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The 1984 Monaco Grand Prix, otherwise officially known as the XLII Grand Prix Automobile de Monaco, was the sixth round of the 1984 FIA Formula One World Championship, staged at the Circuit de Monaco in Monte Carlo on the 3 June 1984.[1] The race would be remembered for stunning break-out drive from future Champion Ayrton Senna, as heavy rain saw the race brought to a premature end as the Brazilian closed on eventual winner Alain Prost.[1]

It was the aforementioned Prost who had starred in qualifying, with the Championship leader claiming pole for McLaren-TAG.[1] Nigel Mansell was his closest challenger in his Lotus-Renault, while Senna claimed thirteenth in the new Toleman-Hart.[1] Qualifying would also be notable for a huge accident for Martin Brundle, although the Brit would fortunately escape without injury.[1]

Rain throughout the morning on raceday ensured that the start was delayed, although after 45 minutes of waiting there was still no sign of the water disappearing.[1] Prost duly led away from the start from Mansell, with those two able to break clear as the two Renaults took each other out at Sainte Devote just behind.[1]

The rain continued to fall as the early laps unfolded, with Niki Lauda dancing his McLaren-TAG up to third with two excellent moves on the Ferraris.[1] Mansell, meanwhile, would eye up a move on Prost as Lauda broke free of the scarlet cars, while Senna was sneaking his way up the order.[1]

By lap eleven Mansell had found a way past Prost, with the black-gold Lotus also able to dance away from the McLaren immediately after.[1] However, just five laps later Prost was back into the lead, for Mansell's Lotus was buried in the barriers at Casino Square.[1]

That carnage put Senna up into third, with the Brazilian suddenly surging past Lauda for second.[1] He duly began to catch Prost, by that staged twenty seconds clear, with the Frenchman soon seen waving at the officials to stop the race.[1]

Ultimately it was clerk of the course Jacky Ickx who stopped the race, stepping onto the circuit at the end of lap 31 with the red and chequered flags.[1][2] Prost duly swept home to claim victory, just ahead of a furious Senna, while a stunning drive from Stefan Bellof saw the only naturally aspirated car in the field finish third.[1] Unfortunately for Bellof, his impressive run would go officially unrecognised a few weeks later, with the retroactive disqualification of Tyrrell seeing René Arnoux promoted into third.[1]

Because of the much shortened race distance (31 of 76 laps) half points were awarded, leaving Prost 10.5 ahead of teammate Lauda in the title hunt.[2]

Background[]

The traditional trip to the Circuit de Monaco and Monte Carlo would be made in early summer, with the 1984 edition of the FIA Formula One World Championship gathering for the race on the 3 June.[2] As ever, there was little change to the circuit ahead of the 1984 edition of the Grand Prix, although plans to re-profile the Nouvelle Chicane to slow the cars down.[2] Regardless, those plans were overshadowed by a battle over television rights, with FISA and the Automobile Club de Monaco at odds over coverage of the race.[3]

TV Tensions[]

The dispute came about after the ACM, responsible for the organisation of the event, sold a significant part of the TV rights package for the race to ABC, an American TV company ahead of the 1983 race.[3] This was a breach of the Concorde Agreement signed by all of the teams, sponsors and organisers for Formula One, with FOCA, and hence FISA, denied the spoils of coverage of the Monaco Grand Prix.[3] FISA president Jean-Marie Balestre's initial response was to remove the Monaco Grand Prix from the calendar late in 1983, when news of the deal emerged.[3]

The race seemed to have been salvaged soon after, with ACM President Michel Boeri promising to cancel the ACM's contract with ABC.[3] Yet, by early March 1984 there had been no cancellation, prompting FISA to send a demand to the ACM for 7.5% of the TV rights, or the race would be cancelled.[3] The ACM stood firm, with Prince Rainier III leading a legal challenge against FISA's demands through the FIA.[3]

Ultimately the court would appear to rule in favour of the ACM, deciding that the contract between the ACM and ABC had been signed before the terms of the FOCA-FISA Concorde Agreement came into effect.[3] However, upon a challenge by FISA a new court date required, although it would only take place after the Monaco Grand Prix had been staged.[3] Elsewhere, there would be tensions over media coverage of the event from photographers and journalists, whom sought protection from getting barred access to the garages during the race weekend.[3]

Entrants[]

There was to be one significant change to the entry list ahead of the 1984 Monaco Grand Prix, with a revised line-up emerging at Brabham-BMW.[2] Indeed, with Teo Fabi occupied with his seat in Indy Car, it was his brother Corrado who would partner Nelson Piquet in Monaco, a swap that had been pre-arranged at the start of the season.[2] In terms of the cars, meanwhile, designed Gordon Murray had been re-developing the bodywork of the BT53s, in hopes of appeasing the team's rather temperamental BMW engines after numerous turbo failures.[3]

