Jean Alesi

Jean Alesi is the most cited case of talent and calendar failing to meet. He debuted in 1989 with Tyrrell and finished fourth in his first race; the following year, in Phoenix, he led a Grand Prix in a modest car and fought wheel to wheel with Ayrton Senna in an image that made him an instant prospect.

He chose Ferrari in 1991 over Williams, and that decision explains much of the rest. He spent five seasons at Maranello during the only long stretch in which Ferrari had no winning car, while the Williams he had turned down piled up titles. His only victory came in Montreal in 1995, on his birthday, carrying the number 27 once worn by Gilles Villeneuve.

He finished with 202 starts, thirty-two podiums and a single win, a split with almost no precedent that says exactly what it looks like: he was near the front a great many times and almost never in the right car. In Italy he remains hugely loved, more so than many champions.