Morio, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons (Credit Links at the end of the content)
We continue our journey with Part 7 of the forgotten F1 drivers of 2007 to 2013 series, where we revisit the names of drivers whose F1 careers were short-lived and who have largely faded from the memories of many fans.
F1 is often remembered through its champions, race winners, and legendary rivalries. What we do in this series is bring back the hidden names, drivers whose time in the sport lasted only a handful of races before they disappeared from the grid and faded from the memories of many fans.
Forgotten F1 Drivers
IN this edition of forgotten F1 drivers, we look back at several names from 2007 to 2013 who never managed to establish long-term careers in F1; most of them started fewer than 30 Grand Prix before their opportunities vanished, leaving behind stories that many modern fans have completely forgotten!
Markus Winkelhock
Few F1 careers are as unusual as Markus Winkelhock’s, the German driver made only a single Grand Prix appearance, stepping into a Spyker seat at the 2007 European Grand Prix, one of the most dramatic races of the year.
Winkelhock delivered one of the strangest performances in F1 history; after qualifying last, he gambled by starting from the pit lane on wet-weather tyres while most of the field chose dry tyres.
Moments after the start, heavy rain drenched the Nurburgring circuit and chaos erupted; cars slid off everywhere while Winkelhock suddenly found himself leading the race.
For several laps, the F1 world watched a Spyker lead a Grand Prix, when the race was stopped because of the extreme conditions, Winkelhock found himself in the most unlikely position imaginable: first place.
Although mechanical issues eventually ended his race, Martin Winkelhock’s statistic remain almost unbelievable, he led nearly half of all laps he ever competed in F1 and remains the only driver in history to have led at least one lap in every race he started.
Yet despite his remarkable performance, Spyker chose Sakon Yamamoto for the remainder of the season.
Winkelhock never raced in F1 again, but he later built a highly successful career in GT and endurance racing.
Sébastien Bourdais
When Sébastien Bourdais arrived in F1, expectations were enormous.
The Frenchman was one of the most successful drivers outside F1; having dominated the Champ Car World Series with four consecutive championships, many believed he was destined to become a star on the biggest stage.
Instead, his F1 adventure lasted just 27 races, driving for Toro Rosso.
After only nine races in 2009; Bourdais was dismissed and replaced by teenage sensation Jaime Alguersuari.
His F1 career may have ended quickly; but his reputation as a racing driver remained intact.
Returning to America, he enjoyed tremendous success in IndyCar and endurance racing; proving that F1 simply wasn’t the right environment for his talent.
Nelson Piquet Jr.
Few stories in F1 history are as controversial as that of Nelson Piquet Jr.
The son of three-time world champion Nelson Piquet entered F1 carrying a famous surname and considerable expectation.
Renault signed him alongside Fernando Alonso for the 2008 season; hoping he could develop into a future star.
Instead, his career did not go as expected. Piquet struggled badly against Alonso, as the Spaniard regularly challenged near the front of the grid while Piquet often found himself battling in the midfield.
Everything changed after the 2008 Singapore Grand Prix. The race later became the subject of a major controversy after Piquet’s crash triggered a safety car period that ultimately benefited Alonso’s race strategy. The incident would later become known worldwide as “Crashgate.”
His F1 career ended after just 28 starts, years later, however, he reinvented himself in electric racing and became the first Formula E World Champion, achieving a piece of motorsport history completely separate from the controversy that ended his F1 dream.
Karun Chandhok
Karun Chandhok’s F1 journey is a reminder that talent alone isn’t always enough to survive in the sport, the Indian driver debuted with the newly created HRT team in 2010.
The operation was severely underfunded, operating with one of the weakest cars on the grid and virtually no chance of competing for points.
Despite the difficult circumstances, Chandhok gained repsect throughout the paddock for extracting respectable performances, unfortunately, F1 is often driven by economics.
After ten races, HRT replaced Chandhok, but he later in 2011, secured one final F1 appearance with Team Lotus, substituting for Jarno Trulli.
However, after spending months away from racing, he couldn’t make a lasting impression.
That race became his final Formula 1 start, while his driving career in F1 ended early, he found a new role within the sport.
