In little over five years byrne went from driving a mini cooper in irish stockcar racing to the bigtime in formula one. The bbc has screened crash and burn the story of irishman, tommy byrne, the greatest racing driver you never saw. Better than senna tommy byrne was the greatest racing driver. For a fleeting moment in the early 80s tommy byrne was the worlds greatest driver, the motor racing equivalent of george best and. Following a bad crash his rallying career was over and he turned. But while senna went on to become a legend, the irishman is a largely forgotten character. Note that i wrote, the bbc has screened because the documentary is an independent irish film. Formula 1 irish former f1 driver tommy byrne to race a. Both were forthright, confident and above all, fast.
This is motor racings bad boy tommy byrne, who rose from humble beginnings in dundalk in ireland to be one of the hottest prospects of early 1980s formula one, mentioned in the same breath as. He failed to finish in either of the grands prix he started and scored no formula one championship points. After a poor run of results, byrne got his formula 3 challenge back on track at brands hatch, with victory in the 1982 british gp support race. Its raw, passionate, and with byrnes ability to tell it like it is not for the fainthearted. Tommy byrne, retired racing driver and reformed hellraiser asks the waitress what the soup of the day is. Worked as a commentator and now retired from driving. He failed to finish in either of the grands prix he. Tommy byrne was always ahead of his time, right from the moment he took his first breath in the world. He participated in two formula one grands prix in 1982 with the backmarker theodore team failing to qualify for another three. The blurb on the bbcs website adds, for a brief moment in the 1980s, some considered byrne the worlds greatest racing driver. Biography a year before ayrton senna there was tommy byrne winning both the european formula ford 2000 and british f3 titles immediately ahead of the great brazilian. Lexington, ohio at the midohio sports car course, irishman tommy byrne is a legend, even though his shot at fame and fortune long ago fell victim to what he characterized as a personality. The iconic true story of legendary tommy byrne the worlds greatest racing car driver. The greatest racing driver you never saw a surreal tale of a povertystricken dundalk kids rise to become the only racing driver the great ayrton senna ever feared and how it all went wrong from there.
The story of irishman tommy byrne, the greatest racing driver you never saw. The greatest racing driver you never saw byrne, tommy, hughes, mark on. Selfproclaimed as the greatest driver youve never seen, byrne competed in an era when. Giving up on his racing dreams tommy byrne reached out to a friend working at a driving school in ohio for a job. Byrne, now 60, will race irishman james hagans hesketh 3081 in the pair of fia masters historic formula 1 races that will support the british. Updated with 50 new photos from tommys private collection and 2 new chapters. A year before ayrton senna there was tommy byrne winning both the european formula ford 2000 and british f3 titles immediately ahead of the great brazilian. Tommy byrne irls cars photo gallery racing sports cars. Now does driver coaching at racing schools in the us, more specifically, in ohio, where he is the senior instructor. The cocky co louth racing driver who was better than senna.
Get your limited edition signed copy of tommy s award winning book and dvd. Having been mesmerised, as a nearteenager, by tommy byrnes driving in the early1980s and having got his autograph during that successful british f3 season in 82, it was a wideeyed, slackjawed experience, peppered with uproarious laughter. Tommy byrne to make f1 return at british grand prix, aged 60. Top 5 weird ww2 german prototypes that actually flew duration. The documentary is based on the life of tommy byrne, the greatest racing driver you never saw. Thomas byrne born 6 may 1958 in drogheda, but grew up outside dundalk county louth is a former racing driver from ireland. Before he became a formula 1 legend, ayrton senna had a rival named tommy byrne, whom some observers considered his superior. Dundalks famous racing driver son tommy byrne, the 1982 british formula 3 champion and fivetime grand prix competitor, returned to the cockpit of. Tommy byrne has turned up in the rag at least three times in the last two months. Fast but with a fiery temperament, tommy is a classic example of someone who showed remarkable potential in junior categories, but between opportunities, luck, and arguably perception and reputation, the path to fame and fortune didnt quite work out. Thomas byrne born 6 may 1958 in drogheda but grew up outside dundalk county louth is a former racing driver from ireland. Book, dvd, tshirts crashandbyrne tommy byrne driver. He has also written an awardwinning autobiography, crashed and byrned.
Get your limited edition signed copy of tommys award winning book and dvd. My mechanic kevin from 1982 sent me this video it was a nice suprise as i had never seen it before thank you kevin. Driver tommy byrne 1989 cart american racing series. Tommy byrne was considered the greatest formula one driver you never heard of. Byrne had made his open wheel racing debut in ff1600 only one year earlier. The award winning book that inspired an award winning documentary. Year, age, races, win, podium, pole, laps, led, earnings, rank, avst, avfn, raf, llf, dnq, wd. It is here that the greatest racing driver you never saw got his formula one career underway. For a brief moment tommy byrne was arguably the worlds greatest driver, the motor racing equivalent of george best and muhammad ali rolled into one a racer, a thief, a raconteur. Louth, irishman tommy byrne started his racing career in road rallies in 1970s. Already in 1982, byrne had won seven races and the clinched the championship in the british f3 series and had won two european f3 races. A cross between tony lanfranchis and perry mccarthys. He participated in five formula one grands prix in 1982 with the backmarker theodore team, but he failed to finish in any of them and scored no formula one championship points.
