Tony Ambrose
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John Anthony Ambrose (12 August 1933 – 5 January 2008) was a British
rally driver Rally is a wide-ranging form of motorsport with various competitive motoring elements such as speed tests (often called ''rally racing),'' navigation tests, or the ability to reach waypoints or a destination at a prescribed time or average speed. ...
who, as
co-driver A co-driver is the navigator of a rally car in the sport of rallying, who sits in the front passenger seat. The co-driver's job is to navigate, commonly by reading off a set of pacenotes to the driver (what lies ahead, where to turn, the severity ...
, twice won the
RAC Rally Wales Rally GB was the most recent iteration of the United Kingdom's premier international motor rally, which ran under various names since the first event held in 1932. It was consistently a round of the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) calen ...
, in 1956 and 1965.


Early life and Oxford University

Ambrose was born in
Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire Chipping Norton is a market town and civil parish in the Cotswold Hills in the West Oxfordshire district of Oxfordshire, England, about south-west of Banbury and north-west of Oxford. The 2011 Census recorded the civil parish population as ...
, where his father owned a farm machinery business, and attended the local grammar school. This business entitled his father to a supplementary allowance for fuel, which was
rationed Rationing is the controlled distribution of scarce resources, goods, services, or an artificial restriction of demand. Rationing controls the size of the ration, which is one's allowed portion of the resources being distributed on a particular ...
during the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. Ambrose learnt to drive by accompanying his father on his visits to farms, initially sitting on his father's lap to steer whilst his father operated the pedals, and learning map-reading skills (signposts having been removed from roads for fear of invasion). His father promised to buy him a car if he obtained a
scholarship A scholarship is a form of financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, diversity and inclusion, athletic skill, and financial need. Scholarsh ...
to
Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
. Ambrose won a scholarship in 1951 to read Engineering at
Jesus College, Oxford Jesus College (in full: Jesus College in the University of Oxford of Queen Elizabeth's Foundation) is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. It is in the centre of the city, on a site between Turl Street, Ship St ...
, and he was given a red
MG TC The MG T-Type is a series of body-on-frame open two-seater sports cars that were produced by MG from 1936 to 1955. The series included the MG TA, MG TB, MG TC, MG TD, and MG TF Midget models. The last of these models, the TF, was replaced by t ...
car by his father as promised. However, he was not permitted by university rules to keep a car in Oxford whilst he was in his first academic year. Nevertheless, he made friends with other university motor sports enthusiasts and competed in events and rallies outside the university, sometimes in partnership with his elder brother Norman (who had read Physics at Jesus College from 1943 to 1945). In 1952, the brothers were part of the Oxford team for the Annual Varsity Rally, but lost to a
Cambridge University , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...
team that included
Archie Scott Brown William Archibald Scott Brown, known as Archie, (13 May 1927 – 19 May 1958) was a British Formula One and sports car racing driver from Scotland who had a prodigious racing ability despite only having one hand. He became known as motorspo ...
. In the Trinity term of 1952, Ambrose and another Oxford driver, David Hamilton, approached the
Proctors Proctor's Theatre (officially stylized as Proctors since 2007; however, the marquee retains the apostrophe) is a theatre and former vaudeville house located in Schenectady, New York, United States. Many famous artists have performed there, notably ...
for permission to reactivate the University's Motor Drivers' Club, which had been banned before Ambrose started at Oxford for organising a race on public roads between Oxford and
Marble Arch The Marble Arch is a 19th-century white marble-faced triumphal arch in London, England. The structure was designed by John Nash (architect), John Nash in 1827 to be the state entrance to the cour d'honneur of Buckingham Palace; it stood near th ...
in London. He obtained support from
Earl Howe Earl Howe is a title that has been created twice in British history, for members of the Howe and Curzon-Howe family respectively. The first creation, in the Peerage of Great Britain, was in 1788 for Richard Howe, but became extinct on his ...
and Sir Miles Thomas, both former members of the club. The Proctors gave their permission for the club to be refounded, and it went on to be a source of strength for British rally driving in the 1960s. Ambrose became Secretary, and later President; Earl Howe and Sir Miles Thomas became honorary Vice Presidents.


