# Eje Elgh

Lars Eje Elgh (born 15 June 1953) is a Swedish racing driver and television reporter. He currently works as an expert commentator for Formula One in Sweden together with Janne Blomqvist. The two have worked together as Formula One commentators for a long time, first for TV4 and then for Viasat Motor when they took over the Formula One broadcasting in Sweden.
When he could get no further in Europe, Elgh tried his luck as a driver in Japan, racing both in Japanese Formula 2 / Formula 3000 and the Japanese Sports-Prototype Championship during its heyday in 1984–1988 and focusing on the latter from 1989, first with Team Schuppan Porsche 962, then with Tom's Toyota's 91CV/92CV.

## Career

In the 1970s, Elgh tried the classical way through the single-seater formulas from the Formula Super Vee towards Formula One. In the late 1970s he was regarded in Sweden as a great talent and was seen by Swedish motorsport journalists as a successor to the recently deceased Gunnar Nilsson and Ronnie Peterson. He was managed in the 1970s and 1980s by former racing driver Torsten Palm.
After the Formula Super Vee Elgh came to England to race in the 1977 British Formula 3 Championships. Because most Formula 1 teams had their factories in England and because of the large concentration of talented drivers the British championship was regarded a stepping stone to Formula 1. During the 1977 season the Swede raced for the Chevron Racing Team. He finished joint second in the BP Super Visco British F3 series and joint 5th in the Vandervell British F3 series.
By 1978, Elgh had stepped up to Formula 2 and went to Fred Opert Racing team at the start. The first season was quite successful for a rookie. In Pau he was within second to Bruno Giacomelli and finished the races at Rouen-les-Essarts and Hockenheim in sixth. In the final standings of the championship he was 11th.
In 1979, he moved to Tiga Race Cars, winning his first F2 race at Enna-Pergusa. However, his best year in the Formula 2 Championship was the 1981 season. The year before he went to MM Mampe Team and had a disastrous first season, finishing only one race, in 9th. In 1981 he won in Vallelunga and finished second at Thruxton (behind team-mate Roberto Guerrero) and at the Nordschleife of Nürburgring (behind Thierry Boutsen) and third at Spa. He took 3rd in the championship that year.
Despite these successes and a test drive for McLaren he was not able to advance to the Formula 1 World Championship, so he sought new challenges in Asia. In the early 1980s many European racers changed the Japanese motorsport scene. Elgh successfully drove there in the Japanese Formula 2 and Formula 3000 Championships and in the Japanese Endurance and Sports-Prototype Championships.
In mid 80s Elgh began touring and sports car career. He was works driver with Dome Motorsport and drove 1984 European Touring Car Championship races for the Volvo team of his compatriot Robert Kvist. Together with Ulf Granberg he was second in the 500 km race at Mugello.
By the end of his career in 1995 he was closely associated with Domes and the sports car team of Toyota for which he was engaged almost continuously. Elgh was regarded as a strong development driver and a loyal team player who was at Toyota also at times when success eluded the team. He won his first long-distance race in 1985 with partner Geoff Lees at the 500-km race at Suzuka, a round of All Japan Sports Prototype Championship in a Dome 84C. His last of four successes in the Japanese Sports Car Championship was the overall win in the 500-km race from Sugo in 1991, again with Lees as a partner, this time in the Toyota 91C-V.
In 2006 he shared a Motortecnica MAN 4x4 truck with Paolo Barilla and Matteo Marzotto in the Dakar rally.
He also participated in the 2009 Dakar Rally where he was involved in a frightening crash. His Nissan Patrol GR Y61 fell down a 100-meter cliff and was completely destroyed, but Elgh and partner Paolo Barilla survived without any serious injuries.
In recent years he has competed in the Monaco Historique GP, in 2012 in a 1977 F3 Chevron B38-Toyota, the same car as he drove in British F3 in 1977. He was back in 2016 behind the wheel of a 1971 March 711-Cosworth Formula 1 car.

