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Born within earshot of Brazil’s legendary Interlagos circuit, Rubens Barrichello was in the right place to fulfil his schoolboy dreams. After tiring of jumping over the track’s walls to watch races for free, a young Barrichello began to nag his father to allow him to compete. In exchange for studying harder at school, Barrichello Senior eventually agreed to his son’s demands.
From then Barrichello scarcely looked back. After finishing third in his first kart race, second in his second and first in his third, it seemed his progression through the karting ranks was as natural as his talent. Over the next eight years, Barrichello racked up five Brazilian titles, was named the 1986 South American champion and came ninth in the 1987 world championship - beating Juan Pablo Montoya’s father at the finish.
After attracting the attention of Ayrton Senna, Barrichello secured some much-needed funding. But friends in high places could only help so much and it was Barrichello’s growing reputation which brought him a Formula Ford drive in 1989. The following year he left his family behind to move to Europe, winning the 1990 Opel Lotus Euroseries and then, aged just 19, the 1991 British Formula Three championship. After finishing third in the 1992 Formula 3000 series, all that remained for the ambitious Brazilian was Formula One racing.
His test with Jordan in 1993 went so well the squad offered him a race seat and though he retired nine times in his debut season, Barrichello beat the odds to score two championship points - a worthy entrance. The next year he stayed with the team, but his serious accident at Imola, combined with the tragic death of friend and mentor Senna the same weekend, knocked his confidence. He did, however, score his first podium finish that season with a third place at the Pacific Grand Prix.
Though he stayed with Jordan for another two years, his rate of progress slowed and he lost his ‘next big thing’ mantle to new rookie Eddie Irvine. In 1997, with very little regret, Barrichello was usurped by the incoming Ralf Schumacher and left Jordan for new start-up Stewart. He now had the hopes of Brazil resting on his shoulders - a win was what he wanted.
On a three-year deal, Barrichello was there for the long haul and keen to make a name for himself and the new team. Great qualifying performances, however, yielded little as the Stewart proved highly unreliable in race trim. In all, Barrichello finished just two Grands Prix in his first season with Stewart, though one did earn him six points - a spectacular second place in Monaco.
As he rode out of the rest of his contract, Barrichello was rewarded with very little in terms of pace or reliability. His last year with the Stewart team was the best in terms of points, but with no sign of a win he was growing impatient. Frustrated and, at 26, increasingly at risk of missing the boat, Barrichello made the move to Ferrari for 2000 to team up with Michael Schumacher - a decision many believed would be catastrophic for his credibility.
Of course, being paired with Schumacher was no level playing field but Barrichello and the German worked well together. Yes, he struggled to match Schumacher’s pace and often fell victim to team orders, but Barrichello’s switch to Ferrari did pay some dividends when looked at dispassionately. In 2000, he won his first Grand Prix, in Germany - a fitting reward for a good drive. It was an achievement he would repeat a further eight times in his six years in scarlet overalls.
As a Ferrari driver, Barrichello’s races often seemed to be dictated by Schumacher’s requirements (like at the 2001 Austrian Grand Prix, when he was forced to hand over the lead with less than 25 laps to go), but at the same time he was rewarded with a championship-winning car and a points haul he had only ever dreamt of at Stewart - twice he finished runner-up in the drivers’ championship. Overall, Barrichello adjusted well as Schumacher’s number two and, when allowed, flourished.
Barrichello did, however, eventually tire of the thankless task of playing second fiddle. With Renault in the ascendancy, 2005 was a tough year for Ferrari and Barrichello took the option of heading to Honda for 2006. Though he initially struggled in his new surroundings, he found his feet in time to clinch a fourth place at Monaco and seventh in the drivers’ standings. Despite finishing 26 points adrift of younger team mate Jenson Button, Barrichello remained very much on the money in qualifying and was expecting a brighter 2007. However, fundamental flaws in the design of Honda's troubled RA107 conspired against him and for the first time in his career he finished a Formula One season without a point, an unwanted achievement that no one expects him to repeat.
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