F1-87/88C

Even the name of the 1988 car reflects its close similarity with the previous model, as it wasn’t considered necessary to create a whole new car for the turbo engine because the new normally aspirated model designed by Barnard had already been worked on for quite some time. The result was that the F1-87/88C was the last single-seater to adopt the turbocharged six-cylinder.

Just one win brightened an otherwise bland 1988 season. This was a real disappointment after the very positive end to the previous one with Berger and Alboreto’s double at Monza on September 11. Enzo Ferrari had passed away less than a month before, on August 14, not long after his 90th birthday and the double had seemed the perfect homage to his memory. Ferrari was the only team to have broken McLaren vicelike grip on victory (the latter had taken 15 of the 16 Grands Prix!) and despite the fact that the Scuderia scored just one victory, it still came second in the Constructors’ Championship courtesy of a host of good placings.