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Greatest Spanish Driver of all time

Started by Keir , Aug 15 2005 17:02

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31 replies to this topic

#1 Keir

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Posted 15 August 2005 - 17:02

If a ceratin Fernando Alonso wins the WDC, he will certainly be the greatest Spanish driver in F1 history, but who are the rest ??

Now, remember, not Hispanic drivers, "Spanish Drivers" !!!

That whole "Hispanic" thing drives me nuts. There are some who believe that "Hispanic" is a separate race. Which, of couse. is profoundly incorrect !!

There I went of a tangent better suited to the "Padlocked Club!!!!!"

Ignore the rant !!

#2 KWSN - DSM

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Posted 15 August 2005 - 18:09

Greatest Spanish driver of all time.

Carlos Sainz

:clap:

Greatest Spanish F1 driver of all time.

Fernando Alonso.

But there really have not been that many, so Fernando is more or less a given.

:cool:

#3 WHITE

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Posted 15 August 2005 - 21:42

Originally posted by Keir
If a ceratin Fernando Alonso wins the WDC, he will certainly be the greatest Spanish driver in F1 history, but who are the rest ?

Hi Keir,

I do not know much about spanish drivers but I have heard that in the 50s there was one who is well remembered: Paco Godia.
I would also mention Salvador Cañellas who was a good rally driver, being spanish champion with SEAT, and also good with motorcycles. IIRC, he used to race the world moto championship at the end of the 60s - beginning of the 70s with Bultaco and Derby. I think he also won the 24 hours of montjuich at the beginning of the 70s.( being spanish endurance champion ? ).

#4 Ray Bell

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Posted 15 August 2005 - 23:12

Maybe not so many Spanish drivers emerge because they're having too much fun on motorcycles?

de Portago emerged, of course...

#5 David M. Kane

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Posted 15 August 2005 - 23:49

;)

Right on Ray, Fon is the man. He is possibly the greatest Sportsman in the history Spain. He excelled in every sport he tried.

Had he not had a tire failure, who knows what he could have accomplished in a race car.

#6 Mac Lark

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Posted 16 August 2005 - 02:12

Alonso may be the obvious gap in the daylight that has existed between Fangio and the next best Spanish speaking driver.

#7 Fiorentina 1

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Posted 16 August 2005 - 02:41

Carlos Sainz! :wave:

#8 Mac Lark

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Posted 16 August 2005 - 02:57

Originally posted by Mac Lark
Alonso may be the obvious gap in the daylight that has existed between Fangio and the next best Spanish speaking driver.

The next best Grand Prix driver :wave:

#9 Frank de Jong

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Posted 16 August 2005 - 07:13

Alex Soler-Roig was good enough for the Ford Cologne works team in the early 70's, partnering Dieter Glemser, Jochen Mass and Helmut Marko - he can't have been too bad...

#10 jarama

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Posted 16 August 2005 - 12:00

Sidelining the obvious Alonso and Sainz, we can add:

- Antonio Zanini, twice ERC & 10 Spanish RC
- Juan Fernández, twice EHCC (SportsCars), how many times? Spanish HCC, Le Mans top-10 finisher more than once...
- Salvador Cañellas, first spanish rider in winning a WCMotoGP, Spanish RC, Spanish Touring Champion, winner (more than once) of the 24 Hores Motociclistes de Montjuïc...
- Fon de Portago

This would be my choice.

Carles.

#11 Vitesse2

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Posted 16 August 2005 - 13:11

Originally posted by Mac Lark
Alonso may be the obvious gap in the daylight that has existed between Fangio and the next best Spanish speaking driver.

Er, Mac .... the question was Spanish, not Spanish-speaking! And Fangio's parents were Italian .....

The list of Spanish F1 drivers is pretty short, but I'd have to go with Portago, a driver greatly admired by Old Man Ferrari, who was no mean judge.

#12 Keir

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Posted 16 August 2005 - 14:28

Portago is one of my favorites, but you can't get a really good pic of him anywhere !!

You would think that there would be tons, but there aren't !!

