The unexpected success of the March 881 in 1988 brought the Bicester-based team and its young engineer Adrian Newey into the spotlight of the motorsport world. Unfortunately, during the winter break between the 1988 and 1989 seasons, Italian manager Cesare Gariboldi, one of the key figures behind the rebuilding of the March team, tragically lost his life in a car accident. Meanwhile, March-Leyton House completed the acquisition of Ron Tauranac’s Ralt, a seasoned name in Formula 1 since the early 1970s when he owned Brabham before selling it to Ecclestone. At the same time, Robin Herd, the last founding partner of the original March Engineering (established in 1969), departed, handing over the presidency of the group to John Cowen, a former Ralt executive. These changes marked a corporate revolution for the British team.
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| MARCH CG891, Mauricio Gugelmin Montecarlo, Monaco GP 1989 |
Cowen’s first move was to sell March Racing, the division responsible for Formula One and F3000, to Akira Akagi, owner of Leyton House. The Japanese director then renamed the division Leyton House March Racing Team. As a tribute to Cesare Gariboldi, Akagi added his initials "CG" to the car's designation for the 1989 season. The new car was thus named March CG891 and was practically identical to the already innovative 881 from the previous season, with only slight updates made by Adrian Newey.
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| MARCH CG891, Ivan Capelli Montecarlo, Monaco GP 1989 |
The brilliant British designer left the chassis unchanged but refined the bodywork, shortened the wheelbase by 61 mm, and adopted a push-rod suspension layout at the rear. The major innovation of the car lay precisely at the rear: a very compact gearbox housing with ultra-thin gears, allowing for a full-width diffuser to enhance aerodynamic downforce. However, this innovative gearbox also caused numerous retirements in the first part of the season due to its fragility, an issue later resolved by reinforcing the gearbox housing.
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| MARCH CG891, Ivan Capelli Montecarlo, Monaco GP 1989 |
The engine powering the CG891 was the new Judd EV, a naturally aspirated 3496 cc V8 provided exclusively to the Bicester team and Brabham. Compared to the previous CV version, it featured a narrower V angle, now 78° instead of 90°, and increased power output of around 625 hp, made possible by Magneti Marelli's new electronic fuel injection system. The driver lineup for the British team remained unchanged, with Brazilian Mauricio Gugelmin and Italian Ivan Capelli. Both used the previous year’s 881 for the first two races, introducing the new CG891 starting with the Monaco Grand Prix.
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| MARCH CG891, Mauricio Gugelmin Spa-Francorchamps, Belgian GP 1989 |
It was in fact with the old 881 that Gugelmin achieved a podium finish, third place, at the Brazilian Grand Prix, the first race of the season. That would remain the team's only points finish in an otherwise disappointing 1989 campaign. The new CG891 failed to score a single point, with its best results being three seventh-place finishes by Gugelmin late in the season. Capelli, after a strong 1988, failed to score at all and recorded 14 retirements in 16 starts.
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