Patrick Depailler

Patrick Depailler
Born	Patrick André Eugène Joseph Depailler (1944-08-09) 9 August 1944 Clermont-Ferrand, France
Died	1 August 1980(1980-08-01) (aged 35) Hockenheimring, Germany
Occupation	Racing driver
Years active	1972–1980 (Formula One)
Known for	Formula One driver with two Grand Prix victories

Patrick André Eugène Joseph Depailler (9 August 1944 – 1 August 1980) was a French racing driver active in Formula One between and , achieving two Grand Prix victories throughout an eight-season career.

Originating from Clermont-Ferrand, France, Depailler drew inspiration from Jean Behra. He initially raced for the struggling Tyrrell Racing outfit before transferring to the erratic Equipe Ligier, eventually joining the resurgent Alfa Romeo team in 1980.

Tragically, Depailler lost his life during private testing at the Hockenheimring in August 1980. His Formula One achievements encompass two wins, one pole position, four fastest laps, and 19 podium finishes. Notably, he holds the joint record for the highest number of podiums (15) before securing a maiden Grand Prix victory.

Sports cars and Formula Two

In the 1972 Formula Two Pau Grand Prix, Depailler narrowly finished second to Peter Gethin by a margin of 0.9 seconds while driving a March 722. He claimed third place at the Nürburgring in April 1973 behind the wheel of a Ford Alpine. By May 1974, he had earned pole position at the Pau Grand Prix in Formula Two with a March vehicle. The following month, he experienced a qualifying crash at Salzburgring but escaped without injury.

Renault suspended Depailler for three events in April 1976 after an accident involving teammate Jean-Pierre Jabouille during a sports car race at Nürburgring. In Formula One, he finished second at the 1976 Swedish Grand Prix, trailing winner Jody Scheckter by 19 seconds. Additionally, he participated in the 1978 International Race of Champions held at Riverside and piloted Paul Newman's Spyder-Chevy during the October 1978 California Grand Prix.

Tyrrell (1972–1978)

Tyrrell provided Depailler with drives at the France and Watkins Glen races in 1972, where he secured seventh place at Watkins Glen. In December 1973, he was signed alongside Jody Scheckter to fill the seats left by the late François Cevert and retired Jackie Stewart.<ref>At his ninth Formula One race during the 1974 Swedish Grand Prix, Depailler earned pole position with a time of 1:24.758 on the 2.49-mile Anderstorp. He finished second behind teammate Scheckter, marking his only podium that season.

Heading into 1975, Depailler was considered a long shot for the World Championship with odds of 25–1. He achieved fifth place at the 1975 Argentine Grand Prix and secured third at Kyalami during the 1975 South African Grand Prix, finishing behind Carlos Reutemann. A qualifying crash occurred at Watkins Glen for the 1975 United States Grand Prix, though he was unharmed.

Depailler claimed second place at the 1976 Brazilian Grand Prix held at Interlagos and qualified second to Clay Regazzoni for the 1976 United States Grand Prix West. Despite encountering brake difficulties, he managed to finish third but was involved in an on-track altercation with rival James Hunt. At the 1976 Monaco Grand Prix, driving Tyrrell's innovative six-wheeled car, he started third; Tyrrell drivers were uniquely competitive against Niki Lauda's Ferrari that weekend. He finished runner-up to Hunt in both the 1976 French Grand Prix and 1976 Canadian Grand Prix, overcoming fumes inhalation after the latter event. Another second-place finish came at the rain-affected 1976 Japanese Grand Prix, despite tire challenges.

In 1977, Depailler suffered a leg injury following a crash during the Brazilian Grand Prix. He qualified twelfth for the 1977 United States Grand Prix West. By December of that year, with Ronnie Peterson's transfer to Lotus, Depailler assumed Tyrrell's lead driver role as the team discontinued its six-wheeled car experiment.

Early in 1978, Depailler achieved third place at the Argentine Grand Prix. At Kyalami, he was overtaken by Peterson on the final lap due to fuel depletion but still secured third place at the 1978 United States Grand Prix West after starting from twelfth on the grid. His first Formula One victory came at the prestigious 1978 Monaco Grand Prix, piloting a Tyrrell-Ford 008—ending a streak of eight second-place finishes over 69 championship races.<ref>

Ligier (1979)

In 1979, Depailler became part of the Ligier outfit, which had shifted from the French-made Matra V-12 engines of 1978 to V-8 Ford Cosworth power units. During the 1979 Argentine Grand Prix, he held the lead early on but encountered engine troubles that relegated him to a 4th-place finish. At the 1979 Brazilian Grand Prix, Depailler secured second place, trailing teammate Jacques Laffite, who claimed victory by a margin exceeding five seconds. Unfortunately, he suffered a crash at "Barbecue Bend" in the course of the 1979 South African Grand Prix.

