Mike Thackwell

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Michael Thackwell (born 30 March 1961 in Papakura, New Zealand), is a former racing driver who competed in a variety of popular racing divisions, including Formula One.

He was the fifth fastest driver to qualify for a Grand Prix, and he appeared in five of them, beginning on September 28th, 1980, at the Canadian Grand Prix.

He scored no championship points.

He had attempted unsuccessfully to qualify for the Dutch Grand Prix, which was held on August 31st 1980. Thackwell has been described as a "maverick" and as "something of a cult hero" by the author.

He competed well in Formula Three, Formula Two, Formula 3000, and sports cars outside of Formula One, among other categories. Thackwell was named European Formula Two Championship champion in 1984.

In 1983, he finished third in the championship, and 1985, he was runner up.

In each case, he was driving a works Ralt.

He won the Pau Grand Prix in 1986 and again in a works Ralt.

He won the 1000km Nürburgring sports car race in a Sauber C8 later this year.

Early life

Thackwell was born into a motor racing family. Ray's father, Ray, was a highly successful international speedway rider and racing pilot for many years. When Mike was six years old, his family migrated from New Zealand to Perth, Western Australia, where he spent his formative years and also started racing. Michael Thackwell – Joan Caccioppoli – Kerry John Thackwell – Heidi Thackwell – Barbara Brabham – Teresa Thackwell – Michael Thackwell. Lisa is married to David Brabham.

Thackwell attended Christ Church Grammar School in Claremont, a suburb of Perth, from 1972 to 1976. By the time of his Formula One debut in 1980, he spoke with an Australian accent and regarded himself as Australian, but he continued to compete as a New Zealander.

Thackwell rodeos, a high-performance racing and sports car manufacturer from the United States, competed in motocross championships on motorcycles lent by his father, a manufacturer of high-performance racing and sports cars, for three years beginning at the age of nine. He then went back to karts, winning the Western Australian championship at the age of 14. He went to England after winning the Hong Kong Kart Grand Prix in 1975 and 1976. Mike Eastick Scorpion Racing Drivers School in Thruxton, Hampshire, was recommended by a friend of Ray's, who raced Formula Ford.

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Career

Thackwell began his European career in the Dunlop Star of Tomorrow Formula Ford championship, which took place in the United Kingdom in early 1978. He campaigned for a Van Diemen-Scholar RF78, which was sponsored by the Rushen Green team. He won five rounds and appeared on two other occasions and placed third in the championship, behind Canadian entrant Robert Zurrer (77 points) and British driver Terry Gray (76 points).

Thackwell rode Thackwell in the 1979 Vandervell British Formula 3 Championship, being behind the wheel of a March-Toyota 793 that was entered by the March works team. He won five more victories and four other podium finishes, as well as a pole position and a fastest lap in a 19-race series. He finished the championship in third position, this time with 71 points, behind Chico Serra (103 points) and Andrea de Cesaris (90 points), but ahead of Stefan Johansson (fourth), Alain Prost (equal 12th), and Thierry Boutsen (19th), all four of whom were later to have lengthy, and in most cases race-winning Formula One careers, the four four players were in third position, this time with 71 points), but not

In 1979, March entered Thackwell and the March 793 in two FIA European Formula Three Championship events. In the Gran Premio della Lotteria, he won and set a new lap. He also placed eighth overall in Alain Prost's championship, leading to Boutsen's (nine races), Arie Luyendyk (one race), Philippe Streiff (five races; 21st). Thackwell and the March 793 also secured pole position and the fastest lap in the non-championship RAC FOCA Trophy event at Donington Park, but only ninth.

Thackwell followed Serra and de Cesaris into Formula Two in 1980. However, de Cesaris returned to New Zealand in March 792 to compete in the Aurora AFX New Zealand International Formula Pacific series, prior to that. The cars, which had been upgraded to F2 cars, were overweight and under performer.

On his return to Europe, he was seen again driving in a March. He was upbeat early in round two at Hockenheim, completing the fastest lap in the following round. However, it was also at Zandvoort that he stood out as a true natural performer.

Thackwell had been signed by Ken Tyrrell to be a test pilot for the Tyrrell F1 team in 1980, having tested for both Ensign and Tyrrell. He also worked with F2 in 1980. He was invited by Tyrrell as a spectator and learn about the track and Tyrrell 010 when Arrows team boss Jackie Oliver approached him after the first unofficial practice session to ask if he'd like to drive the Arrows A3. Jochen Mass, Oliver's regular driver, had been injured in the previous grand prix, but his car was transported to Zandvoort. Despite the fact that the car was still fitted for Mass, with his seat and pedal system, Thackwell was able to drive it from Tyrrell and, although he failed to qualify, he eventually posted a faster time than Keke Rosberg in the Fittipaldi.

