I t would be hard to say which was more competitive in the 1950s - big-bore sports-car racing in Britain or America. In both countries the top stables and drivers relished the punch and potency of the fastest sports machinery, be it Allard, Ferrari, Maserati or Jaguar. Toward the latter part of the decade, however, a new name appeared among the winners of the most prestigious national races. Lister became the name with which to conjure. Britain's Lister was the marque toward which the best men and teams gravitated as if impelled by sheer magnetism.

The motive for their Listermania was the electrifying racing record of one Jaguar-powered car in 1957. "Without any doubt," wrote Briton John Bolster, "the most outstanding feature of the 1957 racing season in this country has been Archie Scott-Brown's mastery of the sports-car events with the Lister-Jaguar."

The factory's first Lister-Jaguar entered 14 races and won 11. At every track in either practice or the race it either equaled or broke the lap record. And it did so against stiff competition from Jaguar D-Types and factory Aston Martins. The latter in particular were deeply annoyed that this brash newcomer, with a budget for its whole season costing no more than a couple of Aston Martin crankshafts, could so decisively defeat their finely tooled machines.

Lister's venture into the big leagues was impeccably timed. The seeds of its success were planted in October of 1956. In that month Jaguar announced that "after very serious consideration" it was suspending the works-backed racing activities that had seen its cars dominating the winner's circle at Le Mans from 1952 through 1956. It was time, Jaguar said, to concentrate on its future production cars. But the fevered pulse of Jaguar's racing enthusiasts wouldn't be slowed that easily.

That same month Brian Horace Lister, the man behind his eponymous racing cars, came to London for his regular visit with Brian Turle. The latter, who held the purse strings of British Petroleum's motor-racing sponsorship, had already backed Lister's efforts for several seasons. Brian Lister was eager to know whether BP would support his idea of building single-seaters for the new 1.5-liter Formula 2, which would kick off on 1957. In fact he was already building a suitable car.

Read more about Lister Racers
Volume 46 Number 3