When Bernie called

Derek Warwick, above, driving his Brabham BT55-BMW through the streets of Detroit in 1986. The Detroit Grand Prix took place on June 22, 1986, on a 4.120 km circuit laid out in the city center. Note the particularly low profile of this single-seater, called ‘the dab’, designed by Gordon Murray.

The English driver had taken the place of Elio de Angelis, who sadly died in May at the wheel of the Brabham BT55 during a test session at Paul-Ricard. Warwick recalls: “I received a phone call from Bernie (Ecclestone), who told me that he appreciated the fact that (unlike many drivers) I had not called him five minutes after Elio’s death, and asked me to drive for him.”

On the streets of Detroit, Warwick gave his best, but finished outside the points in tenth position, while his teammate Riccardo Patrese snatched the point for sixth place, a lap behind the day’s winner, Ayrton Senna (Lotus-Renault). It was a meager haul for Bernie Ecclestone’s team, which will only score two championship points all season.