John Barnard

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Barnard gained a diploma from Watford College of Technology in the 1960s and joined General Electric Company. In 1968, he was recruited by Lola Cars as a junior designer. While at Lola, he was introduced to Patrick Head, who later helped found the Williams Formula One team. In 1972, Barnard joined the McLaren Formula One team and remained for three years working alongside Gordon Coppuck on the M23 chassis. By 1975, he had been hired by Parnelli Jones to work on the team's Formula One racer. After Philippe left, Barnard modified the design for Indycar. In 1980, the Barnard-designed Chaparral 2K chassis took Johnny Rutherford to the Indianapolis 500 and the CART drivers title. His success brought him to the attention of Ron Dennis, and in 1980 he joined McLaren and began working on the MP4/1, the first carbon fibre composite chassis in Formula One. The chassis was built by Hercules Aerospace in the US. The MP4/1 revolutionised car design. At the 1981 Italian Grand Prix, John Watson's crash demonstrated the strength of the carbon fibre monocoque. In 1983, Barnard pioneered the 'coke-bottle' shape of sidepods. During his time with McLaren, the team took drivers titles for Niki Lauda in 1984, and Alain Prost in 1985 and 1986. By the time Barnard left for Ferrari at the end of 1986, his cars had won 31 Grands Prix. The 80° V6 TAG engine was financed by Mansour Ojjeh and built by Porsche to Barnard's specification for the MP4/1E and MP4/2. After debuting at the 1983 Dutch Grand Prix with approximately 700 bhp, power steadily rose until the 1.5-litre turbocharged engine named the TTE PO1 produced around 950 bhp at the end of its life in 1987. In 1986, Barnard's relationship with Ron Dennis deteriorated, and it was announced before the 1986 German Grand Prix that he would join Ferrari in 1987. Given a large sum of money, he founded the Ferrari Guildford Technical Office in early 1988. Gerhard Berger won the last two races of the 1987 season, and followed with a victory at the 1988 Italian Grand Prix. Ferrari finished 4th in the Constructors' Championship in 1987 and 2nd in 1988. Barnard stated that the Gustav Brunner designed Ferrari F1/87 and F1/87/88C had a different design than he would have chosen. His main focus was on designing the 1989 car for the new 3.5-litre naturally aspirated engine regulations. In 1989, Barnard pioneered the electronic gear shift mechani

In Their Own Story

After his success in the US with Parnelli Jones and Chaparral, where the Barnard-designed Chaparral 2K won Johnny Rutherford the Indianapolis 500 in 1980, Barnard returned to Europe. A deteriorating relationship with Ron Dennis led to his move to Ferrari in 1987. Given a large sum of money, he established the Ferrari Guildford Technical Office in England in early 1988, naming it as a play on words of the GTO road car to avoid Italian press distractions. While at Ferrari, Barnard ruffled feathers by banning wine at the mechanics' lunch table and setting up his office outside Maranello. In 1989, he introduced the semi-automatic gearbox via steering wheel paddles. Although fragile in early testing, new recruit Nigel Mansell took the V12-powered Ferrari 640 to victory on its debut at the Brazilian Grand Prix. Later that year, Gerhard Berger survived a fiery crash at the San Marino Grand Prix, hitting the wall at nearly 180 mph. Because he could shift gears without using his hands, which were burned in the fire, Berger returned to racing just two races later in Mexico.

Reader's Guide

Barnard is credited with introducing the carbon fibre composite chassis in Formula One with the McLaren MP4/1 in 1981, and the semi-automatic gearbox with steering wheel paddles with Ferrari in 1989. He worked at McLaren from 1972 to 1975, then returned in 1980 to design the MP4/1. He left McLaren for Ferrari at the end of 1986. His Ferrari 640 won on its debut at the 1989 Brazilian Grand Prix.

Did You Know?

• Barnard's carbon fibre chassis was first used in the McLaren MP4/1 in 1981.
• The semi-automatic gearbox with steering wheel paddles debuted on the Ferrari 640 in 1989.
• Barnard's Chaparral 2K won the Indianapolis 500 in 1980.
• The TAG-Porsche engine in the MP4/2 produced around 950 bhp by the end of its life in 1987.