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The Dijon Grand Prix on July 1, 1979, remains one of the most legendary races in Formula 1 history, where Renault claimed its first victory while René Arnoux and Gilles Villeneuve fought a fierce battle for second place.
In 1977, Renault made its Formula 1 debut alongside Michelin at the British Grand Prix. The French brand set itself an ambitious goal: to become the first team to win with a turbocharged engine, a technology that was still revolutionary at the time. But the yellow cars spent more time in the pits than on the track, and the British press ironically nicknamed the Renault RS01 the “yellow teapot” because of its chronic engine failures. According to former Renault Sport director Gérard Larousse, Ken Tyrrell laughed every time he saw the yellow single-seater. Despite the mockery, the French team persevered and worked tirelessly to improve the reliability and performance of the engine.
In 1979, Renault entered two cars in the world championship for the first time, retaining veteran Jean-Pierre Jabouille, who had been with the team since its F1 debut, and signing René Arnoux, who had been left without a drive after the Surtees team disappeared. The first races were difficult, particularly in Monaco, where the turbo's delay hampered the cars' speed and both Renaults started from the back of the grid. “It was a difficult period for us. We were just starting to finish a few races, but we weren't performing at all,” explains Gérard Larousse in the Canal+ documentary Sur la piste du Grand Prix de France (On the French Grand Prix Track). A month later, the cars had completely changed their appearance at Dijon-Prenois. The surprise at Dijon – at the French Grand Prix, Renault surprised everyone by occupying the front row: Jabouille in pole position, Arnoux in second place. At the start, however, they were overtaken by Gilles Villeneuve's Ferrari. Jabouille lost only one place, while Arnoux fell to ninth place before moving up the rankings as the race progressed.
Villeneuve pulled away, wearing out his tires, while Jabouille conserved his and maintained the gap with the Ferrari. The Italian's high pace wore out the Michelin tires, allowing the Frenchman to close in. On lap 47, Jabouille overtook Villeneuve, and Arnoux also caught up with the Canadian.
Jabouille wins, Arnoux in contention – With the Ferrari's tires and brakes on the verge of failure, Arnoux aggressively pursued Villeneuve. With three laps to go, he was right behind the Canadian, made his first move in the first corner, and took second place. Then Renault's old reliability issues resurfaced: the RS10 suffered from a fuel supply problem that limited the power of the V6 turbo.
Villeneuve took advantage of this deficit to close the gap, attempt a late pass, lock up his brakes, and get past. On the next lap, the roles were reversed: Arnoux retook the lead, with the two cars making contact several times in the first corner and the hairpin. In the end, Jabouille crossed the finish line first, claiming his first Grand Prix victory and giving Renault its first Formula 1 win. This triumph was somewhat overshadowed by the spectacular duel between Arnoux and Villeneuve, who finished second, with Arnoux completing the podium. “We were severely reprimanded,” the drivers recalled. This intense battle could have ended badly given the limited safety measures at the time, but the two friends respected each other and played fair. Nevertheless, they were summoned to the stewards' table at Silverstone, chaired by Niki Lauda. When asked for an explanation, Villeneuve said, “If I had to do it again tomorrow, I would do the same thing.” ” Arnoux replied, “If it had been you, there would have been no duel, and instead of finishing third, I would have finished second.”
A turning point for Formula 1 – Renault's willingness to take risks to win with the turbo sent a clear message to its detractors, particularly Ken Tyrrell. As the engine became more reliable and powerful, other manufacturers were forced to follow suit, which ultimately led to the widespread adoption of turbo engines until they were banned at the end of 1988. Gérard Larousse's ingenuity helped make Renault a genuine title contender, a status the team particularly benefited from between 1981 and 1983 with Alain Prost at the wheel.
