The next entry was a breakthrough driver and gave Japan its first sight of the sport, which has continued to grow ever since.  A pioneer for Japanese motorsport; Satoru Nakajima.

Limited success, but Satoru Nakajima's time in F1 was big for Japan (datsun)

NAME: Satoru Nakajima

TEAMS: Lotus (1987-1989), Tyrrell (1990-1991)

POINTS: 16

GP STARTS: 74

BEST FINISH: 4th (1987 British GP)

BORN from a farming family, Satoru Nakajima had a passion for motorsport from an early age.  His success in Formula One was largely modest but he set the path for a flux of Japanese drivers like Ukyo Katayama, Takuma Sato and his son Kazuki to have all appeared in the sport.

Nakajima dominanted the Japanese Formula Two series but was a very late entrant into F1 at the age of 34.  He debuted for the famous Lotus team in 1987, part of a new package which included Honda engines and Camel tobacco sponsorship.  Nakajima drove alongside Ayrton Senna in his first season and was determined to be known for his own qualities rather than just a pay driver.  Of course, he couldn’t compete with Senna but he showed flashes of natural speed.  Scoring a point in only his second event at the 1987 San Marino Grand Prix was a good start and Satoru was part of a Honda grand slam at Silverstone, finishing fourth behind Nigel Mansell, Nelson Piquet and Senna.  A further point in the inaugural Japanese event at Suzuka sent his home supporters mad and he finished a creditable 12th in the championship, having scored seven points in total.

As Senna moved onto McLaren and the bitter rivalry with Alain Prost began, Nakajima stayed with Lotus for 1988 and was partnered by the defending champion Piquet.  The season started prominsingly with a point in Brazil but Nakajima’s shock failure to qualify for Monaco was the beginning of the end for the Lotus Honda partnership, compounded when Piquet crashed in the race on the first lap.  Satoru was never a fan of street circuits and he repeated his Monaco abscence on raceday by failing to make the cut on the temporary and dreadful Detroit circuit for the United States round.  A spate of retirements and mistakes followed in the remainder of the season and it was a case of second season syndrome.  Nakajima scored just one point all season and that was in the first race.

As Honda focused on their dominance with McLaren, Lotus decline had begun.  The team had to take the heavyweight Judd engine for 1989 and the failure of Nakajima and Piquet to qualify for the 1989 Belgian Grand Prix was the first time that the British make had no car on the grid in 30 years.  He failed to qualify in Monaco again and Canada but it came good at the season finale in Australia.  Watched by a massive Japanese audience, Satoru benefited from the filthy conditions in Adelaide to finish fourth from 23rd on the grid.  In a race where staying on the circuit was a notable achievement, he set the fastest lap on lap 64 too.

Two lacklustre years at Tyrrell followed for Nakajima.  He paired up with Jean Alesi for 1990 and scored three sixth place finishes in the USA, Italy and once more on his Japanese homeland at Suzuka.  There was a brief link-up with Honda again in 1991 as Stefano Modena joined Satoru.  Fifth in Phoenix was his only highlight of 1991 although a mechanical problem robbed him of fourth in another wet race at Imola.  He announced his retirement from Formula One at Hockenheim and bowed out with the minimum of fuss.

His F1 career ended but involvement with motorsport didn’t end there.  Satoru worked closely with Honda and helped develop their engines for use in the CART and IRL series over in America.  He managed the brief career in F1 of Tora Takagi in 1998/1999 and he owns the Nakajima Racing entry in Japanese Formula Nippon.  He helped Tom Coronel and Ralph Firman to titles in this competition.  His son Kazuki raced for two seasons with Williams in 2008 and 2009 and today, Satoru still owns his own team in Formula Nippon with both of his two sons competing in the series.

Success in Formula One was limited for Satoru Nakajima but his impact put Japan firmly on the Grand Prix map for good.

NEXT TIME ON THE DRIVER FILES: Moments of glory at the Nurburgring and Monza in a largely unspectacular career and a Spaniard on the grid before the Alonso days, Marc Gene.

The film Senna, which was snubbed so badly at the Oscars with not even a nomination, while dross such as Transformers got three, is somewhat hard to review as a film because not only is it somewhat hard to frame into a usual narrative structure, but everyone already knows how it ends, at Imola in 1994.

