On the Prowl: The Definitive History of the Walkinshaw Jaguar Sports Car Team

by Neil Smith

The Group C and IMSA GTP era of sports car racing was truly a golden age, and few teams reached the level of success and admiration as Tom Walkinshaw Racing, whose factory Jaguar programs took on the very best on both sides of the Atlantic.

For the first time, the full history of this iconic team has been told, with author Neil Smith going beyond race results and car specifications and uncovering the fascinating stories, anecdotes and intrigue from those who were there. 

On the Prowl - The Definitive History of the Walkinshaw Jaguar Sports Car Team includes contributions from drivers such as Derek Warwick, Davy Jones, Andy Wallace, Price Cobb and more, who share their experiences of winning in the fearsome XJR prototypes and what it was like to drive for the legendary and enigmatic Walkinshaw. Key team members from the era also reflect on their memories, with Tony Southgate providing the designer’s view, Le Mans-winning team managers Alastair Macqueen and Tony Dowe speaking to the inner workings of TWR, and some of the most experienced crew members such as Eddie Hinckley (who engineered the ’88 Le Mans winner) covering the nuts and bolts of the program.

TWR formed a pivotal part of Jaguar’s history, both commercial and sporting, and Smith places them into that wider context, going back to the company’s first race at Silverstone in 1949, through the legendary Le Mans wins of the 50s, Jaguar’s painful absorption by British Leyland, and the return to racing in touring cars and IMSA in the 70s and 80s.

The mystique of Walkinshaw himself looms large through the narrative, as one by one those who knew him attempt to detangle a complex personality that could inspire great loyalty or equally significant animosity.

The final section is a meticulously-researched history of all 32 TWR-Jaguar XJR chassis that saw track action, with extensive competition and ownership records and history, assembled with the input of the foremost collectors and preparers of the cars today.

With contributions from TWR team members’ personal archives, “On the Prowl” features more than 600 images and documents, many never before published, and is a fitting and comprehensive tribute to one of the most legendary sports car race teams of all time.

Hardbound w/Dust Jacket | 528 pages | 664 photographs