Nigel Mansell produced one of his finest victories in the 1989 Hungarian Grand Prix, charging from twelfth on the grid to beat Ayrton Senna. His decisive move came as the pair caught traffic, the Ferrari sweeping past in a split-second opening. Thierry Boutsen finished third after pole-sitter Riccardo Patrese‘s race ended with a cooling problem.
Race Guide
Season: 1989 F1 World Championship
Race date: 13 August 1989
Race start time: Start time unconfirmed local time (UTC+02:00)
Circuit: Hungaroring
Laps: 77 laps
Circuit length: 3.968 km
1988 winner: Ayrton Senna
| Result | Driver / Time | Team |
|---|---|---|
| Pole position | Riccardo Patrese | Williams |
| Pole time | 1:19.726 | |
| Fastest lap | Nigel Mansell | Ferrari |
| Fastest-lap time | 1:22.637 on lap 66 | |
| First | Nigel Mansell | Ferrari |
| Second | Ayrton Senna | McLaren |
| Third | Thierry Boutsen | Williams |
Weekend Schedule
| Date | Session | Local Time |
|---|---|---|
| 11 August 1989 | Pre-qualifying | Start time unconfirmed |
| 11 August 1989 | Practice 1 | Morning; start unconfirmed |
| 11 August 1989 | Qualifying 1 | Start time unconfirmed |
| 12 August 1989 | Practice 2 | Morning; start unconfirmed |
| 12 August 1989 | Qualifying 2 | Start time unconfirmed |
| 13 August 1989 | Warm-up | Morning; start unconfirmed |
| 13 August 1989 | Race | Start time unconfirmed |
All times are local. The race time is the scheduled start; weather delays and interruptions are described below.
Championship background
Alain Prost arrived at round 10 leading the 1989 F1 World Championship on 53 points, with Ayrton Senna on 36. McLaren – Honda headed the constructors’ standings after the preceding race with 89 points.
Race entries
The driver line-ups remained unchanged from Germany. The Hungaroring had been revised, bypassing the slow sequence after the opening corners and creating a faster run uphill. It remained a demanding, low-grip circuit, where finding a car that would turn cleanly was more valuable than the outright power that had dominated Hockenheim.
Pre-qualifying
Stefan Johansson was fastest, while Piercarlo Ghinzani finally progressed in the Osella for the first time that year. Michele Alboreto and Bertrand Gachot took the remaining places. Philippe Alliot missed out, giving Larrousse its first pre-qualifying failure since being placed in the session. Piercarlo Ghinzani‘s breakthrough came at the expense of team-mate Nicola Larini, who was fifth.
Pre-qualifying Classification
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Team | Time | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 36 | Stefan Johansson | Onyx | 1:22.836 | — |
| 2 | 18 | Piercarlo Ghinzani | Osella | 1:24.086 | +1.250 |
| 3 | 29 | Michele Alboreto | Lola | 1:24.323 | +1.487 |
| 4 | 37 | Bertrand Gachot | Onyx | 1:24.412 | +1.576 |
| 5 | 17 | Nicola Larini | Osella | 1:24.601 | +1.765 |
| 6 | 30 | Philippe Alliot | Lola | 1:24.928 | +2.092 |
| 7 | 41 | Yannick Dalmas | AGS | 1:25.571 | +2.735 |
| 8 | 34 | Bernd Schneider | Zakspeed | 1:25.613 | +2.777 |
| 9 | 40 | Gabriele Tarquini | AGS | 1:25.685 | +2.849 |
| 10 | 31 | Roberto Moreno | Coloni | 1:26.903 | +4.067 |
| 11 | 33 | Gregor Foitek | EuroBrun | 1:27.478 | +4.642 |
| 12 | 35 | Aguri Suzuki | Zakspeed | 1:28.113 | +5.277 |
| 13 | 32 | Pierre-Henri Raphanel | Coloni | 1:45.971 | +22.135 |
Friday Free Practice
Alain Prost headed Friday practice, ahead of Nigel Mansell and Riccardo Patrese. The modified circuit still offered little grip, and understeer was a widespread complaint. Nigel Mansell‘s opening pace did not translate into an easy weekend: he and Jean Alesi also disputed the same piece of track during morning running. With large wings fitted for downforce, the teams were working to make their cars responsive through the slow corners rather than simply chasing straight-line speed.
