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ANDRETTI, MARIO
Born 2/28/1940, Montona Italy (USA citizen)
Starts: 128
Points: 180
Wins: 12
Poles: 18
Fastest Laps: 10
(c) 'Who is Who' by Steve Small, 2000
By the time Mario Andretti debuted in F-1, in 1968, he was already an accomplished racer, having won the USAC title twice. He was hired to drive for Lotus, for the Italian and USA Grand Prix. In the first race , he qualified 11th and did not start, flying back to the USA to fulfill USAC commitments. In his second race, Andretti qualified on the pole at Watkins Glen but retired: the message was given, watch for Mario. In his first few years of F-1, Mario was seen shuttling back and forth to the USA, where he raced in USAC, stock cars, sports cars and CAN AM. It was apparent that his attempt at F-1 was half hearted, so results were scant. He raced for Lotus 3 other times in 1969, twice driving the beastly 4 wheel drive contraption. For 1970, a March was purchased for him with sponsorship from STP, but a third place was the best he could do with that car. For 1971 Mario was hired by Ferrari as a 3rd driver, and there was much expectation about his performance, after all Ferrari was THE team to beat in late 1970. He met all expectations winning his first two races for the Prancing Horse, the South African GP and the non championship Questor GP in the USA. However, this was pretty much it; except for a 4th place in Germany, Mario’s season was not that great; he ended up practicing for the US GP, but decided to race in USAC instead! He continued in the F-1 Ferrari team for 1972, but did only 5 races. The best result he got was 4th in South Africa, so he was not called back for 1973, as Ferrari had given up on racing three cars, at any rate. Mario did not race in F-1 at all in 1973, but was involved in the Parnelli project for 1974. This seemed impressive as Mario managed to qualify 3rd for the US GP, although in the race he was disqualified due to a push start. He came back with Parnelli for 1975, and actually managed to lead a race, the disastrous half GP of Spain. The Parnelli proved to be mostly a midfield runner, and one 4th and one 5th places were all the Americans got for their trouble. For 1976 Andretti raced for Lotus in Brazil, which seemed to be a one-off race. The Lotus 77 did not appear a very good mount, so Andretti drove a couple of other races for Parnelli, earning 6th in South Africa, before the Americans packed their bag and went home for good. So Andretti was permanently hired by Lotus. It was obvious that Mario changed his mindset about F-1, and decided to concentrate on this category: everything else would be secondary. The level of commitment showed, and the Lotus improved little by little, starting on the front row in Sweden, and beginning to earn points regularly after the French GP. The year culminated with pole position and victory in Japan, and promise of more for 1977. And indeed, for 1977 Chapman had something down his sleeve, another revolutionary idea. With the qualified help of Mario, the Lotus 78 became the machine to beat, introducing the concept of wing car that was polished with the model 79 in the next year. Mario scored many poles in 1977, and managed to win four races, including two home races, the US GP West and the Italian GP! He did not win the championship but he was clearly the driver to beat. And 1978 was Mario’s year. A win from pole in Argentina was followed by five other wins during the course of the year, many poles and fastest laps. Ten years after debuting in F-1 Mario Andretti managed to win the championship! Sadly, though, he lost team mate Peterson, killed in an accident in Italy. Mario continued to drive for Lotus, but things were different in F-1 by then. Whereas cars such as the Lotus 72 and McLaren M23 could be raced competitively for many years in the early 70’s, by 1979 a single year made a world of difference. The 79 was no longer competitive, the poles, fastest laps and wins were gone, and the best Mario could do was 3rd in Spain. He lingered on at Lotus for 1981. The magic was gone. Chapman tried to push another novel idea, a twin chassied F-1 car, but was met with great opposition and the Lotus 81 was not fast. Mario managed to score a single point in the last race of the year, so he did not go score less. For 1981 Mario was hired by Alfa Romeo, much in need of a star driver who knew how to set up cars. However, the Marlboro Alfa Romeo was heavy, offsetting any power advantage a 12 cylinder engine might bring, so it was much of the same story for the year: the 4th place in Long Beach were the only points scored by Andretti in his Alfa year. By the end of the year Mario decided to go back racing in the USA, where the Indy car series was being revitalized, being open to offers from good teams for individual races. And two such offers came in 1982. Williams needed a driver for the Long Beach GP, but the outing was not successful: retirement with 14th place on the grid. For Italy, though, Mario was called back by Ferrari to race what was generally agreed to be the fastest (and unluckiest) car of the season. And Mario almost killed the Italian fans, when he scored pole position. He did not win (ended up 3rd) but this performance endeared him forever with Italian fans. Mario’s final GP was in the Caesar’s Palace parking lot, where the rear suspension failed. From then on, Mario would concentrated on Indy cars.
