Jackie Stewart

He was known as the "Flying Scot" because he competed in Formula One from 1965 to 1973, winning three World Drivers' Championships and finished second twice.

Sir Jackie Stewart in a file photo. (Image: Twitter)
By Nilavro Ghosh | May 26, 2022 | 4 Min Read follow icon Follow Us

Sir Jackie Stewart is a Scottish-born British former Formula One driver. He was known as the “Flying Scot” because he competed in Formula One from 1965 to 1973, winning three World Drivers’ Championships and finished second twice. Outside of Formula One, he raced in the Can-Am series in 1970 and 1971, and came close to winning the Indianapolis 500 on his maiden attempt in 1966. Between 1997 and 1999, he was the team principal of the Stewart Grand Prix Formula One racing team, which he co-owned with his son Paul. Stewart was also a driving force behind increasing the safety of motor racing by advocating for better medical facilities and track upgrades at racetracks.

Stewart was born in Milton, Dunbartonshire, a community fifteen miles west of Glasgow, Scotland. Stewart’s family had developed a profitable business as Austin and later Jaguar automobile dealers. His father was an amateur motorcycle racer, and his brother Jimmy was a well-known local racing driver who competed in the 1953 British Grand Prix at Silverstone for Ecurie Ecosse.

Jackie Stewart before F1

He raced for Tyrrell in Formula Three in 1964. In the wet at Snetterton on March 15, he was imperious, taking a 25-second lead in just two laps before coasting to a 44-second victory. He was offered a Formula One ride with Cooper within days, but he declined, preferring to acquire experience under Tyrrell; he won only two races (one due to clutch failure, the other due to a spin) on his way to becoming F3 champion.

He took a trial in an F1 Lotus 33-Climax, impressing Colin Chapman and Jim Clark, after running John Coombs’ E-type and practising in a Ferrari at Le Mans. Stewart once again turned down a Formula One ride, opting instead for the Lotus Formula Two squad. In his F2 debut, he finished second in a Lotus 32-Cosworth at the challenging Circuit Clermont-Ferrand.

F1 debut and teams

While he signed a 4,000 euro contract with BRM alongside Graham Hill in 1965, his first race in an F1 car was for Lotus at the non-championship Rand Grand Prix in December 1964, as a stand-in for an injured Jim Clark; after qualifying in pole position, the Lotus broke in the first heat, but he won the second and claimed fastest lap. He finished sixth in his World Championship F1 debut in South Africa. In late April, he won his first big competition, the BRDC International Trophy, and before the end of the year, he won his first World Championship race at Monza.

The championship wins

Stewart dominated the opposition in a series of races in 1969, winning by more than two laps at Montjuc, a minute ahead at Clemont-Ferrand, and more than a lap at Silverstone, all while driving the Matra MS80-Cosworth. Stewart became world champion after victories at Kyalami, Zandvoort, and Monza.

Stewart’s medical difficulties were induced by the stress of racing all year and on different continents. Despite having mononucleosis and crossing the Atlantic Ocean 186 times due to media engagements in the United States, he won the 1971 world championship. He missed the Belgian Grand Prix in Nivelles during the 1972 Grand Prix season due to gastritis.

Stewart announced his retirement at the start of the 1973 season. Despite this, he was victorious in South Africa, Belgium, Monaco, and the Netherlands. Tyrrell’s final and then-record-setting 27th victory came at the Nürburgring, where he scored a 1–2. Stewart had previously won the Drivers’ Championship at the Italian Grand Prix two races prior; this was a race in which Stewart had to pit to fix a flat tyre and drove from 20th to 4th place.

Career Stats

Races100
Wins27
Podiums43
Pole positions17
Points359

Jackie Stewart wife

Jackie Stewart was married to TV actress Helen Stewart in 1962. Helen was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia (FTD) in 2014. Helen’s short-term memory is deteriorating, and dementia is engulfing her mind and body. This horrible affliction is wreaking havoc on the Stewart family, as it is on millions of other dementia-affected families around the world.  “I have been fortunate to have a wonderful career and my wife Helen was by my side through it all,” Jackie had said earlier of Helen. “We should have been able to share those memories forever but dementia steals that away. Without urgent progress, one in three people born today, will go on to suffer dementia and that is unacceptable.”

Jackie Stewart net worth

Jackie Stewart has a net worth of USD 50 million as a former Formula One race car driver from the United Kingdom. Jackie Stewart was born in June 1939 in Milton, West Dunbartonshire, Scotland. He competed from 1965 through 1973, earning the nickname “Flying Scot.” In 1969, 1971, and 1973, Stewart won the World Drivers’ Championship. He also came in second place twice. Stewart had 27 victories and 17 pole positions by the end of his career. He won the Italian Grand Prix for the first time in 1965 and the German Grand Prix for the last time in 1973. He became a colour commentator for television broadcasts after retiring from the sport.