Emilio de Villota facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Emilio de Villota
De Villota in 2018
Born	Emilio de Villota Ruíz (1946-07-26) 26 July 1946 (age 79) Madrid, Spain
Children	María Emilio Jr.
Formula One World Championship career
Nationality	Spanish
Active years	1976–1978, 1981–1982
Teams	RAM, privateer McLaren, privateer Williams, March
Entries	15 (2 starts)
Championships	0
Wins	0
Podiums	0
Career points	0
Pole positions	0
Fastest laps	0
First entry	1976 Spanish Grand Prix
Last entry	1982 Dutch Grand Prix
British Formula One Championship career
Active years	1978–1980
Races	39 (39 starts)
Championships	1 (1980)
Wins	9
Podium finishes	18
Career points	236
Pole positions	10
Fastest laps	10
World Sportscar Championship career
Years active	1981–1982, 1986–1987
Teams	Lola, Grid, Porsche, Kremer
Starts	19
Championships	0
Wins	2
Podiums	3
Poles	0
Fastest laps	1
24 Hours of Le Mans career
Years	1981–1982, 1986
Teams	Lola, Grid, Porsche
Best finish	4th (1986)
Class wins	0

Emilio de Villota Ruíz (born on July 26, 1946) is a Spanish former racing driver. He competed in Formula One, which is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars. He raced in Formula One between 1976 and 1982.

Emilio de Villota took part in 15 Formula One World Championship races. He managed to qualify for two of these races. He was also a strong competitor in the British Formula One Championship, where he won the championship title in 1980.

Racing Career

Emilio de Villota first started racing internationally in 1972. He drove a SEAT 124 SC in a touring car race in Spain. He returned to international racing in 1975, driving a Ford Capri RS 2600. In one race, he finished second with his teammates.

Starting in Single-Seaters

In 1976, de Villota decided to switch from touring cars to single-seater racing cars. His goal was to reach the Formula One World Championship. To get more experience, he joined the Shellsport G8 International Series in the UK. This championship allowed different types of powerful racing cars to compete together. He finished 14th in the season standings.

De Villota made his Formula One debut in 1976 at the 1976 Spanish Grand Prix. He drove a Brabham BT44B car, which he bought himself to race as a private driver. He did not qualify for this race.

Racing in Formula One

In 1977, Emilio de Villota started a bigger project to race in Formula One. With support from Iberia Airlines, he raced a McLaren M23 car. The car was painted in the airline's colors. He competed in seven races in Europe that season.

He qualified for two of these races. The first was his home race, the 1977 Spanish Grand Prix, where he finished 13th. The other race he started was the 1977 Austrian Grand Prix. He was classified 17th, even though he had an accident on the last lap.

Between his Formula One races, de Villota also competed in some Shellsport G8 races with his McLaren F1 car. He won two of these races. Even though he split his time, he still finished 5th in the Shellsport championship.

In 1978, he tried again to qualify for the 1978 Spanish Grand Prix but was unsuccessful. After this, he focused on the new British Formula One Championship, also known as the Aurora AFX Formula One Championship. This series was less expensive, which made it more competitive.

Success in British Formula One

Emilio de Villota became a very strong driver in the Aurora AFX Formula One Championship. He finished 3rd overall in both 1978 and 1979. Then, in 1980, he became the champion! He drove a Williams FW07 car prepared by RAM Racing. During his time in this championship, he won nine races.

In 1978, he started the Aurora AFX F1 Championship well, finishing on the podium (top three) in the first three races. He ended the season in 3rd place overall.

For the 1979 season, de Villota switched to a Lotus 78 car. After a tough start, he had a great run, finishing on the podium in six races in a row. He won four of these races. He finished 3rd in the championship again.

In 1980, de Villota raced the same Williams FW07 car in the Aurora AFX F1 series. He finished on the podium in nine out of eleven races. He won five of them, including two wins at Mallory Park and one at Brands Hatch. He was crowned champion that year.

Sportscar Racing and Le Mans

In 1981, Emilio de Villota moved to the World Endurance Championship of Drivers, which featured sportscar racing. He joined Team Lola and raced their Lola T600 car. After a few difficult races, he and his teammate finished 15th overall and 3rd in their class at the famous 1981 24 Hours of Le Mans race.

This strong result at Le Mans inspired them. They went on to win their next race, the Coppa Florio, by two laps. They won again later that year at the Flying Tiger 1000 race at Brands Hatch.

De Villota continued racing sportscars in the new Group C category in 1982 and 1983. He mostly raced for the Grid Plaza Racing team. In 1986, he joined John Fitzpatrick Racing and achieved great results in a Porsche 956. He finished 3rd at the 1000 km Nürburgring and 4th at the 1986 24 Hours of Le Mans. This was his last time racing at Le Mans.

In 1987, he raced a Porsche 962C for Kremer Racing in two races in Spain. He also finished 8th overall in the Porsche 944 Turbo Cup.

Later Career and Retirement

By 1988, Emilio de Villota had retired from international racing. However, he continued to race at a national level in Spain. He won the Spanish Porsche Carrera Cup Championship three times in four years (1993, 1995, and 1996). He still races sometimes, mostly in Spain.

After Retiring

Today, Emilio de Villota leads his own racing team and school called Emilio de Villota Motorsport. His son, Emilio de Villota Jr., has also raced in Formula Three and Formula 3000. His daughter, María de Villota, was a test driver for a Formula One team. She passed away in October 2013.

Career Highlights

Images for kids

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  Emilio de Villota in 2018

See also

In Spanish: Emilio de Villota para niños