Zsolt Baumgartner: the Hungarian F1 legend
Formula 1 has been coming to Hungary for almost forty years, with the first race at the purpose-built Hungaroring taking place in 1986. However, only one Hungarian driver has raced in the World Championship. Zsolt Baumgartner was born in Debrecen on 1st January 1981, the son of a Renault dealer. He started karting at the age of 13 and four years later he was racing in the German Formula Ford championship, making his way towards his goal of Formula 1 with stints in Formula Renault, German Formula 3 and Formula 3000. In 2002, he came to the attention of Eddie Jordan, always on the lookout for drivers with a healthy sponsor portfolio and he also put in an appearance in a demonstration run at the Hungaroring prior to that year's race. It was a first inkling of what was to come, as he was putting together the pieces of a jigsaw puzzle that would see him take on the role of third driver for the Irish team. He made his first official appearance in the first free practice session for the German Grand Prix at Hockenheim, on the same weekend when Italy's Gianmaria Bruni made his debut with Minardi, another sign of what lay ahead.
Then three weeks later, in Hungary of course, Zsolt was filling the role of third driver during Friday practice but on Saturday morning, race driver Ralph Firman had a terrifying crash when his rear wing failed and although the Englishman seemed fine, the FIA decided he was not fit to race. So the local hero finally made his real F1 debut. He was one from last in qualifying and had to retire on lap 35 on Sunday, when lying 13th. Hardly a memorable result, but an historic day nevertheless. Firman was still indisposed at the next round in Monza where the Hungarian finished a flattering twelfth. Things were looking good for a fulltime drive with Jordan in 2004, especially as he had the backing of Hungary's national oil company, MOL. The talks failed, but he still found a drive, moving from the UK to Italy and joining Minardi, then owned by Australian businessman Paul Stoddart. Alongside him in the other car would be Gimmi Bruni.
“He is one of the nicest people I ever met in Formula 1, especially of the drivers,” recalled Laurent Mekies, Baumgartner's race engineer back in the day and now Team Principal of Racing Bulls, the third incarnation of the Minardi team. “Despite the difficulties of racing with a small outfit like Minardi, he never had a bad word to say or a difficult attitude. We were a very small but united group, the last representatives of a bygone age of Formula 1.”
2004 was a difficult season, as Minardi's budget was stripped to the bone and the Cosworth engine was no longer the force it used to be. And yet Baumgartner managed to bring home a point for the first time since Australia 2002, when he finished eighth in Indianapolis. “Zsolt is still regarded as a national hero for that and, every time I come to Budapest I am given a very warm welcome by the fans as the guy who guided their idol to a result that was truly unbelievable,” recalls Mekies. Not only was it the first point for a Hungarian driver in Formula 1, but it was also the first for a driver from Eastern Europe, in a sport which up until that first Grand Prix in Budapest, could only be seen on television.
It could have been the start of a decent career for Baumgartner, but the financial limitations of the Stoddart-run team heavily influenced driver choice for the following year and that was the end of Zsolt's time in Formula 1. He did return to the track at some Grands Prix when, at the start of the Liberty Media age of Formula 1, he got the call from Stoddart to drive a two-seater as part of the Formula 1 Experience programme, aimed at giving guests the chance to experience the thrill of going round a race track in a Grand Prix car on a race weekend, driven by a real ex-F1 driver. He is still a symbol of determination for his country and a pioneer of Hungarian motorsport and his is an inspiring story of overcoming obstacles. As the first Hungarian in Formula 1, Baumgartner sowed a seed and demonstrated that with passion and perseverance even the most ambitious dreams can come true.
