1986 Hungarian Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Nelson Piquet won the first World Championship Hungarian Grand Prix with a spectacular pass on Ayrton Senna. Their duel brought the new Hungaroring to life, with Nigel Mansell finishing third as Formula 1 made its first visit behind the Iron Curtain.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Ayrton Senna	Lotus
Pole time	1:29.450
Fastest lap	Nelson Piquet	Williams
Fastest-lap time	1:31.001 on lap 73
First	Nelson Piquet	Williams
Second	Ayrton Senna	Lotus
Third	Nigel Mansell	Williams

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
7 August 1986	Familiarisation testing	Start time unconfirmed
8 August 1986	Practice 1	Morning; start unconfirmed
8 August 1986	Qualifying 1	Start time unconfirmed
9 August 1986	Practice 2	Morning; start unconfirmed
9 August 1986	Qualifying 2	Start time unconfirmed
10 August 1986	Warm-up	Morning; start unconfirmed
10 August 1986	Race	Start time unconfirmed

All times are local. The race time is the scheduled start; weather delays and interruptions are described below.

Championship background

Nigel Mansell arrived at round 11 leading the 1986 F1 World Championship on 51 points, with Alain Prost on 44. Williams – Honda headed the constructors’ standings after the preceding race with 89 points.

Race entries

The regular field continued to Hungary, where every driver faced a new circuit. The tight layout and dusty surface put a premium on traction, mechanical grip and a clear qualifying lap. Alain Prost was preparing for his 100th Grand Prix start.

Thursday familiarisation

An additional Thursday session allowed drivers to learn the new Hungaroring before the official weekend began. The circuit offered little grip away from the racing line, making the extra time especially useful for judging braking points and finding a workable set-up.

Friday Free Practice

The dusty surface made Friday running a challenge, with Ayrton Senna spinning several times as he explored the available grip. Teams had to weigh the benefits of soft qualifying tyres against the risk of wasting their brief peak in traffic. Thierry Boutsen tried the new Arrows but remained unconvinced by its handling, while the slower corners exposed weaknesses in engine response.

Friday Qualifying

Nigel Mansell headed Friday qualifying on race tyres, ahead of Nelson Piquet and Ayrton Senna. On the slippery surface, a dependable lap was more valuable than a risky attempt to exploit the shortest-lived qualifying rubber.

Friday Qualifying Classification

1986 Hungarian Grand Prix first qualifying session, 8 August 1986

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time	Laps
1	5	Nigel Mansell	Williams	1:30.516	—
2	6	Nelson Piquet	Williams	1:31.417	—
3	12	Ayrton Senna	Lotus	1:32.281	—
4	20	Gerhard Berger	Benetton	1:32.886	—
5	1	Alain Prost	McLaren	1:33.113	—
6	15	Alan Jones	Lola	1:33.737	—
7	2	Keke Rosberg	McLaren	1:34.146	—
8	16	Patrick Tambay	Lola	1:34.187	—
9	27	Michele Alboreto	Ferrari	1:34.255	—
10	8	Derek Warwick	Brabham	1:34.561	—
11	3	Martin Brundle	Tyrrell	1:34.725	—
12	28	Stefan Johansson	Ferrari	1:35.092	—
13	26	Philippe Alliot	Ligier	1:35.129	—
14	19	Teo Fabi	Benetton	1:35.265	—
15	7	Riccardo Patrese	Brabham	1:35.337	—
16	4	Philippe Streiff	Tyrrell	1:35.831	—
17	11	Johnny Dumfries	Lotus	1:36.108	—
18	24	Alessandro Nannini	Minardi	1:36.266	—
19	17	Christian Danner	Arrows	1:36.540	—
20	25	Rene Arnoux	Ligier	1:36.552	—
21	18	Thierry Boutsen	Arrows	1:37.260	—
22	23	Andrea de Cesaris	Minardi	1:37.796	—
23	14	Jonathan Palmer	Zakspeed	1:37.937	—
24	21	Piercarlo Ghinzani	Osella	1:39.564	—
25	22	Allen Berg	Osella	1:40.984	—
26	29	Huub Rothengatter	Zakspeed	1:42.736	—

Saturday Free Practice

Nigel Mansell damaged his Williams on Saturday morning while avoiding Riccardo Patrese’s Brabham. Alain Prost found that a tyre-pressure adjustment helped the McLaren’s front-end grip, although a misunderstanding meant the improvement was not carried into qualifying as intended. The circuit continued to reward careful preparation and punish any loss of track time.

