Francois Cevert

Name: Francois Cevert

Nationality: France

Date of birth: February 24, 1944 - Paris

Date of death: October 6, 1973 - Watkins Glen, New York State, USA

Glamorous son of a Paris jeweler, Cevert was linked romantically with Brigitte Bardot during his F1 career, enhancing his image as one of the most colorful and dashing of contemporary Grand Prix competitors. A strong contender from F3 and F2, Cevert was catapulted into the limelight when Ken Tyrrell selected him to join Jackie Stewart in his Grand Prix lineup from the summer of 1970. Francois spent the next three seasons as a loyal and devoted pupil, learning everything he could from the Scottish driver whom he came to idolize. Cevert won the 1971 US Grand Prix at Watkins Glen thanks to a combination of luck and fine driving. He had reached the peak of his development as an F1 driver by the summer of 1973 when Stewart, who had secretly planned to retire at the end of the year, realized that on several occasions the young Frenchman had simply been quicker than him. Poised to take over the Tyrrell team leadership from Stewart in 1974, Francois was killed battling for pole position during qualifying for the 1973 US Grand Prix.

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