Pedro Rodríguez (racing Driver)
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Pedro Rodríguez de la Vega (18 January 1940 – 11 July 1971) was a Mexican
racing driver Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. In North America, the term is commonly used to describe all forms of automobile sport including non ...
, who competed in
Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...
from to . Rodríguez won two
Formula One Grands Prix Formula One, abbreviated to F1, is the highest class of open-wheeled auto racing series managed by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), motorsport's world governing body. The "formula" in the name alludes to a series of FIA ...
across nine seasons. In endurance racing, Rodríguez won the
24 Hours of Le Mans The 24 Hours of Le Mans () is an endurance-focused Sports car racing, sports car race held annually near the city of Le Mans, France. It is widely considered to be one of the world's most prestigious races, and is one of the races—along with ...
in with Ford, and was a two-time winner of the
24 Hours of Daytona The 24 Hours of Daytona, also known as the Rolex 24 At Daytona for sponsorship reasons, is a 24-hour sports car racing, sports car Endurance racing (motorsport), endurance race held annually at Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Flo ...
with
Porsche Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, usually shortened to Porsche (; see below), is a German automobile manufacturer specializing in luxury, high-performance sports cars, SUVs and sedans, headquartered in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Th ...
. Born and raised in
Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...
, Rodríguez was the older brother of racing driver Ricardo Rodríguez, who became the first Mexican driver to compete in Formula One in 1961. Both brothers started racing at an early age, first on motorbikes and then moving to cars. Following his brother's death in a racing accident in 1962, Pedro briefly considered retiring from racing, but decided to carry on. In sportscar racing his first major win was with his brother in the 1961 Paris 1000km, driving a Ferrari 250 GT. He began his Formula One career in 1963, won the 1967 South African Grand Prix in a Cooper and the 1970 Belgian Grand Prix in a BRM. He won the 1968 24 Hours of Le Mans in a Ford GT40 and won eight races in the
Porsche 917 The Porsche 917 is a sports prototype race car developed by German manufacturer Porsche to exploit the regulations regarding the construction of 5-litre sports cars. Powered by a Type 912 flat-12 engine which was progressively enlarged from 4. ...
across 1970 and 1971. In July 1971, Rodríguez was killed at the
Norisring The Norisring is a street circuit in Nuremberg, Bavaria, Germany. Originally established as a motorcycle racing venue in 1947 and named in a 1950 competition to win a light motorcycle, the track became known as a sports car racing venue in the 19 ...
in
West Germany West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...
, driving a Ferrari 512 M in an
Interserie Interserie is the name of a European-based motorsport series started in 1970 that allows for a wide variety of racing cars from various eras and series to compete with less limited rules than in other series. Created in 1970 by German Gerhard Här ...
sportscar race.


Personal life

Rodríguez was born in
Mexico City Mexico City is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Mexico, largest city of Mexico, as well as the List of North American cities by population, most populous city in North America. It is one of the most important cultural and finan ...
,
Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
, the son of Pedro Natalio Rodríguez and Concepción De la Vega. He had an older sister, Conchita, and three younger brothers: Ricardo, Federico (died at two months of age) and Alejandro. At 15, his father sent him to Western Military Academy in
Alton, Illinois Alton ( ) is a city on the Mississippi River in Madison County, Illinois, United States, about north of St. Louis, Missouri. The population was 25,676 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is a part of the River Bend (Illinois), Riv ...
, in order to learn English and to develop more discipline. The Rodríguez brothers raced bicycles and motorcycles, becoming Mexican national motorcycle champions in 1953 and 1954. Pedro made his international debut in cars at Nassau in 1957 in a
Ferrari Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello. Founded in 1939 by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988), the company built Auto Avio Costruzioni 815, its first car in 1940, adopted its current name in 1945, and be ...
. He married Angelina (''née'' Damy), in Mexico in 1961, although he had a girlfriend in England, Glenda Foreman, with whom he lived in Bray on Thames in his later years, but left no children. Rodríguez always traveled with a
Mexican flag The national flag, national flag of Mexico () is a vertical Tricolour (flag), tricolor of green, white, and red with Coat of arms of Mexico, the national coat of arms charge (heraldry), charged in the center of the white stripe. While the meani ...
and a record of the national anthem because when he won the 1967 South African GP the organizers did not have the Mexican anthem, and instead played the Mexican hat dance. Jo Ramírez was a very close friend to both Rodríguez and his younger brother, Ricardo.


