BIOGRAPHY

H E R B E R T , Johnny (GB)
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b 27th/6/1964
Place of birth:      Romford
Height:              1,70 m
Weight:              66 kg
Marital status:      married to Becky
Children:            2 daughters (Amy, 
                     Chloe)
Hobbies:             fishing
Sports:              golf, squash
Favourite music:     rock, pop
Favourite singers:   Stevie Winwood, Queen
Favourite drink:     apple juice
Start racing career: in karts in 1975
First racing car:    Royale Formula Ford 
                     1600
First success:       British Kart Champion 
                     100ccm-class 1979

GP Starts:           80
Wins:                2
Poles:               0
Points:              63

Most memorable experience:
"Winning the Formula Ford Festival at 
Brands Hatch in 1985."

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SOURCE: Darren Galpin
http://www.bath.ac.uk/~py3dlg/motorsport/
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Johnny Herbert biography by MildSeven
=====================================
Johnny Herbert brings blinding speed,
full-bodied commitment and a tremendous
sense of humour to the Mild Seven Benetton
Renault team this season.

The fair-haired Englishman, with his
infectious chuckle and enthusiasm, is the
perfect complement to team-mate and world
champion Michael Schumacher and to the
energy and experience of Benetton Formula. 

After five relatively disappointing years
with Lotus, Herbert will enjoy his chance
to shine again in a competitive car.

His switch of teams also signals the
completion of a full-circle in his career
as he made his Formula One debut with the
Benetton team at the Brazilian Grand Prix
in 1989. 

Herbert's motor racing career began in
karts in 1974 when he was just 10 years
old. His obvious speed and ability were
evident then, but were recognised more
widely four years later when he became
British junior karting champion.

He progressed through the ranks to become
British senior 135cc champion in 1979 and
1982 before moving on to Formula Ford at
the end of 1983.

Two further years in the highly competitive
Formula Ford series culminated in a
triumphant display during the 1985 Formula
Ford Festival.

This success marked him out as one of
Britain's fastest rising stars and, after
a season of Formula Ford 2000, he quickly
moved up to Formula Three. 

He made his debut in Formula Three with the
Mike Rowe team at Donington Park at the end
of 1986 when he finished fourth.

He improved on that position by taking
third place at the prestigious Cellnet
Formula Three Super Prix at Brands Hatch.

Herbert's speed and skill attracted much
attention and Eddie Jordan had no
hesitation in snapping him up to drive for
his F3 team in 1987. It was a triumphant
season for him. He won five races and
claimed the championship. Herbert's prize
included a test drive in the Benetton
Formula One car at Brands Hatch.

During the test, Herbert outpaced regular
driver Thierry Boutsen with a performance
which confirmed him as a star of the
future.

The team were so impressed that they
invited him to take part in further tests
at Imola and Jerez before he crowned his
season with another victory in the Formula
Three (Cellnet) Super Prix at Brands Hatch. 

In 1988, Formula 3000 beckoned and Herbert
moved up with the Jordan team. A victory in
the opening round of the series at Jerez
marked him out as a serious title
challenger, but his luck deserted him in
the second round at Vallelunga.

He was injured after a crash with Gregor
Foitek while fighting for the lead. 

Worse came at Brands Hatch later in the
season when Herbert was involved in a
multi-car accident. He sustained serious leg
and ankle injuries, but with the fighting
spirit which has characterised his Formula
One career, he fought back to regain fitness
and earn a place in the Benetton team.

He was chosen as partner to Italian
Alessandro Nannini for the 1989 season. His
Grand Prix debut was at Rio de Janeiro in
Brazil where he astonished many cynical
observers with a stirring drive into fourth
place, Iess than 11 seconds behind the
victorious Nigel Mansell's Ferrari.

The nature of the Brazilian circuit was
kind to Herbert's injured ankles and helped
hide the fact that he was not fully
recovered from his injuries. This became
apparent as the season went on. 

By mid-season, Herbert's discomfort
persuaded the team to rest him and give him
an opportunity to concentrate on making a
full physical recovery. He worked hard on
his fitness and took advantage of a brief
return to Formula One with the Tyrrell team
in Belgium to show the pace that proved he
was ready for a return to Formula One in
1990. 

Herbert received many offers, but
eventually chose a testing contract with
Lotus and a racing programme in Japan. He
raced in the All Japan Sports Prototype
Championship and the All Japan Formula 3000
championship. 

Herbert's speed became well-known in Japan
and when Mazda asked him to race at the Le
Mans 24 Hours race in 1991, he jumped at
the opportunity. Driving alongside Volker
Wielder and Bertrand Gachot, he shared in
a memorable victory which removed finally
all doubts about his fitness. 

Herbert's opportunity to return to Grand
Prix racing came when he replaced the
injured Martin Donnelly with Lotus at the
Japanese and Australian Grands Prix.
The famous British team then became his
racing home for a further four years. 

Herbert worked hard for Lotus, but without
a consistently competitive car. He won a
handful of fourth places and often
threatened better, but lost some of his
enthusiasm as the Lotus team fell into
decline in 1994.

When he was signed by Ligier, prior to the
European Grand Prix of 1994, the move
helped rekindle his enthusiasm. He proved
he still had his speed and motivation by
qualifying ahead of regular driver Olivier
Panis. 

The reward for his revived form was a
chance to replace the injured Jos
Verstappen in the Benetton team at the
final two races in Japan and Australia.

Herbert showed well, but was out of luck at
both events, although he still did enough
to secure his seat with the team for 1995. 

This season will give Herbert a chance to
shine with a world championship-winning
team. Fitter than ever and confident that
he finally has a car worthy of his talents,
Herbert will be a major force in the Mild
Seven Benetton Renault team's thrust for
further success in 1995. 

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Source: Japan Tobacco Co
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RACING CAREER:

H E R B E R T , Johnny (GB)
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1983 - first FF1600 races
1984 - British FF1600
1985 - British FF1600. Winner Formula Ford 
       Festival Brands Hatch
1986 - British FF2000. British F3, 15th
1987 - British F3 Champion, 5 wins. Won 
       Cellnet Superprix at Brands.
       European F3, 3rd. Monaco F3 race, 
       3rd. Macau F3 race, 18th
1988 - F3000 (Eddie Jordan), bad accident 
       at Brands Hatch, hurt feet
       8th overall, 1 win (Jerez)
1989 - 8 F1 races (6 Benetton, 2 Tyrrell), 
       5 points, 14th. DNQ=2.
       4th in first race in Brazil
1990 - Japanese F3000. 2 F1 races (Lotus). 
       Retired in both.
1991 - 8 F1 races (Lotus), 0 points, 
       DNQ=1. Won Le Mans in Mazda rotary
       engined sportscar. Japanese F3000, 
       9th (2nd at Mine). Japanese
       Sportscars (Mazda).
1992 - 16 races (Lotus), 2 points, 14th. 
       Sportscars (Mazda), 9th (2nd at
       Silverstone, 4th Le Mans 24hrs)
1993 - 16 races (Lotus), 11 points, 9th 
       (4th in GB GP)
1994 - 16 races (13 Lotus, 1 Ligier, 2 
       Benetton), no points. Qualified 
       Lotus
       Mugen 4th at Monza with new engine
1995 - 17 races (Benetton), 45 points, 
       4th. 2 wins (Britain, Italy). (2nd
       Spain, 3rd Japan, 4th Argentina, 
       Monaco, Germany, Hungary, 5th 
       Europe, 6th Pacific)

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SOURCE: Darren Galpin
http://www.bath.ac.uk/~py3dlg/motorsport/
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