There's a lunatic on the track! The stories of Race Invaders.

Singapore stunned by strange strolling spectator (right).

Every once in a while, something snaps inside a spectator's brain and forces them to enter the field of play during a sporting event. This is relatively commonplace in field games, like football and cricket, and often goes by with mild bemusement. When it takes place during a high-speed racing event, however, the astonishment is multiplied exponentially. Just what is happening inside the mind of a person who decides to throw themselves in front of high-speed action, putting their life in completely unnecessary danger?

A variant of this question was likely to have struck your thoughts if you were watching today's Singapore Grand Prix, when on lap 38 a fan decided to take the most casual stroll into the face of vehicles travelling at 180mph ever caught on camera. While this shocked commentator David Croft into first completely missing the incident, then saying he'd never seen anything like it, this is not totally unheard of in Formula One, as well as other forms of racing. Let's take a look at some of the other stories of race invaders, with perhaps the tentative aim of unravelling the mindset of these ridiculous ramblers.

Neil Horan - 2003 British Grand Prix

2003's British GP invader got even closer to the action.

Seasoned Formula One fans would have instantly had their minds cast back to the spectacular 2003 British Grand Prix following today's incident. On lap 11, very soon after Rubens Barrichello had incredibly retaken the lead of the race, cameras cut to the terrifying sight of a man clad in a green vest and flapping kilt, running wildly towards the incoming traffic. Drivers who flew into the Hangar straight were forced to weave around Neil Horan, who was wielding signs reading "The bible is always right". A few moments later, a brave marshal wrestled the intruder to the ground, before comically dragging him off by his arm.

Described as a 'lunatic' by commentator James Allen, Horan was later revealed to be a ousted priest with convictions that the second coming of Christ was due. Horan had published a book revealing his theory as to the details of the eventual apocalypse, presumably with the hope that he could become one of his self-described 'immortal saints' who would rule the world alongside Jesus for a millennium.

This justification didn't wash particularly well during trial. Rather, Neil Horan's senselessly dangerous actions were considered a threat to both his own life, and the life of the drivers who miraculously avoided him. Horan was sentenced to two months in prison, but it wasn't the last people would hear of him...

Neil Horan - 2004 Olympics: Men's Marathon

Horan pulled his signature move again at the Athens Olympics.

Just over a year later, Horan hit the headlines again. This time, he made a mockery of the security surrounding the most high-profile sporting event in the world by interrupting an Olympic event in Athens and costing an athlete a gold medal. With 7 kilometres of the men's marathon remaining, Brazilian runner Vanderlei de Lima had a decent advantage in the race and was closing in on glory. However, Horan leapt out from the crowd and attempted to drag Vanderlei to the ground. The resulting squabble, which was only ended when a Greek spectator pulled Vanderlei out of Horan's grasp, cost the Brazilian time and undoubtedly shook his rhythm, meaning he ended up finishing third.

Despite the incident, Vanderlei de Lima covered himself in glory with the exceptionally sporting acceptance of his poor fortune, smiling and waving to supporters with true grace. As he continued to run, Horan was arrested once more and later apologised for potentially costing the Brazilian victory. He was given a 12-month suspended sentence and fined 3000 Euros, with the judge opting for leniency given Horan's unstable mental state.

Horan continued to find himself in public eye following these two high-profile incidents. His protests at both the 2006 World Cup and the 2004 Epsom Derby were foiled before they could begin, and he made a successful entry onto Britain's Got Talent in which he was put through by the judges before embarrassed TV executives did their research and pulled the audition from broadcast. Depending on your views, Horan's actions are a result of mental health issues or a fanatical belief in prophetic religious theories, but in either case he has caused some high-profile sporting drama.

A former Mercedes employee - 2000 German Grand Prix

Hockenheim was halted by a different kind of protester.

This was another famous incident that F1 fans will have harped back to after the events of today's race, although less is known about the perpetrator besides the fact that he was a disgruntled Mercedes worker who had just been fired from his role. Similar to Horan, the man's motivation was one of protest, albeit on a far more personal level. The 47-year-old Frenchman took a calm stroll along the side of the track draped in a silver raincoat, bringing the safety car out and initiating a rush of pit-stops.

