Trevor Taylor

Trevor Taylor (26 December 1936 - 27 September 2010) was a British racing driver who competed in Formula One from 1959 to 1964. Born in Glemsford, Suffolk, Taylor emerged as a promising talent in British motorsport and became test driver for Lotus before being promoted to the works team alongside Jim Clark. He made his Formula One debut in 1959 and competed in 27 World Championship Grands Prix during his career. Taylor's best season came in 1962 when, driving for Lotus, he finished third at the Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort, his only podium finish in Formula One.

That season he was teammates with Jim Clark, who dominated in the Lotus 25, while Taylor struggled with older equipment and reliability issues. Despite showing flashes of speed and being highly rated by Lotus founder Colin Chapman, Taylor was consistently overshadowed by Clark's brilliance and often given inferior machinery. He scored a total of 8 championship points during his Formula One career. Beyond his Formula One results, Taylor was successful in other categories, winning races in Formula Junior and competing in sports car events.

He was involved in several serious accidents during his career, including a major crash at the 1962 German Grand Prix at the Nürburgring where he escaped with relatively minor injuries despite a spectacular accident. Taylor also suffered injuries in a crash at Oulton Park in 1962. He left Lotus at the end of 1963 and had brief stints with BRP and other teams before retiring from Formula One in 1964. After his racing career, Taylor worked in the automotive industry and remained connected to motorsport.

He often reflected on his time as Jim Clark's teammate and the challenges of competing against one of Formula One's all-time greats. Trevor Taylor passed away in September 2010 at the age of 73.