Happy 80th Birthday to Vic Elford

Born in London on June 10, 1935, Vic Elford was one of the fastest drivers in the highly competitive 1960s and ’70s racing scene. Elford’s lap records include Targa Florio, Nurburgring, Daytona, Sebring, Norisring, Monza, Road Atlanta, Laguna Seca, Riverside, and Le Mans – where he was the first driver to lap at over a 150mph average in the Porsche long-tail 917 in 1970.

Known as “Quick Vic” to friends and competitors, Elford is one of the few drivers to excel in sports cars, rally cars, and Formula 1 at a championship level. His 1968 season began by winning the prestigious Monte Carlo Rally in a Porsche 911, followed by an overall win the next weekend in Daytona at the Rolex 24 Hour race – Porsche’s first 24-Hour race victory. He finished second at the 12 Hours of Sebring a month later, then in May scored an epic victory at the Targa Florio, considered the greatest win in Targa history. Two weeks later Vic won the Nurburgring 1000 Kilometers. Then in his first F1 race in July, Vic took an out-classed Cooper to a stunning fourth-place finish in the soaking-wet French Grand Prix.