Johnny Cecotto facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Johnny Cecotto
Cecotto in 1978
Nationality	Venezuelan
Born	(1956-01-25) 25 January 1956 (age 69) Caracas, Venezuela
Motorcycle racing career statistics Grand Prix motorcycle racing Active years 1975–1980 First race 1975 250cc French Grand Prix Last race 1980 500cc German Grand Prix First win 1975 250cc French Grand Prix Last win 1980 350cc Nations Grand Prix Team(s) Yamaha Championships 1975 – 350cc 1978 – Formula 750 Starts Wins Podiums Poles F. laps Points 48 14 26 13 7 433

Johnny Alberto Cecotto Persello (born January 25, 1956), known as Johnny Cecotto, is a former professional Venezuelan motorcycle and car racer. He became famous at just 19 years old in 1975. He was the youngest motorcycle road racing world champion ever.

Even though he started his motorcycle career very well, he had many injuries and mechanical problems. These issues limited his success in motorcycle Grand Prix racing. At 24, Cecotto switched to car racing. He even became a Formula One driver. Later, he became a successful Touring Car racer. He is one of the few racers who competed at the highest levels in both motorcycle and car racing. Other famous names include John Surtees and Mike Hailwood.

Johnny Cecotto's Racing Journey

Motorcycle Racing Beginnings

Johnny Cecotto was born in Caracas, Venezuela. His parents were Italian immigrants. His father owned a motorcycle shop and used to be a motorcycle racer. He even won the Venezuelan national championship on a 500cc Norton bike.

Johnny followed in his father's footsteps. He started motorcycle racing when he was young. First, he raced a Honda CB750 and a Kawasaki triple. Then, the Venezuelan Yamaha importer started supporting him. He rode a Yamaha TZ350 to win the 1973 Venezuelan road racing national championship. He was only 17 years old. He won the national championship again in 1974. He also won the 1974 South American motorcycle road racing championship.

Daytona Success Story

Cecotto became known worldwide at the 1975 Daytona 200 motorcycle race. This race was one of the most important in the world. It attracted champions like Giacomo Agostini and Barry Sheene. Cecotto arrived as an unknown rookie. He rode a standard Yamaha TZ750. It was sponsored by Venemotos, Yamaha's Venezuelan importer.

The young racer quickly made a name for himself. He qualified on the front row. Other top riders like Kenny Roberts and Steve Baker were also there. Just before the race, officials saw fluid under his motorcycle. They removed him for safety. But they soon found it was just water from the radiator.

Officials let Cecotto rejoin the race. But he was in last place. He showed amazing riding skills. He passed half the racers on the first lap. Two laps later, he was in 26th place. By the fifth lap, he was 18th. By the tenth lap, he was in tenth place. On the 50th lap, he passed Agostini for third. His motorcycle then started to overheat. He had to slow down. He finished third behind Gene Romero and Steve Baker. In 1991, experts named Cecotto's ride the best performance in the first 50 years of the Daytona 200.

Becoming a World Champion

A month after Daytona, Cecotto went to Europe. He won the famous Imola 200 F750-championship race. Agostini's engine broke, and Kenny Roberts was injured.

Cecotto continued his winning streak. He won two races in his first world championship Grand Prix. At the 1975 French Grand Prix, he won the 250cc race. He also led the 350cc race from start to finish. He won by 25 seconds over Agostini, a seven-time champion. He had planned to race only a few times in Europe. But after his French Grand Prix wins, he got full sponsorship. He rode an old Agostini TZ350.

He won three more races. He beat Agostini for the 350cc World Championship. At 19, he was the youngest world champion. This record stood until Loris Capirossi won in 1990 at 17. He also won two 250cc races. But a crash and engine problems left him fourth in the 250cc standings.

Later Motorcycle Career

In 1976, Cecotto returned to the Daytona 200. He now had full support from the Yamaha factory team. The race became a fight between Cecotto and his teammate, Kenny Roberts. Their fast pace wore out their tires. Roberts' tire blew out nine laps from the end. Cecotto's team tried to call him into the pits. But he ignored them and won the race. His tires were shredded, showing how close he was to Roberts' fate.

Johnny Cecotto at the Nürburgring in 1976

Cecotto moved to the top 500cc class. He rode a year-old Yamaha YZR500. He was part of a Yamaha-supported team called Venemotos. Many thought Suzuki's Barry Sheene would be his main rival in 1976. Cecotto started well with a second-place finish behind Sheene. This was at the French Grand Prix. However, Cecotto crashed 13 times in later races. He did not score any more points after France. He then left the 500cc class. He focused on defending his 350cc title. He finished 20th in the 500cc season. Sheene won the 500cc world championship. Cecotto also lost his 350cc title to Harley-Davidson rider Walter Villa.

