Alan Jones

Alan_Jones_(racecar_driver).jpg
Alan Jones
Born	2 1946 (age 78) Melbourne, Australia
Died	{{{death_date}}} {{{death_place}}}
Formula One career
Nationality	Template:AUSn
Years	1975 – 1981, 1983, 1985 – 1986

Alan Stanley Jones MBE^[1] (born 2 November 1946 in Melbourne, Victoria) is an Australian former Formula One driver. He was the first driver to win a Formula One World Championship with the Williams team, becoming the 1980 World Drivers' Champion and the second Australian to do so following triple World Champion Sir Jack Brabham.

Jones is also the last Australian driver to win the Australian Grand Prix, winning the 1980 event at Calder Park Raceway, having lapped the field consisting mostly of Formula 5000 cars while he was driving his Formula One Championship winning Williams FW07B.

Early life[]

Jones attended Xavier College and is the son of Stan Jones, an Australian racing driver and winner of the 1959 Australian Grand Prix, and wanted to follow in his footsteps. The younger Jones left for Europe in 1967 to make a name for himself but met little success.

Racing career[]

Pre Formula One[]

It took about six years before any notable results of his own, in a Formula Three car. In 1974 he managed to land a full-time Formula Atlantic ride, and his team owner parlayed it into a chance at Formula One the following season, after purchasing a car from the Hesketh racing team.

Formula One[]

His first race was the 1975 Spanish Grand Prix at the fast Montjuïc circuit in his purchased Hesketh, and the weekend was to be one of the most tragic in Formula One history. After four races in Formula One the team chose not to continue racing, but Jones did, as the race after his team disbanded he was named as an injury replacement for Rolf Stommelen on Graham Hill's racing team. He had a best finish of fifth at Nürburgring while there.

He earned his first full-time Formula One drive in 1976, in John Surtees' racing team. Jones' car was mostly known for its infamous Durex sponsorship, but he managed several good finishes in it, a fourth in Japan being the best of them. Surtees dropped him after that year as he did not get along well with the Aussie, and Jones was racing in America when the Shadow team named him as a replacement for Tom Pryce, who had been killed in a freak racing accident in South Africa. He made the most of the opportunity and won at the Österreichring for his maiden victory, finishing seventh in the championship.

In 1978, Jones, who was on the Williams F1 roster on alternate weekends, also signed with Haas-Hall racing, and competed in the Lola 333CS Chaparral in the Can-Am championship, taking nine poles in ten races. (Jones missed the Laguna Seca race due to a Formula One scheduling conflict. Stand-in Brian Redman finished twelfth in that race after the kill wire was crimped under a valve cover, resulting in intermittent ignition.) Of the nine races in which he competed, Jones won five (Atlanta, Mosport, Road America, Mid-Ohio, and Riverside.) He finished second to Elliot Forbes-Robinson at Charlotte after hitting a chicane and losing a spark plug wire, cracked up at St Jovite; lost a radiator at the Glen. He finished third at Trois-Rivieres after losing a shift fork and being stuck with only second and fifth gears on the tight road circuit. At that race, water-injected brakes were first used in Can-Am, developed by the Haas team and copied with varying degrees of success by others. Jones ran one Can-Am in 1979 (Mid-Ohio), where he and Keke Rosberg had fun running into each other and finishing 1–2, with Jones winning his last Can-Am start.

By 1977, he had already caught the attention of Frank Williams, who was looking to rebuild his Formula One racing team. Williams Grand Prix had struggled for success in its first years and Jones was entrusted to give them their first taste of it. He did not do much initially to do that, a second place finish at Watkins Glen being the best he could do, but he helped put the team on the Formula One map in 1979 using the Williams FW07, after winning four races in the span of five events near the end of the season. Jones finished third in the championship hunt that year, and it was the springboard to an excellent 1980 campaign.

Jones won seven races in 1980, although the Spanish Grand Prix was later removed from the championship and the Australian Grand Prix was a non-championship race, so only five counted towards the Championship. Throughout the season he had a car which consistently made the podium, and he achieved ten during the year. At the end of the season he had beaten Nelson Piquet by 13 points in the standings, becoming Australia's first World Champion since Sir Jack Brabham. He had a good chance to repeat his success in 1981, but a very combative relationship with Carlos Reutemann led to an intense rivalry that possibly cost both drivers a chance at the championship. He finished four points behind Piquet for the championship and three behind Reutemann.

