1982 Formula One World Championship

1982 FIA Formula One
World Championship

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[[1983 |1983]]

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The 1982 Formula One season was the 33rd FIA Formula One World Championship season. It commenced on January 23, 1982, and ended on September 25 after sixteen races. The World Drivers' Championship was won by Williams driver Keke Rosberg. Rosberg was the first driver since Mike Hawthorn in the 1958 season to win the championship after winning only one race. 11 drivers won a race during the season, none of them more than two times. Scuderia Ferrari won the World Constructors' Championship.

The combination of technical and sporting regulations used during this season prompted many complaints about safety before and during the season. The season saw two fatalities and many serious accidents. Ferrari driver Gilles Villeneuve was killed in an accident during qualifying for the Belgian Grand Prix at Zolder after hitting the March car of Jochen Mass. Italian driver Riccardo Paletti died at the Canadian Grand Prix when his Osella car hit the back of Didier Pironi's stalled car at the start of the race. Pironi, who had been Villeneuve's teammate, suffered massive injuries to his legs in another qualifying accident at the German Grand Prix and never raced in Formula One again.

The season started with a drivers' strike at the first race of the season. Later in the season, the disagreement between the sport's governing body and the teams (known as the FISA-FOCA war) re-started and many of the teams boycotted the San Marino Grand Prix. For the first time since the inception of Formula One, there were no non-Championship races run during 1982. This situation would become permanent from 1984 onward. It was also the only season to host three Grands Prix in the same country (United States): the Caesars Palace Grand Prix, Detroit Grand Prix and United States Grand Prix West.

Pre-season

Drivers

The off season saw rumours of three former champions returning to the sport, but in the end Jackie Stewart and James Hunt remained in retirement and only double world champion Niki Lauda returned to Formula One to partner John Watson at McLaren. The 1981 drivers' champion Nelson Piquet remained at Brabham, partnered by Riccardo Patrese. 1980 champion Alan Jones retired from the Williams team at the end of the 1981 season and was replaced by Finn Keke Rosberg, who had failed to score a single point the previous year with Fittipaldi Automotive. Williams other driver, Carlos Reutemann, also announced his retirement, but changed his mind before the season started. Ferrari and Renault retained their race-winning line ups of Villeneuve and Didier Pironi and Alain Prost and Rene Arnoux, respectively.

Technology

The two main technological themes of the 1982 season were turbocharging and ground effect. 1.5-litre turbocharged engines were still new to Formula One, with only the Renault team and Ferrari teams using 1.5 litre units. The large automotive manufacturers (Ferrari was owned by FIAT) could afford to develop this expensive new technology, which offered a significant power advantage over naturally aspirated engines. However, turbocharged engines added weight to the cars and initially suffered from turbo lag, a delay between the operation of the throttle and the delivery of power from the engine. These two factory teams, together with the small privateer Toleman team, were the only ones to use turbocharged engines all through the 1982 season, although 1982 also saw the BMW turbo engine finding a "home" in the back of the Brabhams, even though not for the whole season.

The Alfa Romeo team were developing a turbo engine but for 1982 they continued to use their naturally aspirated 3-litre V12 engine. In 1982, according to motorsport writer Doug Nye, the Alfa Romeo V12 was "allegedly the most powerful naturally aspirated engine seen in the Formula" with 548 bhp. The French Ligier team was at this time associated with automotive manufacturer Talbot and raced under the Talbot-Ligier name, using another V12 engine from Matra, which was rather less powerful than its Italian counterpart, producing around the same power as the DFVs.

Britain's specialist race car manufacturers had been following a different technical route, using the less powerful but reliable and widely available 3-litre V8 Cosworth DFV engine and focussing on the effectiveness of the chassis. The Lotus team had introduced aerodynamic ground effect in 1978, and rapid progress had been made by others like Williams, McLaren and Brabham in exploiting it more and more effectively with cars powered by the DFV. The DFV, and the introduction by McLaren and Lotus of cars built largely from carbon-fibre composites, allowed the teams to create very light cars. Brabham however also had a foot in the turbo camp, as they had been developing a car powered by a BMW turbocharged engine since the previous year.

