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Bertrand Gachot

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Bertrand Gachot
Born (1962-12-23) 23 December 1962 (age 61)
Luxembourg, Luxembourg
Formula One World Championship career
NationalityBelgium Belgian (19891991)
France French (1992, 19941995)
Active years19891992, 19941995
TeamsOnyx, Rial, Coloni, Jordan, Lola, Larrousse, Pacific
Entries84 (47 starts)
Championships0
Wins0
Podiums0
Career points5
Pole positions0
Fastest laps1
First entry1989 Brazilian Grand Prix
Last entry1995 Australian Grand Prix

Bertrand Jean Gachot (French pronunciation: [bɛʁ.tʁɑ̃ ʒɑ̃ ɡa.ʃo]; born 23 December 1962)[1] is a Belgian-French former racing driver. Gachot enjoyed some success in the junior formulae, winning titles in Formula Ford before progressing through Formula 3 and Formula 3000, reaching Formula One in 1989. After winning the 1991 24 Hours of Le Mans, Gachot was sentenced to 18 months in prison for an aggravated assault that had occurred the previous December. He was released after two months on appeal, but his enforced absence enabled Michael Schumacher to make his Grand Prix debut.

Career

[edit]

Gachot was born in Luxembourg on 23 December 1962, the son of a French European Commission official and a German mother. He began karting at the age of 15. In 1983 he attended the Winfield School, a racing driving school based at the Paul Ricard circuit where Gachot competed with fellow future F1 drivers Damon Hill, Jean Alesi, and Eric Bernard for the Volant Elf; a prize of a season in Formula Renault backed by Elf. Although Bernard won the lucrative prize, Gachot subsequently dropped out of university to focus on his racing career. In 1984 he competed in Formula Ford 1600, and finished third at the Formula Ford Festival, and then won the European series in 1985 driving for Pacific Racing. In 1986 he moved up to Formula Ford 2000 and had a fierce rivalry with Mark Blundell, with Gachot winning the British series and Blundell winning the European series.

Gachot joined the British Formula Three series in 1987, finishing second in the championship for the West Surrey Racing team behind Johnny Herbert. He switched to the Formula 3000 series in 1988, and met with some success, taking pole position at the Silverstone round, and finishing second to Roberto Moreno who went on to win the championship; Gachot finishing fifth in the final standings.

Formula One

[edit]
Gachot driving for Onyx at the 1989 Belgian Grand Prix.

By this stage Gachot was considered one of the sport's most promising young drivers. He was signed by the newly formed Onyx team, having played a role in attracting the team's Moneytron sponsorship from businessman Jean-Pierre Van Rossem, and was partnered with the experienced Stefan Johansson. The team was well funded, but late in getting its car prepared. As a new entrant it was obliged to pre-qualify, and it was not until the French Grand Prix that Gachot made it onto the grid. He started 11th (two places ahead of Johansson) and ran in the points until battery problems dropped him to an eventual 13th and last. Despite qualifying for four of the next five events, he was then fired by van Rossem after complaining about his lack of testing time; his private grievances were publicly aired in an Onyx press release, and he was replaced with JJ Lehto. In early October he tested with Arrows at Silverstone, as he was being considered for a drive in 1990 which did not materialize. Gachot then found employment with the struggling Rial team for the final two races of the season, failing to qualify its ageing chassis for either race. The team folded over the winter.

1990 was initially more promising, as he switched to the Coloni team. The small Italian outfit had signed an exclusive deal with Subaru to use its new Carlo Chiti-designed and Motori Moderni-built 1235 flat-12 engine, and Gachot was selected to drive the sole entry. However, the engine was overweight and underpowered, resulting in a poorly-handling car that rarely ran for more than a few laps; he appeared to have little prospect of getting out of pre-qualifying. At the season opener in Phoenix, his gear selector rod broke on his first flying lap and he was unable to set a representative time.[2] Subaru withdrew entirely after the British Grand Prix. After that the car ran with a Cosworth DFR engine, and performances improved; the withdrawal of Onyx ironically promoted Gachot to the main qualifying sessions, but the car still was not quick enough and he failed to make the grid all season.

Gachot giving the Jordan team its F1 début at the 1991 United States Grand Prix

Despite this, Gachot was still highly regarded, both as a driver and a marketeer,[3] and was signed to lead the new Jordan Grand Prix team, sponsored by 7-Up and using Ford HB engines. The Gary Anderson-designed 191 was competitive, and after some initial reliability problems became a regular points-scorer; Gachot finished 5th in Canada and 6th twice. The season started off well as he gathered considerable acclaim for his Grand Prix performances, and also won the 1991 24 Hours of Le Mans driving a Mazda 787B. He then set the fastest lap at the Hungarian Grand Prix after a late tyre change but his then fortunes took a dramatic turn.