## Racing record
### Career highlights

| Season | Series | Position | Car | Team |
| 1974 | Formel Super Vau Gold Pokal | 15th | Lola T252-Volkswagen | |
| 1974 | Formel Super Vau GTX Championship | 21st | Lola T252-Volkswagen | |
| 1975 | Formel Super Vau Gold Pokal | 3rd | Lola T320-Volkswagen Lola T324-Volkswagen | |
| 1976 | Swedish Formula Three Championship | 11th | Viking TH 1A-Toyota | Rotel Racing Team |
| 1976 | Formel Super Vau Gold Pokal | 16th | Lola-Volkswagen | |
| 1977 | BARC British F3 Championship | 2nd | Chevron B38-Toyota | Chevron Racing Team |
| 1977 | BRDC British F3 Championship | 5th | Chevron B38-Toyota | Chevron Racing Team |
| 1977 | FIA European F3 Championship | 12th | Chevron B40-Hart | Fred Opert Racing |
| 1978 | Swedish Formula Three Championship | 9th | | |
| 1978 | European Formula Two Championship | 11th | Chevron B42-Hart | Fred Opert Racing |
| 1978 | FIA European F3 Championship | 20th | Chevron B43-Toyota | Chevron Racing Team |
| 1978–79 | New Zealand Formula Pacific Championship | 4th | March 782-Ford | Dick Bennetts Racing |
| 1979 | European Formula Two Championship | 9th | March 792-BMW | Marlboro Team Tiga |
| 1980 | European Formula Two Championship | NC | Maurer MM80-BMW | MM Mampe Team |
| 1981 | European Formula Two Championship | 3rd | Maurer MM81-BMW | Maurer Motorsport |
| 1981 | Japanese Formula 2 Championship | 14th | Maurer MM81-BMW | Racing Mate Project Team Team Equipe |
| 1982 | Japanese Formula 2 Championship | 14th | March 802-BMW AGS JH22-BMW | Tomei Jidousuya Unico Racing |
| 1983 | Japanese Formula 2 Championship | 9th | March 832-BMW | Team Le Mans |
| 1983 | All Japan Endurance Championship | 14th | Dome RC83-Ford | Dome Motorsport |
| 1984 | Japanese Formula 2 Championship | 4th | March 842-BMW | Autobacs Racing Team with Uchida |
| 1984 | All Japan Endurance Championship | 41st | Dome RC83i-Ford Dome 84C-Toyota | Dome Motorsport |
| 1985 | Japanese Formula 2 Championship | 5th | March 85J-Mugen Honda | Speed Star Wheel Racing Team |
| 1985 | All Japan Endurance Championship | 5th | Dome 84C-Toyota Dome 85C-Toyota | Dome Company |
| 1985 | Fuji Grand Champion Series | 4th | MCS 6-BMW | Speed Star Wheel Racing Team |
| 1986 | Japanese Formula 2 Championship | 6th | March 86J-Yamaha | Speed Box Motor Sports |
| 1986 | All Japan Endurance Championship | 20th | Dome RD84C-Toyota Dome 86C-Toyota | Dome Company |
| 1987 | Japanese Formula 3000 Championship | 11th | March 87B-Cosworth | Team Kitamura |
| 1987 | All Japan Endurance Championship | 14th | Dome 87C-Toyota Porsche 962C | Dome Company Rothmans Porsche Team Schuppan |
| 1987 | Fuji Grand Champion Series | 15th | MCS 7-Ford | Sundai Spilit Team |
| 1987 | All Japan Touring Car Championship | 8th | Rover Vitesse Toyota Supra Turbo | Sundai Spilit Team TOM's Toyota |
| 1988 | Japanese Formula 3000 Championship | NC | Lola T88/50-Mugen Ogawa | Sundai Spilit Team |
| 1988 | All Japan Endurance Championship | 7th | Porsche 962C | Rothmans Porsche Team Schuppan |
| 1988 | Fuji Long Distance Series | 5th | Porsche 962C | Rothmans Porsche Team Schuppan |
| 1988 | FIA World Endurance Championship | 58th | Porsche 962C | Takefuji Team Schuppan |
| 1988 | Fuji Grand Champion Series | 10th | R&D 88Q-Mazda | Sundai Spilit Team |
| 1989 | All Japan Endurance Championship | 5th | Porsche 962C | Omron Racing |
| 1989 | All Japan Grand Champion Series | 8th | R&D 88Q-Mazda | Sundai Spilit Team |
| 1990 | FIA World Endurance Championship | NC | Porsche 962C | Team Davey Brun Motorsport Porsche Kremer Racing |
| 1990 | All Japan Endurance Championship | 17th | Porsche 962C | Omron Racing |
| 1991 | FIA World Endurance Championship | 47th | Porsche 962C | Courage Compétition Porsche Kremer Racing Team Salamin Primagaz |
| 1991 | All Japan Endurance Championship | 12th | Toyota 91C-V | Toyota Team TOM'S |
| 1992 | All Japan Endurance Championship | 15th | Toyota 92C-V | Kitz Racing Team with SARD |
| 1992 | IMSA Camel GTP Championship | 17th | Porsche 962 | Team 0123 |

