Winning Run.

[Super Tourer]

Looking back at the constructors championships since 1980 throws up some interesting facts.

Apart from Benetton (1995) only Ferrari, McLaren or Williams have won the WCC since 1980.

If Ferrari wins the 2005 constructors championship they will equal Williams nine championship wins since 1980.

Williams go into 2005 without winning a WCC for 7 years, their longest ever 'losing' streak.

McLaren go into 2005 without a WCC for 6 years, equalling their lean period from '92 to '97.

Since 1980 McLaren have won 7 WCC titles. Williams have won 9 titles.

On only 5 occasions since 1980 has the winning constructor failed to 'do the double' and win the drivers title as well - of those, three times ('82,'83 and '99) it was Ferrari - in '82 it was tragically out of their hands and in '99 Schumacher was injured.

Brabham won two drivers titles with Piquet ('81 and '83) but didn't win the constructors title on either occasion.

Much is made of Ferrari's current dominance, but it was a very different story in the previous two decades. Ferrari won the WCC only once in the 90's ('99) and twice in the 80's ('82 and '83), which made it's lean period from '84 to '98 when it failed to win a single title of any kind.

To put Ferrari's current success into perspective with the teams history, between 1999 and 2004 it scored as many WCC titles as it did in the 1970's and 1980's put together.

The Ferrari dominant points gap to it's rivals has been almost replicated before - In Ferrari's most dominant years (2002 and 2004) it finished 143 and 129 points (respectively) ahead of it's nearest rivals. In 1988 McLaren Honda had a winning margin of 134 points from it's nearest rival - Ferrari...

You can often follow the ebb and flow of teams success by their engine deals, for example.

Williams won the WCC in '86 and '87 with Honda power - at the end of 1987 Honda decided to put all their eggs into McLaren's basket - the result - in 1988 Williams had a stop gap year with a Judd engine and finished 7th in the WCC with only 20 points (behind teams like March and Arrows), whereas McLaren won the title easily with Ferrari in 2nd place.

Prior to Ferrari's current winning streak, the longest winning run since 1980 had been McLaren - '88,'89,'90 and 1991.

And finally....the stage is set for another record to be set in 2005 - the longest winning engine constructor, currently that is a tie. Since 1980, Honda have won 6 titles on the trot ('86 to '91) as have Renault ('92 to '97) with Ferrari also on 6 wins in succession ('99 to 2004).

Can Ferrari make it seven in 2005 to add another record to their books?