Tom Pryce

Thomas Maldwyn Pryce was a racing driver Welsh, born the June 11th 1949 with Ruthin, Wales and deceased the March 5th 1977 at 27 years, on the circuit of Kyalami, at the time of an accident to GP of South Africa. In 42 GP, Tom Pryce marked 19 points, carried out 1 pole-position and 3 better turns in race.

Biography

Thomas Pryce professionally begins his automobile career in 1970 when it gains the first price (Lola of Formule Ford 1600) of a competition of the Daily Express . In 1971, it runs in Ford Formula, Formulates 100 of them, then in Formula Super Vee, where it gains the national title. In 1972, it disputes the championship of Formule 3, and gains the first test of the Shell championship disputed in Brands Hatch. In 1973, it passes in Formule 2 with the stable Rondel de Ron Dennis. It finishes 5th in Mantorp, then is classified 2nd in Norisring. In 1974, Ron Dennis plans to run in F1 with Pryce, and orders a study with Ray Jessop: fault of the support of Motul, Dennis must give up this project, which nevertheless will be taken again by Tony Vlassopoulo and Ken Grob under the name Token.

Tom does not remain in F2 with Dennis but begins in F1 out-championship from the world, at the time of BRDC International Trophy, then in championship of the world, in Belgium, at the wheel of the news Token RJ-02. These 2 races show 2 abandonments. He does not obtain the authorization to align himself to the GP of Monaco, because he is considered to be too inexperienced: he then decides to dispute the race of F3 and takes his revenge by gaining it… Following its beautiful performance in Principality, it is engaged by the team Shadow. Very quickly, it shows its talents, while being qualified 3rd with the DN3 at the time of the GP of France, then by glânant its first point in Nürburgring. It disputes 9 GP in 1974 and its point enables him to be classified 18th with the pilot championship.

In 1975, always at Shadow, it begins the season in beauty at the wheel from the DN5, with a victory with the Race off Champions (test out-championship disputed in Brands Hatch). With the GP of Monaco, it takes down a first line at the sides of Niki Lauda. On its impetus, it takes down the pole-position in Great Britain (where it will carry out the race during 2 turns). Lastly, in Austria, it goes up on its first podium in championship of the world. Tom finishes 10th championship while having registered 8 points of 14 GP.

the following year, always at Shadow, at the wheel of the DN5, it begins the season in brass band with a new podium at the time of the inaugural race in Brazil. It off finishes on the other hand only 6th Race Champions. Tom qualifies himself in 3rd position with Zandvoort, where it finishes 4th. He repeats at the time of the GP of Great Britain. He finishes the season with more points than the previous year (10 points), but retrograde of a place to the championship which he finishes 11th.

In 1977, it continues to run to Shadow, at the wheel of the étrennée DN8 the previous year. The season does not start as well as he would have hoped for it: it finishes the GP of Argentina not-classified, with 8 turns of delay on Jody Scheckter. In Brazil, whereas it extirpated 12th place on the grid to conquer the second place in race, the engine of its Shadow explodes for the arrival. Then comes the South-African race…

The fellow-member of Pryce, Renzo Zorzi, has just immobilized his single-seater on the edge of the track, following a rupture engine. He manages to extinguish a beginning of fire when police chiefs notice the incident. Zorzi their fact signs that all is well but the police chiefs imprudently cross the track with extinguishers. Unfortunately, they do not see (because of one towards track), that Pryce arrives at full speed by taking the aspiration of Hans-Joachim Stuck. Stuck manages to avoid them but Pryce does not have time and mows the second police chief, Fraderick Jansen van Juuren. Pryce is run up against of full whip against the face by the extinguisher of the police chief. Torn off helmet, Tom Pryce is killed on the blow, just as the police chief. In a macabre way, the car of Pryce will continue its mad dash throughout the straight line before running up against the car of Jacques Laffite.

Results in F1

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