The Tragic South African Grand Prix

[@ST0NE_206]

I remember once watching the video of this crash and feeling my heart skip a beat seeing the marshal fly offscreen after the hit. 1970s F1 was just brutal

[@Jasongilliar]

The sound of the crash, was crazy. It scared the sh*t out of me. I was idk 12 or 13 when i saw it on youtube

[@TJBPlayz]

Yeah usually crashes and stuff doesn’t scare me but that is just disturbingly gruesome

[@Hookert9997]

I was watching the F1 season review for this year and must've missed the warning at the beginning of the video 😅 that crash makes you feel something man and not in the right way

[@stevenkilsdonk2046]

If you ever see an old copy of Champions Forever: The Quick and The Dead, the documentary opens with this crash. Some way to set expectations for what's to follow.

[@Alias_95]

@@Hookert9997 exact same thing happened with me. It took me a minute to process what had happenned

[@daviddavies3637]

Another tragedy is that few people have actually heard of Tom Pryce. As a Welshman myself and someone who's watched F1 since the days of Lauda and Hunt when it started to become televised more regularly, I'd never heard of him until a few years ago when I came across details of his accident. He's barely known in his own country.

[@briansarah2745]

That is truly sad

[@TexMexGenX]

😮

[@nikkihubbard240]

Marshal goes flying after the crash and dies instantly right?

[@daviddavies3637]

@@nikkihubbard240 So did Pryce, when the fire extinguisher the marshall was carrying hit him on the head with such force that it broke his neck. I think I'm right in saying that some years ago, F1 drivers were asked to name who they considered to be the fastest drivers ever. Pryce was in the Top 10, I believe.

[@rodolforodriguez4793]

Tom Price era muy conocido, yo también empecé a ver la F1 por Niki Lauda, era su fan, y me acuerdo de esa carrera cuando mostraron un flash de Price recostado con la cabeza inclinada, después de la carrera nos enteramos de la tragedia, pero Tom era un animador de la F1 ¡¡como no lo van a conocer el Gales!! por favor.

[@millennialchicken]

Death came swiftly for both Pryce and Van Vuuren, and honestly, that may be the ''best'' aspect of it. Instant death, not prolonged suffering took them, but both of their losses didn't need to happen. This incident, a lesson in caution, learned by all those who venture near the hallowed speed-dromes of the world. RIP to them both.

[@stellviahohenheim]

well at least they died doing what they loved

[@GothBoiForever]

​@@stellviahohenheim That is a horrible thing to say. Who wants to die doing something they love? You would want to die doing something you hate.

[@SheagleArk]

​@@GothBoiForeverI don't know if I'd want my last moments to be miserable. If anything I'd want to die doing something I'd love so my last memories were happy.

[@MrTorivity]

@@GothBoiForever Imagine having the best moment of your life, enjoying every second. Then, suddenly a drunk driver driving his car at 120+ miles per hour rams you against the wall, instantly killing you. That's what he meant, instantly dying doing what they loved, so their last memories were happy moments. (idk if this apply to Pryce and Van Vuuren).

[@s.scirocco4411]

@@GothBoiForever Of course it's better to die doing something they loved. That last spark of life they had was of exhilaration and adrenalin. They literally never knew what hit them. One second there, next second gone. I'd prefer that infinitely more to one of a lingering terrible disease.(think cancer, , ALS, etc...) Dying in my sleep would naturally be best I think. The real tragedy of someone dying like this, is that loved ones will possibly have things left unsaid that they would have wished they could have said. It is always the living that suffer the most no matter how you die. Make sure you tell the people you love how you feel on a regular basis!

[@jamesbraun9842]

Also to add this was also the final start for Carlos Pace who was killed in a plane crash before the next round.

[@otaviofrnazario]

True. He is immortalized as the oficial name of the Interlagos track (José Carlos Pace racetrack, a rough translation from the Portuguese original) His only F1 win was there, in 1975. One of the eight times a Brazilian driver won a home race

[@simoncullum5019]

I was a big F1 fan during the 70's but didn't remember the name of Pace

[@otaviofrnazario]

@@simoncullum5019 he was well beloved by the racing community of his time here. But at the end of the day, Brazil had Fittipaldi battling for the World Title. He was, understandably, the most well known brazilian in racing

[@alistairfannell6694]

And if I am not mistaken he was coming back from Tom Pryce’s funeral

[@marks7197]

​@@simoncullum5019Surprising as he won the Brazilian GP and had several podiums too... Unless the awful pronunciation of his name confused matters?

[@tiadaid]

It’s interesting to note that Pryce’s replacement at Shadow, Alan Jones, would not only win a race in the Shadow car that year, but end up being world champion himself at Williams. One can only speculate what could have happened if Pryce was still alive. Also, it’s crazy how marshals could easily be killed by an F1 car even in recent times - I remember seeing footage at the Canadian Grand Prix in 2011 or 2012 where a marshal slipped while trying to pick up debris. Two cars was heading towards him and had to lock their brakes to avoid him. And this was with a safety car present!

[@stinkyroadhog1347]

Don't forget Singapore in i think either 2015 or 16

[@MrBrno]

I think it was in Bahrain 2021 where a marshall crossed the track while cars were going by - same race where Grosjean exploded

[@daviddavies3637]

Pryce was, and still is, very highly rated as one of the best drivers F1 has seen, even by other drivers.

