I've never ever,
ever thought anything
other than we need Ferrari
as much as Ferrari needs us.
Formula 1 is Ferrari.
[THEME MUSIC]
The $100,000 club
was Patrick's way to destroy me
and what I represented.
So, Max and I went to see Mr Ferrari
and explained everything
that was going on
and why it was going on
and all the reasons.
Mr Ferrari's attitude
was always the same
really and truly.
He liked to feel
that he was supporting
what he thought was the legal side
of Formula 1 racing,
the federations.
But in the end he said to me was,
"The sport is on top of the table
"but under the table
is the business."
I think what dear old Patrick
didn't understand was the fact
that even if he'd got
He certainly would
not have had Ferrari.
And that's the one he really needed.
I think this all demonstrated
a lot to the CSI
that Formula 1 is Ferrari.
Was, is, always has been.
And he supported us 100%.
[CARS WHOOSHING]
Niki asked me
what the position was about coming
to Brabham.
So, we met him, strangely, in Monza
and discussed this whole thing.
It was a strange paradox, wasn't it?
That here you were,
winning the world title
and at the same time
you were falling out with Ferrari.
How did that come about?
I think you only can win races
if the team who works together,
works together very well
without any aggravation
and the aggravation just got
more and more,
so I decided to join Bernie
because I think
there's no aggravation.
[SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE]
I hadn't got the slightest idea
what Parmalat was.
Turned out they were
a dairy company.
Niki said he would introduce me,
which he did.
So, I went to see Mr Calisto Tanzi
who looked after the commercial
sides of everything.
So I said to him, "Tell me some,
"what is your advertising budget?"
So he said...
It...it worked out about $8 million,
whatever it was those days in Lira.
I said, "That seems
that it may be enough
"to get the job done."
So, we eventually did a deal.
See how we're going
to get down to Italy.
Terrific. And you. Bye.
Peter Gilbert please.
At the time,
nobody had been paid $1 million.
No driver had been paid $1 million.
So, we were the first people
to...to pay him that.
This is the car
you're going to drive next season.
This is the Brabham Alfa Romeo.
Can you tell us
how you came to decide
that you wanted to drive this car?
You know, we just had
a long discussion
and especially about the money...
[LAUGHTER]
When Mr Ferrari found out
he was leaving,
he wasn't too happy.
Wasn't happy with me,
whereas I used to have
a super relationship with him,
that sort of fell apart.
[CARS WHOOSHING]
Colin, once again, was doing things
that nobody else had thought about.
He'd discovered
the ground effect cars.
The principle involves using the air
that passes underneath this car,
channelling it through
the side pods.
Trapping it
with these reversible skirts
and passing it out at the back
in a manner in which it beds
the car down onto the track,
so improving the traction
and the road holding.
The principle is very loosely called
'ground effects'
and the effects on the Lotus 79
are such
that it makes it go faster
and faster and faster.
Mario was a very,
very special person.
Got very good ideas and not too shy
in explaining what they are.
Unfortunately, you're gonna have
to have some [indistinct],
some proof to [indistinct].
I know.
Hello girls.
[CAR ENGINE REVS]
[CARS WHOOSHING]
There's trouble.
Lauda has hit the Armco.
Hunt is out of the race.
Patresi hit me up the arse.
Launched me into the air.
That was the end of it.
Niki's thing was separate.
Jody, I think put Niki off.
Andretti then leading.
Peterson challenging for second
and he's through!
Ronnie Peterson is through
and up to an incredible
second position.
And it's victory
in the Belgian Grand Prix
for Mario Andretti
and up into the lead
in the world championship.
A very happy Mario Andretti,
an ecstatically happy
Ronnie Peterson
give the traditional champagne
shower bath
to the crowd around them
as well they might do.
I coulda said don't do that.
You ready? OK.
He's not crying is he?
[LAUGHS]
Colin Chapman.
Singularly?
Absolutely.
No question of construction?
Purely the man's...
Yes.
He gets the job done
when it's necessary.
Why has Colin Chapman
got such a need
at this time?
Well, I think we all knew this,
but he was the first one to do it
and there's a lot of difference
between knowing and doing.