Elsewhere, Tyrrell were unchanged heading into the race, knowing that Stefan Bellof and Martin Brundle would likely fail to qualify given their lack of turbocharged power, and the fact that the Monte Carlo grid was limited to 20 starters.[2] Likewise, Arrows were prepared to lose Thierry Boutsen, although Marc Surer was expected to make the cut with his BMW engined A7.[2] Another team set to struggle to qualify were Osella-Alfa Romeo, with Piercarlo Ghinzani only having one turbocharged car, as was the lone Spirit-Hart of Mauro Baldi.[3]

Over at Renault, meanwhile, there had been a change in the supplier of their turbochargers, with Patrick Tambay and Derek Warwick set to use Garrett turbos for the forseeable future.[3] This brought them into line with their customers Lotus and Ligier, both of whom used the small turbo charger as it produced less lag than the factory turbo.[3] Otherwise, both Ligier and Lotus were unchanged, with François Hesnault and Andrea de Cesaris in for the former, and Elio de Angelis and Nigel Mansell piloting the former's cars.[3]

The Hart engined contingent, meanwhile, would arrive with high hopes, in spite of the fact that Spirit were set to miss out on a grid slot.[3] Indeed, Toleman, the de facto factory squad with Hart, arrived with their new TG184 for lead driver Ayrton Senna, sporting the latest Hart engine design, with his teammate Johnny Cecotto using his usual car.[3] There was less optimism over with the RAM team, meanwhile, with Jonathan Palmer and Phillippe Alliot both Monte Carlo virgins.[3]

Alfa Romeo arrived with new KKK turbos for their factory cars, although neither the drivers, Riccardo Patrese and Eddie Cheever, nor boss Giampaolo Pavanello, would officially confirm the change.[3] Another team with a some modified turbos in Monaco were the Championship leading McLaren-TAG squad, with Alain Prost and Niki Lauda getting new Porsche sourced turbos, as well as complimentary camshafts.[3] Ferrari, meanwhile, were completely unchanged, with René Arnoux and Michele Alboreto listed as their pilots, while Manfred Winkelhock and the ATS-BMW completed the field.[3]

Championship Challenge[]

Into the Championship and Prost had seen his lead cut to six points after the French Grand Prix, with Lauda having leapt up to second to challenge his teammate. Arnoux, meanwhile, found himself level with the now third placed Warwick, the Brit having moved ahead of the Italian on count-back in Dijon. Elsewhere, de Angelis completed the top five ahead of Rosberg, while defending Champion Piquet was still yet to score.

In the Manufacturers' Championship it was still advantage McLaren-TAG arriving in Monaco, the Anglo-German squad having extended their lead to twenty points last time out. Ferrari had remained their closest challengers, albeit with just a point between themselves and Renault in third, while Team Lotus-Renault had solidified their hold on fourth. Williams-Honda completed the top five, with nine manufacturers on the board ahead of the trip to the Principality.

Entry List[]

The full entry list for the 1984 Monaco Grand Prix is shown below:

No. Driver Entrant Constructor Chassis Engine Model Tyre
1 Brazil Nelson Piquet United Kingdom MRD International Brabham BT53 BMW M12/13 1.5 L4t M
2 Italy Corrado Fabi United Kingdom MRD International Brabham BT53 BMW M12/13 1.5 L4t M
3 United Kingdom Martin Brundle United Kingdom Tyrrell Racing Organisation Tyrrell 012 Ford Cosworth DFY 3.0 V8 G
4 Germany Stefan Bellof United Kingdom Tyrrell Racing Organisation Tyrrell 012 Ford Cosworth DFY 3.0 V8 G
5 France Jacques Laffite United Kingdom Williams Grand Prix Engineering Williams FW09 Honda RA163E 1.5 V6t G
6 Finland Keke Rosberg United Kingdom Williams Grand Prix Engineering Williams FW09 Honda RA163E 1.5 V6t G
7 France Alain Prost United Kingdom Marlboro McLaren International McLaren MP4/2 TAG TTE PO1 1.5 V6t M
8 Austria Niki Lauda United Kingdom Marlboro McLaren International McLaren MP4/2 TAG TTE PO1 1.5 V6t M
9 France Philippe Alliot United Kingdom Skoal Bandit Formula 1 Team RAM 02 Hart 415T 1.5 L4t P
10 United Kingdom Jonathan Palmer United Kingdom Skoal Bandit Formula 1 Team RAM 01 Hart 415T 1.5 L4t P
11 Italy Elio de Angelis United Kingdom John Player Team Lotus Lotus 95T Renault EF4B 1.5 V6t G
12 United Kingdom Nigel Mansell United Kingdom John Player Team Lotus Lotus 95T Renault EF4B 1.5 V6t G
14 Germany Manfred Winkelhock Germany Team ATS ATS D7 BMW M12/13 1.5 L4t P
15 France Patrick Tambay France Equipe Renault Elf Renault RE50 Renault EF4 1.5 V6t G
16 United Kingdom Derek Warwick France Equipe Renault Elf Renault RE50 Renault EF4 1.5 V6t G
17 Switzerland Marc Surer United Kingdom Barclay Nordica Arrows BMW Arrows A7 Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8 G
18 Belgium Thierry Boutsen United Kingdom Barclay Nordica Arrows BMW Arrows A6 BMW M12/13 1.5 L4t G
19 Brazil Ayrton Senna United Kingdom Toleman Group Motorsport Toleman TG183B Hart 415T 1.5 L4t P
20 Venezuela Johnny Cecotto United Kingdom Toleman Group Motorsport Toleman TG183B Hart 415T 1.5 L4t P
21 Italy Mauro Baldi United Kingdom Spirit Racing Spirit 101B Hart 415T 1.5 L4t P
22 Italy Riccardo Patrese Italy Benetton Team Alfa Romeo Alfa Romeo 184T Alfa Romeo 890T 1.5 V8t G
23 United States Eddie Cheever Italy Benetton Team Alfa Romeo Alfa Romeo 184T Alfa Romeo 890T 1.5 V8t G
24 Italy Piercarlo Ghinzani Italy Osella Squadra Corse Osella FA1F Alfa Romeo 890T 1.5 V8t P
25 France François Hesnault France Ligier Loto Ligier JS23 Renault EF4 1.5 V6t M
26 Italy Andrea de Cesaris France Ligier Loto Ligier JS23 Renault EF4 1.5 V6t M
27 Italy Michele Alboreto Italy Scuderia Ferrari SpA SEFAC Ferrari 126C4 Ferrari 031 1.5 V6t G
28 France René Arnoux Italy Scuderia Ferrari SpA SEFAC Ferrari 126C4 Ferrari 031 1.5 V6t G
Source:[4]