[@ParallelSyntax]

@@daviddavies3637 Not sure i'd go that far but certainly Wales' finest F1 driver.

[@bradwilliams1691]

I remember meeting Alan Jones here in Melbourne, Australia at Sandown raceway. I talked with him for a few minutes, and I told him that in my opinion he was good enough to take on F-1, that's when he told me that he had been called up to the shadow team by the owner - Jackie Oliver. The rest is history. RIP Tom Pryce & Frederick Van Vuuren.

[@simoneghilardini5211]

A few months prior to his death, Zorzi revealed that a few meters from where he was, he found a helmet laying on the ground, and it was the helmet of Pryce. What he found at the inside of it well... It was a complete mess. He wasn't decapitated but it was already a gruesome thing. He kept this silent for 38 years before passing away in 2015. For many reasons this crash is the equivalent of what happened during a CART Series race at Vancouver in 1990 with the death of Jean-Patrick Hein. Hein was a marshall who was trying to restart (with 2-3 other marshalls) the stalled car of Ross Bentley during the race. As they saw the field behind, they've panicked, tried to get out of the way, but Hein got struck by the rear left tire of Willy T. Ribbs. In fact Hein passed away after 2 or 3 days of coma. And as it was typical in that period, race did never stopped.

[@Hammerhead547]

What made the tragedy at the '90 Molson Indy Vancouver even more heartbreaking is how willy t ribbs acted after it happened. He went out of his way to lie to his chief mechanic, his team principal, the race stewards, CART, the VPD and the media about what happened, then when the VPD gathered enough evidence to announce they were going to be seeking charges against him for giving false statements he bribed the family with $250.000 and ran away as fast as his feet would allow. Even after his team owner and CART gave him a literal order to make a public apology he never once showed an ounce of remorse or sadness over what he'd done and acted as if he were the actual victim in the situation. I for one am glad that what he did that day basically ruined his racing career and guaranteed he'd always be remembered as the dishonest piece of garbage he is.

[@JustK4Y1512]

Wasn’t it Laffite who discovered his body? Because he crashed with him and I think he went over angry but when he wanted to ask why he was taken out by Pryce, he saw the answer…….

[@NickF60]

​@@JustK4Y1512 That's correct! But the Main comment is referring to only the helmet of Tom

[@fourppounds]

@@JustK4Y1512 the car continued along the road but he had already been mutilated.

[@simoneghilardini5211]

He lost the helmet on the impact with the fire extinguisher. @@JustK4Y1512

[@colinashby3775]

I was marshalling at kyalami in 1982. I was on the main straight a few hundred metres before the bend. I saw a beer bottle fly through the air and land on the middle of the track, unbroken. I waited for a couple of cars to go past and ran to get the bottle and come back. All the while thinking of the accident with Tom Pryce. I can honestly say, it was scary.

[@JamesNewman-cq9lw]

Daaamn...that is crazy. That is honestly cool tho that you were able to do that. The 60s 70s 80s and maybe the 90s....best years of racing in my opinion. Also most dangerous and unforgiving.

[@colinashby3775]

@@JamesNewman-cq9lw safety wasnt what we have now. And no carbon fibre. I think that was a saving grace in F1. Many died every year until that was being used.

[@jdb47games]

@@colinashby3775 Carbon-fibre was in use from 1981. Several cars at the 1982 SA GP were built from it.

[@colinashby3775]

@@jdb47games ok. Thank you I thought it was a few years later.

[@RipStray]

It's incredible how something can mess way too much with our little minds. Even if it's the human body, something we have inside us, it's disturbing.

[@Milton_Valenzuela]

The first time I learned about this accident, it scared me to sleep. The 1970s were a very graphic time for Formula 1. RIP Tom Pryce and Frederik Janson Van Vuuren

[@RipStray]

Same thing to me, I rewatched it recently but still scared.

[@zyloproductions4870]

Hans-Joachim Stuck said later in an interview after Tom Pryce’s death that he literally passed Jansen Van Vuuren by only a couple of feet. He said, “If I had passed that area of the track only a fraction of a second earlier, it would’ve been me who got killed, instead of Tom.”

[@thepsychologist8159]

Or, he might not have died but as a result of him hitting the marshall, both he and Pryce would have been alive. But this is life, it's fragile. Sometimes death can be decided in millimetres or a split-second, as can be said for near misses and survival.

[@Joao-f9l5t]

a imprudencia foi do garoto que não cuidou para atravessar a pista

[@outkast187]

Or none would have died

[@HeinzWenger-t2d]

I was there in 1977, sitting on the Crowthorn Grandstand with my then young wife. Watching this videos now, gives me cold shivers running down my spine, nearly 50 years later. I can remember Tom Price racing at full speed towards us, colliding with an other car and then disintigrating in front of us, after crashing thru the catch fences in front of us.

[@DVGTS1]

On the original footage, after Zorzi came back to his car, you could see him turn around, look and freeze a bit, not fully realizing what just happened. But then it sank in. It made the footage harder to look at.

[@chiseledmedal2634]

As someone who has seen the footage of this crash and been annoyed by the identification of how Frederik died with people saying he got split in half. I am so happy a big content creator like you decided to cover this tragic accident to dispel that assumption. Great work. (Edit: I’m not happy this accident happened I’m just happy to see a larger creator explain the facts and not have ppl spreading misinformation about a tragedy)

[@PapaVanTwee5]

Stretched or cut in half. That's what I always thought. Learning he just got his pants ripped off him on impact makes sense, but that image still haunts, man.

