This article needs additional citations for verification .(March 2019) |
| 1985 French Grand Prix | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 7 of 16 in the 1985 Formula One World Championship | |||
| | |||
| Race details | |||
| Date | 7 July 1985 | ||
| Official name | 71e Grand Prix de France [1] | ||
| Location | Circuit Paul Ricard Le Castellet, Var, France | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 5.810 [2] km (3.610 miles) | ||
| Distance | 53 laps, 307.928 [2] km (191.338 miles) | ||
| Weather | Dry, hot [2] | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Williams-Honda | ||
| Time | 1:32.462 | ||
| Fastest lap | |||
| Driver | | Williams-Honda | |
| Time | 1:39.914 on lap 46 | ||
| Podium | |||
| First | Brabham-BMW | ||
| Second | Williams-Honda | ||
| Third | McLaren-TAG | ||
Lap leaders | |||
The 1985 French Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Paul Ricard on 7 July 1985. It was the seventh race of the 1985 Formula One World Championship. It was the 63rd French Grand Prix and the ninth to be held at Paul Ricard. The race was held over 53 laps of the 5.81-kilometre (3.61 mi) circuit for a total race distance of 307.93 kilometres (191.34 mi).
The race was won by Brazilian driver Nelson Piquet, driving a Brabham-BMW, his only victory of the season. It was the 35th and final Formula One victory for the Brabham team, as well as the first F1 victory for Italian tyre manufacturer Pirelli since 1957. Finn Keke Rosberg finished second in a Williams-Honda, having started from pole position, with local driver Alain Prost third in a McLaren-TAG. Prost moved to within five points of Drivers' Championship leader, Italian Michele Alboreto, who retired on lap 6 with a turbo failure in his Ferrari.
This was to be the last French Grand Prix held on the full Paul Ricard circuit until 2018. A shorter, 3.813-kilometre (2.369 mi) circuit would be used from 1986 until 1990, following Elio de Angelis's fatal accident during a test session in May 1986.
Qualifying saw Keke Rosberg take pole position in his Williams-Honda with a time of 1:32.462, averaging 140.561 mph (226.211 km/h), with Ayrton Senna alongside him on the front row in his Lotus-Renault. On the second row were Michele Alboreto in the Ferrari and Alain Prost in the McLaren, and on the third were Nelson Piquet in the Brabham and Niki Lauda in the second McLaren. Completing the top ten were Elio de Angelis in the second Lotus, Gerhard Berger in the Arrows, and the two factory Renaults of Patrick Tambay and Derek Warwick, Tambay driving a 'B' specification of the RE60.
Rosberg's Williams teammate, Nigel Mansell, had set a time good enough for eighth on the grid when he had a high-speed crash at the Signes corner, located at the end of the 1.8-kilometre (1.1 mi) long Mistral Straight. A puncture caused the car to plunge off the track at over 200 mph (322 km/h) and into catch fencing; one of the poles struck Mansell on the head, giving him a concussion which forced him to miss the race.
The race was also the first in which the Tyrrell team used Renault turbo engines, thus becoming the last F1 team to go over from naturally aspirated engines to turbos. However, only Martin Brundle drove the new Renault-powered 014 car, while teammate Stefan Bellof continued to use the Cosworth-powered 012. Brundle could only qualify 20th, but was still over four seconds faster than Bellof in 25th.