In 1981, the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA), motorsport's world governing body, had tried to limit ground effect by imposing a minimum ride height. The Brabham team had exploited what they considered a loophole in the rules by introducing a hydraulic suspension system that lowered the ride height when out on the circuit, where it could not be measured. Other teams rapidly followed this route, and for the 1982 season, the FIA abandoned the minimum ride height rule. This resulted in cars with very hard suspension - almost immovable - to keep the rigid skirts at the side of the car in position and sealing the low pressure area under the cars. The cars depended entirely on their aerodynamic downforce and became extremely unpleasant to drive - 1978 world champion Mario Andretti cited them as one of the reasons he left F1 at the end of 1981 - and caused several of drivers medical problems.

Sporting Regulations

The new rules for the season included an increase in the number of cars permitted to enter a Grand Prix from 30 to 34, and the number of starters from 24 to 26. To avoid having all 34 cars on the track at one time, a pre-qualifying session was introduced in which the three teams with the poorest record in the previous year would compete to be allowed into qualification proper. Three companies, Goodyear, Michelin and Avon supplied tyres, including special qualifying tyres, which provided much increased levels of grip during the qualification sessions that determined the starting order for the race. For the first time, the number of tyres permitted for qualification was limited, creating a situation which Villeneuve thought "...unnecessarily dangerous. If I have only two chances to set a time, I need a clear track, OK? If it isn't clear, if there's someone in my way, I just have to hope he's looking in his mirrors — I mean, I can't lift, because this is my last chance."

Politics

The Formula One Constructors Association (FOCA) and FISA had been in dispute over the control of the sport since 1979. The worst period of the disagreement (known as the FISA-FOCA war) had ended in 1981 with the signing of the Concorde Agreement. FOCA consisted of the major British teams, while the manufacturer teams (Renault, Ferrari, Alfa-Romeo and Talbot-Ligier), together with Italian team Osella and Toleman were aligned with FISA. The 1982 season had an unusually large number of teams representing major motor manufacturers, with Alfa Romeo and Talbot represented as well as Renault and Ferrari.

Season summary

The controversies began even before the first race of the season in South Africa. Two-time champion Niki Lauda, who was returning to F1 after a 2-year break, took exception to FISA's new super-license and led a drivers' strike. The strike was resolved before the race, and Alain Prost's Renault won. Prost also won the second round in Brazil, but only after the top two finishers (Nelson Piquet and Keke Rosberg) were disqualified for running illegal water-cooled brake systems. Lauda won the next race in Long Beach, California for McLaren.

At this point, off-track struggles for control of the sport took center stage as the FISA-FOCA War broke out again. Angered by the Piquet and Rosberg disqualifications in Brazil, the FOCA teams boycotted the San Marino Grand Prix, leaving Renault and Ferrari as the only front-running teams in that race. Tyrrell was also forced to compete due to sponsorship obligations. In the race, both Renault cars broke down, leaving the Ferraris running alone in front, with Gilles Villeneuve ahead of Didier Pironi. Near the end of the race, the Ferrari team ordered the drivers to slow down to conserve fuel and reduce the risk of mechanical failure. Villeneuve thought this meant that Pironi was supposed to stay in second place, but Pironi did not see it this way and passed Villeneuve on the last lap for the win. Villeneuve was irate, and swore he would never speak to Pironi again. This promise was fulfilled, as in the next race, in Belgium, Villeneuve was killed in qualifying. He was on his hot lap, with Jochen Mass cooling down in front of him. Mass moved to the inside to let Villeneuve through at the first half of Terlamen, just as Villeneuve moved to the inside to pass. Villeneuve' Ferrari struck Jochen Mass's car, throwing the Ferrari into the air. Villeneuve was catapulted out of the wreck in midair, across the top of the corner, and into the fencing without his helmet, which flew off of his head due to the immense G-Forces of the impact. Ferrari withdrew from the race, and John Watson won for McLaren after Rosberg spun off the track in the final laps.

