Peterson, Ronnie

[TimD]

I just saw some wonderful old footage of Ronnie Peterson leading home the 1973 Italian Grand Prix, ahead of his team mate Emerson Fittipaldi.

Excellent, a Lotus 1-2, at first glance. But, the history books will show that Emerson needed the win for any hope of beating Jackie Stewart to the championship that year.

Which made me wonder, the one thing that everyone immediately recalls about the SuperSwede is his unfailing support of Mario Andretti in the 1978 season, never once usurping his number two status in the team.

Does anyone know if his employment depended on this? Were words said after the 1973 race?

And failing this, any great Ronnie memories would be good to hear. He was always a favourite, and yet he always seemed to be just a little bit in the shadows. Perhaps if he'd been driving a Ferrari rather than a Lotus... Or is that being too cynical?

[chunder]

From what I remember, Chapman signed Ronnie after the Swede had a miserable time at Tyrrell with the six-wheeler. Ronnie came with a bundle of cash from Polar caravans and the pace to worry anyone in the sport. Mario was not happy at all and threw all his toys out the pram, before realising that Ronnie was a gentleman and wouldn't pass if they were one two, like Scheckter and Villeneuve in 1979.
Ronnie won a couple of races in fine style but Mario was the number one in the team and Ronnie knew it. He was nearing the end of his career and no doubt happy to be driving by far the best car in the field.

[KC]

"I'm going to McLaren next year. It's not announced yet, but Mario knows. Some of these people who say I should forget our agreement now... I don't understand them. I had open eyes when I signed the contract, and I also gave my word. If I break it now, who will ever trust me again?"

These are the words of Ronnie Peterson at the end of his time partnering Andretti at Lotus. I think his words show the true measure of the man and his own sense of sportsmanship and what his word was worth.

[Murph]

Hi Tim D

Going into the 1973 Italian GP…. JYS had a huge lead over Emmo with 3 races (Monza, Mosport, and The Glen) remaining. JYS= 66 points
Cevert= 45 points
Emmo= 42 points
Ronnie= 34 points
So my “guess” is that with only 27 points to play with, Colin believed that JYS’s 3rd WDC was a done deal and that the Constructors Championship was what mattered. At Monza the top 6 qualifiers were… Pole) Ronnie, 2nd was Revson, 3rd was Hulme, 4th was Cevert, 5th was Pace, and 6th was JYS. During the race, JYS blew a tire and fell back to 19th place from where he fought his way back up the field to finish 4th and earned himself the WDC. If Emmo had come in first…then he would have been still alive (barely) as the point difference between the two would have been 18 points with 2 races to go.

About 1978…. DSJ in his collection JENKS A Passions for Motor Sport answers your question about Ronnie’s role (a definite #2) within Team Lotus in the 1978 season. The article is entitled… Team Spirit Team Lotus 1978.

A Ronnie story. This occurred at Mosport Park in 1976. One of the great things about Mosport Park hosting the Canadian GP was the lack of security in the Pit & Paddock area. This allowed low life like myself to sneak into the Pit area and “mingle” with the “press”. So here it is Friday morning in the Mosport Pits and I’m snapping “head shots” of the drivers, photographing the cars from every conceivable angle, eaves dropping on conversations throughout the pit area… let’s just say I am in heaven! The cars start lining up to head out of the pits for the opening practice session. I notice that Ronnie is at the head of the line in his 761 March (which he had won the last race, the Italian GP, with). Since the track won’t open for about 5 minutes I decide to take advantage of the situation and proceed to lay in front of Ronnie’s car taking a few “artistic shots” of his March. Ronnie motions to me to come over to him. What a THRILL, I’m thinking. Ronnie wants to talk to moi! I get up and “scamper” over towards him but he stops me in “mid-scamper” and motions me to come over to the other side of the cockpit. YES SIR Mr. Peterson! I rush over to the other side. Ronnie motions me to move a little closer to him but to also move a little to my right. hmmmm I'm wondering what does he want? He finally “arranges” me to his satisfaction… then it finally dawns on me………That big shadow that is keeping the sun off the Super Swedes helmet (and eyes) as he awaits for the track to be opened for morning practice …That Shadow is ME….. yes, I had found my niche in life…..I was Ronnie’s “Human Umbrella”…. I started to laugh and I believe to this day that he was doing the same. The course was then opened for “business” and he was gone….. but that memory still brings a smile to this “old farts” face
Yes… those were the “good old days”.

And…..Yes, Tim…… you are being a bit cynical……hehehe…
As I had put on my old f1 photo web site… “All you have to know about Ronnie was that he was Gilles hero”

Take care, all

Murph

[Murph]

I screwed up. Emmo Q-fied 4th for the 1973 Italian GP..... Cevert had Q-fied 7th. opps!!!!

Murph

[EERO]

My dim memory recalls that despite the fact that Fittipaldi was the reigning WDC, he and Peterson were joint No. 1's.

Ronnie outqualified Ftiipaldi through most of the season, but suffered from poor reliability. Emmo began the season with two wins and quickly picked up another in Spain. Once Peterson won in France at mid-season, he was clearly the team leader and with Stewart's withdrawl from the USGP following Cevert's death in qualifying, was the class of the field. (Though a certain cheeky Mr. J Hunt in a Privateer March made him work for it.)

[aiwa]

I only saw Ronnie Peterson drive once, I hope I am correct, he drove a Jaegermeister sponsored orange BMW 520 in the 1975 or 1976 Six Hour Race at Silverstone. Every lap he he dropped the rear left wheel into the dirt on the exit of the Woodcote corner (No chicane?? - or am I beginning to get too romantic). The speed was the same every time - so close every lap to disaster but... Brilliant. He finished I believe behind a host of works Porsches. Sharing the car with H.J. Stuck.

I am sure someone out there can correct my distorted memory. Has anyone a photograph?

As an aside - I was thirteen years old and we had sneaked across into the stands with the crowds after the pit lane walk about and had to keep moving seats as some ticket holding corporate bigwig appeared.

[Davhut]

...Mario was not happy at all and threw all his toys out the pram...

This is a little over the top, Chunder, and according to friends who were mechanics with Lotus at the time, also untrue. Mario is a gentleman, one who honors his word. If it weren't for his racer's talent, grit and developmental skills with Lotus when they were in the woods with the 76 & 77, not to mention his successes in the 78 (where a few more gallons of fuel would have seen him World Champion as well), the team, and Peterson, would have been nowhere.

[Steve Wilkinson]

Originally Posted by TimD

I just saw some wonderful old footage of Ronnie Peterson leading home the 1973 Italian Grand Prix, ahead of his team mate Emerson Fittipaldi.

Excellent, a Lotus 1-2, at first glance. But, the history books will show that Emerson needed the win for any hope of beating Jackie Stewart to the championship that year.

Which made me wonder, the one thing that everyone immediately recalls about the SuperSwede is his unfailing support of Mario Andretti in the 1978 season, never once usurping his number two status in the team.

Does anyone know if his employment depended on this? Were words said after the 1973 race?

I don't suppose Colin Chapman was that worried as Fittipaldi was on his way to McLaren so would have taken the coveted Number One with him - Chapman was more concerned at winning the constructor's prize.

[Davhut]

From what I understand, Emerson had not finalized a deal with McLaren until after the chaos of Monza.

[Steve Wilkinson]

Above: Ronnie in the Tecno at Monaco 1968


Above: Ronnie in the March 721G at Brands 1972

[boesel]

Here an article about Ronnie http://www.connectingrod.it/Glories/...erson_eng.html