Drivers you wish you'd seen

[Graz]

There is a lovely tributes thread on Roger Williamson elsewhere on the forum that got me thinking. I was born in 1974 and from an early age was absolutely hooked on motorsport. There are drivers I wish I'd seen live, on tv or whatever but never had the chance because they were a bit before my time and in some cases sadly were killed and would have still been racing when my interest began. The names that jump out for me are:

Nuvolari- sounds like a complete genius from what I have read. I have read that on the Mille Miglia one year he was chasing the leader over the mountains at night so turned off his headlights so wouldn't be seen as he caught up.

Clarke - peerless. It was just so easy for him, any car, any track.

Peterson - spectacular, no matter if the car handled like a shopping trolley, RP would drive around the problem and bloody quickly too.

I also have to include G Villeneuve even though he was killed in 82 - my first F1 memory is GV on 3 wheels in Zandvoort but really I was too young to appreciate him at the time and besides GP coverage was patchy back then too.

I don't include Moss as I saw him win in the Phoeinx Park in 1982!!

I'd be curious to hear other people's thoughts and particularly anyone outside the norm, but who grabbed your imagination.

[RotorFan]

I wish I'd seen Alan Jones racing, and Senna.

[JeremySmith]

This is a great subject...Senna, because of all the tears that ran down my face when...

[baclightning]

I was born in 1957 and went to my first race in 1965, so I've seen everyone from Clark, G. Hill, and Stewart on, but I really wish I could have seen Fangio and Moss.

[TilkeWannabe]

Being 17 and just getting into motorsport since I was 7, I wish I'd seen Senna for sure. Apart from him, I wish I'd seen Gilles Villeneuve and lots of other drivers I wouldn't have time to mention now.

[Fish_Flake]

Without a doubt, Gilles Villeneuve.

[Super Hans]

Primarily Gilles, but there are several others. Rosemeyer, Fangio, Clark...etc

Also, I never saw Senna race in the flesh, but I did see him in qualifiying for the '92 British GP, so I haven't included him.

[Hepatic]

Gilles, Senna, Clark and Surtees. I've met John Surtees (nicest bloke you'll ever meet) but apart from Goodwood FoS i've never seen him race. To see someone on 2 and 4 wheels win world championships had to have been very impressive indeed.

I was marshalling at Oulton when Bruno Senna took a double win in the Brit F3 the other year. The significance of that was certainly not lost on me and the cooling down laps where he was waving almost as enthusiasticly as we all were will stay with me forever

[tonful]

I consider myself very lucky to have seen Senna in FF1600, FF2000 and F3 aswell as F1.
He came along as I reached my teens and was really beginning to feel the passion for motorsport.
I clearly remember him being head and shoulders above everyone else, and just knew watching him in those early days that he was going to be special.
Sorry that was a bit off topic

I do feel that I missed out on Gilles Villeneuve, I can remember him but I just wasn't old enough to really appreciate him. I could say the same could about Tom Pryce aswell.

I feel like I missed out on Jochen Rindt and Ronnie Peterson particularly in F2, infact that whole F2 era is something I would really like to have seen with the top F1 drivers dropping in for the occasional race. Must have been something else.

[Ralf's Girl]

Oh, there are probably hundreds...I wouldn't mind seeing the great drivers from every era of F1.

But as it is, I have to say Senna, because although I have vague memories of watching him race on the TV, I didn't really follow F1 until 1996 so I never had much appreciation for what I was watching.

[nycuk]

I'm very lucky to have seen Gilles, Senna and Ronnie all race 'in the flesh'. These three are my own heroes so I'm pleased that I have these memories.

However if I could go back in time and see anybody race it would have to be the pre-war era. People like Caracciolla, Seaman, Rosemeyer, Nuvolari - that'd be good..!

[mattt]

From what i've heard i would have to say Senna

[Belatti]

Ayrton, Gilles and Juan Manuel

[chunterer]

I just got into the sport properly about 2 months after Gilles' death so all I know of him is from old footage and reading. Clearly he was a massive hero, th sort of driver that got me hooked!! None of these modern day corporate bores. Just get in the car and GO!!!!

Also wish I could've seen people like Clark, Peterson and Pryce all of them turly special talents behind the wheel....

