Johnny Cecotto
| Motorcycle Grand Prix Career | |
| Nationality | Venezuelan |
|---|---|
| Active years | 1975 - 1980 |
| Team(s) | Yamaha |
| Grands Prix | 48 |
| Championships | 1975 - 350cc, 1978 - Formula 750. |
| Wins | 14 |
| Podium finishes | 26 |
| Pole positions | 22 |
| Fastest laps | 7 |
| First Grand Prix | 1975 250cc French Grand Prix |
| First win | 1975 250cc French Grand Prix |
| Last win | 1980 350cc Nations Grand Prix |
| Last Grand Prix | 1980 500cc West German Grand Prix |
Alberto "Johnny" Cecotto (born January 25, 1956 in Caracas, Venezuela) is a former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer and Formula One driver. The son of Italian immigrants, he was one of the few people to have competed in both, motorcycle and Formula One Grand Prix.
Motorcycle Racing History
Cecotto had won the Venezuelan National Championship in 1973 and 1974 when he rose to international prominence at the 1975 Daytona 200 motorcycle race by rendering one of the most storied performances in the history of the event. Competing as a virtual unknown aboard an unmodified Yamaha TZ 700 sponsored by Yamaha's Venezuelan importer, and starting from last place on the grid, Cecotto showed impressive riding ability by passing almost the entire field while working his way up to third place, relegating the 15 time World Champion Giacomo Agostini to fourth place in the process.
Following Daytona, Cecotto arrived in Europe to compete in the Grand Prix series, where he continued his meteoric rise by winning the 250cc and 350cc races in his first ever Grand Prix at the season opening round in France. He went on to become the youngest World Champion ever at nineteen years of age when he again defeated the defending champion, Giacomo Agostini for the 1975 350cc World Championship. Cecotto returned home to Venezuela to a hero's welcome as thousands of adoring fans lined the route from the airport to Caracas.
In 1976, Cecotto returned to Daytona, now with full support from the Yamaha factory racing team. This time, he was victorious, coming out on top after a race-long battle with American Champion Kenny Roberts. In the 1976 Grand Prix season, he lost his 350cc crown in a tight battle with Harley-Davidson mounted Walter Villa. At the beginning of the 1977 season, he was badly injured in a deadly four rider accident at the Austrian Grand Prix that claimed the life of Swiss rider Hans Stadelmann. Cecotto never seemed to come to grips with the 500cc Yamaha, having had a series of crashes which hindered his progress. Cecotto finished third in the 1978 500cc title chase and added the Formula 750 World Championship to his titles. He suffered a badly broken kneecap at the 1979 Austrian Grand Prix at the Salzburgring and missed half the season. Cecotto soldiered on through the 1980 Grand Prix season but his numerous injuries curtailed his motorcycle racing career. After the 1980 season, he decided to quit motorcycling to pursue an auto racing career. He retired with twelve 500cc pole positions in 27 starts, giving him one of the highest pole position per start ratios in motorcycle Grand Prix history.[1]
Automobile Racing History
Cecotto made his four wheeled debut with Minardi in the 1980 Formula Two Championship. In the 1982 Formula Two season, driving for the March-BMW team, he won three races and finished the season tied for first place with his team-mate Corrado Fabi but, was relegated to runner up by the tie breaker system. Nevertheless, his performance garnered enough attention that he was offered a seat in Formula One.
In Formula One, Cecotto participated in 23 races, debuting on March 13, 1983 for the Theodore Racing team. He had a promising start as he scored a sixth place in only his second race, however, the team suffered from lack of funding and he was forced to sit out the final two rounds. For the 1984 season, he joined the Toleman racing team with Ayrton Senna as his team mate. While qualifying for the British Grand Prix, he crashed heavily, breaking both of his legs which effectively ended his Formula One career.