MARIO'S CAREER OUR OF F-1
MARIO ANDRETTI
Few “lives outside formula 1” are as interesting and successful as Mario Andretti’s. Not only was Mario’s career very long, he also had the opportunity of driving a vast array of cars, from U.S. sprint cars, midgets and stockcars, to Ferrari and Alfa Romeo sports cars, Formula 1, Indy racers and NASCAR. His competitors ranged from A.J. Foyt, to Richard Petty, Jackie Stewart, Niki Lauda, to son Michael Andretti. His early racing was done in stockcars, around the Nazareth, Pennsylvania area, and eventually, also began driving midgets, mostly in the Northeastern part of the USA. His first season on the national scene was 1963, when he raced a Kurtis-Offy in the ARDC circuit winning 4 races. In that same year, he drove the midget in a road race in Lime Rock, Connecticut. By 1964, Mario had entered the USAC Champ Car ranks, driving a Kuzma Offy, as well as a Dean Blum Roadster. He did not win any races in the Champ Car trail that year, but did win a Sprint car feature in Salem, on October, which turned out to be his first USAC victory. He also raced a Midget occasionally. In 1965, Mario won the first of his several Champ Car titles, winning a single Champ Car race in Indianapolis Raceway Park. In those years, the Champ Car trail included races in road courses, ovals and dirt tracks, and occasionally, a hill climb. His mount in that first victory was a Brawner/Hawk, which was a “modern Indy car” in addition to the Dean Blum Roadster, an old timer, special for dirt tracks. He also raced in Sprint Cars, in the USAC Stock Car Championship, and had his first race in a Ferrari, in the Bridgehampton USRRC race, ending in a DNF. He was also invited to race in the LA Times GP, in a Lola T70, a precursor of the Can Am series. Mario had a very busy 1966 season, winning the USAC title again, only this time, winning a grand total of 8 races. He continued to race the Brawner Hawk, and a Kuzma Offy in the dirt races, also having a drive in a Vollstedt Offy, at Langhorne. Mario won on both. He also drove a variety of cars during the year. A Midget, the Meskowski Wynn Sprint car, a NART Ferrari 365P2, at Sebring and Daytona, a Ford Fairlane, a Dodge Charger and a Chevelle driven in NASCAR races (including a debut in the Daytona 500 in the latter), a Ford KM II driven at Le Mans with Lucien Bianchi (also a debut in that race), and lastly, a Lola T70 used in the initial Can Am. His 1967 was equally busy, including a diet of Champ Car, Sprint Cars, Stock Cars, Sports Cars and CAN AM. He was runner up in Champ Cars, but had more victories (8) than champion A.J. Foyt. He continued to use the Brawner Hawk and the Kuzma Offy in Champ Cars, continuing to win on Ovals, Dirt and Road Courses. He raced a Watson Ford Sprint Car, as well as a car owned by Vel Miletich, but his Stock Car racing was limited to Ford’s this time around: he raced both in NASCAR and the USAC championship, handsomely winning the Daytona 500. He also drove a Ford Sports car: the GT40 at Daytona, Sebring and Le Mans, winning at Sebring with McLaren. He drove a Lotus 24 Chevrolet in the Pikes Peak Hillclimb, which was included in the Champ Car trail that year, and lastly, drove Paul Newman’s Honker II Ford in the CAN AM, by far his most unsuccessful participation. Mario continued his winning ways in 1968, and was again runner up in Champ cars, winning a total of 4 races. He used both the Brawner Hawk on asphalt, and the Kuzma Offy and Watson on dirt races. He raced an Autodelta Alfa Romeo P33 at Daytona, codriving with Lucien Bianchi (6th), but his single NASCAR event that year was the Daytona 500, where he raced a Mercury. He also raced a Mercury in USAC Stock car events, and used two different cars in the CAM AM: a Lola T70 Ford and a Lola T160 Ford: this continued to be the most difficult nut to crack. Mario was USAC champion again, in 1969, with 9 wins to Al Unser’s 5, and also won his single Indy 500 victory. The days of dirt races in the Champ Car trail would soon be over, but Mario continued to use the Kuzma-Offy in those races. The Hawk III was the weapon of choice on asphalt and road courses. Changing to a McLaren M6B Ford in the CAN AM did not change his luck by much, although he did finish a few races in the 3/4th place region. He also raced a Ford in the NASCAR Riverside round, was 2nd in Sebring, sharing a Ferrari 312P with Chris Amon, raced the same car in Monza and did a couple of Midget races. It is noteworthy that he won the Pikes Peak hillclimb that year, with a Special King. By 1970, Mario had reduced his schedule somewhat, but there was still a fair amount of diversity. He raced a McNamara, a Hawk