Sir Jackie Stewart on closing circuits: 'I got death threats'

On 30 December, Sir Jackie Stewart will release a documentary about life as a Formula 1 driver back in the days. Following this, he spoke to PlanetF1, and talked in colour about what he experienced.

That there were deaths and injuries every season was not surprising given the way racing was handled. “In those days, we never even stopped the race. We drove through the fire. Everybody was friends, that was the great thing in that day. We all went on holiday together. Jochen [Rindt] and Piers Courage, Jimmy Clark and Graham [Hill]. Then Bruce McLaren of course as well. We spent a lot of time together and really we had a great group of people and sadly of course so many died.”

The tracks were true death traps, and so were the cars themselves. “There were no run-off areas, there were no deformable structures. In the cockpits of the car, we were sitting on fuel tanks all the time, literally completely under your legs.

Advocate for closing Nürburgring and Spa

The Scot was also a prominent advocate for the closure of some very dangerous circuits such as the Nürburgring (especially the Nordschleife), and Spa. Here, he also refers to Niki Lauda's 1976 accident on the Nordschleife. “The thing I think I am most proud of was closing the Nürburgring because in my day it was absolutely ridiculous. I started a campaign to stop the Nürburgring and Spa. I got death threats, I got people coming into my house and shouting and bawling and throwing stones to try and get through the windows.

It is thanks to drivers like Stewart that Formula 1 has become a safer place and circuits have improved in many ways. Circuits like the Nürburgring and Spa should never have been raced in the first place says the 83-year-old. “There were telegraph poles and cattle and god knows how many of those things but that was the time." Today, at least, one can race these tracks again with a relaxed heart and a Max Verstappen or Lewis Hamilton won't be running into a cow on track any time soon.