Emanuele Pirro may not enjoy the same level of popularity as his fellow contemporaries Nigel Mansell, Nelson Piquet, Alain Prost or the mythical Ayrton Senna. However, looking at his achievements away from the Formula One paddock one can understand why the Italian pilot attracts so much respect in the motor racing world.

After a low-key spell in F1 with Benetton and Scuderia Italia, Emanuele Pirro switched to Touring Car racing in 1991 and it was in this particular circuit that his driving talents came to light.

In fact, he went on to win the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans five times along with the American Le Mans Series in 2001 and 2005 with Audi Team Sport.

Last month, I met up with Pirro who was here for the inaugural Malta Motorsport Federation Awards Night.

The Rome-born driver said he was lucky to have had the opportunity to race in so many different categories for so many years but admitted that his achievements in Le Mans remain the highlight in his career.

“The thing that fills me with happiness most is the fact that I have raced for over 30 years in different forms of motor racing,” Pirro, now ambassador of Audi, said.

“When I was a child I dreamed of being a racing driver but I never thought that I would be able to race until I was 50 years old.

“Motor racing is a challenging sport. Formula One gets most of the limelight but it’s not the be all end all. I drove in various championships and in some great circuits. Really, I just feel blessed to have had so many experiences in my career.”

“I raced in Formula One for three years,” the former Benetton driver added.

“But I can’t say that it was the most beautiful memory of my career.

“Le Mans is a special race that made the history of motor racing, even though it was tinged by the death of some drivers and race officials. Winning it five times was the most rewarding experience that stays in me for the rest of my life.”

Pirro reckons Le Mans presents a different aspect to motor racing that is not in other categories.

“Normally, motor sport is based on the talents of an individual as drivers prepare cars for their own characteristics,” Pirro remarked.

“But Le Mans it’s different. Each team has one car and three drivers that have to fine-tune the same car. That means you have to make sure that the car is compatible to the racing characteristics of all three in the team. Failure to do so means missing out on success.”

Not many people are aware that during his time in F1 Pirro collaborated with two extraordinary drivers in Prost and the late Senna at McLaren.

“In 1988, McLaren had teamed up with Honda and they were planning to set up a Test Team in Japan to develop the engine,” Pirro explained.

“Ron Dennis called me up and offered me the chance to be part of project. He also told me that McLaren would include an option in my contract to become one of their drivers but Ron was honest with me and told me it was almost impossible to take the seat of either Prost or Senna.

“Still, it was a great opportunity for me to be at McLaren with those two great drivers. It was a win-win situation as I would gain a lot of knowledge that would come handy in the future.

“And Ron was right... Prost and Senna were better than I was in more ways than one. Their determination, eye for detail and input was of a different level. Mixing it up with them was great and made me a far better driver.”

F1 evolution

Pirro thinks Formula One has evolved considerably since his days in the 1980s but that doesn’t necessarily mean that the changes were all positive.

“Formula One has changed. Going through a documentary from the 1980s makes me think we were almost prehistoric back then,” Pirro says with a smile.

“There’s loads of money in it now and the sport has become more sophisticated. However, the rapport between spectators and the teams is far less personal.

“F1 has become a TV production and although the sport yields a lot of money, which is positive, at the same time the link between drivers and fans that existed in the 1980s is no longer the same.”

The 2015 F1 season gets under way today in Melbourne with Mercedes again favourites to repeat last year’s dominant showing.

Pirro is expecting the German carmaker to maintain the upperhand but hinted that they may not have it all their own way.

“Mercedes did an extraordinary job last year and deserved their success,” Pirro said.

“The rivalry between Hamilton and Rosberg was great to follow. For most of the championship it was a clean fight which is not easy to have when so much is at stake.

“I think that having such a big technical advantage and with F1 rules forbidding teams to develop engines as much as they want to it’s going to be tough to bridge that gap in one year. So, for me, Mercedes remain the no.1 team.

“But having said that I still expect other teams to get closer and I predict more different winners than last season. Williams will be great contenders and Red Bull and Ferrari will not be far too behind.”

Four-time F1 champion Sebastian Vettel joined Ferrari this year and Pirro believes the German could lead the Italian team to a great season.

“Vettel was a good acquisition for Ferrari,” Pirro said.

“He is a talented driver but joined Ferrari after a very difficult season.

“His contribution should bring fresh enthusiasm at Maranello. I’m sure Vettel was not happy with how things developed last year at Red Bull so he will be seeking to make up for it this year.

“Joining Ferrari was the right choice. They are an organised team with qualified personnel... his talent will help Ferrari acquire the results they want.”

Emanuele Pirro factfile

Born: January 12, 1962, in Rome, Italy.

24 Hours of Le Mans
Race victories: 2000, 2001, 2002, 2006, 2007.
Class wins: 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2006, 2007.

American Le Mans series
Championship victories: 2001, 2005.

Formula One
Best finish: Fifth place at Australian GP (1989).

Japanese Formula 3000
Best finish: First place Japanese GP (1989).

European Formula Two
Best finish: Second place at British GP (1984).

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