Thomas Maldwyn Pryce (11 June 1949 – 5 March 1977) was a British
racing driver
Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. In North America, the term is commonly used to describe all forms of automobile sport including non ...
from Wales, who competed in
Formula One
Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...
from to .
Pryce started his career in Formula One with the small
Token team, making his only start for them at the
1974 Belgian Grand Prix. Shortly after winning the
Formula Three
Formula Three (F3) is a third-tier class of open-wheel formula racing. The various championships held in Europe, Australia, South America and Asia form an important step for many prospective Formula One drivers.
History
Formula Three (adop ...
support race for the
1974 Monaco Grand Prix, Pryce joined the
Shadow
A shadow is a dark area on a surface where light from a light source is blocked by an object. In contrast, shade occupies the three-dimensional volume behind an object with light in front of it. The cross-section of a shadow is a two-dimensio ...
team and scored his first points in
Germany in only his fourth race. He later claimed two podium finishes, his first in
Austria in 1975 and the second in
Brazil a year later. He won the
non-championship Race of Champions
The Race of Champions (ROC) is an international motorsport event held at the start or end of each year, featuring some of the world's best racing and rally drivers from Formula One, World Rally Championship, IndyCar, NASCAR, sports car racin ...
in
1975
It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe.
Events
January
* January 1 – Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...
, becoming the first—and to this date, only—Welsh driver win a Formula One race; he also became the first Welsh driver to lead a
Grand Prix, as well as the first to achieve a
pole position
In a motorsports race, the pole position is usually the best and "statistically the most advantageous" starting position on the track. The pole position is usually earned by the driver with the best qualifying times in the trials before the ra ...
, at the
1975 British Grand Prix
The 1975 British Grand Prix (formally the John Player Grand Prix) was a Formula One motor race held at Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone on 19 July 1975. It was race 10 of 14 in both the 1975 World Championship of Drivers and the 1975 Internationa ...
. Pryce was noted for his ability in wet-weather conditions.
Pryce set the fastest lap during the rain-affected practice sessions for the
1977 South African Grand Prix. During the Grand Prix, he collided at high speed with a safety marshal, Frederik Jansen van Vuuren, and both men were killed. A memorial to Pryce was unveiled in 2009 in his home town of
Ruthin
Ruthin ( ; ) is a market town and community in Denbighshire, Wales, in the south of the Vale of Clwyd. The town, castle and St Peter's Square lie on a hill, skirted by villages such as Pwllglas and Rhewl. The name comes from the Welsh ''rhud ...
.
Personal and early life
Tom Pryce was born on 11 June 1949 in
Ruthin
Ruthin ( ; ) is a market town and community in Denbighshire, Wales, in the south of the Vale of Clwyd. The town, castle and St Peter's Square lie on a hill, skirted by villages such as Pwllglas and Rhewl. The name comes from the Welsh ''rhud ...
,
Denbighshire
Denbighshire ( ; ) is a county in the north-east of Wales. It borders the Irish Sea to the north, Flintshire to the east, Wrexham to the southeast, Powys to the south, and Gwynedd and Conwy to the west. Rhyl is the largest town, and Ruthi ...
, Wales, to Jack and Gwyneth Pryce ( Hughes).
Jack had served in the
Royal Air Force
The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...
as a tail-gunner on a
Lancaster bomber
The Avro Lancaster, commonly known as the Lancaster Bomber, is a British Second World War heavy bomber. It was designed and manufactured by Avro as a contemporary of the Handley Page Halifax, both bombers having been developed to the same spec ...
before joining the local police force. Gwyneth was a
district nurse
District nurses work manage care within the community and lead teams of community nurses and support workers. In the United Kingdom, the role requires registered nurses to take a Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) approved specialist practitione ...
. Pryce's older brother, David, died at the age of three leaving Tom an only child for much of the time he was growing up, although his parents did foster a young girl called Sandra for a while. Pryce, known to his friends as Mald, attended Nantglyn Primary School,
Denbighshire
Denbighshire ( ; ) is a county in the north-east of Wales. It borders the Irish Sea to the north, Flintshire to the east, Wrexham to the southeast, Powys to the south, and Gwynedd and Conwy to the west. Rhyl is the largest town, and Ruthi ...
.
The family later moved to
Towyn
Towyn () is a seaside resort in the Conwy County Borough, Wales. It is also an electoral ward to the town and county councils.
Location
It is located between Rhyl, in Denbighshire, and Abergele in Conwy.
Demography
According to the 2001 ...
, Denbighshire, due to Jack's job.
Pryce took an interest in cars while driving a baker's van at the age of 10, before informing his parents that he wanted to be a racing driver. During an interview with
Alan Henry in 1975, he stated that he had wanted to become a
pilot
An aircraft pilot or aviator is a person who controls the flight of an aircraft by operating its Aircraft flight control system, directional flight controls. Some other aircrew, aircrew members, such as navigators or flight engineers, are al ...