The next race in Monaco was an instant classic. The Renaults led from the start, with Arnoux ahead of Prost. Arnoux spun out of the race at about half distance, leaving Prost with a dominating lead. However, in the final laps rain began to fall on the track, leading to absolute chaos. Keke Rosberg, Michele Alboreto, Alain Prost, and Derek Daly (Williams) all crashed while in potential race-winning positions in the final laps. Patrese spun and stalled the lead away, while Pironi, Andrea de Cesaris (Alfa Romeo), and Daly (who managed to keep running despite his crash) all had their cars stop with mechanical failures while leading on the last lap. Amid the chaos, Patrese managed to bump-start his car by coasting down a hill and finish his last lap to take his first career win.

Watson won again at Detroit, before tragedy struck again in Canada. Pironi qualified on pole, but stalled at the start. His stationary car was hit by the Osella of young Italian Riccardo Paletti, who was killed in the impact and resultant fire. Piquet won the re-started race. Pironi came back to take a dominant victory in Holland, where Arnoux was lucky to escape uninjured from a massive crash after his Renault's throttle stuck open.

Lauda won in Britain, but the real star of the race was Derek Warwick, who hustled the unfancied Toleman into second place late in the race and was closing on Lauda before the car broke down. The next race at Le Castellet's Circuit Paul Ricard saw Frenchman Arnoux take victory in his French Renault, which was popular with the crowd but not with the team, as Arnoux was supposed to give the win to teammate Prost to help the latter's championship cause. As it was, Pironi seemed poised to run away with the title, but his quest was ended prematurely at the next race in Germany. During a wet qualifying session, Pironi plowed into the back of Prost's Renault. The Ferrari was launched into the air in an eerily similar accident to the one that killed Villeneuve. Fortunately, Pironi was not thrown from the car, but he suffered career-ending leg injuries. Ferrari chose to compete in the next day's race, and Patrick Tambay (who Ferrari had picked to replace Villeneuve) took a somber win after Piquet crashed out of the lead while lapping Eliseo Salazar (Piquet famously punched Salazar for his trouble).

Elio De Angelis scored his first win in Austria, as Rosberg's last-lap lunge for the win came up 0.050 seconds short. However, Rosberg was not to be denied at the next race, a second French round in Dijon-Prenois named the 'Grand Prix of Switzerland' (because motor racing was prohibited in Switzerland at the time, many Swiss automobile clubs raced in Dijon). After toiling in the mid-field for the first half of the race, the Finn went on a charge and was on Prost's tail on the penultimate lap. Rosberg passed Prost on the last lap and held the lead for the remainder of it.

Suddenly, Rosberg (who had scored zero points the previous season) was leading the championship. He duly held onto that lead in Italy (where Arnoux beat the two Ferraris) and in the final round at Las Vegas (where Alboreto took an unlikely win) to become the first Finnish World Champion.

Drivers and constructors

Entrant	Constructor	Chassis	Engine	Tyres	No	Driver
Parmalat Racing Team	Brabham	BT49B BT50	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 BMW M12/13 1.5 L4T	G	1	Nelson Piquet
					2	Riccardo Patrese
Team Tyrrell	Tyrrell	011	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	G	3	Michele Alboreto
					4	Slim Borgudd
						Brian Henton
TAG Williams Racing Team	Williams	FW07C FW07D FW08	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	G	5	Carlos Reutemann
						Mario Andretti
						Derek Daly
					6	Keke Rosberg
Marlboro McLaren International	McLaren	MP4/1B	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	M	7	John Watson
					8	Niki Lauda
Team ATS	ATS	D5	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	A M	9	Manfred Winkelhock
					10	Eliseo Salazar
John Player Team Lotus	Lotus	87B 91	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	G	11	Elio de Angelis
					12	Nigel Mansell
						Geoff Lees
Ensign Racing	Ensign	N180B N181	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	A M	14	Roberto Guerrero
Equipe Renault Elf	Renault	RS30B	Renault-Gordini EF1 1.5 V6T	M	15	Alain Prost
					16	René Arnoux
Rothmans March Grand Prix Team	March	821	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	A P	17	Jochen Mass
						Rupert Keegan
					18	Raul Boesel
LBT Team March					19	Emilio de Villota
Fittipaldi Automotive	Fittipaldi	F8D F9	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	P	20	Chico Serra
Marlboro Team Alfa Romeo	Alfa Romeo	179D 182 182B 182T	Alfa Romeo 1260 3.0 V12 Alfa Romeo 890T 1.5 V8T	M	22	Andrea de Cesaris
					23	Bruno Giacomelli
Equipe Talbot Gitanes	Talbot-Ligier	JS17B JS19	Matra MS81 3.0 V12	M	25	Eddie Cheever
					26	Jacques Laffite
Scuderia Ferrari SpA SEFAC	Ferrari	126C2	Ferrari 021 1.5 V6T	G	27	Gilles Villeneuve
						Patrick Tambay
					28	Didier Pironi
						Mario Andretti
Arrows Racing Team	Arrows	A4 A5	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	P	29	Brian Henton
						Marc Surer
					30	Mauro Baldi
Osella Squadra Corse	Osella	FA1C FA1D	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	P	31	Jean-Pierre Jarier
					32	Ricardo Paletti
Theodore Racing Team	Theodore	TY01 TY02	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	A G	33	Derek Daly
						Jan Lammers
						Geoff Lees
						Tommy Byrne
Candy Toleman Motorsport Toleman Group Motorsport	Toleman	TG181B TG181C TG183	Hart 415T 1.5 L4T	P	35	Derek Warwick
					36	Teo Fabi

