Alex Ribeiro
| Born | 7 November 1948 |
|---|---|
| Formula One World Championship career | |
| Nationality |
 Brazilian |
| Active years | 1976 - 1977, 1979 |
| Teams | Hesketh, March, Fittipaldi |
| Entries | 20 (10 starts) |
| Career points | 0 |
| First entry | 1976 United States Grand Prix |
| Last entry | 1979 United States Grand Prix |
Alexandre "Alex" Dias Ribeiro (born in Belo Horizonte, November 7, 1948[1]) is a former racing driver from Brazil. He entered in 20 Formula One World Championship Grands Prix, but scored no World Championship points.
Career
After a solid graduation from the lower formulae (he placed fifth in the 1976 European Formula Two season), Ribeiro paid for his drive in the March Formula One team for the 1977 season (main sponsors were Caixa Econômica Federal-a Brazilian bank and Souza Cruz-a tobacco company).
However, the season turned into a nightmare. March owner Max Mosley (later FIA president) hired four drivers, and the team simply did not have the capability to provide for them all. Ribeiro's reputation as a driver suffered.
In 1978, he tried to save his credentials as a racing driver and set up a privately owned F2 team to enter the 1978 European Formula Two season, a year dominated by the March factory team. His car was painted with the words "Jesus Saves". Ribeiro managed to win the Nürburgring round in a dramatic way, after favorites Bruno Giacomelli and Marc Surer retired from the race. The rest of the season, however, bore no fruit.
Then, in 1979, the fellow Brazilian Fittipaldi team offered him two chances to qualify a second car, for the Canadian and American Formula One Grands Prix. However, the team was concentrating on former F1 champion Emerson Fittipaldi, and Ribeiro failed to qualify for both events.
Ribeiro was perhaps best known for his proclamation of faith in the form of 'Jesus Saves' slogans on his Formula One cars.[2]
He subsequently went on to perform Chaplaincy at the F1 events he attended as the driver of the Medical Car and is arguably the most accomplished driver in the 'Christians In Motorsport' group.
In 1994, he joined the Brazil national football team as a pastor at the FIFA World Cup in the United States. He held worship services for the team and later wrote a book about the team's journey to victory, titled "Who won the '94 World Cup?" (¿quién Ganó La Copa Mundial?).[3]
At the 2002 Brazilian Grand Prix, Ribeiro was involved in a potentially serious incident. During the morning warm-up on race day Sunday, Enrique Bernoldi crashed his Arrows in Turn 2. When Ribeiro, the driver of the Medical Car, went out to check on Bernoldi, he opened the door to the car. Just as he opened it, Nick Heidfeld came along in his Sauber, and smashed into the open door. Both Ribeiro and Heidfeld were uninjured.
In 1981, Ribeiro wrote an autobiographical book called "Mais Que Vencedor" (translation goes something like "More Than A Winner"), in which he names March owner Max Mosley "Mack Mouse" and March engineer Robin Herd "Robin Hood".
Racing record
Complete European Formula Two Championship results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | Pos | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1975 | March Engineering Ltd | March 752 | BMW | EST |
THR |
HOC |
NÜR |
PAU |
HOC |
SAL |
ROU |
MUG |
PER |
SIL |
ZOL |
NOG |
VAL Ret |
— | 0 |
| 1976 | BMW Motorsport | March 762 | BMW | HOC 13 |
THR 2 |
VAL 3 |
SAL 5 |
PAU 6 |
HOC Ret |
ROU Ret |
MUG 4 |
PER 2 |
EST 3 |
NOG 5 |
HOC Ret |
5th | 31 | ||
| 1977 | March Racing Ltd | March 772P | BMW | SIL |
THR 3 |
HOC |
NÜR |
VAL 14 |
PAU |
MUG |
DON 8 |
14th | 4 | ||||||
| Fred Opert Racing | Chevron B40 | Hart | ROU 7 |
NOG |
PER |
MIS DNQ |
EST |
||||||||||||
| 1978 | Alex Ribeiro | March 782 | Hart | THR 15 |
HOC 6 |
NÜR 1 |
PAU 12 |
MUG 10 |
VAL NC |
ROU 10 |
DON Ret |
NOG Ret |
PER 7 |
MIS 13 |
HOC |
8th | 11 |
Complete Formula One World Championship results
(key)
| Yr | Entrant | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | WDC | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 | Hesketh Racing | Hesketh 308D | Cosworth V8 | BRA |
RSA |
USW |
ESP |
BEL |
MON |
SWE |
FRA |
GBR |
GER |
AUT |
NED |
ITA |
CAN |
USA 12 |
JPN |
NC | 0 | |
| 1977 | Hollywood March Racing | March 761B | Cosworth V8 | ARG Ret |
BRA Ret |
RSA Ret |
USW Ret |
ESP DNQ |
MON DNQ |
BEL DNQ |
SWE DNQ |
FRA DNQ |
GBR DNQ |
GER 8 |
AUT DNQ |
NED 11 |
ITA DNQ |
USA 15 |
CAN 8 |
JPN 12 |
NC | 0 |
| 1979 | Fittipaldi Automotive | Fittipaldi F6A | Cosworth V8 | ARG |
BRA |
RSA |
USW |
ESP |
BEL |
MON |
FRA |
GBR |
GER |
AUT |
NED |
ITA |
CAN DNQ |
USA DNQ |
NC | 0 |
References
- ↑ Jenkins, Richard. "The World Championship drivers - Where are they now?". OldRacingCars.com. Retrieved 2007-07-29.
- ↑ "Presents Alex Ribeiro". Thegoal.com. Retrieved 2011-12-28.
- ↑ "Who Won the '94 World Cup?". Amazon.com. Retrieved 14 November 2013.