JULY 19, 2002

Fritz Glatz

THE Austrian racing driver Fritz Glatz was killed last weekend at the wheel of an old Arrows chassis while racing in the European historic Formula 1 championship. The accident took place at Most in the Czech Republic where Glatz was leading the race but lost control after hitting a curb at high speed. The car rolled.

At the time Glatz was racing under the pseudonym Frederico Careca although the 58-year-old was best known under the name Pierre Chauvet as a regular racer in Formula 3000 in the 1980s. He raced under so many different pseudonyms during his career that sometimes it was difficult to keep track. A useful driver but never a topline star, Glatz and 1985 Le Mans winner "John Winter" continued the tradition of pseudonymous racers which goes back to the start of the sport and Grand Prix stars such as "Williams" (winner of Monaco 1929) and "Philippe" (Baron Philippe de Rothschild). In the modern era the need for one's family not to know about a racing career resulted in Nelson Piquet's decision to use his mother's maiden name Piquet rather than his actual family name Soutomayor.