Season review

Round	Race	Date	Location	Winning driver	Constructor	Report
1	South African Grand Prix	January 23	Kyalami	Alain Prost	Renault	Report
2	Brazilian Grand Prix	March 21	Jacarepaguá	Alain Prost	Renault	Report
3	United States Grand Prix West	April 4	Long Beach	Niki Lauda	McLaren-Ford	Report
4	San Marino Grand Prix	April 25	Imola	Didier Pironi	Ferrari	Report
5	Belgian Grand Prix	May 9	Zolder	John Watson	McLaren-Ford	Report
6	Monaco Grand Prix	May 23	Monaco	Riccardo Patrese	Brabham-Ford	Report
7	Detroit Grand Prix	June 6	Detroit	John Watson	McLaren-Ford	Report
8	Canadian Grand Prix	June 13	Circuit Gilles Villeneuve	Nelson Piquet	Brabham-BMW	Report
9	Dutch Grand Prix	July 3	Zandvoort	Didier Pironi	Ferrari	Report
10	British Grand Prix	July 18	Brands Hatch	Niki Lauda	McLaren-Ford	Report
11	French Grand Prix	July 25	Paul Ricard	René Arnoux	Renault	Report
12	German Grand Prix	August 8	Hockenheimring	Patrick Tambay	Ferrari	Report
13	Austrian Grand Prix	August 15	Österreichring	Elio de Angelis	Lotus-Ford	Report
14	Swiss Grand Prix	August 29	Dijon	Keke Rosberg	Williams-Ford	Report
15	Italian Grand Prix	September 12	Monza	René Arnoux	Renault	Report
16	Caesars Palace Grand Prix	September 25	Las Vegas	Michele Alboreto	Tyrrell-Ford	Report

• Note -- the 1982 Argentine Grand Prix, set for March 7, was canceled. This was possibly due to the FISA-FOCA war.

1982 Constructors Championship final standings

Place	Constructor	Chassis	Engine	Tyre	Points	Wins	Podiums	Poles
1	Ferrari	126C2	Ferrari 021	G	74	3	11	3
2	McLaren-Ford	MP4/1B	Ford Cosworth DFV	M	69	4	8
3	Renault	RE30B	Renault-Gordini EF1	M	62	4	8	10
4	Williams-Ford	FW07D FW08	Ford Cosworth DFV	G	58	1	7	1
5	Lotus-Ford	87B 91	Ford Cosworth DFV	G	30	1	2
6	Tyrrell-Ford	011	Ford Cosworth DFV	G	25	1	2
7	Brabham-BMW	BT50	BMW M12/13	G	22	1	2	1
8	Ligier-Matra	JS17 JS17B JS19	Matra MS81	M	20		4
9	Brabham-Ford	BT49D	Ford Cosworth DFV	G	19	1	3
10	Alfa Romeo	179D 182 182B	Alfa Romeo 1260	M	7		1	1
11	Arrows-Ford	A3 A4 A5	Ford Cosworth DFV	P	5
12	ATS-Ford	D5	Ford Cosworth DFV	M	4
13	Osella-Ford	FA1C FA1D	Ford Cosworth DFV	P	3
14	Fittipaldi-Ford	F8D F9	Ford Cosworth DFV	P	1
15	March-Ford	821	Ford Cosworth DFV	A
16	Theodore-Ford	TY01 TY02	Ford Cosworth DFV	G
17	Toleman-Hart	TG181C TG183	Hart 415T	P
18	Ensign-Ford	N180B N181	Ford Cosworth DFV	A

