1988 Formula One Season

1988 FIA Formula One World Championship
Previous	1987
Next	1989
1988 World Champion, Ayrton Senna
Season Information
Number of races	16
Season opener	Brazilian Grand Prix
Season finale	Australian Grand Prix
Tyre suppliers	G
Drivers' World Championship
Champion	Ayrton Senna 90 points
Runner-Up	Alain Prost 87 points
3rd	Gerhard Berger 41 points
Constructors' World Championship
Champion	McLaren-Honda 199 points
Runner-Up	Ferrari 65 points
3rd	Benetton-Ford 39 points

Runner-up, Alain Prost (pictured in 2009)

The MP4/4, the car that lead McLaren to the 1988 World Constructors' Championship.

The 1988 Formula One season was the 39th season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It began on April 3 and finished on November 13 after sixteen races. It was the final season where turbocharged engines were allowed, before their intended re-introduction in 2014.

The drivers' title was won by Ayrton Senna – his first title – after a season-long duel with McLaren-Honda teammate and then double world champion Alain Prost. Prost scored more points, but since not all results counted, Senna took the title, his best eleven results being better than Prost's. McLaren strode to the constructors' title, scoring more than three times the amount of points that second-placed Ferrari scored.

The McLaren car, the MP4/4, was absolutely dominant, allowing its drivers to win fifteen of the sixteen races. It would have been all sixteen, but for Jean-Louis Schlesser's accident with Senna at the Italian Grand Prix. At that race, Ferrari scored a 1–2, at the first Italian Grand Prix since the death of its founder, Enzo Ferrari.

Teams and Drivers

Entry list

Constructor	Chassis	Tyre	No.	Driver	Rounds	Test/Reserve Drivers
Team	Engine
Lotus-Honda	100T	G	1	Nelson Piquet	All
Camel Team Lotus Honda	Honda RA168E 1.5 V6T		2	Satoru Nakajima	All
Tyrrell-Ford	017	G	3	Jonathan Palmer	All
Tyrrell Racing Organisation	Ford Cosworth DFZ 3.5 V8		4	Julian Bailey	All
Williams-Judd	FW12	G	5	Nigel Mansell	1–10, 13–16
Canon Williams Team	Judd CV 3.5 V8		5	Martin Brundle	11
			5	Jean-Louis Schlesser	12
			6	Riccardo Patrese	All
Zakspeed	881	G	9	Piercarlo Ghinzani	All
West Zakspeed Racing	Zakspeed 1500/4 1.5 L4T		10	Bernd Schneider	All
McLaren-Honda	MP4/4	G	11	Alain Prost	All
Honda Marlboro McLaren	Honda RA168E 1.5 V6T		12	Ayrton Senna	All
AGS-Cosworth	JH22 JH23	G	14	Philippe Streiff	All
Automobiles Gonfaronnaises Sportives	Ford Cosworth DFZ 3.5 V8
March-Judd	881	G	15	Maurício Gugelmin	All
Leyton House March Racing Team	Judd CV 3.5 V8		16	Ivan Capelli	All
Arrows-Megatron	A10B	G	17	Derek Warwick	All
USF&G Arrows Megatron	Megatron M12/13 1.5 L4T		18	Eddie Cheever	All
Benetton-Ford	B188	G	19	Alessandro Nannini	All
Benetton Formula Ltd	Ford Cosworth DFR 3.5 V8		20	Thierry Boutsen	All
Osella	FA1I FA1L	G	21	Nicola Larini	All
Osella Squadra Corse	Osella 890T 1.5 V8T
Rial-Ford Cosworth	ARC1	G	22	Andrea de Cesaris	All
Rial Racing	Ford Cosworth DFZ 3.5 V8
Minardi-Ford	M188	G	23	Adrián Campos	1–5
Lois Minardi Team SpA	Ford Cosworth DFZ 3.5 V8		23	Pierluigi Martini	6–16
			24	Luis Pérez-Sala	All
Ligier-Judd	JS31	G	25	René Arnoux	All
Ligier Loto	Judd CV 3.5 V8		26	Stefan Johansson	All
Ferrari	F1/87/88C	G	27	Michele Alboreto	All
Scuderia Ferrari SpA SEFAC	Ferrari 033E 1.5 V6T		28	Gerhard Berger	All
Lola-Ford	LC88	G	29	Yannick Dalmas	1–14
Larrousse Calmels	Ford Cosworth DFZ 3.5 V8		29	Aguri Suzuki	15
			29	Pierre-Henri Raphanel	16
			30	Philippe Alliot	All
Coloni-Ford Cosworth	FC188 FC188B	G	31	Gabriele Tarquini	All
Coloni SpA	Ford Cosworth DFZ 3.5 V8
EuroBrun-Ford	ER188	G	32	Oscar Larrauri	All
EuroBrun Racing	Ford Cosworth DFZ 3.5 V8		33	Stefano Modena	All
Dallara-Ford Cosworth	3087 188	G	36	Alex Caffi	All
BMS Scuderia Italia	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 Ford Cosworth DFZ 3.5 V8

