Within two years of arriving in Europe Raul Boesel became a Formula 1 driver. Perhaps the speed of his progression to the pinnacle of the sport explained his lacklustre performances when he arrived. Despite a disappointing two seasons in Formula 1 Boesel went on to a long and successful racing career.
Karting, Stock Cars, Formula Ford and Formula 3
Boesel was born in Brazil on December 4th, 1957. He started kart racing after spending his childhood competing as one of Brazil’s best young show jumpers. After karting came national stock car racing, where he quickly found success. Brazilian stock car racing was not where Formula 1 teams looked for future talent, however, and Boesel took the sensible decision to relocate to Europe.
Racing a Formula Ford in Britain, Boesel finished second overall. He made the step up to British Formula 3 in 1980, driving for Murray Taylor Racing. Boesel had another impressive year, finishing third in a season where Jonathan Palmer ran away with the title. Even at this early stage Boesel was becoming known for his consistency and ability to bring a car home.
Formula 1 Debut with March
Incredibly, Boesel was a Formula 1 driver by the start of the 1982 season, driving for March. He made a good start, out-qualifying his vastly more experienced team-mate Jochen Mass, but the team’s season soon began to fall apart. Despite lucrative backing from Rothmans the car was not competitive. During the year the team used three different tyre manufacturers and suffered poor reliability. Mass was also involved in the tragic accident at Zolder which claimed the life of Ferrari driver Gilles Villeneuve. At season’s end Boesel had scored no points and failed to qualify on five occasions.
Formula 1 with Ligier
Luckily for Boesel, Ligier needed a driver for 1983. Jacques Laffite, who had driven for the French team for years, had moved to Williams. The new Ligier was an unpleasant looking machine, notable for the complete absence of side-pods. Its performance was distinctly pedestrian and Boesel only qualified in the top 20 on two occasions. Despite this he scored a career best seventh place finish at Long Beach. Once again Boesel struggled with an unreliable car, and was eliminated at Monaco in an accident with Manfred Winkelhock.
Indycars and Sports Cars
The end of the 1983 season also signalled the end of Boesel’s Formula 1 career. After a brief spell in Formula 2 racing he turned his attention to the American CART championship. Boesel went on to race in both CART and the breakaway IRL series for many years, the highlight being a third place finish at the 1989 Indianapolis 500. He also tasted success racing for Jaguar in sports car racing, winning the World Championship. Boesel has lived in America for two decades and continues to indulge his passion for cars, powerboats and horse riding.
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