, but thought he was not intelligent enough. Like many future Formula One drivers, Pryce had a childhood racing hero. In his case it was
Lotus's Scottish driver
Jim Clark
James Clark (4 March 1936 – 7 April 1968) was a British racing driver from Scotland, who competed in Formula One from to . Clark won two Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles with Lotus, and—at the time of his death—held the ...
. Pryce's mother recalled that he was very upset when Clark died at the
Hockenheimring
The Hockenheimring, officially Hockenheimring Baden-Württemberg () is a motor racing circuit situated in the Rhine valley near the town of Hockenheim in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, located on the Bertha Benz Memorial Route. Amongst other mot ...
in April 1968. His father noted that "he was very upset when
Jochen Rindt
Karl Jochen Rindt (; 18 April 1942 – 5 September 1970) was a racing driver, who competed under the Austrian flag in Formula One from to . Rindt won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with Lotus, and remains the only driver to ...
was killed, too". After he left school at 16, Pryce's mother insisted that he take an apprenticeship as a tractor mechanic at Llandrillo Technical College, giving him "something to fall back on", as she put it, if his career as a racing driver was unsuccessful.
In 1975 Pryce married Fenella "Nella" Warwick-Smith, whom he met at a disco in
Otford
Otford is a village and civil parish in the Sevenoaks District of Kent, England. It lies on the River Darent, north of Sevenoaks. Otford's four churches are the Anglican Church of St Bartholomew in the village centre, the Otford Methodist C ...
,
Kent
Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...
in 1973. Following the death of her husband, Nella went on to run an antiques store in
Fulham
Fulham () is an area of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham in West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It lies in a loop on the north bank of the River Thames, bordering Hammersmith, Kensington and Chelsea, London, Chelsea ...
,
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
with Janet Brise, the widow of
Tony Brise
Anthony William Brise (28 March 1952 – 29 November 1975) was an English racing driver, who took part in ten Formula One Grand Prix events in 1975, before dying in a plane crash with Graham Hill.
Early life
Brise was born in Erith, Kent, ...
, who died in a plane crash in 1975 with fellow racing driver,
Graham Hill
Norman Graham Hill (15 February 1929 – 29 November 1975) was a British racing driver, rower and motorsport executive, who competed in Formula One from to . Nicknamed "Mr. Monaco", Hill won two Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles ...
and later moved to France.
Helmet design
Tom Pryce's helmet design was, in comparison to later drivers', simple and restrained. His helmet was plain white all over until 1970. At that year's race at
Castle Combe
Castle Combe is a village and Civil parishes in England, civil parish in Wiltshire, England. The village is around north-west of Chippenham and north-east of Bath, Somerset, Bath. At the 2021 United Kingdom census, 2021 census, the parish had ...
, his father asked Pryce to make his helmet stand out more so that he could easily identify him in a pack of cars. Pryce added five black vertical lines to his helmet, placed just above his visor. From that time the only change to this design was the addition of a
Welsh flag to the side of his helmet in 1974.
Career
Pre–Formula One
1969–1971: early years
Pryce's first steps into motor racing came at the
Mallory Park
Mallory Park is a motor racing circuit situated in the village of Kirkby Mallory, just off the A47 road, A47, between Leicester and Hinckley, in central England. Originally used for Grass track racing, grass-track until 1955, a new, basicall ...
circuit in
Leicestershire
Leicestershire ( ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire to the north, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire to the south-east, Warw ...
when he was 20. Pryce was put through his paces by
Trevor Taylor, an ex-Team Lotus driver and old teammate of Pryce's childhood hero Clark. He later became a star in the
Formula 5000
Formula 5000 (or F5000) was an Open-wheel car, open wheel, single seater auto-racing formula that ran in different series in various regions around the world from 1968 to 1982. It was originally intended as a low-cost series aimed at open-wheel ...
series. From there, Pryce went on to compete in the ''
Daily Express
The ''Daily Express'' is a national daily United Kingdom middle-market newspaper printed in Tabloid (newspaper format), tabloid format. Published in London, it is the flagship of Express Newspapers, owned by publisher Reach plc. It was first ...
Crusader Championship'', a series run by ''Motor Racing Stables'' for racing school pupils using
Lotus 51 Formula Ford
Formula Ford, also known as F1600 and Formula F, is an entry-level class of single-seater, open-wheel formula racing. The various championships held across the world have historically been an important step for many prospective Formula One dri ...
cars. Races alternated between the
Brands Hatch
Brands Hatch is a motor racing circuit in West Kingsdown, Kent, England, United Kingdom. Originally used as a grasstrack motorcycle circuit on farmland, it hosted 12 runnings of the British Grand Prix between 1964 and 1986 and currently hosts ...
and
Silverstone
Silverstone is a village and civil parish in the West Northamptonshire unitary authority area of Northamptonshire, England. The village is about south-southwest of Towcester and northeast of Brackley, both accessed via the A43 road, A43 main ...
circuits; Pryce made his début at the former. "The races were
£35 a time. But I sold my
Mini
The Mini is a very small two-door, four-seat car, produced for four decades over a single generation, with many names and variants, by the British Motor Corporation (BMC) and its successors British Leyland and the Rover Group, and finally ...
and my parents offered all the help and encouragement I could wish for" Pryce recalled to Alan Henry.
