The Tyrrell team finished fifth in the constructors' standings of the 1989 F1 championship, the best result since 1979, yet the English team perhaps expected more. The 019 powered by Ford Cosworth DFR was an excellent single-seater, designed by Harvey Postlethwaite. The carbon monocoque was particularly refined, as were the aerodynamics. The team was penalized by the lack of adequate sponsorship. Newcomer Alesi was fourth in France after taking second place, while the best result of the season was Alboreto's third place in Mexico. Nakajima, Herbert and Palmer also drove for Tyrrell in 1989.
In the history of static modeling, Spark has truly revolutionized the market. The brand was created by Hugues Ripert, whose father André had been one of the main contenders of the artisanal modeling scene in the 70s and 80s. After working for Vitesse, Quartzo and Ixo, Ripert jr did not choose the diecast technique but opted for resin, with production in China but development and conception strictly in the European tradition. In practice the idea was to offer special models built in small series (what were later called "resincast"). The first Sparks were released in 2000, with a quality-price ratio unapproachable for most industrial and artisanal producers. Today Spark continues to churn out dozens of new products a year, having also expanded its production to other scales, such as 1:18 but also 1:64. There are numerous numbered and limited series for the various national distributors and for private customers such as teams, sponsors, drivers and so on.