figbat
Former slippery scientist
- Location
- South Oxfordshire, UK
Lewis didn’t come from money. Yes he was bankrolled from an early age due to his potential but it wasn’t nepotism or wealth that got him started.
Motorsports Thread
- Thread starter Reynard
- Start date
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Drago
Legendary Member
- Location
- The Urban Fringe
It was Ron Dennis' wealth that got him his break though. Without that it seems unlikely his Dad should have got the shekels to push him further. Lewis would still be in "the slums", tomuse his own words, without Ron's wallet.
It always takes someones money in the modern era, if not mummy or daddy then a wealthy benefactor.
It always takes someones money in the modern era, if not mummy or daddy then a wealthy benefactor.
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FishFright
More wheels than sense
It's the 'Madring' this weekend with it's banked corner and street track lack of run off .
The F3 test session had 19 red flags so get comfy for a long one on Sunday.
The F3 test session had 19 red flags so get comfy for a long one on Sunday.
glasgowcyclist
Charming but somewhat feckless
- Location
- Scotland
It was 65 years ago today at Monza that the Ferrari of Count Wolfgang von Trips crashed, killing him and resulting in the death of 15 spectators.
Explanatory video with French then English descriptions:
View: https://youtu.be/LqQ92WyflBE?si=QKN3CS8EKSLebWdm
Further info here: https://emptywheel.net/2011/09/10/i...1-monza-death-of-von-trips-a-yankee-champion/
Explanatory video with French then English descriptions:
View: https://youtu.be/LqQ92WyflBE?si=QKN3CS8EKSLebWdm
Further info here: https://emptywheel.net/2011/09/10/i...1-monza-death-of-von-trips-a-yankee-champion/
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OP
OP
Reynard
Legendary Member
- Location
- Cambridgeshire, UK
I'm with @figbat on this one. Lewis had already show a LOT of potential and picked up some really good results in karting on a miniscule budget well before Ron Dennis head-hunted him for the McLaren program. What was unusual about this, is that at the time, you didn't have the driver academy pathway run by the F1 teams in order to bring on young talent. In some ways, you can say that Lewis really started that trend.
Prior to that, unless you were bankrolled by wealthy friends or relatives, you really did have to make your way up the ladder off your own bat - knocking on doors, networking, and having jobs on the side, while still testing, racing and producing results. For instance, Jonathan Palmer was a qualified (and practicing) doctor, Martin Brundle sold Toyota cars, the Warwick brothers made agricultural trailers, Kelvin Burt sold used cars and also worked as an instructor with the Jim Russell school at Donington...
Back in the day, France let the way with a programme backed by Elf, the state-owned petrol people, which brought through drivers like Jean Pierre Jabouille, Patrick Depailler, Jacques Lafitte and Patrick Tambay. BP had a similar programme here in the UK, although it was a lot smaller in scale. That gave us Derek Warwick and Brian Henton amongst others. And then there was, in the mid-to-late 1980s, Racing for Britain, which helped guys like Johnny Herbert, for instance.
Plus the big cigarette brands - Camel and Marlboro mainly, but also Gitanes and Barclay, had their own sponsorship programmes to bring on talent. The downside of those, is it limited which teams and series you could drive in. Which was why, Paul Warwick couldn't drive for Dick Bennetts' WSR F3 team in 1989 even though a contract was offered to him, because they were Marlboro team and Paul was a Camel driver. So either he had to walk away from Camel and lose the majority of his budget, or keep the money and go elsewhere - in this case, Glenn Waters' Intersport outfit. And we all know what a disaster that ended up being...
But really, those programmes have nothing on what's in place today, with systems that head hunt kids who haven't even gone through puberty yet. Robin Raikkonen must've shown some promise for RB to sign him for their academy - I guess it's much the same as premier league football clubs doing the same. Not everyone will make it, and most will get released somewhere along the way.
Just as an aside, Kimi jumped from Formula Renault (the category *below* F3) straight into F1. Talk about a punt...
Drago
Legendary Member
- Location
- The Urban Fringe
Lewis could have walked on water and fed the 5000, without the cash he wouldn't have had his first hair transplant yet.
Beebo
Firm and Fruity
- Location
- Hexleybeef
His dad also remortgaged their house, which is pretty crazy when you think about the chances of him actually making it.
OP
OP
Reynard
Legendary Member
- Location
- Cambridgeshire, UK
And worked multiple jobs, IIRC.
Drago
Legendary Member
- Location
- The Urban Fringe
He did indeed. Set himself up after hours installing signs for an estate agent. Cant knock AH's commitment.
biggs682
Itching to get back on my bike's
- Location
- Northamptonshire
Pretty sure Ford launched and ran a rally driver apprenticeship in the 90-2000's that unearthed a few drivers and some went on to help run factory sponsored teams later in life.
I can remember changing a rear diff on a 2wd Cosworth on one of the many RAC rally's I serviced on, we were asked by John Taylor to help change it as the driver only had a chase car crew at that service point after one of the stately home stages .
Of course we obliged as our driver wasn't due for ages and we just managed to wave the diff job off as our car pulled up, we got a right telling of by our boss when he found out.
Those were the days
I can remember changing a rear diff on a 2wd Cosworth on one of the many RAC rally's I serviced on, we were asked by John Taylor to help change it as the driver only had a chase car crew at that service point after one of the stately home stages .
Of course we obliged as our driver wasn't due for ages and we just managed to wave the diff job off as our car pulled up, we got a right telling of by our boss when he found out.
Those were the days