[@DC322]

I'm thinking his body was disintegrated with that impact and parts scattered on the wall.

[@otaviofrnazario]

No matter the way, it was an ugly death. Ugly in a level your mom would have trouble to recognize you. They made a call for the Marshalls to gather together in some part of the track, don't remember if the control tower or pitlane. It was by that manner they found out who died

[@kenmograd2009]

Van Vuuren got the Charlie Brown treatment when he got run over by Pryce’s car (clothes flying off from the sheer force of impact), but unlike the Peanuts character, he wasn’t as lucky to survive the ordeal.

[@chiseledmedal2634]

@@otaviofrnazario I agree

[@DinsdalePiranha67]

I've seen footage of this incident. As a corner marshal, this is why I don't cross a hot track, and here in the States at least there are so few of us we don't respond to incidents unless they're right next to the corner post and/or we can do it from behind a barrier.

[@DC322]

There was no flag marshals to warned the drivers to slow down. With cars at top end speed that was inevitable.

[@Oblio1942]

One time I was marshaling at an autocross event, It was after my stint and very hot out (esp on the open blacktop) and I ran out to collect a cone, not noticing (or really paying attention for that matter) the car who hit it was on a slow run. Luckily the car behind slammed on the brakes and I was only left with an embarrassing jog to my station and a shit ton of adrenaline.

[@mintythemoose]

My gosh, yes, that was a terrible thing to witness.

[@stevenmason1674]

Tom Pryce was an exceptionally talented driver, and extremely fast and I honestly think he would have been world champion at some point. He really was that good.

[@NASCARFAN93100]

This was definitely one of the most gruesome accidents I have ever seen in my entire life RIP Tom Pryce & Frederik Janson Van Vuuren 🙏

[@Land.slider420]

Just wait until you see the video

[@BRESE22]

I’m Welsh and I live in Kent, Tom Is buried in a place called otford, I go on the March of every year to lay flowers for him. As I’m only 23 it’s a shame I never got to see him race or meet him. He drove like Giles V. A National and personal hero

[@robertknight5429]

I was in Cardiff during the 70s, and Pryce was a big Welsh star. Everyone was gutted when he died.

[@jequezsmith]

which kent?

[@BRESE22]

@@jequezsmith there’s only one kent my g 😂

[@jequezsmith]

nah there is Connecticut, washington, georgia etc@@BRESE22

[@Shaun-lp1kt]

St Bartholomew's in Otford,which is just outside Sevenoaks in Kent.

[@tommcglone2867]

This was completely horrifying. It was a product of the times. The marshal was doing the right thing and was running to get on to tending to the stricken car but Tom Pryce and the Marshal were in the wrong place at the wrong time. Just a tragic freak accident.

[@arthuralford]

This was an era before safety cars and dedicated teams to deal with accidents. But even then, running across a hot track was considered a no-no. Especially when the marshals hadn't signaled the cars to slow down for the corner. Two young men lost their lives in an accident that should never have happened

[@dazzla84_ssfc]

@@arthuralfordSafety cars did exist back then, the first time it was used was in Canada in 1973, but were only used in extreme circumstances, and even then, it caused chaos with the timing and scoring which back then was still done manually Youre right though, running across the track in that situation (even back then) would have been against safety protocols. In that case, it should have been up to the man on the start/finish gantry to look down the track and when safe, give the marshals the all clear to cross

[@alistairfannell6694]

There should had been a full course yellow flag and if either a halo or an aero screen had been installed Tom would be alive right now

[@leechjim8023]

​@@alistairfannell6694Only oval tracks had full course yellows back then.

[@JeffSherlock]

Two untrained marshalls, ordered to run accros the track.

[@RACINGUS95]

I don’t think I’ve ever heard of something so brutal in my life.

[@testpilotian3188]

The two Marshalls did NOT have permission to cross the track and were NOT told to, just FYI. They went because of the “rules” that four Marshalls had to attend fires (two as primary, two as backup) but nobody made it clear this was a pit lane rule and didn’t apply out on the track where trackside Marshalls would deal with incidents.

[@romanroad483]

So if only three marshals are available, for some reason, they just watch it burn?

[@jacekatalakis8316]

Wait it was only a pit lane rule? Huh, the way it was explained to David Tremayne while writing his Lost Generation book in which he spoke to George Witt, made it sound like it was both a pit lane and track rule. Where'd you get the bit about it only being a pit lane rule? Not saying you are wrong, I just want to go find all the info on this now since I've two different sources saying two different things and can't easily find much about it online to settle things one way or the other

[@operationthrash9645]

Thank you for pointing out that Van Vurren was not cut in half. People like me who first saw the video 10 years ago got that impression at first because of how it looked. Everyone used to post freeze frames on forums to try and prove that. But there’s no need for people to exaggerate the details of this tragedy. It’s bad enough as it is.

[@richieosborn2639]

Earlier today at my job, I imagined this coming and here it is! Very tragic about what happened to Tom and the marshal that died so young. Those two can rest easy after a harsh death.

[@TheAeroAvatar]

This story has long fascinated me, and I appreciate you sharing it in full with us. This was a truly senseless accident that should have been avoidable. The video is a very real horror show to watch.