One of the most memorable aspects of this track invasion was Murray Walker's unashamed reaction of gratitude towards the man, who described developments as "Fantastic. That lunatic, whoever he is, is changing the complexion of the race". Rubens Barrichello would go on to win the race (as he did, coincidentally, in the above-mentioned 2003 British Grand Prix).

It emerged that the protestor had a previous mark against his name, having appeared in the pitlane during the 1999 French Grand Prix before being ejected by security officials. After the German Grand Prix, he was arrested by police before being released on bail - what happened next is unclear, as research seems to fall short of providing the answer. Perhaps the protests were successful, and the man is now back in his old job at Mercedes?

Or more likely, he moved on and did something else.

 

James Dennis - 2014 Richmond Race (NASCAR)

A unique view for a NASCAR race.

This person technically didn't quite make it to the track, but his actions still had a substantial effect on the race he was attending. James Dennis decided to climb the catch-fencing surrounding the track, making it all the way to the top before hanging above the racers as they swept around the corner. Dennis stayed in his self-earned grandstand position for a few minutes, gesturing towards the crowd before being taken away by police. In the meantime, caution lights halted the race that Dennis had aimed to get as close as possible to.

It was later revealed that a drunken Dennis had wanted to stop the race and get on TV, all because it was his birthday. The police didn't quite buy into the idea that being born on a particular day gives you license to disrupt a major sporting event, and testified against him. Dennis was sentenced to a month in jail, but certainly has one heck of a story to tell.

Darren Crowder - 1986 Winston 500 at Talladega

The carjacker was eventually apprehended.

Most track invaders have achieved their goal when they set foot on the race-course, but Darren Crowder decided to go one better in the build-up to the 1986 Winston 500. The 20-year-old from Alabama caused one of the most unforgettable moments in motor racing when he hopped into the unoccupied pace car and went for an impromptu drive around the circuit. Within moments, the pace car was being chased down by police motorcycles and cars, giving the crowd a scintillating warm-up event.

Crowder eventually pulled up and the police hauled him away in handcuffs.  Sadly, his fate is unknown through basic Googling, but one can only imagine that the cops were less-than-pleased with the slightly ludicrous show that they had been a part of. Despite this question mark, the whole incident makes for a truly remarkable YouTube video.

Emily Davison - 1913 Epsom Derby

Davison's actions arguably had a profound effect on history.

Let's finish with some history. In 1913, Emily Davison ran onto the track during the Epsom Derby as Anmer, the horse owned by King George V, approached. Davison was struck by the horse and suffered injuries that she would succumb to four days later. 

Davison was a known activist for the suffragette movement for women's votes, and it's universally agreed that her intrusion of the race was some form of protest to support the campaign. However, the exact intentions are still debated to this day. At the time, one theory that was promoted was that Davison had set out to commit suicide in order to become a figure of martyrdom for the suffragette movement. However, this is dismissible by evidence such as the return ticket in Davison's purse.

Eye-witnesses believed that Davison may have been simply trying to cross the track, thinking that all the horses had gone past before being struck by Anmer, whereas other spectators claimed that Davison was attempting to drag the horse down. However, more recent historical research has concluded that Davison was trying to throw a 'Votes for Women' sash around the King's horse so that it would be branding the suffragette message when it crossed the finish line.

Davison's actions ignited controversy and debate within Britain, with some decrying irresponsible and hysterical protest tactics, and others feeling that acts of such enormous risk displayed women's commitment to the suffragette cause. It was a track invasion of historical implications, and arguably laid some of the groundwork for the 1918 Representation of the People Act which finally allowed women's votes.

Summary

Each of these stories represents an extreme. Whether this be extreme belief, extreme anger or extreme stupidity, everyone who interrupts a race is going through something enormous. It will be fascinating to discover the story of today's Singapore Grand Prix stroller.

If you know of any other incredible track invasion incidents, or perhaps more information about any of the above tales, please let me know - it would be great to find out more!

Good God! Great Grid!

How will history speak of our current crop of drivers?

When Lewis Hamilton crossed the line in Monza yesterday afternoon, he completed his 40th Grand Prix victory - a tally that ranks him 5th in the history of the sport for race wins. One place above him is Ferrari's German magician Sebastian Vettel with 41 - tied with Ayrton Senna. One place below Hamilton is the imperious but currently wasted Spaniard Fernando Alonso with 32. 

