Lotus-Ford

Interesting facts

The 1967 debut of the Ford-Cosworth DFV engine marked a turning point: Chapman persuaded Ford to fund development of the new V8 race engine in exchange for what was, initially, exclusive access to it. The Lotus 49 won on its very first outing, at the 1967 Dutch Grand Prix, with Jim Clark at the wheel, a rare feat for a brand-new car-and-engine combination. Clark won four races with the new car in 1967, but reliability problems cost the team the championship that year; he was killed in a Formula Two race at Hockenheim in April 1968. After Clark's death, Graham Hill took over as team leader and secured his second World Championship with three race wins in the further-developed Lotus 49B. In 1970 Jochen Rindt scored the 49's final win at the Monaco Grand Prix, then was killed in an accident during practice at Monza, making him, still uniquely, a posthumous World Champion. Over its career the Lotus 49 amassed twelve race wins and two World Championships for the team before handing over to the wedge-shaped Lotus 72. Lotus-Ford's Formula 1 history ran from 1963 to 1971, 5 seasons in total as a British team. Lotus-Ford won the Constructors' Championship once, in 1968. The team scored a total of 174 constructors' championship points.