1982 Drivers Championship final standings

Pos Driver RSA BRA USW SMR BEL MON DET CAN NED GBR FRA GER AUT SUI ITA CPL Points 1 Keke Rosberg 5 DSQ 2 2 Ret 4 Ret 3 Ret 5 3 2 1 8 5 44 2 Didier Pironi 18 6 Ret 1 WD 2 3 9 1 2 3 DNS 39 3 John Watson 6 2 6 1 Ret 1 3 9 Ret Ret Ret 9 13 4 2 39 4 Alain Prost 1 1 Ret Ret Ret 7 NC Ret Ret 6 2 Ret 8 2 Ret 4 34 5 Niki Lauda 4 Ret 1 DSQ Ret Ret Ret 4 1 8 DNS 5 3 Ret Ret 30 6 René Arnoux 3 Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret 10 Ret Ret Ret 1 2 Ret 16 1 Ret 28 7 Patrick Tambay 8 3 4 1 4 Ret 2 DNS 25 8 Michele Alboreto 7 4 4 3 Ret 10 Ret Ret 7 Ret 6 4 Ret 7 5 1 25 9 Elio de Angelis 8 Ret 5 4 5 Ret 4 Ret 4 Ret Ret 1 6 Ret Ret 23 10 Riccardo Patrese Ret Ret 3 Ret 1 Ret 2 15 Ret Ret Ret Ret 5 Ret Ret 21 11 Nelson Piquet Ret DSQ Ret 5 Ret DNQ 1 2 Ret Ret Ret Ret 4 Ret Ret 20 12 Eddie Cheever Ret Ret Ret 3 Ret 2 10 DNQ Ret 16 Ret Ret Ret 6 3 15 13 Derek Daly 14 Ret Ret Ret 6 5 7 5 5 7 Ret Ret 9 Ret 6 8 14 Nigel Mansell Ret 3 7 Ret 4 Ret Ret Ret 9 Ret 8 7 Ret 7 15 Gilles Villeneuve Ret Ret DSQ 2 DNS 6 16 Carlos Reutemann 2 Ret 6 17 Andrea de Cesaris 13 Ret Ret Ret Ret 3 Ret 6 Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret 10 10 9 5 18 Jacques Laffite Ret Ret Ret 9 Ret 6 Ret Ret Ret 14 Ret 3 Ret Ret Ret 5 19 Mario Andretti Ret 3 Ret 4 20 Jean-Pierre Jarier Ret 9 Ret 4 Ret DNQ Ret Ret 14 Ret Ret Ret DNQ Ret Ret DNS 3 21 Marc Surer 7 9 8 5 10 Ret 13 6 Ret 15 Ret 7 3 22 Bruno Giacomelli 11 Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret 11 7 9 5 Ret 12 Ret 10 2 23 Eliseo Salazar 9 Ret Ret 5 Ret Ret Ret Ret 13 DNQ Ret Ret DNQ 14 9 DNQ 2 24 Manfred Winkelhock 10 5 Ret DSQ Ret Ret Ret DNQ 12 DNQ 11 Ret Ret Ret DNQ NC 2 25 Mauro Baldi DNQ 10 DNQ Ret DNQ Ret 8 6 9 Ret Ret 6 DNQ 12 11 2 26 Chico Serra 17 Ret DNQ 6 DNPQ 11 DNQ Ret Ret 11 7 DNQ 11 DNQ 1 27 Brian Henton DNQ DNQ Ret Ret Ret 8 9 NC Ret 8 10 7 Ret 11 Ret 8 0 28 Jochen Mass 12 8 8 Ret DNQ 7 11 Ret 10 Ret 0 29 Slim Borgudd 16 7 10 0 30 Raul Boesel 15 Ret 9 8 DNPQ Ret Ret Ret DNQ DNQ Ret DNQ Ret DNQ 13 0 31 Roberto Guerrero DNQ DNQ Ret DNQ DNQ Ret Ret DNQ Ret DNQ 8 Ret Ret NC DNS 0 32 Derek Warwick Ret DNQ DNQ Ret Ret DNQ Ret Ret 15 10 Ret Ret Ret Ret 0 33 Rupert Keegan DNQ Ret Ret DNQ 12 0 34 Geoff Lees Ret 12 0 — Teo Fabi DNQ DNQ DNQ NC Ret DNPQ DNQ Ret Ret DNQ Ret Ret Ret DNQ 0 — Riccardo Paletti DNQ DNQ DNQ Ret DNPQ DNPQ Ret Ret 0 — Tommy Byrne DNQ Ret DNQ DNQ Ret 0 — Jan Lammers DNQ DNQ DNQ Ret DNQ DNQ 0 — Emilio de Villota DNPQ DNPQ DNQ DNQ DNPQ 0 — Roberto Moreno DNQ 0 Pos Driver RSA BRA USW SMR BEL MON DET CAN NED GBR FRA GER AUT SUI ITA CPL Points