[@otaviofrnazario]

There will always be a somewhat pointless discussion of "who's the better". The drivers of old vs the drivers of now. But there is one thing in which undeniably the drivers of the 60's, 70's and early 80's beat the ones that came later: despite all thw rivalries, feuds and incredible battles, they respected each other a lot more. F1 back then was the equivalent of a meatpacking plant. Track owners not willing at all to invest in security. This was the reality until the days of Bernie Ecclerstone as owner. That practice ended, despite his questionable methods

[@Parker--]

Lauda wanted to call off the race in 76 and no one stood with him. In this race, Laffite was ready to fight Pryce til he saw that he was dead. I mean you would have a literal body on the track and then they would still fly past it and finish the other half of the race. That doesn't feel very respectful. It was a different time, but I don't think it's fair to say that drivers today don't respect one another as much as they did back then.

[@issammelzi728]

​@@Parker-- Yeah that happened in spa in the 60s i believe where a driver was decapitated and his headless body was driven around lap after lap with the race never stopping or his body being removed... F1 was very dark back in the day

[@philipweyers213]

I was at Kyalami that awful day, and the day before Tom Pryce's wife Nella had bought James Hunt and me ice creams. It was incredible how 110 000 people became silent as the news filtered around the track. A day I wish never to experience again, sad beyond description.

[@jamesmcallister8124]

Tom Pryce didnt have a chance. Both the fire marshal and the driver experienced such horrific deaths

[@chrisguardiano6143]

This is the most tragic South African GP, however the most infamous one would take place 4 years later in 1981. This race took place right in the middle of the bitter FISA (what the FIA was called back then)-FOCA war. Because of South Africa's stance on apartheid & the criticism they were getting in the media about holding a race there, the FIA at the last minute decided to not sanction the race meaning no championship points were up for grabs & they told all the race officials they hired to head home. According to the FIA, this race was canceled. This angered the teams part of FOCA such as Williams & McLaren who still wanted to race & decided to take matters into their own hands by hiring their own officials for the event. For those wondering about Ferrari, they were on the FIA's side & flew home once the official race was canceled. The FIA was so angry at the teams that took part in this renegade South African GP that they threatened to kick them out of F1 & the FOCA teams even were in preparations to set up their own World championship in case the FIA actually followed through on their threat. We were very close to seeing "The Split" that destroyed American open wheel racing from the mid 90's-2008 happen in F1. However cooler heads prevailed once both sides realized the damage that would be done & quickly made peace via the Concord Agreement which still exists & governs F1 today.

[@otaviofrnazario]

Man, the FISA-FOCA war was really rough. Even today when they have to renew the agreements McLaren is usually one of the last teams to sign. And to consolidate Kylami as the place of the weirdness in F1, in 1982 we had the drivers' making a strike in the weekend of the race there

[@leonardolupini3484]

The description of the marshal Van Vuuren as being unable to be identified after the crash is incorrect. His brother, who was also a marshal that day and standing nearby, identified him immediately. They had been standing together only minutes before the crash.

[@garyfallows1123]

I live about 20 miles from Ruthin, where Tom was born, there is a beautiful memorial to him in the town, I remember watching him on TV as a kid in awe that he came from near where I lived, RIP

[@RipStray]

What's the memorial name?

[@garyfallows1123]

@@RipStray it's The Tom Pryce Memorial, if you Google it, it will come up with photos

[@SnapBackToReality-KFB]

The impact was so hard, the Marshall's body got strentched like a stretching toy. Definelly one of the worst crashes in racing history.

[@PapaVanTwee5]

I always thought this. But he had his pants torn off of him. It's still a gruesome image, but he was not stretched or cut in half.

[@r.dekker858]

@@PapaVanTwee5 His intestines hold his upper and lower body together. Im sure his inside was completely wrecked.

[@albinobeach]

My father was sitting at the grandstand at the end of the main straight where Price and Laffite ended up, he said it was gruesome and shocking, 1000's of people saw the aftermath, imagine as a child seeing something like that.

[@liltwizz_07]

People need to give more credit to F1 drivers. Shit is dangerous.

[@otaviofrnazario]

It is... but due to the exposure, F1 had people developing many safety features that saved only God knows how many drivers. It's such a serious business for racing that the medical head of FIA is the first responder of F1 crashes

[@VulpesHilarianus]

It's not as dangerous as it used to be, thankfully. With remote brake and killswitch systems, mandatory cautions, axle shear points, tire cables, fuel bags, crash cells, and the halo things have gotten a lot safer for the drivers. Anybody on foot in the path of an out of control car, though...

[@foxgaming76yt24]

​@@VulpesHilarianusYeah, that'll never change, and it amazes me that some people out there have the stupidity to go onto the track itself and stand or sit in the middle to protest. Complete lack of self preservation man

[@SiVlog1989]

I don't want to compare these sorts of horrible things, but Tom Pryce's fatal incident that also claimed the life of Frederick Janson van Vuuren is up there with Russell Phillips in terms of gruesome motorsport incidents. All I will say is that thankfully these incidents have become increasingly rare

[@michel311970]

You are correct. I've seen the footage of that crash and let me say this, when they looked inside of what was left of the car they knew they literally had nothing to work with

[@ronwilken5219]

As chief Marshall at the Marlborough race track in Salisbury, Rhodesia at about the same time, but probably a few years earlier we tried to instill into all our volunteer marshals that they were at the track to assist not get killed. Therefore unless the appropriate warning flags, yellow or double waved yellow, as should have been displayed in this instance, no one, repeat no one, enters or crosses the track. This was a tradgedy that should not have happened if the marshals had been properly instructed and trained. My sincere sympathy to surviving members of these families.