So that's the fourth, fifth and sixth most successful drivers all currently on the race grid, and all with plenty more time to add a caveat of Grand Prix victories to their already bulging records (some may argue that Alonso's light is fading, but it would take a true cynic to deny his ability to seize the opportunity of success when it arises). Beyond these three megastars, former champions Kimi Raikkonen and Jenson Button also continue to plug away in Formula One, while nobody doubts the fantastic talents of Nico Rosberg, Felipe Massa , Valtteri Bottas, Nico Hulkenberg and Daniel Ricciardo.

The best there has been?

Is this the most talented grid in Formula One history? There is definitely quality throughout the paddock, with a mixture of established pros and rising stars dicing it out on track. Some may sneer, and offer the likes of Pastor Maldonado as a rebuttal, but I'm referring to both the quantity of supremely skilled drivers, as well as the greatness by which they are regarded. 

However, it is only fair to say that time will tell. We have five champions on the grid, but one can envisage drivers like Valtteri Bottas and Daniel Ricciardo going on to take the crown in future seasons. Perhaps in ten years people will look back at the current crop and judge a few more of the above names as legends of the sport. With that in mind, let's have a quick look down memory (or in my case, slightly rushed research) lane at some of the other contenders for the most star-studded grids in Formula One history.

1965 - Champion: Jim Clark (beating Graham Hill, Jackie Stewart and Dan Gurney) 

Jim Clark was integral to an iconic time in F1's history.

Let's start exactly half a century ago, a season of undeniably legendary drivers which was ultimately dominated by the Brits. Jim Clark won six races to take his second championship title, which he would inevitably have added to had it not been for his tragic death in 1968. Clark led home his fellow countrymen Graham Hill and Jackie Stewart, the latter of whom made his Formula One debut during this season and cemented what was to come with his first race victory at the Italian Grand Prix. This terrific trio, perhaps, appropriately mirrors the current season's top crop. 

Further down the standings, the list of talented drivers just seems to continue endlessly. 1964 champion John Surtees returned with Ferrari, as well as Jack Brabham who was between his second and third titles. Furthermore, future champion Denny Hulme began his racing career in 1965 with the Brabham team, while another champ-to-be Jochen Rindt had his first full season in F1 in a Cooper. Other noteworthy names include Dan Gurney, Lorenzo Bandini, Jo Bonnier, Jo Siffert and Bruce McLaren. 

Truly, 1965 was a glorious year for F1. It's fair to mention that all seven of the champions listed above would finish in positions 1-7 in the standings for 1966, but 1965 gets the nod here purely for the strength of the entire field. 

1975 - Champion: Niki Lauda (beating Emerson Fittipaldi, Carlos Reutemann and James Hunt)

In an era of legends, it's arguable that Lauda outranks them all.

Ten years later, Formula One has cooked up another delicious batch of brilliance. Niki Lauda's "unbelievable year" saw him cruise to his first world title in a tremendous Ferrari which easily had the upper hand on the rest of the field. Nevertheless, Lauda had to triumph over some fine competitors to capitalise on his advantage. Emerson Fittipaldi was looking for a second consecutive title in his McLaren, and he began the season strongly before car troubles hampered his hopes.

Many observers fancied the chances of Brabham's skilful Argentinean Carlos Reutemann before the beginning of the year. Though never a champion, Reutemann was highly regarded throughout his Formula One career, and was agonisingly close to a title of his own when he missed out by one point in 1981. Brabham's projected dominance never failed to materialise.

This season also included James Hunt's famous victory for the Hesketh team, a performance that gave F1 a premonition of the amazing title-fight to come the following year. Carlos Pace also secured his historic Interlagos win, making this a tremendous year for tremendous stories. Other noteworthy drivers included champions Jody Scheckter, Mario Andretti and Alan Jones, as well as Clay Regazzoni, Jochen Mass, Ronnie Peterson and Jacky Ickx.

1986 - Champion: Alain Prost (beating Nigel Mansell, Nelson Piquet and Ayrton Senna)

Prost lines up against Mansell - whose tyre blowout would hand him the title.