Today he is widely recognized as one of F1’s most respected broadcasters and analysts, becoming a familiar voice of millions of fans around the world.
Lucas di Grassi
Lucas di Grassi entered Formula 1 in 2010 during one of the sport’s most challenging periods for newcomers.
Virgin Racing joined the grid as a fresh team.
Di Grassi managed just one season and 19 starts before losing his seat, the team’s financial struggles eventually played a major role in his deparature.
Virgin Racing needed additional funding and opted to replace him with Jerome d’Ambrosio.
At the time; it appeared to be the end of a promising career.
Instead, it became the beginning of something far greater, Di Grassi later became one of Formula E’s defining stars, winning the 2016-17 championship and establishing himself as one of the most successful drivers in the history of electric racing.
Jérôme d’Ambrosio
Jérôme d’Ambrosio followed a path remarkably similar to Lucas di Grassi’s.
After replacing the Brazilian at Virgin Racing in 2011; he spent a full season battling with an uncompetitive car that offered little chance of attracting attention from leadings teams.
Despite demonstrating consistency and reliability, results remained limited by the machinery beneath him; and when Virgin transformed into Marussia, financial realities once again influenced driver selection.
D’Ambrosio lost his seat and became a reserve driver for Lotus.
One final opportunity arrived at the 2012 Italian GP after Romain Grosjean received a race ban following the infamous first-lap crash at Spa-Francorchamps.
Thrown into the car with virtually no race preparation, d’Ambrosio performed admirably but could do little to secure a permanent return, his Formula 1 career ended after just 20 starts.
Like many drivers on the list; he discovered greater success elsewhere, winning races in Formula E before transitioning into team management and leadership roles at the highest levels of motorsport.
Max Chilton
His Formula 1 career lasted longer than most drivers featured in this series; but he still disappeared from the grid after only 35 starts.
Driving for Marussia in 2013 and 2014; Chilton earned a reputation for consistency and reliability, while the rarely challenged for notable results, he developed an extraordinary record for finishing races, in fact, he became the first rookie in history of F1 to finish every race of his debut season.
However, he faced an impossible comparison, across the garage stood Jules Bianchi, one of the most naturally gifted young drivers of his generation.
Bianchi’s breakthrough points finish at Monaco in 2014 secured a place in F1 history and inevitably overshadowed Chilton’s achievements.
When Marussia collapsed later that year, Chilton’s Formula 1 career effectively ended alongside the team.
He later moved to IndyCar racing and continued competing internationally; but his brief F1 chapter remains largely forgotten by modern fans.
Giedo van der Garde
His Formula 1 story ended in different way that no one expected, after completing the 2013 season with Caterham, the Dutchman signed agreements that appeared to guarantee him a race seat at Sauber for 2015.
But then everything fell apart; facing financial pressure, Sauber chose to sign Marcus Ericsson and Felipe Nasr instead, both of whom brought significant sponsorship support.
Reports suggest that van der Garde responded by taking the matter to court, with rulings eventually going in his favour. Shortly before the opening race of the 2015 season in Australia, courts reportedly ordered Sauber to honour the contract. Despite this, a return to the F1 grid never happened, and the dispute was ultimately resolved through a multimillion-dollar settlement.
His Formula 1 career ended with just 19 races; but he later enjoyed success in endurance racing and became a respected television analyst in the Netherlands.
Forgotten, But Not Gone
This was Part 7, but the journey is not over. The next chapter will be coming soon. Our series aims to offer something different for fans, highlighting drivers who deserved more time in Formula 1 but never truly got the opportunity. While the sport is often remembered for its champions and race winners, drivers like Winkelhock, Bourdais, and others on this list deserve to be remembered and respected. Their stories remind us just how difficult it is to survive in F1.
FEATURED IMAGE CREDITS: Morio, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Previous Three Parts:
PART 1: Forgotten F1 Drivers 1990 to 1992
PART 2: Forgotten F1 Drivers 1993 to 1994
PART 3: Forgotten F1 Drivers of 1995 and 1996
PART 4: Forgotten F1 Drivers of 1997 to 2000
PART 5: Forgotten F1 Drivers of 2001 to 2003
PART 6: Forgotten F1 Drivers Of 2004 To 2006
