The boys are back in town

cLaren was in crisis mode in the late 1970s and into 1980. Not only had it not won a race since the end of 1977, but it also hadn’t looked remotely close to winning. More often than not, the team was barely competitive and, despite Lotus having hinted at a ground-effect future during 1977, McLaren got left behind. When Ulsterman John ‘Wattie’ Watson joined the team for the 1979 season his teammate Patrick Tambay was asked how they were ranked: “We’re equal number twos.” It summed up the team morale but Wattie, at least, had had some previous success. In 1976 he’d given Penske its only ever Formula 1 (F1) victory in a commanding performance and with a bit of luck he’d have added more wins during 1977 if the Brabham-Alfa had been even a tad reliable. In 1978 he’d often matched his two-time world champion teammate Niki Lauda, but whereas the Austrian won twice Watson had only had a solitary silver medal to show for his natural speed. On the teams’ front McLaren’s championship years of 1974 with Emerson Fittipaldi and two years later with James Hunt were already distant