Sports car racing photo gallery of tommy byrne irls cars photo gallery login rsc home drivers tommy byrne photos. Louth, irishman tommy byrnestarted his racing career in roadrallies in 1970s ireland, driving an old mini. Born in the back of a car speeding its way towards our lady of lourdes hospital in drogheda. Crash and burn for a fleeting moment in the early 80s, tommy byrne was the worlds greatest driver, the motor racing equivalent of george best and muhammad ali all rolled into one. Experience the remarkable life of the only racing driver senna ever feared. He is the subject of a new documentary called tommy byrne. Chequered past of formula ones greatest driver tommy byrne. This is the story of tommy byrne and his improbable escape, his rapid rise and his bizarre fall from grace. Very few sporting lives have skirted as often, or as wilfully, with drama and danger as tommy byrnes. For a fleeting moment in the early 80s tommy byrne was the worlds greatest driver, the motor racing equivalent of george best and muhammed ali all rolled into one.
He participated in two formula one grands prix in 1982 with the backmarker theodore team, failing to qualify for another three. View tommy byrnes profile on linkedin, the worlds largest professional community. And its all true, from fending for himself as the runt of a big catholic litter in the 1960s, to running the gauntlet of sectarian violence during the 70s, briefly making it to. Tommy byrne is not a household name in the same way that michael schumacher or ayrton senna is. The film tells the story of the most dramatic part of byrnes life when, in little over four years, he went from driving a mini cooper in a stockcar race. At the end of 1978 at the age of 20, byrne was a works driver with prs, competing in england and being paid. By now you may have heard of tommy byrne, the release of his brutally honest autobiography a year ago gained him notoriety among f1 fans, but unfortunately the publics consciousness came about 25 years too late for those still unfamiliar with byrne, he is the antithesis of lewis hamilton. He participated in two formula one grands prix in 1982 with the backmarker theodore team, failing to. Thats not to say he was slow, in fact in his prime he may well have been quicker, but. He openly admits it was something of a culture shock for a knacker from. Profile for racing driver tommy byrne from ireland. After signing on with the minnows at theodore racing to contest five f1 rounds, byrne blended f3. It was, he says, taking another sip of malbec, completely unbelievable.
Click on the year to see the standings for that year. Crashed and byrned his rise was meteoric and his fall spectacular hold on tight because the story of irish racing driver tommy byrne is quite a ride. The book follows the life and racing career of tommy byrne, an irish racing driver with plenty of raw driving talent but who due to his personality it comes across as the primary issue never truly makes it. Peppered with dark humour, this book tells tommys story from fending for himself as the runt of a big catholic litter in the 1960s to driving for a deluded billionaire madman and then guntoting mexicans in the 1990s. But ask any racing and formula one aficionado, and theyll tell you he was every bit as good as them. You are covered by the ebay money back guarantee if you receive an item that is not as described in the listing. Next up in the driver rotation just in time for the german gp would be the young irish driver tommy byrne. Aggressive, articulate, not without charm, byrne is an ideal subject for a documentary. Click on the site to see tommy byrnes career results at that track glossary. Ayrton senna career overview years in numbers the following numbers are a summary of the more detailed information available in the career details further below on the page. Former wild man tommy byrne of racing has settled into. Former irish formula one driver tommy byrne is set to return to the cockpit of a racing car later this month, driving a hesketh raced by james hunt in the 70s.
Selfproclaimed as the greatest driver youve never seen, byrne competed in an era when cigarette companies had their wares plastered all over motor racing circuits and health and safety was a fire. See the complete profile on linkedin and discover tommys. The only thing standing in the way of fame and fortune was tommys own hedonistic lifestyle sex, drugs and fast cars. That is the view of former jordan f1 team boss eddie jordan about former irish driver tommy byrne who took part in five formula 1 grand prix during the 1982 season. Better than senna tommy byrne was the greatest racing.
For every driver who makes it to the very top, stays there, wins countless races and snares a world title or two, while enjoying the trappings of. Better than senna tommy byrne was the greatest racing driver youve probably never heard of the life story of the enigmatic irishman has been turned into a documentary. Thomas byrne is a former racing driver from ireland. Tommy byrne, a multiple champion in lower formulas in the early 80s, made it into f1 with theodore in 1982. Crash and burn is the surreal tale of a povertystricken dundalk kids rise to become the only racing driver the great.