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Elio de Angelis (born 26 March 1950 in Rome, Italy – died 15 May 1986 in Marseille, France) was an Italian driver who most notably drove for Lotus in Formula One.

Formula One Career[]

Pre-Formula One[]

1979[]

De Angelis made his Formula One debut at the start of the season, after being offered a contract from Shadow. He finished seventh in his first race and went on to complete the season with three points from his fourth-place finish in the United States Grand Prix.

1980[]

De Angelis was then offered a position with Lotus for the 1980 season. At the Brazilian Grand Prix he almost became the youngest Grand Prix winner in history, finishing behind René Arnoux for a second-place finish.

At the end of the season, he had scored 13 points. This placed him in 7th place for the World Driver's Championship.

1981[]

De Angelis' contract with Lotus was renewed for the 1981 season.

Midway through the season, team Lotus was purchased from Essex Petroleum, by the cigarette company, John Player. De Angelis' contract remained despite this change in ownership.

1982[]

Elio de Angelis 1982 Austrian Grand Prix

Elio de Angelis (right) finishing just 0.05 seconds ahead of Keke Rosberg (left) in the 1982 Austrian Grand Prix.

De Angelis' first victory came during the 1982 season, in the Austrian Grand Prix. He had beat the Williams driver, Keke Rosberg by only 0.05 seconds (less than half a car length).

This was the last victory that the Lotus team manager, Colin Chapman would witness. He would die later that year of a heart attack at age 54.

1983[]

Following the death of team manager, Colin Chapman, the position of Lotus team manager was filled by Peter Warr. In addition, the team transferred to the Renault turbo-charged engine after the first race.

The season was full of various mechanical issues that forced him to retire to the garage in the majority of the races in the season. He was only able to complete 2 of 15 races that season.

1984[]

The 1984 season was much more successful than de Angelis' prior year.

Because of his consistency throughout the season, he managed to place 3rd in the drivers championship. He was the only driver in the top 5 that was unable to score a win that season.

1985[]

De Angelis continued his career with Lotus for the 1985 season, with his new teammate Ayrton Senna.

De Angelis claimed the second and last win of his career in the San Marino Grand Prix, after McLaren's Alain Prost was disqualified from the race because his car was underweight. De Angelis also claimed his final pole position in the Canadian Grand Prix.

He finished the season in 5th position, five points behind his teammate. De Angelis chose to leave Lotus at the end of the season because he believed the team's effort was focused on Senna.

1986[]

Elio de Angelis & Riccardo Patrese

Elio de Angelis (right) and Riccardo Patrese (left)

De Angelis joined Brabham to replace Nelson Piquet who had moved to the Williams team. Fellow Italian driver, Riccardo Patrese joined de Angelis as his teammate.

De Angelis managed to complete the first race of the season, however he had to retire from his other three races that season because of various mechanical failures.

His career would come to a sudden end after his death during a team testing session in mid May.

Death[]

While testing for his team at the Paul Ricard circuit in France, de Angelis suffered a rear wing failure at the Verriere corner of the track. As a result, the car lost downforce and cartwheeled over a track barrier. The car caught fire, and de Angelis was unable to free himself from the wreck.

Rescue efforts were slow due to the low attendance of track marshals that provided emergency assistance, but de Angelis was eventually removed from the car. Thirty minutes after the accident, a helicopter arrived to airlift him to a hospital in Marseille. He arrived at the hospital with a broken collar bone, light burns and suffering from smoke inhalation. He died 29 hours after arrival of fatal smoke inhalation and oxygen deprivation.

After the death of de Angelis, the FIA president Jean-Marie Balestre announced the end of the turbo powered engine. After pressure from FISA, he also announced the removal of the full Paul Ricard Circuit from the season calendar. It would be replaced with the "Club" version of the circuit, which bypassed the section of the track in which de Angelis was killed.

Helmet Design[]

Elio de Angelis Helmet

Elio de Angelis' helmet without a sponsor.