The Lotus 79 has made our car
old-fashioned just like that.
Overnight our car
becomes a yesteryear car.
Well, there's no driver in the world
and probably there's no driver
who ever has been
who could get in...in a car now,
other than the Lotus, and beat it.
[SPEAKING FOREIGN LANGUAGE]
Brabham come up with an idea
that if you can suck all the air out
from under the car,
it's a much better effect
than actually getting the air
to push it down
'cause there would be no resistance.
So, hence the fan car.
[CARS WHOOSHING]
COMMENTATOR: Niki Lauda has got
almost a minute lead.
The extraordinary fan car is just
walking away with the race.
Colin Chapman protested the car
before the start of the race.
He's almost certainly
likely to protest it
once the race is over.
It's not legal,
it's not within the rules.
And the other aspect of it I think
is the danger part
where, if you follow it very closely
or anywhere in the proximity
do you get a tremendous amount
of debris
or if it goes over any debris
on the track, you get it.
So, now I think it would be
a good time to stop this monster
before it just grows bigger.
And Teddy Mayer was standing there
complaining to Colin,
and everybody complaining.
But obviously Colin
was bright enough to know.
What he said,
"Car could climb up the wall
and everyone's gonna have
to build these."
Balestre had been told
to come from, which he did,
he came to Sweden to make sure
that car was disqualified.
[SPEAKING FRENCH LANGUAGE]
The car was never disqualified.
The race was always a win,
but we withdrew the car.
'Cause if not, as Colin had said,
we'd all...
Everybody would have to build these.
So, spend a...
Everyone would spend a lot of money.
MALE INTERVIEWER:
Is it true, Bernie,
that the controversy nearly split
the Formula 1
Constructors' Association?
It's alleged that Colin Chapman
and Ken Tyrell...
No, no, no, no.
It'd take more than that
to split the association.
Did you resolve it all amicably,
did you?
Yes, no problem.
The aerodynamics is something
Ferrari never really
and truly bothered with.
Enzo was just interested in engines.
Nothing to do with ground effects
or anything like that.
'Cause he always considered
the engine was the most
important thing in the car.
[CAR WHOOSHES]
From the beginning,
Ferrari felt that we were sort of
in little garages
with one standard engine
and one standard gearbox,
putting a chassis together
and building a race car.
Ferrari always called us
the 'garistas'
whereas he was a factory.
There was a big difference for him.
And the press sort of cottoned
onto this as well
and called Ferrari 'grandees'
'cause they were supposed
to be grand.
COMMENTATOR: The most enthusiastic
motor racing crowd of all
could well see
Italian-born American,
Mario Andretti,
driving in his 79th Grand Prix,
appropriately in a Lotus 79,
achieve his ambition
by becoming world champion.
What does the world championship
title mean to you?
Everything.
Everything.
For after 13 events,
with only three to go
Andretti can only be beaten
by one man,
his teammate Ronnie Peterson.
And that's very unlikely
because Peterson will honour
his contract
not to race his team leader,
Andretti.
The first row with Mario Andretti
in the black car on the pole,
number 5, next to is...
Here we go.
There's car number 12.
Villeneuve gets in on the start.
Green light on.
They're racing at [indistinct].
Villeneuve, the Ferrari
has the lead,
Andretti is second.
Peterson is dropping
back in the field
as they head for that...
There's an accident!
There's a big crash!
And it looked like a car
in the centre of the field!
It could have been a black car!
It could have been Ronnie Peterson!
It's a bad one
It's a big accident!
These cars
are full of fuel.
The beginning
of this is there's
a driver looks like
James Hunt
is running to the car
that's burning there.
He's running to that fire.
The word, Jackie, is it's Peterson.
Peterson in the burning car.
A number of other cars involved
in it were picked up off of we can
but that is bad.
It's very bad.
He's still in the...in that car
as you can see.
Ah, this is terrible.
They're fighting the fire.
They've got very quickly on to it.
There's...there's James Hunt.
There's another driver.
Patrick Depailler is in there...
They're getting him out of the car
..and he's out of the car now,
thank goodness for that.
They're getting the fire
under control.
[SOMBRE MUSIC]
All the press was sort
of trying to get around the car.
