Legendary Ferrari Formula 1 designer Mauro Forghieri has passed away aged 87. Forghieri, originally a Ferrari apprentice, was tasked with stepping up to lead Ferrari's technical team in the 1960s by founder Enzo after a mass walkout led by chief designer Carlo Chiti. He penned the 158 design which guided John Surtees to the 1964 World Championship, but it would be over a decade before the Scuderia tasted championship success again. Perhaps Forghieri's most iconic design was the 312T series of cars Ferrari used in the World Championship between 1975 and 1980. Across several iterations, the 312T became the most successful car design in F1 history. Equipped with the 312T, Niki Lauda led Ferrari to three Constructors' Championships from 1975 - 1977 and took the Drivers' crowns in 1975 & 1977. Having lost out in 1978, the car's final championships came in 1979, when Jody Scheckter won the Drivers' title at the wheel of the 312T-4, with Gilles Villeneuve helping to secure the Constructors' honours for the Maranello team. Despite claiming 27 race wins, three Drivers' and four Constructors' titles, the 312T series ended on a sour note with the dreadful 312T-5 in 1980, with World Champion Scheckter scoring only two points all season. For 1981, a whole new car series was designed by Forghieri - the 126CK - which went on to achieve Constructors' Championships in 1982 and 1983. Emilia-Romagna native Forghieri would remain at Ferrari until 1987, having relinquished control of the F1 technical department in '84. He would later be involved in projects for the likes of Lamborghini, and through his Oral Engineering Group remained active on projects for the likes of Bugatti, BMW and Aprilla.
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