Changes from last season

Team changes

• BMS Scuderia Italia and EuroBrun entered the sport.

Driver changes

• Nelson Piquet: Williams → Lotus
• Riccardo Patrese: Brabham → Williams
• Piercarlo Ghinzani: Ligier → Zakspeed
• Ayrton Senna: Lotus → McLaren
• Philippe Streiff: Tyrrell → AGS
• Alessandro Nannini: Minardi → Benetton
• Nicola Larini: Coloni → Osella
• Andrea de Cesaris: Brabham → Rial
• Stefan Johansson: McLaren → Ligier
• Gabriele Tarquini: Osella → Coloni
• Stefano Modena: Brabham → EuroBrun
• Alex Caffi: Osella → Dallara
• Oscar Larrauri: ? → EuroBrun
• Maurício Gugelmin: Formula 3000 → March
• Luis Pérez-Sala: Formula 3000 → Minardi
• Julian Bailey: Formula 3000 → Tyrrell
• Bernd Schneider: German F3 → Zakspeed

Mid-season Changes

Driver changes

• For Round 6 (Detroit):
  • Minardi: Adrián Campos (motivation loss) → Pierluigi Martini
• For Round 11 (Belgium):
  • Williams: Nigel Mansell (illness) → Martin Brundle
• For Round 12 (Italy):
  • Williams: Martin Brundle → Jean-Louis Schlesser
• For Round 15 (Japan):
  • Lola: Yannick Dalmas (illness) → Aguri Suzuki
• For Round 16 (Australia):
  • Lola: Aguri Suzuki → Pierre-Henri Raphanel

