S1 Ep140: Alex Zanardi is Han Solo
Past Gas
Donut Media
4.9 • 7.2K Ratings
🗓️ 11 July 2022
⏱️ 43 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Alex Zanardi is a champion, a survivor, and a legend. From his father’s garage, to Formula One, to spinning the first celebratory donut, to the Paralympic Games, this fearless Italian has been unstoppable. If there weren't so many people who witnessed his incredible journey in motorsport, you'd think it was scripted. Today, we're taking a deep dive into one of the most mind-blowingly inspirational figures in racing history: Alex Zanardi.
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Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | When F1 racer Alex Zanardi started the American Memorial race on September 15th, 2001, he was already a champion. |
| 0:12.8 | The fearless Italian was adored by fans, respected by his peers, and considered one of the best drivers on the planet. |
| 0:20.2 | As the race that lows its ring war on, Zanardi found himself at the front of the pack. |
| 0:25.4 | He had won back-to-back kart titles in America just two years prior, and to capture his first F1 win, |
| 0:31.6 | would send his rising star even higher into the stratosphere. |
| 0:35.2 | But fate had other plans. |
| 0:37.2 | By the end of the race, Zanardi was on a helicopter, to Berlin, clinging to his life. |
| 0:43.2 | Moments before, he and his race car were split in half at 190 mph by a fellow driver after Zanardi spun out of control exiting Pit Row. |
| 0:52.8 | Brake picks up the lead, and Zanardi, all with a terrible crash! |
| 0:57.2 | Days later, Zanardi miraculously woke up in a hospital bed, but looked down to see that both of his legs were gone. |
| 1:05.6 | His career and his life, as he knew them, were over. |
| 1:10.4 | What circumstances led to this pivotal moment in Alex Zanardi's life? |
| 1:14.6 | How did the race world respond to this seismic event? |
| 1:17.8 | And even more intriguing, how does one recover mentally, much less physically from such a horrifying accident? |
| 1:23.6 | If there weren't so many people who witnessed this man's incredible journey, |
| 1:27.2 | you'd think that most of what we're about to tell you is some kind of high-octane fairy tale that isn't humanly possible. |
| 1:33.2 | Well, none of this is fiction. |
| 1:35.4 | Today on PastGas, we're taking a deep dive into one of the most mind-blowingly inspirational figures in racing history. |
| 1:42.8 | Alex Zanardi. |
| 1:47.8 | PastGas, podcast, is the best course in some of the sports! |
| 1:53.8 | Zanardi Ring. |
| 1:55.8 | Zanardi Ring. You did it, Joe. You cracked the code. We can go home with that pun. |
... |
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