Friday Practice Classification
1989 Hungarian Grand Prix Practice, 11 August 1989
Friday Qualifying
Riccardo Patrese set a remarkable 1:19.726 on Friday, putting Williams comfortably ahead of Alex Caffi‘s Dallara and Alain Prost‘s McLaren. The car’s balance and the Renault engine’s response suited the circuit, while the McLarens were less comfortable on Goodyear’s qualifying tyres. Riccardo Patrese had given himself a genuine chance of breaking the team’s run of poles.
Friday Qualifying Classification
1989 Hungarian Grand Prix first qualifying session, 11 August 1989
Saturday Free Practice
Alessandro Nannini led Saturday practice, just ahead of Alex Caffi, as the tight circuit continued to produce a less familiar order. Nigel Mansell was working with a substantially revised setup after Ferrari changed direction overnight. His car remained difficult on qualifying tyres, pushing him towards more useful running on race compounds. That work did not rescue his grid position, but it gave Ferrari valuable knowledge of how the car behaved on the tyres it would actually race.
Saturday Practice Classification
1989 Hungarian Grand Prix Practice, 12 August 1989
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Team | Time / Gap | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 19 | Alessandro Nannini | Benetton | 1:21.231 | — |
| 2 | 21 | Alex Caffi | Dallara | +0.060s | — |
| 3 | 6 | Riccardo Patrese | Williams | +0.247s | — |
| 4 | 28 | Gerhard Berger | Ferrari | +0.676s | — |
| 5 | 5 | Thierry Boutsen | Williams | +0.688s | — |
| 6 | 1 | Ayrton Senna | McLaren | +0.746s | — |
| 7 | 2 | Alain Prost | McLaren | +0.835s | — |
| 8 | 36 | Stefan Johansson | Onyx | +1.016s | — |
| 9 | 7 | Martin Brundle | Brabham | +1.047s | — |
| 10 | 27 | Nigel Mansell | Ferrari | +1.142s | — |
| 11 | 22 | Andrea de Cesaris | Dallara | +1.304s | — |
| 12 | 20 | Emanuele Pirro | Benetton | +1.307s | — |
| 13 | 15 | Mauricio Gugelmin | March | +1.410s | — |
| 14 | 10 | Eddie Cheever | Arrows | +1.741s | — |
| 15 | 12 | Satoru Nakajima | Lotus | +1.764s | — |
| 16 | 9 | Derek Warwick | Arrows | +1.835s | — |
| 17 | 16 | Ivan Capelli | March | +1.845s | — |
| 18 | 8 | Stefano Modena | Brabham | +1.872s | — |
| 19 | 4 | Jean Alesi | Tyrrell | +1.911s | — |
| 20 | 11 | Nelson Piquet | Lotus | +2.074s | — |
| 21 | 18 | Piercarlo Ghinzani | Osella | +2.521s | — |
| 22 | 23 | Pierluigi Martini | Minardi | +2.568s | — |
| 23 | 37 | Bertrand Gachot | Onyx | +2.755s | — |
| 24 | 3 | Jonathan Palmer | Tyrrell | +2.764s | — |
| 25 | 26 | Olivier Grouillard | Ligier | +3.145s | — |
| 26 | 29 | Michele Alboreto | Lola | +4.099s | — |
| 27 | 38 | Christian Danner | Rial | +4.534s | — |
| 28 | 39 | Volker Weidler | Rial | +4.941s | — |
| 29 | 24 | Luis Perez-Sala | Minardi | +5.955s | — |
Saturday Qualifying
Ayrton Senna headed Saturday qualifying but could not beat Riccardo Patrese‘s Friday time. Riccardo Patrese took the only non-McLaren pole of the season, with Ayrton Senna second and Alex Caffi an outstanding third. Thierry Boutsen and Alain Prost followed. Nigel Mansell qualified only twelfth, concentrating increasingly on race setup once a place near the front appeared out of reach.
