“Geki” was the racing pseudonym of Giacomo Russo (23 October 1937 – 18 June 1967), who was a racing driver from Italy.
An experienced driver in the Italian lower formulae, he also participated in three Formula One Italian Grands Prix from 1964–66, failing to qualify for the 1964 race, driving a Brabham for Rob Walker. For his two Grand Prix starts, he drove for Team Lotus. He scored no championship points.
However, he was a four-time Italian Formula Three series champion, winning consecutive championships from 1961 to 1964. Info from Wiki
Bio by Stephen Latham
Born in Milan in 1937, Giacomo ‘Geki’ Russo was from a wealthy family who expected him to eventually become involved in the family’s textile business. They disapproved of him racing so when he started competing he entered as ‘Geki’, to hide his racing activities from them, but this would prove difficult when he began to achieve success plus raced at his home Grand Prix three times during the 1960s. He went on to become a multiple Formula Junior champion, taking the title in 1961, 1962 and 1963 and from twenty nine races between 1959 and 1961, he took eight wins, eight seconds and two third places.
His first ever motor race came in Formula Junior at Monza and he finished sixth (of the nine finishers) with a Stangellini. Through the rest of the year he was fifth at Pergusa, ninth at Monza, eighth at Messina, fourteenth at Valleunga and eleventh at Syracuse. Later in the year, a Coppa Madunina race was held at Monza, consisting of two twenty lap heats and a twenty lap final. He qualified on pole for the first heat and made it to the final, finishing second to a dominating Lorenzo Bandini.
Into 1960, he continued with FJunior though in the January entered the II Corsa Sul Ghiaccio A Cortina d’Amprezzo (the Ice Race), which was held to open the Italian motorsport season. The race took place in the Southern Alps and he was fifth in the first heat and then secured one of the eight places in the final by finishing second but retired from the final. February saw him travel to compete in a support race at the Cuban Grand Prix, as one of eight cars entered by Scuderia Madunina. Due to the Castro revolution, it took place on two military bases outside Havana and Giacomo had one race at each circuit. He finished seventh with his Stanguellini in the first then in the second had a 1-2 finish for his team, alongside L.Bandini. The race results were based on aggregate scores so his seventh and second places saw him placed third overall. Unfortunately, he failed to qualify for several following races, including the Monaco GP support race, though finished eighth at Messina.
It was assumed that his parents by now knew of his racing but despite this he carried on competing as ‘Geki’. The first round of 1961’s FJunior series came at Monza and it turned into a gripping contest between him and L.Bandini, with only 0.2 seconds between them and Bandini went on to take the final. At Cesenatico, three heats had to be held due to the high number of entries and though he was second in his heat, the final was dominated by Jo Siffert and David Piper. At the Circuito del Garda, he was third third in the final, which saw Colin Davis in a tough fight with Siffert. He continued collecting points with the Stanguellini but eventually changed to a Lotus 18. At Monza he had to retire the new car after 12 laps though then took second at Teramo but retired after only 5 laps due to engine failure at Collemaggio. The team then obtained a new Lotus 20, hoping for success but at Messina he was only seventh in his heat and third in the final (behind Angus Hyslop and Denny Hulme). The season’s final race did away with heats and was a single 35 lap race, which Siffert dominated, ahead of Bandini, and he came home in third place. However, Siffert was ineligible for the title and as Giacomo had built up a strong number of points finishes early in the season, he could not be overtaken and so became 1961 champion without taking a race win.
1962’s season began at Vallelunga and he raced Scuderia Madunina’s Lotus 18, finishing third in the final plus also took part in the Monaco GP support race and finished sixth. He missed a number of rounds though later arrived at Caserta with a new Lotus 22, but was only fifth in the final. He took a win at Monza and then led all the way and lapped everyone at Pergusa, followed by third again at Monza and went on to win the last two races of the season.