Practice Overview[]

Qualifying[]

Qualifying for the Monaco Grand Prix of 1984 would see the field fight for 20 spots on the grid, meaning seven drivers would miss out on starting the race.[2] The fastest twenty in the field would be discovered across two qualifying sessions, held on the afternoons of Thursday and Saturday ahead of the race, leaving the two morning sessions on each day for race practice.[2] As for a target time, the top drivers would hope to best the circuit record, 1:23.281 set by René Arnoux en-route to pole in 1982.[2]

Thursday Qualifying[]

It was Michele Alboreto and Ferrari who topped the times on Thursday, with a busy hour and a half of running seeing a lot of drivers having their best laps hobbled by slower cars.[2] Indeed, even Alboreto's best effort, a 1:23.581, had been recorded with the Italian getting baulked, although many suspected that there was more to come from the other cars in the field.[2] Indeed, Patrick Tambay managed to record the second fastest time of the afternoon in spite of numerous minor issues for Renault, while Alain Prost quietly went about recording a 1:23.944 in the McLaren-TAG.[2]

Elsewhere, Williams-Honda battled against some harrowing understeer throughout the session, with Keke Rosberg and Jacques Laffite well off the pace.[2] Toleman-Hart, meanwhile, were getting used to their new Michelin tyres, while Eddie Cheever was among the stragglers after a series of engine issues.[2] Likewise, the Ford Cosworth trio of Martin Brundle, Stefan Bellof (both Tyrrell) and Marc Surer (Arrows) were off the pace, with their lack of engine power costing them dearly on the short circuit.[2]

Saturday Qualifying[]

Saturday's qualifying would see a universal increase in pace, resulting in an interesting, if short-lived, battle for pole.[2] Indeed, in the midst of a barrage of do-or-die laps, Prost delivered an excellent effort of 1:22.661, aided by the fact that he was one of only a handful of drivers to get a clean lap on their "quali" tyres.[2] Indeed, teammate Niki Lauda was less fortunate, coming across a slow Spirit-Hart of Mauro Baldi late on in his lap, leaving him eighth.[2]

Sharing the front row with Prost would be Nigel Mansell in the #12 Lotus-Renault, another driver who managed to find a gap in the traffic where others could not.[2] His 1:22.752 therefore edged out both of the Ferraris, Arnoux sneaking ahead of Alboreto in the dying moments of the session, while the two Renaults would get enough time in between their various engine murmurs to claim fifth and sixth, Derek Warwick the faster of the duo.[2] Next up was Andrea de Cesaris in the Ligier-Renault, suggesting that the Renault engine was fairly strong in Monte Carlo, while Rosberg just managed to grab a spot in the top ten behind Nelson Piquet.[2]

Brundle 1984 Monaco Grand Prix

Martin Brundle tried in vain to qualify for the race, before a huge accident ended his slim chances.

Indeed, Piquet may well have gone faster had he been able to set a time later in the session, for he would blow the turbos in both his race and the spare Brabham-BMW during the final hour.[2] Likewise, temporary teammate Corrado Fabi would miss out on making a last blast as he destroyed his turbo, while Cheever missed out on a spot on the grid completely when his Alfa Romeo engine let go.[2] The other BMW engined cars of Manfred Winkelhock and Thierry Boutsen fared better in terms of reliability, although the latter would fail to qualify.[2]

At the back of the field, meanwhile, only one of the naturally aspirated (ie Ford Cosworth engined) cars made it onto the grid, with Bellof just making the cut with a 1:26.117.[2] He and teammate Brundle had been evenly matched throughout, but a heavy accident for the Brit midway through the session ended his hopes, Brundle being whisked away to the medical centre for checks.[2] Winkelhock, meanwhile, was left with a bruised shoulder after his own heavy accident at Loews, meaning Surer had half a hope of inheriting a spot on the grid if the German's ATS-BMW was forced to withdraw.[2]

