1992 Japanese Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Riccardo Patrese finally took his first victory of the season at the 1992 Japanese Grand Prix. Gerhard Berger finished second and Martin Brundle third as several leading cars retired, while Christian Fittipaldi scored his first Formula 1 point for Minardi.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Nigel Mansell	Williams
Pole time	1:37.360
Fastest lap	Nigel Mansell	Williams
Fastest-lap time	1:40.646 on lap 44
First	Riccardo Patrese	Williams
Second	Gerhard Berger	McLaren
Third	Martin Brundle	Benetton

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
23 October 1992	Practice 1	Morning; start time unconfirmed
23 October 1992	Qualifying 1	Afternoon; start time unconfirmed
24 October 1992	Practice 2	Morning; start time unconfirmed
24 October 1992	Qualifying 2	Afternoon; start time unconfirmed
25 October 1992	Warm-up	Morning; start time unconfirmed
25 October 1992	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 15 leading the 1992 F1 World Championship on 108 points, with Ayrton Senna on 50. Williams headed the constructors’ standings after the preceding race with 154 points.

Race entries

Nicola Larini replaced Ivan Capelli at Ferrari, with a particular role in evaluating the team’s active-suspension development. Jan Lammers returned to Formula 1 with March after more than ten years away, replacing Karl Wendlinger, who had moved on to Sauber‘s preparations for 1993.

Friday Free Practice

Nigel Mansell led Friday practice as Renault and Honda brought stronger engine settings for qualifying. Ferrari split its approach, giving Nicola Larini the developing active system while Jean Alesi retained conventional suspension. Jan Lammers faced the challenge of readjusting to Formula 1 at one of its most demanding circuits. Martin Brundle was also struggling with illness, making an already difficult weekend more taxing.

Friday Practice Classification

1992 Japanese Grand Prix Practice, 23 October 1992

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	5	Nigel Mansell	Williams	1:37.978	—
2	1	Ayrton Senna	McLaren	+1.282s	—
3	6	Riccardo Patrese	Williams	+1.348s	—
4	2	Gerhard Berger	McLaren	+2.517s	—
5	19	Michael Schumacher	Benetton	+3.644s	—
6	12	Johnny Herbert	Lotus	+4.167s	—
7	25	Thierry Boutsen	Ligier	+4.452s	—
8	27	Jean Alesi	Ferrari	+4.644s	—
9	24	Gianni Morbidelli	Minardi	+4.784s	—
10	4	Andrea de Cesaris	Tyrrell	+4.810s	—
11	20	Martin Brundle	Benetton	+4.965s	—
12	10	Aguri Suzuki	Footwork	+5.013s	—
13	32	Stefano Modena	Jordan	+5.257s	—
14	26	Erik Comas	Ligier	+5.417s	—
15	29	Bertrand Gachot	Venturi	+5.461s	—
16	30	Ukyo Katayama	Venturi	+5.836s	—
17	28	Nicola Larini	Ferrari	+5.862s	—
18	23	Christian Fittipaldi	Minardi	+6.108s	—
19	3	Olivier Grouillard	Tyrrell	+6.134s	—
20	21	Jyrki Jarvilehto	Dallara	+6.462s	—
21	11	Mika Hakkinen	Lotus	+6.491s	—
22	22	Pierluigi Martini	Dallara	+7.115s	—
23	9	Michele Alboreto	Footwork	+7.352s	—
24	33	Mauricio Gugelmin	Jordan	+7.743s	—
25	16	Jan Lammers	March	+8.743s	—
26	17	Emanuele Naspetti	March	+8.789s	—

Friday Qualifying

Nigel Mansell‘s Friday time of 1:37.360 put him ahead of Riccardo Patrese and Ayrton Senna. Gerhard Berger was fourth, Michael Schumacher fifth and Johnny Herbert sixth. Häkkinen completed a strong Lotus showing in seventh.