Ford and a King, in the Champ Trail, this time winning a single race, in Continental Divide. He also drove a Ferrari 512 in Daytona, Sebring and Watkins Glen, winning Sebring with Vacarella and Giunti. He also used the 512 in the Watkins Glen CAN AM round, finishing 5th. Andretti’s 1971 season was similar to 1970, however, his winning was limited to F-1 this time. The nice looking McNamara proved a bit inconsistent in the Champ Car trail, and for the first time since 1964 he did not win a single race in the Championship. He continued to race for Ferrari in Sports cars, the mount now being a Ferrari 312PB, but results were few in 1971. However, in 1972 he was very successful in the Makes Championship, sharing 4 four wins with Jacky Ickx, including all three American rounds, Daytona, Sebring and Watkins Glen. His Champ Car mount was a Parnelli, which again left Mario winless, and 11th in points. His best result with this car in 1972 was a second in the debut, at Phoenix. Mario left the F-1 world in 1973, concentrating in his US racing, but, although he bettered his placing in the championship, to 5th, in terms of wins the improvement was marginally better, a single one in Trenton. He continued to race the Parnelli in Champ Cars, and did a couple of dirt races as well, driving a King Ford, winning both times out. He also took part in the last two Can-Am races of the season, driving a McLaren Chevy Turbo, finishing 17th in Laguna Seca and DNS in Riverside. Mario’s 1974 looked more like his early career. He continued to drive Parnellis in the early Champ Car season, changed to an Eagle midseason, but did not win any races. He did, however, make a successful bid to the U.S. F-5000 crown, winning 3 races in a Lola, and finishing runner up to Brian Redman. He also took part in two Makes races with Alfa Romeo, one of them a very popular victory in the Monza 1000 with Arturo Merzario. The other start, at Watkins Glen, resulted in disqualification. Mario also did a few dirt races, in the USAC Silver Crown championship, winning three and the championship. In 1975, Mario resumed his USA/Europe shuttle, doing F-1, F-5000, Champ Cars, IROC and one Makes event. He was most successful in F-5000, again runner up to Redman, this time winning 4 times. In Champ Cars, Mario’s Eagle did not perform properly, and he led a single race, in the Phoenix finale. His introduction to IROC resulted in a 3rd and 4th places, in Camaros, and he managed a 2nd place with Merzario in the 6 Hours of Watkins Glen, in a WKRT enterered Alfa TT33. In 1976, Mario became more of a F-1 driver, devoting more time to that aspect of his career, but found time to start in four Champ Car races, driving a Penske McLaren. His best result was a 3rd, but at least he led three races. Outside of that, he finished third in an IROC race at Daytona. 1977 was much of the same, a more European Mario, who started seven Indy Car races, again with the Penske McLaren. He was actually more successful in F-1 than in the USA, where his best IROC result was 2nd at Riverside. 1978 was, of course, Mario’s F-1 championship year, but the continued with a busy schedule, which included 8 Champ Car Starts. He managed a win in an Indy car Penske, in Trenton, as well as victory in two IROC rounds, Daytona early in the year, and Riverside in October. He remained more “European” than American in 1979, racing in two Procar BMW events, as well as in a Gunnar Nilsson Memorial race in Donington. He started a single CART race, finishing 3rd in a Penske in the California 500, and won another IROC race in Riverside. Mario’s 1980 schedule was relatively short, but included a start in Indianapolis (20th), and three successful CART appearances, which netted a win and a second place aboard a Penske. He took part in single rounds of the IROC and Procar BMW championships, and also started the Road America Can Am race, starting 3rd but finishing 25th. 1981 was Mario’s last “European” year, and although he did not win any races in the US, he was much more successful with the Indy Wildcat, than with the F-1 Alfa Romeo. He earned a 2nd at Indianapolis, although for a time he was declared the winner, in addition to 2nds in Atlanta and Michigan, leading 5 races. In 1982, Mario became a full time CART driver, finishing 3rd in the championship, without wins. He continued to race the Wildcat, finishing 2nd four times, and 3rd 3 times. He also made one of his few appearances at Le Mans, or at least intended to do so. His mount, a Mirage M12 Cosworth, was disqualified, and Mario had to postpone his dream of racing and winning Le Mans with son Michael. Mario began his long and successful association with Newman Haas in 1983, developing the Lola Indy car that would bring him back to his winning ways. This first year he earned two wins, at Road America and Las Vegas, but more tellingly, led 9 races. He finally started Le Mans with son Michael, plus Phillipe Alliot, finishing 3rd in a Kremer Porsche 956. 