Lorenzo Bandini
 | |
| Born |
21 December 1935 Marj, Libya |
|---|---|
| Died |
10 May 1967 (aged 31) Monte Carlo, Monaco |
| Formula One World Championship career | |
| Nationality |
 Italian |
| Active years | 1961 – 1967 |
| Teams |
Scuderia Centro Sud, Scuderia Ferrari |
| Entries | 42 |
| Championships | 0 |
| Wins | 1 |
| Podiums | 8 |
| Career points | 58 |
| Pole positions | 1 |
| Fastest laps | 2 |
| First entry | 1961 Belgian Grand Prix |
| First win | 1964 Austrian Grand Prix |
| Last win | 1964 Austrian Grand Prix |
| Last entry | 1967 Monaco Grand Prix |
Lorenzo Bandini (21 December 1935 – 10 May 1967) was an Italian motor racing driver who raced in Formula One for the Scuderia Centro Sud and Ferrari teams.
Career
Bandini was born in Marj,[1] Cyrenaica,[2] Libya, then an Italian colony. The family returned to Italy in 1939 and resided near Florence. When he was 15 his father died. Bandini left home and found a job as an apprentice mechanic in the Freddi workshop in Milan.[2]
He made his way into auto racing from competing on motorcycles.[3] He started racing cars in 1957 in a borrowed Fiat 1100. Goliardo Freddi, acknowledging Bandini's talent, decided to support him.[2] Bandini would later marry Fredi's daughter, Margherita, in 1963, and remained involved with the family's garage in Milan.
He achieved a first class victory at the Mille Miglia, in a Lancia Appia Zagato, in 1958, and a class win the same year in the 500cc Berkeley in the 12-hour race at Monza. He then raced in Formula Junior until 1961. Bandini purchased a Volpini Formula Junior car and placed third in his first race in Sicily. In 1959 and 1960 he drove a Formula Junior Stanguellini. In 1960 he placed fourth in the Formula Junior World Championship.
In 1961 Bandini and fellow Italian driver Giancarlo Baghetti were both in contention for a seat at Ferrari. Ferrari opted for Baghetti, and Bandini went to drive for Guglielmo "Mimmo" Dei's Scuderia Centro Sud. At a non-championship race, he finished third at Pau. Bandini drove his first world championship race at Spa later in 1961. He retired with engine failure. During the winter of 1961-1962 he drove in the Tasman races in Australia and New Zealand.[2]
In 1962 Bandini was hired by Ferrari for the 1962 and 1963 seasons, and moved to Maranello, near the team's headquarters.[4] His debut in a works Ferrari at the Monaco Grand Prix, finishing third.
For 1963 Bandini was retained by Ferrari for sports car races only. Along with Ludovico Scarfiotti, he won the Le Mans 24 Hours race and placed second in the Targa Florio that year, occasionally racing in Formula One for Scuderia Centro Sud.[2] His string of good results, including a fifth place at the British Grand Prix, convinced Ferrari to retain him as a Formula One driver as well for the rest of the season.
In 1964 Bandini had his best Formula One season. He won the first Austrian Grand Prix at the Zeltweg circuit and scored two more podiums in Germany and Italy. At the Mexican Grand Prix, Bandini was running second when he decided to let his team mate John Surtees pass, enabling him to score enough points to win the World Championship.
In 1965 Bandini won the Targa Florio.
In 1966 Surtees left Ferrari in mid-season. Bandini was promoted to team leader. He was unlucky not to win the French and U.S. Grands Prix that year which he dominated before mechanical problems intervened while he was holding a huge lead. Bandini's best finish was a second place at the Monaco Grand Prix in a 2.4 liter V-6 Ferrari behind Jackie Stewart's BRM. Later in the season Bandini helped director John Frankenheimer with his movie "Grand Prix". Bandini recommended the location at the harbour chicane for a crash scene in the movie filmed at the Monte Carlo circuit. In "The Making of Grand Prix", actress Eva Marie Saint noted that, bitterly, this spot would be the site of Bandini's death in the race one year later.
In 1967 Bandini won the 24 Hours of Daytona in 1967 and the 1,000 km of Monza, both with Chris Amon.
Accident and death
On May 7, 1967, Bandini was racing at the Monaco Grand Prix, running second to Denny Hulme on the 82nd lap, when he lost control of his car at the harbour chicane. He had just entered the chicane when his Ferrari's left rear wheel hit the guard rail, sending him into an erratic skid. It impacted a light pole and overturned.[5] The car hit straw bales which lined the harbour side, rupturing the fuel tank, and sparks ignited the fuel as the car rolled over, with Bandini trapped beneath it. Marshals flipped his car upright and pulled Bandini, unconscious, out from the flaming Ferrari. It is thought that, during the effort to right the overturned car, fuel leaked on the hot brake line or the exhaust pipe and exploded. A second fire occurred when the fuel tank exploded after Bandini had been pulled away from the Ferrari.[1]
Bandini's sustained third degree burns covering more than 70% of his body, as well as a chest wound and ten chest fractures.[5] Three days after the crash, Bandini succumbed to his injuries at Princess Grace Polyclinic Hospital in Monte Carlo.
