1981

The start of the 1981 season saw Team Lotus in trouble: the FIA ​​had declared the Lotus 88 illegal and David Thieme, owner of Essex, an oil trading company and the team’s main sponsor, had been arrested. Elio still scored points in two of the first three races, then was forced to skip the San Marino Grand Prix, boycotted by his team in protest against the Federation for not admitting the 88, much to Elio’s disappointment, who later declared that, given the track conditions, he could have achieved a good result even with the previous year’s car. From the Monaco Grand Prix onwards he was able to use the new car, the Lotus 87. At the next world championship event he came fifth, less than a second and a half behind the winner. In the following races he always remained among the top, without ever managing to get on the podium. At the end of the season he finished eighth with fourteen points, beating his new teammate, the Englishman Nigel Mansell.