Alain’s big brother

“I was present early 1980, on Alain Prost’s first test for McLaren”, tells John Watson – “and one could tell, by the way he changed gears, use his clutch – that he felt good in the car. He was made for this job.”

Picture above: Alain Prost and John Watson, still good friends in 1981, when the Frenchman debuted at Renault.

Watson continues: “My first impressions of him: small stature, nose and teeth crooked. He was confident, he believed in himself, but was not arrogant – he just was used of winning.”

“On a professional and personal level, I had absolutely no problems with Alain. In 1980, he had to mature obviously, but he did not embark in politics within the team. That can not be said of Ron Dennis and John Barnard…”

“That particular season, I felt somehow like Alain’s big brother. At Kyalami, he had a serious crash at the Esses and was shaken. I took him personally to the hospital. We got along well.”

Picture below: Alain Prost made great impression by scoring the point for 6th place, on his debut in F1 at the 1980 Argentinian Grand Prix.