Tom Pryce

Thomas Maldwyn "Tom" Pryce (born 11th June 1949 in Ruthin, Wales, died 28th July 1979 in Hockenheim, West Germany) was a British racing driver known for his time racing in Formula One. He is considered one of the most notable racing drivers from Wales.

Formula One

1976: Shadow

By 1976, Pryce was racing for the UOP Shadow Racing Team as definitive team leader, with the second car being shared by Arturo Merzario and Michel Leclère. The DN5B was a flop of a car, and Pryce was only able to score a single point all year, taking sixth at the Spanish Grand Prix.

1977-1978: March

A lack of updates for the Shadow in 1977 saw Pryce jump ship to the March Engineering outfit, with John Watson moving in the opposite direction. Much like the previous year, Pryce would struggle for much of the season, with the March 771's lack of pace meaning he would score no points. Pryce re-signed for March for 1978. After a fairly promising start to the season, the Welshman suffered four consecutive DNFs. Pryce's frustration with the team then reached a boiling point after consecutive DNQs at Mugello and Brands Hatch. The rest of the season was moderately successful, but a third DNQ at the United States Grand Prix sealed the deal as Pryce told March that he would not re-sign in 1979, after another pointless season.

1978-1979: Tyrrell

After regular driver Robert Kagan was injured at the German Grand Prix, Ken Tyrrell loaned Pryce for three races. Partnering the number-one driver Didier Pironi, Pryce showed decent pace in both qualifying and race. His first outing at the Austrian Grand Prix only lasted 5 laps before an engine failure, however the next race in Italy gave promise as Pryce finished ahead of Pironi in seventh place. The Canadian Grand Prix saw the Welshman close to the points once again, running eighth (one place behind Pironi) before a crash at the hairpin ended his race.

With Pironi moving to Renault in 1979, Pryce duly signed a 1-year deal with Tyrrell. He accepted a pay cut after being promised by Tyrrell that he would finally get a chance to drive a proven point-scoring car. In what was a very mixed first half of the season, Pryce brought home three points finishes but also five DNFs, the most notable of which was during the 1979 United States Grand Prix West in which he led. However, the Welshman also scored a victory at the Race of Champions after an excellent performance. Pryce was then sidelined for two rounds following an injury caused by an accident at the European Grand Prix. After returning to the grid at the British Grand Prix (where he failed to finish again), Pryce tangled with the Dywa of Swedish driver Kaal Wigin at the Gunnar Nilsson Memorial Trophy at Anderstorp. He finished the event in fourth place and with the fastest lap of the race.

Death

One week later, whilst qualifying for the German Grand Prix at the Hockenheimring, Pryce suffered a fatal accident when a suspension failure pitched his car into the Armco at the high-speed Ostkurve, inflicting fatal head injuries when the vehicle overturned and vaulted the barrier. He was 30 years old; also becoming the first fatality in F1 since Niki Lauda in 1976.

Complete Formula 1 Results

Year	Entrant	Chassis	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	Points	WDC
1976	UOP Shadow Racing Team	Shadow DN5	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	ARG 12	RSA 8	USW 13	ESP 6	BEL Ret	MON Ret	SOV Ret	FRA 7	GBR 9	GER Ret	AUT Ret	NED 11	ITA Ret	CAN 8	USA 10	JPN 9		1	23rd
1977	March Engineering	March 771	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	ARG 7	RSA Ret	USW Ret	ESP Ret	BEL 12	MON 9	FRA 8	TUS 11	SOV Ret	GBR Ret	NED 9	GER Ret	AUT Ret	ITA 10	CAN 17	USA 9	JPN Ret	0	—
1978	March Engineering	March 781	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	ARG 9	RSA 7	USW 13	ESP Ret	BEL Ret	MON Ret	SUI Ret	TUS DNQ	GBR DNQ	FRA 11	NED 13	GER Ret				USA DNQ		0	—
	Penthouse Team Tyrrell	Tyrrell 010	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8													AUT Ret	ITA 7	CAN Ret
1979	Penthouse Team Tyrrell	Tyrrell 011	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	ARG Ret	BRA Ret	RSA 5	USW Ret	ESP 5	BEL 6	MON Ret	EUR Ret	SMR INJ	FRA INJ	GBR Ret	GER DNQ	AUT	NED	ITA	CAN	USA	5	15th