He used a De Sanctis-Ford in 1963 to defend his title but at the first race at Vallelunga, after dominating his heat he crashed after five laps in the final. His race at Bologna was hampered by gearbox problems though he went on to win at Monza. A driveshaft failure at Circuito del Garda thwarted him but he followed this with three straight victories at Monza, Vallelunga and Caserta. Then followed a driveshaft breakage at Monza and a crash at Collemaggio but when he arrived at Pergusa he now had a Ford powered Lotus 27. The new car suffered a valve problem and at the season ending race he was back in his De Sanctis but after dominating his heat he was beaten in the final. Nevertheless, Giacomo had once again secured the title and achieved a hat-trick of championships
The governing body abolished FJunior for 1964 and reintroduced Formula 2 and Formula 3 and Giacomo competed in both categories. He joined Scuderia Sorocaima, racing their De Sanctis-Ford, and won his heat and the final in the first race of the F3 series at Monza. Shortly after, he took four wins in races at Monza but his winning streak ended due to retirement at Caserta. After a long summer break the next race came in September at Vallelunga and he was again victorious then secured his sixth win shortly after at Monza. In October, he was on course for a record seventh win at Monza but his gearbox seized with a few laps to go. He contested International F2 with a Ford powered Wainer 63 but in the first race at Buenos Aires he retired on lap 20. He took a podium finish at Rosario a week later, retired at Cordoba with a mechanical issue and was fourth in the final Argentinian round at Buenos Aires. The series then moved to Germany for a race at the Nurburgring, now with a Fiat Abarth 232 instead of the Wainer though he was only ninth in a field containing Jim Clark and a number of other F1 drivers.
The following rounds would prove disappointing as he failed to finish his second heat at AVUS, retired at Reims due to a valve failure and was hampered by oil pressure problems at Vallelunga. There had been a rumoured Ferrari F2 contract for 1964 but it never happened but September saw him race one of Rob Walker’s Brabham BT11s at the Italian GP. The team had two cars, one of which was to be driven by Jo Bonnier though the second was available for hire and a deal was made for Giacomo to drive it at Monza. After the tragic events of 1961’s race, where Wolfgang von Trips and 15 spectators had been killed, the organisers only allowed a maximum of 20 cars to start the GP. As 25 cars were entered, five cars would be eliminated before it and although Bonnier safely put himself into the final, Giacomo did not qualify.
1965 saw him contest F2 and F3 in a variety of different cars. In F2 he raced a Brabham BT16 at Vallelunga though retired with mechanical trouble in the first heat and it couldn’t be repaired in time for the second heat while at Albi, he raced a BWA-Cosworth but retired due to brake failure. Sicily saw him qualify on the front row with a Wainer-Ford but frustratingly his race only lasted a few corners when he and Clay Regazzoni collided and put each other out. After his success had attracted the attention of Autodelta, they partnered him with Carlo Zuccoli in an Alfa Romeo Giulia at Le Mans but an oil pipe problem after just two hours of competition saw them retire after twenty two laps. At the Italian GP in September, Team Lotus had brought a third car, a 25 usually used as a backup for the Lotus 33s used by Jim Clark and Mike Spence. Giacomo secured a deal to race the 25 and qualified twentieth on the grid. In the race his experience of Monza helped him move up through the field, and at one point was running in the top 10, though on lap 36 his transmission seized while running thirteenth.
Unfortunately, 1966’s F3 season with Scuderia Madunina was a frustrating one, with a mixture of poor results and mechanical failures though in sports cars he raced in the Targa Florio with a Giulia and was third in class and thirteenth overall with Teodoro Zeccoli. He and Swiss driver Gaston ‘Gus’ Andrey contested 1966’s Sebring 12 Hour race, winning their class and finish fourteenth overall. However, there would be no celebrating afterwards as the race had been marred by the death of Bob McLean, whose Ford GT lost control and crashed into a telegraph pole plus four spectators were killed when a Porsche driven by Don Wester spun at high speed into their area. The year saw his third GP entry when he was invited by Lotus to race a Lotus 33 at Monza, and in qualifying was seven tenths faster than Phil Hill (in an Eagle) and over a second ahead of Chris Amon’s BRM. He went on to finish ninth in the race, which was won Ludovico Scarffiotti.
His deal with Alfa Romeo continued in 1967 and he appeared to be on course for a successful career in endurance racing. He was paired with Nino Todaro in the Targa Florio though they retired after an accident on the seventh lap. He also contested the Italian F3 championship that year, and at Monza in April finished second in his heat and won the final in a De Sanctis-Ford. A further second place finish came at Vallelunga and after replacing his De Sanctis with a Matra MS5, he went on to take second at Imola, then third and fourth at the next two rounds at Monza. The next race was at Caserta, and a good result was hoped for as it was one of his favourites. He was second in his heat but in the final, two cars collided and came to rest broadside to the oncoming drivers, followed by another car that skidded on oil and crashed. The three cars were on a blind section of the track, and with no marshals nearby, one of the drivers (Beat Fehr) ran up the track towards the rest of the field to try to warn them of the damaged cars ahead. It was said Giacomo lost control of his Matra attempting to avoid Fehr, with his car leaving the road and hitt a wall, then burst into flames. He was thrown from the car and killed instantly but sadly Beat Fehr also died after being hit by a car. To add to the tragedy, Romano Perdomi also crashed at the scene and was gravely injured. He had to be cut free from the wreckage of his car by his own pit crew but sadly passed away from his injuries a few days later. The race was stopped but the race director did not know of the carnage until Massimo Natili (one of the four drivers still running), informed him after the red flag was shown. Following this tragedy, the outcry over it meant that no further races would be held at Caserta.
