Often forgotten in the Senna story is his short time with Toleman.
Toleman, for the occasional reader who may be younger than me, was run by a posh bloke called Ted Toleman, but we all loved Toleman F1, because it was a sort of little guy v big guy thing, & Toleman were titchy.
It almost went busto, but was taken over, as a means of entry into F1 – because there were no spare “slots” in F1 at the time - & became Team Benetton. Colours of Benetton & all that. I think the architect of that deal was that bent bloke who later became involved with QPR, before being warned off an “unfit person to be a Football Club Director”. (What an odd concept, “not fit to be a Football Club Director”!).
Toleman fell out with the powers that be frequently, especially the tyre manufacturers.
What most do not realise, though, is that Toleman F1 was the breeding ground for so many who went on to greater things. Derek Warwick is, perhaps, not the best example, but also there were such luminaries as Rory Byrne, Pat Symonds, not to mention young Ayrton. Quite a line-up.
I’ve been trying to pick up a book about Toleman F1, it was such an important era in F1, & Toleman were loved by all of us, without exception. Anyone have any clues on a Toleman book, please?
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