Career

Rodríguez began racing with bicycles at eight years old. He was a class winner in the Mexican Championship by 1950. He started racing a Adler
motorcycle A motorcycle (motorbike, bike; uni (if one-wheeled); trike (if three-wheeled); quad (if four-wheeled)) is a lightweight private 1-to-2 passenger personal motor vehicle Steering, steered by a Motorcycle handlebar, handlebar from a saddle-style ...
, winning Mexico's national championship in 1952 and 1954.Kettlewell, p. 1915. In 1952, he entered a rally in a Ford, but achieved little. He returned to racing full-time in 1955, at 15, entering a Jaguar XK120 or Porsche 1600S in local contests. At the end of 1957, Rodríguez (who had been driving a
Chevrolet Corvette The Chevrolet Corvette is a line of American two-door, two-seater sports cars manufactured and marketed by General Motors under the Chevrolet marque since 1953. Throughout eight generations, indicated sequentially as C1 to C8, the Corvette is not ...
in Mexico) and his brother entered the Nassau Speed Week competition, where the wild-driving elder brother wrecked his
Ferrari Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello. Founded in 1939 by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988), the company built Auto Avio Costruzioni 815, its first car in 1940, adopted its current name in 1945, and be ...
500 TR 5 (five) is a number, numeral and digit. It is the natural number, and cardinal number, following 4 and preceding 6, and is a prime number. Humans, and many other animals, have 5 digits on their limbs. Mathematics 5 is a Fermat pri ...
. The 18-year-old Rodríguez shared a 500 TR at
Le Mans Le Mans (; ) is a Communes of France, city in Northwestern France on the Sarthe (river), Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the Provinces of France, province of Maine (province), Maine, it is now the capital of ...
, entered by U.S. importer Luigi Chinetti, with José Behra, brother of
Jean Behra Jean Marie Behra (16 February 1921 – 1 August 1959) was a French racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Behra contested 54 Formula One Grands Prix across eight seasons for Gordini, Maserati, BRM, Ferrari, and Behra-Porsche. ...
, as his co-driver; the car did not finish, after a radiator hose puncture. Rodríguez came back every year to Le Mans, fourteen times in total, and won in
1968 Events January–February * January 1968, January – The I'm Backing Britain, I'm Backing Britain campaign starts spontaneously. * January 5 – Prague Spring: Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Cze ...
, co-driving with Belgian Lucien Bianchi, sharing a Ford GT40 for the JW
Gulf A gulf is a large inlet from an ocean or their seas into a landmass, larger and typically (though not always) with a narrower opening than a bay (geography), bay. The term was used traditionally for large, highly indented navigable bodies of s ...
team. At the Reims 12-hours in 1958, Rodríguez and Behra placed second in class (eighth overall) in their
Porsche Carrera Carrera (''Spanish'' for "race" and "career") is a brand of Porsche automobile. The name commemorates the company's success in the Carrera Panamericana race. Variants of the following vehicles have been called ''Carrera'': * Porsche 356 * Pors ...
, while Rodríguez came second in a Ferrari 250 TR at Nassau at the end of the season. Rodríguez went to Europe to race starting in 1959, sharing a Porsche 1600 S with Leo Levine at the Nurbürgring 1000 km, which came in second in class (thirteenth overall). He shared a O.S.C.A. with his brother for Le Mans, which broke. At Cuba's 1960 Liberty Grand Prix, Rodríguez's 250TR followed
Stirling Moss Sir Stirling Craufurd Moss (17 September 1929 – 12 April 2020) was a British racing driver and sports broadcasting, broadcaster, who competed in Formula One from to . Widely regarded as one of the greatest drivers to never win the Formula On ...
's winning
Maserati Maserati S.p.A. () is an Italian luxury vehicle manufacturer. Established on 1 December 1914 in Bologna, Italy, the company's headquarters are now in Modena, and its emblem is a trident. The company has been owned by Stellantis since 2021. Ma ...
''Tipo'' 61 home, in second. At Sebring, his Dino 196 S failed to finish. Rodríguez claimed seventh at the 1960
Targa Florio The Targa Florio was a public road Endurance racing (motorsport), endurance automobile race held in the mountains of Sicily near the island's capital of Palermo, Sicily, Palermo. Founded in 1906 Targa Florio, 1906, it was the oldest sports car ra ...
