Already a successful entrant of other people’s cars, Ken Tyrrell became a Formula 1 constructor at the end of 1970. By the time his team closed its doors at the end of 1998, after being bought by British American Tobacco, Tyrrell had racked up 23 world championship grand prix victories, two drivers’ titles and a constructors’ crown.
While much of that success came in the team’s early days, the well-organised squad was highly respected throughout its three decades and ran some great drivers, including up-and-coming talents.
Despite its financial problems in the second half of its life, Tyrrell is 10th on the all-time world championship wins list, behind Benetton and ahead of BRM.
For this top 10, we considered the amount of success the drivers scored with Tyrrell, the impact they had on the team and the circumstances of their time there. We didn’t include their achievements elsewhere and have excluded the period during which the team ran Matra and March chassis, though that would have made no difference to the final ranking…
10. Jonathan Palmer
Jonathan Palmer won the Jim Clark Trophy in 1987, for drivers with naturally aspirated engines
Photo by: Motorsport Images
Tyrrell years: 1987-89
Tyrrell starts: 45
Tyrrell wins: 0
Tyrrell podiums: 0
Didier Pironi, who scored two podiums in his 31 starts for Tyrrell, nearly made this list, but Palmer gets the nod for two reasons. One is that he was something of a mainstay for the squad during a difficult period.
The second is Palmer’s victory in the 1987 Jim Clark Trophy, essentially a ‘Class B’ world championship for those running normally aspirated engines.
Palmer joined Tyrrell for 1987, after three years with poor RAM and Zakspeed machinery. At the same time, the team – following just two seasons with Renault turbo power – returned to Ford Cosworth motivation when it became clear that forced induction would be phased out of F1. The Jim Clark and Colin Chapman trophies were introduced for those switching back to natural aspiration and the DG016 was one of the sub-category’s better cars.
Palmer beat team-mate Philippe Streiff and Larrousse Lola driver Philippe Alliot to the title. He also took his best overall finish for Tyrrell with fourth in that year’s Australian GP, while his performance on his way to fifth at Monaco also attracted acclaim.
Palmer was a sensational ninth quickest in first practice at Jerez in 1988, though fell back to 22nd when his engine expired and he…
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