He announced his retirement after the season, which he managed to cap off with a win in Las Vegas, but came out of retirement for a one-time drive with Arrows in 1983 at the non-championship Race of Champions at Brands Hatch where he qualified and finished third and at the United States Grand Prix West at Long Beach where he qualified a fine 12th but retired after 58 laps through driver fatigue.

Jones wasn't seen in Formula One during 1984 but he made a full-time comeback late in 1985 when Team Haas was created and Jones was the first driver for that outfit, the team making its debut at the Italian Grand Prix. Jones was joined at Haas in 1986 by former Ferrari and Renault works driver Patrick Tambay. The comeback was unsuccessful more due to the Ford V6 engine's lack of power than any lack of skill from Jones and he retired from Formula One for good following the season.

Post Formula One[]

Jones post Formula One career was initially spasmodic in nature. Briefly in demand for his services as a Touring Car co-driver, he raced occasionally in his home country's biggest endurance race, the Bathurst 1000 but success was elusive. In 1982 he attempted his first full season of racing, driving a Porsche 935 to dominate the 1982 Australian GT Championship. Soon after he made his first failed comeback to Formula One. After returning to Australia again he formed his own Touring Car team, combining the resources of V8 Ford driver Bob Morris and rotary Mazda racer Barry Jones into a single two-car team but results were mixed and the exercise dissipated by the end of the season. 1984 brought a top six finish at Le Mans 24 Hour and a top four finish at the Bathurst 1000. Quickly snapped up as the lead driver in the newly formed factory supported Alfa Romeo touring car team for the 1985 season, he abandoned his first serious Australian Touring Car Championship campaign to make his second Formula One comeback with the Haas Lola team.

After returning home again in 1987 his career did not pick up again until a competitive third placing at the 1988 Bathurst 1000 saw him signed up as full-time number two driver to Tony Longhurst in his Ford Sierra team, which was brutally fast but disappointingly fragile and results were again elusive. The team switched to BMWs in 1991, which saw the return of reliability at the cost of speed. Jones took the occasional podium result. A switch to Glenn Seton Racing mid-season in 1992 brought improved results and race wins and he finished runner up to his team leader Glenn Seton as their V8 Ford Falcons dominated the 1993 Australian Touring Car Championship. The team's dominance faded over the next few years. The 1995 Bathurst 1000 looked to be a high point with a memorable 1–2 finish for their two cars fading into just a second for the car Jones shared with Allan Grice. By this point the team was sundering apart and Jones took the major sponsor to form a new team with engineering brothers Ross and Jim Stone as partners, known commercially as Pack Leader Racing. Initially fast, the partnership was fading by 1997 and the Stones bought Jones out, rebadging the team as Stone Brothers Racing. Jones returned to race with Tony Longhurst's team again in 1998 by this time his form was fading. From 1999 onwards he no longer raced full-time, driving just the endurance races as a hired gun. His final race was with Dick Johnson Racing, driving into a seventh placed finish at the 2002 Bathurst 1000.

He became a commentator with Channel Nine as part of their Formula One coverage in Australia in the late 1980s, a role which lasted over a decade until a change of network. Jones has since become involved in the Australian franchise of the A1 Grand Prix as Team Director. He attempted to race in the Grand Prix Masters World Series at Kyalami in November 2005 but had to pull out before qualifying due to neck pains. There was speculation at the time that his exit was due more to a general lack of fitness which had left him up to ten seconds per lap off the pace in practice.

Personal life[]

Jones separated from his wife Beverley in the late 1980s. In 1996 he began a relationship with Amanda Butler Davis and in 2001 their twins, Zara and Jack, were born.

Jones also has a daughter, Camilla, born in 1990.

Jones's adopted son Christian now races in various forms of motorsport.

His eldest daughter, Emma, has two daughters (born 2001 and 2004), making Jones a grandfather.