This list couldn't possibly be complete without a season including Senna, Prost, Mansell and Piquet. It's difficult to argue that there has ever been a better top four than this. The proof of Prost's success is in both his statistics (four World Championships and 51 career victories) and the prestigious truth that he was the only driver who could challenge Senna at his most rampant. Nigel Mansell, as well as being a massively popular figure, was setting a new standard for British drivers (his tally of race victories was only recently toppled by Lewis Hamilton) and finished a devastatingly close second following the tyre failure that British fans try so desperately to forget.

Nelson Piquet was undeniably strong and still had a title in him, which he would take the following season. And finally, do we really need to say anything more about Ayrton Senna? Even before his three World Championships, Formula One was under no illusions as to the truly sensational young driver's future. To this day, it's difficult to find any rational motorsport fan who wouldn't include Ayrton Senna as one of the greatest drivers in the sport.

Such strength in these characters alone would warrant inclusion in this list, but this season deserves extra consideration for the addition of champions Keke Rosberg and Alan Jones, and the talents of Stefan Johansson, Gerhard Berger and Michele Alboreto. Perhaps unfairly, this season also gets further preference for the outrageously dramatic title decider in the Australian Grand Prix.

Any more?

Was '97 - with Schumi, Villeneuve, Damon and Mika - worth a shout?

These are just three examples of great eras in Formula One, but I'm sure that you, dear reader, may have other candidates you feel are worthy of mention. So feel free to comment on your pick from the list, or perhaps your own nomination for the greatest grid in F1 history. Go on! I bloody dare you!

Kimi is Ferrari's Safe Bet

Raikkonen will race for Ferrari in 2016

Ferrari team boss Maurizio Arrivabene seems to be aware that managing Kimi Raikkonen is a game of careful motivation and precise timing. Earlier in the season, the no-nonsense Italian suggested that Raikkonen was already in Ferrari's plans for the future, but that they did not want to offer him a new deal to ensure that complacency would not become an issue.

However, with speculation starting mount up and becoming Ferrari's big elephant in the room, Arrivabene and the team have relented and Raikkonen can guarantee himself one of the most prestigious seats on the grid for the upcoming season. While there may have been some possibility for the much-fancied Valtteri Bottas to slip into the famous red cockpit, the management have either deemed that too risky, too expensive or too soon.

Kimi's form - steady improvement?

Kimi's best result this season was 2nd in Bahrain

Part of the reason the whispers of replacement became murmurs was down to Raikkonen's under-par performances. This was more prominent last season, but it's difficult to ignore that despite the Finn scoring reasonable points all year, his new team-mate Sebastian Vettel has racked up over double his tally. Couple that with Vettel's two race victories, and there is a clear hierarchy in the Ferrari team.

Things came to a head in Austria after Kimi's worst performance of 2015. He qualified 18th and crashed out of the second corner of the race. Nevertheless, the signs that things would be OK for Kimi should have been apparent from Arrivabene's post-race comments, in which he refused to criticise his driver and reassured that the team would be taking a more holistic approach to Raikkonen's performance when deciding if he should remain with the team. Clearly, this sort of encouragement displays Arrivabene's desire to have Raikkonen at the team.

In the final race before the summer break, Raikkonen could have capped off a Ferrari 1-2 had it not been for engine troubles which led to him retiring. The team have mastered the psychology of keeping Kimi at the team, and it's producing increasingly good performances from the Finn.

Seb and Kimi - a match made in heaven

Ferrari have been happy with the positive relationship between their drivers.

In the run-up to the 2015 season there was a lot of debate as to how Vettel would cope with having a former World Champion to contend with as a team-mate. His fiery relationship with Mark Webber, and his mopey persona while Daniel Ricciardo dominated last season, added up to the image that Ferrari's new superstar may be difficult to work with.

Cut to August, and things appear to be appropriately rosy between the duo. Vettel and Raikkonen have built an amicable working relationship that has allowed both of them to score satisfying results across the season. With two former champions in the team, Ferrari will no doubt understand how valuable a commodity it is to have the two working beyond just themselves.

Would it be foolish to cash this in? Bringing in a less experienced driver with the potential to upstage Vettel would definitely make the situation more volatile and could affect results negatively. While Ferrari are just inching their way back into the picture as one of the top teams in the sport, perhaps it would be reckless to bring in a circus of biting retorts and vicious accusations to distract from the excellent progress they are making.

