When the vastly more experienced Graham Hill was in negotiation to join him at Mecom Racing as a late replacement for the 1966 Indianapolis 500, he simply asked that he be given the same as Jackie Stewart was getting: a request that was as shrewd as it was fair, for the younger gun was already noted for striking a hard bargain. Hill would win that race – but only after the sister Lola of his BRM F1 team-mate and fellow rookie had coasted to halt 10 laps from victory. Stewart would have to settle for sixth, the Rookie of the Year award – and $25,767. 

It was not yet possible for a professional racing driver to survive on F1 alone, though its increasing commercialism from the end of the decade and Stewart’s business example would soon make it so. In the meantime the man himself could not resist the draw of the lucrative Can-Am series and he agreed to handle a Lola – “the worst car I ever drove” – for Carl Haas in 1971. Between winning grands prix and ultimately the F1 title, he would jet back and forth across the Atlantic. This made him a lot of money – though not as much as he had hoped given McLaren’s continued supremacy – but also made him ill. Inexplicable spins while testing a McLaren in readiness for the 1972 series coalesced his suspicions: a doctor grounded him for six weeks.

Such diversification was then the norm and its benefits were not only financial. As Stewart’s F1 path meandered with a misdirected BRM from 1966-67, the more fruitful F2 battles with Clark in more equal equipment (especially in 1967) provided a much-needed boost to his confidence. They also allowed him to create, form and build a partnership with Matra: initially unconvinced, he was astounded by the French marque’s build quality that would give it an edge in F1.