Kimi’s new steed?
Citroen have published pictures of their new souped up DS3, a model that is tipped to be the French firms next World Rally Championship contender. Loeb must be rubbing his hands, whereas Kimi is probably wondering where the beer can holder is on the dashboard...
In appreciation of Ronnie Peterson
Sweden's Ronnie Peterson was one of the biggest motor sport stars of the 1970's, a man who occupies that small list of truly great drivers who never won the F1 World Championship, but who was probably better than many of those who did (others on the list include Stirling Moss, Gilles Villeneuve, Jacky Ickx and Chris Amon). When it comes to the big hitters of that era, yearly tributes are written about Gilles Villeneuve, Jacky Stewart, Emerson Fittipaldi, Niki Lauda and James Hunt, but it seemed that Peterson had became forgotten until recently.
However, read any book or see any film on Formula One in the 1970's and you will inevitably come across several key images: the super smooth Jackie Stewart in long hair, big shades and black cap at Monaco; Colin Chapman throwing his hat in the air as a Lotus takes another win; a car with all four wheels in the air at the Nurburgring; James Hunt with his arm around some winsome lovely; and 'Mad Ronald' in a Lotus 72, sliding sideways around Silverstone's Woodcote corner at frightening speed.
Generally regarded as the fastest driver of the era, Peterson was blessed with amazing car control and bravery to match. Teams up and down the pit lane used him as their benchmark during qualifying sessions, such was his pace. His dominant wins at classic tracks such as Monaco, Watkins Glen, Monza and the Osterreichring underlined his special talent, further compounded by excellent showings for the Ferrari Sports car team.
Rather like Kubica, his flashy, aggressive style won him many fans (including several of his rivals), yet out of the car he did not fit the image of a racing driver at all. Unlike the handsome Carlos Reutemann (who looked like the leading man in a hollywood blockbuster) or the rakish James Hunt, Ronnie was tall, blonde and occasionally chubby with an interest in keeping tropical fish.
The fact that Peterson never won the championship despite his stunning talent behind the wheel is examined at length in Johnny Tipler's excellent book, Ronnie Peterson: Formula One - Superswede. The reasons boil down to several factors, including poor management, a lack of mechanical sympathy, Colin Chapman's machinations and the idea that he was generally too nice a man. If you look at his career as whole, the facts tend to support this.
Peterson was often in the right car at the wrong time (outdated Lotus 72 and the Tyrell P34 being prime examples), putting him out of contention in '72, '75, '76 and '77. By his very nature, he drove all out to hammer the opposition into the ground and to take the win. However this sometimes resulted in breaking the car and missing out on those important championship points. In 1978, Peterson dutifully played the number two role to Mario Andretti at Lotus, effectively becoming his pace car at several key races. Can you imagine Andretti, Fittipaldi, Stewart, Senna or Schumacher accepting this role? For man who exhibited the killer instinct in the cockpit, he didn't retain it outside.
Unfortunately, Ronnie did not get to readdress the balance within the team after Andretti clinched the title (which was his aim, according to friends), as he died from injuries sustained in the 1978 Italian Grand Prix.
Disgusting, that sort of thing, you know?
Think of Monty Python's Graham Chapman dressed up as an army major, complaining about anything that doesn't seem to match his regimented ideals. Daft, isn't it? So funny to watch. This kind of person doesn't exist anymore, he's straight out of another age. We are more open minded and tolerant these days, aren't we?
Er, no.
Unfortunately the traditional stuffed shirt still exists and he and his pals are of course firmly ensconced in positions of power. This week, Citroen Rally Champ Sebastien Loeb fell foul of the Rallying authorities simply because he hasn't had a haircut for a while. The head of the WRC commission, Morrie Chandler and Surinder Thatthi, chairman of the Confederation of African Countries in Motorsport, have both condemned his 'scruffy' appearance. Thatthi was upset that Loeb was "Unshaven, scruffy looking and with unkept hair". Chandler goes as far as saying that sportsmen such as Loeb, "...are an insult to real males."
In Loeb's defence I defy even a 'real male' to emerge from driving a rally for several days looking anything other than unshaven, scruffy looking and with unkept hair! Unless of course the driver keeps a hairbrush, eyeliner and a bit of lippy in his handbag by the side of him at all times...
I leave you now with a picture of a real man, Mr Chandler. A man that even Australians would admire. May I introduce the chain smoking, lady chasing, hard drinking, long haired, scruffy looking, F1 Championship winning, Mr James Hunt!
