Photo Credit: Gillfoto, CC BY-SA 3.0 (CROPPED)
Photo Credit: Gillfoto, CC BY-SA 3.0 (CROPPED from WIKIMEDIA)
Remembering the Swedish icon, his name might not always appear at the top of the record books, but to those who saw him drive, he was unforgettable!
Ronnie Peterson was known as the “SUPERSWEDE” Peterson was one of the fastest and most naturally gifted drivers F1 ever saw.
We have seen in the past many Sweden legends, for example Jo Bonnier, but Peterson was the man who was close to win the 1978 championship, that is why he is remembered as one of the best.
His career though full of spectacular moments and ten victories, was cut short in 1978, leaving behind both a legacy and a sense of unfinished business.
Rising from Örebro to the F1 Grid
He was born in Orebro, in 1944, like many drivers of his generation his path to F1 began with karting.
His fearless style, pushing the car to the edge of control, quickly gained attention in local competitions, by the late of ’60s, he had risen through F3 and F2, where he often looked like the man to beat!
It did not end there, it caught the eye of F1 teams and in 1970 he made his debut with March team, almost instantly, Peterson was recognized not just for raw pace, but also for his spectacular car control.
Style and Reputation
Ronnie Peterson had a unique driving style, he was famous for sliding the car through corners, a technique that may not have been the fastest in the stopwatch sense but it was great for the fans to watch.
Fans adored him, very aggressive and the fellow drivers respected his commitment.
This style of racing earned him ‘SUPERSWEDE”, a title he carried proudly, he was not just a quick qualifier, with 14 pole positions to his name, but someone who seemed to wring every last drop of performance out of a car, no matter how difficult it was to drive.
Career Highlights
During his time in F1, he drove for several teams, including March, Tyrrel, and Lotus, his most famous chapter came with Team Lotus, where he partnered Mario Andretti during the late ’70s.
Mario Andretti won the championship, but many believed Peterson could have been champion himself under different circumstances.
One of Peterson’s standout years came in 1973, when he won four races and finished third in the championship, even without a title, his performances left no doubt that he was among the very best of his era.
The Final Race at Monza
The day we lost Peterson, it was the Italian 1978. The start of the race descended into chaos with cars bunching together on the long straight, Peterson’s Lotus became caught in the melee and was sent into the barriers.
Fellow drivers, including James Hunt, Clay Regazzoni and Patrick Depallier rushed to help pull him from the wreckage.
Peterson was badly injured but conscious was transported to hospital in Milan, doctors believed his injuries could be managed, but complications overnight changed everything, the motorsport world awoke to devastating news the following morning.
CIRCUIT OF SWEDEN: Forgotten Swedish F1 circuit – The Anderstorp
The statue of Ronnie Peterson stands in his hometown of Örebro, Sweden, in the district of Almby. Created by Swedish sculptor Richard Brixel, it was unveiled in August 2003 to honor Peterson’s legacy as one of Formula 1’s fastest and most beloved drivers.
Impact on Safety
In years that followed, the sport took major steps toward better medical care at circuits, professor, Sid Watking, who would later become synonymous with driver safety, helped implement changes, including the presence of a medical car at the start of the race, in direct response to incidents like Peterson’s.
While the Swedish icon never became F1 champion, his influence went far beyond trophies, for Swedish fans, he was national hero, for global racing community he was a reminder of both the beauty and the risks of motorsport.
Remembering the SuperSwede
Today, Ronnie Peterson is remembered not as a statistic or just another name from the past, but as a driver who raced with heart, who made cars dance and who inspired a generation.
Ronnie Peterson’s story is one of brilliance, tragedy and legacy, he remains the forgotten Swedish icon, a man who showed the world what natural talent looked like behind the wheel, even if fate denied him the championship that many believed was within reach.
He lost his life at Monza, he had the chance to compete with Andretti in the last three races, to take the title who was 12 points ahead of Peterson before Monza race.
I am so old I had the privilege of seeing Peterson race on a number of occasions (thanks to my Father, the first F-1 race I attended was in 1960 when I was 8 years old -Stirling Moss won). I recall reading an article in Road & Track magazine sometime in the mid-1970’s. There were several drivers testing F-1 cars at Paul Richard. The vehicles had been fitted with devices measuring various things like acceleration, lateral G!s, braking, etc. (not particularly sophisticated by today’s standards, but state of the art 50 years ago). I do not recall the other drivers, just that the article concluded that Peterson was getting the car to do things no other driver could, and at several points the car “should have left the track.” Of course it did not. One opinion offered to account for this was that as Peterson had spent a great deal of time racing on frozen lakes, and must have developed an “unmatched” sense of what a car on the edge would do before it lost traction. Regardless of the cause, it was generally agreed he could wring things out of cars that none of his fellow drivers could do. Sort of like Nuvolari, Fangio, Clark, Senna…….
That is an amazing memory, thank you for sharing it 🙏. Stories like yours really show why Peterson was considered something special, not just fast, but able to take a car to the very edge and somehow keep it there. The frozen lakes connection makes perfect sense, it shaped that unmatched car control he became famous for. It’s incredible to hear this from someone who actually saw him race live, that kind of perspective adds so much more than statistics ever could.
Ronnie is not forgotten…
He’s surely not forgotten. I saw him race at Zandvoort ‘78, just a couple of weeks before Monza..