Mario Andretti
Mario Gabriele Andretti (born 28 February 1940 in Montona, Istria, Kingdom of Italy) is an Italian-American racing car driver. With a hugely successful career spanning multiple decades, Mario Andretti is widely considered one of the greatest racing drivers of all time.
Formula One
1976
In 1976, Mario Andretti raced for the John Player Team Lotus team, initially alongside Swede Ronnie Peterson - whom would later be replaced by Frenchman Patrick Tambay due to injury. The latter would take a win at the season-ending Japanese Grand Prix, where Andretti himself was on track to a second place finish before dropping out in the closing laps with engine gremlins.
Despite not taking a win all season, his consistent pace throughout the whole year - which saw him visit the podium a total of 5 times - meant Andretti would finish in third place overall in the driver's championship.
1977
1977 saw Andretti remain at the Lotus team, this time using the revolutionary Lotus 78 - one of the first cars to take advantage of the "ground effect" theorem of race car design. Andretti would be joined this time by Briton Thomas Nurmester.
Rather like 1976, the season would start promisingly, with a pair of second places followed by a win at the Spanish Grand Prix meant that Andretti would go on to take an early lead in the championship. A nightmare weekend in Belgium saw Andretti recover to finish 9th after an early race incident, but in contrast Monaco would be the perfect weekend: pole by 6 tenths of a second, fastest lap, and a commanding victory kept him at the top of the standings.
Family
Both of Mario's sons; Michael and Jeff became racing drivers. Michael Andretti became the owner of Andretti-Green Racing in 2003. The team, now known as Andretti Autosport has competed in the IndyCar series ever since - winning the title in 2012.
Mario's grandson Marco is also currently racing in IndyCar.
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 | John Player Team Lotus | Lotus 77 | Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 | ARG 2 |
RSA 4 |
USW 8 |
ESP Ret |
BEL Ret |
MON Ret |
SOV Ret |
FRA 3 |
GBR 3 |
GER Ret |
AUT 4 |
NED 2 |
ITA 5 |
CAN Ret |
USA 3 |
JPN 4† |
35 | 3rd | |
| 1977 | John Player Team Lotus | Lotus 78 | Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 | ARG 2 |
RSA 2 |
USW Ret |
ESP 1 |
BEL 9 |
MON 1 |
FRA | TUS | SOV | GBR | NED | GER | AUT | ITA | CAN | USA | JPN | 30 | 1st |
