Augie Pabst -- 1961 Maserati Type 63  (1)

Maserati "got it so right" with the front-engined Type 61 "Birdcage" that one wonders how they could have gotten the mid-engined Type 63 so wrong.  Augie Pabst drove one of Cunningham's V-12 powered Type 63s in the 1961 Riverside Grand Prix.

Laguna Seca found Pabst back in a Type 63, #63002, this a 2890cc. 4-cylinder version..  Here, he powers out of Turn 5.  He finished the race, although way back in 16th place.  Poor reliability and treacherous handling showed that Maserati hadn't learned from Lotus and Cooper how to make a mid-engined car work properly.

Only Walt Hansgen had any success with these misbegotten cars.  Of course he was driving for Briggs Cunningham and Alfred Momo was doing the tuning.
 

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