I remember at the time
I went to go and see
what had happened
and the police tried to stop me
going through.
Sid was already there,
right from the beginning.
And they thought that we...
[STAMMERS]
It...It was serious but not serious.
So, I said to Sid,
"So, what's happening?"
He said, "Oh, he's gone to hospital,
and he'll be alright.
"I'll keep an eye on him anyway.
I'll go and see him.
"He'll be out in the morning anyway.
"It's not that...
it's not that dramatic."
It's certainly no time
to feel like celebrating.
I just...
It just lost its impact.
There's no question about it for me,
at least for now.
And I just...
It's a useless to say
that this is the least...
the...what I really
expected to happen.
Sid called me during the night.
Explained to me what had happened.
And...and we found out
that Ronnie had died.
And the reason he'd died,
I found out afterwards,
was simply that he'd broken
his leg basically,
and a bit of bone had broken off
and got into the bloodstream
and stopped the blood
going to his heart
and that's it.
We lost him.
I don't think anybody realised
how James was really shaken up
after having pulled
Ronnie out of the car.
And after a few more races
he actually stopped.
Designers like Colin
were brilliant enough
to keep coming up with new ideas.
MALE NEWS READER:
The Lotus 80 is the car
with which Colin Chapman
hopes to regain
the pole position he held
throughout the Grand Prix season.
He's got rid of the nose
and tail wings
to give the Lotus
an even cleaner line.
There is a tremendous
pace of development
going on in cars at the moment,
but it still is so much
the job of the driver
to get their car home,
to get home in front of the others
and not to fly off the road.
Colin was a bit distracted.
The Lotus 80
didn't win a single race.
In fact it was probably
the only really big disaster
than Colin ever designed.
At the end of '78
Jean-Marie was elected
as he always wanted to be,
unopposed.
[SPEAKING FRENCH LANGUAGE]
So, you don't see Balestre
trying to force
controversial measures to you
through in order to demonstrate
his power?
I really don't think he will.
I mean, well, we never wanted
any power
or any taste of power and, erm,
I don't think
anything needs to change
we are just asking him
to administer the rules
that are agreed between us.
I don't think he'll try, but anyway,
with nothing to worry about.
First thing he thought about doing
was change the name,
make it a bit more important.
The CSI had gone to FISA.
One of our meetings with Mr Ferrari
we'd used the word FICA a few times
during the meeting
and Mr Ferrari had said to me,
"You shouldn't use that word.
"It's not a good word to use
in Italian."
So, I said, "What do we have to do?"
He said, "Well, surely you could
have an O instead of an I."
So I said, "You mean FOCA?"
He said, "Yeah."
I said, "OK," and that's what it is.
It's FOCA.
We'd gone from FICA to FOCA.
So, we then had the FISA/FOCA w*r.
[CAR ENGINES REVVING]
What kind of a season
have we got ahead?
It's about to start.
Trouble! Trouble!
And it looks as though
Jody Scheckter and John Watson
have touched going round the corner.
The dust swirls away
all over the circuit.
The red flag is out.
They are going to stop the race.
[SIREN WAILS]
There is Niki Lauda.
Brought into the pits
on that marshal's motorbike,
and he's with Bernie Ecclestone,
the head man of Brabham
and the leading light
in the Formula 1
Constructors' Association.
And that's John Watson,
out of his McLaren M-28.
A sad occasion for John.
John Watson had an accident
and Balestre,
I don't think he bothered to see
whose fault it was
or what happened, or anything else
but decided he would disqualify him
from the next race.
And not only disqualify him,
fine him 3,000 pounds.
I didn't realise
that he'd made himself
clerk of the course,
director of the race,
the judge, the jury
and basically the executioner.
Max and I got together in Brazil,
and we said,
"Well, this is completely wrong."
We went into an underground place
at the circuit
to talk to Jean-Marie.
I said, "You just can't do this,
it's not within the regulations."
So, we explained to him
that we were gonna see
that John was gonna be reinstated.
Using a little bit
of strong-arm tactics
about what would happen
if he didn't change his mind.
We made Jean-Marie write out exactly
how he was going to reinstate him.