For those of my readers who are not F1 savvy, I can only apologise, because this article may get a bit bogged down in names and faces which might be otherwise unfamiliar to you. However, the nutshell of Senna’s life is as follows: Ayrton Senna was a Brazilian Formula One driver who, in his ten year career, won a trio of World Championships before his untimely death in an accident at Imola in 1994, a death, along with that of Ratzenberger, changed the face of the sport, so much so that 18 years later, we are yet to have another driving fatality. However, Senna’s career was known fro his passion, skill, bravery, insanely brilliant driving and a rivalry most notably with Alain Prost, the french driver.

The presentation of Senna is, of course, central to the film, and he is certainly painted in a favourable light, with focal points on his charitable work, the effect he had on Brazilians anda portrayal of him looking back with rose tinted spectacles on his first years of carting. Prost and the FIA are often portrayed as being almost machievellian villains, always in the wrong whilst Senna was in the right, while other drivers such as Piquet, Mansell and Schumacher are barely given any notice. One might also question whether Prost’s presentation was unfair given the apparent defrosting of the relationship after Prost’s retirement.

That said, the film doesn’t entirely shy away from the more controversial parts of Senna’s career, although one could claim that Senna’s behaviour in the 1990 Japanese grand Prix, where he rammed Prost off the track in order to ensure his world championship (a not entirely unprovoked incident); Senna is portrayed at times as potentially arrogant and aggressive, although both of these segments seem to fall down on Senna’s side.Senna’s slightly mystic quality, on the other hand, was explored quite a lot, and I’m not exactly sure where I should stand on it. There’s a lot of folklore in the F1 world about Senna and his views on God and the like, and as a somewhat cynical person myself, I can never really decide how much of it is a help or a hinderence to the film process.

In terms of the style of documentation, one must give credit to Kapadia for a superb feat of editing, moving away from the traditional talking heads routine in order to look more at the events and footage rather than the recollections. The film flows wonderfully, and there’s a much more organic feel to it. However, if I had a criticism, it might be the lack of variety of the interviewees, who were mainly made up of Senna’s sister, his former manager at Maclaren, commentary teams and Sid Watkins, the F1 doctor. Not only does this raise questions as to what other people who were less inclined to agree with Senna might have said, but also the lack of the voices of other drivers. Furthermore, there’s not that much that really shows Senna’s driving brilliance, or even that many track shots; while a balance had to be maintained, there’s always a question of how much the film is about Senna the person, or at least, Senna the personality, as it was Senna the driver, and to an extent, I believe the latter needed to be explored a little more.

To conclude, the one bit of advice I would give was that this should be viewed in conjunction with the Top Gear documentary on Senna; however much you may like or dislike the Top Gear team, a lot of the interviews and footage in the 15 minute piece are worth a watch, simply because it explores the driving side a little more, and offers a different viewpoint as to the driver.Also, as it’s something of an oddity in film making, I can’t really compare it to anything else.

Scores:

Personal enjoyment:   8

Editing:                         9

Music:                            7

Flow:                              9

Total:                            8.25 (Superb)

Nelson Piquet in the Brabham:

10 – Jenson Button 1332 points
The Brit began his career when points were only available for the top six finishes. While he has done well in the current system, his long career has helped with the tally. As has his incredible 2009 season with Brawn, of course. In fact, in his actual career points total, pre-2010 is still greater than 2010 and 2011.

9 – Gerhard Berger 1420 points
Austrian Gerhard had a relatively low tally of career points because of the time when he was racing, never picking up points for 7th-10th. Yet he had a good proportion of points finishes anyway, so the new system was only going to massively inflate his total – as well as adding on those top ten finishes he didn’t get points for before.

8 – Kimi Raikkonen 1494 points
The Finn had a medium-length F1 career, and in the few seasons he raced, he picked up a world championship and lots of wins, but even more second and third place finishes. He did not finishes off the podium very often.

7 – Nelson Piquet 1680 points
World champion and brilliant Brazilian driver Nelson Piquet had a great career tally even though he could only pick up points down to sixth. And on top of that, he sometimes lost championship points due only a certain number of his results being allowed. He also picked up two second places in non-championship races, which have not been included in the score.

