Swiss driver Joseph Siffert originally made a name for himself at a national level racing motorcycles winning the Swiss national championship for the 350cc class in 1959. Shortly afterwards he made the jump to four wheels in Formula Junior. By 1962 he had made his way up to Formula One as a privateer, making his debut at the 1962 Monaco GP with a customer Lotus chassis. He scored victories in a few non-championship F1 races and in 1964 he joined Rob Walker’s successful private Lotus team where four years later he would score his maiden Grand Prix win at the British GP held at Brands Hatch. His win is considered by many to be the last GP win by a true privateer team.

While his F1 career was one of steady growth and consistent, if not spectacular, results he was an undisputed ace in the world of Sports Car racing winning the 24 Hrs of Daytona, the Sebring 12 Hour race and in 1970 the fabled Targa Florio (below) all for Porsche. Siffert was also instrumental in the development for Porsche’s CanAm racing program.

By 1970 Siffert was being courted by Ferrari for both its Sports Car and F1 programs, rather than lose its driver to a rival Porsche bank rolled a seat in the March F1 team for Siffert but the relationship didn’t work out. In 1971 he switched to the BRM team for F1 and scored he second Grand Prix victory in Austria (below)

Siffert was killed on October 24th, 1971 competing in an end of season non-championship F1 race at Brands Hatch, the site of his first GP victory. His suspension had been damaged in a first lap incident and later in the race it collapsed sending Siffert’s BRM into the barriers. Siffert was trapped in the burning car and couldn’t escape the flames.

Subsequent investigations found that although his injuries were non-fatal (having suffered only a broken leg from the crash impact) Siffert had died from oxygen starvation and smoke inhalation. His death lead to immediate changes in the sport including more fire retardant overalls,  the introduction of on-board fire extinguishers and piped air into the drivers helmets.

Jo Siffert’s life was the subject of an excellent documentary, “Jo Siffert – Live Fast, Die Young” released in 2005.

Gunnar Nilsson was born into a wealthy, if somewhat reclusive family, who lived in  Helsingborg, on Sweden’s west coast. Around the age of twenty Nilsson began racing in national events. Then at the age of 26 he decided to try his hand in Britain and raced in Formula Super Vee in 1974. The following year he moved up to Formula 3 with a privately owned and operated March. His talent lead to the offer of a works March drive for the 1975 F3 series, which he took full advantage of ending up with eight winds and the title of British F3 Champion.

His plan was to race the works March in Formula 2 during 1976, but a driver swap deal between the March and Lotus F1 teams saw fellow Swede, and good friend, Ronnie Peterson jump to March and Nilsson moving up to the Grand Prix grid in the vacated Lotus seat. He was soon joined at Lotus by Mario Andretti and the two began development work on the Lotus 77.

 For the 1977 season  Lotus introduced the ground effect Lotus 78 which had several teething problems, but by mid-year had become competitive giving Nilsson his maiden victory at a rain soaked Zolder where he won the Belgian Grand Prix after driving around Niki Lauda’s hitherto dominant Ferrari.

Towards the end of the season Nilsson started to feel unwell on a far too regular basis, but still signed for the new Arrows team for the 1978 season. Towards the end of 1977 he was diagnosed with testicular cancer. As the new season approached it was clear that Nilsson was too ill to drive and in a gesture of faith the Arrows team offered to keep his seat open. Unfortunately it became clear that Gunnar Nilsson’ condition was terminal. During the 1978 season the deteriorating Nilsson sat on the side lines and watched as the new generation of Lotus ground effect cars that he had helped develop swept all before them, he also mourned the lose of his good friend Ronnie Peterson following his accident at the Italian GP in September.

As he approached his final days he laid the foundations for a cancer research foundation, but would never see it come to fruition as he died on October 20th, 1978.

A year after his death his wealthy widowed mother carried on his work and founded the Gunner Nilsson Cancer Foundation to which she eventually bequeathed her entire fortune.