[@alistairfannell6694]

You mean Zimbabwe 🇿🇼

[@ronwilken5219]

@@alistairfannell6694 no I meant Rhodesia because that's what it's name was when I lived there. Not the junk crap pile it's now become. The name Zimbabwe fits because like the place after which it's now named it's a ruin.

[@alistairfannell6694]

Zimbabwe 🇿🇼 sir and besides the land really belongs to Black people. Your ancestors unfortunately were colonizers

[@ronwilken5219]

@@alistairfannell6694 wrong again sir, I'm a seventh generation African so maybe my grand parents six times removed were settlers, intent on dragging a life out of a new land. I don't deny that Africa belonged(s) to the black people but there are also a lot of lighter coloured people who dedicated their lives to try and improve the black people's lives.

[@jacekatalakis8316]

Do you know if anything similar was done at Kyalami? From all I've read in Tremayne's book, George Witt had some sort of system where you didn't enter the track as a marshal until you were given permission. Do you know where I could start looking for more info on this since the only source I've found is in David Tremayne's book where he spoke to George witt about the day and the detail about the needing to ask permission came up in conversation

[@nick_captain_slow]

I was 18 years old when I was watching this race live on tv and remember feeling sick in my stomach upon seeing this.

[@SamuelLiu2001]

Scary thumbnail and music

[@AlanFormula12022]

It has been 47 years since this tragic South African Grand Prix....😢

[@mintythemoose]

I was in South Africa at the time of this horror. It was some years later until I watched a 16mm print of crash footage at a friend's home, if memory serves. One regret in life, for sure. It affected so many. Appalling.

[@Ultimate23Dragon]

Ohhhhh boooooy... There are not many crashes that make me turn away after seeing it once... This unfortunately is one of them. It honestly didn't need to happen, but F1 was unsatisfactory in regards to safety back then.

[@jamesmcallister8124]

That other fire marshal survived instant death by a mere few inches.

[@rogerc1596]

My dad told me about this a few years back,he was a bit down from the dunlop bridge when it happened. After Pryce hit the marshall and was coming down the straight,already dead,that the crowd was running away from the fence as the car came crashing down towards crowthorn.

[@tonyyost331]

I am honestly surprised you didn't do this sooner, Great vid!

[@stevelee5724]

That's a horror story. I remember seeing it back then and I thought the Marshall was in two bits. Now I'm relieved to know it was just his trousers. Wow that impact blew his pants off....cheers from New Zealand 🇳🇿

[@serenitymilkshake1031]

No he actually did get split…

[@robertwilloughby8050]

This is really bad, but surely the worst was Helmuth Konigg's fatal accident. He was decapitated by the very guard rails that were meant to save him. Also, Mark Donahue is sad as it is the most clear cut case of "Talk and Die" in F1 history, where someone has a seemingly minor head injury, is able to talk about it (and in Donahue's case, even joke about it) but all the while pressure builds inside the head, once you get past a certain point, you're dead, and that's what happened to Donahue.😢

[@vincentsouchaud6717]

*Donohue.

[@robertwilloughby8050]

@@vincentsouchaud6717 Thanks. Didn't spot that.

[@SpeccyMan]

What about that of Francois Cevert the year before Koinigg on the same circuit? Equally gruesome.

[@Billy_McLovin_Hope]

Darian, thank you for pronouncing "Kyalami" correctly. Honestly, F1 in the '70s was beyond terrifying.

[@erikheijden9828]

So at least he managed to pronounce one name correctly

[@paulgeoghegan3786]

Agree. It would be great if there was at some attempt to pronounce words correctly, especially drivers names. Carlos Pace is not pronounced pace, as in speed, but (sounds like) Patchete. Stuck is not pronounced stuck, as in stuck in a traffic jam. Grand Prix is not grand, as in the Grand Hotel, And so on. A tiny bit of research would work wonders :)

[@PefCrash]

I've been trying to find more information about this particular incident in formula one, the marshal that crossed with Jansen Van Vuuren was William Bill, a 29 year old panel beater marshal. On lap 21 of the Kyalami grand prix, Pryce's teammate Renzo Zorzi pulled off in the left side of the main straight i.e. the kink to the crowthorne corner. The set of rules for a marshal were that if a driver were to have pulled over due to problems of the car/or in our case a small fire had erupted in Zorzi'z car so the two marshals came in aid for Zorzi. George Witt, the pit chief marshal recalled that both William and Vuuren crossed the track without prior permission. One major fact was that Vuuren was not cut in half, his pants literally came off due to the intense force. He was carrying a 40 lbs extinguisher which directly hit Pryce on the head killing him instantly and that almost decapitated the welshman. His car continued through the main straight and crashed with Jacques Laffite's Ligier. Pryce hit Vuuren at approximately 270 km/h. Vuuren's injuries were so severe and bad that he was visually unrecognisable after the incident. kzbin.info/www/bejne/gKCmq4ukbb-cibcsi=BiuZBa7coaGq6xUY Here is a video i posted couple of months ago which shows Pryce and his lifeless body.

[@DC322]

Both marshals ran across a hot track. Keep in mind there was no local flag marshals at the time to throw out the yellows to caution the drivers to slow down. Both Pryce and Van Vuuren died after that gruesome impact. The 70s F1 had the deadliest accidents during that time with several drivers including Rindt and Cevert.