, again in the 196 S, which spent time off the pavement as well as on. He retired from that year's Nürburgring 1000 km, and from Le Mans. In 1961, Rodríguez entered Formula Junior. He returned also to Sebring, sharing a 250TR with his brother which suffered electrical trouble and came third. The duo also failed to finish that year's Targa Florio or Nürburgring 1000 km, but did win the Paris 1000 km. An ongoing duel with the works Ferraris at Le Mans, which ultimately resulted in engine failure only two hours from the end, attracted the attention of
Enzo Ferrari Enzo Anselmo Giuseppe Maria Ferrari (; ; 18 February 1898 – 14 August 1988) was an Italian racing driver and entrepreneur, the founder of Scuderia Ferrari in Grand Prix motor racing, and subsequently of the Ferrari automobile marque. Under h ...
, who offered them
Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...
rides with his team. Pedro declined, having "a motor business in Mexico City to run". Despite his refusal, Rodríguez kept racing, and in 1962 entered at Sebring, the Nürburgring, and Le Mans, but failed to finish each time. He won at Bridgehampton, in a Ferrari 330 TRI/LM, and shared a 250 GTO with his brother to win the Paris 1000 km, the second year in a row. After Ferrari refused to enter the 1962 Mexican Grand Prix, the first to be held in Mexico, Rodríguez and his younger brother both found rides of their own. After his brother was killed in a horrific accident in practice, Rodríguez withdrew. He considered retiring from racing. However, in 1963 he won the Daytona
Continental Continental may refer to: Places * Continental, Arizona, a small community in Pima County, Arizona, US * Continental, Ohio, a small town in Putnam County, US Arts and entertainment * ''Continental'' (album), an album by Saint Etienne * Continen ...
in a 250GTO entered by North American Racing Team. He came third at Sebring, sharing a 330TR/LM with Graham Hill. He failed to qualify at
Indianapolis Indianapolis ( ), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Indiana, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana, Marion ...
, in an
Aston Martin Aston Martin Lagonda Global Holdings PLC () is a British manufacturer of Luxury car, luxury sports cars and grand tourers. Its predecessor was founded in 1913 by Lionel Martin and Robert Bamford. Headed from 1947 by David Brown (entrepreneur ...
-powered Cooper T54, but took part in his first Grand Prix in the works Lotus at Watkins Glen and
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. Rodríguez failed to finish both times.Kettlewell, p. 1916. Also in 1963, driving for Kjell Qvale Racing, he won his second USRRC ( FIA Group 7 cars) event in the Huffaker chassis#2 Mk8 GENIE/Chevrolet, then went on to win again in their chassis#3 Mk8 GENIE/Ford For 1964, he again won the Daytona Continental, as well as the sports car Canadian Grand Prix, was second at the Paris 1000 km, and third in the Bahamas Tourist Trophy. In single-seater racing, he recorded a sixth in the Ferrari 156 at
Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
. In 1965, his
Lotus 33 The Lotus 33 was a Formula One car designed by Colin Chapman and Len Terry and built by Team Lotus. A development of the successful Lotus 25, in the hands of Jim Clark it won five World Championship Grands Prix in 1965, taking Clark to his se ...
-Climax was fourth at the ''
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''
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Trophy, fifth at the U.S. Grand Prix and seventh in the Mexican Grand Prix in a Ferrari. He won the Reims 12-Hours in a Ferrari 365 P2 he shared with Jean Guichet, and scored a third at the Canadian Sports Car Grand Prix. He drove again for Lotus in four events in 1966, retiring on every occasion. He also deputised for
Jim Clark James Clark (4 March 1936 – 7 April 1968) was a British racing driver from Scotland, who competed in Formula One from to . Clark won two Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles with Lotus, and—at the time of his death—held the ...
in the
Formula Two Formula Two (F2) is a type of Open-wheel car, open-wheel formula racing category first codified in 1948. It was replaced in 1985 by Formula 3000, but revived by the FIA from 2009 FIA Formula Two Championship season, 2009 to 2012 FIA Formula Two C ...
