Irish pride

Derek Daly waits patiently in the cockpit of his March 811-Cosworth (pictured above), while his mechanics prepare his single-seater before the 1981 Austrian Grand Prix, run at the Österreichring in Spielberg.

The Irishman, in the only March entered, qualified in 19th position (out of 28 entrants) and will be the last classified in eleventh position, but six laps behind the winner, Jacques Laffite, in his Talbot-Ligier Matra. 

Derek Daly, born on March 11, 1953, in Dublin, raced in Formula One from 1978 to 1982 for the Hesketh, Ensign, Tyrrell, March, Theodore, and Williams teams, scoring a total of 15 championship points. He was the first Irish driver to finish in the points in F1.

After Formula 1, he moved to the United States, competing in the CART championship (achieving one podium finish) and in IMSA, where he won the IMSA GTP championship with Nissan in 1990. Since then, Derek Daly has become a businessman and television commentator. He is the father of IndyCar driver Conor Daly, who is an American citizen.

Photo below: Irishman Derek Daly in the Rizla-Guinness March 811-Ford Cosworth, at the 1981 British Grand Prix.