There's no rush

Speculation suggested that Bottas would replace Raikkonen

If this was the final opportunity to pick up some of the biggest talent on the grid, then you could call this decision a bit safe and unadventurous. But with Ferrari choosing to close their seats for 2016, there truly isn't much of an option for best young talent on the grid to move upwards.

Mercedes and Ferrari are probably the two outfits that would hold the most glamour to an upcoming star of F1, but both have confirmed their driver line-ups for next season. Williams and Red Bull are probably next up, and they do have potentially spare seats. However, neither of these teams quite have the same pull as Ferrari, both in current and historical contexts (albeit Williams runs Ferrari close). Arrivabene will feel he can prize any driver away from these teams, and it's easy to imagine that Bottas will want an option in his new Williams contract in preparation for the call from Ferrari in 2017.

The only possible way one of Ferrari's targets could suddenly become unreachable is if they take the unlikely step of joining a team that promises future glory, such as McLaren. However, with the disastrous results that has heralded for Fernando Alonso, it looks unlikely that anyone will take that chance.

Glad to have him

According to the recent GPDA survey (a survey I incomprehensibly analysed here) Kimi Raikkonen is the most popular driver in Formula One. It was quite likely that, had he not been retained by Ferrari, the Finn would have left the sport for good. With that in mind, it's personally relieving to know that Kimi will still be a part of the F1 world.

After all, how can you not love someone who, when asked what they think of Spa-Francorchamps one of the most historically wonderful circuits in F1, replies "It's quite nice".

Top 100 F1 Drivers: Numbers 100-91

It's been nearly two years since I last made entries into this blog, and in that time the list for the Top 100 F1 Drivers has changed. For those of you who weren't there when it started, this is a statistical analysis of every driver in Formula One, with different achievements amalgamated into a homemade formula that gives each participant a score. While the idea of 'Best Driver' is one is down to highly subjective criteria, I like to think of this formula as a process to find the most successful drivers of all time. That way, I can hide from the fact that Gilles Villeneuve appears below Heinz-Harald Frentzen...

The scoring system is as follows:

Drivers Championship - 120 points
Race Win - 18 points
Second Place Finish - 7 points
Third Place - 5 points
Fourth Place - 2.5 points
Fifth Place - 2 points
Sixth Place - 1.5 points
Seventh Place - 1 point
Eighth Place - 0.5 points
Pole Position - 2 points
Fastest Lap - 1 point
Race Start - -0.1 point

Subtracting a point for race starts is an attempt to neutralize the effects of what I call "Massive career syndrome", which is where a driver appears extremely high on the list purely because they have over 200 races under their belt. It hasn't quite worked perfectly, but somewhat comedically it does leave Charles Pic at the bottom of the list (in P757) with -3.9 points...

So with all that said, let's do the list... again! A lot of these will be pulled from the original article, but there are already some new entries to the list ahead...

100. Jean-Pierre Jabouille (France) 49 Starts, 2 Race Wins, 46.1 F-Points

Jean-Pierre Jabouille's racing career was uncharacteristically slow and steady. He took up the sport aged 22, made it to Formula 2 aged 27, and didn't secure a permanent F1 seat until he was 35. He was lucky enough to dabble in a Tyrrell seat for one race in 1975, but it wasn't until he won the F2 Championship at his seventh attempt in 1976 that he started to establish himself in Formula One.

Having been brought in to help develop Renault's new turbo engines, Jabouille began to display impressive form with a few standout qualifying performances. The car itself was extremely unreliable based on the untested concept of the vehicle, but Jabouille pulled out a Fourth place in 1978.

Jabouille booked himself a place in F1 history in 1979 by leading the Renault to victory at his home Grand Prix in Dijon. This marked the first occasion on which a turbocharged car had won a Grand Prix. The car remained very unreliable and rarely finished a race, but Jabouille was able to achieve his second race victory in 1980 by taking the chequered flag in Austria ahead of Alan Jones by less than a second.

He had planned a move to Ligier in 1981, but a broken leg sustained in the Canadian Grand Prix badly affected his preparations. He missed the first two races and struggled upon his return. He was dropped and never made a return to Formula One. He now runs his own team in the FIA Sportscar Championship.