Saturday Qualifying Classification
1989 Hungarian Grand Prix second qualifying session, 12 August 1989
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 | 6 | Riccardo Patrese | Williams | 1:19.726 | 1:20.644 | 1:19.726 | — |
| 2 | 1 | Ayrton Senna | McLaren | 1:21.576 | 1:20.039 | 1:20.039 | — |
| 3 | 21 | Alex Caffi | Dallara | 1:21.040 | 1:20.704 | 1:20.704 | — |
| 4 | 5 | Thierry Boutsen | Williams | 1:23.492 | 1:21.001 | 1:21.001 | — |
| 5 | 2 | Alain Prost | McLaren | 1:21.076 | 1:22.267 | 1:21.076 | — |
| 6 | 28 | Gerhard Berger | Ferrari | 1:21.304 | 1:21.270 | 1:21.270 | — |
| 7 | 19 | Alessandro Nannini | Benetton | 1:21.448 | 1:21.301 | 1:21.301 | — |
| 8 | 8 | Stefano Modena | Brabham | 1:23.090 | 1:21.472 | 1:21.472 | — |
| 9 | 9 | Derek Warwick | Arrows | 1:23.111 | 1:21.617 | 1:21.617 | — |
| 10 | 23 | Pierluigi Martini | Minardi | 1:21.746 | 1:32.546 | 1:21.746 | — |
| 11 | 4 | Jean Alesi | Tyrrell | 1:23.853 | 1:21.799 | 1:21.799 | — |
| 12 | 27 | Nigel Mansell | Ferrari | 1:22.544 | 1:21.951 | 1:21.951 | — |
| 13 | 15 | Maurício Gugelmin | March | 1:22.949 | 1:22.083 | 1:22.083 | — |
| 14 | 16 | Ivan Capelli | March | 1:22.445 | 1:22.088 | 1:22.088 | — |
| 15 | 7 | Martin Brundle | Brabham | 1:22.970 | 1:22.296 | 1:22.296 | — |
| 16 | 10 | Eddie Cheever | Arrows | 1:23.251 | 1:22.374 | 1:22.374 | — |
| 17 | 11 | Nelson Piquet | Lotus | 1:22.837 | 1:22.406 | 1:22.406 | — |
| 18 | 22 | Andrea de Cesaris | Dallara | 1:23.463 | 1:22.410 | 1:22.410 | — |
| 19 | 3 | Jonathan Palmer | Tyrrell | 1:24.670 | 1:22.578 | 1:22.578 | — |
| 20 | 12 | Satoru Nakajima | Lotus | 1:23.996 | 1:22.630 | 1:22.630 | — |
| 21 | 37 | Bertrand Gachot | Onyx | 1:22.634 | 1:23.720 | 1:24.412 | — |
| 22 | 18 | Piercarlo Ghinzani | Osella | 1:23.091 | 1:22.763 | 1:24.086 | — |
| 23 | 24 | Luis Pérez-Sala | Minardi | 1:23.017 | 1:24.188 | 1:23.017 | — |
| 24 | 36 | Stefan Johansson | Onyx | 1:23.372 | 1:23.148 | 1:22.836 | — |
| 25 | 20 | Emanuele Pirro | Benetton | 1:23.772 | 1:23.399 | 1:23.399 | — |
| 26 | 29 | Michele Alboreto | Lola | 1:23.733 | 1:25.660 | 1:24.323 | — |
| 27 | 25 | René Arnoux | Ligier | 1:25.862 | 1:24.003 | 1:24.003 | — |
| 28 | 26 | Olivier Grouillard | Ligier | 1:24.702 | 1:25.169 | 1:24.702 | — |
| 29 | 38 | Christian Danner | Rial | 1:26.485 | 1:25.017 | 1:25.017 | — |
| 30 | 39 | Volker Weidler | Rial | 1:28.112 | 1:26.320 | 1:26.320 | — |
Sunday warm-up
Nigel Mansell‘s warm-up pace told a much happier story than his qualifying position: he was fastest, ahead of Jonathan Palmer and Ayrton Senna. Gerhard Berger had fresh cause for concern when his Ferrari lost electro-hydraulic pressure in the gearbox. The team changed associated components rather than the complete unit. Nigel Mansell could approach the race with greater confidence in his setup, while Gerhard Berger faced another afternoon with a familiar reliability question hanging over him.
