Indeed, aside from a single outing with Toleman and a one-season dalliance with Scuderia Italia in 1992, Martini's entire Formula One career was spent with the Italian outfit.

He raced with the minnow team in three different stints, drove for them on their debut in 1985, scored their first point in the 1988 Detroit Grand Prix, and their only front-row start at the 1990 United States Grand Prix (where unexpected rain on Saturday meant that the grid was decided entirely by times from Friday's session.

Pirelli's soft qualifying tyres caught Goodyear off guard, and the Italian manufacturer put five of its teams in the top ten positions).

[2] Initially out of a drive for 1993, he was recalled back to the little Italian team midway through the season in place of Fabrizio Barbazza, Martini impressed by outpacing his young teammate Christian Fittipaldi.

Examples given are the 1991 Monaco Grand Prix when he held up Emanuele Pirro in the Dallara, Stefano Modena in the Tyrrell, and Riccardo Patrese in the Williams for several laps despite running towards the back of the field, and the 1995 Canadian Grand Prix where he blocked Gerhard Berger in the Ferrari when the Austrian tried to lap him.

Quizzed about this attitude on the occasion of the 1995 San Marino Grand Prix, where he held up winner Damon Hill, Martini replied: 'What should I exactly apologise for?