1976-1978: McLaren[edit]
Hunt leading John Watson in the 1976 Dutch Grand Prix1976
1976 was Hunt 's best year; the season proved to be one …show more content…
During the 1990 San Marino Grand Prix he called de Cesaris (Hunt 's most frequent target of criticism) an "idiot" after he caused second-place driver Nigel Mansell to almost spin his Ferrari while lapping the Italian, de Cesaris taking no notice of the blue flags nor the fact that Mansell was attempting to lap him under braking going into the Rivazza corner of the Imola circuit. Hunt 's dislike of Patrese, who was often at or near the front of the field when with teams like Brabham and Williams, stemmed from the crash which had killed Ronnie Peterson in 1978, though his criticism of the Italian softened over time as Patrese matured into a good, fast number-two driver and became less accident prone, unlike de Cesaris (aptly nicknamed "de Crasharis") or Alliot who frequently held up faster drivers or were involved in …show more content…
Lauda, in his autobiography To Hell and Back, described Hunt as an "open, honest to God pal". Lauda admired Hunt 's burst of speed while Hunt envied Lauda 's capacity for analysis and rigour.[53] In the spring of 1974, Hunt moved to Spain on the advice of the International Management Group.[54] Whilst living there as a tax exile, Hunt was the neighbour of Jody Scheckter, and they also came to be very good friends, with Hunt giving Scheckter the nickname Fletcher after the crash-prone bird in the book Jonathan Livingston Seagull. Another close friend was Ronnie Peterson. Peterson was a quiet and shy man, whilst Hunt was exactly the opposite, but their contrasting personalities made them very close off the track. It was Hunt who discovered Gilles Villeneuve, whom he met after being soundly beaten by him in a Formula Atlantic race in 1976. Hunt then arranged for the young Canadian to make his Grand Prix debut with McLaren in 1977.
Hunt 's lifestyle was as controversial as some of the events on track: he was associated with a succession of beautiful women; he preferred to turn up to formal functions in bare feet and jeans; he liked a drink, and also used cocaine and marijuana;[55] and he lived an informal life near the beach in Marbella. He was regularly seen attending nightclubs and discos, and was generally the life and soul of the party. Hunt was an expert ball