1991 prison sentence

[edit]

On 10 December 1990[4] Gachot was due to meet with Jordan and representatives of 7-Up but, on the way and running late, he became involved in a road rage incident with a taxi driver at Hyde Park Corner in London. His car collided with the back of the taxi, but caused no damage to either car.[4] Later, Gachot said the taxi driver pulled him by the tie and raised his fist, at which point Gachot sprayed the taxi driver with CS gas to defend himself.[5] Gachot hid the CS gas canister in a toilet cistern in a nearby building,[6] and was arrested and charged with actual bodily harm (ABH) and possession of a prohibited weapon.

Gachot's trial at Southwark Crown Court was scheduled the week before the 1991 Belgian Grand Prix, a circuit where he expected the Jordan to "fly".[7] Gachot had claimed self-defence, and expected a fine or suspended sentence; he was due to test at Monza after the trial.[3] Instead he was sentenced to 18 months in HMP Brixton and, later, HMP Northeye in Bexhill-on-Sea after an unsuccessful appeal.[8]

The situation prompted a campaign of support organised by Belgian racing driver Pascal Witmeur. This campaign involved flags, T-shirts worn by members of the public and racing drivers, graffiti in several locations of the Spa-Francorchamps track during the 1991 Belgian Grand Prix, and prominent sponsorship on Witmeur's Formula 3000 car. Team owner Eddie Jordan replaced him with Michael Schumacher, whose performance at Spa led to a drive with Benetton. Gachot subsequently said that prison was "a fantastic human experience" and he had about 10,000 letters of support.[9][7]

Return to F1

[edit]

After two months in prison Gachot's sentence was reduced by the Court of Appeal and he was released. Having missed four Grands Prix, he returned to the F1 paddock at Suzuka to try and retake his Jordan seat from Alessandro Zanardi. The team refused, though Gachot found employment with Larrousse, replacing the injured Éric Bernard for the Australian Grand Prix. He failed to qualify the unfamiliar car, but impressed the team enough to be offered the seat for the following season.

The team ran a Robin Herd-designed Venturi chassis with V12 Lamborghini engines, but suffered reliability and financial problems throughout the season. Gachot and teammate Ukyo Katayama only managed 6 classified finishes between them from 31 starts, colliding with each other twice. Gachot scored the team's only point of the year with 6th place at Monaco. He also finished 4th for Mazda at Le Mans.

1993 saw him out of Formula 1. He raced for Dick Simon Racing in CART, placing 12th at the Molson Indy Toronto in a one-off drive, and raced in Japanese touring car series for Honda while helping Keith Wiggins' Pacific team prepare to enter Formula One the following season. After becoming a shareholder in the team, Gachot was signed to drive as number 1 alongside pay driver Paul Belmondo for the 1994 season. The PR01 was initially designed as the car for Reynard's proposed entry into the series, used 1992-spec Ilmor V10 engines and was not competitive. After Gachot outqualified Roland Ratzenberger to give the team its debut at the opening round, the Pacifics never again beat fellow newcomers Simtek to the grid; although a series of accidents in the sport led to several reduced entries and Gachot starting a further four races, he failed to finish any. While he had the upper hand over Belmondo after the Canadian Grand Prix, he did not make the grid again that season.

Gachot driving for Pacific at the 1995 British Grand Prix

Gachot stayed with Pacific for 1995, with the new PR02 chassis, Cosworth ED engines and an influx of experienced personnel after a merger with the remains of Team Lotus. There were only 26 entrants; hence, he was a guaranteed starter, and the reliable package meant the car could at least finish races, though Gachot and teammate Andrea Montermini were largely left battling at the back of the grid. The team's finances were tight, and Gachot stood down mid-season so that pay drivers Giovanni Lavaggi and Jean-Denis Délétraz could take his seat and bring some money to Pacific. After Délétraz's sponsors defaulted on payments, the team planned to rent the drive to Formula Nippon driver Katsumi Yamamoto for the two races in Japan, but he was not granted a superlicence, so Gachot retook the seat. Gachot also intended to hand the car over to the team's test driver Oliver Gavin for the season finale in Australia; however, the Englishman was also refused a superlicence and the Frenchman was forced back into the car, equalling the team's best result with 8th place after much of the field had retired. It was Gachot's final Grand Prix, for Pacific folded at the end of the season.