Friday Qualifying Classification

1992 Japanese Grand Prix first qualifying session, 23 October 1992

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time	Laps
1	5	Nigel Mansell	Williams	1:37.360	—
2	6	Riccardo Patrese	Williams	1:38.219	—
3	1	Ayrton Senna	McLaren	1:38.375	—
4	2	Gerhard Berger	McLaren	1:40.296	—
5	19	Michael Schumacher	Benetton	1:40.922	—
6	12	Johnny Herbert	Lotus	1:41.030	—
7	11	Mika Hakkinen	Lotus	1:41.415	—
8	26	Erik Comas	Ligier	1:42.187	—
9	4	Andrea de Cesaris	Tyrrell	1:42.361	—
10	25	Thierry Boutsen	Ligier	1:42.428	—
11	28	Nicola Larini	Ferrari	1:42.488	—
12	23	Christian Fittipaldi	Minardi	1:42.617	—
13	20	Martin Brundle	Benetton	1:42.626	—
14	24	Gianni Morbidelli	Minardi	1:42.627	—
15	27	Jean Alesi	Ferrari	1:42.824	—
16	10	Aguri Suzuki	Footwork	1:43.029	—
17	32	Stefano Modena	Jordan	1:43.117	—
18	29	Bertrand Gachot	Venturi	1:43.156	—
19	22	Pierluigi Martini	Dallara	1:43.251	—
20	30	Ukyo Katayama	Venturi	1:43.488	—
21	3	Olivier Grouillard	Tyrrell	1:43.941	—
22	21	Jyrki Jarvilehto	Dallara	1:44.037	—
23	16	Jan Lammers	March	1:44.075	—
24	9	Michele Alboreto	Footwork	1:44.149	—
25	33	Mauricio Gugelmin	Jordan	1:44.253	—
26	17	Emanuele Naspetti	March	1:47.303	—

Saturday Free Practice

Rain changed the character of Saturday practice completely. Nigel Mansell remained quickest, with Jean Alesi close behind, as wet-weather running replaced the previous day’s pursuit of dry speed. With the grid likely to remain based on Friday’s times, the teams could concentrate on understanding the slippery track. It was a particularly demanding introduction for Nicola Larini in the experimental Ferrari and Jan Lammers in the March.

Saturday Practice Classification

1992 Japanese Grand Prix Practice, 24 October 1992

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	5	Nigel Mansell	Williams	1:58.693	—
2	27	Jean Alesi	Ferrari	+0.106s	—
3	19	Michael Schumacher	Benetton	+1.503s	—
4	1	Ayrton Senna	McLaren	+3.004s	—
5	6	Riccardo Patrese	Williams	+3.674s	—
6	16	Jan Lammers	March	+5.221s	—
7	9	Michele Alboreto	Footwork	+5.222s	—
8	22	Pierluigi Martini	Dallara	+5.720s	—
9	12	Johnny Herbert	Lotus	+6.889s	—
10	25	Thierry Boutsen	Ligier	+7.881s	—
11	21	Jyrki Jarvilehto	Dallara	+8.031s	—
12	28	Nicola Larini	Ferrari	+8.095s	—
13	33	Mauricio Gugelmin	Jordan	+8.375s	—
14	3	Olivier Grouillard	Tyrrell	+9.052s	—
15	10	Aguri Suzuki	Footwork	+10.336s	—
16	17	Emanuele Naspetti	March	+10.458s	—
17	24	Gianni Morbidelli	Minardi	+11.269s	—
18	26	Erik Comas	Ligier	+11.470s	—
19	11	Mika Hakkinen	Lotus	+11.984s	—
20	23	Christian Fittipaldi	Minardi	+17.026s	—

Saturday Qualifying

Saturday’s rain left the dry grid untouched. Nigel Mansell headed the wet qualifying session, with Gianni Morbidelli and de Andrea de Cesaris next, but the much slower laps could not affect the starting positions. Nigel Mansell‘s 13th pole of the year equalled Ayrton Senna‘s single-season record.

