Sports

Alan Jones Dies at 80, Reflects on Ferrari Offer He Declined

By Mathias Brunner

Alan Jones, the 1980 Formula 1 World Champion, died on 5 November at the age of 80. The former Williams driver, who was born in Melbourne, recorded 116 World Championship starts, 24 podiums, 12 Grand Prix victories, 13 fastest laps, and the 1980 title. In 1981 he felt his drive had improved but reliability issues and a strained relationship with teammate Carlos Reutemann led him to question the partnership. Jones recalled that Frank Williams had set a contract clause requiring Reutemann to let Jones pass if he was within four seconds of the leader, a rule that was not respected in 1981.

Years later, Jones received a call from Maranello asking if he would replace the injured Didier Pironi. He remembered a prior interaction with Ferrari in 1977 when the team had attempted to sign Mario Andretti and later signed Gilles Villeneuve instead of Jones. Jones said he had declined the offer in 1982, a decision he later described as the “daftest thing” he had done in his career.

Jones’s comments were recorded in an interview where he described the joy of winning the championship and his subsequent decision to stay with Williams. He also reflected on the irony that after he declined Ferrari, the team signed Andretti, who secured pole at Monza.

The news of Jones’s death was reported by the original German-language source and translated into English.