Former racing driver Mario Andretti is widely regarded as one of the greatest American drivers in F1 history and in motorsport. He competed in Formula One from 1968 to 1982 and secured the 1978 Drivers’ Championship with Lotus. He also achieved tremendous success in American open-wheel racing, winning four IndyCar National Championships and winning the prestigious Indianapolis 500 in 1969. He won the 1967 Daytona 500 in stock car racing, and in endurance racing, he triumphed in the 12 Hours of Sebring thrice.
Nationality | American |
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Born | Mario Gabriele Andretti February 28, 1940 Montona, Istria, Kingdom of Italy (current day Motovun, Croatia) |
Born in the Kingdom of Italy, Andretti emigrated to the United States at 15. Over his career, he accumulated numerous titles, including the Formula One World Championship (1978), four IndyCar titles—three under USAC sanctioning and one in CART—and significant victories in a wide range of motorsports. Andretti remains the only driver to have won the Indianapolis 500 (1969), Daytona 500 (1967), and the Formula One World Championship. Along with Juan Pablo Montoya, he is one of the few to have won races in NASCAR’s Cup Series, Formula One, and the Indianapolis 500. His career includes 109 major circuit victories across various motorsport series.
Andretti’s Formula One career began in 1968 when he made a strong debut by securing pole position at the 1968 US Grand Prix. Although his early F1 career was part-time, racing sporadically with teams like Lotus, Ferrari, and March, he secured his first victory at the 1971 South African Grand Prix. His full-time drive came in 1975 with Parnelli, followed by a successful stint with Lotus.
Andretti’s peak came in 1978 when he won the Formula One World Championship, driving the innovative Lotus 79. That year, he dominated with six victories, aided by the car’s pioneering ground-effect design. However, the season ended on a sombre note with the tragic death of his teammate Ronnie Peterson.
Andretti continued racing in F1 until 1981, with a brief return in 1982 for Ferrari and Williams. His final win came at the 1978 Dutch Grand Prix, and his final race was the 1982 Caesars Palace Grand Prix.
He became the only person named United States Driver of the Year in three decades (1967, 1978, and 1984). Additionally, Andretti is one of the few drivers to win major races on road courses, paved ovals, and dirt tracks in a single season—a feat he accomplished four times. In 1993, with his final IndyCar victory, Andretti became the first driver to win IndyCar races across four different decades and the first to win automobile races in five.
In American motorsport fandom, Andretti’s name has become synonymous with speed, akin to Barney Oldfield in the early 20th century and racing legends like Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton in Europe.
Mario Andretti Formula One World Championship career
F1 Career | 1968 – 1972, 1974 – 1982 |
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Teams | Lotus, March, Ferrari, Parnelli, Alfa Romeo, Williams |
Entries | 131 (128 starts) |
Championships | 1 (1978) |
Wins | 12 |
Podiums | 19 |
Career points | 180 |
Pole positions | 18 |
Fastest laps | 10 |
First entry | 1968 United States Grand Prix |
First win | 1971 South African Grand Prix |
Last win | 1978 Dutch Grand Prix |
Last entry | 1982 Caesars Palace Grand Prix |
Mario Andretti Teammates
17 Teammates | Involvement | First Year | Last Year |
---|---|---|---|
Graham Hill | 6 | 1968 | 1969 |
Jackie Oliver | 2 | 1968 | |
Jochen Rindt | 4 | 1969 | |
Jacky Ickx | 18 | 1971 | 1972 |
Clay Regazzoni | 16 | 1971 | 1972 |
Arturo Merzario | 1 | 1972 | |
Ronnie Peterson | 15 | 1976 | 1978 |
Gunnar Nilsson | 29 | 1976 | 1977 |
Jean-Pierre Jarier | 2 | 1978 | |
Carlos Reutemann | 15 | 1979 | |
Elio de Angelis | 14 | 1980 | |
Nigel Mansell | 3 | 1980 | |
Bruno Giacomelli | 15 | 1981 | |
Mauro Baldi | 1 | 1981 | |
Keke Rosberg | 1 | 1982 | |
Patrick Tambay | 3 | 1982 | 1984 |
Derek Warwick | 1 | 1984 |
Race Wins
Win Number | Grand Prix |
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1 | 1971 South African Grand Prix |
2 | 1976 Japanese Grand Prix |