Qualifying Results[]

The full qualifying results for the 1984 Monaco Grand Prix are outlined below:

Pos. No. Driver Constructor Time Gap
Q1 Q2
1 7 France Alain Prost United Kingdom McLaren-TAG 1:23.944 1:22.661
2 12 United Kingdom Nigel Mansell United Kingdom Lotus-Renault 1:24.927 1:22.752 +0.091s
3 28 France René Arnoux Italy Ferrari 1:24.661 1:22.935 +0.274s
4 27 Italy Michele Alboreto Italy Ferrari 1:23.581 1:22.937 +0.276s
5 16 United Kingdom Derek Warwick France Renault 1:23.726 1:23.237 +0.576s
6 15 France Patrick Tambay France Renault 1:24.828T 1:23.414 +0.753s
7 26 Italy Andrea de Cesaris France Ligier-Renault 1:25.939 1:23.578 +0.917s
8 8 Austria Niki Lauda United Kingdom McLaren-TAG 1:24.508 1:23.886 +1.225s
9 1 Brazil Nelson Piquet United Kingdom Brabham-BMW 1:24.139T 1:23.918T +1.257s
10 6 Finland Keke Rosberg United Kingdom Williams-Honda 1:26.017 1:24.151 +1.490s
11 11 Italy Elio de Angelis United Kingdom Lotus-Renault 1:25.602 1:24.426 +1.765s
12 14 West Germany Manfred Winkelhock West Germany ATS-BMW 1:52.889 1:24.473 +1.812s
13 19 Brazil Ayrton Senna United Kingdom Toleman-Hart 1:27.865 1:25.009 +2.348s
14 22 Italy Riccardo Patrese Italy Alfa Romeo 1:28.072 1:25.101 +2.440s
15 2 Italy Corrado Fabi United Kingdom Brabham-BMW 1:31.618 1:25.290 +2.629s
16 5 France Jacques Laffite United Kingdom Williams-Honda 1:27.356 1:25.719 +3.058s
17 25 France François Hesnault France Ligier-Renault 1:27.678 1:25.815 +3.154s
18 20 Venezuela Johnny Cecotto United Kingdom Toleman-Hart 1:28.241 1:25.872 +3.211s
19 24 Italy Piercarlo Ghinzani Italy Osella-Alfa Romeo 1:27.723 1:25.877 +3.216s
20 4 West Germany Stefan Bellof United Kingdom Tyrrell-Ford Cosworth 1:27.836 1:26.117 +3.456s
DNQ 17 Switzerland Marc Surer United Kingdom Arrows-Ford Cosworth 1:27.919 1:26.273 +3.612s
DNQ 3 United Kingdom Martin Brundle United Kingdom Tyrrell-Ford Cosworth 1:27.891 1:26.373 +3.712s
DNQ 23 United States Eddie Cheever Italy Alfa Romeo 1:28.961 1:26.471 +3.810s
DNQ 18 Belgium Thierry Boutsen United Kingdom Arrows-BMW 1:28.000 1:26.514T +3.853s
DNQ 10 United Kingdom Jonathan Palmer United Kingdom RAM-Hart 1:29.778 1:27.458 +4.797s
DNQ 21 Italy Mauro Baldi United Kingdom Spirit-Hart 1:28.360 1:30.146 +5.699s
DNQ 9 France Philippe Alliot United Kingdom RAM-Hart 1:29.637 1:29.576 +6.915s
Source:[2][5]
  • T Indicates a driver used their test/spare car to set their best time in that session.
  • Bold indicates a driver's best/qualifying time.

Grid[]

Pos. Pos.
Driver Driver
______________
Row 1 ______________ 1
2 Alain Prost
Nigel Mansell ______________
Row 2 ______________ 3
4 René Arnoux
Michele Alboreto ______________
Row 3 ______________ 5
6 Derek Warwick
Patrick Tambay ______________
Row 4 ______________ 7
8 Andrea de Cesaris
Niki Lauda ______________
Row 5 ______________ 9
10 Nelson Piquet
Keke Rosberg ______________
Row 6 ______________ 11
12 Elio de Angelis
Manfred Winkelhock ______________
Row 7 ______________ 13
14 Ayrton Senna
Riccardo Patrese ______________
Row 8 ______________ 15
16 Corrado Fabi
Jacques Laffite ______________
Row 9 ______________ 17
18 François Hesnault
Johnny Cecotto ______________
Row 10 ______________ 19
20 Piercarlo Ghinzani
Stefan Bellof ______________

Race[]

Raceday dawned dark, murky, and with rain sweeping towards the Principality across the Mediterranean, which duly arrived just as the morning warm-up began.[2] Niki Lauda end the warm-up fastest, although his concerns over the safety standards going into the start of the race prompted the Austrian to appeal to FOCA boss Bernie Ecclestone that the inside of the tunnel be watered to ensure that the drivers' wet tyres did not burn up on the dry tarmac. Ecclestone and the organisers relented, with the start delayed by almost forty-five minutes as the tunnel was hosed with water.[3]

Report[]

Start 1984 Monaco Grand Prix

Alain Prost and Nigel Mansell blasted clear at the start of the race.