#13 BRG

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Posted 16 August 2005 - 15:16

Here's a few, Keir:-

http://www.motorspor...de_portage.html

Not quite sure what is going on in the shot from Cuba though!

As for the thread, it has to be Sainz all the way - he holds the record for the most WRC wins, after all. Young Alonso may eclipse him in time, but he will need to go some. Mind you, the 2005 WDC will be an excellent start!

#14 Kpy

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Posted 16 August 2005 - 15:44

Carlos Sainz is one of my all time favourite rally drivers, but the question was "If a ceratin Fernando Alonso wins the WDC, he will certainly be the greatest Spanish driver in F1 history , but who are the rest ??"
Carlos Sainz doesn't figure too high in F1 history, so for me the answer has to be;
Alfonso Cabeza de Vaca y Leighton, 17th Marquis de Portago. That is to disregard Fernando Alonso, who is already the greatest Spanish driver in F1 history.

#15 Twin Window

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Posted 16 August 2005 - 15:52

Originally posted by Frank de Jong

Alex Soler-Roig was good enough for the Ford Cologne works team in the early 70's, partnering Dieter Glemser, Jochen Mass and Helmut Marko - he can't have been too bad...

Yes, he was clearly a lot more talented than his sporadic F1 outings suggested.

Jochen Rindt was a big fan of his, I read somewhere recently.

#16 Kpy

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Posted 16 August 2005 - 16:45

Originally posted by Twin Window

Jochen Rindt was a big fan of his, I read somewhere recently.

Sure it wasn't Alex's dad that Rindt was a fan of? He was the surgeon who looked after Jochen after his Barcelona crash in 1966.

#17 Mac Lark

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Posted 16 August 2005 - 19:13

Originally posted by Vitesse2

Er, Mac .... the question was Spanish, not Spanish-speaking! And Fangio's parents were Italian .....

The list of Spanish F1 drivers is pretty short, but I'd have to go with Portago, a driver greatly admired by Old Man Ferrari, who was no mean judge.

Er, I know - I was merely expanding the discussion because talking about great Spanish racing drivers takes about as long as talking about great white heavyweight boxers. Although longer, I'd admit, than the discussion about great 16 cylinder engines out of Lincolnshire.

#18 Twin Window

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Posted 16 August 2005 - 19:22

Originally posted by Kpy

Sure it wasn't Alex's dad that Rindt was a fan of? He was the surgeon who looked after Jochen after his Barcelona crash in 1966.

1969?

No, it was Alex's ability as a driver I read about.

#19 bretonbanquet

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Posted 16 August 2005 - 19:42

Whilst they're not close to the top echelon of F1 drivers, Marc Gené and Pedro de la Rosa did a certain amount to bring F1 to the attention of the Spanish people - they must have certainly smoothed the path for Alonso, since there hadn't been a Spanish driver before them since... Adrian Campos? :confused:

#20 jarama

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Posted 16 August 2005 - 19:57

Originally posted by bretonbanquet
Whilst they're not close to the top echelon of F1 drivers, Marc Gené and Pedro de la Rosa did a certain amount to bring F1 to the attention of the Spanish people - they must have certainly smoothed the path for Alonso, since there hadn't been a Spanish driver before them since... Adrian Campos?

The last was Luis Pérez-Sala, half season with Adrián and the rest of that season and the next with Piero Martini.

Carles.

#21 D-Type

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Posted 16 August 2005 - 20:27

Surely Francesco Godia-Sales the fifties Maserati driver deserves a mention. A very talented amateur.

#22 Keir

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Posted 16 August 2005 - 21:08

BRG,

Those are pictures that I have seen before and like I said, "You really can't get any good pics."
The quality is just awful !! Someone with a bit of talent must have taken a pic or two ???

#23 Kpy

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Posted 16 August 2005 - 22:09

Originally posted by Twin Window
1969?

No, it was Alex's ability as a driver I read about.

Yup 1969

I only wondered since Alex didn't exactly blossom in Rindt's lifetime. His 1970 F1 season hardly set the world on fire. So where and when did Rindt spot him as a future talent?