The prize for the overall winner of the series was a Formula Ford
Lola T200 worth £1,500. The series was decided at the last round, held at Silverstone, the day before the 1970 Formula One
International Trophy
The International Trophy is a prize awarded annually by the British Racing Drivers' Club to the winner of a auto racing, motor race held at the Silverstone Circuit, England. For many years it formed the premier non-championship Formula One event i ...
. Pryce qualified on the third row for the race, which was held in rain. Jack Pryce remembered that his son was rubbing his hands in delight: "he always loved racing in the rain". The early part of the race was led by a driver called Chris Smith but then heavy rain started and Pryce was able to catch up with Smith and overtake him before winning by a comfortable margin. He was given his Lola by
Sir Max Aitken.
Pryce took his new car to Brands Hatch, where he was allowed to house it in one of the old stables at the bottom of the paddock. Pryce soon abandoned his farming career and moved to a guest house in
West Kingsdown
West Kingsdown is a village and civil parish in the Sevenoaks district of Kent, England, on the A20 5 miles (8 km) southeast of Swanley, 5.5 miles (9 km) northeast of Sevenoaks and from London.
The area
The parish was part of Axst ...
, near the Brands Hatch circuit. Pryce continued to make a name for himself during 1971, entering a new twin-seater Sportscar category called
Formula F100, which he won with what was described by motorsports author
David Tremayne
David John Tremayne is a UK-based motor racing journalist. He has written extensively about the Land Speed Record. He was the Formula One correspondent for ''The Independent''. He is one of the founding partners of ''GrandPrix+'', the sport's ...
as "embarrassing ease". He then moved up to
Formula Super Vee, driving the then-choice Royale RP9, for
Team Rumsey Investments, and soon made his
Formula Three
Formula Three (F3) is a third-tier class of open-wheel formula racing. The various championships held in Europe, Australia, South America and Asia form an important step for many prospective Formula One drivers.
History
Formula Three (adop ...
début for the same manufacturer at Brands Hatch.
1972–73: lower formulae
In that race at Brands Hatch, Pryce took an unfancied
Royale RP11 to first place in the Formula Three support race for the 1972 Formula One
Race of Champions
The Race of Champions (ROC) is an international motorsport event held at the start or end of each year, featuring some of the world's best racing and rally drivers from Formula One, World Rally Championship, IndyCar, NASCAR, sports car racin ...
against many established Formula Three drivers such as
Roger Williamson,
Jochen Mass
Jochen Richard Mass (; 30 September 1946 – 4 May 2025) was a German racing driver and broadcaster, who competed in Formula One from to . Mass won the 1975 Spanish Grand Prix with McLaren. In endurance racing, Mass won the 24 Hours of Le Ma ...
and
James Hunt
James Simon Wallis Hunt (29 August 1947 – 15 June 1993) was a British racing driver and broadcaster, who competed in Formula One from to . Nicknamed "the Shunt", Hunt won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with McLaren, and wo ...
. So large was Pryce's advantage at the end of the race, many of the other teams voiced an opinion that Pryce's car had run the race underweight; it turned out that the circuit's weighbridge certificate had expired and everyone's cars had been underweight. Pryce retired from the leading group in the following two rounds at
Oulton Park
Oulton Park is a hard surfaced Race track, track used for motor racing, close to the village of Little Budworth, Cheshire, England, from Winsford, from Chester city centre, from Northwich and from Warrington, with a nearby rail connection a ...
and
Zandvoort
Zandvoort () is a municipality in the province of North Holland, Netherlands. It is one of the major beach resorts of the Netherlands; it has a long sandy beach. It is bordered by coastal dunes of Zuid-Kennemerland National Park and the Amsterdam ...
, and then during practice for the
support race of the
1972 Monaco Grand Prix
The 1972 Monaco Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Monaco on May 14, 1972. It was race 4 of 12 in both the 1972 World Championship of Drivers and the 1972 International Cup for Formula One Manufacturers. The track was substantially ...
his car came to a stop at ''Casino Square'' after a wire had come loose. He had exited his car to correct the problem when
Peter Lamplough lost control of his car and struck the Royale RP11. Pryce was knocked into a shop window and broke a leg.