In the end,
what he'd written was in fact
permission to cancel
all the things he'd said
'cause the fine was thrown out
and John raced.
Today's Monaco Grand Prix
is the last race in the first half
of a 1979 Grand Prix calendar.
And in glorious sunshine
there are two Ferraris
on the front row of the grid.
[CARS WHOOSHING]
And look at that!
Didier Pironi climbing up
on the back of Lauda's Brabham.
Just one lap to go.
It'll be Scheckter's eighth career
Grand Prix win,
his second victory at Monaco.
It'll give him a clear lead
in the world championship
drivers point standings.
Here is the straight horsepower
by the Ferrari.
It's gonna be a Scheckter victory!
At the beginning I was taking it
very, very easy,
maybe a little bit too easy
'cause I knew that
we seemed to have it
but I knew that we shouldn't
push it too much.
Jody was typical South African.
They don't get pushed around
too easy.
Jody thought about his driving.
The two days of practice
have been sensational.
The new twin turbo Renault's
have shattered the opposition
by lapping fastest
nearly 7 seconds inside the record.
Everyone knows today what a turbo is
but in those days,
it was a brand new
and it was what Renault
brought into F1.
With the eyes of all France on them,
there the front rank,
Jabouille, Renault,
Arnoux, Renault.
And away they go.
[CARS WHOOSHING]
And Jabouille is challenging.
Jabouille comes out
of the slipstream
of Gilles Villeneuve,
and he's taking the lead.
Jean-Pierre Jabouille
is in the lead,
and so now a French driver
in a French car
with a French engine on French tyres
is leading the French Grand Prix.
Rene Arnoux is challenging
for second,
and he takes second place as they go
into the right hander
on the left at Sablier.
Arnoux, this incredible young man
with so comparatively
little Formula 1 experience
is having the effrontery
to pull away from Villeneuve
in the previously virtually
all-conquering flat 12 Ferrari.
Incredible!
Villeneuve stood on everything,
locked up his tyres, got the line
and he's back into second position
on the last lap but one
and the French crowd
aren't very happy about that
and who can blame them?
And Arnoux's on the inside
as they go round Villeroy.
He's got second position,
he's through.
They bang wheels.
He's off, he's off.
And he's back again.
And now Villeneuve's
in second position.
And Villeneuve
nearly loses the front
as they go up to Parabolique
on the 80th and last lap.
And he's back.
Villeneuve is second in the Ferrari.
Jean-Pierre Jabouille
has won in the Renault.
And Villeneuve is second,
Arnoux is third.
As Niki Lauda walks in to his
sixth retirement of 1979.
[SPEAKING FRENCH LANGUAGE]
It was satisfying for Renault
as it had taken them a couple years
to get their turbo working properly.
A tense, taut atmosphere
after the thrilling
French Grand Prix
where the turbocharged Renaults
humbled the Ferraris
and it promises to be electrifying,
for in practice,
a brand-new Lotus-like
Saudia Williams
has slashed an incredible 7 seconds
off the record.
Patrick Head was a good engineer
and designed a very, very good car.
How fast would you be going
at the fastest part of the track?
That sounds almost too fast.
I'm beginning to think that myself.
And perhaps a little bit
more important to the team,
they'd found a good sponsor.
A Saudi sponsor.
So, this was obviously, very, very,
very good for Frank.
Frank Williams, on practice form
you seem to have the ultimate
in ground effect cars.
They have very much
more cornering force
but they're just as quick
down the straight.
It's one of those things
we all dream about,
something for nothing.
So, how do you
reckon you're going to go against
the Ferraris and the Renaults,
presumably the cars to beat on form
at the moment?
We could beat them.
We've got our best chance so far
up against the two most
powerful teams currently racing
in Grand Prix competition.
Joining me today,
two former world champions
and winners of the British GP,
Jackie Stewart and James Hunt.
James, first of all
the obvious question,
the incredible speeds
that we're seeing here in qualifying
and practice,
this must impress even you.
Yeah, that's why I got out quick.
[CARS WHOOSHING]
Alan Jones, in the Saudia Williams,
is leading from his teammate
Clay Regazzoni.
And that is trouble for Alan Jones!