Saturday Qualifying

Ayrton Senna made the soft-tyre gamble work on Saturday, taking pole with 1:29.450. Nelson Piquet was second and Alain Prost third, while Nigel Mansell dropped to fourth after encountering traffic. Patrick Tambay qualified an excellent sixth for Haas, and Johnny Dumfries was eighth in the second Lotus.

Saturday Qualifying Classification

1986 Hungarian Grand Prix second qualifying session, 9 August 1986

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time	Laps
1	12	Ayrton Senna	Lotus	1:29.450	—
2	6	Nelson Piquet	Williams	1:29.785	—
3	1	Alain Prost	McLaren	1:29.945	—
4	5	Nigel Mansell	Williams	1:30.072	—
5	2	Keke Rosberg	McLaren	1:30.628	—
6	16	Patrick Tambay	Lola	1:31.715	—
7	28	Stefan Johansson	Ferrari	1:31.850	—
8	11	Johnny Dumfries	Lotus	1:31.886	—
9	25	Rene Arnoux	Ligier	1:31.970	—
10	15	Alan Jones	Lola	1:32.401	—
11	20	Gerhard Berger	Benetton	1:32.491	—
12	26	Philippe Alliot	Ligier	1:32.575	—
13	19	Teo Fabi	Benetton	1:32.707	—
14	7	Riccardo Patrese	Brabham	1:32.956	—
15	27	Michele Alboreto	Ferrari	1:33.063	—
16	3	Martin Brundle	Tyrrell	1:33.368	—
17	24	Alessandro Nannini	Minardi	1:33.656	—
18	4	Philippe Streiff	Tyrrell	1:34.414	—
19	8	Derek Warwick	Brabham	1:34.502	—
20	23	Andrea de Cesaris	Minardi	1:34.670	—
21	17	Christian Danner	Arrows	1:35.294	—
22	18	Thierry Boutsen	Arrows	1:35.392	—
23	21	Piercarlo Ghinzani	Osella	1:36.232	—
24	14	Jonathan Palmer	Zakspeed	1:36.485	—
25	29	Huub Rothengatter	Zakspeed	1:38.527	—
26	22	Allen Berg	Osella	35:16.483	—

