Jochen Mass
Manfred Winkelhock made his debut, substituting for the injured Jochen Mass at Arrows. A collision with Nigel Mansell's Lotus during qualifying resulted in both drivers failing to make the grid. Ferrari debuted their first turbo car, the 126C, but Gilles Villeneuve started the race in his regular 312T5. Regardless, after a heavy crash in practice at the flat-out right hander before Tosa, reigning World Champion Jody Scheckter announced his retirement from the sport.