event at Rouen. At the start of the 1967 season, Rodríguez won for the first time in only his ninth Grand Prix, at
Kyalami Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit (from ''Khaya lami'', ''My home'' in Zulu language, Zulu) is a motor racing circuit located in Midrand, Gauteng, South Africa, just north of Johannesburg. The circuit has been used for Grand Prix motor racing, Grand ...
. This was the first ever Grand Prix win for a Mexican driver. Cooper manager
Roy Salvadori Roy Francesco Salvadori (12 May 1922 – 3 June 2012) was a British racing driver and motorsport executive, who competed in Formula One from to . In endurance racing (motorsport), endurance racing, Salvadori won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in wit ...
allowed Rodríguez to drive the practice car, over the objections of teammate
Jochen Rindt Karl Jochen Rindt (; 18 April 1942 – 5 September 1970) was a racing driver, who competed under the Austrian flag in Formula One from to . Rindt won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with Lotus, and remains the only driver to ...
, who had demanded Rodríguez's car, with strong support from Rindt's close friend
Jackie Stewart Sir John Young "Jackie" Stewart (born 11 June 1939) is a British former racing driver, sports broadcasting, broadcaster and motorsport executive from Scotland, who competed in Formula One from to . Nicknamed "the Flying Scottish people, Scot" ...
. Rodríguez's smooth, consistent driving earned him victory after
Denny Hulme Denis Clive Hulme (18 June 1936 – 4 October 1992) was a New Zealand racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Nicknamed "the Bear", Hulme won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with Brabham, and won eight Grands Pri ...
had had a lengthy
pit stop Pitstop may refer to: * Pit stop, in motor racing, when the car stops in the pits for fuel and other consumables to be renewed or replenished * ''Pit Stop'' (1969 film), a movie directed by Jack Hill * ''Pit Stop'' (2013 film), a movie directe ...
and local
privateer A privateer is a private person or vessel which engages in commerce raiding under a commission of war. Since robbery under arms was a common aspect of seaborne trade, until the early 19th century all merchant ships carried arms. A sovereign o ...
John Love's Tasman Cooper needed a late fuel stop. Rindt, by contrast, retired the other Cooper-Maserati after 38 laps. Rodríguez drove a controlled season in 1967 as No. 2 to Rindt. Though usually slower than his teammate, he built up experience in the older and heavier T81, while Rindt was given the improved T81B and later the brand new T86. A mid-season accident in a Protos-Ford, at the Formula Two event at Enna, sidelined him for three Grand Prix. Rodríguez was only marginally slower than Rindt in the
Dutch Grand Prix The Dutch Grand Prix () is an annual Formula One World Championship auto racing event, held at Circuit Zandvoort, North Holland, the Netherlands, from 1950 through 1985, and after a 35 year hiatus, from 2021 to 2026. It has been a part of the ...
, also the only other race in the season where the Coopers were competitive. His performance at
Zandvoort Zandvoort () is a municipality in the province of North Holland, Netherlands. It is one of the major beach resorts of the Netherlands; it has a long sandy beach. It is bordered by coastal dunes of Zuid-Kennemerland National Park and the Amsterdam ...
earned Rodríguez a better drive with BRM in
1968 Events January–February * January 1968, January – The I'm Backing Britain, I'm Backing Britain campaign starts spontaneously. * January 5 – Prague Spring: Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Cze ...
. Rodríguez proved himself excellent in the wet at Zandvoort and
Rouen Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine, in northwestern France. It is in the prefecture of Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one ...
where he got his only
fastest lap In motorsports, the fastest lap is the quickest lap run during a race. In some racing series, like NASCAR, the fastest lap award championship points for a driver or team. In Formula One and MotoGP no point is awarded for the fastest lap. Formula O ...
in F1 during the French GP. Lack of power meant he had to settle for second behind