Combined Qualifying Classification

Each driver’s faster time from the two qualifying sessions determined the overall order.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Friday Time	Saturday Time	Best Time	Laps
1	12	Ayrton Senna	Lotus	1:32.281	1:29.450	1:29.450	—
2	6	Nelson Piquet	Williams	1:31.417	1:29.785	1:29.785	—
3	1	Alain Prost	McLaren	1:33.113	1:29.945	1:29.945	—
4	5	Nigel Mansell	Williams	1:30.516	1:30.072	1:30.072	—
5	2	Keke Rosberg	McLaren	1:34.146	1:30.628	1:30.628	—
6	16	Patrick Tambay	Lola	1:34.187	1:31.715	1:31.715	—
7	28	Stefan Johansson	Ferrari	1:35.092	1:31.850	1:31.850	—
8	11	Johnny Dumfries	Lotus	1:36.108	1:31.886	1:31.886	—
9	25	René Arnoux	Ligier	1:36.552	1:31.970	1:31.970	—
10	15	Alan Jones	Lola	1:33.737	1:32.401	1:32.401	—
11	20	Gerhard Berger	Benetton	1:32.886	1:32.491	1:32.491	—
12	26	Philippe Alliot	Ligier	1:35.129	1:32.575	1:32.575	—
13	19	Teo Fabi	Benetton	1:35.265	1:32.707	1:32.707	—
14	7	Riccardo Patrese	Brabham	1:35.337	1:32.956	1:32.956	—
15	27	Michele Alboreto	Ferrari	1:34.255	1:33.063	1:33.063	—
16	3	Martin Brundle	Tyrrell	1:34.725	1:33.368	1:33.368	—
17	24	Alessandro Nannini	Minardi	1:36.266	1:33.656	1:33.656	—
18	4	Philippe Streiff	Tyrrell	1:35.831	1:34.414	1:34.414	—
19	8	Derek Warwick	Brabham	1:34.561	1:34.502	1:34.502	—
20	23	Andrea de Cesaris	Minardi	1:37.796	1:34.670	1:34.670	—
21	17	Christian Danner	Arrows	1:36.540	1:35.294	1:35.294	—
22	18	Thierry Boutsen	Arrows	1:37.260	1:35.392	1:35.392	—
23	21	Piercarlo Ghinzani	Osella	1:39.564	1:36.232	1:36.232	—
24	14	Jonathan Palmer	Zakspeed	1:37.937	1:36.485	1:36.485	—
25	29	Huub Rothengatter	Zakspeed	1:42.736	1:38.527	1:38.527	—
26	22	Allen Berg	Osella	1:40.984	35:16.483	1:40.984	—

Sunday warm-up

Alain Prost was fastest in the warm-up, more than a second clear of Keke Rosberg. McLaren appeared well placed for the race, but the tight layout meant qualifying position and traffic would remain important. A later electrical failure on the lap to the grid forced Alain Prost into the spare and undermined that promising preparation.

Warm-up Classification

1986 Hungarian Grand Prix Warm-up, 10 August 1986

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	1	Alain Prost	McLaren	1:31.709	—
2	2	Keke Rosberg	McLaren	+1.126s	—
3	5	Nigel Mansell	Williams	+1.496s	—
4	6	Nelson Piquet	Williams	+2.596s	—
5	15	Alan Jones	Lola	+2.820s	—
6	12	Ayrton Senna	Lotus	+3.336s	—
7	16	Patrick Tambay	Lola	+3.820s	—
8	28	Stefan Johansson	Ferrari	+3.843s	—
9	3	Martin Brundle	Tyrrell	+3.856s	—
10	20	Gerhard Berger	Benetton	+4.166s	—
11	27	Michele Alboreto	Ferrari	+4.183s	—
12	19	Teo Fabi	Benetton	+4.473s	—
13	8	Derek Warwick	Brabham	+4.656s	—
14	7	Riccardo Patrese	Brabham	+4.843s	—
15	11	Johnny Dumfries	Lotus	+5.013s	—
16	26	Philippe Alliot	Ligier	+5.126s	—
17	18	Thierry Boutsen	Arrows	+6.170s	—
18	24	Alessandro Nannini	Minardi	+6.366s	—
19	4	Philippe Streiff	Tyrrell	+6.866s	—
20	23	Andrea de Cesaris	Minardi	+6.893s	—
21	14	Jonathan Palmer	Zakspeed	+7.003s	—
22	17	Christian Danner	Arrows	+7.023s	—
23	29	Huub Rothengatter	Zakspeed	+8.500s	—
24	21	Piercarlo Ghinzani	Osella	+8.776s	—
25	22	Allen Berg	Osella	+9.716s	—
26	25	Rene Arnoux	Ligier	+10.663s	—

What happened in the 1986 Hungarian Grand Prix?

Ayrton Senna led away, but Nelson Piquet challenged strongly and took the lead before the tyre stops changed the order again. Alain Prost’s difficult afternoon ended early, removing one of the championship contenders. Nigel Mansell could not match the pace of the two Brazilians.

Nelson Piquet caught Ayrton Senna and launched a remarkable attack around the outside of the first corner. He held the Williams in a slide, completed the move and pulled clear. The pass became the defining image of the Hungaroring’s first Grand Prix.