De Angelis wore a white helmet with a black and red line that came up from the bottom of the helmet, directly behind the visor. The lines then formed a corner and looped around the back of the helmet to the opposite side. His name, Elio de Angelis was written in a cursive font on the black line. John Player was printed directly above the visor.

Throughout his career, a sponsor was printed onto the top of his helmet.

After his death, fellow Formula One driver, Jean Alesi wore a helmet which matched that of de Angelis as a tribute.

Formula One Statistical Overview[]

Formula One Record[]

Year Entrant Team WDC Points WDC Pos. Report
1979 United Kingdom Interscope Shadow Racing Team Shadow-Ford Cosworth 3 15th Report
1980 United Kingdom Team Essex Lotus Lotus-Cosworth 13 7th Report
1981 United Kingdom Team Essex Lotus Lotus-Cosworth 14 8th Report
United Kingdom John Player Team Lotus
1982 United Kingdom John Player Team Lotus Lotus-Ford Cosworth 23 9th Report
1983 United Kingdom John Player Team Lotus Lotus-Ford Cosworth 2 17th Report
Lotus-Renault
1984 United Kingdom John Player Team Lotus Lotus-Renault 34 3rd Report
1985 United Kingdom John Player Special Team Lotus Lotus-Renault 33 5th Report
1986 United Kingdom Motor Racing Developments Brabham-BMW 0 NC Report

Career Statistics[]

Entries 109
Starts 108
Pole Positions 3
Front Row Starts 6
Race Wins 2
Podiums 9
Fastest Laps 0
Points 122
Laps Raced 4753
Distance Raced 22,053 km (13,703 mi)
Races Led 4
Laps Led 28
Distance Led 150 km (93 mi)

Race Wins[]

Win Number Grand Prix
1 1982 Austrian Grand Prix
2 1985 San Marino Grand Prix

Career Results[]

Complete Formula One Results
Year 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 Pts Pos
1979 Flag of Argentina Flag of Brazil (1968–1992) Flag of South Africa 1928-1994 Flag of the United States Flag of Spain 1977 1981 Flag of Belgium Flag of Monaco Flag of Sweden Flag of France Flag of the United Kingdom Flag of Germany Flag of Austria Flag of the Netherlands Flag of Italy Flag of Canada Flag of the United States 3 15th
7th 12th Ret 7th Ret Ret DNQ C 16th 12th 11th Ret Ret Ret Ret 4th
1980 Flag of Argentina Flag of Brazil (1968–1992) Flag of South Africa 1928-1994 Flag of the United States Flag of Belgium Flag of Monaco Flag of France Flag of the United Kingdom Flag of Germany Flag of Austria Flag of the Netherlands Flag of Italy Flag of Canada Flag of the United States 13 7th
Ret 2nd Ret Ret 10th 9th Ret Ret 16th 6th Ret 4th 10th 4th