The start itself would be held in very wet conditions, with pole sitter Alain Prost managing to slither off the line ahead of Nigel Mansell, who had spent most of the warm-up practising his starts.[2] They were chased by the Ferraris of Michele Alboreto and René Arnoux, although the Frenchman would find himself under pressure from Derek Warwick as the field surged towards Sainte Devote.[3] Indeed, the Brit's optimistic lunge around the outside of the Ferrari would be a rather costly one, with the first accident of the afternoon resulting from their little scrap.[3]

Somewhat inevitably Arnoux forced Warwick wide, causing the Brit to slither straight into the barriers on the outside of the circuit and out of the race.[3] Things would go from bad to worse for Renault a split second later, for Warwick's teammate Patrick Tambay was left with no where to go, and duly slammed into the back of the Brit, partially blocking the circuit.[3] The rest of the field slowly picked their way around the incident, with Elio de Angelis and Riccardo Patrese the biggest losers having ended up on the wrong side of the incident.[3]

Once the field had scrambled clear of the incident the two Renault pilots emerged, with Warwick the first out with no serious injuries, although he did limp away from the scene. Teammate Tambay, however, had to be carried from the car by the marshals, the heavy impact having caused a major suspension piece the pierce the cockpit and break the Frenchman's left fibula.[3] Fortunately Tambay would escape without any life threatening injuries, although it seemed that Renault would have to look for a replacement driver was well as build two new RE50s ahead of the expensive trip to Canada later that month.[2]

On track, meanwhile, it was still Prost leading from Mansell, Alboreto and Arnoux, before a gap back to the rest of the field led by Keke Rosberg in the Williams-Honda.[3] Elsewhere the two Ligiers were running around with damage, François Hesnault having hit teammate Andrea de Cesaris in the first corner melee, leaving the Frenchman with a broken nose.[3] Indeed, de Cesaris seemed to have escaped without damage, only for a brush against a kerb to break his weakened suspension late on the opening lap, forcing him to retire.[3]

Senna 1984 Monaco Grand Prix

Ayrton Senna stalks Jacques Laffite and Manfred Winkelhock early on.

The early stages would see a number of incidents drastically re-order the field, with Johnny Cecotto spinning and stalling at the start of the second lap having been in the middle of the pack.[3] His Toleman-Hart teammate Ayrton Senna, meanwhile, was flying up the order, running well inside the top ten after taking eighth away from Jacques Laffite early on lap three.[3] The secret to the Brazilian's success was to be found in Toleman's tactics, with Senna only running with two thirds of a tank of fuel as the British squad gambled on the race reaching the two hour time limit rather than race distance.[3]

Elsewhere, Lauda was on the move in the second of the McLaren-TAGs, taking fourth away from Alboreto on lap four having shuffled past Rosberg early on.[3] By lap six Lauda would clear the second Ferrari's when he overtook Arnoux going up the hill into Beaurivage, before beginning his lone pursuit of teammate Prost and Mansell.[3] Indeed, while the Frenchman had managed to build up a fifteen second lead over the two Ferraris in the early laps, he had been powerless to shake the determined Mansell, whose Lotus-Renault loomed threateningly in his mirrors.[3]

However, no move was forthcoming from Mansell, and with Lauda a long way from catching the lead duo, attention focused back down the field, where two rookies were showing why they had earned a place in F1.[3] The more prominent performance was that of Senna, who would ease past the ATS-BMW of Manfred Winkelhock to claim seventh as Lauda moved into third.[3] However, the arguably more impressive run was being made by Stefan Bellof in his Ford Cosworth engined Tyrrell, with the German breaking into the top ten with a move on Laffite in spite of his huge power disadvantage.[3]

Further down the field Hesnault, after causing his teammate's retirement on the first lap was causing more trouble when he collided with the Alfa Romeo of Riccardo Patrese when the Italian tried to lunge inside the Ligier.[3] Patrese was duly forced to pit for repairs, while a seemingly unhindered Hesnault carried on without a second thought.[3] A lap later and the Frenchman had his third incident of the afternoon, bouncing off the wall at Sainte-Devote and down the escape road, only to again rejoin the circuit with no damage on his Ligier.[3]

They duly gained further ground when the Ferrari of Alboreto spun off at Sainte-Devote, the Ferrari driver stalling his car in the middle of the escape road.[3] Alboreto sat in his car gesticulating to the marshals to get a push-start, who would eventually get the Italian back underway as his car was in a dangerous position. Rosberg duly inherited fifth, although his misfiring engine made him a prime target for the flying Senna, while Laffite stopped the sister car for a new set of tyres under the false impression that he had a puncture.[3]