The Welshman was back in action two weeks after his incident in Monaco. Pryce also ran in the Formula SuperVee series, winning the series by a comfortable margin, "I won just about every race I went in for" Pryce recalled. A run with Royale's
Formula Atlantic
Formula Atlantic is a specification of open-wheel racing car developed in the 1970s. It was used in professional racing through the IMSA Atlantic Championship until 2009 and is currently primarily used in amateur racing through Sports Car Club ...
works team was also in store for Pryce during 1972, where he took
pole position
In a motorsports race, the pole position is usually the best and "statistically the most advantageous" starting position on the track. The pole position is usually earned by the driver with the best qualifying times in the trials before the ra ...
for the final three rounds of the championship and won the final round at Brands Hatch.
He continued racing in Formula Atlantic in 1973, winning three races. Royale soon had plans to enter
Formula Two
Formula Two (F2) is a type of Open-wheel car, open-wheel formula racing category first codified in 1948. It was replaced in 1985 by Formula 3000, but revived by the FIA from 2009 FIA Formula Two Championship season, 2009 to 2012 FIA Formula Two C ...
, such was the Welshman's talent. The ambition to run in the Formula Two championship was planned to be financially fuelled by a
Liechtenstein
Liechtenstein (, ; ; ), officially the Principality of Liechtenstein ( ), is a Landlocked country#Doubly landlocked, doubly landlocked Swiss Standard German, German-speaking microstate in the Central European Alps, between Austria in the east ...
driver, Manfred Schurti. These plans only resulted in one of Royale's F2 cars being built before the project was scrapped and Bob King, the head of Royale, left the company.
Following an invitation to test one of his cars, Pryce found himself racing in the Formula Two series with
Ron Dennis
Sir Ronald Dennis (born 1 June 1947) is a British businessman and motorsport executive. From 1981 to 2009, Dennis served as team principal, CEO and co-owner of McLaren in Formula One, winning seven World Constructors' Championship titles betw ...
's ''
Rondel Racing'' outfit. His best result for the team came at the
Norisring
The Norisring is a street circuit in Nuremberg, Bavaria, Germany. Originally established as a motorcycle racing venue in 1947 and named in a 1950 competition to win a light motorcycle, the track became known as a sports car racing venue in the 19 ...
where he was leading the race until a brake failure meant he had to give up first place to teammate
Tim Schenken.
At the end of 1973, Pryce won the
Grovewood Award for his efforts during the year. Jack Pryce recalled that his son did not want to win the award, as he thought it was "a jinx on a driver's career".
Formula One
1974: Token
At the age of 25, Pryce graduated to Formula One, the highest category of circuit racing defined by the
Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile
The Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA; ) is an international organisation with two primary functions surrounding use of the automobile. Its mobility division advocacy, advocates the interests of motoring organisations, the automot ...
(FIA), motorsport's world governing body, joining the newly formed
Token Racing team. The team was created by Tony Vlassopulos and Ken Grob after the original Token team closed down in 1973 due to a lack of financial backing which had led to the end of the previous ''Rondel Racing'' outfit. Pryce was given the seat thanks to his backing from Titan Properties, and what David Tremayne described as "evident promise". Pryce made his début for the team at the
BRDC International Trophy, a non-championship Formula One event held at Silverstone, but lack of an
airbox
An airbox is an empty chamber on the inlet of most combustion engines. It collects air from outside and feeds it to the intake hoses of each cylinder.
Older engines drew air directly from the surroundings into each individual carburetor. Modern ...
and an engine cover, along with his shortage of experience in the car, made him the slowest driver of the 16 competitors during qualifying: 26 seconds slower than James Hunt's
Hesketh in pole position.
The Welshman retired 15 laps into the race with a gear linkage problem. Pryce's World Championship début came at the
1974 Belgian Grand Prix, where he qualified in 20th place, 3 seconds slower than the fastest time set by
Clay Regazzoni
Gianclaudio Giuseppe "Clay" Regazzoni (; 5 September 1939 – 15 December 2006) was a Swiss racing driver and broadcaster, who competed in Formula One from to . Regazzoni was runner-up in the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with F ...
. Once again, he failed to finish, completing 66 laps before retiring after a collision with
Jody Scheckter
Jody David Scheckter (; born 29 January 1950) is a South African former racing driver and businessman, who competed in Formula One from to . Scheckter won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with Ferrari, and remains the only Afric ...
's
Tyrrell.
Pryce was refused entry to the
1974 Monaco Formula One Grand Prix, as he was deemed "inexperienced".
Tony Vlassopulos decided to prove a point and replaced normal Formula 3 driver Buzz Buzaglo, with Pryce for the supporting Formula Three race, driving for ''Ippokampos Racing'', in a
March
March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of March. The March equinox on the 20 or 2 ...
743, which he won by 20.8 seconds.
1974–77: Shadow
=1974
=
Following his drive in Monaco, and a
short spell in Formula Two, Pryce was signed by Shadow as replacement for
Brian Redman
Brian Herman Thomas Redman (born 9 March 1937) is a British retired racing driver.