Warm-up Classification
1989 Hungarian Grand Prix Warm-up, 13 August 1989
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Team | Time / Gap | Laps |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 27 | Nigel Mansell | Ferrari | 1:23.965 | — |
| 2 | 3 | Jonathan Palmer | Tyrrell | +0.132s | — |
| 3 | 1 | Ayrton Senna | McLaren | +0.211s | — |
| 4 | 28 | Gerhard Berger | Ferrari | +0.247s | — |
| 5 | 11 | Nelson Piquet | Lotus | +0.489s | — |
| 6 | 6 | Riccardo Patrese | Williams | +0.569s | — |
| 7 | 2 | Alain Prost | McLaren | +0.625s | — |
| 8 | 4 | Jean Alesi | Tyrrell | +0.626s | — |
| 9 | 5 | Thierry Boutsen | Williams | +0.639s | — |
| 10 | 36 | Stefan Johansson | Onyx | +0.972s | — |
| 11 | 19 | Alessandro Nannini | Benetton | +1.113s | — |
| 12 | 15 | Mauricio Gugelmin | March | +1.185s | — |
| 13 | 10 | Eddie Cheever | Arrows | +1.357s | — |
| 14 | 21 | Alex Caffi | Dallara | +1.670s | — |
| 15 | 20 | Emanuele Pirro | Benetton | +1.709s | — |
| 16 | 37 | Bertrand Gachot | Onyx | +1.980s | — |
| 17 | 9 | Derek Warwick | Arrows | +2.127s | — |
| 18 | 16 | Ivan Capelli | March | +2.217s | — |
| 19 | 12 | Satoru Nakajima | Lotus | +2.233s | — |
| 20 | 22 | Andrea de Cesaris | Dallara | +2.414s | — |
| 21 | 8 | Stefano Modena | Brabham | +2.526s | — |
| 22 | 7 | Martin Brundle | Brabham | +2.781s | — |
| 23 | 23 | Pierluigi Martini | Minardi | +2.970s | — |
| 24 | 29 | Michele Alboreto | Lola | +3.031s | — |
| 25 | 18 | Piercarlo Ghinzani | Osella | +3.498s | — |
| 26 | 24 | Luis Perez-Sala | Minardi | +3.786s | — |
What happened in the 1989 Hungarian Grand Prix?
Riccardo Patrese led from the start, while Nigel Mansell immediately gained places from twelfth. The Ferrari continued forward as Alex Caffi‘s Dallara struggled to reproduce its qualifying pace. Nigel Mansell passed Alain Prost and closed on Ayrton Senna as Riccardo Patrese began to lose speed with a damaged radiator. Both pursuers eventually passed the Williams before it retired.
Nigel Mansell then followed Ayrton Senna closely until they caught Stefan Johansson‘s Onyx. A brief hesitation from the McLaren gave the Ferrari its opening, and Nigel Mansell seized it to take the lead. He pulled away thereafter, winning by almost 26 seconds and demonstrating how much better his car had worked over a race distance than in qualifying.
Ayrton Senna finished second, with Thierry Boutsen third. Alain Prost recovered fourth from Eddie Cheever near the finish, and Nelson Piquet took the final point. Gerhard Berger again retired with gearbox trouble. Nigel Mansell‘s victory rewarded the race-tyre preparation behind his disappointing grid position and a series of decisive overtaking moves on a notoriously difficult circuit.