Saturday Qualifying Classification

1992 Japanese Grand Prix second qualifying session, 24 October 1992

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time	Laps
1	5	Nigel Mansell	Williams	2:07.703	—
2	24	Gianni Morbidelli	Minardi	2:10.260	—
3	4	Andrea de Cesaris	Tyrrell	2:13.715	—
4	6	Riccardo Patrese	Williams	2:13.971	—
5	32	Stefano Modena	Jordan	2:19.944	—
6	9	Michele Alboreto	Footwork	2:25.413	—
7	30	Ukyo Katayama	Venturi	5:40.775	—
8	19	Michael Schumacher	Benetton	11:12.418	—

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	5	Nigel Mansell	Williams	1:37.360	2:07.703	1:37.360	—
2	6	Riccardo Patrese	Williams	1:38.219	2:13.971	1:38.219	—
3	1	Ayrton Senna	McLaren	1:38.375	no time	1:38.375	—
4	2	Gerhard Berger	McLaren	1:40.296	no time	1:40.296	—
5	19	Michael Schumacher	Benetton	1:40.922	11:12.418	1:40.922	—
6	12	Johnny Herbert	Lotus	1:41.030	no time	1:41.030	—
7	11	Mika Häkkinen	Lotus	1:41.415	no time	1:41.415	—
8	26	Érik Comas	Ligier	1:42.187	no time	1:42.187	—
9	4	Andrea de Cesaris	Tyrrell	1:42.361	2:13.715	1:42.361	—
10	25	Thierry Boutsen	Ligier	1:42.428	no time	1:42.428	—
11	28	Nicola Larini	Ferrari	1:42.488	no time	1:42.488	—
12	23	Christian Fittipaldi	Minardi	1:42.617	no time	1:42.617	—
13	20	Martin Brundle	Benetton	1:42.626	no time	1:42.626	—
14	24	Gianni Morbidelli	Minardi	1:42.627	2:10.260	1:42.627	—
15	27	Jean Alesi	Ferrari	1:42.824	no time	1:42.824	—
16	10	Aguri Suzuki	Footwork	1:43.029	no time	1:43.029	—
17	32	Stefano Modena	Jordan	1:43.117	2:19.944	1:43.117	—
18	29	Bertrand Gachot	Venturi	1:43.156	no time	1:43.156	—
19	22	Pierluigi Martini	Dallara	1:43.251	no time	1:43.251	—
20	30	Ukyo Katayama	Venturi	1:43.488	5:40.775	1:43.488	—
21	3	Olivier Grouillard	Tyrrell	1:43.941	no time	1:43.941	—
22	21	JJ Lehto	Dallara	1:44.037	no time	1:44.037	—
23	16	Jan Lammers	March	1:44.075	no time	1:44.075	—
24	9	Michele Alboreto	Footwork	1:44.149	2:25.413	1:44.149	—
25	33	Maurício Gugelmin	Jordan	1:44.253	no time	1:44.253	—
26	17	Emanuele Naspetti	March	1:47.303	no time	1:47.303	—

Sunday warm-up

Riccardo Patrese led the warm-up, but both title-winning rivals had problems. Ayrton Senna suffered another engine failure, while Nigel Mansell damaged his car after encountering a slow-moving Thierry Boutsen. Williams repaired it in time for the start. Cool, cloudy conditions did not remove the expectation of tyre stops, and the morning’s incidents put reliability firmly back into focus.

Warm-up Classification

1992 Japanese Grand Prix Warm-up, 25 October 1992

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	6	Riccardo Patrese	Williams	1:42.255	—
2	5	Nigel Mansell	Williams	+1.121s	—
3	2	Gerhard Berger	McLaren	+1.869s	—
4	12	Johnny Herbert	Lotus	+2.220s	—
5	1	Ayrton Senna	McLaren	+2.265s	—
6	19	Michael Schumacher	Benetton	+2.523s	—
7	29	Bertrand Gachot	Venturi	+2.797s	—
8	20	Martin Brundle	Benetton	+2.810s	—
9	11	Mika Hakkinen	Lotus	+2.971s	—
10	25	Thierry Boutsen	Ligier	+3.473s	—
11	3	Olivier Grouillard	Tyrrell	+3.596s	—
12	26	Erik Comas	Ligier	+3.619s	—
13	22	Pierluigi Martini	Dallara	+3.706s	—
14	4	Andrea de Cesaris	Tyrrell	+3.813s	—
15	21	Jyrki Jarvilehto	Dallara	+4.065s	—
16	9	Michele Alboreto	Footwork	+4.414s	—
17	30	Ukyo Katayama	Venturi	+4.845s	—
18	27	Jean Alesi	Ferrari	+5.098s	—
19	24	Gianni Morbidelli	Minardi	+5.186s	—
20	33	Mauricio Gugelmin	Jordan	+5.284s	—
21	32	Stefano Modena	Jordan	+5.286s	—
22	17	Emanuele Naspetti	March	+5.578s	—
23	28	Nicola Larini	Ferrari	+5.901s	—
24	23	Christian Fittipaldi	Minardi	+6.084s	—
25	10	Aguri Suzuki	Footwork	+6.354s	—

