US Grands Prix 1980-82: You were there
Long Beach wasn’t the most scenic circuit, but racers race hard regardless. Michael Harris attended US GPs in 1980, ’81 and ’82 and was able to capture some candid images of the drivers
![Colin Chapman with Elio de Angelis and Mario Andretti at the 1980 US Grand Prix](https://msm.tjlabs.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Colin-Chapman-with-Elio-de-Angelis-and-Mario-Andretti-at-the-1980-US-Grand-Prix-800x553.jpg)
It’s 1980 and Chapman poses with his drivers, but smiles vanished when Mario Andretti and Elio de Angelis were out by lap 12
![Rene Arnoux at the 1980 US Grand Prix](https://msm.tjlabs.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Renen-Arnoux-at-the-1980-US-Grand-Prix-800x553.jpg)
In 1980 René Arnoux and his turbocharged Renault were leading the title sprint, but a puncture relegated him to ninth place and damaged his championship hopes
![Didier Pironi with his Ferrari at the 1981 US Grand Prix](https://msm.tjlabs.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Didier-Pironi-with-his-Ferrari-at-the-1981-US-Grand-Prix-800x1133.jpg)
It’s 1981 and Didier Pironi looks pleased to be ready for his first race in a Ferrari, but the car would let him down as his fuel feed failed after a healthy battle for fourth place
![Elio de Angelis gets into his Lotus for the 1982 US Grand Prix](https://msm.tjlabs.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Elio-de-Angelis-gets-into-his-Lotus-for-the-1982-US-Grand-Prix-800x553.jpg)
Pits-eye view of Elio de Angelis wiggling into his Lotus 91 for the 1982 race under team manager Peter Warr’s watchful gaze
![Gilles Villeneuve at Long Beach for the 1980 US Grand Prix](https://msm.tjlabs.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Gilles-Villeneuve-at-Long-Beach-for-the-1980-US-Grand-Prix-800x820.jpg)
Unlike the previous year, Ferrari had a poor 1980 at Long Beach: a discontented Gilles Villeneuve only finished 10th
![Jochen Mass in the Arrows motorhome for the US Grand Prix](https://msm.tjlabs.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Jochen-Mass-in-the-Arrows-motorhome-for-the-US-Grand-Prix-800x1133.jpg)
In the doorway of the team motorhome Jochen Mass feels the heat, with his Arrows racesuit rolled down
![Roberto Guerrero at the 1982 US GP](https://msm.tjlabs.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Roberto-Guerrero-at-the-1982-US-GP-800x553.jpg)
Roberto Guerrero’s hair was worthy of note in the 1982 event, but not his performance: the Colombian’s Ensign-Ford qualified midfield but spun off on lap 27
![Mario Andretti surrounded by fans at the 1981 US Grand Prix](https://msm.tjlabs.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/Mario-Andretti-surrounded-by-fans-at-the-1981-US-Grand-Prix-800x553.jpg)
Mario Andretti faces his fans in 1981, ahead of his first race for Alfa Romeo. He would thrill the home crowd with a hard-won fourth place
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