99. Luigi Fagioli (Italy) 7 Starts, 1 Race Win, 50.3 F-Points

With just seven race starts in World Championship Formula One events, Fagioli has the least Grands Prix under his belt of anyone on this list. However, this statistic does not do justice to a driver who played a significant role in the European Championships of the 1930s, racing for early incarnations of Alfa Romeo, Maserati and Mercedes. He won numerous races, but his attitude proved to be an issue with some of his teams. He was ordered to move over for his team-mate in the first race of 1934, and retaliated by parking the car and abandoning the race. He continued to race up until 1937, when severe rheumatism meant he was no longer in any condition for the rigours of the sport.

After the war, Fagioli's health improved and he returned to racing for the inception of the official Formula One World Championship. Driving for Alfa Romeo, Fagioli scored five podium finishes in his six races of the 1950 season, finishing a very credible third in the championship. In 1951, Fagioli only entered one Grand Prix in which he shared an Alfa Romeo with Juan Manuel Fangio. They were victorious, and aged 53 he became the oldest driver to win a Formula One grand prix, a record he unsurprisingly still holds today.
Fagioli died in 1952 after crashing a touring car at the Monaco circuit.

98. Piero Taruffi (Italy) 18 Starts, 1 Race Win, 55.2 F-Points

Piero Taruffi is perhaps more notable for his careers in motorcycles and sports cars, but his 18 appearances in Grand Prix racing gives him a well-earned place on this list. With a long and impressive motorcycling career in the 1920s and 30s (including the land-speed record on a motorcycle, which he clinched in 1937), Taruffi entered numerous events in the 50s with only one eye focussed on F1.

His most successful year in the sport was undoubtedly 1952 in which Taruffi, driving for Ferrari, scored his first race win at Switzerland. Another two podiums that season gave Taruffi a third placed finish in the Championship, which was to be the best classification he would achieve in F1. Sporadic appearances for Ferrari and Mercedes yielded him a few more good results, but Taruffi had so many pursuits that he never gave himself a true chance to establish a proper F1 title challenge.

He retired from motorsport after the terrible crash in the 1957 Mille Miglia, in which 14 people were killed. He went on to write an acclaimed book named The Technique of Motor Racing, and passed away in 1988 aged 81.

97. Innes Ireland (Great Britain) 50 Starts, 1 Race Win, 55.5 F-Points

Innes Ireland is the first of 20 Brits who have made this list, and perhaps one of the most colourful. Known for his uncompromising and outlandish nature, especially on track, Ireland was a popular figure in the paddock. Having taken up motor-racing as a career in 1957, Ireland found himself in a Lotus in 1959, a seat which he held for three years. During that time Ireland managed four podiums, including his only race victory at the 1961 USA Grand Prix at Watkins Glen. He admitted his victory was lucky, and showed his appreciation for the mechanic that fixed his car three times over the weekend by tipping him £25.

Despite this success, Ireland found himself out of favour with team boss Colin Chapman, who instead hired Jim Clark to drive for Lotus. Ireland dabbled with the BRP and BRM teams, but could only manage a few more points finishes before his career ended in 1967. He continued to work as a journalist, and was briefly the president of the BRDC before dying of cancer in 1993, aged 63.

96. Andrea de Cesaris (Italy) 208 Starts, 0 Race Wins, 57.7 F-Points

Andrea de Cesaris holds something of a dubious distinction in that he has started the most F1 Grands Prix without a single race victory. Despite his inability to hit the top step of the podium, de Cesaris had a long career in the sport, racing for ten different teams over fifteen seasons.

Andrea came to Formula One with a bit of a reputation for causing crashes. He had already been involved in an incident in which Nigel Mansell broke his neck, and in only his second start in F1 he threw his Alfa Romeo into catch fencing at Watkins Glen. Despite this, he managed to land a seat in the McLaren team in 1981. This didn't lead to anything more than a single points finish for de Cesaris, before he moved back to Alfa Romeo.

The Italian took his first podium in a breathless Monaco Grand Prix in 1982, in which almost every car ran out of fuel. Things improved even further for de Cesaris in 1983, when he took two second-placed finishes in Germany and South Africa to place eighth in the World Championship. He also came close to taking his maiden win in Spa, leading for much of the race before a bad pit-stop spoiled his champagne moment.