Gerard Ducarouge, Ligier’s team principal, disclosed that after disappointing wind tunnel results with the JS-9, the Ligier JS-11 was designed and successfully tested late in 1978. The switch to a lighter V-8 engine combined with an altered Cosworth exhaust system maintained the unique acoustic character reminiscent of the previous Matra powerplant. The JS-11 made its competitive debut at the 1979 United States Grand Prix West.

At the 1979 Spanish Grand Prix held at Jarama, Depailler achieved a commanding victory from start to finish, equaling Gilles Villeneuve with 20 championship points by April's close. He earned a third-place starting position for the 1979 Monaco Grand Prix. However, tragedy struck in June when he sustained bilateral leg fractures and a severe heel injury in a hang-gliding mishap near Clermont-Ferrand. Consequently, Ligier enlisted the experienced French-speaking Belgian driver Jacky Ickx as his replacement, aligning with conditions tied to financial backing from French authorities.

During his convalescence, Depailler aggravated one of his fractures after falling from his hospital bed in August. By late August, he acknowledged that returning to racing before the next season was unlikely but hoped to attend as a spectator at the autumn North American races in Montreal and Watkins Glen.

Alfa Romeo (1980)

The year 1980 saw Depailler join the newly re-established Alfa Romeo Formula One squad. Despite still recuperating from his previous year's severe hang-gliding accident, he adapted his vehicle with specialized braking systems aimed at reinforcing his leg strength. Although the car demonstrated promising pace—evidenced by a 3rd place qualifying effort at the 1980 United States Grand Prix West—it was plagued by mechanical unreliability that prevented him from finishing races.

Death

Depailler lost his life during a test session at Hockenheim, just ten days before the 1980 German Grand Prix. A failure in the suspension system caused his Alfa Romeo 179 to collide with the Armco barrier at the high-speed Ostkurve. The crash resulted in fatal head trauma when the car flipped and vaulted over the guardrail, sliding along it for several hundred feet before overturning completely.

Legacy

In tribute to Depailler, a radio-controlled car racing facility named Mini Circuit Patrick Depailler exists in his birthplace. This venue is among France’s oldest and hosted an event sanctioned by the International Federation of Model Auto Racing (IFMAR) in 1999.

Following his fatal accident, Hockenheimring introduced a chicane at Ostkurve to reduce speeds; this modification was first implemented during the 1982 German Grand Prix. Additionally, Depailler was depicted by Xavier Laurent in Ron Howard’s 2013 motion picture Rush.

Career overview

... (table continues with similar structure through 1980) ...

Season	Series	Team	Starts	Victories	Pole positions	Fastest laps	Podium finishes	Points	Final standing
1967	24 Hours of Le Mans	Automobiles Alpine	1	0	0	0	0	N/A	Did Not Finish
1968	World Sportscar Championship	Automobiles Alpine	1	0	0	0	1	4	Not Classified
		Ecurie Savin-Calberson	1	0	0	0	0
1969	World Sportscar Championship	Automobiles Alpine	1	0	0	0	0	2	Not Classified
		Ecurie Savin-Calberson	1	0	0	0	0
1970	European Formula Two Championship	Constructions Mécaniques Pygmée	1	0	0	0	0	N/A	Not Classified
	24 Hours of Le Mans	Equipe Matra Sports-Simca	1	0	0	0	0	N/A	Did Not Finish
1971	French Formula Three Championship	Automobiles Alpine	?	?	?	?	?	?	Champion (1st)
	European Formula Two Championship	Equipe Tecno Elf	6	0	0	0	0	N/A	Not Classified
	24 Hours of Le Mans	Equipe Matra Sports-Simca	1	0	0	0	0	N/A	Not Classified
1972	European Formula Two Championship	Elf John Coombs Racing 11 0 1 2 3 27 style="background:#FFDF9F"|3rd overall
	rowspan=2 1972 Formula One season	Elf Tyrrell Racing	2	0	0	0	0	0	Not Classified
rowspan=2 1973 European Formula Two Championship	Elf John Coombs Racing	10	0	4	3	5	38	3rd overall
rowspan=2 1973 24 Hours of Le Mans	Equipe Matra Sports-Simca Shell	1	0	0	0	0	N/A	Did Not Finish
rowspan=3 1974 Formula One season	Elf Tyrrell Racing	15	0	1	1	1	14	9th place
1974 European Formula Two Championship	March Racing Team	8	4	3	2	7	54	Champion (1st)
1974 World Sportscar Championship	Automobiles Alpine	1	0	0	0	0	1	Not Classified

Note: Graded drivers were ineligible to score points in the European Formula Two Championship.