Clay Regazzoni, number 28,
is the new leader
of the 33rd British Grand Prix.
And he has won the British GP!
The first race ever
for the Saudia Williams team
and Frank Williams will be
beside himself with joy.
Frank Williams,
this must be the happiest day
of your motoracing life.
MALE INTERVIEWER:
Frank, we've watched you struggling,
if I may say so,
in moderation since 1969.
You said, "I won't stop until
I've won a world champion race,"
and then the world championship.
You must feel you're a bit close
to that today.
Yes, but I mean, my competitors
like Ferrari and Lotus
have won 70 Grand Prix
and that's an awful lot more races
we've got to win yet.
We've got to try and beat them, yes.
Well, give our congratulations.
Frank Williams, the man
who's kept trying for Britain.
Many congratulations.
Thank you, Frank.
I don't think being beaten
by a Ford engine car
made Mr Ferrari very happy.
Williams pushed Ferrari
very, very hard
at the end of that season.
[CARS WHOOSHING]
If Jody Scheckter can win this race,
he has to be the 1979 world champion
because Gilles Villeneuve
will hold the second position
to team orders.
Ferrari reliability has been 100%
and they achieved
a fantastic achievement.
What a magnificent day
for the gigantic Italian crowd.
Jody Scheckter,
world champion of 1979
as he wins the Italian GP.
Villeneuve second and in third place
in the Saudia-Williams,
Clay Regazzoni.
Turbos produce a lot of power
and Ferrari,
after seeing what Renault had done,
they thought,
"Maybe this is the way to go
for the future for Formula 1
"and in particular, them."
And he's still the best driver
in the world.
He's the most complete
race driver there is
because a lot of these guys
drive with some emotion.
He drives completely with his head.
Thinks this race out,
thinks the situation out.
He'll only go quick
when the conditions are right.
Yeah, when I came to Montreal,
I had an incredible
$2 million contract
for the following year with Brabham
and everything was so fantastic
that, you know,
my heart must have beaten up
when I went to the track
Friday morning to practice.
But I did...
I dunno, three or four laps
and I felt, I,
"What the hell
are you doing here?"
I had such a bad feeling
it just came
and hit me hard to say,
you know, "Do something else.
"Why racing?"
And I just stopped,
went up to Mr Ecclestone,
and said, "I want to speak to you."
He said, "I'm gonna stop.
I'm gonna retire."
I said, "When are you thinking
of retiring?"
He said, "At the end of the year."
"Ah," I said,
"so you're retiring from Brabham
"or Formula 1 or what?"
"No, no, no, no,
nothing wrong with Brabham.
"I'm retiring from Formula 1."
I said, "Well,
you're going to retire now."
He said, "What do you mean
I'm going to retire now?"
I said, "Right,
[STAMMERS] at this moment,"
I said, "We have to hurry up"
I said, "because we're going to be
starting qualifying soon."
Niki said,
"Well, what am I going to do?"
I said, "Well, I have no idea
what you're gonna do."
I said, "But retire
when you can walk away."
Niki jumped in his car
and then went back to the hotel,
changed...
And went to California
and bought an aeroplane.
And that's when Niki started
his airline.
[AIRPLANE WHOOSHES]
'74 in Brasilia,
Nelson Piquet wanted to have
a look at Formula 1,
and Herbie said, "Well, if you
want to come to the circuit,
"come and clean the cars."
So, he was happy to do that.
And then we found
that he hadn't got a pass.
So, I said,
"Stick him into the boot."
And we took him into the circuit
without a pass.
It was Nelson's way of getting
into Formula 1 in the beginning.
He lived with the team basically.
Got on super well with everybody
that ran the team.
As Nelson sort of more or less
was living at the factory
he was very, very technical.
Being very technical,
Nelson got very, very helpful
to Gordan Murray
and they become good friends.
The 1980 world championship
is wide open with prospects
of being one of the most
hotly contested seasons ever
in the long history of the Formula 1
world championship.
The last season
with their Alfa powered car,
I can't remember the times
that Niki actually retired.
We decided to change
to the Cosworth engine
which we'd had before.
And we were able to develop
with inside ourselves
rather than rely on working
with the engine all the time.
