Patrick Tambay obituary: Charismatic GP winner who rode F1's ups and downs

Patrick Tambay 1949-2022

French motor sport initiatives from generous oil company schemes such as Volant Shell and Pilote Elf produced a cadre of French Formula 1 talent in the 1970s and 1980s. Four of them went on to race and win for Ferrari. Of course Alain Prost, the smartest and fastest became the most successful but of the others there was Rene Arnoux, always a little bit edgy and Didier Pironi, the rich kid who was a little aloof. Then there was the one who was the most cosmopolitan, the one who spoke the best English, probably the most handsome and charismatic. I refer, of course, to Patrick Tambay who died at the weekend, aged 73, after finally succumbing to Parkinson’s disease, an illness he had endured for seven years.

His was a career of peaks and troughs, of triumphs on both sides of the Atlantic and a grand prix career which embraced nine seasons, 113 grands prix, driving for seven teams including minnows such as Theodore — he even scored valuable points for them — to the might of Ferrari, McLaren and Renault. He joined the latter two as their fortunes were on the wane but at the Scuderia it was a different story and he was to score his two grand prix victories there.

It was the first victory that was the most well received, emotive and uplifting. The 1982 season started with Patrick’s close friend Gilles Villeneuve and his rival Pironi as the two Ferrari drivers. When Gilles perished in the 126C2 at Zolder, Patrick was drafted into the team. Four months later in a swirling summer storm, during Hockenheim practice, World Championship leader Pironi smashed into the rear of Alain Prost in a career ending accident. Patrick took up the baton and brought the sister car home to victory some 16 seconds ahead of the other member of the “French Four”, Arnoux in the Renault.

Born in Paris, Patrick was the son of a wealthy Cote d’Azur property developer and at school he excelled at sport and, particularly, skiing. He became the French schoolboy ski champion as a teenager and represented his country. He won a scholarship to Colorado State University. But speed on the tarmac rather than snow took his attention – he entered the Pilote Elf young driver competition and won it.

Back then the prize was hugely valuable and a golden ticket to Formula 1 – if you kept delivering. He raced in the French Formula Renault Championship in 1972 and 1973. He then skipped Formula 3 and moved directly to Formula 2 where he spent three years – finishing runner-up to Jacques Laffite in 1975. At the end of 1976 he was dropped in favour of Pironi.

But as one door closed, another opened. He had already caught the eye of the cigar-chomping US team owner Carl Haas and when Brian Redman was injured, Tambay took his seat in the Haas Lola-Chevrolet T333 Can-Am machine. By then in 1977 the series had lost some of its cachet; gone were the mighty McLarens and Porsche 917 derivatives but nevertheless he dominated the series and his six wins at daunting tracks like Elkhart Lake and Mosport put his career back on track.

That year also saw him make his grand prix debut. First there was a last minute and abortive attempt to qualify for the French GP in a Surtees, but at the next race – the British GP – he showed up in a Theodore Racing Ensign. Another debutant that day was a man who had become his friend in the States – Gilles Villeneuve. Both impressed from the start, they were first and second in pre-qualifying . Patrick started 16th, fractions behind the Ligier of Laffite, and significantly in front of Depailler, Jabouille and Jarier. Jonny Rives of L’Equipe had plenty to write about! Tambay peeled off his race suit early after electrical failure but better was to come. He scored points in three of the remaining races and was on the short list of both Ferrari and McLaren.

There weren’t many options so Tambay headed back to the States, rejoined Carl Haas’s Can-Am team and promptly won the series for a second time, again scoring six wins in the Lola T530, well ahead of Al Holbert. But for 1981 Formula 1 came calling again, in the form of old mate Teddy Yip. Tambay found himself back at Theodore Racing now running their own Tony Southgate designed machine. First time out at Long Beach, he was in the points with a sixth place. Halfway through the year he moved to Ligier, replacing the injured Jabouille. It should have been a step-up – he failed to finish the remaining eight races of the year, mainly due to mechanical problems. Ligier let him go.

Formula 1 career over ? Not quite. After the tragic death of Gilles Villeneuve in 1982 – Patrick was godfather to son Jacques – he was grief-stricken but accepted the opportunity to take his place at Ferrari alongside Pironi. Aside from the win in Germany, he was third at the British Grand Prix at Brands Hatch and second at Monza, enough to assure himself of a second season for the team he once rejected. The 1983 season was a good one, he won the San Marino Grand Prix at Imola and scored four other podiums to finish fourth in the World Championship despite the temperamental turbo V6 letting him down on occasion.

But at the end of the season he was replaced by Michele Alboreto. This time he was able to move to another seemingly top team in Renault. But, like McLaren, he joined as it faltered. He almost won in his home race at Dijon, finishing second after a battle with Niki Lauda. There were the odd high spots but he could only finish 11th in the Championship for Renault in both ’84 and ’85.

For his final F1 year, he moved to the new Beatrice team, run by two former employers Teddy Mayer and Carl Haas. Beset with engine problems there was little to cheer about although he did give the team rare points at the Austrian Grand Prix.

After a sabbatical, he returned to racing in 1989 and finished fourth at Le Mans in a TWR Jaguar, alongside Jan Lammers and Andrew Gilbert-Scott. He also showed talent off-road and scored a third place in that most arduous of events the Paris-Dakar in 1988. He was involved in local politics too, becoming the deputy mayor of Le Cannet, a suburb of Cannes. He became a familiar figure back in the Formula 1 paddock commentating for French TV and also supporting his son Adrien as he raced in F3 and later DTM. It was at one of these races I was chatting to him and noticed the tremor which was the onset of his Parkinson’s. Amazingly he was able to take a “celebrity” seat in an Audi TT support race that day.

Urbane, engaging, enthusiastic and a fine driver – that was Patrick Tambay.

Motor Sport offers its condolences to the family and friends of Patrick Tambay