Gachot formed his own sports car team with the aim of participating in the 1996 24 Hours of Le Mans. The team entered a Welter Racing LM94 with factory support and engine from SsangYong, in what was a rare motorsport outing for the South Korean automotive manufacturer. The car participated in the pre-qualifying session but did not qualify for the race. It was again entered in the Coupes d'Automne Automobile Club de l'Ouest, a four-hour sports car race held at the Le Mans Bugatti circuit later in the 1996 season, where it qualified 3rd but did not finish.

Gachot later drove in occasional sports car and GT races for a variety of manufacturers and privateers.

Business interests

[edit]

Following his F1 career Gachot began to develop his business portfolio, he signed a distribution agreement with Hype Energy Drinks in 1997.[10] The company had been started in 1994 by the founder of Hard Rock Cafe, Brian Cox,[10] and had been sponsoring motorsports including F1. Gachot had aimed to introduce the brand into France but by 2000 had taken a leadership role within Hype Energy; he began restructuring the company, simplifying the product portfolio, keeping only four flavours on the market. Growth had followed shortly after and by 2014 he was able to put Hype Energy back into the F1 Paddock with sponsorship of André Lotterer.[11] 2015 saw Gachot come full circle as Hype Energy announced a sponsorship deal with Force India F1 Team, the team who had previously been Jordan F1 and for whom Gachot had raced. Gachot utilised this and other sponsorships to push the brand into new markets, announcing sales in the USA later that year.[12] By 2017 Gachot had been pushing the brand further into the music industry, working with Migos,[13] Mike WiLL Made It[14] and Prince Royce.[15] He still continues to fill the role of CEO at the company.[16]

Gachot also owns F1i.com, a Formula 1 news site.[17]

Nationality

[edit]
Gachot's Honda NSX Le Mans GT1 car shows his name with the flag of Europe

Gachot raced under more than one flag during his career. He initially competed with a Belgian FIA Super Licence, despite carrying a French passport.[18] From the 1992 season onwards he changed to a French licence.[19][20][21]

Gachot is a supporter of the unification of Europe. In a 1991 interview, Gachot said that "I am not really one nationality. I feel very much a European, but today I have to accept that a united Europe is not yet a reality. Certainly from a legal point of view."[18] His helmet design features the circle of yellow stars on a blue background from the flag of Europe.[18]

Racing record

[edit]

Career summary

[edit]
Season Series Team Races Wins Poles F/Laps Podiums Points Position
1984 Formula Ford Festival 1 0 0 ? 1 N/A 3rd
1985 British Formula Ford Championship ? 4 ? 1 ? 60 1st
British Formula Three Intersport Racing 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
Formula Ford 1600 Great Britain Pacific Racing ? ? ? ? ? 0 NC
1986 Formula Ford 2000 Great Britain Pacific Racing ? ? ? ? ? 0 1st
Formula Ford 2000 Europe ? ? ? ? ? 121 2nd
1987 British Formula Three West Surrey Racing 18 3 3 2 8 64 2nd
European Formula Three Cup 1 0 0 0 1 N/A 3rd
Macau Grand Prix 1 0 0 0 0 N/A DNF
1988 International Formula 3000 Spirit/TOM's Racing 11 0 1 0 2 21 5th
European Touring Car Championship Eggenberger Motorsport 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
Macau Grand Prix Marlboro Theodore Racing 1 0 0 0 0 N/A DNF
1989 Formula One Moneytron Onyx Formula One 5 0 0 0 0 0 NC
Rial Racing
World Sportscar Championship Richard Lloyd Racing 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC
Macau Grand Prix Federal Express Intersport Racing 1 0 0 0 0 N/A DNF
1990 Formula One Subaru Coloni Racing 0 0 0 0 0 0 NC
Coloni Racing Srl
24 Hours of Le Mans Mazdaspeed Co. Ltd. 1 0 0 0 0 N/A DNF
1991 Formula One Team 7UP Jordan 10 0 0 1 0 4 13th
Larrousse F1
All-Japan Sports Prototype Championship Mazdaspeed Co. Ltd. 1 0 0 0 0 10 24th
24 Hours of Le Mans 1 1 0 0 1 N/A 1st
1992 Formula One Central Park Venturi Larrousse 16 0 0 0 0 1 19th
24 Hours of Le Mans Mazdaspeed Co. Ltd. 1 0 0 0 0 N/A 4th
Oreca
1993 PPG Indy Car World Series Dick Simon Racing 1 0 0 0 0 1 34th
1994 Formula One Pacific Grand Prix Ltd 5 0 0 0 0 0 NC
24 Hours of Le Mans Kremer Honda Racing 1 0 0 0 0 N/A 14th
1995 Formula One Pacific Team Lotus 11 0 0 0 0 0 NC
Belgian Procar Championship Honda Team Vzm 3 0 0 0 0 0 NC
24 Hours of Le Mans Honda Motor Co. Ltd. 1 0 0 0 0 N/A DNF
1996 All Japan Grand Touring Car Championship FET Racing Team 3 0 0 0 0 14 13th
1997 All Japan Grand Touring Car Championship Power Craft 6 0 0 0 0 12 15th
Ryowa House Pacific Team Cerumo
24 Hours of Le Mans Kremer Racing 1 0 0 0 0 N/A DNF