Nelson Piquet won ahead of Ayrton Senna, with Nigel Mansell a lap down in third. Stefan Johansson finished fourth, Johnny Dumfries scored his first points in fifth and Martin Brundle took sixth. The two-hour limit brought the race to an end after 76 laps, one short of the scheduled distance.

After the race, Nigel Mansell headed the drivers’ standings with 55 points, followed by Ayrton Senna on 48. Williams – Honda led the constructors’ table on 102, with McLaren – TAG on 63.

1986 Hungarian Grand Prix race results

The 1986 Hungarian Grand Prix was held on 10 August 1986.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	6	Nelson Piquet	Williams	76	2:00:34.508	9
2	12	Ayrton Senna	Lotus	76	+ 17.673	6
3	5	Nigel Mansell	Williams	75	+ 1 lap	4
4	28	Stefan Johansson	Ferrari	75	+ 1 lap	3
5	11	Johnny Dumfries	Lotus	74	+ 2 laps	2
6	3	Martin Brundle	Tyrrell	74	+ 2 laps	1
7	16	Patrick Tambay	Lola	74	+ 2 laps	0
8	4	Philippe Streiff	Tyrrell	74	+ 2 laps	0
9	26	Philippe Alliot	Ligier	73	+ 3 laps	0
10	14	Jonathan Palmer	Zakspeed	70	+ 6 laps	0
Ret	25	René Arnoux	Ligier	48	Engine	0
Ret	15	Alan Jones	Lola	46	Differential	0
Ret	20	Gerhard Berger	Benetton	44	Transmission	0
Ret	18	Thierry Boutsen	Arrows	40	Electrical	0
Ret	2	Keke Rosberg	McLaren	34	Suspension	0
Ret	19	Teo Fabi	Benetton	32	Transmission	0
Ret	24	Alessandro Nannini	Minardi	30	Engine	0
Ret	27	Michele Alboreto	Ferrari	29	Accident	0
Ret	8	Derek Warwick	Brabham	28	Accident	0
Ret	1	Alain Prost	McLaren	23	Suspension/Accident	0
Ret	21	Piercarlo Ghinzani	Osella	15	Suspension	0
Ret	17	Christian Danner	Arrows	7	Suspension	0
Ret	7	Riccardo Patrese	Brabham	5	Gearbox	0
Ret	23	Andrea de Cesaris	Minardi	5	Engine	0
Ret	29	Huub Rothengatter	Zakspeed	2	Radiator	0
Ret	22	Allen Berg	Osella	1	Turbo	0

1986 Hungarian Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time
1	6	Nelson Piquet	Williams	73	1:31.001
2	12	Ayrton Senna	Lotus	72	1:31.261
3	2	Keke Rosberg	McLaren	27	1:32.684
4	5	Nigel Mansell	Williams	51	1:32.965
5	1	Alain Prost	McLaren	23	1:33.422
6	28	Stefan Johansson	Ferrari	66	1:33.474
7	16	Patrick Tambay	Lola	57	1:33.840
8	15	Alan Jones	Lola	39	1:33.896
9	3	Martin Brundle	Tyrrell	64	1:34.633
10	27	Michele Alboreto	Ferrari	23	1:34.846
11	26	Philippe Alliot	Ligier	69	1:35.042
12	25	Rene Arnoux	Ligier	44	1:35.144
13	11	Johnny Dumfries	Lotus	73	1:35.414
14	20	Gerhard Berger	Benetton	37	1:35.501
15	4	Philippe Streiff	Tyrrell	37	1:35.832
16	19	Teo Fabi	Benetton	18	1:35.887
17	8	Derek Warwick	Brabham	15	1:36.084
18	7	Riccardo Patrese	Brabham	4	1:37.263
19	14	Jonathan Palmer	Zakspeed	59	1:38.091
20	17	Christian Danner	Arrows	5	1:38.631
21	18	Thierry Boutsen	Arrows	15	1:39.022
22	24	Alessandro Nannini	Minardi	4	1:39.204
23	23	Andrea de Cesaris	Minardi	5	1:40.570
24	21	Piercarlo Ghinzani	Osella	9	1:43.280
25	29	Huub Rothengatter	Zakspeed	2	1:57.208
26	22	Allen Berg	Osella	1	3:00.202

Only drivers with a recorded lap time appear. No fastest-lap bonus point was awarded.