6 – David Coulthard 1726 points
Scot David Coulthard was a great F1 driver, and despite not picking up any world championships he has a great career points tally thanks to his long time in the series. He started in 1994 after the death of Ayrton Senna, and only retired in 2008. It’s the length of his time racing more than his results that have given him this tally.

5 – Fernando Alonso 1844 points
Fernando Alonso was the youngest world champion in 2005, and he’s only 30 now. Despite that, he has an incredible points tally and is on the verge of beating the man in fourth place. Considered one of the best drivers on the track, he is definitely one of the best all-time drivers as well.

4 – Ayrton Senna 1859.5 points
If Ayrton Senna had lived, he probably would have a much greater points tally than the one he left us with, perhaps even being able to challenge Prost or Schumacher’s numbers. An incredible driver with 41 wins under his belt, he usually finished on the podium. Out of 104 top-ten finishes, 80 were on the podium.

3 – Rubens Barrichello 1892 points
By contrast, Rubens Barrichello has only won 11 races, usually finding himself second-best to Schumacher. He has picked up 29 seconds and 28 thirds, coming fourth 20 times as well. He has plenty of off-podium finishes as well to boost his tally, and since he’s been in F1 longer than anyone else, it’s no surprise that he is ahead of Senna.

2 – Alain Prost 2452.5 points
Four-times world champion Alain Prost has an incredible career points tally, with 51 wins to his name. Like Senna, he more often than not finished on the podium. One of the greatest drivers of all time, the ‘professor’s’ driving style helped him avoid unnecessary accidents.

1 – Michael Schumacher – 3780 points
Seven world championships, 90 wins, 43 second places, 20 third places. Schumacher dominated the early 2000s. He’s still picking up points today! He has over 1000 points more than Prost, and nearly 3000 more than Sebastian Vettel (who has 855). But Sebastian is young and has many years ahead of him. All the same, it’s a huge gap.

I hope you found that interesting. The next five drivers, by the way, are Carlos Reutemann (1131), Ricardo Patrese (1105), Ralf Schumacher (1095), Felipe Massa (1061) and Lewis Hamilton (1029).

La mayor parte de la tapa para Reutemann. Apenas un recuadro para el triunfo del Boca de Maradona sobre River por 3 a 0. Esa era la relevancia del “Lole” para el deporte argentino.

El Gran Premio de la República Argentina era una cita ineludible del calendario de la Fórmula 1 desde inicios de la década del `70. Por eso nadie podía suponer que aquella competencia del 12 de abril de 1981, sería la última vez que la máxima categoría haría escala en nuestro país por aquellos tiempos (regresó a mediados de los `90).

Pero mucho menos se podía pensar que esa sería la última ocasión que podríamos ver a Carlos Alberto Reutemann corriendo en el autódromo. Fue una fecha especial, porque ese domingo, fue el cumpleaños número 39 del “lole” y la gente le hizo el mejor de los regalos: lo declaró definitivamente ídolo nacional. Tal fue la trascendencia de la competencia, que el Boca – River del torneo local (primer clásico de Maradona) fue adelantado al viernes por la noche.

A los 0:48, el momento más festejado del fin de semana: Reutemann supera a Jones. En el final del video, el podio, donde se escucha el feliz cumpleaños hacia el “lole”.

El público se volcó en forma masiva desde los días previos (pruebas informales y de clasificación) casi sin tener en cuenta el tiempo, ni la ubicación del santafesino. Sólo importaba verlo y alentarlo. Los que tuvimos la chance de estar, aún podemos recordar la extraordinaria y conmovedora ovación que se producía en las gradas, cada vez que el auto blanco con el número 2 pasaba delante nuestro.

La competencia ya finalizó. Reutemann pasa y saluda con su brazo en alto, a un enfervorizado público que lo alentó como nunca.

