father David. The meeting was also attended by Davids close friend Anthony Reid:
Touring cars being driven round Leslies bend:
"A minute's silence was held at Nogaro, venue for the FIA GT3 performance balancing tests that was the intended destination for the Apex men, and the team members presented their own very personal and moving tribute."
David as development driver for Apex Motorsports, was on his way to a Jaguar XKR GT3 test in France when the plane he was travelling on crashed.
F1 driver David Coulthard paid tribute to his former mentor:
"I was shocked to hear the terrible news of the plane crash yesterday. Of the passengers on-board David Leslie was a friend and was instrumental in helping me make the transition from kart racing to cars.
Throughout the winter of 1988 and all through 1989, both David and his father coached and guided my career to the point where I entered a multi-year contract with Paul Stewart Racing in 1990, which led to me making my grand prix debut four years later. He was selfless in his help and advice and would regularly jump in my Formula Ford race car to show me the correct techniques and driving lines required for single seaters. My thoughts are with all the families involved and of course David's wife Jane and their two sons."
Damon Hill OBE, President of the British Racing Drivers Club, said, �On behalf of all BRDC Members, I would like to extend our sincere condolences to the family and friends of David and Richard at this very sad time. Both men were much loved Members of our Club. This accident is a shock to all of us and we can only think of all those that have been touched by this tragedy. On a personal note, it was my great pleasure and privilege to have known both men, and Richard generously gave me an opportunity to drive one of his cars at Le Mans in 1989 at a time when I had no money and no prospects. I am entirely grateful to him for that. Both men were a credit to the Club and motor sport but above all they were thoroughly decent men who loved the sport. They will be much missed.�
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