F1 INSIGHT By Graham Duxbury @ TheRealDux
WHO REALLY DESIGNED THE WORLD’ S GREATEST F1 CAR?
The McLaren MP4 / 4 is, statistically, the most successful Formula One car in history, having won 15 out of 16 races and claiming all but one pole position in the 1988 season in the hands of two of the world’ s greatest drivers- Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost. When rain begins to fall, the racetrack will evolve rapidly as grip levels plummet. It is up to the driver to determine how long slick tyres will be able to cope with the changing conditions and when the most opportune time arrives to pit for rain tyres.
Graham Duxbury is a former professional racing driver, celebrated SA champion and acclaimed motorsport administrator and commentator. A South African Hall of Fame Inductee, he made history in 1984 by winning the famous Daytona 24-hour sports car race in the USA in an all-South African team. Today, he heads Duxbury Networking, a leading IT company.
However, the debate has raged ever since that glorious’ 88 season as to who actually designed the MP4 / 4 or, more accurately, the McLaren-Honda MP4 / 4 which famously gave Senna his first World Drivers’ Championship title.
Honda engines had previously powered the Williams F1 cars, but for 1988 the Japanese manufacturer opted to partner with McLaren whose TAG-Porsche engines were becoming outdated.
McLaren had delayed its decision to switch from TAG-Porsche to Honda engines until mid-1987 which put pressure on the team to create a chassis to accommodate the new powerplant in the shortest possible time.
For example, there were only eight months from the time design work started on the MP4 / 4 until the first track test in March 1988 and the first race in Brazil in early April.
While Prost won the Brazilian Grand Prix at a canter, it was at the second race at Imola where the team’ s dominance was underlined.
It was noted in a media report that the McLaren MP4 / 4“ made a mockery of the rest of the grid” as both Senna and Prost were three seconds faster than the opposition. In the race, they produced a McLaren“ 1-2 finish”, two seconds apart, after lapping the rest of the field at least once.
The only race that the MP4 / 4 did not win in 1988 was the Italian GP which was won by
Gerhard Berger’ s Ferrari after Senna, who was leading, tangled with the Williams of backmarker Jean-Louis Schlesser.
Unfortunately, Prost was not able to rescue McLaren honour on this occasion as he had retired with engine problems. It was the only time in 1988 that a McLaren would retire due to a failed Honda engine.
Ever since that eventful 1988 season in which the McLaren MP4 / 4 swept all before it, easily securing driver’ s and constructor’ s titles, the row between then-McLaren chief engineer Gordon Murray and chief designer Steve Nichols has rumbled on as to who actually led the McLaren MP4 / 4 17-strong design team.
Surprisingly, neither one has ever acknowledged the contribution of the other.
Nichols was born in the USA in 1947 and is credited with the design of numerous highprofile F1 cars, including Ferrari’ s 1990 entry, the 641 as well as the McLaren MP4 / 3 and – contentiously – the MP4 / 4.
Born in South Africa in 1946, Murray has been responsible for the design of many successful road cars as well as the mid-1980s Brabham F1 cars. He is often credited with the design of the McLaren MP4 / 4.
In countless media interviews, both Nichols and Murray have gone to great pains to eschew the involvement of the other in the conception, birth and execution of the incredibly successful MP4 / 4 project.
Nichols, for example, says the MP4 / 4 was an update or evolution of his earlier design – the McLaren TAG-Porsche MP4 / 3.
Murray, on the other hand, disagrees. He says he deserves full credit for designing the car, which is solely based on the design of the“ tilted-engine” Brabham BT55 which he had previously penned.
“ I’ m sick and tired of people living off my reputation,” says Murray.“ This thing about Steve Nichols being chief designer [ of the MP4 / 4 ] is the biggest load of rubbish you’ ve ever heard.”. Nichols is unequivocal, claiming the MP4 / 4’ s design philosophy is closely linked to that of the MP4 / 3.“ It is exactly the same,” he stresses.
On his website, Nichols emphasises his role as the only MP4 / 4 designer:“ To overcome any confusion, Gordon sent around a memo, in which he said that I had total design responsibility for the MP4 / 4 and that Neil Oatley would be looking at the car [ to follow ] after that, the MP4 / 5, a naturally aspirated car, requiring a longer gestation period.”
One commentator summed up the argument succinctly:“ There appears to be more to the argument than simply opposing viewpoints or confusion, with personal differences perhaps playing a role. Or could it be a case of two grown men behaving like teenagers?
Six MP4 / 4 cars were moulded from carbon fibre with assistance from US-based Hercules Aerospace. All six MP4 / 4 chassis still exist. Photocredit: Reddit. com
WORDS IN ACTION 26 SEPTEMBER 2025