What happened on this day, February 12 in Formula 1 history? Find out interesting facts and stories about Formula 1 on this day.
1877
Born in Paris on this day, Louis Renault was a key figure in the automotive industry as a co-founder of Renault. Despite his contributions to automobile manufacturing, his legacy is marred by his collaboration with the Germans during World War II. He died in late 1944 in France, under uncertain circumstances while awaiting trial. His assets were seized and his company was nationalised by the provisional French government, although he was never formally tried or convicted.
1974
Toranosuke Takagi, born in Shizuoka, Japan, had a brief stint in Formula One with Tyrrell and Arrows during the late 1990s but struggled to make a noteworthy impact, often retiring from races without scoring points. After his career in Formula One, Takagi returned to Japan, won the Formula Nippon championship, and later raced in Champ Car and Indy Car races in the USA. He went on to nurture future talents through his karting school in Japan.
1975
Peter Bonnington, known as Bono, is a British F1 engineer with an impressive career was born on this day. He began his Formula 1 journey in 2004 as a data engineer with Jordan Grand Prix. While at the Silverstone team, he worked with drivers such as Giorgio Pantano and Timo Glock. Bonnington’s career trajectory then took him to the Honda team, where he served under the guidance of senior race engineer Andrew Shovlin, and took on the role of performance engineer for Jenson Button. His expertise was pivotal in Button’s journey, especially during the change of Honda to Brawn GP, leading up to Button’s World Championship win in 2009.
Bonnington’s career continued to ascend as he joined Mercedes, initially working as Michael Schumacher’s performance engineer. In September 2011, he stepped up as Schumacher’s race engineer following Mark Slade’s departure. After Schumacher retired in 2012, Bonnington was promoted to senior race engineer for Lewis Hamilton at Mercedes, a position he held until the end of the 2024 championship when Hamilton left the team.
2001
In a tribute to his achievements, a road in Michael Schumacher’s hometown of Kerpen, Germany, was named after the seven-time Formula One World Champion. The road, which leads to his family’s kart track, was renamed during a special ceremony.
2005
A test session at Jerez was disrupted when a water truck employed to wet the track for Michelin’s wet tyre development became lodged in a gravel trap. BAR drivers Jenson Button and Ricardo Zonta were forced to delay their testing for several hours until a crane could be called to free the water-filled truck.
2009
A planned testing session in Bahrain was interrupted by sandstorms, causing the teams at the desert track to stop. Ferrari, BMW Sauber, and Toyota had chosen the track to minimise the likelihood of rain affecting their schedule. They managed only one lap each before officials halted the session due to the extreme conditions.
F1 Driver Birthdays 12 February
| Birthday | F1 Driver |
|---|---|
| 12 February 1920 | Jack Turner |
| 12 February 1952 | Patrick Gaillard |
| 12 February 1974 | Tora Takagi |
| Birthday | F1 Mentions |
|---|---|
| 12 February 1975 | Peter Bonnington Known for being the race engineer of seven-time world champion Lewis Hamilton while he drove for Mercedes. |
F1 Driver Deaths 12 February
| Death | F1 Driver |
|---|---|
| 12 February 1987 | Dennis Poore (b.1916) |
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