Rally driving career and later life

After leaving Oxford, Ambrose joined the
Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...
but continued to compete in rallies. In 1956, he won the
RAC Rally Wales Rally GB was the most recent iteration of the United Kingdom's premier international motor rally, which ran under various names since the first event held in 1932. It was consistently a round of the FIA World Rally Championship (WRC) calen ...
with Lyndon Sims in an
Aston Martin DB2 The Aston Martin DB2 is a grand tourer that was sold by Aston Martin from May 1950 until April 1953. The successor to the 2-Litre Sports model, it had a comparatively advanced dual overhead cam 2.6 L Lagonda straight-6 engine in place of ...
. He joined the BMC rally team in 1959, co-driving for Alec Pitts, Peter Riley and David Seigle-Morris before BMC Competitions Manager Stuart Turner paired him with
Rauno Aaltonen Rauno August Aaltonen (born 7 January 1938), also known as "The Rally Professor", is a Finnish former professional rally driver who competed in the World Rally Championship throughout the 1970s. Career Before WRC was established Aaltonen compet ...
. While paired with Peter Riley they devised descriptive route notes "pacenotes" to improve both speed and safety in rallying. A concept developed further with Aaltonen. Despite many podium finishes on European rallies, a long held ambition to win a Liege in an
Austin-Healey 3000 The Austin-Healey 3000 is a British sports car built from 1959 until 1967. It is the best known of the "big Healey" models. The car's bodywork was made by Jensen Motors and the vehicles were assembled at BMC's MG Works in Abingdon, alongsid ...
proved elusive until 1964, when he co-drove with Rauno Aaltonen to win the last Spa-Sofia-Liege, an event lasting four days and nights with no scheduled sleep time. Aaltonen later recalled how Ambrose had driven at night in just 52 minutes, reaching speeds of per hour over
cobblestone Cobblestone is a natural building material based on cobble-sized stones, and is used for pavement roads, streets, and buildings. Setts, also called Belgian blocks, are often casually referred to as "cobbles", although a sett is distinct fro ...
roads whilst Aaltonen slept in the car. The following year they won the 1965
European Rally Championship The European Rally Championship (officially FIA European Rally Championship) is an rallying, automobile rally competition held annually on the European continent and organized by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The champions ...
title, including victory at the RAC Rally in a Mini Cooper 1275S. the first and only time that a
Mini The Mini is a small, two-door, four-seat car, developed as ADO15, and produced by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and its successors, from 1959 through 2000. Minus a brief hiatus, original Minis were built for four decades and sold during ...
has won that event. Ambrose left the BMC team in 1966 to spend more time with his family and his business. His last rally with BMC was the 1966 RAC Rally, with
Simo Lampinen Simo Lampinen (born 22 June 1943) is a Finland, Finnish former rallying, rally driver, and one of the first of the "Flying Finns" who came to dominate the sport. Biography Lampinen was born in Porvoo. Having contracted polio at a young age, he ...
, although an accident meant that they had to stop. Ambrose then became a key part of the organising team for the 1968 London-Sydney Marathon and the 1970 London-Mexico Rally conducting reconnaissance and planning of both routes as well as on event management. His last two rallies were both with
Rauno Aaltonen Rauno August Aaltonen (born 7 January 1938), also known as "The Rally Professor", is a Finnish former professional rally driver who competed in the World Rally Championship throughout the 1970s. Career Before WRC was established Aaltonen compet ...
- 1969
Tour de Corse The Tour de Corse is a rally first held in 1956 on the island of Corsica. It was the French round of the World Rally Championship from the inaugural 1973 season until 2008, was part of the Intercontinental Rally Challenge from 2011 to 2012, an ...
in a BMW 2002 tii finishing 7th overall / Gp2 class win and finally the 1969 RAC Rally GB Datsun 1600SSS Coupe finishing 8th overall. Businesses that he was involved with included a family-run decorating firm and a pub in Wales. Ambrose died in
Newbury, Berkshire Newbury is a market town in the county of Berkshire, England, and is home to the administrative headquarters of West Berkshire Council. The town centre around its large market square retains a rare medieval Cloth Hall, an adjoining half timbere ...
on 5 January 2008. Tony’s autobiography was published in 2019, having been edited by his nephew Philip Ambrose


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ambrose, Tony 1933 births 2008 deaths British rally drivers British rally co-drivers Alumni of Jesus College, Oxford People from Chipping Norton 20th-century Royal Air Force personnel Military personnel from Oxfordshire