1984 was Mario’s final Champ Car title, a long drought of 15 years! He won 6 races, led most races and was on pole several times. He qualified first for the Daytona 24 Hours, where he drove with Michael, but DNFd. Andretti added another 3 victories to his sizable tally, in 1985, and continued to race a Lola Cosworth. He had three poles as well and led most races. He also finished 3rd in an IROC race in Mid-Ohio. He finished 5th again in CART points, in 1986, with two wins, and three poles. He continued to be very much in contention, in all races, leading a total of four. He led all 95 laps at Long Beach, in 1987, and added another win from the flag in Road America. His car was now equipped with a Chevrolet badged, Ilmor motor, that was not very reliable. He took part in a couple of IROC races without much success. In 1988, Mario took part in the Le Mans race with son Michael and nephew John. They started third, and finished sixth in a works Porsche 962C. He managed another 2 wins, and 5th place in the championship, and qualified in the top four a dozen times. However, competition in the CART series was becoming fiercer, which became all the more evident in 1989, when Mario posted no wins. When he led, he mostly led a few laps, and most of the time he qualified worse than 4th. He tried to win Daytona with Michael, once more, but all they managed was a 49th place, in actuality a DNF due to brake failure. Mario continued to be a popular figure in the CART paddocks in the early 90’s, and would still lead races on occasion. He did finish 2nd a couple of times during the season, but more important, his teammate was now son Michael, who was very successful. Pretty much the same story in 1991. 7th place in the championship, no wins, no poles, but son Michael becoming a solid winner. Mario led 6 races, though, and tried to win Daytona again, with sons Mario and Jeff. This time, they finished 5th, in a Dauer Porsche 962C. Mario continued to back up his son Michael’s efforts in 1992, finishing 6th in the championship, but starting from pole in Michigan. His best result was second in the season finale, in Laguna Seca. By 1993, the end seemed to be nearer. Among other things, Mario had a new teammate at Newman Haas, Nigel Mansell, a though nut to crack, to say the least. He did not seem to get along with the Nige, who won the championship. Mario finished 6th again, only this time managed to win a race, at Phoenix, which turned out to be his last Indy Car success. He tried to win the Daytona 24 Hours, codriving a Jaguar XJR-12D with John Nielsen and David Brabham. An oil leak resulted in another frustrating DNF. For 1994, Mario announced he would be retiring from Indy car competition, with the emotional “Arrivederci, Mario”, along the lines of Richard Petty’s recent retirement tour. He finished 14th in the championship, scoring only 45 points, and failing to lead a single lap. His best start was 4th in Phoenix, and best race result also a 4th, at Toronto. The dream of winning Le Mans continued, and Mario made several additional excursions to Le Mans. In 1995, he came mighty close to winning the race, sharing a Courage C34 Porsche with perennial runner-up Bob Wollek and Frenchman Eric Helary. An incident with a backmarker ruined Mario’s chances in the race, which ended up being won by a McLaren GT car. This second place turned out to the best Mario could do at Le Mans. He returned with another strong pair of codrivers, in 1996, Jan Lammers, a former winner, and Derek Warwick. Unfortunately, the outing resulted in a 13th place. Mario’s 1997 mount was again a Courage C36, shared with son Michael and Olivier Grouillard. They started 13th, but retired. One of few drivers who can claim to have raced in five different decades, Mario would start the 2000 edition of Le Mans, sharing a Panoz Roadster with David Brabham and Jan Magnussen. They started fourth, but unfortunately, luck was not on their side, and they finished 15th, with 315 laps, a result that would have netted Mario a sure victory in 1995! Mario would start a couple of Porsche Super Cup races, finishing 17th and 18th, bringing to a close a very illustrious career indeed. He could also be seen occasionally testing a race car, here and there. Try to beat this for variety and success. I can only think of Stirling Moss, whose career was relatively so short, though...