Aquella carrera de 1981, tuvo dos condimentos especiales: por un lado, Reutemann estaba como nunca, en condiciones de pelear por el título mundial y por otro, su disputa con Alan Jones había explotado en Brasil, como ya citamos en un post anterior: http://bit.ly/hFHzzM

Nelson Piquet comandaba el Brabham número 5, claramente viciado de nulidad, ya que tenía el llamado “efecto suelo”, que adhería casi imperceptiblemente el auto a la pista, algo expresamente prohibido en las reglas, que fue anulado en las competencias siguientes. Gracias a esto, fue inalcanzable y ganó la carrera, pero para el público, el segundo lugar de Carlos Reutemann se festejó como una victoria.

Piquet un escalón arriba de Reutemann. Esta fue la escena del podio de Buenos Aires y, lamentablemente, la posición de ambos al finalizar el torneo 1981.

En los que hace a triunfos, se puede aplicar el axioma que sostiene que nadie es profeta en su tierra, ya que Reutemann nunca pudo ganar en Buenos Aires. Pero los resultados deben quedar al margen. “Lole” fue uno de los más grandes deportistas argentinos de todos los tiempos. Desde aquí, un humilde homenaje de la última vez que me emocionaste en vivo. ¡Gracias!

So we were guided around Biot yesterday for the Knights Templars festival by Dracula, ably impersonated by Bjorn Boltd-Christmas (note there is now an added “d” in the surname from yesterday). It seems that fancy dress, or rather something that was in every day use from 800 years ago, when the Knights Templars first made Biot a base, was required to be worn by lunch guests, but my excuse remains, that I had not been told. In the past, some people have mistaken that debonair look that I have been forced to adopt by that nice lady decorator, as fancy dress, but that’s another story, and not one I wish delve into today.

After the festival, we adjourned for a very pleasant lunch at the house of the Boltd-Christmases on a high terrace in the heart of this ancient village. But before that we were treated by our hosts to a demonstration of an automatic lawnmower. It is apparently programmable to cut your whole lawn without you lifting a finger. My picture today shows it at work. It has its own docking station which, after an hour and a half of mowing, it returns to automatically, then when fully charged, sets off on its own again.

Automatic lawn mower

I asked whether one could tie a dog to it so that the dog could be walked, but received that renowned withering look from that nice lady decorator.

Of course, she had guessed my fantasy, which was that if I had one I could tether the biblically bloated Banjo, the dog from hell, to it then change the settings on the mower to manic and hope it eventually found its way straight into the swimming pool. It is quite a heavy machine, so with a short tether, and a deep enough pool….

Amongst the guests for lunch was the beautiful Claire Trigger, former Mougins resident, who, as you can see from my second picture below seems at last to have found her Mr Right.

Don't they make a lovely couple?

More astounding claims emerge over lunch, this time from Bill Colegrave, who claims to have once been captain of the Great Britain Boules Team and competed in the world championships. That would clearly be a lot of boules. Then Tony Coombs claimed to be the unsung hero who helped create the internet. As this is the first time I have met him (and may soon become a client of Currencies Direct), I am prepared to give him the benefit of the doubt. Perhaps next time we meet he will explain to me how actually it was he who split the atom, and he was also the first man on the moon?

Today the exciting prospect of lunch at the Howes, one of the best houses I have ever been allowed into. It was originally built for Formula 1 racing driving legend Nelson Piquet, with views down from Mougins to Cannes, where I very much hope to enjoy some Chateau Gloria and smoke some Montechristo number 2′s, the finest cigars known to man.

This will be at the expense of golf with the Regs, where my presence was eagerly awaited by two of my golfing compatriots whose secret relationship I managed not to reveal recently. I have received several offered of new balls, or at least I think that was what was meant, but sadly cannot play as there is a possibility of rain, and with the luncheon plans outlined above, who can blame me?

Chris France

This one from the archives shows the slowing down lap at the end of the 1986 Mexican Grand Prix.  Rene Arnoux and Stefan Johansson are the two gentlemen sat on Philippe Alliot’s Ligier, with Nelson Piquet riding to the rescue in his Williams when Alliot’s car decides its life’s work has already been completed.

Keen followers of this blog, particularly those who were around to witness its original incarnation, might like to note that even fully laden, Nelson’s still going at a higher speed than his son used to manage.

Foi apenas no 10º GP, na Alemanha, que o brasileiro iniciou sua virada rumo ao título. Depois de 3 abandonos em 4 provas, foi consistentemente fazendo mais pontos que os rivais para ultrapassar Reutemann na última etapa.