Racing for Carl Haas and Jim Hall's Chaparral Cars, Brian Redman won the 1974, '75 and '76 SCCA Formula 5000 series and has raced in nearly every category of ...
, who had in turn replaced the late
Peter Revson
Peter Jeffrey Revlon Revson (February 27, 1939 – March 22, 1974) was an American racing driver, who competed in Formula One between and . Revson won two Formula One Grands Prix across five seasons.
Born and raised in New York, Revson was th ...
.
Pryce made his début for the team in
Holland
Holland is a geographical regionG. Geerts & H. Heestermans, 1981, ''Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal. Deel I'', Van Dale Lexicografie, Utrecht, p 1105 and former provinces of the Netherlands, province on the western coast of the Netherland ...
. He qualified in 11th position, less than 0.4 seconds slower than his teammate,
Jean-Pierre Jarier
Jean-Pierre Jacques Jarier (; born 10 July 1946) is a French former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to .
Jarier contested 143 Formula One Grands Prix for March, Shadow, ATS, Ligier, Lotus, Tyrrell, and Osella. He achieve ...
,
who was in his second full season of Formula One competition. Pryce retired on the first lap of the race after a collision with James Hunt at the first corner broke his Shadow DN3's rear suspension.
Pryce qualified third in his second Grand Prix for the team, in
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
, 0.32 seconds slower than
Niki Lauda
Andreas Nikolaus "Niki" Lauda (22 February 1949 – 20 May 2019) was an Austrian racing driver, motorsport executive and aviation entrepreneur, who competed in Formula One from to and from to . Lauda won three Formula One World Drivers' Champ ...
's pole position time but nearly half a second quicker than Jarier.
Once again, Pryce's race ended at the first corner, when minor contact with
Carlos Reutemann
Carlos Alberto "Lole" Reutemann (12 April 1942 – 7 July 2021) was an Argentine racing driver and politician, who competed in Formula One from to and served as the Governor of Santa Fe from 1999 to 2003. Reutemann was runner-up in the Form ...
's Brabham deflected Pryce's Shadow into the path of James Hunt.
The second collision between the two British drivers in as many races eliminated them both. Later in the season, Pryce received 100 bottles of
champagne
Champagne (; ) is a sparkling wine originated and produced in the Champagne wine region of France under the rules of the appellation, which demand specific vineyard practices, sourcing of grapes exclusively from designated places within it, spe ...
for finishing fastest in the practice session for the at Brands Hatch. He went on to qualify on the fourth row of the starting grid.
Pryce scored the first point of his career in
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
, at the most challenging circuit on the F1 calendar at the time, the 14.2 mile
Nürburgring
The () is a 150,000-person capacity motorsports complex located in the town of Nürburg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It features a Grand Prix motor racing, Grand Prix race track built in 1984, and a long configuration, built in the 1920s ...
circuit. After finishing 6th from 11th on the grid, he then qualified in 16th for the next Grand Prix in
Austria
Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
, but spun off on lap 22, ending his race. He qualified in 22nd place in
Italy
Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
, and finished 12 places higher. His season ended with an engine failure in
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...
, and the Shadow severely off the pace at
Watkins Glen in the United States. At the end of the season Pryce was equal 18th in the Drivers' Championship with veteran Graham Hill and
Vittorio Brambilla
Vittorio Brambilla (; 11 November 1937 – 26 May 2001) was an Italian racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Nicknamed "the Monza Gorilla", Brambilla won the 1975 Austrian Grand Prix with March.
Born and raised in Monza, Brambil ...
.
=1975
=

At the start of the
1975 season, Pryce's future was subject to much speculation. Rumour linked him with a drive at Lotus, the team run by
Colin Chapman
Anthony Colin Bruce Chapman (19 May 1928 – 16 December 1982) was an English design engineer, inventor, and builder in the automotive industry, and founder of the sports car company Lotus Cars.
Chapman founded Lotus in 1952 and initia ...
, who had been keeping an eye on Pryce's progress throughout 1973 and 1974. At the time, Lotus was experiencing financial difficulties and reports suggested that Shadow and Lotus would swap Pryce and Swede
Ronnie Peterson
Bengt Ronnie Peterson (; 14 February 1944 – 11 September 1978) was a Swedish racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Nicknamed "Superswede", Peterson twice finished runner-up in the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in an ...
. The trade was viewed as a good acquisition for both teams, as Pryce was considered a driver of the same ability as Peterson, but would cost Lotus less, while Peterson could attract sponsorship to the relatively new Shadow team. The deal never materialised, although Shadow team manager
Alan Rees claims that it came very close to being completed.
