Formula 1 driver · 1973–1985

John Watson

NationalityBritain BritainCodeWATNumber1Last teamMcLaren
Starts150
Wins5
Podiums20
Poles2
Points169
Titles0

Career totals from published race classifications (1950–2026). Poles use the qualifying classification where published, otherwise grid position 1. Sum of points scored per race and sprint as published; pre-1991 seasons with dropped scores differ from official championship totals.

Driver DNA

Profile

Methodology
QualiRaceGainsFinishPoints

Career DNA · career, all eras · f1-dna-1.0.0 · as of 2 Oct 2026

starts: not sourceddefense: not sourcedtyre management: not sourcedwet weather: not sourcedlate race: not sourcedrace pace: not sourced

Qualifying Pace

High
n=141 · vs 582 drivers (career, all eras)

teammate qualifying head-to-head rate

teammate gap samples
0
teammate h2h
72-69
pole rate
1.3%
front row rate
7.1%

Race Result vs Teammate

High
n=113 · vs 539 drivers (career, all eras)

share of races finishing ahead of teammate (one-car retirements count for the finisher)

teammate race h2h
54-59
avg finish delta when both classified
-0.865

Positions Gained

High
n=87 · vs 321 drivers (career, all eras)

mean grid-to-finish gain above the expectation for that grid slot (classified finishes)

mean positions gained
5.839
expectation adjusted
1.258

Finishing

High
n=150 · vs 375 drivers (career, all eras)

classification rate minus teammate classification rate (same car); any retirement cause counts

classification rate
58.0%
teammate classification rate
51.1%
retirements
63

Consistency

Insufficient sample
n=0 · vs 79 drivers (career, all eras)

spread (std dev) of teammate qualifying gaps; lower spread ranks higher

finish position std
3.53

Team Points Share

High
n=75 · vs 290 drivers (career, all eras)

share of the team's points in events where the team scored

points
169
team points
327
points per start
1.127

Street Circuits

Insufficient sample
n=0 · vs 72 drivers (career, all eras)

teammate qualifying gap on street layouts relative to the driver's overall gap (positive = relatively stronger)

High-Speed Circuits

Insufficient sample
n=0 · vs 78 drivers (career, all eras)

teammate qualifying gap on high pole-lap-speed circuits relative to the driver's overall gap (positive = relatively stronger)

Low-Speed Circuits

Insufficient sample
n=0 · vs 83 drivers (career, all eras)

teammate qualifying gap on low pole-lap-speed circuits relative to the driver's overall gap (positive = relatively stronger)

Teammate record

TeammateTeamSeasonsQuali H2HRace H2H
McLaren1980–19854–82–8
Tyrrell, Brabham, McLaren1975–198313–3117–18
McLaren198114–19–3
McLaren19800–00–0
McLaren197911–27–3
Brabham19781–00–1
Brabham, Tyrrell1974–19773–62–6
Tyrrell, Brabham1975–197711–33–7
Brabham19770–00–0
Penske19761–00–0
Tyrrell19750–00–0
Tyrrell19750–00–0

Recent races

By season

YearTeamStartsWPodPolesPtsPos
1985McLaren1000023rd
1983McLaren14130226th
1982McLaren15250393rd
1981McLaren15140276th
1980McLaren13000611th
1979McLaren15010159th
1978Brabham16031256th
1977Brabham17011913th
1976Penske16130207th
1975Surtees, Tyrrell, Team Lotus, Penske11000023rd
1974Brabham15000615th
1973Brabham2000040th