King Cobra tops the foodchain at NHRA exhibit

| 29 Apr 2012

Road-race legend Dave MacDonald's King Cobra was the main attraction at last weekend's Speed Merchants of Venice exhibit at the NHRA Motorsports Museum in Pomona, California, USA.

Built in '63 to compete with the new and mid-engined competition, the Cooper-Monaco King Cobra was a tubular-framed F1 Cooper, draped in an aluminium skin and fitted with a mid-mounted 370hp 289 Cobra engine.

Its light weight and reliable powertrain helped 'Cobra Dave' to the winner's circle at the Los Angeles Times Grand Prix and the Monterey Pacific Grand Prix at Laguna Seca.

He died the following year after the Thompson Ford he was driving (above) became engulfed in flames following a massive accident at the Indianapolis 500.

Also displayed at the event, which formed part of the Ford-Cobra-Shelby Reunion, were a number of standard-bodied Shelby Cobras, a Shelby Mustang GT350 and (below) a fantastic Ford Windsor V8-engined Sunbeam Tiger.