The same year the foundation was formed a new treatment for testicular cancer was developed that reduced the mortality rate from 90% to 10%.

 Although he started racing at 15 Eylard Theodore (”Ted”) Horn didn’t really come into his own until he was in his thirties. Born into a large inheritance Horn started racing as a teenager in a $12 jalopy. Following a serious racing accident at 18 his parents asked him to quit racing. He did – for a while – but at the age of 21 he was back behind the wheel. He soon crashed again but returned as soon as his injuries healed.

In 1934 he made his first attempt to qualify for the Indy 500 just missing out. He then tried to use his fortune to buy out the two cars that qualified ahead of him so he could take their place on the grid. His plans were discovered and stopped.  He managed to qualify on speed the following year and became a regular at the Indy 500 form 1936 to 1941 with varying results.

During the hostilities of World War II Horn applied to join the army but was rejected due to his racing injuries. After the war he returned to motor racing and began his greatest run of successes. He won all seven races he entered in 1945 and went on to win the national championship in 1946, 1947 and 1948 making him the first, and to date only, Three Time National Champion.  He never did win the Indy 500 but scored a record ten top four placings.

Shortly after clinching the 1948 championship Horn was involved in an accident during the second lap of a race at DuQuoin, Illinois on October 10th, 1948. Although still alive when taken to the local hospital he succumbed to his injuries shortly afterwards. Ted Horn was 38 years old.

 Denny Hulme lived to drive, whatever he could and wherever he could he would race, and perhaps in some ways it was also fitting that he died behind the wheel of a race car, not in a accident but of a heart attack after he had managed to pull the car safely off the road.

The native New Zealander started his career in local hill climbs and was successful enough to win the countries “Driver to Europe” program, which saw him find a place at the Brabham garage while finding early rides with Abarth (at Le Mans) and Tyrrell (in F2). Perhaps it was inevitable that he would get the call to the championship winning Brabham F2 team and from there graduate to the works Formula One team. He made his GP debut at the 1965 Italian GP embarking on his first full season of F1 racing the following year. In 1967 Hulme won the world championship just ahead of his boss and team owner Jack Brabham.

In 1968 he switched to McLaren and although he won several more Grands Prix he didn’t manage to clinch another world title. During his time at Mclaren Hulme became close friends with his team-mate Peter Revson and was devastated after Revson’s death during testing in 1974. Hulme saw out the rest of the season, including a win at the US GP, and then gracefully retired from Formula One racing.

During his F1 career, Hulme also raced at the Indy 500 as well as in the McLaren Can-Am cars (again teamed with Peter Revson).

In the 1980s Hulme returned from retirement to race in the European Touring Car Championship as well as at the Australian classic, the Bathurst 1000. It was during the 1992 running of the Bathurst 1000, on October 4th, that Hulme suffered a heart attack while behind the wheel of a BMW M3.  After veering into the wall on the left side of the track, he managed to bring the car to a relatively controlled stop on the opposite side of the course. When marshals reached the scene they found Hulme still strapped in but not breathing.

Denny Hulme was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame in 1998.

The 1967 German Grand Prix at the classic Nurburgring – Won by Denny Hulme.

Olivier Gendebien lived that life of adventure stories as war hero, explorer, race driver and successful business man. During the Second World War the Belgian born Gendebien joined the resistance movement against the occupying Nazi army originally serving as a liaison to British agents parachuting into the country. He later escaped to England and joined the British Army as a paratrooper himself.

After the war he worked in the Belgian Congo where he made the acquaintance of a rally driver, on returning to Belgium the two entered several rallies together. Success in rally driving bought him to the attention of Enzo Ferrari who offered him a place racing both sports cars and Grand Prix cars for the famous marque.

Genedebien competed in 15 Grand Prix between 1956 and 1961 with his best result being a second place at  the 1960 French Grand Prix. He was whoever very successful in Sports Cars racing to four Le Mans 24-Hour victories.  Following his fourth victory in 1962 he retired from racing.

He died at his home in Southern France on October 3rd, 1998