1981 Flag of the United States Flag of Brazil (1968–1992) Flag of Argentina Flag of San Marino Flag of Belgium Flag of Monaco Flag of Spain 1945 1977 Flag of France Flag of the United Kingdom Flag of Germany Flag of Austria Flag of the Netherlands Flag of Italy Flag of Canada Flag of the United States 14 8th
Ret 5th 6th WD 5th Ret 5th 6th DSQ 7th 7th 5th 4th 6th Ret
1982 Flag of South Africa 1928-1994 Flag of Brazil (1968–1992) Flag of the United States Flag of San Marino Flag of Belgium Flag of Monaco Flag of the United States Flag of Canada Flag of the Netherlands Flag of the United Kingdom Flag of France Flag of Germany Flag of Austria Flag of Switzerland Flag of Italy Flag of the United States 23 9th
8th Ret 5th 4th 5th Ret 4th Ret 4th Ret Ret 1st 6th Ret Ret
1983 Flag of Brazil (1968–1992) Flag of the United States Flag of France Flag of San Marino Flag of Monaco Flag of Belgium Flag of the United States Flag of Canada Flag of the United Kingdom Flag of Germany Flag of Austria Flag of the Netherlands Flag of Italy Flag of Europe Flag of South Africa 1928-1994 2 17th
DSQ Ret Ret Ret Ret 9th Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret 5th Ret Ret
1984 Flag of Brazil (1968–1992) Flag of South Africa 1928-1994 Flag of Belgium Flag of San Marino Flag of France Flag of Monaco Flag of Canada Flag of the United States Flag of the United States Flag of the United Kingdom Flag of Germany Flag of Austria Flag of the Netherlands Flag of Italy Flag of Europe Flag of Portugal 34 3rd
3rd 7th 5th 3rd 5th 5th
[1]
4th 2nd 3rd 4th Ret Ret 4th Ret Ret 5th
1985 Flag of Brazil (1968–1992) Flag of Portugal Flag of San Marino Flag of Monaco Flag of Canada Flag of the United States Flag of France Flag of the United Kingdom Flag of Germany Flag of Austria Flag of the Netherlands Flag of Italy Flag of Belgium Flag of Europe Flag of South Africa 1928-1994 Flag of Australia 33 5th
3rd 4th 1st 3rd 5th 5th 5th NC Ret 5th 5th 6th Ret 5th Ret DSQ
1986 Flag of Brazil (1968–1992) Flag of Spain Flag of San Marino Flag of Monaco Flag of Belgium Flag of Canada Flag of the United States Flag of France Flag of Great Britain Flag of Germany Flag of Hungary Flag of Austria Flag of Italy Flag of Portugal Flag of Mexico Flag of Australia 0 NC
8th Ret Ret Ret
Key
Symbol Meaning Symbol Meaning
1st Winner Ret Retired
2nd Podium finish DSQ Disqualified
3rd DNQ Did not qualify
5th Points finish DNPQ Did not pre-qualify
14th Non-points finish TD Test driver
Italics Fastest Lap DNS Did not start
18th Classified finish (retired with >90% race distance) NC Non-classified finish (<90% race distance)
4thP Qualified for pole position [+] More Symbols

