1972 Lotus 72D and 1986 Lotus 98T. Photo: Peter Collins
1972 Lotus 72D and 1986 Lotus 98T
Emerson Fittipaldi drove Lotus 72 chassis 72/5 in no less than 39 races from 1970 to 1973. Ayrton Senna drove 98T/4 in eight races and several test sessions in 1986. These cars were the very first and the very last John Player Specials…they are very special indeed.
Oh, they were driven by a few others—Dave Walker and Tony Trimmer had a few races in 72/5, and when Fittipaldi left Lotus, Jacky Ickx did no less than 22 races in it. Jim Crawford and Brian Henton each had two events, pretty much at the end of its period career. Only Senna raced 98T/4, and his teammate Johnny Dumfries drove it in one test session. Not surprisingly, Fittipaldi looks on this car with great affection and not a little nostalgic sentiment. Special cars driven by very special people.
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