Ayrton Senna's 1985 Lotus 97T: It was in this car, chassis 2, that he took his first F1 victory in Portugal 1985.
The Lotus 97T was a Formula One racing car designed by Gérard Ducarouge and built by Team Lotus. A development of the Lotus 95T of 1984, it was designed for the 1985 Formula One season by French engineer Gérard Ducarouge. The 97T was powered by the turbocharged Renault engine which produced approximately 900 bhp (671 kW; 912 PS) for races, while the Renault's special qualifying engines were reported to produce over 1,000 bhp (746 kW; 1,014 PS). Sponsorship came from John Player Special, French oil company Elf (the official oil of engine supplier Renault) and Olympus Cameras, while the car used Goodyear tyres. The 97T was a simple design, but was robust and with the powerful Renault engines, it was fast. It used elements from the defunct Lotus 96T Indycar project in the aerodynamics with another innovative piece of Lotus design: an early form of bargeboards. These were placed between the front wheels and the side pods improving airflow around the side of the car. Ducarouge also got around the ban on the 'winglets' seen on the rear wings of the 1984 cars by placing them instead on the rear edges of the side pods. Lotus' major coup for 1985 was signing rising star Ayrton Senna from the Toleman team to replace long time team driver Nigel Mansell who had signed with Williams. Senna, the first driver signed to the team since the death of Colin Chapman, partnered Italian Elio De Angelis who had finished third in the previous season's drivers' championship and had had many promising results with the 95T. The 97T was very competitive during the season, taking 8 poles, 7 with Senna and 1 with De Angelis, and 3 wins. Senna's first was a brilliant performance in the Portuguese Grand Prix where he won by over a minute in monsoon conditions. His second came in the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa, held in wet/dry conditions.
Size: 5160px × 3744px
Location: ExCeL London, One Western Gateway, Royal Victoria Dock, London, E16 1XL
Photo credit: © John Gaffen / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: 1, 1985, 97t, ayrton, car, classic, formula, london, lotus, racing, senna, show
