Video Series: F1 1978 – The Shape Of Things To Come

Colin Chapman flipped the Formula One world upside down during the 1978 Formula One season, introducing the glued-to-the-ground Lotus 79 in Belgium and changing the shape of Formula One cars forever.

The Lotus 79 made its debut for the 6^th round of the championship at Zolder in Belgium. For the first time a Formula One car utilised ground-effects to control the flow of air underneath the car and create negative pressure that would suck the car onto the road.

Driving the lone Lotus 79, Mario Andretti set out and immediately proved the pace of the new design by taking pole position and then walking away from the field to win the race. Ronnie Peterson came home second, securing the first of many Lotus ‘one-two’s that would come in ’78.

This three-part video recaps the ’78 season and the Lotus 79 and looks in depth at the development of the McLaren M28. It is packed with brilliant racing footage, including a terrific wrap-up of the ’78 Monaco Grand Prix, terrific insights from men like Ken Tyrrell, Colin Chapman and Gordon Coppuck and provides an interesting investigation into some classic designs that changed the future of the sport.