[@RicoA_00]

It's so crazy that after this incident, everybody treated Zorzi like shit. It was a technical failure and he was panicking, like anyone else would've been. Yet the British press and the team blamed him for the incident. And even after that, they replaced him in Monaco without telling him. The lack of accountability on his team's part is so infuriating.

[@kaiying74]

The fact that the race continued says all you need to know about F1.

[@Vivid-197]

Can't say the same for nascar in the 70s

[@JustK4Y1512]

Every racing event was like this back in the days The first Indycar race to be ever stopped was that of the Eddie Sachs and Dave McDonald fatal crash in 1964 Loads of fatal crashes already happened prior to that

[@LADevoote]

​@@Vivid-197 Most Of The Races They Made A Pause Or End It Straight, F1 Security And Decisions Were Bullshit Glad Security Has Improved.

[@nicofolkersma2535]

The 60's and 70's weren't called the killing years for nothing.

[@arthuralford]

At the time, stopping a race for an on track incident wasn't done. Unless the track was blocked too badly for cars to continue, the racing went on. Look at the stories of Piers Courage and Roger Williamson, who both died in fires at the Dutch GP three years apart, at the same section of the track. The race wasn't stopped, and drivers didn't know until they got out of their cars (this was prior to in-car radios)

[@danielbish8801]

After seeing this and the narrator saying he wouldn't show it, i can fully understand why after finding the original footage, that was horrific to watch, i now wish my curiosity hadn't got the better of me as it's not just the crash that gets you, it's also seeing Tom Pryce body as they move him to a stretcher, that is going to be difficult to forget.

[@SpeccyMan]

Reality is hard to take. Some things are best left unseen.

[@RipStray]

Give me the name i want to see it

[@briantaylor9285]

Respect for not showing the incident and aftermath.

[@fabriciooo92]

Actually, Van Vuuren wasn't ripped apart. What you see flying in the air was just his clothes, not his body parts. His pants and jacket were ripped off, letting him just with his underwear. But, unfortunately, Pryce was worse, he got almost beheaded and suffered massive damage in his head, killing him instantly.

[@cole444456]

i was watching the 1970 f1 review documentary and they showed that crash without any warning at all. And right before showing that, the narrator was apologizing for someone saying a bad word.

[@Corvoreviews]

just a little "correction" the pa in pace is spoken the same way as tha pa in pato o'ward name, another info about the marshall that I've read somewhere: they didn't knew who actually was the marshall who got hit, they had to line up all the marshall involved with the race later to check who was missing

[@PapaVanTwee5]

BFM said that about lining up the marshals in the video.

[@stinkyroadhog1347]

It bothers me a little due to how common this mistake is made but it's pronounced Pahtch-ay. Carlos Pace

[@mr_bottomtooth]

Great video on definitely one of the most brutal crashes in F1 history, especially since it was easily avoidable giving the circumstances. Also, I'm glad you didn't show the actual footage of the impact - I've seen it before many years ago and it was VERY unsettling. Lastly, there is one thing I need to point out critically: Your pronunciation of non-English names is sometimes WAYYY off. Of course I don't expect those to be perfect on a native speaker's level, but at least they should be somewhat recognizable. Carlos Pace (Pace is NOT English, but Portuguese - more precisely: Italian in origin and Brazilian Portuguese in actual pronunciation) has been mentioned several times in the comment section already (pronounced like Pah-cheh). But also Hans-Joachim Stuck was very wrong (Stuck also is not an English name, but a German one), which is supposed to be pronounced like "Sh-took". But on the other hand your pronunciation of "Joachim" was pretty good (at least better than many other attempts I have heard before). Lastly, Frederik Jansen van Vuuren is an Afrikaans name, not an English one. So it is properly pronounced like "Frederik Yahn-sen fahn Foo-ren" - admittingly the last part is pretty hard to pull off for English-speakers since it actually contains a vowel sound that does not even exist in English (it can be approximated by rounding your lips like "oo" and then trying to pronounce "ee"), but just using "oo" is close enough I suppose. It you could work on that issue for your future videos, that would be great. :) Anyway, great job and I'm looking forward for more content!

[@RileyHerbst98]

Glad someone else Mentioned this, Espically about Frederik Janson's Death, That Death made me physically not able to sleep when I first saw it, Good Work as always BLM

[@nicofolkersma2535]

I was 12 when I saw it with my father. After the race we went swimming and then went for french fries. Something we almost never did, I didn't realise it, but he kept me in his sight the whole afternoon and evening. My mother and sister hadn't seen it, but dad told mum ofcourse. Whatever it was he did, it worked. Never had a bad dream about it, in fact, almost forgot about it until a few years ago. Thanks dad.

[@RipStray]

​@@nicofolkersma2535 ❤

[@NoNoobNovember]

Context: (I don’t know the whole story so bear with me) In the 1977 African GP race, a driver’s car caught on fire. Since he didn’t have a fire extinguisher, he couldn’t do anything. Two men had to cross the track to tend to him, the first man (with the fire extinguisher) made it safely, but his partner (for assistance) didn’t. He collided with a car (that was probably going 80-120 MPH) and his body was split into two pieces. Even with all his ligament’s and guts flying through the air, the race didn’t end. I can’t imagine what the first guy and the paramedics were feeling in this incident. May the Marshall rest in peace.