Pryce's Shadow teammate, Jean-Pierre Jarier, out-qualified him in the early part of the 1975 season, as the French driver had the new
Shadow DN5 car, while Pryce was in the older
DN3. It was not until the third round, the , that Pryce was able to use a DN5. The team's fourth race of the season was the non-championship
Race of Champions
The Race of Champions (ROC) is an international motorsport event held at the start or end of each year, featuring some of the world's best racing and rally drivers from Formula One, World Rally Championship, IndyCar, NASCAR, sports car racin ...
held at Brands Hatch. Pryce qualified on pole position and, following a poor start, passed Peterson and
Jacky Ickx
Jacques Bernard Edmon Martin Henri "Jacky" Ickx (; born 1 January 1945) is a Belgian former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Ickx twice finished runner-up in the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in and , and won eig ...
before closing an eight-second gap to race leader Jody Scheckter, whose engine failed while Pryce harried him, letting Pryce through to become the first Welshman to win a Formula One race. Pryce showed other signs of promise during the season, most notably in
Monaco
Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a Sovereign state, sovereign city-state and European microstates, microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, ...
and
Silverstone
Silverstone is a village and civil parish in the West Northamptonshire unitary authority area of Northamptonshire, England. The village is about south-southwest of Towcester and northeast of Brackley, both accessed via the A43 road, A43 main ...
where he qualified on the front row of the grid, the latter being in pole position. Pryce also achieved his first World Championship podium finish, in extremely wet conditions at the and finished in the points four more times. The highest of those came in
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
where he finished fourth, despite the fact that while he was running second behind Carlos Reutemann fuel had been leaking into the cockpit of his DN5 during the final laps around the Nürburgring, reportedly "searing his skin and almost blinding him with fumes". The Welshman later received the ''Prix Rouge et Blanc
Jo Siffert
Joseph Siffert (; 7 July 1936 – 24 October 1971) was a Swiss racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Siffert won two Formula One Grands Prix across 10 seasons.
Affectionately known as "Seppi" to his family and friends, Siffert ...
award'', named after the Swiss Formula One driver, for this achievement.
At the end of December 1975, Pryce and
Dave Richards, future head of the
Prodrive
Prodrive is an England, English motorsport and advanced engineering group based in Banbury,
Oxfordshire.
History
Prodrive was founded in 1984 by Ian Parry and David Richards (motorsport executive), David Richards.
Prodrive sold its 51% s ...
motorsports engineering company, entered a
Lancia
Lancia Automobiles S.p.A. () is an Italian car manufacturer and a subsidiary of Stellantis Europe, which is the European subsidiary of Stellantis. The present legal entity of Lancia was formed in January 2007 when its corporate parent reorganise ...
Stratos in the Tour of Epynt, a
rally
Rally or rallye may refer to:
Gatherings
* Political demonstration, a political rally, a political demonstration of support or protest, march, or parade
* Pep rally, an event held at a North American school or college sporting event
Sport ...
event contested by many established rallying names. Pryce needed little persuasion to team up for the one-off event on home soil with Richards, both of whom were from Ruthin. Pryce crashed into a bridge into the first stage, but still competed in the afternoon stages after his car was rebuilt.
=1976
=

Once the
1976 Formula One World Championship season got under way Pryce instantly added a second podium finish to his tally, at the first round in
Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
. This came at the expense of continuing teammate Jarier, who was caught out by oil on the track from James Hunt's
McLaren
McLaren Racing Limited ( ) is a British auto racing, motor racing team based at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, Surrey, England. The team is a subsidiary of the McLaren Group, which owns a majority of the team. McLaren is best known a ...
. Both Shadows enjoyed reasonable competitiveness during the next two races at
Kyalami
Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit (from ''Khaya lami'', ''My home'' in Zulu language, Zulu) is a motor racing circuit located in Midrand, Gauteng, South Africa, just north of Johannesburg. The circuit has been used for Grand Prix motor racing, Grand ...
and
Long Beach
Long Beach is a coastal city in southeastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is the list of United States cities by population, 44th-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 451,307 as of 2022. A charter ci ...
. Changes in car regulations, meaning that teams had to lower their airboxes and mount the cars' rear wings further forward, along with revised
Goodyear tyres, meant the
Shadow DN5B lost much of its competitiveness; Pryce still achieved a second points scoring finish of the season in
Britain
Britain most often refers to:
* Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales
* The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...
. The new
Shadow DN8 was not introduced until the twelfth round at
Zandvoort
Zandvoort () is a municipality in the province of North Holland, Netherlands. It is one of the major beach resorts of the Netherlands; it has a long sandy beach. It is bordered by coastal dunes of Zuid-Kennemerland National Park and the Amsterdam ...
, where Pryce qualified the new car in third, and finished the race only one place lower in fourth: it was the last points scoring finish of his career. The Welshman finished his last full season 12th in the Drivers' Championship with 10 points, 59 points behind World Champion James Hunt.