More chaos unfolded as the early laps ticked away, with Senna brushing the wall exiting the tunnel while pursuing the aforementioned Rosberg, putting a slight crease in his front suspension.[3] Behind, the Brabham-BMW debutante Corrado Fabi would end his race with a spin into the barriers at Portier, with the marshals having to partially block the track in order to recover the Italian racer as quickly as possible.[3] Ultimately, however, they were too slow for Prost, who slithered to a stop at the scene of the accident and knocked over one of the marshals midway through lap ten.[3]

As Prost tried to get around the accident Mansell was able to sneak through to claim the lead, with a furious Prost squirrelling away from the stranded Brabham to try and catch the Brit.[3] Behind, Lauda had gained a little ground on the duo before Prost's stop, while Senna's charge had carried him up to fourth, with the Toleman also crawling towards the back of the Austrian's McLaren.[3] The Brazilian's progress was being matched by Bellof, who would also move past Rosberg, while Hesnault's race was to finally come to an end when his engine expire on the climb up to Beaurivage.[3]

Mansell 1984 Monaco Grand Prix

Mansell was briefly able to escape with the lead for Lotus-Renault, before a spin into the barriers ended his race.

Back with the leader and Mansell was easing away from Prost at the head of the field, the Brit showing great confidence in spite of the fact that he was leading a Grand Prix for the first time.[3] It therefore came as a huge shock when the Lotus-Renault spun into the barriers at Massenet on lap fifteen, leaving Mansell with crippled suspension.[3] He duly limped around as far as Mirabeau before his rear suspension collapsed completely, leaving a distraught Mansell on the sidelines as Prost swept back into the lead.[2]

It was now a McLaren-TAG one-two at the head of the field, although the increasingly impressive Senna would decisively claim second from Lauda on lap nineteen with a lunge at Rascasse.[3] He duly blasted away to try and catch Prost, leaving Lauda to eventually end his race beached on a wet kerb at Casino Square, with the Austrian having fallen into the sights of Arnoux.[3] Behind, Bellof was catching the aforementioned Frenchman at an impressive rate in the Tyrrell, while Elio de Angelis was inching back towards the points after his unfortunate start.[3]

By the time that Senna had taken second from Lauda, Prost had established a thirty second lead, a gap which remained fairly stable in spite of the fact that Senna could set a series of fastest laps.[3] However, an increasingly noticeable braking issue for Prost would see the Frenchman begin to lose pace, allowing Senna to take more and more out of the McLaren with each passing lap.[3] A similar pattern was unfolding behind, with Bellof hounding Arnoux's Ferrari, while Winkelhock's race was brought to an end when he smashed into the barriers on the exit of the tunnel, the legacy of a collision with Rosberg that had resulted in damage to the German's ATS.[3]

By lap 27 Bellof was on the back of Arnoux, and duly opted to make his move on the Ferrari on the run to Beaurivage.[3] Arnoux duly shut the door, although all that did was give Bellof a chance to lunge inside the Ferrari at Mirabeau, using the better line.[3] Arnoux once again did all he could to dissuade the German, squeezing the Tyrrell against the inside wall, but a quick scramble across the wet kerb, and a brief brush of tyres, and Bellof was in third.[3]

Bellof 1984 Monaco Grand Prix

Stefan Bellof was an unexpected star of the race having qualified last.

With thirty laps completed it was clear that the conditions were getting worse rather than better, with fewer cars on circuit to clear away the standing water.[3] Ultimately, clerk of the course Jacky Ickx led the calls to end the race and, in agreement with Derek Ongaro, representing the organisers, duly stepped out onto the circuit at the end of lap 33 with both a red and chequered flag in his hands.[3] Prost, who had been waving at the officials and his pitcrew to stop the race for several laps, duly pulled to a stop after crossing the finish line, with Senna flashing past a few seconds later.[3]

Post-race[]

It took Senna another lap to see that the race had been stopped, with the Brazilian believing that he had won the race after seeing Prost stopped at the side of the road.[3] He was therefore apoplectic when his Toleman mechanics told him he had been classified in second, with the order reset to how the race had stood at the end of lap 31.[3] In a rage, Senna openly questioned Ickx's integrity, given the Belgian's ties to TAG-Porsche, to which the veteran Belgian racer replied:

"I did my duty ... Better to stop the race a turn too early than a turn too late."
—Jacky Ickx, Clerk of the Course

Senna's thoughts were mirrored, albeit less impertinently, by Arnoux with the Frenchman believing that the race should have at least run to the two hour time limit, instead of the hour in which it had officially lasted.[3] Indeed, the race was so short that the organisers could only award half-points, with the race some sixteen laps shy of the 75% distance requirement to award full Championship points.[3] Regardless, a relieved Prost had extended his Championship lead, while a furious Senna mounted the podium for the first time, alongside a delighted Bellof.[3]

However, Bellof's joy was not to last, for a month after the race his maiden podium finish was to be taken away, for the German was to be retroactively disqualified from the results following the ban of the Tyrrell 012 after the Detroit Grand Prix.[3]

Results[]

The full results for the 1984 Monaco Grand Prix are outlined below:

