Today would have been the 76th birthday of legendary Formula 1 racing driver, Tom Pryce.

Did you know that a Welshman was one of the most promising Formula 1 drivers of the 1970s? Sadly, he was also involved in one of the sport’s biggest tragedies.

Who Was Tom Pryce?

Thomas Maldwyn Pryce was born in Ruthin, Denbighshire on 11 June 1949, though he spent much of his childhood in Towyn (also Denbighshire). He was just 10 years of age when, having driven a baker’s van, he informed his parents of his desire to be a racing driver. He would fulfil that dream.

By 1974, Pryce had become a Formula 1 driver – it was also around this time when he began wearing his signature, Welsh flag adjourned helmet. Tragedy would hit just three years later with Pryce’s promising career still in its infancy.

The Tragedy of Tom Pryce

It was at the South African Grand Prix in 1977 when Tom Pryce and a 19-year old fire marshal named Jansen van Vuuren would fall victim in a tragic accident which remains among the worst moments in F1 history.

Two marshals, one being Van Vuuren, ran onto the track to tackle a fire on the vehicle of Renzo Zorzi (Pryce’s teammate). One would make it to the fire and, sadly, Van Vuuren would not as he would be struck by Pryce at 160mph, killing him instantly.

The fire extinguisher he was carrying would launch into the air and hit Pryce’s helmet at unimaginable forces, killing him instantly and sending his car speeding off the track, hitting Jacques Laffite (thankfully, he survived) along the way before eventually crashing into the barriers.

Back in 2016 an academic paper was published using a mathematical modelling study to assess the relative influence of driver and machine. Using this formula, even despite his short career, Pryce was ranked as high as the 28th best Formula One driver of all time.

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