Some people thought Cecotto won too early. They believed he didn't fully understand how he did it. Yamaha Team Manager Rod Gould said, "I think Cecotto was going fast and didn't really know why. Now he doesn't know why he's going slower and crashing." The Venemotos team also had problems. They were disorganized and unprepared. His mechanic said they sometimes forgot to file race forms. This caused delays in practice.

Johnny Cecotto (4) leads Barry Sheene (7) and Kenny Roberts (1) during the 1978 500cc Dutch TT race

In 1977, Cecotto was badly hurt in a crash. It happened at the Austrian Grand Prix. Another rider, Hans Stadelmann, died in the accident. Cecotto recovered in time for the Swedish Grand Prix. He finished second, just behind Barry Sheene. Cecotto then won two races in a row. These were the Finnish Grand Prix and the Czechoslovak Grand Prix. He also won the 350cc Grand Prix there. Even though he missed most of the season, he finished fourth in the championship.

Cecotto started the 1978 season by winning the Imola 200 again. But he faced a new rival, Kenny Roberts. Cecotto had four podium finishes. He won the 1978 Dutch TT by a tiny margin over Roberts. But he had four mechanical failures. Roberts won the world championship. Sheene was second, and Cecotto was third. Cecotto had more success in the 1978 Formula 750 world championship. He won three races and finished second three times. This helped him secure the championship.

In 1979, Cecotto broke his kneecap badly. This happened at the Austrian Grand Prix. He missed half the season. He returned for the last four races. But his injuries still caused him pain. He did not get good results. Roberts won his second 500cc world championship. Cecotto won 5 races in the 1979 Formula 750 world championship. But his inconsistent results put him in third place.

Yamaha stopped supporting Cecotto after 1979. This was because of Roberts' success and Cecotto's inconsistent results. In 1980, he raced as a privateer. He used a Bimota chassis with a Yamaha engine in the 350cc class. He used a production Yamaha in the 500cc class. He started the year by winning the 1980 Imola 200. This made him a three-time winner, like Kenny Roberts. His world championship season began well. He won the 350cc French Grand Prix. He also finished fourth in the 500cc race. But after this, his motorcycles had many mechanical problems. He finished fourth in the 350cc championship. He was seventh in the 500cc championship. After the 1980 season, he decided to stop motorcycle racing. He was 24 years old. He wanted to start a car racing career. He retired with twelve 500cc pole positions in 28 starts. This is one of the highest pole position per start ratios in motorcycle Grand Prix history.

Switching to Car Racing

Cecotto at the 1984 Dallas Grand Prix, his last Formula One start.

Cecotto started his car racing career with Minardi in the 1980 Formula Two Championship. In the 1982 Formula Two season, he drove for the March-BMW team. He won three races. He finished tied for first place with his teammate Corrado Fabi. But he was second due to tie-breaker rules. Still, his performance got him a spot in Formula One.

In Formula One, Cecotto raced in 23 events. His first race was on March 13, 1983, for the Theodore Racing team. He started well, finishing sixth in his second race. But his team lacked money. He had to miss the last two races. For the 1984 season, he joined the Toleman racing team. His teammate was Ayrton Senna. During qualifying for the British Grand Prix, he crashed badly. He broke both of his legs. This ended his Formula One career. His sixth-place finish at Long Beach was the best for a Venezuelan driver. This record stood for 29 years until Pastor Maldonado won in 2012.

Touring Car Success

Cecotto at Silverstone during the 1995 British Touring Car Championship season.

After recovering from his injuries, Cecotto returned to racing. He joined the Group A Touring Car category. He drove for the famous Schnitzer Motorsport BMW team. His best finish was second at the 1985 Spa 24 Hours. He raced with Dieter Quester and Markus Oestreich. He then went to Australia. He finished second in the 1985 James Hardie 1000 at Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst. He drove the same BMW 635 CSi he used at Spa. He shared the "Rookie of the Year" award with his co-driver Roberto Ravaglia. During practice, Cecotto was surprised. Former motorcycle rival Gregg Hansford told him they also raced motorcycles at Mt Panorama. Cecotto said he would think twice before racing a bike there.

In 1986, he joined the Belgian Volvo team, RAS Sport. He raced in the FIA Touring Car Championship. He drove a turbocharged Volvo 240T. He often raced with European Touring Car Champion Thomas Lindström. Cecotto finished eighth in the championship. He had two wins (Hockenheim and Zolder). He also had two second-place and two third-place finishes. He also won the 1986 Guia Race in Macau Grand Prix. He won the 1986 InterTEC 500 at Fuji in Japan with Anders Olofsson.

Cecotto driving for BMW at Brands Hatch during the 1995 British Touring Car Championship season.

