Jacques Laffite

French racing driver

Ligier's leading man

Jacques Laffite won six Grands Prix, most of them for the French Ligier team, across 13 seasons that ended at Brands Hatch in 1986.

Jacques Laffite was born in Paris, France, on November 21, 1943. He trained at the Winfield Racing School at Magny Cours in 1968 and raced at Le Mans with Ligier before Frank Williams gave him his Formula 1 debut at the 1974 German Grand Prix. A year later he took his first podium at the same race and also won the European Formula Two championship with Martini.

Ligier signed him for 1976, and he took his first pole position in Italy that season. In 1977 he won the Swedish Grand Prix for his first victory. With the ground effect Ligier JS11 he won the first two races of 1979, including a grand slam in Brazil, though retirements left him fourth in the championship. He was fourth again in 1980 and 1981, winning once in 1980 and twice in 1981, and finished six points short of champion Nelson Piquet in that second season.

After a 1982 season in which he failed to finish most races, Laffite moved to Williams for 1983 and 1984, then returned to Ligier in 1985 and added more podiums. At the 1986 British Grand Prix he was seriously injured in a crash at the start involving several cars, which ended his Formula 1 career.

Our record shows 176 starts, 6 wins, 7 pole positions, 7 fastest laps and 32 podiums across 13 seasons. He later raced in the World Touring Car Championship and the German touring car series, entered the 24 Hours of Le Mans nine times in all, and worked as a television presenter for TF1 from 1997 to 2012.

0 world titles, 6 wins, 7 pole positions, 176 starts.

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