=1977
=
Rumors that Pryce would run as
Mario Andretti
Mario Gabriele Andretti (born February 28, 1940) is an American former racing driver and businessman, who competed in Formula One from to , and American open-wheel racing, IndyCar from 1964 USAC Championship Car season, 1964 to 1994 IndyCar se ...
's teammate for the Lotus team in
1978
Events January
* January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213.
* January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd ...
were strong, as it coincided with the end of his contract with
Shadow
A shadow is a dark area on a surface where light from a light source is blocked by an object. In contrast, shade occupies the three-dimensional volume behind an object with light in front of it. The cross-section of a shadow is a two-dimensio ...
. A Lotus mechanic of the era even claimed many years later that the signing of Tom Pryce for the team would have become a reality if he had not died, as Peterson was hired at the last minute after an express offer from Chapman for a succulent amount of money in exchange for being Mario Andretti's number two in replacement of
Gunnar Nilsson
Gunnar Axel Arvid Nilsson (20 November 1948 – 20 October 1978) was a Swedish racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Nilsson won the 1977 Belgian Grand Prix with Lotus.
Born and raised in Helsingborg, Nilsson initially studie ...
, who was going to go to the Arrows team in 1978 to team up with
Riccardo Patrese
Riccardo Gabriele Patrese (born 17 April 1954) is an Italian former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Patrese was runner-up in the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with Williams, and won six Grands Prix across 17 ...
. This latter fact was confirmed by Patrese in ''Motorsport'' magazine in an interview by Simon Taylor in 2010.
Jarier left Shadow before the start of the
1977 Formula One season
The 1977 Formula One season was the 31st season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It featured the 28th World Championship of Drivers and the 20th International Cup for Formula 1 Constructors. The season commenced on 9 January 1977 and ended ...
, for
ATS, and was replaced by Italian
Renzo Zorzi, who was later rated by
Jackie Oliver, part of the managerial team at Shadow, as "the worst driver we
he Shadow teamever had". The new signing brought in sponsorship from Italy, easing Shadow's financial position. Pryce started the first race of the year in
Argentina
Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...
in ninth place and stayed with the leading group until a gear linkage failure on the 45th lap of the 52 lap race. Following a long pit stop to fix the fault, he was not classified. Pryce qualified 12th for the second round in
Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
, but on lap 34 retired from the race, while running in second place, as the result of an engine failure.
Legacy
In 2016, in an academic paper that reported a mathematical modelling study that assessed the relative influence of driver and machine, Pryce was ranked the 28th best Formula One driver of all time.
Death
Tom Pryce began his final race weekend, the
1977 South African Grand Prix at
Kyalami
Kyalami Grand Prix Circuit (from ''Khaya lami'', ''My home'' in Zulu language, Zulu) is a motor racing circuit located in Midrand, Gauteng, South Africa, just north of Johannesburg. The circuit has been used for Grand Prix motor racing, Grand ...
, by setting the fastest time in the Wednesday practice session, held in wet weather. Pryce posted a time of 1:31.57, with the eventual 1977 champion Niki Lauda one second slower. The weather dried up prior to the Thursday session, and he slipped back down the grid to fifteenth place, almost two seconds slower than James Hunt's pole position time.
Pryce made a poor start to the Grand Prix in his DN8 and by the end of the first lap was in last place. Pryce started to climb back up the field during the next couple of laps, overtaking
Brett Lunger and teammate Renzo Zorzi on lap two, and
Alex Ribeiro and
Boy Hayje
Johan Gerard "Boy" Hayje (born 3 May 1949) is a former racing driver from the Netherlands. He participated in seven Formula One Grands Prix, debuting on 29 August 1976. He scored no championship points.
After time spent racing saloon cars and w ...
the following lap. By lap 18 Pryce had moved from 22nd to 13th place.

On lap 22, Zorzi pulled off to the left side of the main straight, just after the brow of a hill and a bridge over the track. He was having problems with his
fuel metering unit, and fuel was pumping directly onto the engine, which then caught fire. Zorzi did not immediately get out of his car as he could not disconnect the oxygen pipe from his helmet.
The situation caused two marshals from the pit wall on the opposite side of the track to intervene. The first marshal to cross the track was a 25-year-old
panel beater named Bill, and the second was 19-year-old Frederik "Frikkie" Jansen van Vuuren, who was carrying a
fire extinguisher
A fire extinguisher is a handheld active fire protection device usually filled with a dry or wet chemical used to extinguish or control small fires, often in emergencies. It is not intended for use on an out-of-control fire, such as one which ha ...
. George Witt, the chief pit marshal for the race, said that the policy of the circuit was that in cases of fire, two marshals must attend and a further two act as back-up in case the first pair's extinguishers were not effective enough. Witt also recalled that both marshals crossed the track without prior permission. The former narrowly made it across the track, but the latter did not. As the two men started to run across the track, the cars driven by
Hans-Joachim Stuck
Hans-Joachim Stuck (; born 1 January 1951) is a German former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Nicknamed "Strietzel", Stuck won the World Sportscar Championship in 1985 and is a two-time winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans ...
and Pryce came over the brow of a rise in the track.