Saw Ayrton qualify a few times, and then Montoya was really my last F1 hero - he was old school maximum attack and the most entertaining driver.

[chunder]

For me it will always be "Villanova" I used to watch him on telly and he just stood out for me in those early Grand Prix programs.

I ahve to say Senna was special, I was not a huge fan of Ayrton as I thought ushered in teh era of "if you dont let me past I will hit you" that Schumacher took on.

I was more of a purist Prost fan, but Senna had a magnetism and an aura that for me has never been rivalled.

EVERY head in teh Grandstand was on teh McLaren when he drove past and the real thing I remember is teh utter devotedness of his fans, some of these men werent even Brazilians, but their complete nutyness was somewaht bizarre to see.

Overall I am glad I was able to see proper gearchanges with a lever!, proper engines with no TC, V12,10 and 8 on the same grid and cars that were driven rather than "controlled"!!

My great sadness is not being old enough to see the mid eighties turbo cars.

[Bononi]

I would like to see the guy who made me want to watch F1 because he has been the first posthumous World Champion, and my dad told me about that incredible season so I start following the next because at that time drivers were true heroes.

[dazbaz_99]

For me it would have to be Senna and Gilles Villeneuve. Read alot about those two guys over the years.

Would also loved to of seen Mansell in his Williams days and at the peak of Mansell Mania. Silverstone 92 must of been fantastic.

I could list more name's but I will keep it short.

[chillibowl]

anyone who raced in those front engine narrow tire race cars. so Fangio, Farina, Moss, Ascari and really all those guys who raced in the early post war years.

those guys were true competitors. i cant imagine any modern driver, whatever their level of conditioning, being able to go toe to toe with a driver from that era. they just dont make people that hard anymore.

[Paddockman]

Jim Clark and Stirling Moss

[Graz]

Originally Posted by chillibowl

anyone who raced in those front engine narrow tire race cars. so Fangio, Farina, Moss, Ascari and really all those guys who raced in the early post war years.

those guys were true competitors. i cant imagine any modern driver, whatever their level of conditioning, being able to go toe to toe with a driver from that era. they just dont make people that hard anymore.

I take your point. Man, those guys had BALLS. I mean, Nuvolari raced in a yellow polo shirt for Christ's sake - in those cars on those tracks!!

In fairness, I do think the great drivers of today would be great drivers in yester year - they wouldn't know any different.

Only until you see those front engined cars in action do you get an idea of what it must have been like. I saw a couple fo 250F's in the Phoenix Park in Ireland a few years back - man, I was super impressed.

[Graz]

Originally Posted by Bononi

I would like to see the guy who made me want to watch F1 because he has been the first posthumous World Champion, and my dad told me about that incredible season so I start following the next because at that time drivers were true heroes.

Agreed. I always remember Mario Andretti's comments about not wanting to strike up too many friendships as chances are the guys could be killed at anytime so best not to get too close. Sobering thoughts.

[Malfunction Junction]

Fangio, Brabham, Clark, Elford, Rodriguez (Pedro) and Siffert.

[White flag man]

Clark, Mclaren, Stewart.

[davyboy]

I was lucky to have seen everyone from the mid-1980s onwards - Senna being one of them. I was even luckier still to see possibly his finest ever drives in Donnington 1993. Amazing. That got me thinking further Graz... how about great drivers' great drives :

I would have loved to have seen :

o Keke Rosberg's 160mph lap of Silverstone in the Williams - the greatest ever performance of a turbo F1 I think.
o James Hunt driving the Hesketh in Zandvoort - possibly one of the greatest F1 drives of all time.
o Pierluigi's qualifying lap of Phoenix on the crack Pirellis in 1990 that placed him on the front row of the grid - an incredibly gutsy performance by a talented driver who persisted through years of put-downs. He had his day to silence a few critics and this was it.

- there are many more too.

[SennaTheGreat]

For me,
Gilles, i was born 3 years later than......

Piquet, Just for the Brabham BMW days

Mansell, what more can i say? The british Senna

And last but not least, Senna. was only starting to get into Formula One about 1992 (Could have been 1993??) and only saw a few races of Ayrton but I missed his Championship years.