F1 / The 1986 Season of Rivalry: Reflections of an Old Fan

This is a revised version of a manuscript I posted on another site on May 31, 2003, the day before the Monaco Grand Prix, a traditional F1 race.

I started watching F1 seriously (?) when I was still living in France, around the end of the summer of 1985.

At that time, a man named Alain Prost was frequently featured on the evening sports news. This was because he was the driver most likely to become the first French F1 Drivers' Champion.

And after the talk about Alain Prost, Honda's engines were also frequently discussed.

When I learned that a Japanese manufacturer was participating in F1, my blood as a fellow Japanese person stirred, I started to become interested in Williams, which was equipped with a Honda engine, and I began watching F1 on TV in earnest.

Then, in the last three races, Williams-Honda achieved three consecutive victories. Once that happened, my interest was suddenly piqued. What kind of F1 season would the coming year, 1986, be?

* * * * *

What is a great match? When you start watching sports, everyone asks themselves this at least once.

What the person watching feels at that moment is the truth, and excitement is based on that. And a great match cannot be talked about without that excitement. In other words, I think it can be said that it is a match that provided a high degree of pure excitement.

However, it is fundamentally impossible to quantify excitement.

Therefore, making a top-ten ranking of great matches might be good conversation over drinks, but it's like an answer sheet that only that person can grade. Other people's answer sheets are their own collections of great matches. Even if someone else's answer sheet serves as a reference, there is no need to apply it to yourself.

So, what is necessary for a great match?

Since sports arise from competition between people, a great match requires athletes to encounter worthy opponents who force them to demonstrate their full capabilities.

in the right place at the right time.
To be in the right place at the right time.

Isn't this encounter, along with the athlete's outstanding ability, essential for creating a great match?

* * * * *

1986, the year the 13th World Cup was held in Mexico.

It was the year that France, led by Michel Platini, Brazil, led by Zico, and Argentina, led by Maradona, fought for supremacy. Perhaps because the excitement of the soccer world spread, the 1986 F1 season was a year of continuous heated battles that kept you on the edge of your seat until the very end.

Williams (designed by Patrick Head) baring its fangs at the prestigious McLaren (designed by John Barnard), and Lotus (designed by Gérard Ducarouge) with its long-standing pride at stake.

TAG-Porsche, with its pride as a sports car manufacturer on the line, Honda's enthusiasm, which had been on the rise since the previous year, and the determination of Renault, the pioneer in developing F1 turbo engines.

Alain Prost aiming for consecutive titles, Nelson Piquet eyeing his third championship, Nigel Mansell dreaming of his first crown, and a young Ayrton Senna.

Just thinking about it, these were the players who made up the 1986 F1 season.

* * * * *

Until the middle of the season, the four of them—Prost, Piquet, Mansell, and Senna—were locked in a fierce battle.

However, once Senna dropped out of the championship race, the pattern continued with Mansell leading in points while Prost and Piquet chased him.

Mansell had the championship almost in his grasp. But at the final race, the Australian GP on the streets of Adelaide, he suffered a nightmare tire burst. Glory slipped through Mansell's fingers, and Prost pulled off a dramatic comeback at the very last moment to secure his second consecutive title.

The only driver other than those four to win that year was Gerhard Berger, driving for Benetton BMW. Berger's first victory came at the 15th round, the Mexican GP at the Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez.

It was a race on a bumpy course at high altitude where the air was thin. While almost every other driver changed their tires, Berger didn't, continuing to drive like a madman on the rough surface. Everyone thought Berger's tires wouldn't last until the end, but they were wrong. Having won a huge gamble, Berger was the only driver to break the stranglehold of the 'Big Four' on victories.

Perhaps in recognition of this performance, Berger was welcomed into the historic Ferrari team the following year. And taking Berger's place was the excellent supporting player, Thierry Boutsen.

Even so, Benetton was a lively and prominent team. They had a stylish body design with a green base and colorful paint splattered over white. Berger's partner, the tall driver, was paired with the small but talented speedster Teo Fabi. This odd couple was also wonderful.

In contrast to Benetton's modern design was the classic look of Lotus. Since their main sponsor was John Player Special cigarettes, the gold logo on a black background was noble and beautiful. That's why even now, when I find JPS, I end up buying it and smoking it while remembering the Senna and GP of those days.

There were others: veteran Jacques Laffite, who was forced to retire after a complex fracture in both legs from a massive crash at Brands Hatch (British GP); the sight of Alain Prost pushing his car while it was out of fuel just before the finish line (German GP); Elio de Angelis, who died in an accident during testing; and Keke Rosberg, who announced his retirement, fed up with the regulation-heavy F1.

And Honda, which won the Constructors' Championship for the first time.

1986 was a dense and moving year that remains in the memories of the warriors who fought it out.

Finally, let me introduce the teams and drivers who made 1986 so exciting.

Marlboro McLaren International
Marlboro McLaren International
Alain Prost
Keke Rosberg

Canon Williams Honda
Canon Williams Honda
Nelson Piquet
Nigel Mansell

John Player Special Team Lotus
John Player Special Team Lotus
Ayrton Senna
Johnny Dumfries

Benetton Formula Ltd
Benetton Formula Ltd
Gerhard Berger
Teo Fabi

Scuderia Ferrari SpA SEFAC
Scuderia Ferrari SpA SEFAC
Michele Alboreto
Stefan Johansson

Equipe Ligier
Equipe Ligier
Jacques Laffite
Rene Arnoux

Brabham Motor Racing Developments Ltd
Brabham Motor Racing Developments Ltd
Elio de Angelis
Riccardo Patrese