[@wordlesslfiddling]

What gets me is this seems totally avoidable there was no communication that there was disabled car and that passing shouldn't be happening or yellows waved which there no reason for a lack of communication like that on the frontstetch And why would the marshals be on the opposite side of the track this grass area seems designed for slow cars to runoff on so why not put your safety crew over there if a car is slow against the pit wall than their crew could handle it Totally unacceptable even for the times

[@C-WiL]

The photos of this crash are absolutely brutal

[@KevinHarvickisnothappy4]

Should i go and google this and be traumatized or no ?

[@evanmcclure9067]

@@KevinHarvickisnothappy4 I wouldn't, it's nightmare fuel.

[@KevinHarvickisnothappy4]

I couldn’t find anything too graphic just blood on the car

[@C-WiL]

@@KevinHarvickisnothappy4 you're lucky then

[@C-WiL]

@@evanmcclure9067 not for the faint of heart, but I could handle it

[@ollieminecraft]

RIP to Tom Pryce and Frederik Jansen van Vurren. Tom Pryce was definitely a future talent.

[@jacobshelor419]

It's Pace (pronounced Pa-che)

[@VIPER0308]

After Rush, the movie came put, I started to watch old 70s F1 races on KZbin. Mostly clips, but some were full races. This race came up in full, and I was watching when I saw the incident. I really wish I never saw it. If you haven't seen the incident, I suggest not watching it. It lives in my mind rent free. May those men rest in peace.

[@jefftait4745]

It wasn’t random - it was pure negligence and inexperience (and probably incompetence) of whoever told the marshals to cross the track. Inexcusable, and you would hope that nothing like this would happen today.

[@austinreed5805]

One of the most brutal incidents caught on film in motorsports history. The footage just makes your heart stop.

[@kyle381000]

At least these two men died instantly, as did Francois Cevert and Helmutt Koenigg. However, not so for Jo Siffert or Roger Williamson.

[@cito1101]

Why wasn't a yellow thrown before the tragedy happened?? RIP to the marshal and driver

[@otaviofrnazario]

Crazy to think nowadays, but stuff like this had no standardizing back them. It was a feel of the moment thing

[@bardly123]

My father was at this race. He said they left right after it happened and he has never been to a race since

[@JmarcusKmart12]

Horrible, just horrible. Appreciate the video though but That was just crazy. I have saw that wreck but I haven't saw the aftermath so thanks for the photos but wow so it was a gone too soon. Video and a race that took place in also formula 1. 😢 RIP to both people

[@joaobaptista8377]

btw the 92&93 wore raced under the current layout of Kyalami but theres a bit of the original sweeps section that was mantined also Kyalami was or still is the high GP Circuit ever held. 6000ft above sea level

[@gerardmare4030]

I was at race I was sitting at Crowthorne corner the point where TP ended in the catch fences. This corner is a long way from the impact point which was just before the Dunlop bridge. Looking towards bridge I noticed a Ambrosio Shadow racing towards us off the main track running close to armco barrier. I recall saying to my friend which Shadow driver has a red helmet? Being huge fan 8 noticed this. In your commentary you mention Jaques Laffiet was also taken out thought he narrowly missed. But anything is possible after a traumatic event event like this memory fades as the focus was on TP immediately in front of us. I recall seeing Tom Prices body being being put on a stretcher. Sadly as I understand someone removed and stole Tom's wedding ring, this was reported widely in the press at the time A very bad and sad day it was RIP Tom Price

[@robert-trading-as-Bob69]

This tragedy is legend here in South Africa, yet no-one ever mentions the victims names for some reason. It's good to know their names now, so their memory can be honoured.

[@TrackMaster914]

Oh god, I was wondering when this would be covered. This scarred me when I stumbled onto the video of this crash 7 years ago

[@peterfisher9286]

Sadly i was there that day. I was at the Leeukop bend . Saw the commotion down the straight and at Crowthorn at the end of the straight but did not know what had happened until that night. Was a big Ferrari and Lauda fan. Noticed the debris he picked up from the accident and wondered when he would drop out. Fortunately he won but i think he would have rather lost than have a driver and marshal die.😢

[@andrewprentice8857]

One of the biggest ironies connected with this awful accident is that Australia's Alan Jones got the ride at Shadow after Tom Pryce's death. He went on to win the Championship (with the Williams Team) in 1980. In a strange and perhaps macabre way Alan Jones is in debt to Tom Pryce, who looked like a future Champion until his life was so tragically cut short.

[@coolguy13333]

the painting is very heartbreaking and brutal but if it was realistic the wing would legit be inside his legs and his body would be fully bent into the engine column

[@smilly_merrowmemes3356]

if you type in tom pryce you might get some videos and if you click on it you can see the blood on his fire suit and if you find a pic of him laying down you can see his neck shaped and some blood on his face

[@ukwesaba]

It's extremely sad to hear about the accident since it occurred in my country and as I've started to develop a new love for F1 I wished that I experience it here at home, but due to what occurred and politics it kinda it seems unlikely now.

[@marguskiis7711]

The story about identification of van Vuuren is another urban myth. Actually it wasn`t needed at all, because his brother saw his death and of course knew who was the victim.

[@plisskenationbackfromthede3657]

One of the few wrecks that truly made me queasy while watching video of it. Its graphic. I dont suggest watching it. One of those "man i wish i didnt see that" moments.