1986 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 1986 Hungarian Grand Prix.

1986 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Nigel Mansell	British	Williams	55
2	Ayrton Senna	Brazilian	Lotus	48
3	Nelson Piquet	Brazilian	Williams	47
4	Alain Prost	French	McLaren	44
5	Keke Rosberg	Finnish	McLaren	19
6	Jacques Laffite	French	Ligier	14
7	René Arnoux	French	Ligier	14
8	Stefan Johansson	Swedish	Ferrari	10
9	Gerhard Berger	Austrian	Benetton	6
10	Michele Alboreto	Italian	Ferrari	6
11	Martin Brundle	British	Tyrrell	5
12	Johnny Dumfries	British	Lotus	2
13	Teo Fabi	Italian	Benetton	2
14	Riccardo Patrese	Italian	Brabham	2
15	Philippe Streiff	French	Tyrrell	1
–	Thierry Boutsen	Belgian	Arrows	0
–	Patrick Tambay	French	Lola	0
–	Derek Warwick	British	Brabham	0
–	Jonathan Palmer	British	Zakspeed	0
–	Elio de Angelis	Italian	Brabham	0
–	Marc Surer	Swiss	Arrows	0
–	Alan Jones	Australian	Lola	0
–	Philippe Alliot	French	Ligier	0
–	Christian Danner	German	Osella / Arrows	0
–	Huub Rothengatter	Dutch	Zakspeed	0
–	Allen Berg	Canadian	Osella	0
–	Piercarlo Ghinzani	Italian	Osella	0
–	Alessandro Nannini	Italian	Minardi	0
–	Andrea de Cesaris	Italian	Minardi	0
–	Eddie Cheever	American	Lola	0

1986 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	Williams – Honda	102
2	McLaren – TAG	63
3	Lotus – Renault	50
4	Ligier – Renault	28
5	Ferrari	16
6	Benetton – BMW	8
7	Tyrrell – Renault	6
8	Brabham – BMW	2
—	Arrows – BMW	0
—	Lola – Ford	0
—	Zakspeed	0
—	Lola – Hart	0
—	Osella – Alfa Romeo	0
—	Minardi – Motori Moderni	0

Drivers counted their best eleven results; constructors counted every round. The standings here show the position after this race.

1986 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	1986 Brazilian Grand Prix	Jacarepaguá, Rio de Janeiro	23 March
2	1986 Spanish Grand Prix	Circuito de Jerez, Jerez de la Frontera	13 April
3	1986 San Marino Grand Prix	Autodromo Dino Ferrari, Imola	27 April
4	1986 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	11 May
5	1986 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	25 May
6	1986 Canadian Grand Prix	Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve, Montréal	15 June
7	1986 Detroit Grand Prix	Detroit Street Circuit, Detroit, Michigan	22 June
8	1986 French Grand Prix	Circuit Paul Ricard, Le Castellet	6 July
9	1986 British Grand Prix	Brands Hatch, West Kingsdown	13 July
10	1986 German Grand Prix	Hockenheimring, Hockenheim	27 July
11	1986 Hungarian Grand Prix	Hungaroring, Mogyoród	10 August
12	1986 Austrian Grand Prix	Österreichring, Spielberg	17 August
13	1986 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	7 September
14	1986 Portuguese Grand Prix	Autódromo do Estoril, Estoril	21 September
15	1986 Mexican Grand Prix	Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, Mexico City	12 October
16	1986 Australian Grand Prix	Adelaide Street Circuit, Adelaide	26 October