Who is Jeremy Clarkson’s favorite Formula 1 driver? The famous English journalist and television presenter expressed his preference for him, and no, these are not the usual names. No Lewis Hamilton, no Michael Schumacher, nor even Ayrton Senna. To tell the truth, Jezza’s idol has never even won a world championship, but what a legend…
VI was, by now cars have become only a small speck in the vast and varied activity of journalist and television host of Jeremy Clarkson. Became a global icon with the program, brought to success by him, Top Gear on the BBC, and then moved to Amazon Prime Video with The Grand Touralways in the company of his trusted colleagues (and friends) James May and Richard Hammond; now Jezza finds himself recording the latest episodes of the streaming show, and carrying on the Didlly Squats, his farm featured in another very successful Amazon series. For the printed paper, however, he delights in articles on current affairs and customs, often leading to politics, and in some car reviews for the The Sunday Times. Yet, in the heart of Clarkson there is always a port for four wheels, especially when it comes to Formula 1. A few weeks ago, during the Bahrain Grand Prix, the first race of the season, he became the protagonist of a hilarious skit when he found himself waving the classic checkered flag but tipsy. Be that as it may, Jeremy despite everything has remained a great F1 fan, a true fan boy and, as such, has idols of him. In particular, Jezza’s favorite driver it’s not the usual name of world champions, on the contrary…
Noor, you certainly shouldn’t expect a guy like Clarkson to drool after athletes idolized by everyone and everything Lewis Hamiltonclose to landing at Ferrari, o Michael Schumacher, the very unfortunate former Ferrari champion. That would be too banal, right? And, perhaps, the names of the past such as Ayrton Senna, or those of the British legends who wrote the history of F1, the various Jim Clark, Sir Jackie Stewart and Graham Hill. Or the ruler of the moment Max Verstappen. Jezza’s heart, in fact, belongs to an old driver who wandered around the circus for a short time, having only raced sixty-seven races due to his premature death; this happened on the track. And in these very few races he never managed to bring home the world title, only managing to arrive second in the 1979 season. Well yes, it is precisely the myth Gilles Villeneuve. Ferrari driver from 1977 until 1982, the year in which he lost his life in the Belgian GP, the Canadian driver seems to have managed to charm the cynical British journalist, becoming one of his idols since his youth. In fact, it was Clarkson himself who revealed it, in a 2022 interview given to the site Formula1.com (resume, it is not clear why, by various international newspapers in recent days). To profess his admiration for the late pilot, Jeremy revealed how “they were there two events that consolidated my admiration for him”, or when in 1981 at the British GPwhere Jezza was present as a spectator, following a huge accident Gilles continued to race with his battered car. “It was kind of Monty Python knight, without arms and legs. He will continue to race, even though he no longer had a car”, his comment. And then, she continues, “there was the French GP 1979 in Dijon. He was racing for second place with René Arnoux. How many times did they hit each other in the last lap, five times? […] It was an absolutely fantastic race and I thought: ‘Okay, he’s my favorite driver‘. Since then I have never seen anyone run like him again.” Jeremy’s level of admiration? The journalist admitted that he had chosen 27, the number of Villeneuve’s races, as his favorite number.
