Pedro RodrÃguez (racing driver)
Pedro Rodríguez de la Vega (born 18 January 1940 in Mexico City; † July 11, 1971 in Nuremberg, Germany ) was a Mexican racing driver.
Career
At the age of twelve years drove the son of wealthy parents in Mexico his first motorcycle race. Together with his younger brother Ricardo, he won in the early 1960s in such important endurance races like the 24 Hours of Daytona Beach. Ricardo was killed on 1 November 1962 at the training for the Grand Prix of Mexico deadly with a lotus.
Pedro decided after only a very short time limit, again in 1963 to take part in motor sports to have never got the name of his brother into oblivion. He repeatedly won the 24 Hours of Daytona and also took part in Formula 1 racing. On January 1, 1967, he won when team-mate Jochen Rindt's finally in a more reliable car sitting, his first Grand Prix at Kyalami on the chunky Cooper -Maserati.
He was in 1968 a member of the BRM team, drove for Ferrari in 1969 without success, and returned in 1970 to BRM back. His victory at the Grand Prix of Spa- Francorchamps was the last GP win the GP story on a high-speed line without run-off areas and harassment. Rodríguez, who declared in the face of an impending cancellation due to rain, to want to ride the Grand Prix of Spa also without judgment alone was extremely brave and was considered almost reckless pilot. With his colleagues, he was therefore feared. His last Formula 1 victory he celebrated on April 9, 1971 BRM at Oulton Park. He won 15 sports car races, including the 24 Hours of Le Mans 1968 Ford GT40 at the Lucien Bianchi's side, and a week before his death, the 1000 km of Zeltweg on Porsche 917, of which he was 960 km at the wheel and a two - round behind Clay Regazzoni Ferrari caught up.
In 1970 he won also on the Porsche 917, the sports car world championship.
Rodriguez, who was in 1970 and 1971 one of the best sports car drivers in the world, died on July 11, 1971 at the Norisring in the twelfth round of the race for the European Inter- series in an accident in the borrowed from the Swiss driver Herbert Müller Ferrari 512M.