Keke's diary

Qualified: 7th Result: 5th

“I don’t recall it bothering me that we were starling the year with 07C. I mean, when you came from where I came from, you felt that whatever Williams you got, you had quite a good tool. And we went to South Africa knowing we were going to be beaten by the turbos, at that altitude. Qualifying proved that.”

It also proved Keke’s speed, for he wound up a half-second quicker than team-mate Carlos Reutemann.

“I thought I had a good chance of beating him, but even so, when I did outqualify him, I felt I had done a good job, because, of course, Carlos was a measure to judge yourself against.”

Keke ran ahead of Carlos in the race, too — until his gearknob came off in his hand. He then suffered a misfire which left him struggling to match the other Cosworths. But he had made his point.

“Every racing driver is convinced he can get the job done, and I always thought I had the speed. It was a question of getting in the right environment.”

Championship positions:

1 Prost 9;

2 Reutemann; 6

3 Amaux; 4

4 Lauda; 3

5 Rosberg; 2

6 Walson; 1