Bruce McLaren Bruce Leslie McLaren (30 August 1937 – 2 June 1970) was a New Zealand racing driver, automotive designer, engineer and motorsport executive, who competed in Formula One from to . McLaren was runner-up in the Formula One World Drivers' Champ ...
during the Belgian GP at Francorchamps. The BRM P133 faded through the year from lack of testing time after the death of Mike Spence, whom the team's owners favoured. Nevertheless, Rodríguez led the
Spanish Grand Prix The Spanish Grand Prix (, ) is a Formula One motor racing event currently held at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. The race is one of the oldest in the world still contested, celebrating its centenary in 2013. The race had modest beginnings ...
from
Chris Amon Christopher Arthur Amon (; 20 July 1943 – 3 August 2016) was a New Zealand racing driver and motorsport executive, who competed in Formula One from to . Widely regarded as one of the greatest drivers to never win a Formula One Grands Prix, ...
for 28 laps until he made a mistake and spun off. At the end of the year, despite Rodríguez's good performances, BRM team manager Louis Stanley released Rodríguez to the Parnell BRM privateer team. The Reg Parnell Racing BRMs proved to have hopeless engines, and after
Monaco Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a Sovereign state, sovereign city-state and European microstates, microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, ...
, Rodríguez left and signed for
Ferrari Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello. Founded in 1939 by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988), the company built Auto Avio Costruzioni 815, its first car in 1940, adopted its current name in 1945, and be ...
for the remainder of the
1969 1969 ( MCMLXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1969th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 969th year of the 2nd millennium, the 69th year of the 20th century, and the ...
Grand Prix and sports car series. Reentering F1 in the
British Grand Prix The British Grand Prix is a Grand Prix motor racing event organised in the United Kingdom by Motorsport UK. First held by the Royal Automobile Club (RAC) in 1926 British Grand Prix, 1926, the British Grand Prix has been held annually since 1948 ...
, Rodríguez matched teammate Amon's pace in practice and led Amon by a whisker in the race. The uncompetitive 312s ran midfield until Rodríguez's car broke and Amon's engine blew for the second race in a row. Given the hopelessness of the 312 V12, the frustration of his drivers, and the slow progress with getting the new flat-12 F1 car ready,
Enzo Ferrari Enzo Anselmo Giuseppe Maria Ferrari (; ; 18 February 1898 – 14 August 1988) was an Italian racing driver and entrepreneur, the founder of Scuderia Ferrari in Grand Prix motor racing, and subsequently of the Ferrari automobile marque. Under h ...
would rather have run two Italian drivers for the rest of the season, but the Brambilla brothers, Vittorio and Ernesto, proved too slow. So, Ferrari ran Rodríguez in the last four races of the season, in NART American racing colours for the North American races, but still, effectively, as a Ferrari works team. All in all, Rodríguez managed a fourth place in 1968; sixth in 1964, 1967 and 1970; and seventh in 1965 and 1969; while retiring in 1963 and 1966; in his eight home races in Mexico, but Ferrari didn't offer him a ride for 1970. BRM only offered him a ride in
1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 1970 Tonghai earthquake, Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli ...
after
John Surtees John Norman Surtees (11 February 1934 – 10 March 2017) was a British racing driver and motorcycle road racer, who competed in Grand Prix motorcycle racing from to , and Formula One from to . Surtees was a seven-time Grand Prix motorcycl ...
decided to leave to set up his own team at the last minute. For most of 1970, Stanley clearly favoured Jackie Oliver as number one driver, perhaps partly in response to Stewart's opinion of Rodríguez and possibly because of his "old-boys' club" of Englishmen at the team. At Francorchamps, Rodríguez won with his BRM P153 over the new
March March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of March. The March equinox on the 20 or 2 ...
of Chris Amon by just 1.1 seconds and with an average speed of 149.94 mph (241.31
km/h The kilometre per hour ( SI symbol: km/h; non-SI abbreviations: kph, kmph, km/hr) is a unit of speed, expressing the number of kilometres travelled in one hour. History Although the metre was formally defined in 1799, the term "kilometres per h ...