3 | 1977 United States Grand Prix West |
4 | 1977 Spanish Grand Prix |
5 | 1977 French Grand Prix |
6 | 1977 Italian Grand Prix |
7 | 1978 Argentine Grand Prix |
8 | 1978 Belgian Grand Prix |
9 | 1978 Spanish Grand Prix |
10 | 1978 French Grand Prix |
11 | 1978 German Grand Prix |
12 | 1978 Dutch Grand Prix |
Complete Formula One Results
Year | Entrant | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | WDC | Points |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1968 | Gold Leaf Team Lotus | Lotus 49B | Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 | RSA | ESP | MON | BEL | NED | FRA | GBR | GER | ITA DNS | CAN | USA Ret | MEX | NC | 0 | |||||
1969 | Gold Leaf Team Lotus | Lotus 49B | Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 | RSA Ret | ESP | MON | NED | FRA | GBR | |||||||||||||
Lotus 63 | Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 | GER Ret | ITA | CAN | USA Ret | MEX | NC | 0 | ||||||||||||||
1970 | STP Corporation | March 701 | Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 | RSA Ret | ESP 3 | MON | BEL | NED | FRA | GBR Ret | GER Ret | AUT Ret | ITA | CAN | USA | MEX | 16th | 4 | ||||
1971 | Scuderia Ferrari SpA SEFAC | Ferrari 312B | Ferrari 001 3.0 F12 | RSA 1 | ESP Ret | MON DNQ | NED Ret | FRA | GBR | 8th | 12 | |||||||||||
Ferrari 312B2 | Ferrari 001/1 3.0 F12 | GER 4 | AUT | ITA | CAN 13 | USA DNS | ||||||||||||||||
1972 | Scuderia Ferrari SpA SEFAC | Ferrari 312B2 | Ferrari 001/1 3.0 F12 | ARG Ret | RSA 4 | ESP Ret | MON | BEL | FRA | GBR | GER | AUT | ITA 7 | CAN | USA 6 | 12th | 4 | |||||
1974 | Vel’s Parnelli Jones Racing | Parnelli VPJ4 | Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 | ARG | BRA | RSA | ESP | BEL | MON | SWE | NED | FRA | GBR | GER | AUT | ITA | CAN 7 | USA DSQ | NC | 0 | ||
1975 | Vel’s Parnelli Jones Racing | Parnelli VPJ4 | Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 | ARG Ret | BRA 7 | RSA 17 | ESP Ret | MON Ret | BEL | SWE 4 | NED | FRA 5 | GBR 12 | GER 10 | AUT Ret | ITA Ret | USA Ret | 14th | 5 | |||
1976 | John Player Team Lotus | Lotus 77 | Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 | BRA Ret | ESP Ret | BEL Ret | MON | SWE Ret | FRA 5 | GBR Ret | GER 12 | AUT 5 | NED 3 | ITA Ret | CAN 3 | USA Ret | JPN 1 | 6th | 22 | |||
Vel’s Parnelli Jones Racing | Parnelli VPJ4B | Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 | RSA 6 | USW Ret | ||||||||||||||||||
1977 | John Player Team Lotus | Lotus 78 | Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 | ARG 5 | BRA Ret | RSA Ret | USW 1 | ESP 1 | MON 5 | BEL Ret | SWE 6 | FRA 1 | GBR 14 | GER Ret | AUT Ret | NED Ret | ITA 1 | USA 2 | CAN 9 | JPN Ret | 3rd | 47 |
1978 | John Player Team Lotus | Lotus 78 | Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 | ARG 1 | BRA 4 | RSA 7 | USW 2 | MON 11 | 1st | 64 | ||||||||||||
Lotus 79 | Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 | BEL 1 | ESP 1 | SWE Ret | FRA 1 | GBR Ret | GER 1 | AUT Ret | NED 1 | ITA 6 | USA Ret | CAN 10 | ||||||||||
1979 | Martini Racing Team Lotus | Lotus 79 | Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 | ARG 5 | BRA Ret | RSA 4 | USW 4 | BEL Ret | GBR Ret | GER Ret | AUT Ret | NED Ret | ITA 5 | CAN 10 | USA Ret | 12th | 14 | |||||
Lotus 80 | Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 | ESP 3 | MON Ret | FRA Ret | ||||||||||||||||||
1980 | Team Essex Lotus | Lotus 81 | Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 | ARG Ret | BRA Ret | RSA 12 | USW Ret | BEL Ret | MON 7 | FRA Ret | GBR Ret | GER 7 | AUT Ret | NED 8 | ITA Ret | CAN Ret | USA 6 | 20th | 1 | |||
1981 | Marlboro Team Alfa Romeo | Alfa Romeo 179C | Alfa Romeo 1260 3.0 V12 | USW 4 | BRA Ret | ARG 8 | SMR Ret | BEL 10 | MON Ret | ESP 8 | 17th | 3 | ||||||||||
Alfa Romeo 179B | Alfa Romeo 1260 3.0 V12 | FRA 8 | GBR Ret | GER 9 | AUT Ret | |||||||||||||||||
Alfa Romeo 179D | Alfa Romeo 1260 3.0 V12 | NED Ret | ITA Ret | CAN 7 | CPL Ret | |||||||||||||||||
1982 | TAG Williams Team | Williams FW07C | Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 | RSA | BRA | USW Ret | SMR | BEL | MON | DET | CAN | NED | GBR | FRA | GER | AUT | SUI | 19th | 4 | |||
Scuderia Ferrari SpA SEFAC | Ferrari 126C2 | Ferrari 021 1.5 V6 t | ITA 3 | CPL Ret |
Sources:
- Mario Andretti. Wikipedia.com