michael andretti

I was very active in SCCA from 65 thru 75. I was active in cars but it also ceased in 76. It had consumed my life, so I had to quit.

a long time later I started easing back into F1 and my MG which had been sitting ignored.

anyway, Michale Andretti. I had seen him race in FOrmula Atlantic before and had heard he;'d made it to F1 but had failed.

curious tonight, I looked and found this
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http://www.f1rejects.com/centrale/andretti/index.html

interesting. spounds like he was judged unfairly, but overall maybe iot was for the better?

The original owner/builder of my car (with photo) is on that site too. His F1 career was also poor, but it was at a time when a privateer entry paid his own way, no big sponsors, no TV payouts for just showing up. He is still a Canadian racing icon and presents the trophy to the fastest MG at the Mosport festival.
http://www.f1rejects.com/drivers/pease/biography.html

Mike Adams

I saw the F1 races Michael was in and those guys are just too agressive for his driving style. He drove clean races and they simply pushed him around on the tracks. A different story with his dad Mario, he pulled off some moves that astounded everybody. I remember in particular a move to the inside of a right hand up hill S curve and a pass on the outside at the top, and he won that race. The lap before he had gone outside at the bottom and when he switched sides it caught the guy completely off guard and the pass was made. The black and gold leaf John Player Special he drove was, in my opinion, the best looking rear engine GP car ever built.

JD tjhat is called sucker the opposition. Make him think you are going try a passing move a given side and spot and then do the opposite. Unless the other driver is aware it will work most times. You'll see it used often in Aussie Super V8 racing.

Mario learned on dirt tracks where you HAD to use the whole thing and the line was where you ended up going not some predefined strip of rubber laid down on the macadam.<G>

Michael learned in FB/Atlantics, where you had to be a bit smoother.

Mario was the first guy I can recall not lifting for the old Laguna turn 2 and in the process set (IIRC) the first sub 1 minute lap there back in the L&M F5000 series driving a Vel's Parnelli entry.

I followed most of Mario's racing career and the F1 boys didn't impress him enough to gain any undue respect or intimidate him in any way. They flat bullied Michael off the tracks.

Because of the way Michael got treated in F1, it will be may moons before you ever get a good American driver at the top of game every try F1 again, from here it looks like a great way to end a career. No if you're an American your end of the journey to the top is Nascar, sad, but true.