, born
May 4 ,
1946 in
Belfast ,
Northern Ireland , was a
Formula 1 race car driver. He is also a journalist and ex-
Sportscar Racer .
Watson's
Formula 1 career began in 1973 for
Ceramica Pagnossin Team MRD . His first season, in which he ran only in the
British and
US Grands Prix, wasn't particularly successful. In the British GP, he ran out of fuel on the 36th lap and his engine gave out after only 7 laps in the US GP.
Watson scored his first championship point in
Monte Carlo the following year for
Goldie Hexagon Racing . He went on to score a total of 6 points that season. He failed to score points the following year, driving for
Team Surtees ,
Team Lotus and
Penske Cars .
He secured his first podium, coming 3rd in the
French Grand Prix in 1976. Following this, later that season, came his first victory, driving for
Penske-Ford in the
Austrian Grand Prix having qualified second on the grid.
1977 saw a disastrous start to the season for Watson. By the third race, the
South African Grand Prix , he managed to complete race distance and managed a point and his first ever fastest lap. Unfortunately the race saw the deaths of driver
Tom Pryce and a track marshall
Jansen Van Vuuren . His
Brabham -
Alfa Romeo appears to have let him down throughout the season but, despite this, he managed to put in an impressive performance. He gained his first pole position in the
Monaco Grand Prix and qualified in the top ten no fewer than 14 times, often in the first two rows. As fate would have it though, problems with the car, accidents, and one disqualification meant that he raced the full distance in only five of the 17 races.
In 1978, Watson managed a more successful season in terms of race finishes, even out-qualifying and out-racing his illustrious team mate
Niki Lauda on occassion. He managed three podiums and a pole, and notched up 25 points to earn his highest championship placing to date.
McLaren -
Ford was the team that Watson drove for during the last half of his Formula One racing career.
His most successful year came in 1982. when he came joint second in the
Drivers' Championship , driving for
McLaren -
Ford , and winning two Grands Prix. He was perhaps best well-known for his astounding drives from the back of the grid. The best of these was probably in Detroit in 1982, where he amazingly overtook 3 cars in 1 lap deep into the race. Amazing for a tight, twisty and supposedly unraceable street track.
Effectively retired at the end of 1983, Watson stepped in for Niki Lauda during the
1985 European Grand Prix at
Brands Hatch , in which he placed 7th.
At the end of his F1 career, he turned to the racing of
Sports Cars . After retiring from active racing, he worked as a television commentator, ran a race school at
Silverstone and managed a racetrack. He also became the first man to ever test a Jordan grand prix car in 1990.
Nowadays, he works for
Sky Sports , commentating on
A1 Grand Prix alongside
Ben Edwards . His nickname is .
- Grand Prix Starts: 152
- Grand Prix Wins: 5
- Podium Finishes: 20
- Total Championship Points: 169
- Races led: 10
- Laps led: 287
