GP RACING JULY 2020 67
where Mansell finished second in the rain – the
team had reverted FW12 to ‘passive’ spec.
The Juddwas a necessary stop-gap in the wake
of the Honda divorce. New opportunities were
there to be forged aheadof the looming ‘atmo’
engine rulebook that would cast aside turbo power
in ’89. Renault had single-handedly triggered a
slow-burn F1 revolution when it first ran its ‘funny
little’ turbo engine at Silverstone in 1977 – and yet
despite mixing all the right ingredients to deliver
a batch of world titles, the French car maker had
always fallen short. Deflated, Renault folded its
works team at the end of 1985, reverting toengine
supplier status onlyfor a year before quitting
completely. But it was only licking its wounds.
By early 1987 a new 3.5-litre normally aspirated
engine programme was under starter’s orders
and in June 1988 an inital three-year deal with
Williams was struck. In Viry-Châtillon, Bernard
Dudot rubbed his hands at the chanceto work
with Patrick Head.
As Mansell headed for Ferrari, it was left to
veteran Riccardo Patrese and a new signing,
Thierry Boutsen, to lead the charge in 1989.
The Belgian had grown in stature at Arrows and
Benetton, but this was a relatively low-key line-up
after the sparks of the Mansell-Piquet years.
No bad thing as Williams knuckled down for
a new climb tothe summit.After pre-seasontesting in a modified FW12C
powered bythe new high-revving RS01 67-degree
V10, Williams appeared only second on pace to
McLaren’s Senna-Prost super-team, powered by
Honda’s potent new V12. In Brazil, as Patrese
started a record-breaking 177thgrand prix, the
Italian qualified on the front row, led andeven
set fastest lap before retiring, as Mansell pulled
off a surprisewin on his debut for Ferrari.
The Williams-Renault partnership was properly
consummated with a team one-two in a wet
Canadian GP, Boutsen scoring his first F1 win after
Patrese gaveway with a broken underfloor.
In Hungary, Patresetook pole and led until
lap 52 when a stone punctured a radiator. That
one stung. But momentum was building, and
was further boostedwhen the evolutionary FW13
finally came on line in September. Patrese and
Boutsen scored a two-three at Suzuka after Senna
and Prost’s infamous collision at the chicane,
then Thierry made the Williams a winner with
another impressive wet-weather performance in
Adelaide. Despite his lack of wins, Patrese still
outscored his team-mate over the seasonto finish
third behind the warring McLaren duo, while
Williams-Renault claimed a comfortable runner-
up spot, well clear of Ferrari, in the constructors’
standings. On thedownside, it was awhopping 64
points shyof the dominant McLarens. Williams
was still in the foothills of its F1 mountain.
In 1990 Patrese would win his first GP for seven
years, at Imola, scene of a painfulthrowaway back
in 1983 when hisown countrymenhad cheeredThierry Boutsen joined Williamsfor the
start of the 1989 season and claimed his
first F1 win in Canada that same yearBothPatrese(pictured withrace winner
AlessandroNannini) and Boutsen made
it on to the podium inJapan in 1989The joining ofRenault’s new V10to Williams’
chassis would, after a steady start, prove tobe
a marriage made in Viry-Châtillon and Didcot...GP RACING JULY 2020 67
where Mansell finished second in the rain – the
team had reverted FW12 to ‘passive’ spec.
The Juddwas a necessary stop-gap in the wake
of the Honda divorce. New opportunities were
there to be forged aheadof the looming ‘atmo’
engine rulebook that would cast aside turbo power
in ’89. Renault had single-handedly triggered a
slow-burn F1 revolution when it first ran its ‘funny
little’ turbo engine at Silverstone in 1977 – and yet
despite mixing all the right ingredients to deliver
a batch of world titles, the French car maker had
always fallen short. Deflated, Renault folded its
works team at the end of 1985, reverting toengine
supplier status onlyfor a year before quitting
completely. But it was only licking its wounds.
By early 1987 a new 3.5-litre normally aspirated
engine programme was under starter’s orders
and in June 1988 an inital three-year deal with
Williams was struck. In Viry-Châtillon, Bernard
Dudot rubbed his hands at the chanceto work
with Patrick Head.
As Mansell headed for Ferrari, it was left to
veteran Riccardo Patrese and a new signing,
Thierry Boutsen, to lead the charge in 1989.
The Belgian had grown in stature at Arrows and
Benetton, but this was a relatively low-key line-up
after the sparks of the Mansell-Piquet years.
No bad thing as Williams knuckled down for
a new climb tothe summit.
After pre-seasontesting in a modified FW12C
powered bythe new high-revving RS01 67-degree
V10, Williams appeared only second on pace to
McLaren’s Senna-Prost super-team, powered by
Honda’s potent new V12. In Brazil, as Patrese
started a record-breaking 177thgrand prix, the
Italian qualified on the front row, led andeven
set fastest lap before retiring, as Mansell pulled
off a surprisewin on his debut for Ferrari.
The Williams-Renault partnership was properly
consummated with a team one-two in a wet
Canadian GP, Boutsen scoring his first F1 win after
Patrese gaveway with a broken underfloor.
In Hungary, Patresetook pole and led until
lap 52 when a stone punctured a radiator. That
one stung. But momentum was building, and
was further boostedwhen the evolutionary FW13
finally came on line in September. Patrese and
Boutsen scored a two-three at Suzuka after Senna
and Prost’s infamous collision at the chicane,
then Thierry made the Williams a winner with
another impressive wet-weather performance in
Adelaide. Despite his lack of wins, Patrese still
outscored his team-mate over the seasonto finish
third behind the warring McLaren duo, while
Williams-Renault claimed a comfortable runner-
up spot, well clear of Ferrari, in the constructors’
standings. On thedownside, it was awhopping 64
points shyof the dominant McLarens. Williams
was still in the foothills of its F1 mountain.
In 1990 Patrese would win his first GP for seven
years, at Imola, scene of a painfulthrowaway back
in 1983 when hisown countrymenhad cheeredThierry Boutsen joined Williamsfor the
start of the 1989 season and claimed his
first F1 win in Canada that same yearBothPatrese(pictured withrace winner
AlessandroNannini) and Boutsen made
it on to the podium inJapan in 1989The joining ofRenault’s new V10to Williams’
chassis would, after a steady start, prove tobe
a marriage made in Viry-Châtillon and Didcot...