Colour Result Gold Winner Silver Second place Bronze Third place Green Points finish Blue Non-points finish Non-classified finish (NC) Purple Retired (Ret) Red Did not qualify (DNQ) Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ) Black Disqualified (DSQ) White Did not start (DNS) Withdrew (WD) Race cancelled (C) Blank Did not practice (DNP) Did not arrive (DNA) Excluded (EX)

Place	Driver	Number	Country	Points	Wins	Podiums	Poles
1	Keke Rosberg	6	Finland	44	1	6	1
2	Didier Pironi	28	France	39	2	6	2
3	John Watson	7	Britain	39	2	5
4	Alain Prost	15	France	34	2	4	5
5	Niki Lauda	8	Austria	30	2	3
6	René Arnoux	16	France	28	2	4	5
7	Patrick Tambay	27	France	25	1	3
8	Michele Alboreto	3	Italy	25	1	2
9	Elio de Angelis	11	Italy	23	1	1
10	Riccardo Patrese	2	Italy	21	1	3
11	Nelson Piquet	1	Brazil	20	1	2	1
12	Eddie Cheever	25	USA	15		3
13	Derek Daly	5	Ireland	8
14	Nigel Mansell	12	Britain	7		1
15	Gilles Villeneuve	27	Canada	6		1
16	Carlos Reutemann	5	Argentina	6		1
17	Andrea de Cesaris	22	Italy	5		1	1
18	Jacques Laffite	26	France	5		1
19	Mario Andretti	28	USA	4		1	1
20	Jean-Pierre Jarier	31	France	3
21	Marc Surer	29	Switzerland	3
22	Bruno Giacomelli	23	Italy	2
23	Eliseo Salazar	10	Chile	2
24	Manfred Winkelhock	9	Germany	2
25	Mauro Baldi	30	Italy	2
26	Chico Serra	20	Brazil	1
27	Brian Henton	4	Britain	0
28	Jochen Mass	17	Germany	0
29	Slim Borgudd	4	Sweden	0
30	Raul Boesel	18	Brazil	0
31	Roberto Guerrero	14	Colombia	0
32	Derek Warwick	35	Britain	0
33	Rupert Keegan	17	USA	0
34	Geoff Lees	12	Britain	0
—	Teo Fabi	36	Italy	0
—	Riccardo Paletti	32	Italy	0
—	Tommy Byrne	33	Ireland	0
—	Jan Lammers	33	Netherlands	0
—	Emilio de Villota	19	Spain	0
—	Roberto Moreno	12	Brazil	0

External links

• 1982 Formula 1 review