The extrovert Alessandro Nannini

Alessandro Nannini, born 7 July 1959, is an Italian former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from 1986 to 1990 with the Minardi and Benetton teams. He won the 1989 Japanese Grand Prix for Benetton – picture-above on the podium with former team mate Boutsen and Patrese – and scored a total of 65 career points.

After 26 retirements (!) in 30 starts across two seasons at Minardi, Nannini joined Benetton in 1988 to partner Thierry Boutsen. The Belgian, winner of three Grand Prix for Williams in 1989 and 1990, recalls his amicable Italian team mate in an interview for Classic Courses:

“Nannini was totally extrovert. An extraordinary person, with fantastic human qualities, funny but so lazy,… lazy for all that had to do outside the car. He hardly ever came to a briefing, during practice. He was telling me: “No no, I will let you do the work, anyhow I will copy your settings, so I don’t need to be there.”

“And he went having a cup of coffee, I wouldn’t say partying, but having fun with his friends. It was much more important for him than being involved in the technical part of the job, an area he did not master at all. But he was so nice, I had a wonderful year at Benetton with him, we laughed a lot, really a lot, alongside him.”