Volvo left racing at the end of 1986. Cecotto rejoined BMW. He competed in the 1987 World Touring Car Championship. He drove a BMW M3 for the Italian CiBiEmme team. His teammate was Gianfranco Brancatelli. They won the third race, the 500 km de Bourgogne. This was at Dijon-Prenois. They were the first WTCC registered car to finish the Australian round, the 1987 James Hardie 1000. Cecotto and Brancatelli finished seventh at Bathurst. But as the first registered car, they got first-place points. In 1989, he won the Italian Touring Car Championship. Cecotto finished eighth in the 1987 World Touring Car Championship with 158 points.

From 1988 to 1992, Cecotto raced in the Deutsche Tourenwagen Meisterschaft (DTM). This is the German Touring Car Championship. He drove a Schnitzer Motorsport BMW M3. He finished second in the 1990 season. He also raced in endurance racing. He won the 1990 24 Hours of Spa. He also won the 1992 24 Hours of Nürburgring. In 1994 and 1998, he won the German Super Tourenwagen Cup Championship for BMW. In 1995, he raced in the British Touring Car Championship (BTCC) for BMW. In 2001 and 2002, he switched to the Irmscher Opel Omega. He won the German V8Star Series Championship two years in a row.

Life After Racing

Today, Johnny Cecotto spends most of his time supporting his sons. His sons, Johnny Cecotto Jr. and Jonathan Cecotto, are also professional car racers.

Racing Results

Motorcycle Grand Prix Results

Source:

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)

European Formula Two Championship Results

Source:
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Formula One World Championship Results

Source:
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position)

European Touring Car Championship Results

Source:

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Team	Car	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	DC	Points
1985	Schnitzer Motorsport	BMW 635 CSi	MNZ	VAL	DON	AND	BRN	ZEL	SAL 7	NUR	SPA 2	SIL	NOG	ZOL	EST	JAR 7							NA	NA
1986	RAS Sport	Volvo 240T	MNZ 9	DON Ret	HOC 1	MIS 2	AND DSQ	BRN 3	ZEL DSQ	NUR 10	SPA 12	SIL 15	NOG 2	ZOL 1	JAR 3	EST 16							8th	144
1987	CiBiEmme Sport	BMW M3	DON Ret	EST 1	AND	ZOL Ret	ZEL 1	IMO Ret	NOG Ret													15th	80
1988	CiBiEmme Sport	Alfa Romeo 75	MNZ	DON	EST	JAR	DIJ	VAL	NUR	SPA Ret	ZOL	SIL	NOG										NC	0
2000	Team Isert	BMW 320i	MUG 1	MUG 2	PER 1	PER 2	A1R 1	A1R 2	MNZ 1	MNZ 2	HUN 1	HUN 2	IMO 1	IMO 2	MIS 1	MIS 2	BRN 1	BRN 2	VAL 1 6	VAL 2 5	MOB 1	MOB 2	13th	14

World Touring Car Championship Results

Source:
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Team	Car	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	DC	Points
1987	CiBiEmme Sport BMW Motorsport	BMW M3	MNZ DSQ	JAR ovr:8 cls:6	DIJ ovr:1 cls:1	NUR Ret	SPA Ret	BNO ovr:5 cls:3	SIL Ret	BAT ovr:7 cls:3	CLD ovr:4 cls:2	WEL Ret	FJI ovr:6 cls:3	8th	158

† Despite finishing 7th outright at Bathurst, as the highest placed registered WTCC car Cecotto was awarded 1st place points for the round.

Deutsche Tourenwagen Meisterschaft/Masters Results

Source:
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)

German GT Cup Results

Source:
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Super Tourenwagen Cup Results

Source:
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)

British Touring Car Championship Results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Italian Superturismo Championship Results

24 Hours of Le Mans Results

Source:

Year	Team	Co-Drivers	Car	Class	Laps	Pos.	Class Pos.
1981	BMW Italie-France Team BMW Motorsport	Philippe Alliot Bernard Darniche	BMW M1 Gr.5	Gr.5	277	16th	5th
1996	Team Bigazzi Team BMW Motorsport	Nelson Piquet Danny Sullivan	McLaren F1 GTR	GT1	324	8th	6th
1998	Team BMW Motorsport	Pierluigi Martini Joachim Winkelhock	BMW V12 LM	LMP1	43	DNF	DNF

Bathurst 1000 Results

Year	Team	Co-Drivers	Car	Class	Laps	Pos.	Class Pos.
1985	/ Goold Motorsport	Roberto Ravaglia	BMW 635 CSi	C	163	2nd	2nd
1987	BMW Motorsport CiBiEmme	Gianfranco Brancatelli	BMW M3	2	154	7th	3rd
1992	Benson & Hedges Racing	Tony Longhurst	BMW M3 Evolution	A	142	4th	4th

See also

In Spanish: Johnny Cecotto para niños