After recovering from his injuries, Cecotto returned to competition in the flourishing Touring Car category, winning the 1989 Italian Touring Car Championship. From 1988 to 1992 Cecotto competed in the Deutsche Tourenwagen Meisterschaft (DTM, German Touring Car Championship). Driving a Schnitzer Motorsport BMW M3, he finished as runner up in the 1990 season. In 1994 and 1998 he won the German STW Supertouring Championship for BMW. In 1995 he raced in the BTCC for BMW. In 2001 and 2002, he switched to the Irmscher Opel Omega and won the German V8 Star Championship two years running.
Cecotto currently devotes most of his time to supporting the racing career of his son, Johnny Cecotto Jr.
Motorcycle Grand Prix Results
| Year | Class | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | Points | Rank | Wins |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | 250cc | Yamaha | FRA 15 |
ESP DNF |
W.GER DNF |
NAT 12 |
IOM DNS |
NED DNF |
BEL 15 |
SWE DNF |
FIN 12 |
CZE DNF |
YUG DNF |
54 | 4th | 2 | |
| 1975 | 350cc | Yamaha | FRA 15 |
ESP 12 |
AUT DNF |
W.GER 15 |
NAT 15 |
IOM DNS |
NED 6 |
FIN 15 |
CZE DNF |
YUG DNF |
78 | 1st | 4 | ||
| 1976 | 350cc | Yamaha | YUG DNF |
FRA 12 |
AUT 15 |
NAT 15 |
IOM DNS |
NED 3 |
FIN DNF |
CZE DNF |
W.GER 12 |
ESP 8 |
65 | 2nd | 2 | ||
| 1977 | 350cc | Yamaha | VEN 15 |
W.GER DNS |
NAT DNS |
ESP DNS |
FRA DNS |
YUG DNS |
NED DNS |
SWE DNS |
FIN DNS |
CZE 15 |
GBR DNF |
30 | 9th | 2 | |
| 1977 | 500cc | Yamaha | VEN 8 |
AUT DNF |
W.GER DNF |
NAT DNF |
FRA DNF |
NED DNF |
BEL DNF |
SWE 12 |
FIN 15 |
CZE 15 |
GBR DNF |
50 | 4th | 2 | |
| 1978 | 500cc | Yamaha | VEN DNS |
ESP 8 |
AUT 12 |
FRA DNF |
NAT DNF |
NED 15 |
BEL DNF |
SWE 5 |
FIN 10 |
GBR 4 |
W.GER 12 |
66 | 3rd | 1 | |
| 1979 | 500cc | Yamaha | VEN DNS |
AUT DNF |
W.GER DNS |
NAT DNS |
ESP DNS |
YUG DNS |
NED DNS |
BEL DNS |
SWE DNS |
FIN 4 |
GBR DNS |
FRA 6 |
10 | 20th | 0 |
| 1980 | 350cc | Yamaha | NAT 15 |
FRA 12 |
NED DNF |
GBR DNF |
CZE DNF |
W.GER 10 |
37 | 4th | 1 | ||||||
| 1980 | 500cc | Yamaha | NAT 8 |
ESP 5 |
FRA 0 |
NED 5 |
BEL DNF |
FIN DNF |
GBR 7 |
W.GER 5 |
31 | 7th | 0 |
Complete Formula One Results
(Races in bold indicate pole position)
| Year | Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | Team | WDC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Theodore | BRA 14 |
USAW 6 |
FRA 11 |
SMR Ret |
MON DNPQ |
BEL 10 |
USAE Ret |
CAN Ret |
GBR DNQ |
GER 11 |
AUT DNQ |
DUT DNQ |
ITA 12 |
EUR |
RSA |
Theodore | 19th | 1 | |
| 1984 | Toleman | BRA Ret |
RSA Ret |
BEL Ret |
SMR NC |
FRA Ret |
MON Ret |
CAN 9 |
USAE Ret |
USA Ret |
GBR DNQ |
GER |
AUT |
DUT |
ITA |
EUR |
POR |
Toleman | - | 0 |