O argentino viu sua vantagem zerar após apenas 3 provas, com uma quebra de motor e um acidente, após exagerar otimismo em disputa por posição com Laffite. Com Piquet constantemente no pódio, marcou apenas 2 pontos.

Mas Reutemann ainda tinha as últimas 3 provas para se recuperar: os GPs da Itália, Canadá e Las Vegas fechavam o campeonato. No 1º round, o piloto da Williams foi 3º, se aproveitou de uma quebra, a duas voltas do final, de Piquet, e conseguiu respirar um pouco. No GP seguinte, o brasileiro largou mal da pole num circuito encharcado em Montreal e terminou em 5º, mas o rival não pontuou. Jones, que abandonou, saiu da disputa do título. A final seria uma luta franca entre Reutemann e Piquet, separados por 1 ponto, e Lafitte, a 6 do líder, também tinha chances.

Reutemann fez sua 2ª pole do ano em Las Vegas, numa primeira fila fechada pela Williams, mas foi ultrapassado logo na largada por Jones e outros 3 pilotos, indo parar logo á frente de Piquet. Era o necessário para ser campeão. Contudo, o argentino foi ultrapassado pelo brasileiro e se perdeu na corrida, tornando-se presa fácil para os concorrentes e terminando em 8º. Mesmo com um tímido 5º lugar, Piquet venceu seu 1º campeonato mundial. Pouco comemorou. Exausto, teve que ser ajudado pela equipe para sair do carro.

Numa das frases célebres que disparou naquele dia, perguntado para quem dedicava aquele título, não pensou duas vezes. “Dedico pra mim mesmo, fui eu que ganhei, pô!”

Au commencement du championnat jusqu’à dans les années 70, il n’était pas étonnant de voir des artisans privés et indépendants aligner sous leur bannière une voiture d’un constructeur reconnu et déjà implanté en Formule 1. Cela était également la solution la plus rentable pour des pilotes fortunés, qui pouvaient ainsi s’offrir un chassis et un moteur compétitif afin de participer aux courses.

Mike Hawthorn, premier britannique champion du monde en 1958, a couru ses premiers grand prix sur une Cooper financée par son père. D’ailleurs, les Cooper étaient des monoplaces fortement demandées et elles représentaient dans les années 60 une part importante du plateau de Formule 1, en écuries officielles et privées.

D’autre grands noms ont commencé leur carrière de cette manière à l’image de Stirling Moss ou encore Nelson Piquet.

Il ne faut pas oublier non plus que la première Williams alignée en 1969 fût en fait une Brabham, achetée par Franck Williams pour faire courir son ami Piers Courage.

Certes, de nos jours, les pilotes préfèrent payer un volant fournit clefs en main, comme le montre l’exemple récent de Pastor Maldonado. Le dernier à avoir tenté de créer une écurie autour de son talent pour le pilotage était Jacques Villeneuve avec le British American Racing soutenu par des financiers de l’industrie du tabac et par le constructeur américain Raynard.

Cette aventure signifia la fin des succès pour le champion du monde canadien qui ne survécu sportivement pas longtemps à ce manque de réussite.

L’idée de Montezemolo s’inspire donc de ce phénomène mais avec une cohérence mieux adaptée à l’environnement financier du moment.

Les écuries les plus fortunées (parmi lesquelles on peut compter Ferrari, McLaren, RedBull et peut être Renault et Mercedes) aligneraient à leur frais une troisième monoplace qu’elles confieraient à des pilotes en devenir.

On imagine bien Ferrari faire confiance au multiple champion moto Valentino Rossi, Mercedes aligner un trio 100% allemand avec Schumacher, Rosberg et Hulkenberg, McLaren donner sa chance à Gary Paffet et Renault à un pilote français alors que RedBull n’aurait aucun mal à placer un de ses jeunes pilotes derrière le volant.

Si les éventuels points constructeurs marqués par ces pilotes ne compteraient pas au championnat, l’apport stratégique de posséder une troisième voiture en course pourrait être un avantage non négligeable.

