From Juan Manuel Fangio to Stirling Moss, Niki Lauda to Ayrton Senna, Michael Schumacher to Sir Lewis Hamilton – the sport of Formula 1 is not lacking in fast legends. But what about the other end of the spectrum? You know … the forgotten names of the elite motor sports enthusiasts who appeared, clutched the steering wheel tightly, felt the G-force – just to have little to no influence. We’re not talking about people like Romain Grosjean or Nico Hulkenberg either; both demonstrable talents forced to work uphill against certain obstacles. The speech is precisely from the British-Canadian racing driver Victor “Al” Pease, who was immortalized as the only ever disqualified F1 driver because you are too slow.
Born in Darlington, England, before his less than stellar Formula 1 career, Al Pease served in the British Army – stationed in Egypt, India, Rhodesia – before emigrating to the United States and finally settling in Canada in the 1960s. He spent a short time there as an illustrator before he became convinced that he was a speed demon on the train tracks. Despite zero experience behind an F1 single-seater.
Al Pease would compete in a staggering total of three (3) Formula 1 World Championships from Canada from 1967 to 1969. His epic debut on August 27, 1967 gave Castrol his first attempt to hit the grid. The man who dared to dream piloted a fairly unrivaled Eagle Climax TF and was overlaps over 43 times by three-time Australian champion Jack Brabham, who finally climbed onto the podium victoriously. Al Pease, on the other hand, achieved a breakneck average speed of 69.4 km / h. As a reference, although this was an early stage for F1 tech, cars still managed to run between 200 km / h and 300 km / h on a regular basis.
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A year later, Al Pease returned at the 1968 Canadian Grand Prix with his Castrol sponsorship and his trusty Eagle Climax TF. Unfortunately, due to engine problems, the world would not be able to afford the privilege of tasting its dust and giving our hero of heroes a bad start. A setback for sure, if not one that he would abandon.
September 20, 1969. Motorsport International Raceway, Ontario. It certainly wasn’t what he intended, but Victor “Al” Pease was making Formula 1 history. While Castrol no longer supported him, John Maryon offered the financial assistance he needed. And yes, the machine known only as the Eagle Climax TF was still in the game. Al Pease qualified in P17 with a solid lap time of 1: 28.5. That would be the climax of his chapter here, however.
When the lights went out, competitors apparently overtook him and immediately doubled him. All the same. He had put his first-class defense skills to the test. With what Matrax Lubricants described as “bitter and absurd resistance” against anyone who tried to overtake him – which was apparently also considered “incomprehensible” – he tore some rivals off the course, which led to several racing incidents. One particular incident concerned Jackie Stewart, who gave Matra team owner Ken Tyrrell cause to protest.
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The race management intervened. They decided that the Notorious PEA.SE was traveling at “too low speeds” and that it was putting everyone else in danger. The black flag was waved, Al Pease was disqualified and his time in Formula 1 would finally come to an end. With just 22 laps against the 46 leaders, he packed his little shiny box and drove home. It just shouldn’t be.
As a salutary epilogue to this hilarious saga, Victor “Al” Pease actually had success elsewhere in Canadian motorsport competitions after retiring from Formula 1 and was later inducted into the Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame in about 1998.
The worst Formula 1 driver in history died peacefully at his home in Sevierville, Tennessee, aged 92.
