(Motorsport-Total.com) – Saturday, May 8, 1982. There were only a few minutes left from the final qualifying session for the Belgian Grand Prix the following day. And for those drivers hoping to improve their starting positions, it was the last chance.
© Motorsport Images
– –
1982: Gilles Villeneuve lost his life in qualifying for the fifth Formula 1 race zoom
–
Despite the fact that his second and last set of qualifying tires had already completed several laps, Gilles Villeneuve continued to exert pressure. Because he had an additional incentive. At the San Marino Grand Prix two weeks earlier, Ferrari team-mate Didier Pironi had broken up.
The latter ignored orders and stole the victory from Villeneuve, which should have been an easy victory. Therefore, only one thing counted in Zolder: he wanted to be faster than Pironi. But his rival’s time was just out of reach.
Aware that his tires were worn out and a faster lap was therefore unlikely, the Ferrari team signaled that Villeneuve should come in at the end of the next lap. However, the Canadian never reached the box. Halfway through the lap, he hit a slow-moving car.
It was Jochen Mass who was on the run-out in his March. When the German saw the racing Ferrari in his mirrors, he turned to the right to let Villeneuve pass on the left. At this point, however, he had already made his decision – he wanted to pass on the right.
It was just one of dozens of such instinctive, critical decisions that every Grand Prix driver has to make every weekend. But for Gilles Villeneuve, the fastest and most popular driver of his era, it should be the last.
Villeneuve’s fatal accident
Jody Scheckter, teammate of Villeneuve at Ferrari in 1979/80, recalls: “I think he was under massive pressure in Zolder to beat Pironi, who was faster than him in qualifying. We all had problems with situations like this.”
“I was certainly annoyed a lot in a racing car. At the end of the training you are so angry that you get stupid if you let yourself in for it. I don’t know exactly what happened in Zolder, but it seemed as if it was exactly that happened. Gilles took a risk that doesn’t pay off, “Scheckter classifies the situation.
Photo gallery: Triumphs & Tragedies in Canada
In 1967, the first Formula 1 race in Canada took place in the Mosport Park in Bowmanville – and provided several highlights. With over 2:40 hours, the rainy Grand Prix is the longest race of the entire season. Jackie Stewart, here ahead of Jack Brabham, doesn’t see the checkered flag in the end.
Photo gallery
– – – – –
The last thing Villeneuve saw was that Mass followed the path he had chosen. The Ferrari’s left front tire touched the right rear of the March, and the red car immediately flew skyward and briefly disappeared from the field of view of the TV camera that had just caught the moment of impact.
The car crashed with catastrophic force and overturned. The front of the chassis was torn off and Villeneuve was catapulted out like in an ejection seat. He landed in the fences, he had lost his helmet.
Mass jumped out of his car and ran over to see what he could do, and other drivers stopped as well. Villeneuve clung to life for a few hours in Leuven hospital, but he had suffered massive injuries, including a broken neck. He died that Saturday night.
The racing world was shocked. “Gilles could have won the championship in 1982 and Ferrari was quite capable,” says Scheckter. “But you never know … He was still at an early stage in his career. I used to be more aggressive, but with increasing experience, you realize that you have to end races.”
A new star at Ferrari
Villeneuve, born like Scheckter in 1950, made his breakthrough when several top Formula 1 drivers were invited to Canada to take part in an event in Trois Rivieres in 1976. Among them the current world champion James Hunt.
He recognized Villeneuve’s talent and made McLaren team manager Teddy Mayer aware of him. At the British Grand Prix in 1977, he finally sat for his Formula 1 debut in a third McLaren. The racing team did not offer him a full-time job for the following year, but Niki Lauda’s departure from Ferrari gave him a chance.
© Motorsport Images
– –
At Ferrari, Gilles Villeneuve was runner-up in the second year zoom
–
To fill the vacancy, Enzo Ferrari gambled with the rookie. In October 1978 he won his home race, which was held for the first time on the new race track in Montreal. Three more victories followed in 1979.
But Villeneuve followed the team’s instructions and helped his new and more experienced teammate Scheckter secure the world title. He knew that his time was sure to come. “I always worked very well with Gilles,” said Scheckter a few years later.
Ferrari sank hopelessly in the 1980 season, but fought back with a new turbo engine the following year. However, his chassis was not up to the competition. Nevertheless Villeneuve achieved two furious victories in Monaco and Spain. He got on well with his new teammate, the Frenchman Pironi – still.
That changed in 1982. The first three races were initially out of luck for both, although Villeneue showed the potential of the new car by qualifying third in South Africa and second in Brazil well ahead of Pironi.
The conflict in Imola
For reasons of protest, only 14 cars competed in the fourth race of the season in Imola. When Rene Arnoux retired in the Renault, the Ferrari duo advanced to places one and two. Villeneuve led the race and no one else was in sight. In terms of fuel consumption, both should slow down and hold their position.
Villeneuve was accordingly surprised when Pironi drove past him. At first he thought that the Frenchman might be trying to put on a show for the fans. In fact, he seemed to let him pass a lap before the end, but in the last lap Pironi rushed past and left Villeneuve standing.
© Motorsport Images
– –
Imola 1982: Didier Pironi steals the victory from Gilles Villeneuve at the last second zoom
–
He crossed the finish line 0.3 seconds back and was furious. For the Ferrari driver, there was no question that he had been cheated out of victory by his own teammate, in front of thousands of Tifosi.
As a man for whom trust and honor were crucial, Villeneuve vowed never to speak to Pironi again. Instead, he reported to his old companion Scheckter. “After he had this incident, he called me,” he recalls. “We talked a lot. He hated what had happened in Imola.”
“Gilles was a really sincere, honest guy and if he had a weakness he was honest to the point of being naive. He trusted Pironi. It would have hit him hard for a while and I say that because of very honest, naive people are shocked when something like this happens to them. Crooks think it should be like this … “
–