A young South African moved to Britain in 1970 and, before two years had passed, he found himself driving for McLaren. At Watkins Glen, USA 1972, he got himself into 3rd place but unfortunately spun out and could only claim 9th at the finish. Nevertheless, his performance made the world of F1 take notice. He also managed to take out Emmerson Fittipaldi in France that same year during his third race. The following year (1973) he made a name for himself again by causing one of the biggest pileups in F1 history. He took out half the field of the British GP at Silverstone when he spun at Woodcote corner, bringing the race to an early halt. The number on his car was 0, the name was Jody Scheckter.

Jackie Stewart, now Sir Jackie Stewart, walked away from racing at his peak after winning three World Championships. With Francois Cevert having died during practice in the USA GP, a big hole was left for Ken Tyrell to fill and, in 1974, Jody was appointed along with team-mate Patrick Depailler. He (Jody) rewarded the team with two wins and a third place in the Drivers Championship. Three podiums, including a fitting win in South Africa, saw 1975 pass in reasonable fashion. Then in 1976 Ken went into overdrive…

Formula 1 should provoke radical design and innovation. It has a legacy of doing just that although, at various points along the way it has also been seen to produce some shockers.

Many cars have had the term ‘Oddball’ attached to them and, beyond a few test runs, never raced. Others merely made it onto the draughtsman’s board and not beyond. Some made the grade but proved unreliable or downright dangerous, but here and there something comes along that works and performs well enough for it to be taken seriously. A few instances of ‘oddity’ are - The Brabham BT46 (Fancar), or perhaps I could mention the March 2-4-0 and maybe stake a claim for the Williams FW08B. But probably the most well-known is the Tyrrell P34, more commonly remembered as the ‘six-wheeled car’.

When it was unveiled in 1976 it caused quite a stir, with laughter from some and, in equal measure, consternation from others, who sent their designers scurrying back to their drawing boards to look at the possibilities of utilising this audacious departure from convention.

But what a year it was for the six-wheeler! Jody and Patrick Depaillier took the vehicle to all venues and basked in the glory of no less than nine podiums between them. Sometimes they shared the glory, as at Monaco, where they finished 2nd & 3rd. Sweden was their finest hour with a 1st & 2nd . The year ended with a third place in the Championship.

Those that rule and regulate eventually saw that something had to give and with other manufacturers entering the fray with six wheelers of varying design they decreed that – four wheels good, six wheels bad (apologies to George Orwell).

Jody left Tyrell at the end of the season with the parting shot that the 6 wheeler was a “piece of junk”. He went on to drive with Wolf where he chased Niki Lauda in the Drivers Championship, only narrowly being pipped at the post. In ’70 he teamed up with Ferrari and won the Championship. He retired from racing in 1980.

It is interesting to note that, following Scheckter, it was 21 years before Ferrari again had a driver hold aloft the Drivers Championship Trophy. One Michael Schumacher finally did the deed and dragged the team from years in the wilderness.

Tyrell went on for some years but never recaptured those glory years of Stewart and Scheckter. They will be remembered forever, however, for those 6 wheelers and the innovation shown.