Notes:
Son of Italian immigrants, Roy Salvadori was born in Dovercourt, Essex, north-east of London, in 1922. He was a solid presence in the Formula 1 and sportscar racing scene between 1947 and 1968. During his whole career, Roy Salvadori adhered to the reputation of a fierce, but never unfair fighter.

After working as a car dealer, Roy Salvadori began his racing career in 1949, at the wheel of a 2.9-litre Alfa Romeo and graduated to Formula 1 driving different cars, such as a Frazer Nash Le Mans Replica, a 2-litre Maserati and a Jaguar XK120. Salvadori made 50 Formula 1 starts, making his debut in the British Grand Prix at Silverstone in 1952. He drove a Maserati 250F for Sidney Greene's Gilby Engineering team from 1954/1956, earning a number of remarkable podium finishes in British non-championship events, including his outright wins in the Curtis Trophy at Snetterton in 1954 and 1955, the Glover Trophy and the Lavant Cup at Goodwood and the Daily Telegraph Trophy at Aintree in 1955 and the Vanwall Trophy at Snetterton in 1956. Then he joined the Cooper factory team, competing with a measure of success in Formula 1 and Formula 2 events. His best Formula 1 season came in 1958, when Salvadori finished fourth in the standings, driving a Cooper T45-Climax with a prestigious second place in the German Grand Prix at the Nürburgring, behind Tony Brooks's Vanwall and third in the British Grand Prix at Silverstone.

Salvadori was a talented endurance diver. On 30 August 1953, he finished a fine first in class, second place overall in the 1000 Km of the Nürburgring, fifth round of the newly introduced FIA World Sportscar Championship. He shared one of the Ecurie Ecosse Jaguar C-types with Ian Stewart, closely following the winning Ferrari 375MM Spider driven by the Formula 1 World Champions Alberto Ascari-Giuseppe Farina. His best performance was winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1959 for Aston Martin - a marque whose interests he served well, during his career. He shared the winning DBR1 with Carroll Shelby. In his 24-hour classic eleven starts, Salvadori also took a solid third in 1960, partnered with a youngster from Scotland named Jim Clark, in a Border Reivers-entered Aston Martin DBR1/300, and a class victory, fourth place overall in 1962, with Briggs Cunningham in a Jaguar E-type Lightweight Coupé.

In his last start in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1963, Salvadori was involved in the accident that claimed the life of Christian "Bino" Heins. The Jaguar E-Type Lightweight #16 which he shared with Paul Richards went out of control on the Ligne Droite des Hunaudières, hit the bank backwards and caught fire which was quickly extinguished. It is believed that the crash was caused by a great quantity of oil spilled on the asphalt by the engine of Bruce McLaren's works Aston Martin DP 214 #8, that blew less than an hour before. Salvadori was slightly injured in the crash, when he was ejected through the rear window of his car. Next to arrive at the scene were the Aston Martin DB4 GT Zagato #19 driven by Jacques Dewes, who raced under pseudonym "Franc", and the René Bonnet Aérodjet LM6-Renault #52 of Jean-Pierre Manzon, that crashed trying to avoid the other cars. Manzon sustained injuries when his car rolled and he was thrown out of the cockpit, lying on the track. Trying to avoid Manzon's body, Heins smashed against the wrecks, his #48 Alpine-Renault M63 turned over, hit a lamp-post and burst into flames. Heins, who was trapped inside, lost his life.

During his Formula 1 career, Roy Salvadori drove Ferrari, Connaught, Maserati, Cooper and Vanwall machinery and in 1959/60 he was entrusted with the short-lived Aston Martin DBR4 front-engined Formula 1 project that proved to be already technically obsolete. The nearest he came to a Formula 1 win was in the United States Grand Prix at Watkins Glen in 1961, when he drove the Cooper T53-Climax for the Yeoman Credit team. After starting from 12th position in the grid, lap by lap he was closing on the leading works Lotus 21-Climax of Innes Ireland, when his engine failed with only five laps to the line, and thus bursting his hopes. He carried on competing in the World Championship until 1962 for Cooper, a squad for which he later served as team manager. After he ceased to race in Formula 1 at the end of the 1962 season - when he drove a Lola Mk4-Climax for Reg Parnell's Bowmaker Racing Team - he continued to drive sportscars in British national events for a few more seasons. He raced occasionally in historics, ending his competitive career in the 1965 Whit-Monday Meeting at Goodwood, where he drove a Ford GT40 finishing second and first in his class.

After his retirement from active racing, he ran a car dealership in Surrey until 1969. Retired to Monaco, Roy Salvadori passed away on Sunday, 03 June 2012, a few weeks after his 90th birthday. He left behind his wife, Sue née Hindmarsh, daughter of another Le Mans winner, being her father Johnny Hindmarsh who had won the 24-hour classic in 1935, paired with Luis Fontes in a Lagonda. And also the mother of Sue Salvadori, née Hindmarsh was a prominent racing figure, Violette Cordery a British racing driver and long distance record breaker.

Career Summary:

• England & Wales Births 1837-2006, page https://www.findmypast.com/transcript?id=BMD%2FB%2F1922%2F2%2FAZ%2F001265%2F069 .
• Book "Roy Salvadori: Racing Driver" by Roy Salvadori and Anthony Pritchard, Patrick Stephens Ltd., 1985, ISBN 978-0850596342.
• Magazine Autosprint, issue of 05 June 2012, page 40.
• Website AUTOSPORT → Forums → The Nostalgia Forum, thread "Roy Salvadori", page http://forums.autosport.com/index.php?showtopic=94671 .
• Website AUTOSPORT → Forums → The Nostalgia Forum, thread "Roy Salvadori's widow Sue", page https://forums.autosport.com/topic/197128-roy-salvadoris-widow-sue/ .
• Website The Guardian, article "Roy Salvadori obituary", page https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2012/jun/06/roy-salvadori .
• Website The "Forgotten" Drivers of F1, page https://www.f1forgottendrivers.com/drivers/roy-salvadori/ .
• Website Le Mans & Formula 2 Register by Stefan Örnerdal, page https://www.the-fastlane.co.uk/formula2/1959.htm
• Website Le Mans & Formula 2 Register by Stefan Örnerdal, page https://www.the-fastlane.co.uk/formula2/1960.htm .
• Website Le Mans & Formula 2 Register by Stefan Örnerdal, page https://www.the-fastlane.co.uk/formula2/1962.htm .
• Website Racing Sports Cars, page https://www.racingsportscars.com/driver/results/Roy-Salvadori-GB.html .
• Website The GEL Motorsport Information Page by Darren Galpin, page http://www.silhouet.com/motorsport/archive/f1/1958/58d.html .