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Roger Williamson

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Roger Williamson
Born(1948-02-02)2 February 1948
Ashby-de-la-Zouch, England
Died29 July 1973(1973-07-29) (aged 25)
Zandvoort, Netherlands
Formula One World Championship career
NationalityUnited Kingdom British
Active years1973
TeamsMarch
Entries2
Championships0
Wins0
Podiums0
Career points0
Pole positions0
Fastest laps0
First entry1973 British Grand Prix
Last entry1973 Dutch Grand Prix

Roger Williamson (2 February 1948 – 29 July 1973) was a British racing driver and a two time British Formula 3 champion[1][2], who died during his second Formula One race, the 1973 Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort Circuit in the Netherlands.[3]

Early life and career

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Bronze statue of Roger Williamson at the Donington Park Garden of Remembrance

Williamson was born in Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Leicestershire. He won the 1971 and 1972 British Formula 3 Championship titles. In 1973, he was offered a drive in the March Engineering works Formula One team. Williamson originally tested for the BRM team, but his manager advised him to take the March offer, as March had a slightly stronger performance in the previous season.[4][5]

Williamson made his Formula One debut at the 1973 British Grand Prix, the ninth round of the season, in which he was involved in a lap one nine car pileup resulting in his retirement.[6] His second appearance came just weeks later at Zandvoort for the Dutch Grand Prix.[1]

Death

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Main article: 1973 Dutch Grand Prix § Death of Roger Williamson
External videos
video icon Footage of David Purley attempting to save Williamson who was trapped in his overturned and burning car on YouTube
The burned wreckage of Williamson's March 731, with Purley standing second left as Niki Lauda passes.
The scene of Williamson's fatal accident as Gijs van Lennep passes.

After his Formula One debut at the 1973 British Grand Prix, Williamson's second Formula One appearance was at the 1973 Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort Circuit. On his eighth lap, a suspected tyre failure at the high speed esses near the Tunnel Oost (East Tunnel) caused his car to flip upside down and catch fire. Williamson had not been seriously injured by the impact, but was trapped under the car which was swiftly engulfed in flames. The track marshals were both poorly trained and badly equipped, and did not assist him.

Another driver, David Purley, upon witnessing the crash of his friend, abandoned his own race and pulled over in an attempt to rescue Williamson. He ran across the still active track to Williamson's car and tried to turn it upright, before grabbing a fire extinguisher from a marshal and returning to the engulfed car. Purley later stated he could hear Williamson's screams from underneath the car, but by the time the first fire engine arrived and the fire was extinguished, Williamson had died of asphyxiation.

As most racers mistakenly identified Purley as the driver of the crashed car, and therefore thought the burning car to be empty, none of them stopped to help and the race continued, even as Purley stood on the circuit and gestured with his hands for them to stop.[7] Furthermore, the track marshals were wearing normal blazers and not the fire-resistant overalls which the drivers wore, and thus were not able to go near the large flames.

Purley was later awarded the George Medal for attempting to rescue Williamson. A series of photos of the incident won that year's World Press Photo award for Photo Sequences.

Williamson's body was later cremated with his ashes being taken to an undisclosed location. In the years following the accident, fire-resistant clothing would become mandatory for all trackside marshals so that they would be able to assist in the event of a fire. The next few years also saw an increase in drivers stopping at accident sites to assist in rescue efforts, notably at the 1976 German Grand Prix. Williamson was 25 years old at the time of his death.

In 2003, on the thirtieth anniversary of his fatal crash, a bronze statue of Williamson was unveiled at the Donington Park circuit in his native Leicestershire. Then-owner Tom Wheatcroft had provided financial backing to Williamson, and described the day Williamson died as "the saddest day of my life".[8]

Racing record

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Complete Formula One World Championship results

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(key)

Year Entrant Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 WDC Pts.
1973 STP March Racing Team March 731 Cosworth V8 ARG BRA RSA ESP BEL MON SWE FRA GBR
Ret 		NED
Ret 		GER AUT ITA CAN USA NC 0
Sources:[9][10]

Non-Championship Formula One results

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(key)

Year Entrant Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6
1972 Roger Williamson Kitchmac (F5000) Chevrolet V8 ROC BRA INT OUL REP VIC
Ret
Source:[11]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Roger Williamson". F1 History. Retrieved 20 December 2025.
  2. ^ "Driver: Roger Williamson | Driver Database". www.driverdb.com. Retrieved 20 December 2025.
  3. ^ "Roger Williamson". Memorabilia UK. Retrieved 20 December 2025.
  4. ^ pitlane.gr
  5. ^ "silodrome.com - Roger Williamson". Archived from the original on 12 February 2019. Retrieved 31 March 2017.
  6. ^ Smith, Damien (19 May 2023). "'Cars were crashing all around': Jody Scheckter on 1973 British GP nine-car pile-up". Motor Sport Magazine. Retrieved 20 December 2025.
  7. ^ "Roger Williamson Formula One Fatal Crash". YouTube. 6 July 2009. Archived from the original on 12 December 2021.
  8. ^ "Roger Williamson biography". Anton Sukup. Retrieved 10 August 2011.
  9. ^ "Roger Williamson Results". Motorsport Stats. Retrieved 29 May 2025.
  10. ^ Small, Steve (2000). "Roger Williamson". Grand Prix Who's Who (Third ed.). Reading, Berkshire: Travel Publishing. p. 608. ISBN 978-1-902007-46-5. Retrieved 29 May 2025 – via Internet Archive.
  11. ^ "Roger Williamson – Involvement Non World Championship". StatsF1. Retrieved 29 May 2025.

Books

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Wikimedia Commons has media related to Roger Williamson.