Australian F1 world champion Alan Jones dies aged 80

Alan Jones, who was the second Australian and first Williams driver to win the Formula One world title, has died on Thursday a few days after his 80th birthday.

Jones followed in the footsteps of compatriot Jack Brabham when he secured the drivers' title in 1980 to become the first of the British team's seven world champions.

"We are extremely saddened to announce the passing of our beloved Alan, who passed away on 5 November following a short illness," his wife Amanda Butler-Davis said in a statement released on her behalf by Motorsport Australia.

"He will be dearly missed and fondly remembered by those closest to him, as well as the many fans whose support he was always grateful for."

A tough, uncompromising racer, Jones was the archetype of the sort of driver Frank Williams looked for as he built a team that won nine constructors' world titles in the 1980s and 1990s.

"He never needed propping up mentally, because he was a very determined and bullish character," Williams, who died in 2021, said of the Australian, according to the sport's official website.

"He didn't need any babysitting or hand-holding and that's the way it should be. It shouldn't be necessary for me to ask a driver if he is happy, or if he needs his underwear changed."

Born in Melbourne, the son of a racing driver, Jones headed to Europe to further his ambitions and made his Formula One debut in a Hesketh at the 1975 Spanish Grand Prix.

He took the first of his 12 race wins in Austria for the Shadow team in 1977 but his career was largely undistinguished until he joined Williams in 1978.

Jones won five world championship races in the 1980 season and finished on the podium in all but one of the grands prix he completed to clinch the title ahead of Brazilian Nelson Piquet.

He remains Australia's last Formula One champion and the last local to win the Australian Grand Prix, taking the chequered flag at Melbourne's Calder Park Raceway in 1980 when the race was not part of the world championship.

Jones started in 116 Formula One races in all and earned his last victory in Las Vegas in 1981 before announcing his retirement at the end of the season.

After spurning an approach from Ferrari and dropping in for a couple of races, Jones made a proper return to Formula One with the new Haas team in 1985 and raced largely unsuccessfully through the 1986 season before retiring for good.

He continued to compete in touring car and endurance races, mostly in Australia, until the early years of the new century, last racing in V8 Supercars in 2002.

After his Formula One career, Jones became a motorsports pundit on Australian TV, where his insight and straight-talking proved popular with fans.

"Alan dedicated his life to motorsport, building a legacy that will live on through the countless people he touched along the way," his wife's statement said.

"Through his achievements, passion and unmistakable character, both on and off the track, Alan left an enduring mark on the sport both nationally and across the globe."