| Pos | No | Driver | Constructor | Q1 | Q2 | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | | Williams-Honda | 1:33.484 | 1:32.462 | |
| 2 | 12 | | Lotus-Renault | 1:32.835 | 1:33.677 | +0.373 |
| 3 | 27 | | Ferrari | 1:35.421 | 1:33.267 | +0.805 |
| 4 | 2 | | McLaren-TAG | 1:33.547 | 1:33.335 | +0.873 |
| 5 | 7 | | Brabham-BMW | 1:33.981 | 1:33.812 | +1.350 |
| 6 | 1 | | McLaren-TAG | 1:33.860 | 1:34.166 | +1.398 |
| 7 | 11 | | Lotus-Renault | 1:34.022 | 1:34.227 | +1.560 |
| 8 | 5 | | Williams-Honda | 1:34.191 | n/a | +1.729 |
| 9 | 17 | | Arrows-BMW | 1:34.674 | 1:37.445 | +2.212 |
| 10 | 15 | | Renault | 1:34.680 | 1:36.339 | +2.218 |
| 11 | 16 | | Renault | 1:34.976 | 1:35.190 | +2.514 |
| 12 | 18 | | Arrows-BMW | 1:36.051 | 1:35.488 | +3.026 |
| 13 | 25 | | Ligier-Renault | 1:37.335 | 1:35.571 | +3.109 |
| 14 | 8 | | Brabham-BMW | 1:35.572 | 1:35.640 | +3.110 |
| 15 | 26 | | Ligier-Renault | 1:38.173 | 1:36.133 | +3.671 |
| 16 | 28 | | Ferrari | 1:37.546 | 1:36.140 | +3.678 |
| 17 | 22 | | Alfa Romeo | 1:36.729 | 1:38.745 | +4.267 |
| 18 | 23 | | Alfa Romeo | 1:36.931 | 1:38.489 | +4.469 |
| 19 | 19 | | Toleman-Hart | 1:37.142 | 1:37.657 | +4.680 |
| 20 | 9 | | RAM-Hart | 1:37.654 | 1:45.628 | +5.192 |
| 21 | 3 | | Tyrrell-Renault | 1:40.486 | 1:40.015 | +7.553 |
| 22 | 30 | | Zakspeed | 1:40.647 | 1:40.289 | +7.827 |
| 23 | 10 | | RAM-Hart | 1:41.647 | 1:44.221 | +9.185 |
| 24 | 24 | | Osella-Alfa Romeo | 1:42.136 | 1:42.968 | +9.674 |
| 25 | 29 | | Minardi-Motori Moderni | 1:47.523 | 1:44.350 | +11.888 |
| 26 | 4 | | Tyrrell-Ford | 1:44.404 | 1:45.478 | +11.942 |
At the start, Rosberg led away from Senna and Piquet, while Prost slipped to eighth. The early laps saw both Ligiers retire, Jacques Laffite suffering a turbo failure on lap 3 and Andrea de Cesaris dropping out with steering problems two laps later. Alboreto also suffered a turbo failure on lap 6 while running fourth.
On lap 7, Piquet overtook compatriot Senna on the Mistral Straight. He then closed up to Rosberg, who was struggling for grip, before passing him for the lead at Beausset on lap 11. At the same time, Lauda and Prost moved up to third and fourth respectively, ahead of de Angelis. On lap 21, Berger collided with the Minardi of Pierluigi Martini, putting both drivers out.
Senna, who had dropped down the order due to gearbox problems, retired in dramatic fashion on lap 27, when his engine failed and oil from it leaked onto his rear tyres, causing him to spin off backwards into the catch fencing and crash massively at Signes. He escaped with bruises, while his Lotus caught fire. Lauda retired on lap 31 when his own gearbox failed, promoting Prost to third; Brundle also suffered a gearbox failure on lap 33.
On lap 38, by which time Piquet had extended his lead to over 20 seconds, Prost overtook Rosberg for second at the Verrerie bends. The Finn promptly pitted for new tyres, emerging in fourth behind de Angelis. He then made a charge, quickly passing the Lotus and setting the fastest lap of the race on lap 46, before retaking second from Prost on the final lap.
Up front, Piquet cruised to victory, taking the chequered flag 6.6 seconds ahead of Rosberg. Prost finished 44 seconds ahead of the second Ferrari of Stefan Johansson, who passed de Angelis for fourth on the final lap, with Tambay taking the final point for sixth.
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The 1982 Austrian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Österreichring on 15 August 1982. It was the thirteenth race of the 1982 Formula One World Championship.
The 1984 Brazilian Grand Prix, officially known as the XIII Grande Prêmio Brasil de Fórmula 1 was a Formula One motor race held on 25 March 1984 in Rio de Janeiro. The race was contested over 61 laps of Jacarepaguá Circuit and was the first race of the 1984 Formula One World Championship. This race was the 13th edition of the Brazilian Grand Prix, the ninth time that the Jacarepaguá Circuit race held a Grand Prix, and marked the debut of Ayrton Senna in Formula One.
The 1984 South African Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Kyalami on 7 April 1984. It was race 2 of 16 in the 1984 Formula One World Championship. The 75-lap race was won by Niki Lauda, driving a McLaren-TAG, with teammate Alain Prost second and Derek Warwick third in a Renault.
