Prince Bira

Former F1 driver
Name = Prince Bira
Nationality = flagicon|Thailand Thai
Years = F1|1950 - F1|1954
Team(s) = Enrico Platé, Gordini, Connaught, Maserati, Scuderia Milano
Races = 19
Championships = 0
Wins = 0
Podiums = 0
Points = 8
Poles = 0
Fastest laps = 0
First race = 1950 British Grand Prix
First win =
Last win =
Last race = 1954 Spanish Grand Prix
Le Mans drivers
Years = 24hLM|1939, 24hLM|1954
Team(s) = "Raymond Sommer"
Aston Martin
Best Finish = dnf (24hLM|1939, 24hLM|1954)
Class Wins = 0

Prince Birabongse Bhanutej Bhanubandh (b. 15 July 1914, Bangkok, Thailand - d. 23 December 1985, Barons Court Station, London) best known as Prince Bira of Siam (now Thailand) was a Formula One and Grand Prix motor racing driver who raced for the Maserati, Gordini and Connaught teams, among others.

Before the Second World War

A child of H.R.H. Prince Bhanurangsi Savangwongse, Prince Birabongse came to Europe in 1927 to complete his education in England at Eton and Cambridge University. Bira first raced with his cousin H.R.H. Prince Chula Chakrabongse's team, "White Mouse Racing", driving a Riley Imp at Brooklands in 1935. It was in this car that Bira established the national motor racing colours of Siam: pale blue with yellow. He also established residence near Geneva (Switzerland) and later in the south of France. This explains his activity in smaller, more local type events.

Later in the same year, Prince Chula gave him one of the new ERA voiturette racing cars - R2B, which was nicknamed "Romulus". Bira finished second in his first ever race in Romulus, despite needing to stop for repairs. The remaining races of the season saw Bira consistently placing amongst the more powerful Grands Prix vehicles, with another second place, and fifth at the Donington Grand Prix.

For 1936 the princes decided that the previous season's results merited a second ERA. They purchased "Remus" to use in British events and retained "Romulus" for international races. Chula also purchased a Maserati 8CM to complete the White Mouse roster. Bira's expertise behind the wheel earned him the Coupe de Prince Rainier at Monte Carlo. Bira won a further four races in the ERAs that season, and took the Grand Prix Maserati to 5th at Donington and 3rd at Brooklands.

Unfortunately, this proved to be the career high-point for both Bira and the White Mouse team. Following Dick Seaman's move to Mercedes for 1937, the Thais purchased his Grand Prix Delage and all of its spare parts, along with a second Delage. Despite several upgrades, and hiring experienced race engineer and future Jaguar team manager Lofty England, the cars underperformed, and on many occasions Bira was forced to race in the older and by now substantially inferior ERAs. In addition, the money spent on the Delage upgrades had sapped the resources of the team and corners were being cut in the ERA's race preparations. While Bira maintained a respectable results tally in British events, the more costly international races were largely a disaster.

Post war

After the war, Bira returned to racing with several teams. In 1951 he raced in an old 4CLT fitted with a newer V12 Osca engine. No results were obtained this year as a result of the poor performance of the car combined with a severe accident. By 1954, with some newer gear, a Maserati 250F, he won the Grand Prix des Frontières on the Chimay road circuit and then finished fourth in the 1954 French Grand Prix with his own Maserati. In January 1955, he won the New Zealand Grand Prix at Ardmore, but then retired at the end of the season.

Prince Bira died unexpectedly of heart failure at a London tube station in 1985 at the age of 71.

Complete World Championship Formula One results

()

Trivia

*King Mongkut, portrayed in the Hollywood movies "The King and I" and "Anna and the King", was Prince Bira's grandfather.
*Bira International Race Circuit based just outside Pattaya on the road to Rayong - Thailand, was named after Prince Bira.

External links

* [http://www.autocoursegpa.com/driver.asp?driver_id=11608 Bira, the Grand Prix driver] text: Autocourse site
* [http://www.hartlana.co.uk/bphoto/c038.htm Malcolm Campbell and Prince Bira] photo: The Brooklands Society site
* [http://www.brooklandstrack.co.uk/Drivrlist/bira.htm Bira at Brooklands] text: The Brooklands Society site
* [http://www.brooklands.org.uk/whitemouse/birafilms.htm pre-war pictures] many photos: The Brooklands Society site
* [http://www.soravij.com/bira.html His personal life] text.
* [http://www.grandprix.com/gpe/drv-birpri.html A brief biography]
*Snellman, L. 2000. [http://www.forix.com/8w/bira.html The Prince and I] , "8W".
* [http://www.carsandracingstuff.com/library/b/princebira.php Prince Bira at The Crittenden Automotive Library] , full F1 race-by-race statistics
* [http://www.biracircuit.com] The Bira International Circuit Home Page