Yannick Dalmas

Dalmas in his Larrousse overalls (1989)

**Yannick Dalmas** (born 28 July 1961) is a French racing driver who last competed in Formula One for AGS.

## Early life and career

Raised near the Circuit Paul Ricard, Dalmas rapidly dabbled in motor racing for himself, and by the time he was a teenager, he had won a race and been awarded with a trophy by François Cevert. Dalmas got the racing bug, but he preferred two-wheeled racing, specifically motocross. However, a leg injury forced him to switch to cars, and he got a ride in the Championnat de France Formule Renault Turbo for 1983 by winning the Marlboro Cherche un Pilote scheme in 1982. He finished third behind champion Jean-Pierre Hoursourigaray, before blasting to seven wins and the title in his Martini Mk41 in 1984.

Oreca immediately signed him for their French Formula Three team in 1985, alongside Pierre-Henri Raphanel. Soon after, Dalmas was the faster driver, but Raphanel's early-season results saw Yannick relegated to second place in the championship behind his teammate. But the following year, driving an Oreca Martini Mk49 with a VW engine, Dalmas dominated the competition, winning six of eleven races and defeating Jean Alesi and Michel Trolle to take the title. Dalmas also won the Monaco Formula 3 support race that year for good measure. He made his International Formula 3000 debut before the end of the year, when Oreca entered a third March 86B/Cosworth for Dalmas with Raphanel and Michel Ferté at Le Mans Bugatti, but Yannick crashed. Dalmas' unlucky start in the championship continued into his first full season in 1987, when he crashed in the first two races at Silverstone and Vallelunga in his Oreca March 87B/Cosworth as teammate to Olivier Grouillard. His Vallelunga crash was so severe that he had to withdraw from the next race.

However, in his first race back, he won from seventh on the grid in Pau before recording the fastest lap at Donington Park despite finishing 17th. He subsequently spun out at Enna, took fastest lap and fifth place at Brands Hatch, retired at Birmingham, Imola, and Le Mans, then won from 14th on the grid at Jarama. He finished fifth overall, behind Maurício Gugelmin, Roberto Moreno, Luis Pérez-Sala, and Stefano Modena, however this was not a genuine picture of his performance. From his Jarama performance, his future looked set.

## Post-Formula One career

In June 1992, Dalmas joined current Formula One drivers Mark Blundell and Derek Warwick to lead the Peugeot Talbot Sport attempt to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans. This was Dalmas's second consecutive entry into the race, failing to finish with Peugeot the previous year. The demise of the World Sportscar Championship, largely as a result of the politics of the FIA, saw only 28 cars take the start, the lowest since World War II. The #1 car was outqualified by the #2 car thanks to Philippe Alliot's stunning pole time, but, the Blundell-Dalmas-Warwick trio outworked their teammates until the car slowed early in the morning as a result of an ignition problem. Despite needing two pit-stops to fix the issue, the #1 car took the chequered flag for Peugeot's first ever win at Circuit de la Sarthe.

## Formula One Statistical Overview

### Formula One Record

 **1988** |  Osella Squadra Corse
 **1989** |  Équipe Larrousse