Driver Standings

Driver Placings
Pos	Driver																	Pts
1st	Senna	DSQ	1st	Ret	2nd	1st	1st	2nd	1st	1st	1st	1st	10th	6th	4th	1st	2nd	90 (94)
2nd	Prost	1st	2nd	1st	1st	2nd	2nd	1st	Ret	2nd	2nd	2nd	Ret	1st	1st	2nd	1st	87 (105)
3rd	Berger	2nd	5th	2nd	3rd	Ret	Ret	4th	9th	3rd	4th	Ret	1st	Ret	6th	4th	Ret	41
4th	Boutsen	7th	4th	8th	8th	3rd	3rd	Ret	Ret	6th	3rd	DSQ	6th	3rd	9th	3rd	5th	27
5th	Alboreto	5th	18th	3rd	4th	Ret	Ret	3rd	17th	4th	Ret	Ret	2nd	5th	Ret	11th	Ret	24
6th	Piquet	3rd	3rd	Ret	Ret	4th	Ret	5th	5th	Ret	8th	4th	Ret	Ret	8th	Ret	3rd	22
7th	Capelli	Ret	Ret	10th	16th	5th	DNS	9th	Ret	5th	Ret	3rd	5th	2nd	Ret	Ret	6th	17
8th	Warwick	4th	9th	4th	5th	7th	Ret	Ret	6th	7th	Ret	5th	4th	4th	Ret	Ret	Ret	17
9th	Mansell	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	2nd	Ret	Ret	ILL	ILL	Ret	2nd	Ret	Ret	12
10th	Nannini	Ret	6th	Ret	7th	Ret	Ret	6th	3rd	18th	Ret	DSQ	9th	Ret	3rd	5th	Ret	12
11th	Patrese	Ret	13th	6th	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	8th	Ret	6th	Ret	7th	Ret	5th	6th	4th	8
12th	Cheever	8th	7th	Ret	6th	Ret	Ret	11th	7th	10th	Ret	6th	3rd	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	6
13th	Gugelmin	Ret	15th	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	8th	4th	8th	5th	Ret	8th	Ret	7th	10th	Ret	5
14th	Palmer	Ret	14th	5th	DNQ	6th	5th	Ret	Ret	11th	Ret	12th	DNQ	Ret	Ret	12th	Ret	5
15th	de Cesaris	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	9th	4th	10th	Ret	13th	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	8th	3
16th	Nakajima	6th	8th	DNQ	Ret	11th	DNQ	7th	10th	9th	7th	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	7th	Ret	1
17th	Martini						6th	15th	15th	DNQ	Ret	DNQ	Ret	Ret	Ret	13th	7th	1
NC	Dalmas	Ret	12th	7th	9th	DNQ	7th	13th	13th	19th	9th	Ret	Ret	Ret	11th			0
NC	Caffi	DNPQ	Ret	Ret	Ret	DNPQ	8th	12th	11th	15th	Ret	8th	Ret	7th	10th	Ret	Ret	0
NC	Brundle											7th						0
NC	Streiff	Ret	10th	Ret	12th	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	10th	Ret	9th	Ret	8th	11th	0
NC	Pérez-Sala	Ret	11th	Ret	11th	13th	Ret	NC	Ret	DNQ	10th	DNQ	Ret	8th	12th	15th	Ret	0
NC	Tarquini	Ret	Ret	Ret	14th	8th	DNPQ	DNPQ	DNPQ	DNPQ	13th	Ret	DNQ	11th	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	0
NC	Alliot	Ret	17th	Ret	Ret	10th	Ret	Ret	14th	Ret	12th	9th	Ret	Ret	14th	9th	10th	0
NC	Johansson	9th	DNQ	Ret	10th	Ret	Ret	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	Ret	11th	DNQ	Ret	Ret	DNQ	9th	0
NC	Bailey	DNQ	Ret	DNQ	DNQ	Ret	9th	DNQ	16th	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	12th	DNQ	DNQ	14th	DNQ	0
NC	Larini	DNQ	EXC	9th	DNQ	DNQ	Ret	Ret	19th	Ret	DNPQ	Ret	Ret	12th	Ret	Ret	DNPQ	0
NC	Arnoux	Ret	DNQ	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	DNQ	18th	17th	Ret	Ret	13th	10th	Ret	17th	Ret	0
NC	Modena	Ret	NC	DSQ	DSQ	12th	Ret	14th	12th	Ret	11th	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	13th	DNQ	Ret	0
NC	Schlesser												11th					0
NC	Schneider	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	Ret	DNQ	DNQ	Ret	DNQ	12th	DNQ	13th	Ret	DNQ	DNQ	Ret	DNQ	0
NC	Larrauri	Ret	DNQ	Ret	13th	Ret	Ret	Ret	DNQ	16th	DNQ	DNPQ	DNPQ	DNPQ	DNQ	DNQ	Ret	0
NC	Ghinzani	DNQ	Ret	Ret	15th	14th	DNQ	EXC	DNQ	14th	DNQ	Ret	Ret	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	Ret	0
NC	Campos	Ret	16th	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ												0
NC	Suzuki															16th		0
NC	Raphanel																DNQ	0