There were concerns about the promptness of Bandini's rescue. However, investigators from the Principality of Monaco ruled on 10 May that "the security operation had functioned properly."[3] The straw bales, having been banned from all Formula 1 races in response to the accident, were replaced by an extended guard-rail the following year.[6]
Bandini's funeral was held in Reggiolo on 13 May.[7] 100,000 people attended the funeral.[8] He was later buried in the Lambrate cemetery, in Milan.[9][10]
Racing record
Complete Formula One results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)
Complete Formula One Non-Championship results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1961 | Scuderia Centro Sud | Cooper T53 | Maserati 6-1500 1.5 L4 | LOM | GLV | PAU 3 |
BRX | VIE | AIN | SYR 7 |
NAP 3 |
LON | SIL | SOL | KAN | DAN | MOD Ret |
FLG DNS |
||||||
| Cooper T51 | FLG NC |
OUL | LEW | VAL | RAN | NAT | RSA | |||||||||||||||||
| 1962 | Scuderia Ferrari SpA SEFAC | Ferrari 156 | Ferrari 178 1.5 V6 | CAP | BRX | LOM | LAV | GLV | PAU 5 |
AIN | INT | NAP 2 |
MAL | CLP | RMS | SOL | KAN | MED 1 |
DAN | OUL | MEX | RAN | NAT | |
| 1963 | Scuderia Centro Sud | Cooper T53 | Maserati 6-1500 1.5 L4 | LOM | GLV | PAU | IMO Ret |
SYR Ret |
AIN | |||||||||||||||
| BRM P57 | BRM P56 1.5 V8 | INT DSQ |
ROM | SOL 4 |
KAN | MED 3 |
AUT | OUL | ||||||||||||||||
| Scuderia Ferrari SpA SEFAC | Ferrari 156 | Ferrari 178 1.5 V6 | RAN 2 |
|||||||||||||||||||||
| 1964 | Scuderia Ferrari SpA SEFAC | Ferrari 156 | Ferrari 178 1.5 V6 | DMT | NWT | SYR 2 |
AIN | INT | SOL Ret |
MED | RAN | |||||||||||||
| 1965 | Scuderia Ferrari SpA SEFAC | Ferrari 1512 | Ferrari 207 1.5 F12 | ROC | SYR 3 |
SMT | INT 7 |
MED | RAN | |||||||||||||||
| 1966 | Scuderia Ferrari SpA SEFAC | Ferrari 246 | Ferrari 228 2.4 V6 | RSA | SYR 2 |
INT | OUL | |||||||||||||||||
| 1967 | Scuderia Ferrari SpA SEFAC | Ferrari 312 | Ferrari 242 3.0 V12 | ROC 2 |
SPC | INT | SYR | OUL | ESP |
See also
References
- 1 2 "Hulme Takes Monaco Race; Bandini Seriously Hurt", New York Times, May 8, 1967, Page 59
- 1 2 3 4 5 "Lorenzo Bandini", The Times, May 11, 1967, Page 12.
- 1 2 "Italy's Bandini Dies Of Monte Carlo Burns", Stars and Stripes, May 11, 1967, Page 20.
- ↑ Bandini Dies of Race Injuries, New York Times, May 11, 1967, Page 62.
- 1 2 "Hulme Wins Monte Carlo; Bandini Hurt", Sheboygan Press, May 8, 1967, Page 13.
- ↑ Stanley, Louis.T (1969). Grand Prix 10. London: W H Allen Ltd. p. 15. ISBN 0-491-00272-6.
- ↑ "Mass Held For Bandini", New York Times, May 12, 1967, Page 56.
- ↑ "100,000 at Bandini Rites", New York Times, May 14, 1967, Page S4.
- ↑ "Lorenzo Bandini (1935–1967)". Find A Grave Memorial. Retrieved 2012-12-03.
- ↑ Photos of Bandini's tombstone. Accessed 2012-12-03.
External links
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Olivier Gendebien Phil Hill |
Winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans 1963 with: Ludovico Scarfiotti |
Succeeded by Jean Guichet Nino Vaccarella |
| Preceded by John Taylor |
Formula One fatal accidents 10 May 1967 |
Succeeded by Bob Anderson |