Racing record[]

Season	Series	Position	Car	Team
1972	Forward Trust BARC Formula 3 Series	9th	GRD 372
1972	Lombard North Formula 3 Series	11th	GRD 372
1972	Shellsport National Formula 3 Series	16th	GRD 372
1973	Forward Trust BARC Formula 3 Series	7th	GRD 373	DART
1973	John Player European Formula 3 Series	2nd	GRD 373	DART
1973	Lombard North Formula 3 Series	5th	GRD 373	DART
1974	British Formula Atlantic Championship	2nd	March 74B Ford	Harry Stiller Racing
1974	British Formula Atlantic Series	4th	March 74B Ford	Harry Stiller Racing
1975	World Drivers' Championship	17th	Hesketh 308B Cosworth Hill GH1 Cosworth	Harry Stiller Racing Embassy Hill
1975	European Formula 5000 Championship	7th	Chevron B28 Chevrolet
1976	World Drivers' Championship	15th	Surtees TS19 Cosworth	Surtees
1976	United States Formula 5000 Championship	4th	Lola T332 Chevrolet	Theodore Racing
1977	World Drivers' Championship	7th	Shadow DN8 Cosworth	Shadow Racing Cars
1977	Rothmans International Series	3rd	Lola T332 Chevrolet	Theodore Racing
1978	World Drivers' Championship	11th	Williams FW06 Cosworth	Williams Grand Prix Engineering
1978	Can-Am Challenge Cup	1st	Lola T333CS Chevrolet	Haas-Hall Racing
1979	World Drivers' Championship	3rd	Williams FW06 Cosworth Williams FW07 Cosworth	Williams Grand Prix Engineering
1979	Can-Am Challenge Cup	6th	Lola T333CS Chevrolet	Carl Hall Racing
1979	International Race of Champions	5th	Chevrolet Camaro
1980	World Drivers' Championship	1st	Williams FW07 Cosworth Williams FW07B Cosworth	Williams Grand Prix Engineering
1981	World Drivers' Championship	3rd	Williams FW07C Cosworth Williams FW07D Cosworth	Williams Grand Prix Engineering
1982	Australian GT Championship	1st	Porsche 935	Porsche Cars Australia
1982	Australian Drivers' Championship	8th	Ralt RT4 Cosworth
1983	World Endurance Championship	38th	Porsche 956	Porsche Kremer Racing
1983	Australian Drivers' Championship	6th	Ralt RT4 Cosworth
1984	World Endurance Championship	52nd	Porsche 956	Porsche Kremer Racing Rothmans Porsche
1985	Australian Touring Car Championship	8th	Alfa Romeo Alfetta GTV6	Network Alfa
1985	CART Indy Car World Series	23rd	Lola T900 Cosworth	Newman-Haas Racing
1986	World Drivers' Championship	12th	Lola THL1 Hart Lola THL2 Cosworth	Team Haas (USA) Ltd.
1987	All Japan Sports Prototype Championship	22nd	Toyota 87C	Toyota Team Tom's
1990	Australian Touring Car Championship	9th	Ford Sierra RS500	Benson & Hedges Racing
1991	Australian Touring Car Championship	4th	BMW M3	Benson & Hedges Racing
1992	Australian Touring Car Championship	7th	BMW M3	Benson & Hedges Racing
1993	Australian Touring Car Championship	2nd	Ford EB Falcon	Glenn Seton Racing
1994	Australian Touring Car Championship	4th	Ford EB Falcon	Glenn Seton Racing
1995	Australian Touring Car Championship	8th	Ford EF Falcon	Glenn Seton Racing
1996	Australian Touring Car Championship	8th	Ford EF Falcon	Alan Jones Racing
1996	Mobil New Zealand Sprints	11th	Ford EF Falcon	Alan Jones Racing
1997	Australian Touring Car Championship	11th	Ford EL Falcon	Alan Jones Racing
1998	Australian Touring Car Championship	16th	Ford EL Falcon	Tony Longhurst Racing
1999	Shell Championship Series	62nd	Ford AU Falcon	Paul Little Racing
2001	Shell Championship Series	44th	Ford AU Falcon	Paul Little Racing
2002	V8 Supercar Championship Series	38th	Ford AU Falcon	Paul Little Racing

Complete Formula One World Championship results[]

