The start of the 1981 season was particularly turbulent for the Brazilian team Fittipaldi Automotive. With former World Champion Emerson Fittipaldi no longer in the team, having decided at the end of the 1980 season to leave Formula 1 to continue racing in the IndyCar series in the United States, Fittipaldi Automotive also lost its Skol sponsorship and, most significantly, its dynamic designer Harvey Postlethwaite, who moved to Ferrari in early 1981 to design the chassis for their 1982 car. As a result, Wilson Fittipaldi had to "fight tooth and nail" to keep his team alive in 1981 with only a slightly updated version of the F8 from the previous year, designated as the Fittipaldi F8C.
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| FITTIPALDI F8C, Keke Rosberg Montecarlo, Monaco GP 1981 |
Development of the car was overseen by new technical director Gary Thomas, who, due to budget constraints, made very few changes to Postlethwaite’s original design. Despite being modeled after the best wing-cars of the time, the issues that plagued the F8 in the second half of the 1980 season reappeared in 1981. Additionally, the car’s strong qualifying performances from the previous year were weakened by the ban on sliding skirts and the lack of a ride height control system, which had become essential for the 1981 cars.
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| FITTIPALDI F8C, Chico Serra Dijon-Prenois, French GP 1981 |
For the 1981 season, Fittipaldi cars adopted an all-white livery, and alongside returning Finnish driver Keke Rosberg, the team signed young Brazilian Chico Serra. In his debut at the Long Beach Grand Prix, Serra secured seventh place, the best result for the team that season.
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| FITTIPALDI F8C, Keke Rosberg Silverstone, British GP 1981 |
However, both drivers endured a frustrating year, often struggling to even qualify for races. One of the most telling signs of Fittipaldi’s struggles in 1981 was the tire situation. After parting ways with Goodyear at the end of 1980, the team switched between Michelin, Avon, and Pirelli throughout the season. A particularly odd case occurred at the Spanish Grand Prix, where the two Fittipaldi cars raced on different brands of tires.
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| FITTIPALDI F8C, Keke Rosberg Long Beach, USA West GP 1981 |
Unsurprisingly, with zero points and an unclassified finish in the Constructors' Championship, 1981 marked the worst season in the short history of the Brazilian team.
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