His moves to Ligier and Minardi did not give de Cesaris much cause to celebrate, but a season at Brabham saw him stand on the podium for a fourth time at the 1987 Belgian Grand Prix. He then spent a couple of years at the promising but ultimately disappointing Dallara team, before moves to Jordan, Tyrrell and Sauber capped off his career in F1. His final podium came at Canada in 1989, but the elusive race victory was never found.

Andrea de Cesaris is now a currency trader, but makes appearances at Grand Prix Masters events.


95. Luigi Villoresi (Italy) 31 Starts, 0 Race Wins, 58.9 F-Points

Luigi Villoresi is another Italian who was racing in Formula before the sport had officially established its World Championship. Appearing in a Maserati in 1938 and 1939, Villoresi's career was interrupted by the war before he returned and spent three more years with the team. He then moved to Ferrari, driving for them between 1949 and 1953. Though he recorded a race win in his first season for Ferrari, the statistics do not count races pre-1950.

Villoresi managed to score eight podiums after the establishment of the Championship, coming fifth place in the standings twice. Despite having a fair amount of success with Ferrari, he moved to Lancia in 1954 alongside Alberto Ascari, who had beaten him on both his second placed finishes. Villoresi was unable to replicate the kind of form he managed in the Ferrari for Lancia, and following Ascari's fatal crash decided to retire from the sport. Villoresi died in 1997, aged 88.

94. Jo Bonnier (Sweden) 104 Starts, 1 Race Win, 60.1 F-Points

Jo Bonnier was a true journeyman. Between 1956 and 1971, the Swede raced for eleven different teams and rarely completed a full season in just one race seat. He began his career at Maserati, spending three years at the team and suffering a crash that very nearly killed him at a non-championship race in Imola. He then moved to BRM where he scored his one and only race victory at the 1959 Dutch Grand Prix. It was a result that put him second in the Championship, but he failed to capitalise on the position as the car wasn't strong enough to pursue a title fight.

Despite his CV listing an absurd amount of teams, Bonnier specialised in scraping out a few points-scoring results regardless of what team he drove for. He scored points for BRM, Porsche, Cooper, Brabham, McLaren and Honda, failing only at his first team Maserati and his self-run team Ecurie Bonnier. Though he continued to drive for his team on occasion, Bonnier's time in F1 was clearly up and he raced his final race at Watkins Glen in 1971.

He was killed at Le Mans in 1972 after a collision with another car.

93. Valtteri Bottas (Finnish) 47 Starts, 0 Race Wins, 61.8 F-Points

Valtteri Bottas is the most recent driver to have broken his way into our top 100, continuing the recent tradition of flying Finns soaring to success in Formula One. He began karting in 1995, aged 6, and he continued to race throughout his childhood. In 2005 he finished eighth in the Karting World Cup, and his impressive form propelled him into the higher echelons of motorsport.

2008 proved to be something of a breakthrough year for Bottas, as he won his first title: The Formula Renault Eurocup. A move to Formula Three, and another strong season with two pole positions, saw Williams snap Bottas up as their test driver, replacing Nico Hulkenberg. Bottas continued to race in GP3, and won the championship in 2011. He then made the unusual move of choosing to focus solely on test driving for Williams in 2012, a decision he feels gave him the best preparation for F1 possible.

Bottas lurked in the shadows of the underwhelming Bruno Senna, taking his car in every practice session that year. His enthusiasm and willingness to get involved in various departments of Williams saw him land a race seat for 2013. Unfortunately for the Finn, Williams suffered one of their worst seasons, and Bottas had little opportunity to impress. Despite this, he did make waves by qualifying in third for the Canadian Grand Prix, and scored his first points by finishing eighth late in the season at the American Grand Prix.

Williams changed engine supplier to Mercedes for 2014, and Bottas was able to utilise the potential of his new machinery. Bottas only failed to score points in two races throughout the season, and outshone his experienced teammate Felipe Massa. The Finn secured his first podium by finishing third in the Austrian Grand Prix, and took second place in the following two races. The most impressive of these was his drive at Silverstone, where he came from 14th on the grid and held off a charging Lewis Hamilton to keep hold of second place.

 Bottas finished a remarkable fourth-place in the Drivers Championship, and has carried on his good form in 2015. Rumours of a move to Ferrari don't flatter Bottas, as his future in F1 seems extremely bright. There is little doubt that he will continue to climb this list.

