Gabriele Tarquini
This pleasant and underrated Italian caused quite a stir back in 1985 when, as reigning world karting champion and with almost no Formula 3 experience to speak of, he became an instant front-runner in F3000. He finished his first year a very creditable sixth in the standings, but his 1986 season was less startling as the newly formed Coloni team struggled to find its feet, though he did score third places at Enna and the Österreichring.
Joining Lamberto Leoni's FIRST racing ream for 1987, Gabriele was once again a 'nearly-man' in terms of ultimate success, but he made his Formula 1 debut for Osella at Imola, and then rejoined Enzo Coloni for a testing first Grand Prix season in 1988 for the Italain squad.
With poor Philippe Streiff gravely injured in a Brazilian testing accident, Tarquini came into the AGS line-up for the 1989 San Marino GP, soon gaining a priceless point for the little team in Mexico. Over the next three seasons, the ever-cheerful Italian plugged away against insurmountable odds as the debt-ridden team headed towards extinction, but before the end came he had been allowed to sign for Fondmetal (formerly Osella). With Ford HB engines at his disposal for 1992, Tarquini had easily his best opportunity to shine but the team was hampered by a lack of adequate funding – the Italian was under strict instructions to conserve the car at all costs – and any promise it had possessed soon evaporated, resulting in the outfit's withdrawal before the season was out.
Tarquini then joined the horde of famous names in the Italian touring car championship in 1993, taking third place in the series with a works Alfa Romeo. He was chosen to spearhead the Italian manufacturer's move into the BTCC series in 1994 and enjoyed a highly successful season, winning eight of the 21 rounds to take the championship crown. Gabriele also gained well-earned plaudits from all for his off-track demeanour and was a credit to the series and his sport.
It was going to be tough to follow this success in 1995, and so it proved as Alfa lost their advantage. Gabriele was initially racing in Italy, but the company's sudden decision to withdraw from their domestic championship saw him back in Britain for the balance of the year. The sudden transition from being the dominant force to midfield strugglers was quite a shock but Tarquini always gave of his best.
Partly due to his links with Fondmetal, he had been an occasional test driver for Tyrrell, and was drafted in to deputise for the indisposed Katayama at the Nürburgring, though his one-off F1 return was not a particularly distinguished one.
In 1996 Gabriele stepped up to the high-profile International Touring Car series as a works driver alongside the experienced Larini and Nannini in the Alfa 155 V6 TI and scored a big win at Silverstone, but endured a thin time of it otherwise. So it was back to the Super Touring category in 1997, the Italian switching his allegiance to Honda. Although Gabriele's six seasons driving the Accord in the BTCC, the German and the European Super Touring series produced no more than the occasional win, the driver himself was still regarded as one of the class's most accomplished performers.
Having returned to Alfa Romeo for 2002, Gabriele was back on top as European Touring Car Champion the following year and he still remained a key member of the Autodelta team until they withdrew their works support at the end of 2005. The ever-durable Tarquini soon found a berth with the ambitious SEAT squad for 2006, taking his emotional first win for the marque at Istanbul, on his way to fifth place in series.