Notes[]

  1. Race stopped after 31/76 Laps. Half points awarded

External links[]

V T E Teams and Drivers
1979 Teams and Drivers
Teams LotusTyrrellBrabhamMcLarenATSFerrariFittipaldiRenaultShadowWolfEnsignMerzarioLigierWilliamsArrowsRebaqueAlfa Romeo (Autodelta) • Kauhsen
Engines Alfa RomeoFerrariFord CosworthRenault
Drivers 1 Andretti • 2 Reutemann • 3 Pironi • 4 Jarier • 4 Lees • 4/22/33 Daly • 5 Lauda • 5 Zunino • 6 Piquet • 7 Watson • 8 Tambay • 9 Stuck • 11 Scheckter • 12 Villeneuve • 14 Fittipaldi • 15 Jabouille • 16 Arnoux • 17 Lammers • 18 de Angelis • 19 Ribeiro • 20 Hunt • 20 Rosberg • 22 Gaillard • 22 Surer • 24 Merzario • 24/36 Brancatelli • 25 Depailler • 25 Ickx • 26 Laffite • 27 Jones • 28 Regazzoni • 29 Patrese • 30 Mass • 31 Rebaque • 35 Giacomelli • 36 Brambilla
1980 Teams and Drivers
Teams FerrariTyrrellBrabhamMcLarenATSLotusEnsignRenaultShadowFittipaldiAlfa RomeoLigierWilliamsArrowsOsella
Engines Alfa RomeoFerrariFord CosworthRenault
Non-Works Entrants Brands Hatch RacingRAM – Penthouse Rizla RacingRAM – Rainbow Jeans RacingRAM – Williams Grand Prix Engineering
1981 Teams and Drivers
Teams Williams • Tyrrell • Brabham • McLaren • ATS • Lotus • Ensign • Renault • March • Fittipaldi • Alfa Romeo • Ligier • Ferrari • Arrows • Osella • Theodore • Toleman
Engines Alfa Romeo • Ferrari • Ford Cosworth • Hart • Matra • Renault
Non-Works Entrants Equipe Banco Occidental
Drivers 1 Jones • 2 Reutemann • 3 Cheever • 4 Cogan • 4 Zunino • 4 Alboreto • 5 Piquet • 6 Rebaque • 7 Watson • 8 de Cesaris • 9 Lammers • 9/10 Borgudd • 11 de Angelis • 12 Mansell • 14/33 Surer • 14 Londoño • 14/17/18 Salazar • 15 Prost • 16 Arnoux • 17/18 Daly • 20 Rosberg • 21 Serra • 22 Andretti • 23 Giacomelli • 25/32 Jarier • 25 Jabouille • 25/33 Tambay • 26 Laffite • 27 G. Villeneuve • 28 Pironi • 29 Patrese • 30 Stohr • 30 J. Villeneuve, Sr. • 31 Guerra • 31/32 Ghinzani • 31/32 Gabbiani • 32 Francia • 35 Henton • 36 Warwick • 37 de Villota
1982 Teams and Drivers
Teams BrabhamTyrrellWilliamsMcLarenATSLotusEnsignRenaultMarchFittipaldiAlfa RomeoLigierFerrariArrowsOsellaTheodoreToleman
Engines Alfa RomeoBMWFerrariFordHartMatraRenault
Drivers 1 Piquet • 2 Patrese • 3 Alboreto • 4 Borgudd • 4 Henton • 5 Reutemann • 5 Andretti • 5 Daly • 6 Rosberg • 7 Watson • 8 Lauda • 9 Winkelhock • 10 Salazar • 11 De Angelis • 12 Mansell • 12 Moreno • 12 Lees • 14 Guerrero • 15 Prost • 16 Arnoux • 17 Mass • 17 Keegan • 18 Boesel • 19 De Villota • 20 Serra • 22 De Cesaris • 23 Giacomelli • 25 Cheever • 26 Laffite • 27 Villeneuve • 27 Tambay • 28 Pironi • 28 Andretti • 29 Henton • 29 Surer • 30 Baldi • 31 Jarier • 32 Paletti • 33 Daly • 33 Lammers • 33 Lees • 33 Byrne • 35 Warwick • 36 Fabi
1983 Teams and Drivers
Teams WilliamsTyrrellBrabhamMcLarenATSLotusRenaultRAMAlfa RomeoLigierFerrariArrowsOsellaTheodoreTolemanSpirit
Engines Alfa RomeoBMWFerrariFordHartHondaRenaultTAG
Drivers 1 Rosberg • 2 Laffite • 42 Palmer • 3 Alboreto • 4 Sullivan • 5 Piquet • 6 Patrese • 7 Watson • 8 Lauda • 9 Winkelhock • 11 De Angelis • 12 Mansell • 15 Prost • 16 Cheever • 17 Salazar • 17 Villeneuve • 17 Acheson • 18 Schlesser • 22 De Cesaris • 23 Baldi • 25 Jarier • 26 Boesel • 27 Tambay • 28 Arnoux • 29 Surer • 30 Serra • 30 Jones • 30 Boutsen • 31 Fabi • 32 Ghinzani • 33 Guerrero • 34 Cecotto • 35 Warwick • 36 Giacomelli • 40 Johansson