The PT49 that Gordon designed
was as good a ground effect race car
as you could have built at the time.
And it's Alan Jones
leading the two Ligiers...
Turbos produce a lot of power,
problem is they don't
always survive.
And Arnoux is in the pits still.
He came into the pits,
he's yet to start the race.
It's Alan Jones now
with a very comfortable lead.
Jean-Pierre Jabouille's car
went into the pits.
Both Renault's
then are out of the race.
And that is Jody Scheckter's car!
The engine has blown
and that is something
you do not expect to see
with Ferrari
who are famous
for their reliability.
And that is really a rare thing,
two broken Ferraris.
This is Piquet in the Brabham,
behind him Carlos Reutemann...
And Reutaman's locked
his front wheels
and gone straight on.
Fangio, the chequered flag.
Alan Jones wins
the first Grand Prix of 1980.
Fine drive by Nelson Piquet,
Murray, coming into second place.
Jean-Marie,
being Jean-Marie,
set up a technical working group
and probably instructed them,
"How can we make sure that the turbo
would be successful?"
It's strange he would think
like that,
not just because he was French
and Renault are French or something,
but I mean I'm sure
that wasn't in his mind.
The technical group said,
"Well, the easy thing to do
is ban skirts."
Increase the minimum weight
of the car because,
obviously, the turbo's going
to be heavier.
This was definitely directed
against Cosworth engine teams
that ran those cars and in favour of
cars with a lot more power.
[SPEAKING FRENCH LANGUAGE]
I believe the French have interfered
with the rules unconstitutionally,
and they've done so for the benefit
of their own racing teams
so that they, after 10 years
of trying,
might eventually win
a world championship.
We would lose about,
I suppose, 70% of the downforce
from our car
if we take the skirts off.
Ferrari wasn't too up together
with the aerodynamics either.
So, it suited Jean-Marie
the two manufacturers,
which he always supported
'cause he had a lot more power
through them
than he would
from his English teams.
Jean-Marie explained
to the world
and hoped the drivers listened,
that before each race
there'd be a driver's briefing
where they would get
everything explained
as to what they shouldn't do
and what they should do
and how they should drive.
And if they didn't attend
the briefing
there'd be a big fine.
And in fact,
if there was a third one missed,
they'd be even worse,
they'd lose their chance
to actually race in Formula 1.
[ROCK MUSIC]
The drivers were fined
for not doing
what they should have done
or what Balestre thought
they should have done.
Didn't pay their fine.
So, we thought about this
and they asked me,
"What do you think we should do?"
I said, "Well,
if you don't pay your fine
"you won't be able to race,
so we don't race.
"It's quite simple."
And then the problems started.
Thank you.
People were explaining to us
that Balestre was going
to have us all arrested.
Who cares if we spent two
or three years in a jail in Spain,
it wasn't that bad
the food was good,
everything was fine.
So, we stuck to our position
and wouldn't move.
There was a good reason
for why the three manufacturers
had agreed to go with him,
'cause if you think about it
carefully,
that Jean-Marie had just done
quite a nice package for them
with the turbo, no skirts
so why should they be against this?
The chat with the then President
of the Spanish federation
come out on our side.
[SPEAKING SPANISH LANGUAGE]
Balestre obviously appeared
in Spain.
The people from FISA started
to want to come into the circuit.
The police wouldn't let them in.
So, really, it was
the start of things
that were getting a bit rough.
FOCA have informed
that after a night of negotiations,
the Royal Automobile Club of Spain
informed the FISA
that the Spanish Grand Prix
is not to run under the auspices
of the FISA
and the presence of FISA officials
is no longer required in Jarama.
The FOCA fully support
the position of the RAC
and will participate in the race.
The Spanish Grand Prix will count
for the official 1980
Formula 1 championship.
Because the race is not run under
FISA rules, no FISA licenses
are required.
And so, we'll give you
another statement on Sunday morning
to clarify everything.
[INDISTINCT CHATTER]
[SPEAKING FRENCH LANGUAGE]
[DRAMATIC MUSIC]
Alan Jones up alongside Laffite
and Reutemann alongside Alan Jones.
And Reutemann in the Williams car
goes into the lead.