The 1984 Belgian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Circuit Zolder on 29 April 1984. It was the third race of the 1984 Formula One World Championship. It was the 42nd Belgian Grand Prix, and the tenth and last to be held at Zolder. The race was held over 70 laps of the 4.26-kilometre (2.65 mi) circuit for a race distance of 298.3 kilometres (185.4 mi).
The 1984 British Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Brands Hatch, Kent, England on 22 July 1984. It was the tenth race of the 1984 Formula One World Championship.
The 1984 Austrian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Österreichring on 19 August 1984. It was the twelfth race of the 1984 Formula One World Championship, and the 400th Grand Prix held as part of the World Championship since it began in 1950.
The 1984 Italian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Monza on 9 September 1984. It was the fourteenth race of the 1984 Formula One World Championship.
The 1985 Canadian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Circuit Gilles Villeneuve in Montreal on 16 June 1985. It was the fifth race of the 1985 Formula One World Championship.
The 1985 British Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Silverstone on 21 July 1985. It was the eighth race of the 1985 Formula One World Championship.
The 1985 Dutch Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Circuit Zandvoort on 25 August 1985. It was the eleventh round of the 1985 FIA Formula One World Championship and the 34th World Championship Grand Prix to be held in the Netherlands. The race was held over 70 laps of the four kilometre circuit for a race distance of 298 kilometres. The race also proved to be the 25th and last Grand Prix victory for triple World Champion Niki Lauda, driving a McLaren-TAG. Lauda's teammate Alain Prost was second, with Brazilian racer Ayrton Senna third in his Lotus-Renault. However, it was also to be the last Dutch Grand Prix for 36 years. It was planned to be re-introduced in 2020, on a revised Zandvoort circuit, however the re-introduction was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which would be eventually cancelled. The first race back at Zandvoort, eventually turned out to be in 2021, won by Max Verstappen. To date, both races after the return, have been won by Max Verstappen.
The 1985 European Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Brands Hatch on 6 October 1985. It was the fourteenth race of the 1985 Formula One World Championship.
The 1985 Australian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on the Adelaide Street Circuit in Adelaide on 3 November 1985. The sixteenth and final race of the 1985 Formula One World Championship, it was the 50th running of the Australian Grand Prix and the first to be held on the streets of Adelaide on a layout specifically designed for the debut of the World Championship in Australia. The race was held over 82 laps of the 3.780 km (2.362 mi) circuit for a total race distance of 310 kilometres. The race was won by Keke Rosberg driving a Williams-Honda; this was the final win for Rosberg, the last race for Alfa Romeo until 2019, and the last by a Finnish driver until Mika Häkkinen won the 1997 European Grand Prix.
The 1986 FIA Formula One World Championship was the 40th season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It featured the 1986 Formula One World Championship for Drivers and the 1986 Formula One World Championship for Manufacturers, both of which commenced on 23 March and ended on 26 October after sixteen races. The Drivers' Championship was won by Alain Prost, and the Manufacturers' Championship was won by Williams-Honda, thus Honda became the first Japanese engine supplier World Champions of Formula One, and adding a constructors' title to Frank Williams' trophy collection. Prost was the first driver to win back-to-back Drivers' Championships since Jack Brabham in 1959 and 1960.
The 1985 FIA Formula One World Championship was the 39th season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It began on 7 April and ended on 3 November after sixteen races. The World Championship for Drivers was won by Alain Prost, and the World Championship for Manufacturers was won by McLaren for the second consecutive year.
The 1984 FIA Formula One World Championship was the 38th season of Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) Formula One motor racing. Drivers and teams competed in sixteen Grands Prix for the World Drivers' and World Constructors' championship titles. The season ran from 5 March to 21 October.
The 1983 FIA Formula One World Championship was the 37th season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It featured the 1983 Formula One World Championship for Drivers and the 1983 Formula One World Championship for Constructors, which were contested concurrently over a fifteen-race series that commenced on 13 March and ended on 15 October. Nelson Piquet won the Drivers' Championship, his second Formula One title and the first to be won by a driver using a turbocharged engine, while Ferrari won the Constructors' Championship. It was also the last Drivers' Championship won by a Brabham driver.
The 1984 Detroit Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on June 24, 1984 in Detroit, Michigan. It was the eighth race of the 1984 Formula One World Championship.
The 1985 Detroit Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on June 23, 1985, in Detroit, Michigan. It was the sixth round of the 1985 FIA Formula One World Championship and the fourth Detroit Grand Prix. The race was held over 63 laps of the seven kilometre circuit for a total race distance of 260 kilometres.