The championship was cancelled and Giacomo was announced as the posthumous champion and in the following year’s F3 Championship, a race at Monza was renamed the ‘Grand Premio Geki’ in his honour.
from FB of his family
“Geki” was the racing pseudonym of Giacomo Russo (October 23, 1937 in Milan – June 18, 1967 at Caserta), who was a racing driver from Italy. A very talented driver in the Italian lower formulae, he also participated in 3 Formula One Italian Grands Prix from 1964-66, failing to qualify for the 1964 race, driving a Brabham BT11 BRM for Rob Walker. For his two Grand Prix starts, he drove for Team Lotus, a Lotus 25 Climax at 1965 Italian GP ad a Lotus 33 Climax at 1966 Italian GP.
He was a four-time Italian F3 series champion, winning consecutive championships from 1961 to 1964.
He was killed in a accident in an Italian Formula 3 race at Caserta in 1967. After a multiple accident involving Ernesto Brambilla, Clay Regazzoni, Jurg Dubler, Romano “Tiger” Perdomi and Corrado Manfredini; another driver, Beat Fehr, stopped his car, got out and ran down the track to warn the oncoming racers of the damaged cars on the track ahead. The next group of cars included Geki, who was unable to avoid colliding with and killing Fehr. Geki’s Matra then crashed into a wall and he died in the subsequent fire. Perdomi was also killed.
“Geki” était le pseudonyme utilisé en course de Giacomo Russo qui était un pilote de course automobile italien, né le 23 octobre 1937 à Milan et décédé lors de la course de Formule 3 disputée le 18 juin 1967 à Caserta.
Giacomo débute en compétition automobile au début des années 60 en Formule Junior sur une Stanguellini. Il passe à la Formule 3 en 1960 et, après s’être classé 4e du championnat italien pour sa première saison, il remporte le championnat l’année suivante sans pour autant avoir signé la moindre victoire. Il conserve son titre en 1962, mais cette fois-ci avec plus de panache puisqu’il décroche quatre succès dont deux à Monza, dont il devient l’attraction locale. En 1963, il est champion pour la troisième fois consécutive et devient l’idole des amateurs automobile de Monza où il réalise un un hat-trick. Il complète son palmarès en devenant une nouvelle fois champion d’Italie en 1964.
Geki, s’il décide de poursuivre sa carrière en Formule 3 dispute en parallèle, mais chez Abarth, le championnat de Formule 2. Il remporte à nouveau le championnat italien de F3 grâce à 6 succès sur une de Sanctis mais n’obtient pas d’aussi bons résultats dans la catégorie supérieure.
En 1964, il participe pour la première fois au GP d‘Italie de F1 au sein du Rob Walker Racing Team qui engage une Brabham BT11 mais il ne parvient pas à se qualifier, échouant à seconde du dernier sur la grille, Maurice Trintignant. Il récidive l’année suivante, cette fois au volant d’une Lotus 25 et décroche la 20e place sur la grille. Malheureusement il est contraint à l’abandon au trente-septième tour sur rupture de boîte de vitesses. Il prend à nouveau le départ de son GP national en 1966, sur une Lotus 33. Il se classe en 20e et dernière position sur la grille de départ et se classe finalement 9e de l’épreuve avec cinq tours de retard sur le vainqueur Ludovico Scarfiotti.
Le 18 juin 1967, il trouve la mort lors d’une course de F3 disputée à Caserta. Après un accident multiple impliquant Ernesto Brambilla, Clay Regazzoni, Jurg Dubler, Romano “Tiger” Perdomi et Corrado Manfredini, le pilote suisse Fehr Beat arrivé sur les lieux de l‘accident, arrête sa voiture et en descend pour avertir les coureurs encore en course du danger présenté par l’empilement de voitures endommagées. Geki ainsi que d’autres concurrents dont Perdomi ne remarque Beat qu’au dernier moment et ne parvient pas à l’éviter : Beat est tué sur le coup tandis que Geki décède dans l’incendie de sa Matra brisée contre un mur et que Perdomi décède lui-aussi.