1984 Teams and Drivers
Teams BrabhamTyrrellWilliamsMcLarenRAMLotusATSRenaultArrowsTolemanSpiritAlfa RomeoOsellaLigierFerrari
Engines Alfa RomeoBMWFerrariFordHartHondaRenaultTAG
Drivers 1 Piquet • 2 T. Fabi • 2 C. Fabi • 2 Winkelhock • 3 Brundle • 3 Johansson • 4 Bellof • 4 Thackwell • 5 Laffite • 6 Rosberg • 7 Prost • 8 Lauda • 9 Alliot • 10 Palmer • 10 Thackwell • 11 De Angelis • 12 Mansell • 14 Winkelhock • 14/31 Berger • 15 Tambay • 16 Warwick • 33 Streiff • 17 Surer • 18 Boutsen • 19 Senna • 19/20 Johansson • 20 Cecotto • 20 Martini • 21 Baldi • 21 Rothengatter • 22 Patrese • 23 Cheever • 24 Ghinzani • 30 Gartner • 25 Hesnault • 26 De Cesaris • 27 Alboreto • 28 Arnoux
1985 Teams and Drivers
Teams McLaren • Tyrrell • Williams • Brabham • RAM • Lotus • Renault • Arrows • Toleman • Spirit • Alfa Romeo • Osella • Ligier • Ferrari • Minardi • Zakspeed • Lola
Engines Alfa Romeo • BMW • Ferrari • Ford • Hart • Honda • Motori Moderni • Renault • TAG • Zakspeed
Drivers Lauda • 2 Prost • 3/4 Brundle • 4 Johansson • 3/4 Bellof • 4 Capelli • 4 Streiff • 5 Mansell • 6 Rosberg • 7 Piquet • 8 Hesnault • 8 Surer • 9 Winkelhock • 9/10 Alliot • 10 Acheson • 11 De Angelis • 12 Senna • 14 Hesnault • 15 Tambay • 16 Warwick • 17 Berger • 18 Boutsen • 19 Fabi • 20 Ghinzani • 21 Baldi • 22 Patrese • 23 Cheever • 24 Ghinzani • 24 Rothengatter • 25 De Cesaris • 25 Streiff • 26 Laffite • 27 Alboreto • 28 Arnoux • 28 Johansson • 29 Martini • 30 Palmer • 30 Danner • 33 Jones
1986 Teams and Drivers
Teams McLarenTyrrellWilliamsBrabhamLotusZakspeedLolaArrowsBenettonOsellaMinardiLigierFerrariAGS
Engines Alfa RomeoBMWFerrariFordHartHondaMotori ModerniRenaultTAGZakspeed
Drivers 1 Prost • 2 Rosberg • 3 Brundle • 4 Streiff • 5 Mansell • 6 Piquet • 7 Patrese • 8 De Angelis • 8 Warwick • 11 Dumfries • 12 Senna • 14 Palmer • 29 Rothengatter • 15 Jones • 16 Tambay • 16 Cheever • 17 Surer • 17 Danner • 18 Boutsen • 19 Fabi • 20 Berger • 21 Ghinzani • 22 Danner • 22 Berg • 22 Caffi • 23 De Cesaris • 24 Nannini • 25 Arnoux • 26 Laffite • 26 Alliot • 27 Alboreto • 28 Johansson • 31 Capelli
Other Drivers Barilla
V T E F1 drivers killed while racing
1952: Cameron Earl
1953: Chet Miller
1954: Onofre Marimón
1955: Manny Ayulo
1955: Bill Vukovich
1957: Eugenio Castellotti
1957: Keith Andrews
1958: Pat O'Connor
1958: Luigi Musso
1958: Peter Collins
1958: Stuart Lewis-Evans
1959: Jerry Unser
1959: Bob Cortner
1960: Chris Bristow
1960: Alan Stacey
1961: Giulio Cabianca
1961: Wolfgang von Trips
1964: Carel Godin de Beaufort
1966: John Taylor
1967: Lorenzo Bandini
1967: Bob Anderson
1968: Jo Schlesser
1969: Gerhard Mitter
1970: Bruce McLaren
1970: Piers Courage
1970: Jochen Rindt
1971: Ignazio Giunti
1971: Pedro Rodríguez
1971: Jo Siffert
1972: Jo Bonnier
1973: Roger Williamson
1973: François Cevert
1974: Peter Revson
1974: Helmuth Koinigg
1975: Mark Donohue
1977: Tom Pryce
1978: Ronnie Peterson
1980: Patrick Depailler
1982: Gilles Villeneuve
1982: Riccardo Paletti
1986: Elio de Angelis
1994: Roland Ratzenberger
1994: Ayrton Senna
2015: Jules Bianchi
See also: List of fatal accidents
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