#24 Lec CRP1

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Posted 17 August 2005 - 06:39

Originally posted by Kpy

Yup 1969

I only wondered since Alex didn't exactly blossom in Rindt's lifetime. His 1970 F1 season hardly set the world on fire. So where and when did Rindt spot him as a future talent?

Rindt and Soler-Roig co-drove at the 6 hours of Madrid at Jarama in 1970. According to Soler-Roig, he was faster than Rindt in practice and was told by Rindt "You are fast. You should drive Formula 1." Despite Rindt's influence (and money from the Spanish Ministry Of Sport), Soler-Roig was thoroughly messed about by Lotus, switching him between the 49 and 72 and not letting him have enough practice at circuits he'd never been to.

#25 Nanni Dietrich

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Posted 08 September 2005 - 16:16

I remember Alex Soler-Raig was a doctor too.

Firmin Velez was an other fast Spanish driver. And the brothers Gene (Jordi and Marc).
And Alfonso de Vinuesa, good driver in F. 3000 near the end of the 80s. Unfortunately a very hard accident stopped his racing career.
The hillclimber Andres Vilarino, Pancho Egozkue and... but I don't know if we can consider him "Spanish" Jorge de Bagration.

#26 Mallory Dan

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Posted 08 September 2005 - 16:46

Luis Perez Sala won races in 3000 against good opposition, and in equal equipment. I'm surprised he didn't do better in GPs.

#27 ian senior

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Posted 09 September 2005 - 08:10

Alex Soler-Roig had the nickname "12 volt" for some reason. Any idea why?

#28 David McKinney

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Posted 09 September 2005 - 08:30

Is that a serious question Ian?
Surely you've heard of a 12-volt solenoid?
(He was slo of course known as Alex Solenoid)

#29 ian senior

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Posted 09 September 2005 - 08:54

Originally posted by David McKinney
Is that a serious question Ian?
Surely you've heard of a 12-volt solenoid?
(He was slo of course known as Alex Solenoid)

Ohhh.......

God, I'm so thick sometimes I just can't believe it. Honestly, I've spent years wondering about that, and it just never occurred to me....

Thanks David!

#30 petefenelon

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Posted 09 September 2005 - 10:12

I've seen it said in a couple of places that Soler-Roig's Lotus drives were as much down to his being the son of the surgeon who treated Rindt after his '69 accident as to Chapman's propensity for running a third car for local/journeymen/paying drivers. Although he was good in sports cars and tourers, from an F1 point of view he's really a footnote.

Alex was pretty old by F1 standards - around 38 when he made his debut; maybe had he been caught younger he could've had a better F1 career; as it is DNQ/DNS/DNQ/R/R/DNQ/R/R/R/R with a best grid position of 17th isn't too inspiring - then again in '70 he was getting the fag-end of the Lotus equipment, March were spread very thin in '71, and BRM's '72 season was one of the most ill-advised on record!

#31 MCS

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Posted 09 September 2005 - 19:12

Originally posted by petefenelon
Alex was pretty old by F1 standards - around 38 when he made his debut; maybe had he been caught younger he could've had a better F1 career; as it is DNQ/DNS/DNQ/R/R/DNQ/R/R/R/R with a best grid position of 17th isn't too inspiring - then again in '70 he was getting the fag-end of the Lotus equipment, March were spread very thin in '71, and BRM's '72 season was one of the most ill-advised on record!

All of which begs the question, just how good was he?

I'm particularly intrigued by the comment/s attributed to Rindt at the Madrid 6 Hours in 1970 (by Soler-Roig) in the earlier post...

#32 Reyna

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Posted 09 September 2005 - 20:18

Originally posted by Lec CRP1

Rindt and Soler-Roig co-drove at the 6 hours of Madrid at Jarama in 1970. According to Soler-Roig, he was faster than Rindt in practice and was told by Rindt "You are fast. You should drive Formula 1." Despite Rindt's influence (and money from the Spanish Ministry Of Sport), Soler-Roig was thoroughly messed about by Lotus, switching him between the 49 and 72 and not letting him have enough practice at circuits he'd never been to.

Last year Alex Soler-Roig told to me the same history. In fact Jochen and Nina Rindt, Piers and Sally Courage and Alex and his wife were greats friends.

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