<< Prev Page 3 of 3 With the turbo engine's bugs not fully ironed, Brabham was forced to roll out the BT49 for yet another season. It was lightened again and equipped with water-cooled brakes. This was a clever trick applied by several of the teams still running naturally aspirated engines. Considered a coolant, the reservoir could be filled up before the car was checked to see if it complied with the weight limit. Needless to say, the 50-litre reservoir was emptied in the opening laps, allowing the cars to run under weight for the majority of the race. The system was successfully protested and Piquet was disqualified after winning round two of the championship in Brazil.
For 1982, Piquet finally received a worthy team mate in the form of Ricardo Patrese. The young Italian would go on to score the BT49D's only victory at Monaco. His final outing with the car came at the Canadian Grand Prix where he finished second behind Piquet in the BMW-engined BT50. Having served the team so well for the better part of three seasons, the BT49 could now finally be retired from active duty. In that period, the 18 examples built were driven to 7 Grand Prix victoris, earning Piquet his first driver's championship along the way. He would repeat that feat in 1983 with the BMW-engined BT52.
When Gordon Murray left the team a few years later, Bernie Ecclestone offered him the very rare opportunity to select his favourite Brabham as a parting gift. He picked the final BT49 built. In recent years, Ecclestone has made two of his BT49s available to be raced in the Historic Formula 1 Championship. Campaigned by Kumschick Racing for drivers Christian Glaesel and Joaquin Folch-Rusinol, they have been as successfully as the elegant machines had been in period. << Prev Page 3 of 3
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With the turbo engine's bugs not fully ironed, Brabham was forced to roll out the BT49 for yet another season. It was lightened again and equipped with water-cooled brakes. This was a clever trick applied by several of the teams still running naturally aspirated engines. Considered a coolant, the reservoir could be filled up before the car was checked to see if it complied with the weight limit. Needless to say, the 50-litre reservoir was emptied in the opening laps, allowing the cars to run under weight for the majority of the race. The system was successfully protested and Piquet was disqualified after winning round two of the championship in Brazil.