After the race, Alain Prost headed the drivers’ standings with 56 points, followed by Ayrton Senna on 42. McLaren – Honda led the constructors’ table on 98, with Williams – Renault on 42.
1989 Hungarian Grand Prix race results
The 1989 Hungarian Grand Prix was held on 13 August 1989.
1989 Hungarian Grand Prix Fastest Laps
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Team | Lap | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 27 | Nigel Mansell | Ferrari | 66 | 1:22.637 |
| 2 | 2 | Alain Prost | McLaren | 65 | 1:22.654 |
| 3 | 28 | Gerhard Berger | Ferrari | 37 | 1:23.214 |
| 4 | 1 | Ayrton Senna | McLaren | 64 | 1:23.313 |
| 5 | 5 | Thierry Boutsen | Williams | 48 | 1:23.396 |
| 6 | 7 | Martin Brundle | Brabham | 39 | 1:23.442 |
| 7 | 11 | Nelson Piquet | Lotus | 42 | 1:23.620 |
| 8 | 19 | Alessandro Nannini | Benetton | 45 | 1:23.702 |
| 9 | 10 | Eddie Cheever | Arrows | 51 | 1:23.894 |
| 10 | 21 | Alex Caffi | Dallara | 40 | 1:24.075 |
| 11 | 3 | Jonathan Palmer | Tyrrell | 61 | 1:24.166 |
| 12 | 9 | Derek Warwick | Arrows | 57 | 1:24.197 |
| 13 | 20 | Emanuele Pirro | Benetton | 65 | 1:24.305 |
| 14 | 36 | Stefan Johansson | Onyx | 39 | 1:24.464 |
| 15 | 6 | Riccardo Patrese | Williams | 43 | 1:24.559 |
| 16 | 15 | Mauricio Gugelmin | March | 15 | 1:24.664 |
| 17 | 4 | Jean Alesi | Tyrrell | 5 | 1:24.741 |
| 18 | 12 | Satoru Nakajima | Lotus | 21 | 1:24.903 |
| 19 | 8 | Stefano Modena | Brabham | 52 | 1:25.149 |
| 20 | 37 | Bertrand Gachot | Onyx | 34 | 1:25.207 |
| 21 | 16 | Ivan Capelli | March | 19 | 1:25.710 |
| 22 | 24 | Luis Perez-Sala | Minardi | 52 | 1:26.185 |
| 23 | 23 | Pierluigi Martini | Minardi | 15 | 1:26.691 |
| 24 | 18 | Piercarlo Ghinzani | Osella | 17 | 1:27.012 |
| 25 | 29 | Michele Alboreto | Lola | 24 | 1:27.840 |
Only drivers with a recorded lap time appear. No fastest-lap bonus point was awarded.
1989 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings
Championship standings after the 1989 Hungarian Grand Prix.
1989 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings
1989 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings
| POS | Car | PTS |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | McLaren – Honda | 98 |
| 2 | Williams – Renault | 42 |
| 3 | Ferrari | 34 |
| 4 | Benetton – Ford | 17 |
| 5 | Arrows – Ford | 11 |
| 6 | Tyrrell – Ford | 10 |
| 7 | Lotus – Judd | 9 |
| 8 | Dallara – Ford | 8 |
| 9 | Brabham – Judd | 5 |
| 10 | March – Judd | 4 |
| 11 | Rial – Ford | 3 |
| 12 | Ligier – Ford | 3 |
| 13 | Minardi – Ford | 3 |
| 14 | Onyx – Ford | 2 |
| 15 | AGS – Ford | 1 |
| — | Lola – Lamborghini | 0 |
| — | Osella – Ford | 0 |
| — | Zakspeed – Yamaha | 0 |
| — | EuroBrun – Judd | 0 |
| — | Coloni – Ford | 0 |
Drivers counted their best eleven results; constructors counted every round. The standings here show the position after this race.
1989 Formula 1 Race Calendar
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