Pryce was directly behind Stuck's car along the main straight. Stuck saw Jansen van Vuuren and moved to the right to avoid both marshals, missing Bill by what Tremayne calls "millimetres". From his position Pryce could not see Jansen van Vuuren and was unable to react as quickly as Stuck had done. He struck the teenage marshal at approximately 270 km/h (170 mph). Jansen van Vuuren was thrown into the air and landed a few yards in front of Zorzi's car. Badly mutilated by Pryce's car, he died instantly. The fire extinguisher he had been carrying smashed into Pryce's head, before striking the Shadow's roll hoop. The force of the impact was such that the extinguisher was thrown up and over the adjacent grandstand. It landed in the car park to the rear of the stand, where it hit a parked car and jammed its door shut.
The impact with the fire extinguisher wrenched Pryce's helmet upward sharply, killing him almost instantly. Pryce's Shadow DN8, now with its driver dead at the wheel, continued at speed down the main straight towards the first corner, called ''Crowthorne''. The car left the track to the right, scraping the metal barriers, hitting an entrance for emergency vehicles, and veering back onto the track. It then hit
Jacques Laffite
Jacques-Henri Laffite (; born 21 November 1943) is a French former racing driver and broadcaster, who competed in Formula One from to . Laffite won six Formula One Grands Prix across 13 seasons.
Born and raised in Paris, Laffite trained as ...
's
Ligier
Ligier () is a French automobile and minibus maker created by former racing driver and rugby player Guy Ligier (1930–2015), specialized in the manufacturing of microcars.
Ligier is best known for its involvement in the Formula 1 World Cham ...
, sending both Pryce and Laffite head-on into the barriers. Jansen van Vuuren's injuries were so extensive that, initially, his body was identified only after the race director had summoned all of the race marshals the next day and he was not among them.
The eventual race winner was Austrian Niki Lauda, his first win since his near fatal accident during the
1976 German Grand Prix
The 1976 German Grand Prix (formally the XXXVIII Großer Preis von Deutschland) was a Formula One motor race held at the Nürburgring on 1 August 1976. It was the scene of reigning world champion Niki Lauda's near-fatal accident, and the last Fo ...
. At first he announced it was the greatest victory of his career, but when told on the victory podium of Pryce's death, he said that "there was no joy after that".
Aftermath
Pryce's death was met with great grief from all those who knew him, especially his wife Nella, his parents Jack and Gwyneth and the Shadow team. His body was buried at St Bartholomew's Church in
Otford
Otford is a village and civil parish in the Sevenoaks District of Kent, England. It lies on the River Darent, north of Sevenoaks. Otford's four churches are the Anglican Church of St Bartholomew in the village centre, the Otford Methodist C ...
, near Sevenoaks, Kent, the same church where he and Nella were married two years earlier.
Pryce's performances in a Formula One car earned him much respect amongst the F1 paddock. David Tremayne named his son after the Welshman. The Tom Pryce Award, also known as the Tom Pryce Trophy, was instigated, and is given annually to Welsh personalities who have made an outstanding contribution to motoring or transport.
During its re-design, the
Anglesey Circuit
The Anglesey Circuit () is a motor racing circuit located in Ty Croes, Anglesey, Wales. It plays host to a variety of motorsport events including car racing, motorcycle racing, car sprints, stage rallies and drifting.
It opened as a fully li ...
in North Wales named the Tom Pryce Straight after a request from Ruthin Town Council. Eddie Knipe, a South African living in Sevenoaks, sought permission from Nella Pryce to approach the Ruthin Town Council to commemorate her late husband. Having gained her consent and that of Tom's parents, a trust was established in 2006 under the chairmanship of
David Richards to create a memorial to Tom Pryce in Ruthin. Neil Dalrymple, a local artist, was commissioned by Ruthin Town Council in 2008 to design an plaque and in February 2009, an auction of Formula One pit passes to fund its manufacture was announced.
The memorial was unveiled on 11 June 2009, on what would have been Pryce's 60th birthday.
Complete Formula One World Championship results
(
key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; small number denotes finishing position)
Non-championship Formula One results

(
key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; small number denotes finishing position)
(Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap)
References
Notes
Footnotes
Bibliography
*
*
*
*
*
Further reading
*
External links
Tom Pryce memorial commissionand pictures of the construction
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pryce, Tom
1949 births
1977 deaths
Grovewood Award winners
People from Ruthin
Sportspeople from Denbighshire
Welsh racing drivers
Welsh Formula One drivers
Token Formula One drivers
Shadow Formula One drivers
European Formula Two Championship drivers
British Formula Three Championship drivers
Racing drivers who died while racing
Filmed deaths in motorsport
Sport deaths in South Africa
Burials in Kent