ATLAS F1 - THE JOURNAL OF FORMULA ONE MOTORSPORT
One Shot: a Tribute to Ratzenberger

By Keith Sutton, England
Sutton Images



Following the Pacific Grand Prix at Aida in Japan, 1994, I took the Bullet Train heading for the airport in Tokyo. I met up with Roland Ratzenberger, who was ecstatic at having competed in and finished his second GP with the new Simtek team, especially after technical difficulties with the new car at Brazil had prevented him from racing there.

We were on the same flight back to England and at the airport the gentleman at the check-in desk recognised Roland to be an F1 driver, which delighted Roland immensely. Roland proceeded to give the check-in staff a pin-badge depicting his helmet. Roland had had these produced on his arrival to F1 and was handing them out to friends and those who had supported him over the years. This gesture promptly saw Roland upgraded from Business to First Class!

On the plane Roland invited me to the First Class area where we ended up chatting for many hours. We charted Roland's career - which had seen him drive single seaters, touring cars and sports cars in Europe and latterly in Japan. He also explained how Barbara Behlau, a Monaco based sports manager, had personally financed his opportunity to compete in Formula One. We arranged on the flight to visit each other's respective new homes in Austria and England - a plan that sadly never had the time to materialise.

Whilst Roland would never had compared his talents to those of Ayrton Senna, who we also sadly lost that weekend, I believe his desire and enthusiasm for the sport he loved was the match of anyone in the paddock. He showed that determination and hard work could allow you to fulfil your dreams.

I first met Roland in 1986. I had just moved with my company to Towcester in England and Roland happened to be living nearby. One day he called me, as he needed some promotional photographs taken to try and gain some new sponsorship, and we did the shoot at the local playing fields.

What was immediately apparent was his zest for life. He had a wonderful sense of humour and was a joy to be with. Roland was someone you couldn't help but be friends with and at that point I had made a friend for life.

I remember well we shared a passion for fast cars and would often compare those we owned at the time - his dream machines would blow my hot hatchbacks away! The number plates my vehicles carry now bear an 'R' for Roland. Like so many others who knew him, his friendship has left an indelible impression that I cherish immensely.

Many of the images I selected for this collection are previously unseen, and together they capture the varied career of Roland. I was in particular attracted to his time with the Simtek Formula One team; When the team was launched in 1993, we were the team's official photographers, entailing we had unrivalled access to the team and their drivers. We have a unique selection of images from the months Roland was with the Simtek team up to his tragic accident at Imola, and beyond that weekend, how the team dealt bravely with the crushing loss.

Ten years on, the pictures of Roland and the Simtek team hold a powerful poignancy. The enthusiasm shown by Roland, and from the sadly ill-fated team through the severest adversity, should be an inspiration to us all.

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Volume 10, Issue 17
April 28th 2004

Atlas F1 Exclusive

The Next Privateer
by David Cameron

Bjorn Wirdheim: Going Places
by Bjorn Wirdheim

One Shot: a Tribute to Ratzenberger
by Keith Sutton

Ann Bradshaw: Point of View
by Ann Bradshaw

2004 San Marino GP Review

2004 San Marino GP Review
by Pablo Elizalde

Technical Review: San Marino
by Craig Scarborough

Reflections on Imola
by Roger Horton

Beware Racing's Black Hole
by Karl Ludvigsen

Slim Hopes
by Richard Barnes

Stats Center

Qualifying Differentials
by Marcel Borsboom

SuperStats
by David Wright

Charts Center
by Michele Lostia

Columns

Season Strokes
by Bruce Thomson

Elsewhere in Racing
by David Wright & Mark Alan Jones

The Weekly Grapevine
by Dieter Rencken



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