Le seul problème, que Montezemolo a déjà largement souligné dans la presse, concerne le fait que la grille de départ se verrait engluée par trop de monoplaces présentes, d’où le forcing fait par le patron italien pour supprimer la participation des nouvelles écuries inscrite en 2010 et qui, au vue de leurs résultats et de leur chronos à plusieurs secondes des écuries de pointe, n’auraient pas le niveau requis pour assurer leur présence en Formule 1.

Jusqu’à présent, la FIA ne semble pas séduite par cette proposition qui équivaudrait à revenir sur leur décision d’accueillir de nouvelles écuries. Tout le travail de Montezemolo maintenant et d’arriver à convaincre que le spectacle sortirait gagnant de cette modification.

Axel B.

Nascar Driver Landon Cassill offers up a challenge. Any takers?

Michael Shank Racing gets his crown in 2011, re-upping with Crown Royal XR brand for the entire Grand-Am season.

Stevenson Motorsports announces its team plans for 2011.

IndyCar star Ryan Hunter-Reay offers us his take on the 2010 season.

Rowdy.com takes a look at the biggest surprises from the 2010 Sprint Cup Series.

Cadillac will return to racing in the SCCA World Challenge. Rolling up in Caddy takes on a whole new meaning in 2011.

Nelson Piquet Jr. joins KHI in 2011, will race Trucks full-time.

TWEET OF THE DAY!

from  @landoncassill

Dear crazy hippie douche Prius driver: saving trees is cool, but I’d appreciate it if you saved some lives by driving a little safer on i77.

Lots Of Trouble Usually Serious?:

Another development in the Lotus and Renault saga; this time from the Team Lotus garage. Tony Fernandes is still defiant about the name change; but has relinquished the new paint job. And did it while sending a warning shot over the Renault/Group Lotus ship.

Lotus Renault revelled their new livery colours…a very familiar black and gold. Team Lotus had announced they were intending to go full speed ahead with the transformation; historic colours included.

Black & gold...almost (Renault F1)

But someone got there first. Fernandes and the Team Lotus team took it in their stride; suggesting they didn’t want their livery associated with the tobacco industry. Ouch!

The FIA awards:

Now this is really just an opportunity for me to post a picture of Fernando Alonso and his facial fuzz.

Don't say it...

I saw this and onto the television popped a certain Nintendo advert…I wonder if Alonso is any good at plumbing?

The FIA gala night isn’t just about Formula One; it’s encompasses a huge range of motorsports, including the World Rally, World Touring Car and Formula 2 championships. Obviously Red Bull were awarded their Constructor’s trophy and Sebastian Vettel his Driver’s trophy.

Red Bull take their winnings (ITV)

Hitting the fan in spectacular fashion:

Mark Webber’s retrospective was published in Australia soon after the 2010 season came to an end. He took a novel approach to writing it bit by bit after each race; ensuring that the emotion on the page reflected the race itself. Hands up who wants to read the Turkey chapter!

The main thing to come out of the book is that Webber drove the last four races with a fractured shoulder. But this wasn’t the whole story; he could do that no problem. This is a guy who padded his harness when he had broken ribs; who carried on racing when he vomited inside his helmet; who asked for water when his seat was burning him…

So what caused the controversy?

Ah yes; Webber declined to tell his team (apart from the FIA doctor and his trainer Roger), leaving Christian Horner in the awkward position of facing the press. He was obviously disappointed; and wished he had been told. Has this shown yet more cracks in the Red Bull veneer? Only time will tell.

A Piquet of Justice:

The “crashgate” scandal started life back in 2008 when Nelson Piquet Jr. was driving for Renault along with Fernando Alonso. After he ploughed into the wall in Singapore Piquet revealed he was ordered to do so by Renault’s then boss, Flavio Briatore. Piquet Jr. also added that he was instructed to do this so Alonso could win the race.

Briatore made me do it!

At the time Renault F1 released a statement on their website saying that the Piquet’s were lying. Piquet Jr. was granted immunity by the FIA for his version of events and Briatore was subsequently banned from the sport (later overturned). But after being sued for libel in the UK, Renault retracted the statement. The Piquet’s were awarded substantial compensation; and hopefully a line will be drawn under the incident.

Later Rookies!