There is Villota in the Williams
and Reutemann comes up along
to take him...
Oh, no! That's Laffite!
And into Reutemann!
The two leaders out.
Reutemann and Laffite
out of the race.
Nelson Piquet, the new race leader.
Pironi closing right up
and he goes through and past,
and we have another new race leader.
So, Piquet must have blown his car.
He's out of the race.
There's Bernie Ecclestone,
the team boss,
very unhappy because now
both his cars are out
and it looks as though
Didier Pironi is...
[INTERRUPTS] Pironi's in trouble.
Pironi took a big wobble
out the braking there.
He's gone wide.
Yes, there goes the wheel nut
come off the wheel.
Pironi trying to get through.
Can he get through the pits?
No, indeed he can't because
off comes his right front wheel.
There is Alan Jones,
the fourth leader in this inspiring
Spanish Grand Prix.
He's got 9 points in sight,
but will those points count?
Well, as far as I'm concerned
Murray,
those points will certainly count.
And for those who take the view
that we lost three
of the major teams,
the fact of the matter
is that their withdrawal
was entirely political.
Over the line goes Alan Jones,
to win the Spanish GP.
In the end,
the race didn't count for points.
Frank was really upset.
Threatened to sue the FISA
and have Jean-Marie shot
or something.
It was getting a bit dramatic.
The two teams
who were very competitive
was Williams and Brabham.
Jones goes ahead of Piquet.
And Alan Jones is leading!
Piquet's really attacking.
He's driving very aggressively.
And straight past Alan Jones
goes the Brabham!
Amazing.
That's Piquet!
That's Piquet blown up.
That's Nelson Piquet,
the race leader,
is out of the race.
Alan Jones now moves into the lead.
Bitter gall and disappointment
for Nelson Piquet!
Frank had been doing everything
he could and was struggling
and got it together in the end.
Jones has done it!
And he is the world champion!
And it was nice to see him succeed.
Jean-Marie always believed
that the FISA should be looking
after the commercial side,
which is basically
what happens in football.
As soon as the opportunity arose
that enough of our contracts
expired,
they were going to meet
the promoters and talk to them,
collect probably less money
than they was having to pay anyway
and distribute this
in the way they thought fit
after taking a bit of a cut
for their self.
And it wouldn't have been
a bit of a cut
because the FISA
was gradually growing in size
and costing more to run.
So, this was their ambition.
So, a bit of a discussion.
I thought we ought
to try and do something,
we can't allow this to happen
'cause what will happen eventually,
the teams w...who were
putting on the show
and doing everything
will finish with nothing.
So, let's start
our own championship.
So, I think Teddy Mayer and Max
got together
and started to try and write up
these...these rules
and Colin or one or two others,
we drafted up the technical rules.
So, this was going to be
the World Federation of Motorsport.
Well, it's a very difficult,
unpleasant future.
If the row isn't sorted out,
there may be a breakaway group
as has happened in boxing
for instance and run...
that group may run
its own championship.
I'm just not in the position
that I can predict anything
other than a rather difficult
and grey future as I look at it now.
[SPEAKING FRENCH LANGUAGE]
The FISA had
a really strong position
'cause here we had the teams
that had to pay
to keep their-selves alive.
And they could say,
where's the money going
to come from?
Sponsors were saying,
"We're not going to be
able to support you
"'cause we don't know
what's happening."
[SPEAKING FRENCH LANGUAGE]
FISA really holds
a strong position now.
Why?
Mainly because they have
the licences,
they have a strong enough weapon
over the circuits and other
motor racing, you know.
Because, to start off,
any car manufacturer,
if they went against FISA,
would not be able to race their cars
in any other formula.
[CAR WHOOSHES]
Out of the 12 teams,
probably more than half
were bankrupt.
So, they started trying to think
of the future.
[DARK MUSIC]
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01x03 - The Talented Mr Ferrari
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The extraordinary story of Bernie Ecclestone's meteoric rise from post-w*r car dealer to the creation and 50-year reign over the cutthroat world of Formula One.
The extraordinary story of Bernie Ecclestone's meteoric rise from post-w*r car dealer to the creation and 50-year reign over the cutthroat world of Formula One.