), then the highest average speed in the history of F1,
Jean-Pierre Beltoise Jean-Pierre Maurice Georges Beltoise (; 26 April 1937 – 5 January 2015) was a French racing driver and motorcycle road racer, who competed in Grand Prix motorcycle racing from to , and Formula One from to . Beltoise won the 1972 Monaco Gran ...
got the third place in a Matra. The power of the V12 engines was particularly suited to the fast circuits with few really slow corners, such as Francorchamps,
Monza Monza (, ; ; , locally ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the Lambro, River Lambro, a tributary of the Po (river), River Po, in the Lombardy region of Italy, about north-northeast of Milan. It is the capital of the province of Mo ...
, and to a degree
Brands Hatch Brands Hatch is a motor racing circuit in West Kingsdown, Kent, England, United Kingdom. Originally used as a grasstrack motorcycle circuit on farmland, it hosted 12 runnings of the British Grand Prix between 1964 and 1986 and currently hosts ...
and 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 motor racing, Grand Prix race track built in 1984, and a long configuration, built in the 1920s ...
, and that was usually the case with the BRM,
Matra Matra (an acronym for Mécanique Aviation Traction) was a major French industrial Conglomerate (company), conglomerate. Its business activities covered a wide range of industries, notably aerospace manufacturer, aerospace, defence industry, def ...
, and Weslake engined cars. A strong drive at Circuit Mont-Tremblant saw him finish 4th. Only the need to pit in the last laps for fuel robbed him of a victory at Watkins Glen, the highest paying event of the year at the time (US$50,000).The winner was
Emerson Fittipaldi Emerson Fittipaldi (; born 12 December 1946) is a Brazilian former racing driver and motorsport executive, who competed in Formula One from to . Fittipaldi won two Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, which he won in and with Team ...
, who won his first race in F1. After many years racing for Ferrari in the World Championship of Makes for sports cars, he signed for JW-Gulf-
Porsche Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, usually shortened to Porsche (; see below), is a German automobile manufacturer specializing in luxury, high-performance sports cars, SUVs and sedans, headquartered in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Th ...
in
1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 1970 Tonghai earthquake, Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli ...
and over the next two years won eight races driving a
Porsche 917 The Porsche 917 is a sports prototype race car developed by German manufacturer Porsche to exploit the regulations regarding the construction of 5-litre sports cars. Powered by a Type 912 flat-12 engine which was progressively enlarged from 4. ...
, contributing to Porsche winning in the World Sportscar Championship. Rodríguez developed into one of the sport's great all-rounders, racing CanAm,
NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. It is considered to be one of the top ranked motorsports organizations in ...
, rallies and even becoming North American Ice Racing champion in 1970, invited by the Alaska Sports Car Club from Anchorage, the race was in Sand Lake (Anchorage), Sand Lake. Rodríguez debuted in NASCAR at Trenton Speedway in 1959, finishing 6th. At the 1963 Firecracker 400 he qualified 9th but retired after an engine failure. The Mexican finished 5th in the 1965 Coca-Cola 600, World 600, his best result. At the 1971 Daytona 500 he finished 13th. His last NASCAR race was Miller High Life 500 (Ontario), Miller High Life 500, where he retired early with electrical issues Rodríguez drove a Ferrari 312 P Coupé in the CanAm round of Bridgehampton in 1969, finishing 5th. In 1970 he finished 3rd at Riverside International Raceway, Riverside and 5th at Laguna Seca Raceway with a factory BRM P154. The 1971 Formula One season could have seen him as a championship contender, with a BRM P160 being prepared by Tony Southgate, and for once BRM had consistently good engines. BRM, however, was overextended, trying to run three, and later four, cars. Rodríguez challenged Jacky Ickx in the rain during the 1971 Dutch Grand Prix, Dutch Grand Prix, and only just failed to win.


