A pointless year

Ligier-Lamborghini

Car Ligier JS35

Engine Lamborghini 3512 naturally aspirated V12

Power 700bhp at 13,800rpm

Suspension double wishbones, pushrod-activated coil springs/dampers

Gearbox transverse six-speed semi-automatic Xtrac

Tyres Goodyear

Far removed from the halcyon days of Gerard Ducarouge-designed cars and Jacques Laffite in the 1970s, Ligier began the 1990s in a pit of despair. Laffite’s F1 career had ended midway through 1986 after breaking his legs at Brands Hatch, and Ligier began a steady descent thanks to poor cars, troubled engines, and line-ups comprising ageing and mediocre drivers.

The 1991 car, the JS35, was never anything more than a stopgap as Ligier had sought to reinvigorate its fortunes with a customer Renault engine deal for 1992, meaning it had to employ the bulky and thirsty Lamborghini V12 as a makeshift option. Drivers Nicola Larini and Philippe Alliot, who had toiled in 1990 with the B-spec JS33, were given the shove, and Thierry Boutsen made a significant step down from Williams to join F3000 champion Erik Comas in their place.

Boutsen, who was prised out of the Williams drive by the returning Nigel Mansell, had to suffer the ignominy of failing to score a point in 1991 as the JS35’s grip was poor; the story goes that Boutsen felt he