Round 4 - Imola
Ferrari teammates Didier Pironi and Gilles Villeneuve were never more than a couple seconds apart throughout this entire race, swapping places on 11 occasions. Ahead of this battle, and leading all but three of the laps he completed was the Renault of Rene Arnoux, whose Turbo caught fire late in the GP, leaving the Tifosi overjoyed with a runaway 1-2 finish. Villeneuve was furious with the finish however, as he believed Pironi disregarded team orders to "slow" and bring the cars home safely.
The Grand Prix was also notable for the boycott of the Constructor Teams, led by Bernie Ecclestone and his Brabham outfit. 14 cars started off on the parade lap, but the field was quickly trimmed to 13 as the Toleman of Derek Warwick never made it around to the starting grid. By lap 8, only nine cars remained in the race, with one of the retirements being the Driver's Championship Leader Alain Prost.
It is a bit unfortunate that this race was overshadowed by the political infighting leading up to the GP, and the tragic circumstances that followed in the aftermath of the Pironi - Villeneuve duel. Rene, Gilles, and Didier all ran within 3 seconds of each other for 44 laps, highlighted by several daring overtaking maneuvers between the three of them.
Highlight Package
Ferrari teammates Didier Pironi and Gilles Villeneuve were never more than a couple seconds apart throughout this entire race, swapping places on 11 occasions. Ahead of this battle, and leading all but three of the laps he completed was the Renault of Rene Arnoux, whose Turbo caught fire late in the GP, leaving the Tifosi overjoyed with a runaway 1-2 finish. Villeneuve was furious with the finish however, as he believed Pironi disregarded team orders to "slow" and bring the cars home safely.
The Grand Prix was also notable for the boycott of the Constructor Teams, led by Bernie Ecclestone and his Brabham outfit. 14 cars started off on the parade lap, but the field was quickly trimmed to 13 as the Toleman of Derek Warwick never made it around to the starting grid. By lap 8, only nine cars remained in the race, with one of the retirements being the Driver's Championship Leader Alain Prost.
It is a bit unfortunate that this race was overshadowed by the political infighting leading up to the GP, and the tragic circumstances that followed in the aftermath of the Pironi - Villeneuve duel. Rene, Gilles, and Didier all ran within 3 seconds of each other for 44 laps, highlighted by several daring overtaking maneuvers between the three of them.
Highlight Package
