Rivals look back as Rindt's 40th anniversary approaches

The Formula One world will mark the 40th anniversary of the sport's first and only posthumous world champion on Sunday afternoon, the 28-year-old having lost his fight for life following a crash just before qualifying for the 1970 Italian Grand Prix at Monza. The German had such a lead in the championship at the time of the accident that he went on to claim the title that year, having missed the final four rounds.

Jackie Stewart, Rindt's chief challenger for the title at the time, remembers the day vividly. "It was very traumatic. Helen (Stewart) went to the hospital with Nina (Rindt) and that's never a nice thing for a wife to do, to look after another wife," he recalled to the Red Bulletin. "After the accident I'd been to Jochen and come back to Nina, who had totally disappeared with Helen. When I went out later to qualify I was in tears.