Depailler joins Ligier

Patrick Depailler (picture above), who had just signed a contract with Ligier, tests the new JS11-Cosworth, at the Paul-Ricard, early 1979. The car, instantly very competitive, was designed by Gérard Ducarouge, here leaning left side of the driver. The Ligier JS11 is, in my opinion, one of the prettiest F1 cars ever.

After finally winning a F1 race, the 1978 Monaco Grand Prix, Patrick Depailler left Team Tyrrell to join Ligier alongside Jacques Laffite. The French team had decided to field cars fitted with the compact and reliable V8 Cosworth engines, rather than the French-built Matra V12, used since their beginnings in F1, in 1976.

While Laffite won in Argentina and in Brazil, Depailler posted a flag-to-flag win in Jarama, in the 1979 Spanish Grand Prix (picture below). The win enabled him to tie Gilles Villeneuve in the standings at the end of April, with 20 points each and 18 for his team-mate Laffite.

Unfortunately, Depailler had to be replaced in June 1979 by Ligier, after breaking both legs in a hang gliding accident. He was replaced by Belgian veteran Jacky Ickx, who struggled to perform at the wheel of these very stiff, new generation, wing-cars. The positive momentum was broken, and the JS11 won’t win another race in 1979.