Ian Hugh Gordon Ashley (born 26 October 1947 in

Wuppertal Wuppertal (; "''Wupper Dale''") is, with a population of approximately 355,000, the seventh-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia as well as the 17th-largest city of Germany. It was founded in 1929 by the merger of the cities and tow ...

, Germany) is a British-German

racing driver Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. Auto racing has existed since the invention of the automobile. Races of various sorts were organise ...

who raced in

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

for the

Token Token may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Token, a game piece or counter, used in some games * The Tokens, a vocal music group * Tolkien Black, a recurring character on the animated television series ''South Park,'' formerly known a ...

, Williams, BRM and Hesketh teams.

Driving career

Ashley began racing in 1966 when he took a course at the Jim Russell Racing School. He was fast but rather erratic, and soon earned the nickname "Crashley". He reached Formula 5000 in 1972 and was a front-runner in 1973. He made his debut in Formula One in 1974, and briefly drove for the Williams team the following year. His luck got worse over the mid-1970s in Formula One. He was to become a victim of two nasty accidents on circuits that were no longer used by Formula One soon after his two accidents. During 1975, at the German Grand Prix at the

Nürburgring The is a 150,000 person capacity motorsports complex located in the town of Nürburg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It features a Grand Prix race track built in 1984, and a long "North loop" track, built in the 1920s, around the village a ...

where during practice, he crashed severely at the tricky Pflanzgarten section and broke both his ankles, and during practice for the Canadian Grand Prix at Mosport Park in 1977, he went over a bump, flipped his Hesketh, vaulted the barrier and crashed into a television tower. He never raced in Formula One again. In 1985 he made his

CART A cart or dray (Australia and New Zealand) is a vehicle designed for transport, using two wheels and normally pulled by one or a pair of draught animals. A handcart is pulled or pushed by one or more people. It is different from the flatbed ...

Championship Car debut at the

Miami Grand Prix The Miami Grand Prix is a Formula One Grand Prix which forms part of the 2022 Formula One World Championship, with the event taking place at the Miami International Autodrome on a ten-year contract. History In 2018, a proposal for the Miami Gra ...

. He was entered in the 1986 Indianapolis 500 but the car did not appear on track. However, he did make three CART starts in 1986 and finished ninth at the

Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course is a road course auto racing facility located in Troy Township, Morrow County, Ohio, United States, just outside the village of Lexington. Mid-Ohio has also colloquially become a term for the entire north-central region ...

, enough for 28th in the championship. He failed to finish in his other two 1986 starts. He also made a single Indy Lights start at

Pocono Raceway Pocono Raceway (formerly Pocono International Raceway), also known as ''The Tricky Triangle'', is a superspeedway located in the Pocono Mountains in Long Pond, Pennsylvania. It is the site of three NASCAR national series races and an AR ...

and finished sixth. He made one more CART appearance in 1987, again in Miami but was knocked out by drivetrain trouble. After Formula One he built a career as a pilot for executive jets in the United States. However, in 1993 he made a return to racing, driving a

Vauxhall Vauxhall ( ) is a district in South West London, part of the London Borough of Lambeth, England. Vauxhall was part of Surrey until 1889 when the County of London was created. Named after a medieval manor, "Fox Hall", it became well known for ...

in the

British Touring Car Championship The Kwik Fit British Touring Car Championship is a touring car racing series held each year in the United Kingdom, currently organised and administered by TOCA. It was established in 1958 as the British Saloon Car Championship and was renamed a ...

. Following this he briefly raced motorcycle sidecar combinations, before a stint in the TVR Tuscan Challenge one-make series. In November 2009, he competed in Formula Ford for the first time in over 40 years driving an Elden MK8 in the Walter Hayes Trophy at Silverstone.

Racing record

Complete Formula One results

( key)

Complete British Touring Car Championship results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ashley, Ian 1947 births Living people English racing drivers English Formula One drivers Champ Car drivers Indy Lights drivers British Touring Car Championship drivers Sidecar racers Token Formula One drivers Williams Formula One drivers BRM Formula One drivers Hesketh Formula One drivers Barber Pro Series drivers German emigrants to the United Kingdom