Piers Courage and Roger Williamson lost their lives at Zandvoort.
Jochen Rindt used another innovative design from Colin Chapman, the Lotus 72, to win the 1970 Dutch Grand Prix, but his win was completely overshadowed by the death of Piers Courage during the race. The popular Englishman crashed in his De Tomaso, entered by Frank Williams, and the car was virtually incinerated in the ensuing fire. Jackie Stewart, a friend of Courage, described in his diary the scene of the accident the following day:
“Frank Williams, Louis Stanley and I drove out to the circuit to reconstruct the accident… There was a horrible, tragic smell in the area and it was absolutely quiet, only the wind coming off the sea, rustling the dune grass, and the three of us there on that empty road.”
The death of Courage came not long after the sport had lost Bruce McLaren. Before the year was out Rindt would also be killed, becoming Formula 1’s only posthumous World Champion.
Jacky Ickx was in great form in 1971. He converted his pole position into a race win, also setting the fastest lap in his Ferrari. Pedro Rodriguez finished second for BRM while Ickxs’s team-mate, Clay Regazzoni, was third. There was no race in 1972 and, when it did return the following year, Zandvoort became the scene for a very public tragedy.
Stewart won the race, followed by his Tyrrell team-mate François Cevert. James Hunt drove impressively to finish third while, in sixth place, was local driver Gijs van Lennep. There was no champagne on the podium, however, as the stunned drivers were informed of the disaster which had unfolded.
Early in the race the young English driver Roger Williamson, competing in only his second Formula 1 race, crashed as a result of tyre failure. His March car came to rest upside down and on fire. David Purley, following behind, stopped immediately and ran to Williamson’s aid. Although Williamson was not seriously injured he could not escape from his upturned car.
Despite there being several marshals present no-one tried to help Purley. Millions watched on TV as he fought in vain to save Williamson’s life. The race was not stopped and not other drivers stopped to help. Some would later explain that, because Purley’s abandoned car was out of their line of sight, they assumed it was his car that was on fire and he had escaped but wanted to put out the flames. For his efforts Purley was awarded the George Medal for bravery. The 1973 Dutch Grand Prix would go down as the most shameful episode in Formula 1 history.