Tyrrell's third car was available for viewing at the Canadian Grand Prix only a few weeks later. Thackwell was often ranked as the youngest driver to begin a Formula One race because he was involved in this tournament, but this assertion is undisputed. Alan Jones and Nelson Piquet collided at the first turn and were later struck by a number of other vehicles, including Jean-Pierre Jarier and Derek Daly, who were driving Tyrrells, during the first lap of the race. Thackwell negotiated his way through the carnage and returned to the start/finish line undamaged, though the race had been red flagged by that time. Thackwell was told by Ken Tyrrell to trade his car for Jarier because both Jarier's and Daly's cars were too ruined to repair quickly. When the race is called off after less than two full laps, it is declared null and void, and the race is restarted anew. If a driver is unable to return their vehicle to the second start, they have not qualified for the Grand Prix. Ricardo Rodrez was the youngest race starter until Jaime Alguersuari broke the 2009 Hungarian Grand Prix, a record that was later broken by Max Verstappen in 2015.

With Tyrrell, the United States Grand Prix, Thackwell had another chance to compete in the upcoming race. After suffering a fractured brake disc during qualifying, he was unable to qualify for the Watkins Glen race.

Thackwell's debut in a Tyrrell was unsuccessful; he returned to Formula Two in 1981. He was still considered to be one of the future's best actors, and Ralt has signed Geoff Lees as the successor to his partner. After winning the International Trophy in Silverstone and a third place at Hockenheim, he was involved in a catastrophic crash that left him with a shattered heel and head injury. According to Autosport, he went from 140 mph to 0 mph in under 2 feet. He completed the season and finished 6th in the Championships in a matter of weeks, though still on crutches.

In 1982, he was unable to obtain a work drive due to the team's members' belief that he had still not recovered from his injury from his injury the previous year. He managed to get a drive for the 1982 season in the little under-funded and privately operated Horag Racing and Bertram Schäfer Racing Teams; he also earned two top-three finishes at Pau and Spa-Francorchamps with support from family, colleagues, and small sponsors.

After winning with another eight visits to the podium in that year's F2 championship, he rejoined the works Ralt team for 1983, finishing second. He stayed at Ralt the following season, and the championship was dominated by Thackwell, who went one better, winning the series on the back of seven victories out of eleven races, including another win in the International Trophy competition at Silverstone. He had earned six pole positions and nine fastest laps by the end of the season. He led 408 of the 580 laps in total.

Thackwell, who was still in the middle of his season of elution, was back in demand. However, this only amounted to two more fill-in one-off drives, the last of his career in F1.

Palmer was recalled by Palmer at the Canadian Grand Prix for the RAM team. He finished in 25th place, one rank above teammate Philippe Alliot, who ran in 25th place in 1.55 seconds. His race didn't continue until lap 30, when a broken turbo wastegate brought him to retirement. Palmer will reclaim his seat in the upcoming election. Since Stefan Bellof was unable to compete in Germany, Tyrrell wanted him to compete in Germany. Thackwell failed to qualify for the German Grand Prix by just 0.055 seconds, once more. During the season, he also tested for Williams.

As an early aspiration, there was the opportunity to try other racing classes. He competed in two World Endurance Championship races, finishing 5th in the Nürburgring 1000km for Obermaier Racing and 21st in the 956 of Kremer Racing. After suffering foot injury in Sanair during preparations for the Molson 300 sidelined Penske ace Rick Mears, Thackwell completed the 1984 season in CART for Penske Racing in Penske's Pennzoil March 84C. Unlike Johnny Rutherford, who ran the first two races of Mears' eventual year and a half as a replacement in the 1984 season, the #6 team finished third overall.

Since struggling to get a good deal in F1 and CART, he turned to them and competed in the Formula 3000, the F2 replacement series. He won the first round at Silverstone and, in the process, won his third International Trophy race. He won two races before finishing second in the runners' race to Christian Danner. In the meantime, he competed for the TWR Jaguar team four times, ending his season off with a second place in the Shah Alam circuit, partnered by John Nielsen.

He won in F3000 in 1986, both in Europe and Japan, and he also won in F3000, and Mercedes-Benz's first modern racing win came when he shared a Sauber with Henri Pescarolo to win the Nürburgring 1000km.

Thackwell returned to New Zealand in 1987 to compete in Formula Pacific during the European winter. He won the first three rounds of the MANZ Formula Pacific International Championship and is now the champion.

He concentrated on sports car racing with the Kouros Racing Team in their 1987 Sauber C9, only to be met with further disappointment. His only podium finish in the World Endurance series came after he resigned and rode with British Lloyd Racing's Porsche 962GTi, this time partnering Mauro Baldi.

He had a one-off F3000 race for the Works Ralt outfit at Pau in 1988. However, having been disillusioned with motorsport, he turned his back on it at the end of 1988.

He served as a helicopter pilot in the North Sea for British International Helicopters, a gold miner in the North-West of Western Australia, and as a English teacher. He is widely believed to have been one of the top 'lost talents', a driver who was in the wrong place at the wrong time at the wrong time. Motorsport Thackwell, a British newspaper, lives on the South coast of England, where he spends his free time surfing in summer and winter as tides permit.

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