Gunnar Nilsson

Gunnar Nilsson was a Swedish driver, born in 1948, who competed in Formula 1 across the 1976 and 1977 seasons, making all 32 of his starts for Team Lotus.

Nilsson made an immediate impression in his debut year, scoring 11 points and finishing tenth in the 1976 World Championship — a strong return for a first full season. He built on that in 1977, when he took his sole Grand Prix victory, added to his podium tally and accumulated 20 points to claim eighth in the standings.

In all, Nilsson recorded one win and four podium finishes from his 32 starts, with 31 championship points to his name. His win rate of just over three per cent understates how competitive his brief career was: both of his seasons ended inside the top ten of the drivers' championship.

His entire Formula 1 career was spent with a single team, and the upward trajectory from his first season to his second marked him out as one of the quicker Lotus drivers of the mid-1970s.