Racing day by day

Gianclaudio “Clay” Regazzoni (1939-2006) was a Swiss racing driver. A very nice and popular character, he competed in Formula One from 1970 to 1980, winning five Grand Prix – four for Ferrari and one for Williams.

His first F1 win was the 1970 Italian Grand Prix at Monza in his debut season, driving for Ferrari. He remained with the Italian team until 1972. After a single season with BRM, Clay returned to Ferrari for a further three years, alongside Niki Lauda.

“I was never thinking about the Formula 1 championship,” he said. “I was just racing day by day. For Niki (Lauda), every race, he had to be at the top. He programmed his life to be champion. I enjoyed life. That was  more than enough for me…”

In 1974, Clay Regazzoni finished second in the Drivers’ Championship, his career best, just three points behind Fittipaldi. He is seen here-below, aboard the early version of the 312B3-74, at the 1974 Argentinian Grand Prix, where he finished third.