The swan song of the American team founded by former CIA agent Don Nichols was the Shadow DN11. Despite the team's financial struggles, Nichols still managed to commission John Gentry to design a new car, built according to the classic ground-effect principles of the era. However, Gentry left Shadow in the winter of 1979, moving to Toleman before even the first chassis of the new car was completed. Nichols promoted Richard Owen and Vic Morris, two engineers who had worked on the project with Gentry, to technical directors, tasking them with finishing and refining the car.
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| SHADOW DN11, Stefan Johansson Buenos Aires, Argentinian GP 1980 |
As a result, the only truly new element of the DN11 was its chassis, designed by Gentry, while the rest of the car closely resembled its predecessor, the DN9, featuring the same Ford-Cosworth DFV V8 engine paired with a Hewland FGA 400 gearbox. The suspension and cooling system also remained unchanged, lacking the latest Cosworth updates introduced in 1980, which included improved pumps and new radiators.
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| SHADOW DN11, SDave Kennedy Buenos Aires, Argentinian 1980 |
By this point, Shadow was on the verge of bankruptcy, without sponsors or financial backing, leaving no room for car development. In fact, by March, recognizing the technical shortcomings of the DN11, the team had already begun working on a completely new car for the second half of the season, the DN12. The project was led by Vic Morris with support from Chuck Graeminger. Meanwhile, Nichols met with Hong Kong billionaire Teddy Yip, a longtime motorsport enthusiast who had previously attempted a constructor venture in 1978 by commissioning a car from Ron Tauranac’s Ralt. After brief negotiations, Nichols sold the team's assets and equipment to Yip in May 1980.
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| SHADOW DN12, Geoff Lees Jarama, Spanish GP 1980 |
The DN12, now painted in Theodore Racing colors, was used at Zolder, Monaco, and Paul Ricard but never made it past pre-qualifying. As a result, the DN11 remained the last Shadow car to start a Formula 1 Grand Prix and the last car built entirely under Nichols’ direction, bearing the elegant black livery he had always envisioned for his team.
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| SHADOW DN12, Geoff Lees Jarama, Spanish GP 1980 |
The 1980 season began with two rookie drivers, young Swede Stefan Johansson and Irishman David Kennedy. After the first two races, Johansson was replaced by Geoff Lees, who managed to secure the DN11’s only race finish in South Africa. In the other four races the American team entered, just like the first two, the Shadows failed to make it through pre-qualifying. Ironically, in Spain, later declared a non-championship race due to the FISA-FOCA dispute, both DN12 cars qualified but had to retire. After the 1980 French Grand Prix, with the team now under Yip’s leadership, Shadow officially withdrew from Formula 1, bringing an end to its eight-year journey, one that had mostly remained in the.... “Shadow”....
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