Reigning world champion Niki Lauda dominated the opening round of the season at Interlagos, bringing his Ferrari home 35 seconds ahead of Patrick Depailler with Welshman Tom Pryce third in a Shadow. James Hunt had claimed his first F1 pole in his new six-speed McLaren but struggled to capitalise and was back in seventh when he eventually retired seven laps from the end.
2007
After only 11 days behind the wheel of an F1 car, rookie Lewis Hamilton had a lucky escape after he crashed his McLaren at 165mph during practice in Spain. "I'm completely fine and was conscious throughout," he said. It was an equally frustrating day for Jenson Button as his new Honda broke down during the first lap of a warm-up session in Barcelona.
1971
Luca Badoer , born on this day in Treviso, Italy, struggled with uncompetitive cars in his 56 grands prix spread over six seasons between 1993 and 1999, and his days in the limelight appeared over when he took up the role of Ferrari's test driver in 2000, working diligently behind the scenes. But in August 2009 at the age of 38 he returned to centre stage when named as a surprise replacement for the injured Felipe Massa at Ferrari for the European Grand Prix in Valencia. While he retained the role of test driver dating back to 1997 with the Italian team, his call up a decade after his last grand prix start came about as the team's preferred choice - Michael Schumacher - was unable to take over the seat due to a neck injury. In doing so he became the oldest driver on the F1 grid but it was a short lived spell behind the wheel of the Ferrari.
1956
Johnny Cecotto was born in Caracas, Venezuela and came to Formula One in 1980 on the back of becoming the youngest ever 350cc motorcycle World Champion. By 1982 he was a front-runner, only losing out on the title to works March team-mate Corrado Fabi when dropped scores were taken into consideration. His Formula One debut came in 1983 when he joined the little Theodore team, amazingly finishing in sixth place in his second race, at Long Beach. No more points followed, and he moved to Toleman for 1984, but his single-seater career was cut short with a leg-breaking shunt at Brands Hatch. Subsequently, he won numerous titles in touring car racing in both Italy and Germany.
1930
Heinz Schiller, born in Frauenfeld, Switzerland, competed in just one Formula One race, the 1962 German Grand Prix, but failed to finish due to falling oil pressure. He came to motorsport in the mid-1950s after success in speed boat racing in his native Switzerland. In 1962 he also took part in a number of non-championship grand prix but suffered a series of mechanical failures. One of his greatest achievements came in sports cars when he finished in tenth place at the 1964 Le Mans 24 Hours.
1910
A former bicycle racer, Henri Louveau, born on this day in Suresnes, France, came to motorsport as a FIAT test driver before serving in Africa during World War II. He competed in two grand prix in a Talbot Largo but failed to finish both. He enjoyed more success at the Le Mans 24 Hours and finished second in the 1949 race. He retired after a crash in 1951 and set up a car dealership using his contacts in the motoring world. He sold Maseratis and Delages, two teams he used to drive for, and in later life expanded into the car and truck rental business.
1906
Primarily a Formula 2 driver, Dusseldorf-born Toni Ulmen raced in two grand prix in 1952 driving a Veritas. His best result was an eighth place finish at the Nurburgring, but he was far more successful in F2 and won the 1949 championship. He raced in sports cars towards the end of his career.
