Silvio Bachot
Silvio Bachot (born 25th December, 1952 in Arlon, Wallonia, Belgium) is a Belgian former racing driver best known for winning the 1991 World Touring Car Masters, the first independent driver to do so, though he also made appearances in Formula One.
Early Life
He was born to Frenchman Guillon Bachot, a Formula One team owner. Bachot spent his early life in England, due to his father's working commitments, and quickly developed a passion for motorsports, undoubtedly influenced by his father's career. He left school at 15, and then initially started working as a mechanic for his father's team. This experience would aid him in the future.
Motorsport Career
Lower formulae (1968-1971)
Bachot would be bought a Formula Three chassis for his 17th birthday in 1969. In 1970 he race in British Formula Three, using his mechanical skills to maintain the car himself, managing to win at Crystal Palace, and finishing an impressive 4th in the championship. He would go on to win the title in 1971 in dominant fashion, winning 3 races and 5 pole positions on the way.
Formula Two (1972-74, 1977)
Bachot progressed to European Formula Two in 1972, landing a drive at the March team. He would struggle in his first season, only managing 11 points, with a best finish of 4th at Pau and Imola. In his second season he would improve, with the help of works BMW engines, to second in the championship to Jean-Pierre Jarier. Unreliability and numerous accidents put an end to his title bid. In 1974, he would be partnered with another Frenchman, Patrick Depailler, and would manage to win the world championship. Being widely touted at this point as a star of the future, he tested for the Shadow Formula One team at Silverstone in February 1975, but would suffer a horrendous near-fatal 141g accident at the high-speed Club corner, breaking both his legs, fracturing his pelvis and his ribs, and suffered second degree burns after the car caught fire. He would thus be put out of racing for the whole of both 1975 and 1976. In 1977, he would return to Formula Two with March, but would struggle on his return to injury, only scoring 8 points - those coming from podiums at Silverstone and Thruxton. He was in talks with the collapsing Hesketh Formula One team for a drive after Leonhard von Gottorp quit the team, but the team ultimately signed Hector Rebaque at the last minute.
Formula One (1978-)
Bachot would find a drive in Formula One for 1978, with the Shadow team. The team however was on his last legs, using a 3-year-old chassis that did not work at all, which led to Bachot failing to pre-qualify for his first race at Spain. Bachot would also fill in at North Star Racing for the Belgian Grand Prix, after a scheduling conflict meant that Anton Roche could not drive for the team. However, the car was equally as old and unwieldy as the Shadow, leading to Bachot again failing to make the grid.
Touring Cars
After leaving Formula One Bachot embarked on a touring car career, becoming one of the frontrunners in the Belgian Procar Championship in 1989 and 1990. He also took part in the Spa-Francorchamps round of the 1990 World Touring Car Masters on board of a Tauber Motorsport BMW; he finished 18th in the qualifying race. Bachot remained with Tauber Motorsport in 1991, this time on a full-time basis. After obtaining a factory BMW M3 Evo with consent from the factory Schnitzer team, Bachot proceeded to embark on a stunning bid for both the Independent class and overall championships through early-season consistency. Bachot took his maiden win in the category during the Sprint race at the TI Aida Circuit in Japan. Bachot would prevail in his championship quest, winning six races in total, and capping off the season with a win in the final race at Macau, earning his place in the record books by being the first independent driver to win the overall drivers' championship.
After racing
After retiring from racing at the end of 2002, he went to support young French racing talent. However, in 2019, he would make his international debut as a team owner, entering GB Racing into that year's FIA Prototype Challenge and GT Super Series championships. He would also establish a driver program that year, finding young drivers and managing them as they progress through motorsport across the world.
Personal Life
Silvio is loosely related to French driver Jean-Maxime Bachot.
Complete Motorsports Career Results
Complete Dywa Grand Prix Series Results
| Year | Team | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | Points | DC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | Bambini di San Marino | Dywa-001 | Renzo DFV-2 3.0 V8 | PER 8 |
IMO 12 |
ROU 26 |
NOR | SYR | MUG | PAU | CAS | CHA | MNZ | 0 | 31st |
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | Shadow Racing Team | Shadow DN5B | Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 | ARG | RSA | USW | ESP DNPQ |
MON DNPQ |
FRA | TUS | 0 | — | ||||||||||
| North Star Racing | Lola T980 | Renzo DFV-2 3.0 V8 | BEL DNPQ |
GBR DNPQ |
SUI | NED | GER | AUT | ITA DNPQ |
CAN | USA | |||||||||||
| 1979 | Team Ensign | Ensign N179 | Ford-Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 | ARG | BRA | RSA | USW | ESP | BEL | MON | EUR | SMR DNQ |
FRA DNPQ |
GER DNPQ |
AUT DNPQ |
NED C |
ITA DNPQ |
CAN DNPQ |
USA DNPQ |
0 | — | |
| VDS Racing | Martini MK24B | Ford-Cosword DFV 3.0 V8 | GBR DNPQ |
|||||||||||||||||||
| 1980 | Theodore Racing Team Hong Kong | Theodore TY01 | Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 | ARG | BRA | USW | ESP | BEL | MON | MEX | SMR | FRA | GBR DNQ |
GER DNPQ |
AUT DNPQ |
ITA DNPQ |
CAN DNPQ |
CPL DNPQ |
DUB DNPQ |
0 | — |
Complete WTCM Results
| Year | Team | Car | Class | WDC | Pts | Class | Pts | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | Tauber Motorsport | BMW E30 M3 | C I | 
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Template:GBR | Template:FRA | 
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Template:FRA | Template:GBR | Template:BEL | 
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Template:AUS | N/A | 0 | N/A | 0 | ||||||||||||
| E | S | E | S | E | S | E | S | E | S | E | S | E | S | E | S | E | S | E | S | E | S | E | |||||||||
| FUJ | FUJ | WAT | WAT | LAG | LAG | BRH | BRH | PAU | PAU | BRN | BRN | MNZ | MNZ | CHA | CHA | BIR | BIR | SPA DNQ |
SPA DNQ |
NÜR | NÜR | BAT | |||||||||
| 1991 | Tauber Motorsport | BMW E30 M3 Evo | I | Template:AUS |
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WDC | Pts | Class | Pts | |||||||||||
| F | S | F | S | F | S | F | S | E | F | F | S | F | S | F | S | F | S | E | F | S | F | 1st | 192 | 1st | 429 | ||||||
| AUS 3 |
AUS 3 |
JPN 9 |
JPN 1 |
USA 2 |
USA 1 |
AFR 9 |
AFR 6 |
RAC Ret |
PAU 2 |
CZE 1 |
CZE 2 |
ITA 2 |
ITA 1 |
GBR 5 |
GBR 5 |
SWE Ret |
SWE 6 |
SPA Ret |
GER 8 |
GER 1 |
MAC 1 | ||||||||||
| 1992 | Vic Lee Motorsport | Mazda 323F | I | Template:AUS |
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26th* | 0* | 16th* | 15* | |||||||||||
| F | S | F | S | F | S | F | S | E | F | S | F | S | F | S | F | S | F | S | E | F | S | F | S | ||||||||
| AUS DNQ |
AUS DNQ |
JPN 11 |
JPN 9 |
USA 16 |
USA Ret |
AFR DNQ |
AFR DNQ |
RAC DNQ |
PAU Ret |
PAU 19 |
CZE DNQ |
CZE DNQ |
ITA | ITA | GBR | GBR | SWE | SWE | BEL | GER | GER | MAC | MAC | ||||||||
*Season still in progress