92. Romain Grosjean (French) 74 Starts, 0 Race Wins, 62.1 F-Points

It may be something of a surprise to see Romain Grosjean in this list, considering his bubbling reputation as a somewhat clumsy driver. However, this is harshly derisive of a driver who has, when given the opportunity, demonstrated class and skill. Grosjean began karting aged 14, and despite starting relatively late was able to make enough of an impact to move to Formula Renault within three years.

His first season in the Swiss Formula Renault Championship saw him win all 10 rounds. 10 victories would also secure him the French Formula Renault Championship in 2005, and Renault themselves were inspired by Grosjean's progress enough to sign him up to their Driver Development programme.

Grosjean continued his penchant for winning lower series by taking titles in the Formula Three Renault and GP2 Asia championships. He was made Renault F1's test driver in 2008, and following the Crashgate controversy he replaced Nelson Piquet Jr. for the second half of the 2009 season in a race seat. It was a tumultuous beginning to F1 for Grosjean, who struggled to match the form of his teammate Fernando Alonso and failed to score a point. Despite a difficult period, Grosjean says he learned a huge amount from Alonso.

Grosjean was replaced by Vitaly Petrov, and changed to Auto GP for 2010. He marked it down as another Championship victory, and returned to GP2 in 2011. It was this season which reignited his F1 career, as he pulled ahead of rivals Jules Bianchi and Giedo van der Garde to take both the GP2 and GP2 Asia titles. Following an impressive few years away from F1, Lotus decided it was time for Romain to have a second crack at the big leagues. He was signed to partner Kimi Raikkonen for 2012.

Lotus enjoyed a successful year in 2012, and while Grosjean was clearly the support act to a reinvigorated Kimi Raikkonen, the Frenchman certainly justified the team's faith in his ability. He scored his first podium (and the first for a Frenchman in nearly 14 years) when he came third in the Bahrain Grand Prix, securing a 2-3 finish for his team. Just a few races later, he topped this performance in Canada, overtaking his former team-mate Alonso to finish second.

Despite these impressive results, Grosjean struggled towards the end of the season. He put himself in an invidious position after causing a dangerous collision in Spa which resulted in a one-race ban. From there, he found it difficult to regain the form he had shown earlier in the season, while his team-mate Raikkonen drove his Lotus to their first race victory as a new outfit.

Nevertheless, Grosjean was retained for 2013 and managed to pull himself out of the slump. Six podium finishes meant he was a lot closer to Raikkonen in terms of performance. Grosjean took seventh in the Championship (his best finish so far) and was entrusted to lead the team into 2014 alongside new team-mate Pastor Maldonado. However, Lotus struggled to deal with new specifications and both drivers found it difficult to score points. Grosjean's misery was compounded by a slightly embarrassing incident in which he crashed behind the safety car in Hungary.

Lotus' turbulent season continues into 2015, but Grosjean has been able to score a handful of points this year, and is comfortably outperforming Maldonado. With the right kit, it seems Grosjean can show real talent and potential.

91. Jean Behra (France) 53 Starts, 0 Race Wins, 65.2 F-Points

Short and stocky, French driver Jean Behra was a consistently strong figure in F1 during the 1950s. Having begun his career in motorcycle racing before the second world war, Behra moved to car racing in 1952, making his Formula One debut in that year's Swiss Grand Prix and finishing on the podium. Behra spent his first three years in a Gordini, but the car was unreliable and often didn't make it to the finish line. Despite this, Behra pulled off a handful of victories in non-championship events, including a triumph over the much fancied Ferraris in the 1952 Grand Prix of Reims.

Behra enjoyed his most competitive seasons as part of the Maserati line-up between 1955 and 1958. In this time, he recorded seven podium finishes and a fourth-place finish in the 1956 Championship. However, the Frenchman never managed to win an official Formula One Grand Prix, hiding behind the limelight of his teammates Stirling Moss and Juan Manuel Fangio. Regardless, Behra drew much respect from the paddock for his reputation as a driver with great flair and ability.

He moved to Porsche, and then Ferrari. Midway through the 1959 season, he suffered a crash in a sports car race before the German Grand Prix. He was thrown from the car and died of his injuries aged 38. His funeral drew 3000 mourners in his hometown of Nice.

Numbers 90-81 follow tomorrow!