(key) (races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Yr	Team	Chassis	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	WDC	Points[2]
1975	Custom Made Harry Stiller Racing	Hesketh 308B	Ford V8	ARG	BRA	RSA	ESP Ret	MON Ret	BEL Ret	SWE 11											17th	2
Embassy Racing with Graham Hill	Hill GH1	Ford V8								NED 13	FRA 16	GBR 10	GER 5	AUT	ITA	USA
1976	Durex Team Surtees	Surtees TS19	Ford V8	BRA	RSA	USW NC	ESP 9	BEL 5	MON Ret	SWE 13	FRA Ret	GBR 5	GER 10	AUT Ret	NED 8	ITA 12	CAN 16	USA 8	JPN 4		15th	7
1977	Shadow Racing Team	Shadow DN8	Ford V8	ARG	BRA	RSA	USW Ret	ESP Ret	MON 6	BEL 5	SWE 17	FRA Ret	GBR 7	GER Ret	AUT 1	NED Ret	ITA 3	USA Ret	CAN 4	JPN 4	7th	22
1978	Williams Grand Prix Engineering	Williams FW06	Ford V8	ARG Ret	BRA 11	RSA 4	USW 7	MON Ret	BEL 10	ESP 8	SWE Ret	FRA 5	GBR Ret	GER Ret	AUT Ret	NED Ret	ITA 13	USA 2	CAN 9		11th	11
1979	Albilad-Saudia Racing Team	Williams FW06	Ford V8	ARG 9	BRA Ret	RSA Ret	USW 3														3rd	40 (43)
Williams FW07	Ford V8					ESP Ret	BEL Ret	MON Ret	FRA 4	GBR Ret	GER 1	AUT 1	NED 1	ITA 9	CAN 1	USA Ret
1980	Albilad-Williams Racing Team	Williams FW07B	Ford V8	ARG 1	BRA 3	RSA Ret	USW Ret	BEL 2	MON Ret	FRA 1	GBR 1	GER 3	AUT 2	NED 11	ITA 2	CAN 1	USA 1				1st	67 (71)
1981	TAG Williams Racing Team	Williams FW07C	Ford V8	USW 1	BRA 2	ARG 4	SMR 12	BEL Ret	MON 2	ESP 7	FRA 17	GBR Ret	GER 11	AUT 4	NED 3	ITA 2	CAN Ret	CPL 1			3rd	46
1983	Arrows Racing Team	Arrows A6	Ford V8	BRA	USW Ret	FRA	SMR	MON	BEL	DET	CAN	GBR	GER	AUT	NED	ITA	EUR	RSA			NC	0
1985	Team Haas (USA) Ltd	Lola THL1	Hart S4 (t/c)	BRA	POR	SMR	MON	CAN	DET	FRA	GBR	GER	AUT	NED	ITA Ret	BEL	EUR Ret	RSA DNS	AUS Ret		NC	0
1986	Team Haas (USA) Ltd	Lola THL1	Hart S4 (t/c)	BRA Ret	ESP Ret																12th	4
Lola THL2	Ford V6 (t/c)			SMR Ret	MON Ret	BEL 11	CAN 10	DET Ret	FRA Ret	GBR Ret	GER 9	HUN Ret	AUT 4	ITA 6	POR Ret	MEX Ret	AUS Ret

Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans Results[]

Class winners in bold. Cars failing to complete 70% of the winner's distance marked as Not Classified (NC).

Year	Pos	Class	No	Team	Drivers	Chassis	Tyre	Laps
Engine
1987	37 DNF	C1	36	Toyota Team Tom's	Geoff Lees Eje Elgh	Toyota 87C-L	B	19
Toyota 3S-GTM 2.1L Turbo I4
1984	6	C1	11	Porsche Kremer Racing	Vern Schuppan Jean-Pierre Jarier	Porsche 956B	D	337
Porsche Type-935 2.6 L Turbo Flat-6

American Open-Wheel racing results[]

CART[]

(key)

Year	Team	Chassis	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	Rank	Points
1985	Newman/Haas	Lola T900	Ford Cosworth	LGB	INDY	MIL	POR	MEA	CLE	MIS1	ROA 3	POC	MDO	SAN	MIS2	LAG	PHX	MIA	23rd	14

External links[]

• Richard's F1 interview with Alan Jones
• Driver Data Base Stats
• Racing Reference Profile

Notes[]

Preceded by: Jody Scheckter	Formula One World Champion 1980	Succeeded by: Nelson Piquet
Awards and achievements Preceded by: John Watson Hawthorn Memorial Trophy 1979-1981 Succeeded by: John Watson This page uses some content from Wikipedia. The original article was at Alan Jones. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with Autopedia, the text of Wikipedia is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.