### Complete European Formula Two Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)
| Year | Entrant | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | Pos. | Pts |
| 1977 | Fred Opert Racing | Chevron B40 | Hart | SIL | THR | HOC | NÜR | VAL | PAU | MUG | ROU | NOG | PER | MIS | EST 8 | DON | NC | 0 |
| 1978 | Fred Opert Racing | Chevron B42 | Hart | THR DNQ | HOC DNQ | NÜR 9 | PAU 2 | MUG 13 | VAL DNQ | ROU 6 | DON Ret | NOG 13 | PER Ret | MIS DNQ | HOC 6 | | 11th | 8 |
| 1979 | Marlboro Team Tiga | March 792 | BMW | SIL Ret | HOC DSQ | THR Ret | NÜR 12 | VAL 9 | MUG 3 | PAU Ret | HOC 10 | ZAN 6 | PER 1 | MIS Ret | DON 5 | | 9th | 16 |
| 1980 | MM Mampe Team | Maurer MM80 | BMW | THR Ret | HOC Ret | NÜR Ret | VAL Ret | PAU | SIL | ZOL | MUG | ZAN | PER | MIS | HOC Ret | | NC | 0 |
| 1981 | Maurer Motorsport | Maurer MM81 | BMW | SIL 18 | HOC 4 | THR 2 | NÜR 2 | VAL 1 | MUG 4 | PAU 5 | PER 5 | SPA 3 | DON 7 | MIS Ret | MAN 17 | | 3rd | 35 |
| 1982 | Maurer Motorsport | Maurer MM82 | BMW | SIL | HOC | THR | NÜR 17 | MUG | VAL | PAU | SPA | HOC | DON | | | | NC | 0 |
| 1982 | Horag Racing | March 822 | BMW | | | | | | | | | | | MAN Ret | PER | MIS | NC | 0 |

### 24 Hours of Le Mans results

| Year | Team | Co-Drivers | Car | Class | Laps | Pos. | Class Pos. |
| 1982 | March Racing | Jeff Wood Patrick Nève | March 82G-Chevrolet | C | 78 | DNF | DNF |
| 1984 | Uchida Dome Racing Team | Stanley Dickens | Dome RC83-Ford Cosworth | C1 | - | DNS | DNS |
| 1985 | Dome Team | Geoff Lees Toshio Suzuki | Dome Team 85C-L-Toyota | C1 | 141 | DNF | DNF |
| 1986 | Dome Co. Ltd. | Beppe Gabbiani Toshio Suzuki | Dome Team 86C-L-Toyota | C1 | 296 | NC | NC |
| 1987 | Toyota Team TOM'S | Alan Jones Geoff Lees | Toyota 87C-L | C1 | 19 | DNF | DNF |
| 1988 | Takefuji Schuppan Racing Team | Brian Redman Jean-Pierre Jarier | Porsche 962C | C1 | 359 | 10th | 10th |
| 1989 | Team Schuppan | Vern Schuppan Gary Brabham | Porsche 962C | C1 | 321 | 13th | 10th |
| 1990 | Team Schuppan | Thomas Danielsson Tomas Mezera | Porsche TS962 | C1 | 326 | 15th | 15th |
| 1991 | Team Salamin Primagaz Team Schuppan | Roland Ratzenberger Will Hoy | Porsche 962C | C2 | 202 | DNF | DNF |
| 1992 | Toyota Team TOM'S Kitz Racing Team with SARD | Roland Ratzenberger Eddie Irvine | Toyota 92C-V | C2 | 321 | 9th | 2nd |
| 1993 | Nisso Trust Racing Team | George Fouché Steven Andskär | Toyota 93C-V | C2 | 358 | 6th | 2nd |
| Source: ||||||||

### Daytona 24 Hours results

| Year | Team | Co-Drivers | Car | Class | Laps | Pos. | Class Pos. |
| 1992 | Team 0123 | Hurley Haywood Roland Ratzenberger Scott Brayton | Porsche 962 | GTP | 749 | 3rd | 2nd |
| Source: ||||||||