24 Hours of Le Mans results

Year	Team name	Co-Drivers	Vehicle model	Class category	Completed laps	Overall finish position	Class finish position
1967	Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Société des Automobiles Alpine	Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Gérard Larrousse	Alpine A210-Renault	P 1.15L prototype class	204 laps completed	Did Not Finish (DNF)	Did Not Finish (DNF)
1968	Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Ecurie Savin-Calberson	Template:Country data BELTemplate:Namespace detect showall Mauro Bianchi	Alpine A220-Renault	P 3.0L prototype class	257 laps completed	Did Not Finish (DNF)	Did Not Finish (DNF)
1969	Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Société des Automobiles Alpine	Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Jean-Pierre Jabouille	Alpine A220-Renault	P 3.0L prototype class	209 laps completed	Did Not Finish (DNF)	Did Not Finish (DNF)
1970	Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Équipe Matra-Simca	Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Jean-Pierre Jabouille Template:Country data AUSTemplate:Namespace detect showall Tim Schenken	Matra-Simca MS650	P 3.0L prototype class	70 laps completed	Did Not Finish (DNF)	Did Not Finish (DNF)
1971	Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Automobiles Ligier	Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Guy Ligier	Ligier JS3-Ford Cosworth	P 3.0L prototype class	270 laps completed	Not Classified (NC)	Not Classified (NC)
1973	Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Équipe Matra-Simca Shell	Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Bob Wollek	Matra-Simca MS670B	S 3.0L sportscar class	84 laps completed	Did Not Finish (DNF)	Did Not Finish (DNF)
1977	Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Équipe Renault Elf	Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Jacques Laffite	Renault Alpine A442	S +2.0L sportscar class	289 laps completed	Did Not Finish (DNF)	Did Not Finish (DNF)
1978	Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Équipe Renault Elf Sport	Template:Country data FRATemplate:Namespace detect showall Jean-Pierre Jabouille	Renault Alpine A443	S +2.0L sportscar class	279 laps completed	Did Not Finish (DNF)	Did Not Finish (DNF)

Full European Formula Two Championship results

(Template:Motorsport driver results legend#key) (Races highlighted in bold represent pole positions; those in italics denote fastest laps)

Year	Team	Car Model	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	Pos.	Points
Template:F2	Constructions Mécaniques Pygmée	Pygmée MDB15	Ford		DNQ	DNQ	Ret						! NC ! 0 |- Template:F2 ! nowrap | Equipe Tecno Elf ! nowrap | Tecno TF71 ! Ford | Ret | Ret | 21 | || Ret | DNQ | || 9 | Ret | || || colspan=6 | ! NC ! 0 |- rowspan=2 | Template:F2 ! rowspan=2 nowrap | Elf Aquitaine ! nowrap | Alpine A367 ! rowspan=2 | Ford | || Ret || colspan=2 | || Ret || colspan=11 | ! rowspan=2 style="background:#FFDF9F;" | 3rd ! rowspan=2 style="background:#FFDF9F;" | 27 |-									March 722				2	7	DNQ	5	Ret	Ret	2	7	2	Ret	|- Template:F2 ! nowrap | Elf John Coombs ! nowrap | Alpine A367 ! Ford | || 2 | Ret | 3 | Ret | 2 || colspan=4 | || colspan=5 style="background:#DFDFDF;" | Multiple high placements and points awarded due to non-eligible drivers ahead.|| style="background:#FFDF9F;" |3rd||38 |- Template:F2 ! nowrap | March Racing Team ! nowrap | March 742 ! BMW | 2 |4 | 1 | DNQ || 1||2||Ret|| 1|| 1|| colspan=7 style="background:#FFFFBF;" align=center rowspan=1|'1st'|'54' |- Template:F2 ! nowrap | Project 3 Racing ! nowrap | March 752 ! BMW |||||||||3||||||||||| NC||0\u2020 |-

Note: Graded drivers were not eligible to score points in the European Formula Two Championship.

Complete Formula One World Championship results

(key) (Pole positions are shown in bold; fastest laps are indicated by italics)

... [Table continues with similar formatting and condensed entries for subsequent years] ...

Year	Team	Car	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	WDC	Pts
Template:F1	Elf Team Tyrrell	Tyrrell 004	Ford Cosworth DFV V8, 3.0L	ARG	RSA	ESP	MON	BEL	FRA NC	GBR	GER	AUT	ITA	CAN	USA 7						NC	0
Template:F1	Elf Team Tyrrell	Tyrrell 005	Ford Cosworth DFV V8, 3.0L	ARG 6	BRA 8	RSA 4															9th	14
		Tyrrell 006					ESP 8		MON 9			FRA 8
		Tyrrell 007					style="background:#efcfff;" |BEL Ret	style="background:#dfdfdf;" |SWE 2 style="background:#dfffdf;" |NED 6	style="background:#efcfff;" |GBR Ret style="background:#efcfff;" |GER Ret style="background:#efcfff;" |AUT Ret style="background:#cfcfff;" |ITA 11 style="background:#dfffdf;" |CAN 5 style="background:#dfffdf;" |USA 6 colspan=2|