Fittipaldi: Lotus 72 was the best car I ever drove

Two-time Formula 1 world champion Emerson Fittipaldi has no doubt about which car defined his career. Speaking on the F1 Beyond The Grid podcast, the Brazilian singled out the Lotus 72 as the finest machine he ever sat in, highlighting the unique synergy with Colin Chapman and the car’s exceptional feel.

Why it matters:

Fittipaldi’s perspective offers a rare window into the driver-engineer relationship in an era before telemetry and simulations. His praise for the Lotus 72 – a car that carried him and the late Jochen Rindt to championships – underscores how intuitive design and trust can produce a truly dominant machine. The contrast with his later McLaren M23 shows how different engineering philosophies can also lead to success.

The details:

• Lotus 72: Fittipaldi called it “an extension of my body.” He described how he would tell Chapman what he felt, and Chapman would translate that into mechanical changes overnight – with no data, only human sensing and genius.
• Chapman’s intuition: “Colin used to put his two fingers here when I talked about the car, and it came as the right solution.”
• McLaren M23: A more conventional car, but incredibly adaptable. McLaren used three different wheelbases and adjustable weight distribution for different circuits – a level of preparation that Lotus didn’t match.
• Historical context: The Lotus 72 debuted in 1970 and featured advanced aerodynamics inspired by the Lotus 56. Rindt was on track to win the title before his fatal crash at Monza; Fittipaldi’s victory at the US GP secured Rindt’s posthumous championship.

The big picture:

Fittipaldi’s recollections highlight a golden age of driver-led development. While modern F1 relies on vast data streams and simulation, the bond between a driver and a gifted engineer like Chapman could produce a car that felt alive. The Lotus 72 remains a symbol of that era – a machine that, in Fittipaldi’s words, was simply “fantastic.”