Constructor Standings

Team Placings
Pos	Team																		Pts
1st	McLaren	Prost	1st	2nd	1st	1st	2nd	2nd	1st	Ret	2nd	2nd	2nd	Ret	1st	1st	2nd	1st	199
		Senna	DSQ	1st	Ret	2nd	1st	1st	2nd	1st	1st	1st	1st	10th	6th	4th	1st	2nd
2nd	Ferrari	Alboreto	5th	18th	3rd	4th	Ret	Ret	3rd	17th	4th	Ret	Ret	2nd	5th	Ret	11th	Ret	65
		Berger	2nd	5th	2nd	3rd	Ret	Ret	4th	9th	3rd	4th	Ret	1st	Ret	6th	4th	Ret
3rd	Benetton	Nannini	Ret	6th	Ret	7th	Ret	Ret	6th	3rd	18th	Ret	DSQ	9th	Ret	3rd	5th	Ret	39
		Boutsen	7th	4th	8th	8th	3rd	3rd	Ret	Ret	6th	3rd	DSQ	6th	3rd	9th	3rd	5th
4th	Lotus	Piquet	3rd	3rd	Ret	Ret	4th	Ret	5th	5th	Ret	8th	4th	Ret	Ret	8th	Ret	3rd	23
		Nakajima	6th	8th	DNQ	Ret	11th	DNQ	7th	10th	9th	7th	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	7th	Ret
5th	Arrows	Warwick	4th	9th	4th	5th	7th	Ret	Ret	6th	7th	Ret	5th	4th	4th	Ret	Ret	Ret	23
		Cheever	8th	7th	Ret	6th	Ret	Ret	11th	7th	10th	Ret	6th	3rd	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret
6th	March	Gugelmin	Ret	15th	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	8th	4th	8th	5th	Ret	8th	Ret	7th	10th	Ret	22
		Capelli	Ret	Ret	10th	16th	5th	DNS	9th	Ret	5th	Ret	3rd	5th	2nd	Ret	Ret	6th
7th	Williams	Mansell	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	2nd	Ret	Ret	ILL	ILL	Ret	2nd	Ret	Ret	20
		Brundle											7th
		Schlesser												11th
		Patrese	Ret	13th	6th	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	8th	Ret	6th	Ret	7th	Ret	5th	6th	4th
8th	Tyrrell	Palmer	Ret	14th	5th	DNQ	6th	5th	Ret	Ret	11th	Ret	12th	DNQ	Ret	Ret	12th	Ret	5
		Bailey	DNQ	Ret	DNQ	DNQ	Ret	9th	DNQ	16th	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	12th	DNQ	DNQ	14th	DNQ
9th	Rial	de Cesaris	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	9th	4th	10th	Ret	13th	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	8th	3
10th	Minardi	Campos	Ret	16th	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ												1
		Martini						6th	15th	15th	DNQ	Ret	DNQ	Ret	Ret	Ret	13th	7th
		Pérez-Sala	Ret	11th	Ret	11th	13th	Ret	NC	Ret	DNQ	10th	DNQ	Ret	8th	12th	15th	Ret
NC	Lola	Dalmas	Ret	12th	7th	9th	DNQ	7th	13th	13th	19th	9th	Ret	Ret	Ret	11th			0
		Suzuki															16th
		Raphanel																DNQ
		Alliot	Ret	17th	Ret	Ret	10th	Ret	Ret	14th	Ret	12th	9th	Ret	Ret	14th	9th	10th
NC	Dallara	Caffi	DNPQ	Ret	Ret	Ret	DNPQ	8th	12th	11th	15th	Ret	8th	Ret	7th	10th	Ret	Ret	0
NC	AGS	Streiff	Ret	10th	Ret	12th	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	10th	Ret	9th	Ret	8th	11th	0
NC	Coloni	Tarquini	Ret	Ret	Ret	14th	8th	DNPQ	DNPQ	DNPQ	DNPQ	13th	Ret	DNQ	11th	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	0
NC	Ligier	Arnoux	Ret	DNQ	Ret	Ret	Ret	Ret	DNQ	18th	17th	Ret	Ret	13th	10th	Ret	17th	Ret	0
		Johansson	9th	DNQ	Ret	10th	Ret	Ret	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	Ret	11th	DNQ	Ret	Ret	DNQ	9th
NC	Osella	Larini	DNQ	EXC	9th	DNQ	DNQ	Ret	Ret	19th	Ret	DNPQ	Ret	Ret	12th	Ret	Ret	DNPQ	0
NC	EuroBrun	Larrauri	Ret	DNQ	Ret	13th	Ret	Ret	Ret	DNQ	16th	DNQ	DNPQ	DNPQ	DNPQ	DNQ	DNQ	Ret	0
		Modena	Ret	NC	DSQ	DSQ	12th	Ret	14th	12th	Ret	11th	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	13th	DNQ	Ret
NC	Zakspeed	Ghinzani	DNQ	Ret	Ret	15th	14th	DNQ	EXC	DNQ	14th	DNQ	Ret	Ret	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	Ret	0
		Schneider	DNQ	DNQ	DNQ	Ret	DNQ	DNQ	Ret	DNQ	12th	DNQ	13th	Ret	DNQ	DNQ	Ret	DNQ

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