Pos. No. Driver Constructor Laps Time/Retired Grid Points
1 7 France Alain Prost United Kingdom McLaren-TAG 31 1:01:07.740 1 4.5
2 19 Brazil Ayrton Senna United Kingdom Toleman-Hart 31 +7.446s 13 3
3 28 France René Arnoux Italy Ferrari 31 +29.077s 3 2
4 6 Finland Keke Rosberg United Kingdom Williams-Honda 31 +35.246s 10 1.5
5 11 Italy Elio de Angelis United Kingdom Lotus-Renault 31 +44.439s 11 1
6 27 Italy Michele Alboreto Italy Ferrari 30 +1 Lap 4 0.5
7 24 Italy Piercarlo Ghinzani Italy Osella-Alfa Romeo 30 +1 Lap 19
8 5 France Jacques Laffite United Kingdom Williams-Honda 30 +1 Lap 16
DSQ* 4 West Germany Stefan Bellof United Kingdom Tyrrell-Ford Cosworth 31 Disqualified 20
Ret 22 Italy Riccardo Patrese Italy Alfa Romeo 24 Steering 14
Ret 8 Austria Niki Lauda United Kingdom McLaren-TAG 23 Spun Off 8
Ret 14 West Germany Manfred Winkelhock West Germany ATS-BMW 22 Spun Off 12
Ret 12 United Kingdom Nigel Mansell United Kingdom Lotus-Renault 15 Spun Off 2
Ret 1 Brazil Nelson Piquet United Kingdom Brabham-BMW 14 Electrical 9
Ret 25 France François Hesnault France Ligier-Renault 12 Electrical 17
Ret 2 Italy Corrado Fabi United Kingdom Brabham-BMW 9 Electrical 15
Ret 20 Venezuela Johnny Cecotto United Kingdom Toleman-Hart 1 Spun Off 18
Ret 16 United Kingdom Derek Warwick France Renault 0 Collision 5
Ret 15 France Patrick Tambay France Renault 0 Collision 6
Ret 26 Italy Andrea de Cesaris France Ligier-Renault 0 Accident 7
DNQ 17 Switzerland Marc Surer United Kingdom Arrows-BMW
DNQ 3 United Kingdom Martin Brundle United Kingdom Tyrrell-Ford Cosworth
DNQ 23 United States Eddie Cheever Italy Alfa Romeo
DNQ 18 Belgium Thierry Boutsen United Kingdom Arrows-BMW
DNQ 10 United Kingdom Jonathan Palmer United Kingdom RAM-Hart
DNQ 21 Italy Mauro Baldi United Kingdom Spirit-Hart
DNQ 9 France Philippe Alliot United Kingdom RAM-Hart
Source:[6]

Milestones[]

  • TAG claimed their first pole position.[3]
  • Twelfth victory for Alain Prost.[3]
  • McLaren secured their 35th victory as a constructor.[3]
    • TAG claimed their fifth victory as an engine manufacturer.[3]
    • Michelin secured their fiftieth victory as a tyre supplier.[7]
  • Ayrton Senna claimed his maiden podium finish.[3]
  • Toleman earned their first visit to the podium.[3]
    • It was also engine partners Hart's first trip to the podium.[3]
  • Senna recorded his first fastest lap award.[3]
    • Also the second and final fastest lap recorded by a Toleman chassis and a Hart engine.[3]
    • This was also the 50th fastest lap set by a car using Michelin tyres.[7]
  • Stefan Bellof set a new record of consecutive disqualifications (6).[7]

Standings[]

Victory, in spite of the half-points, ensured that Alain Prost retained command of the Championship, and re-established his de-facto one race advantage. Indeed, Niki Lauda was now 10.5 points behind his teammate in the title hunt, with René Arnoux a further three behind after being re-classified in third. Derek Warwick and Elio de Angelis completed the top five, level on thirteen, while Ayrton Senna leapt into the top ten with his maiden podium finish.

McLaren-TAG, meanwhile, had extended their lead in the Constructors Championship, moving 22 points clear of Ferrari on 46.5. The Italian team were also running with a half a point, 24.5 their total, with Renault having lost some ground in third. Behind, Lotus-Renault and Williams-Honda completed the top five, while Toleman-Hart climbed to seventh.

World Championship for Drivers
Pos. Driver Pts. +/-
1 France Alain Prost 28.5
2 Austria Niki Lauda 18
3 France René Arnoux 15 ▲1
4 United Kingdom Derek Warwick 13 ▼1
5 Italy Elio de Angelis 13
6 Finland Keke Rosberg 11.5
7 Italy Michele Alboreto 9.5
8 France Patrick Tambay 8
9 Brazil Ayrton Senna 5 ▲5
10 United Kingdom Nigel Mansell 4 ▼1
11 United States Eddie Cheever 3 ▼1
12 Italy Riccardo Patrese 3 ▼1
13 Belgium Thierry Boutsen 3 ▼1
14 Italy Andrea de Cesaris 3 ▼1
World Championship for Manufacturers
Pos. Team Pts. +/-
1 United Kingdom McLaren-TAG 46.5
2 Italy Ferrari 24.5
3 France Renault 21
4 United Kingdom Lotus-Renault 17
5 United Kingdom Williams-Honda 11.5
6 Italy Alfa Romeo 6
7 United Kingdom Toleman-Hart 5 ▲2
8 United Kingdom Arrows-Ford Cosworth 3 ▼1
9 France Ligier-Renault 3 ▼1

Only point scoring drivers and constructors are shown.