Complete British Formula 3 results

[edit]

(key)

Year Entrant Engine Class 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 DC Pts
1987 West Surrey Racing Alfa Romeo A SIL
C
THR
2
BRH
Ret
SIL
2
THR
14
SIL
3
BRH
1
THR
2
SIL
3
ZAN
4
DON
Ret
SIL
1
SNE
Ret
DON
9
OUL
4
SIL
4
BRH
Ret
SPA
19
THR
1
2nd 64

Complete International Formula 3000 results

[edit]

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year Entrant 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 DC Points
1988 Spirit/TOM's Racing JER
Ret
VAL
2
PAU
Ret
SIL
2
MNZ
Ret
PER
Ret
BRH
Ret
BIR
5
BUG
4
ZOL
6
DIJ
4
5th 21

Complete Formula One results

[edit]

(key)

Year Entrant Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 WDC Points
1989 Moneytron Onyx Formula One Onyx ORE-1 Ford DFR 3.5 V8 BRA
DNPQ
SMR
DNPQ
MON
DNPQ
MEX
DNPQ
USA
DNPQ
CAN
DNPQ
FRA
13
GBR
12
GER
DNQ
HUN
Ret
BEL
Ret
ITA
Ret
POR ESP NC 0
Rial Racing Rial ARC2 Ford DFR 3.5 V8 JPN
DNQ
AUS
DNQ
1990 Subaru Coloni Racing Coloni C3B Subaru 1235 F12 USA
DNPQ
BRA
DNPQ
SMR
DNPQ
MON
DNPQ
CAN
DNPQ
MEX
DNPQ
FRA
DNPQ
GBR
DNPQ
NC 0
Coloni Racing Srl Coloni C3C Ford DFR 3.5 V8 GER
DNPQ
HUN
DNPQ
BEL
DNQ
ITA
DNQ
POR
DNQ
ESP
DNQ
JPN
DNQ
AUS
DNQ
1991 Team 7UP Jordan Jordan 191 Ford HB4 3.5 V8 USA
10
BRA
13
SMR
Ret
MON
8
CAN
5
MEX
Ret
FRA
Ret
GBR
6
GER
6
HUN
9
BEL ITA POR ESP JPN 13th 4
Larrousse F1 Lola LC91 Ford DFR 3.5 V8 AUS
DNQ
1992 Central Park Venturi Larrousse Venturi Larrousse LC92 Lamborghini 3512 3.5 V12 RSA
Ret
MEX
11
BRA
Ret
ESP
Ret
SMR
Ret
MON
6
CAN
DSQ
FRA
Ret
GBR
Ret
GER
14
HUN
Ret
BEL
18
ITA
Ret
POR
Ret
JPN
Ret
AUS
Ret
19th 1
1994 Pacific Grand Prix Ltd Pacific PR01 Ilmor 2175A 3.5 V10 BRA
Ret
PAC
DNQ
SMR
Ret
MON
Ret
ESP
Ret
CAN
Ret
FRA
DNQ
GBR
DNQ
GER
DNQ
HUN
DNQ
BEL
DNQ
ITA
DNQ
POR
DNQ
EUR
DNQ
JPN
DNQ
AUS
DNQ
NC 0
1995 Pacific Team Lotus Pacific PR02 Ford EDC 3.0 V8 BRA
Ret
ARG
Ret
SMR
Ret
ESP
Ret
MON
Ret
CAN
Ret
FRA
Ret
GBR
12
GER HUN BEL ITA POR EUR PAC
Ret
JPN
Ret
AUS
8
NC 0

Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans results

[edit]
Year Team Co-Drivers Car Class Laps Pos. Class
Pos.
1990 Japan Mazdaspeed Co. Ltd. Germany Volker Weidler
United Kingdom Johnny Herbert
Mazda 787 GTP 148 DNF DNF
1991 Japan Mazdaspeed Co. Ltd. Germany Volker Weidler
United Kingdom Johnny Herbert
Mazda 787B C2 362 1st 1st
1992 Japan Mazdaspeed Co. Ltd.
France Oreca
United Kingdom Johnny Herbert
Germany Volker Weidler
Brazil Maurizio Sandro Sala
Mazda MXR-01 C1 336 4th 4th
1994 Germany Kremer Honda Racing Germany Armin Hahne
France Christophe Bouchut
Honda NSX GT2 257 14th 6th
1995 Japan Honda Motor Co. Ltd. Germany Armin Hahne
Italy Ivan Capelli
Honda NSX GT1 GT1 7 DNF DNF
1997 Germany Kremer Racing France Christophe Bouchut
United States Andy Evans
Porsche 911 GT1 GT1 207 DNF DNF

American Open Wheel racing results

[edit]

(key)

CART

[edit]
Year Team 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Rank Points Ref
1993 Dick Simon Racing SRF PHX LBH INDY MIL DET POR CLE TOR
12
MIS NHM ROA VAN MDO NZR LS 34th 1 [22]

Complete JGTC results

[edit]

(key)

Year Team Car Class 1 2 3 4 5 6 DC Pts
1996 FET Racing Team Toyota Supra GT500 SUZ FUJ SEN FUJ
4
SUG
14
MIN
7
13th 14
1997 Power Craft Toyota Supra GT500 SUZ
11
FUJ
Ret
15th 12
Ryowa House Pacific Team Cerumo SEN
8
FUJ
5
MIN
Ret
SUG
11

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Bertrand Gachot". oldracingcars.com. Retrieved 25 December 2021.
  2. ^ Walker, Murray (1990). Murray Walker's 1990 Grand Prix Year. Hazleton. ISBN 0905138821.
  3. ^ a b Jordan, Eddie (2007). An Independent Man. Orion Books. ISBN 978-0-7528-7534-7.
  4. ^ a b Michael Horsnell (16 August 1991). "Grand Prix driver is jailed for gas attack". The Times. London. p. 3.
  5. ^ "Driver used CS gas 'in defence'". The Times. London. 15 August 1991. p. 5.
  6. ^ Richard Duce (14 August 1991). "Grand Prix driver denies CS attack on cabbie". The Times. London. p. 6.
  7. ^ a b Dodgins, Tony (October 1998). "Bertrand Gachot: You're nicked, son". F1 Racing. Haymarket Publishing. p. 100.
  8. ^ "Kiss with a fist: Bertrand Gachot // How one small event can change Formula One forever". Sidepodcast. Retrieved 21 July 2018.
  9. ^ Oliver Holt (10 December 1993). "Gachot starts out on long road back". The Times. London. p. 42.
  10. ^ a b "Hype Energy drinks". hype.com. Retrieved 26 October 2018.
  11. ^ "lotterer f1 dream a reality". hype.com. 8 December 2014. Retrieved 26 October 2018.
  12. ^ "Kim Kardashian West wows crowds at U.S. launch party with Aryana Sayeed, Craig David and Sergio Perez". hype.us. Archived from the original on 25 October 2018. Retrieved 26 October 2018.
  13. ^ "Migos and Hype Energy Team up for Motorsport Video". hype.com. 5 December 2017. Retrieved 26 October 2018.
  14. ^ "Mike WiLL Made-It ft Big Sean Release On The Come Up!". hype.com. 4 April 2017. Retrieved 26 October 2018.
  15. ^ "Prince Royce Hypes It Up with New Single 'Ganas Locas'". hype.com. 18 July 2017. Retrieved 26 October 2018.
  16. ^ "Bertrand Gachot". LinkedIn.
  17. ^ "Breakfast with … Bertrand Gachot - Page 2 of 2 - F1i.com". f1i.com. 24 May 2015. Retrieved 26 October 2018.
  18. ^ a b c Saward, Joe (1 October 1991). "Interview: Bertrand Gachot". grandprix.com. Inside F1. Archived from the original on 24 April 2009. Retrieved 10 July 2009.
  19. ^ Henry, Nick (1992). "F1 Drivers' Statistics". Autocourse 1992-93. Hazleton Publishing. p. 248. ISBN 0-905138-96-1.
  20. ^ Henry, Nick (1994). "1994 FIA World Championship". Autocourse 1994-95. Hazleton Publishing. p. 246. ISBN 1-874557-95-0.
  21. ^ Henry, Nick (1995). "1995 FIA World Championship". Autocourse 1995-96. Hazleton Publishing. p. 232. ISBN 1-874557-36-5.
  22. ^ "Bertrand Gachot – 1993 CART Results". Racing-Reference. NASCAR Digital Media, LLC. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
[edit]
Sporting positions
Preceded by Winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans
1991
With: Volker Weidler & Johnny Herbert
Succeeded by