My Journey to Formula One

Today, I believe, drivers are arriving in Formula One far too early in their racing career. The top echelon of our sport is something they should aspire to, not arrive at due to the amount of money they can give a Formula One team, or by spending one year in one formula and moving to the next the following year, successful or not. I had a plan to my racing career. I wanted to be successful at a lower formula—for me that was Formula Renault. If I was successful I could move to Formula Three, from there to Formula Two, and so on, until I eventually got to Formula One. If I found that a particular formula was too difficult for me then I would stay until I was more confident and successful. I wanted to move gradually, step by step, rather than the giant leaps they seem to take today.

I consider myself very lucky to have started as a mechanic for my great friend Jean-Pierre Jabouille. He was and remains one of my best and closest friends. We met at school, we were about 14 years old, and our lives have been intertwined, in one way or another, from then on. He was racing and I had nothing to do, my studying was not too good. I wanted to do something to help him. I did not know much about cars or mechanics but Jean-Pierre taught me very good about how to look after a racing car. The first car we had was a Renault 8 Gordini, then a Brabham, followed by a Matra. The Gordini we used to hillclimb. I followed him for about a year and thought that motor racing was a really good life. I also thought that perhaps, one day, I would like to try racing too. I had a few lessons at the famous Winfield Racing School.

I progressed quite quickly, winning in Formula Renault and along the way winning at Pau and Monte Carlo— winning at Monaco is always good for your credibility. I did not have too much money, but hoped my results and success would speak for me and help me progress. I won the French Formula Three and nearly won the British Formula Three in the same season. The last race of the British Formula Three season it was very wet and I chose the wrong tires. It was too bad and I lost out.

In 1974, I competed in Formula Two and I won six races—the pupil had beaten the master, my good friend Jean-Pierre (Jabouille) was the runner-up. After my first Formula Two win at the Salzburgring, Austria, Frank Williams called me. Incidentally, Jabouille was leading that race, he had a problem and I took the win. Frank asked if I wanted to race in Formula One for him. I wasn’t too bothered as I wanted to concentrate on my Formula Two season. As I had previously said, I had a plan for my career; to go to Formula One too quick would be a mistake. I remember it was in May when he called. I discussed the offer with my team boss, Tico Martini. He said I could take the offer if I wanted to. I rang Frank and said that I would have a test, he suggested Goodwood.

I wasn’t too keen, Goodwood had a reputation for being a very dangerous track; this would be my first Formula One drive, so not the best of places. I told Frank he would have to bring along Merzario, who was racing for him at the time, he would set a time and I would see if I could get close to his time. If I could beat him we would take it further, if not then I would simply walk away. At Goodwood, Merzario set a time, I’m not sure what it was now. I went out and took it very slow and careful to start. I came in for new tires and went out again and set a time within two-tenths of Merzario. I agreed to race for Frank at the German Grand Prix at Nürburgring. I was very concerned.To illustrate, after the first practice I was with my wife and friends at a hotel near to the circuit. We had soup for supper, I tried to eat it but as I put the spoon to my mouth I couldn’t get it in as my teeth were gripped together. It was all due to the immense concentration I had put in to complete practice. I had raced at the Nürburgring before in Formula Three, but my mechanics had made a mistake with the gear ratios and I had to make a pit stop to repair them. I eventually finished 2nd in that race—the leader was too far in front for me to catch. However, driving a Formula One car was something else. Henri Pescarolo had taken me around the circuit and explained how it should be driven—at 14 miles a lap it was very difficult to learn. I couldn’t really remember where it was flat out and where it was to slow down. I clenched my teeth together and really tried the best I could. Initially, I was fast in the places I should have been slow and vice versa. Such was the concentration I couldn’t unclench my teeth. Eventually, I was able to put Henri’s experience into practice and it became one of my most favorite tracks.

I had a busy year in 1975, racing in Formula One, Formula Two and racing the Alfa Romeo Tipo 33. I must have raced in something or other every weekend. Racing that Alfa Romeo wasn’t easy—it was a terrible car to drive. It was in 1975, too, that Guy Ligier called me to ask if I would have a test and consider joining his new Formula One team for 1976. I was really fit and ready. I think that is where I had the upper hand over other drivers such as Beltoise and Pescarolo. I don’t like to say this, but to find someone to beat me at that time would have been very difficult. In hindsight, I really didn’t think that I was the right man for the job. With Pescarolo, or Beltoise, Ligier would have had a more experienced driver to enter Formula One, someone used to the system and the relationship of a driver within a Formula One team. The car was very well engineered and designed. Racing in lower formulae, I had been used to setting up my own car and running the team. I would buy the engines, the tires, the fuel, the food for the weekend, the paper we wrote things down on, everything I would do. Formula One was a completely new experience and very frustrating for me. All they wanted me to do was to drive—nothing else. The engineers were Gerard Ducarouge, Michelle Beaujon and, of course, Guy. We had a team of 15, or 20, to look after one car—something quite foreign to me. I would go out in the car and come in to the pits. I would say I think this needs changing like this or like that. They would say, no! It will be this way or that. I would ask for my brakes to be set, or for the gear ratios to be a certain way. They would disagree and put me in my place by saying they were the engineers and I was just the driver. Guy was very nice to me; there was no ill feeling, just a very different way of running a team.

In 1977 I won my first Grand Prix, the Swedish Grand Prix. It was so strange; I took the car out for practice. It was really shit, very difficult to drive. I left the circuit and went fishing! It wasn’t my job to do anything with the car, the engineers had all the answers. I went back to my hotel later that evening and had some food and a drink with my wife. The next morning I went to the circuit for the morning warm-up, I went out and thought to myself this cannot be right the car—it’s great and very quick. When I came in I asked the mechanics what they had done. They told me nothing much, just changed the tires. I could not believe the difference. It was just fantastic. I won the race, yes. I was quicker than Mario (Andretti), he was in 1st place and I was catching him in 2nd place. He had to pit for a small engine problem. I took the lead and was the victor. It was a good win for the team, good for the French people, and good for our sponsors, but not for me. I liked to win when the cars are equal—it gives me a certain satisfaction knowing I have beaten the best on the day.