When Berger wanted to offer Alesi his Ferrari cockpit
05/29/2014
As Gerhard Berger was not sure whether he would really be able to drive his old Ferrari 88C at the Austrian GP in Spielberg after breaking his upper arm (sustained while skiing in winter) at the Monaco GP that year, he grabbed his friend Jean Alesi and offered him his cockpit.
Alesi was not really enthusiastic about the trip to Austria, to which Gerhard replied: "Jean, now you finally have a huge opportunity to drive my car and now of all times you want to chicken out?"
They had already practiced in Spielberg for advertising purposes. Gerhard Berger and Sebastian Vettel swapped cars.
Initially, both drivers were in their familiar cars - Vettel in a Red Bull, Berger in a Ferrari. Later, the cockpits were swapped. Despite the somewhat cramped conditions and his arm injury, which has not yet healed, Berger squeezed into the modern F1 cockpit for a photo. Sebastian Vettel was thrilled to be driving the 1988 Ferrari 88C.
At the Austrian GP in Spielberg (Zeltweg), all living ex-Austrian F1 drivers will take their cars for a few demo laps.
A total of 9 drivers are expected at the Parade of Legends:
Helmut Marko, 1972 BRM P160B
Dieter Quester, 1974 Surtees TS16
Hans Binder, 1976 Williams FW05
Niki Lauda, 1976 Ferrari 312T2
Gerhard Berger, 1988 Ferrari 88C
Karl Wendlinger, 1995 Sauber C14
Alexander Wurz, 1998 Benetton B198
Patrick Friesacher, 2005 Minardi PS04
Christian Klien, 2005 Red Bull Racing RB1
You can look forward to a feast for the senses, because the old Formula 1 cars also have an impressive soundscape to offer. We would like to thank Red Bull for the picture of the Ferrari 88C.
