Over the next couple of weeks I thought it would be
interesting to look at what I consider to be the 50 greatest cars in the
history of Formula 1. Ranking the cars took a lot of thought and was very
difficult to do. We will be revealing 5 cars a day every Tuesday and Thursday
so be sure to keep checking back for the next part of the list. Also, please
feel free to discuss whether or not you feel cars are ranked too high or low on
the list or what you would consider to be among the greatest cars in the
history of the sport. Even though it took a lot of time to put this list
together, I felt many cars were very close to each other and many arguments
could be made. So to start off we are going to look at what I consider to be
cars 46-50 on my list today.
50. Ferrari F2008
Years Used: 2008
Wins: 8
Championships: 2008
Constructors'
The F2008 was Ferrari's 2008 challenger from Ferrari which
was trying to defend both a Drivers' and Constructors' Championship from the
previous season. Drivers Kimi Raikkonen and Felipe Massa both had successful
years in which both drivers won multiple races and competed near the front of
the grid throughout the season. Ferrari was in a season long battle with
McLaren during the year which saw both championships go down to the final race
in Brazil. Felipe Massa went up against Lewis Hamilton for the Drivers'
Championship in what is one of the most classic title deciders in the history
of the sport and was defeated. Despite not winning the Drivers' Championship,
Ferrari did manage to win the Constructors' Championship by 21 points.
49. Ferrari 126C
Years Used: 1981-84
Wins: 10
Championships: 1982
& 1983 Constructors'
Ferrari used the 126C chassis for four years to compete in
the Formula 1 championship and was a
consistent contender throughout. The first
year it was used in 1981 was a bit of a struggle as it was Ferrari's first
effort with a turbo engine and it was unreliable. The car showed its potential
though as Gilles Villeneuve took victory at the Monaco and Spanish Grand Prix.
In 1982 with an updated 126C2 version of the chassis designed by Harry
Postlethwaite and a more reliable engine,
the car was a true championship contender. However, the year was a
tragic one for Ferrari as both drivers that started the year with the team were
not there at the end. Gilles Villeneuve was tragically killed in an accident
for qualifying at the Belgian Grand Prix and Didier Pironi had a career ending
accident at the German Grand Prix. Despite this, Ferrari won three races during
the season and won the Constructors' Championship even though they entered just
one car for five races and then withdrew from the Belgian Grand Prix following
Villeneuve's death. However, if Villeneuve and Pironi raced for the team all
year it is likely one of them would have one the Drivers' Championship as well.
In 1983 with the 136C3 version of the chassis, Ferrari were once again
championship contenders with drivers Patrick Tambay and René Arnoux. Tambay won once and Arnoux won three times. The team won the
Constructors' Championship for the second straight year but were beaten to the
Drivers' Championship by Nelson Piquet. The 126C4 version used in 1984 took a
step back as McLaren dominated the sport for the season. The team only had one
victory throughout the year but still finished second in the Constructors'
Championship behind McLaren.
48. Brabham BT19
Years Used: 1966,
1967
Wins: 4
Championships: 1966
Drivers' & Constructors, 1967 Drivers' & Constructors"
In 1666, the engine formula was doubles from 1.5 liters to 3
liters which meant teams needed to secure new engines for the season. The
Brabham BT19 was designed to originally be used in the 1965 season but was not
used till the following year. Team owner and driver Jack Brabham convinced an
Australian company Repco to build an 8 cylinder engine that would comply with
the new regulations in place for the season. Even though the Repco engine was
not the most powerful, it was extremely lightweight and reliable. Brabham
thought that these characteristics would give the team an advantage as they
headed into a new season. Brabham won four races in a row during the 1966
season which led him to winning the championship by 14 points over nearest
rival John Surtees. Brabham switched to the BT20 for the final two races of the
season but used the Bt19 again for two races in 1967 in which he achieved a
second place finish. Denny Hulme used a BT19 for the 1967 Belgian Grand Prix
for the final time in which he retired. Hulme went on to win the Drivers'
Championship for 1967 although he mainly used a BT24 throughout the season and
the Brabham team won the Constructors' Championship.
47: Lotus 33
Years Used: 1964-1967
Wins: 5
Championships: 1965 Drivers' & Constructors'
The Lotus 33 was the successor to the highly successful
Lotus 25 that led Jim Clark to his first championship. The car debuted in the
second half of 1964 but did not achieve any significant results for the season.
The car was brought back for 1965 and Jim Clark won the first five races he
competed in during the year his Lotus 33 in but then retired in the last three
races of the season. The points he gained from the wins was enough to allow him
to win the World Championship and also for Lotus to hold onto the Constructors'
Championship over BRM. As Formula 1 entered the new 3 liter engine formula, the
Lotus 33 struggled for the 1966 season. The car only achieved one podium for
the season and was used by the Lotus team once more at the Monaco Grand Prix of
1967 in which Graham Hill achieved a second place finish. Mike Fisher entered a
privately ran Lotus 33 in the Canadian and Mexican Grand Prix of 1967 which
would be the last time the car saw a Formula 1 grid.
46. Ferrari 248 F1
Years Used: 2006
Wins: 9
Championships: None
The Ferrari 248 F1 which got its name from the new Formula 1
engine formula of 2.4 liter V8 engines was the car that Ferrari designed to
rebound from a disappointing 2005 season. The car started the season off
slightly off the pace of the Renault but Michael Schumacher was able to collect
two wins and four second place finishes during the first half of the season.
The car seemed to gain pace as the season went on and for the second half of
the year Ferrari had the car to beat. Schumacher was able to use this advantage
to climb back into championship contention after being 25 points behind
Fernando Alonso at the halfway point of the year and get level on points with
just two races to go. An engine failure while leading the Japanese Grand Prix
in the closing stages and a puncture early in the Brazilian Grand Prix ended up
costing Schumacher any chance he had of winning the title in what would be his
last year at Ferrari. During the year, Felipe Massa also picked up his first
two career wins using the 248 F1.
Please feel free to discuss any aspect of the rankings in
the comments section below. Do you feel any of these cars are ranked too low or
do you think they should not be on this list at all? Also don't forget to check
back Thursday as we reveal the next 5 cars on the list.
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