The new Ferrari 312T4 made its debut at the Grand Prix of South Africa at Kyalami, the third race of the 1979 season. Despite the technical challenges, the 312T4 would prove to be a worthy competitor and World Champion.
Scheckter qualified second on the grid with Villeneuve sitting third. The Ferrari duo got to an excellent start, passing the pole-sitting Renault on either side into the first corner. Villeneuve took the lead, but a sudden downpour brought out the red flag and the three lap old race was stopped.
On the restart, Scheckter on slicks and Villeneuve on wet tires repeated their brilliant start. In the wet, Scheckter fell 15 seconds back from Villeneuve. However, by lap 15 the storm had passed and as the track was drying Scheckter took the lead when Villeneuve had to stop for slicks.
Scheckter's lead on badly worn tires proved impossible to maintain. Following team orders, Villeneuve would not pass his teammate. However, Scheckter had no choice but to stop for new rubber and rejoined the race in second place, 35 seconds behind Villeneuve. The crowd went into a frenzy as the native South African closed the gap to only 4 seconds before the checkered flag fell. The future World Champion had to settle for second place.