Death

Rodríguez was killed in an
Interserie Interserie is the name of a European-based motorsport series started in 1970 that allows for a wide variety of racing cars from various eras and series to compete with less limited rules than in other series. Created in 1970 by German Gerhard Här ...
sports car race at
Norisring The Norisring is a street circuit in Nuremberg, Bavaria, Germany. Originally established as a motorcycle racing venue in 1947 and named in a 1950 competition to win a light motorcycle, the track became known as a sports car racing venue in the 19 ...
in Nuremberg, West Germany, on 11 July 1971. Rodríguez was at the wheel of a Ferrari 512 M of Herbert Müller (racing driver), Herbert Müller Racing, his friend and teammate at the
Targa Florio The Targa Florio was a public road Endurance racing (motorsport), endurance automobile race held in the mountains of Sicily near the island's capital of Palermo, Sicily, Palermo. Founded in 1906 Targa Florio, 1906, it was the oldest sports car ra ...
in 1971. A contemporary source reported that trackside photographers noticed his right front tyre coming away from the rim under heavy braking for the sharp s-bend as early as the 10th lap. On lap 12, the tyre came off completely, sending the car into a wall before rebounding across the track and catching fire. He died shortly after he was extracted from the wreck.


Legacy

Rodríguez was considered the best driver of his era in the wet. Along with Jo Siffert, he was considered the bravest driver in motorsport, an example of this being the two touching through the then-very narrow and very dangerous Eau Rouge corner in the rain in their 917s at the start of the 1970 1000km of Spa-Francorchamps. In 2016, in an academic paper that reported a mathematical modeling study that assessed the relative influence of driver and machine, Rodríguez was ranked the 24th-best Formula One driver of all time. After winning the LMP2 class at the 2013 24 Hours of Le Mans, the first class victory for a Mexican driver since Rodríguez, Ricardo González (racing driver), Ricardo González recognized Rodríguez as his hero.


Commemoration

The first hairpin at Daytona International Speedway (the right-hand Hairpin turn, hairpin) is named the Pedro Rodríguez curve. In 1973 the Mexico City race track Magdalena Mixhuca Sports City, Magdalena Mixuhca, where F1, Champ Car, Nationwide Series, NASCAR and other series race was renamed for him and Ricardo: Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez (Rodríguez Brothers Autodrome). In July 2006, a bronze plaque was placed at the site of his crash in Nuremberg, a joint effort by ''Scuderia Rodríguez'' (the friends foundation) and the city authorities. Its Secretary General, Carlos Jalife, published the Rodríguez brothers' biography in December 2006, with an English translation which won the Motor Press Guild Book of the Year award in 2009. Sergio Pérez wore a specially designed helmet, crash helmet tributing Pedro Rodríguez for the 2022 Monaco Grand Prix in which he went on to claim his third win in Formula One. The helmet featured Rodríguez's helmet colours and, on the top, Rodríguez's and Perez's combined wins and podiums before Perez's victory in the 2022 Monaco Grand Prix, as the only two Formula One drivers from Mexico, Mexican Formula One drivers to achieve race victories. Below the statistics was written "AND COUNTING" and the phrase "GRACIAS PEDRO" (thank you Pedro) below that.


BRM P153

In 2024, the Mexican driver Adrián Fernández acquired the BRM P153 with which Rodríguez won the 1970 Belgian Grand Prix from a private collector.


Racing record


Formula One World Championship results

(:Template:F1 driver results legend 2, key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap) *1 – Ineligible for Formula One points, because he drove with a
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car.


Formula One Non-Championship results

(:Template:F1 driver results legend 2, key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)


Complete Tasman Series results

(:Template:Motorsport driver results legend, key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)


Pedro Rodríguez at Ferrari


Pedro Rodríguez at Porsche


Pedro Rodríguez in the 24 Hours of Le Mans


Notes


Sources

*Jalife-Villalón, Carlos Eduardo. ''The Brothers Rodríguez''. Phoenix: David Bull Publishing, 2009. (Translated and enlarged by the author from the 2006 Mexican edition) *Kettlewell, Mike. "Rodriguez: The young lions of Mexico", in Ward, Ian, general editor. ''The World of Automobiles'', Volume 16, pp. 1915–17. London: Orbis, 1974.


External links


History of Norisring racesCareer stats, courtesy GrandPrixStats.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rodriguez, Pedro Mexican racing drivers Mexican Formula One drivers Ferrari Formula One drivers North American Racing Team Formula One drivers Team Lotus Formula One drivers Cooper Formula One drivers BRM Formula One drivers Reg Parnell Racing Formula One drivers Formula One race winners 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers 24 Hours of Le Mans winning drivers 12 Hours of Reims drivers 24 Hours of Daytona drivers World Sportscar Championship drivers Tasman Series drivers NASCAR drivers Racing drivers who died while racing Sport deaths in Germany Racing drivers from Mexico City Mexican people of Spanish descent Mexican expatriate sportspeople in Germany 1940 births 1971 deaths Porsche Motorsports drivers Expatriate sportspeople in West Germany