Jean-Pierre Beltoise

Interesting facts

Before turning to cars, Beltoise built a serious motorcycle racing career, winning 11 French national road racing titles in three years and contesting Grand Prix motorcycle racing from 1962 to 1964 across the 50cc, 125cc, 250cc and 500cc classes, with a best finish of sixth in the 1964 50cc World Championship. A crash at the 1964 Reims 12 Hours left him with a broken arm so badly damaged that its movement stayed permanently restricted, yet he came back the following year to win the Reims Formula 3 race. His Formula One debut came at the 1966 German Grand Prix in a Formula Two Matra; he finished a lap down but still won the F2 class outright. In 1969 he was paired with Jackie Stewart at Ken Tyrrell's Matra team and finished runner-up at the French Grand Prix that season. His only Formula One win came in torrential rain at the 1972 Monaco Grand Prix for BRM, the team's final championship-qualifying victory; he added a non-championship win at Brands Hatch that same year, closing out BRM's run of F1 successes. He married Jacqueline Cevert, sister of fellow driver François Cevert, in 1968, and one of their two sons, Anthony Beltoise, also became a racing driver. Jean-Pierre Beltoise made his Formula 1 debut in 1967 and raced until 1974, 8 seasons in total as a French driver. He scored a total of 77 championship points over his career.