These standings have been modified to show the Championship as it stood after the retroactive disqualification of the Tyrrell 012 and drivers Martin Brundle and Stefan Bellof.

References[]

Images and Videos:

References:

  1. 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 1.14 1.15 'Monaco GP, 1984', grandprix.com, (Inside F1 Inc., 2015), http://www.grandprix.com/gpe/rr394.html, (Accessed 01/03/2019)
  2. 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 2.17 2.18 2.19 2.20 2.21 2.22 2.23 2.24 2.25 2.26 2.27 2.28 2.29 2.30 2.31 2.32 2.33 A.H., 'Reflections in the Monte Carlo puddles', motorsportmagazine.com, (Motor Sport Magazine, 01/07/1984), https://www.motorsportmagazine.com/archive/article/july-1984/84/reflections-monte-carlo-puddles, (Accessed 01/03/2019)
  3. 3.00 3.01 3.02 3.03 3.04 3.05 3.06 3.07 3.08 3.09 3.10 3.11 3.12 3.13 3.14 3.15 3.16 3.17 3.18 3.19 3.20 3.21 3.22 3.23 3.24 3.25 3.26 3.27 3.28 3.29 3.30 3.31 3.32 3.33 3.34 3.35 3.36 3.37 3.38 3.39 3.40 3.41 3.42 3.43 3.44 3.45 3.46 3.47 3.48 3.49 3.50 3.51 3.52 3.53 3.54 3.55 3.56 3.57 3.58 3.59 3.60 3.61 3.62 3.63 3.64 3.65 3.66 3.67 3.68 3.69 3.70 3.71 3.72 3.73 3.74 3.75 3.76 3.77 3.78 3.79 '6. Monaco 1984', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2014), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1984/monaco.aspx, (Accessed 01/03/2019)
  4. 'Monaco 1984: Entrants', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2015), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1984/monaco/engages.aspx, (Accessed 03/03/2019)
  5. 'Monaco 1984: Qualifications', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1984/monaco/qualification.aspx, (Accessed 03/03/2019)
  6. 6.0 6.1 'Monaco 1984: Result', statsf1.com, (Stats F1, 2016), https://www.statsf1.com/en/1984/monaco/classement.aspx, (Accessed 04/03/2019)
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 '1984 Monaco GP', chicanef1.com, (Chicane F1, 2014), http://www.chicanef1.com/racetit.pl?year=1984&gp=Monaco%20GP&r=1, (Accessed 04/03/2019)
V T E 1984 Formula One Season
Teams Brabham • Tyrrell • Williams • McLaren • RAM • Lotus • ATS • Renault • Arrows • Toleman • Spirit • Alfa Romeo • Osella • Ligier • Ferrari
Engines Alfa Romeo • BMW • Ferrari • Ford • Hart • Honda • Renault • TAG
Drivers Piquet • 2 T. Fabi • 2 C. Fabi • 2 Winkelhock • 3 Brundle • 3 Johansson • 4 Bellof • 4 Thackwell • 5 Laffite • 6 Rosberg • 7 Prost • 8 Lauda • 9 Alliot • 10 Palmer • 10 Thackwell • 11 De Angelis • 12 Mansell • 14 Winkelhock • 14/31 Berger • 15 Tambay • 16 Warwick • 33 Streiff • 17 Surer • 18 Boutsen • 19 Senna • 19/20 Johansson • 20 Cecotto • 20 Martini • 21 Baldi • 21 Rothengatter • 22 Patrese • 23 Cheever • 24 Ghinzani • 30 Gartner • 25 Hesnault • 26 De Cesaris • 27 Alboreto • 28 Arnoux
Cars McLaren MP4/2 • Ferrari 126C4 • Lotus 95T • Brabham BT53 • Renault RE50 • Williams FW09 • Toleman TG183B • Toleman TG184 • Alfa Romeo 184T • Ligier JS23 • Arrows A6 • Arrows A7 • Osella FA1F • Osella FA1E • ATS D7 • Spirit 101B • Spirit 101C • RAM 01 • RAM 02 • Tyrrell 012
Tyres Goodyear • Michelin • Pirelli
Races Brazil • South Africa • Belgium • San Marino • France • Monaco • Canada • Detroit • Dallas • Britain • Germany • Austria • Netherlands • Italy • Europe • Portugal
See also 1983 Formula One Season • 1985 Formula One Season • Category
V T E Monaco Monaco Grand Prix
Circuits Circuit de Monaco (1929–present)
Circuit Monaco 2007
Races 19501951–1954195519561957195819591960196119621963196419651966196719681969197019711972197319741975197619771978197919801981198219831984198519861987198819891990199119921993199419951996199719981999200020012002200320042005200620072008200920102011201220132014201520162017201820192020202120222023
Non-F1 races 1929193019311932193319341935193619371948
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