[@M.R.duckvr]

Context: in 1977 there was a incident were the race car you see in the video engine stop working were 2 marshals came to help but one got hit and died well Tom the man that hit the marshal got hit in the face by the fire extinguisher the marshal was holding and also died then he crash in to the another car and when the person driving the car came up to him furious he saw his dead body in the cockpit

[@brianeast9081]

A couple of other South African Grand Prix from this sort of era that would make good videos is the 1981, 1982 and 1985 races. 1981, because it ended up being a non-championship race at the height of the FISA-FOCA war. 1982 where the drivers all went on strike, and 1985 where the French teams (Renault and Ligier boycotted the event), Alan Jones didn't turn up to the race "sick" with there being pressure from Beatrice Foods to boycott, and if the video can found, James Hunt's epic anti-apartheid rant and dropping the bombshell that himself and Murray Walker were commentating the race from the BBC studios in London and were not in South Africa.

[@chasefollett4107]

This was surely a tragedy, but this era in formula one was marred by tragedy. Multiple drives would die a season and it was regarded as the norm. This, however, lead to many huge innovations both at the track level and with the cars. All this lead by Jackie Stewart who would would retire winning his 3rd FIA championship the same weekend he watched his teammate die at Watkins Glenn. Truly, this era in motorsports was both a festival of speed, innovation, and incredible danger. There are many good documentaries out on this era including one by the BBC under there racing collection. It’s a great watch to learn the history of the sport and the safety innovations of that era.

[@otaviofrnazario]

Regarding race safety, Jackie Stewart had no parallel before him, at least in F1. Only one driver came close after (Niki Lauda), much due to his own wounds. In 1978, the man that developed now standard procedures of F1 racing safety appeared for the first time: Dr Sid Watkins. Of the three, only one are among us still. Their actions saved many, an impact beyond numbers

[@matthewbrotman2907]

Kyalami is also where Peter Revson was killed in a practice crash in 1974.

[@rickjohnson2859]

Also in a Shadow.

[@joaobaptista8377]

another note Pryce had his helmet ripped off after been hit by the extingusher

[@DJDouglasWarden]

very respectfully done piece, thank you

[@natureofnow]

Thanks for not posting the graphic part. I saw the original over a decade ago but never knew exactly what happened.

[@DiabloWhump]

This, Phillips, and Dan Wheldon are 3 crashes I consider to be "Nightmare Fuel". I'd be fine never seeing any of them again.

[@mdp26]

The roll call part is a bit of a myth. Since van Vuuren was completely new to the track and it was his first time marshaling, he was simply not known to most of his colleagues and that is what necessitated the roll call to id him. I've also seen a very extensive and not very tasteful gallery of the incident and van Vuuren's upper body & head injuries don't seem that bad, certainly not the level of unidentifiable, lending credence to the newcomer angle.

[@horrortackleharry]

"Annoyed at the crash, Lafitte went to argue with Pryce. But he realised this was a pointless exercise when he saw that the majority of Pryce's head was missing..."

[@snowxboarderxljs]

More F1 content please. It's up there but the worst accident to watch was Roger Williamson at the 1973 Dutch GP. An abysmal failure by everyone involved in organizing that event.

[@keeganstcroix6865]

Today I have found out 2 things, 1. there were 2 deaths instead of 1 and 2. The Marshal was not ripped in half and only held on by an organ

[@riaangeers2132]

As a South African I can remember that day I was a very small boy back then. My uncle took us to that race.

[@rogernorman2621]

I owned Tom Pryce’s formula 3 car that he beat James Hunt in the Brands Hatch Race of Champions at Brands Hatch. He won by 15 seconds! Tom went straight to Formula 1 from that car.

[@DEATHKNIESS]

Gave me chills, I love racing. I always tell friends take it on the track not the streets. Never heard of this accident before truly sad

[@iwb316]

This incident made it a double tragedy for the Shadow race team at this circuit. Three years earlier Peter Revson was killed there during a testing session, his replacement on the team was Tom Pryce.

[@TheRealRusDaddy]

Atleast toms replacement was able to win a championship for them all

[@peterwilson8039]

I was a huge fan of Lauda. Ferocious competitor but still a classy guy with his priorities in the right order.

[@0505abab]

I knew about the crash but great job on explaining it

[@jacekatalakis8316]

BFM, where did you get the bit about the marshals getting clearence to enter the track? That's not lining up with everything I've read up on as far as this accident goes. From all I've found, and I've used David Tremayne as source with his great The Lost Generation book, he's written in there that George Witt, the chief marshal stated that the two marshals never had permission to enter the track at all, but the policy of the track was that in case of fire as with Zorzi, two marshals had to attend with a second pair as backup. I'm not sure where you got the bit about them having the permission to go across the track though, there were no flags being waved or anything though. I'm getting all this from David Tremayne's excellent 2006 book the Lost Generation, which goes into a ton of detail about Pryce. Sidenote, I'm trying to find more information on the other marshal, Bill. Anyone got a good place to start? I've asked my friends in South Africa but for obvious reasons, finding out info from the 70s is very tough. Also there's a beautiful memorial to Tom Pryce in Ruthin in Wales too. EDIT: Okay looking through the comments, it turns out the policy was for the pit lane, that George Witt was the chief pit marshal, not the overall marshal

[@cathynguyen3891]

The fact that the race just kept going that mad insane

[@lith...]

irresponsible and totally avoidable. honestly just infuriating...

[@ryanbates3319]

I saw the footage once, most horrifying footage I ever saw of a fatal crash