Scott Speed in Car & Driver

There's a feature on Scott Speed in the April issue of Car & Driver, updating their 2005 story. It's a great read, and tells the story of how one man's career in F1 came to an ugly end.

Back in 2005, they chronicled his rise through the Red Bull Driver's program, and his battle with ulcerative colitis, which nearly ended his career at 21. It's a fantastic read. It shows a young man of remarkable courage, determination, and not a little ego.

The update tells the story of Scott's fallout at Toro Rosso, including the famous fight at the Nurburgring in 2007 with Franz Tost, after Scott crashed out in a deluge. Tost physically attacked Speed in the pitlane and garage. Speed went to Gerhard Berger and let him know that if Tost touched him again, he'd "knock him out".

Peter Windsor, who we all know from Speed TV's coverage of Formula One, rates Scott highly, and says he believes Scott had the talent to win in F1, but never had a chance in a competitive car. Speed ran as high as 6th in that famous race at the Nurburgring, and in the rain at Monaco, he set the fastest practice times. He's very, very good, but in a Toro Rosso, he never could show any real speed, so to speak.

I agree, and it's a shame that there are no more Americans in F1. However, NASCAR is sucking up the talent pool. There were more Indy 500 winners at the Daytona 500 than there will be at Indy this year.

When the new story link is available, I'll post it. In the meantime, here's the link to the 2005 story:

http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/hot_lists/high_performance/motorsports/sport_the_fall_and_rise_of_scott_speed_feature