John Judd (born 9 April 1942) is a

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

engineer from England. He is the boss of Engine Developments Ltd., manufacturers of Judd engines. He is also known for his partnership with triple F1 World Champion

Sir Jack Brabham Sir John Arthur Brabham (2 April 1926 – 19 May 2014) was an Australian racing driver who was Formula One World Champion in , , and . He was a founder of the Brabham racing team and race car constructor that bore his name. Brabham was a Ro ...

Formula 1 work with Brabham

Judd began his career at a young age, shortly after he decided to leave school. He managed to get signed as an employee for the engine company

Coventry Climax Coventry Climax was a British forklift truck, fire pump, racing, and other specialty engine manufacturer. History Pre WW1 The company was started in 1903 as Lee Stroyer, but two years later, following the departure of Stroyer, it was reloca ...

, his first job. They gave him a scholarship to study at a local college. In the early 1960s he began working on the Coventry Climax Formula 1 engine, which was used at the time by Jack Brabham. After Brabham separated with Coventry to move to Repco, Judd was hired by Brabham to work with engine designer Phil Irving. He was to design and build the new 3-litre engines for Brabham, the result being two drivers championships and two constructors championships in 1966 and 1967. Later, Brabham switched again to

Ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...

DFV engines built by Cosworth, and once again, Judd was hired by Jack Brabham to do developmental work on the

Cosworth DFV The DFV is an internal combustion engine that was originally produced by Cosworth for Formula One motor racing. The name is an abbreviation of ''Double Four Valve'', the engine being a V8 development of the earlier four-cylinder FVA, which had fo ...

engines. The Brabham team later sold to Bernie Ecclestone, and Jack Brabham planned to create a new project in engine development. He and Judd founded Engine Developments Ltd. in 1971. In the years that followed Engine Developments prepared Cosworth engines for teams such as Williams, Arrows, Lotus, Ensign and Fittipaldi.

Independent company

In the late 1970s, Judd and his team extended to IndyCar. In 1980, Judd was hired by

Honda is a Japanese public multinational conglomerate manufacturer of automobiles, motorcycles, and power equipment, headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Honda has been the world's largest motorcycle manufacturer since 1959, reaching a producti ...

to develop an engine for the company's return to

Formula Two Formula Two (F2 or Formula 2) is a type of open-wheel formula racing category first codified in 1948. It was replaced in 1985 by Formula 3000, but revived by the FIA from 2009– 2012 in the form of the FIA Formula Two Championship. The name ...

in association with Ron Tauranac's Ralt team.

Return to Formula 1

Judd and his company came back to F1 in the 1988 season supplying engines for Williams,

Ligier Ligier (() is a French automobile and minibus maker created by former racing driver and rugby player Guy Ligier (1930–2015), specialized in the manufacturing of microcars. Ligier is best known for its involvement in the Formula 1 World Champ ...

and March. In 1991 Judd struck a deal with

Scuderia Italia BMS Scuderia Italia SpA (sometimes referred to as simply Scuderia Italia) is an Italian auto racing team founded by Italian steel magnate and motorsports enthusiast Giuseppe Lucchini in 1983. Initially named Brixia Motor Sport (BMS) the team bri ...

to supply V10 engines for a

Dallara Dallara is an Italian race car manufacturer, founded by its current President, Gian Paolo Dallara. After working for Ferrari, Maserati, Lamborghini and De Tomaso, in 1972 in his native village of Varano de' Melegari (Parma), Italy he created ...

-designed car. In 1992 Judd created a partnership with

Yamaha Yamaha may refer to: * Yamaha Corporation, a Japanese company with a wide range of products and services, established in 1887. The company is the largest shareholder of Yamaha Motor Company (below). ** Yamaha Music Foundation, an organization estab ...

to build and develop engines for Formula 1. The best result of this collaboration came in the 1997 Hungarian GP when

Damon Hill Damon Graham Devereux Hill, (born 17 September 1960) is a British former professional racing driver from England and the 1996 Formula One World Champion. He is the son of Graham Hill, and, along with Nico Rosberg, one of two sons of a Formula ...

finished second behind

Jacques Villeneuve Jacques Joseph Charles Villeneuve ( born 9 April 1971) is a Canadian professional racing driver and amateur musician who won the 1997 Formula One World Championship with Williams. In addition to Formula One (F1) he has competed in various o ...

. The partnership ended at the start of the 1998 season. Judd continued to develop his V10 engine in 1998 and 1999.

Le Mans

Beginning the 21st century, Judd and his company moved to

touring cars Touring car racing is a motorsport road racing competition with heavily modified road-going cars. It has both similarities to and significant differences from stock car racing, which is popular in the United States. While the cars do not mo ...

and the

Le Mans Series The European Le Mans Series (abbreviated as ELMS) is a European sports car racing endurance series inspired by the 24 Hours of Le Mans race and organized by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO). The European Le Mans Series is similar to the fo ...

, resulting in victory in the 2001 American Le Mans Series with Dick Barbour Racing, and second place in the teams championship in the

Rolex Sports Car Series The Rolex Sports Car Series was the premier series run by the Grand American Road Racing Association. It was a North American-based sports car series founded in 2000 under the name Grand American Road Racing Championship to replace the failed ...

in 2002 with Doran. In 2004, Judd's collaboration with Ray Mallock Ltd. earned the XV675 one of its few successes, winning the LMP2 class at the 2005

24 Hours of Le Mans The 24 Hours of Le Mans (french: link=no, 24 Heures du Mans) is an endurance-focused sports car race held annually near the town of Le Mans, France. It is the world's oldest active endurance racing event. Unlike fixed-distance races whose ...

. In 2007 Judd planned to supply the LMP2 team with his engine.

References

External links

John Judd profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Judd, John 1942 births Living people Formula One engineers British motorsport designers