What happened in the 1992 Japanese Grand Prix?

Nigel Mansell made a strong start and pulled away from Riccardo Patrese. Ayrton Senna retired almost immediately with engine trouble, and Michael Schumacher and Johnny Herbert later stopped with gearbox failures. Gerhard Berger moved ahead of Häkkinen through the pit-stop sequence to become the closest challenger to Williams.

Nigel Mansell slowed and Riccardo Patrese moved into the lead. The champion subsequently retired with engine failure, and Häkkinen suffered the same fate while running strongly. Those losses promoted Martin Brundle to third and brought opportunities for the cars further back.

Riccardo Patrese claimed his sixth and final Grand Prix victory, ahead of Gerhard Berger and Martin Brundle. De Andrea de Cesaris finished fourth, Jean Alesi fifth and Christian Fittipaldi sixth. Minardi‘s first point of the season was a valuable reward after a difficult year, while Riccardo Patrese finally converted Williams‘ pace into a win of his own.

After the race, Nigel Mansell headed the drivers’ standings with 108 points, followed by Riccardo Patrese on 56. Williams led the constructors’ table on 164, with McLaren on 89.

1992 Japanese Grand Prix race results

The 1992 Japanese Grand Prix was held on 25 October 1992, with a scheduled start of Start time unconfirmed local time.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	6	Riccardo Patrese	Williams	53	1:33:09.533	10
2	2	Gerhard Berger	McLaren	53	+ 13.729	6
3	20	Martin Brundle	Benetton	53	+ 1:15.503	4
4	4	Andrea de Cesaris	Tyrrell	52	+ 1 lap	3
5	27	Jean Alesi	Ferrari	52	+ 1 lap	2
6	23	Christian Fittipaldi	Minardi	52	+ 1 lap	1
7	32	Stefano Modena	Jordan	52	+ 1 lap	0
8	10	Aguri Suzuki	Footwork	52	+ 1 lap	0
9	21	JJ Lehto	Dallara	52	+ 1 lap	0
10	22	Pierluigi Martini	Dallara	52	+ 1 lap	0
11	30	Ukyo Katayama	Venturi	52	+ 1 lap	0
12	28	Nicola Larini	Ferrari	52	+ 1 lap	0
13	17	Emanuele Naspetti	March	51	+ 2 laps	0
14	24	Gianni Morbidelli	Minardi	51	+ 2 laps	0
15	9	Michele Alboreto	Footwork	51	+ 2 laps	0
Ret	5	Nigel Mansell	Williams	44	Engine	0
Ret	11	Mika Häkkinen	Lotus	44	Engine	0
Ret	29	Bertrand Gachot	Venturi	39	Collision/Spun off	0
Ret	26	Érik Comas	Ligier	36	Engine	0
Ret	16	Jan Lammers	March	27	Clutch	0
Ret	33	Maurício Gugelmin	Jordan	22	Spun off	0
Ret	12	Johnny Herbert	Lotus	15	Gearbox	0
Ret	19	Michael Schumacher	Benetton	13	Gearbox	0
Ret	3	Olivier Grouillard	Tyrrell	6	Spun off	0
Ret	25	Thierry Boutsen	Ligier	3	Gearbox	0
Ret	1	Ayrton Senna	McLaren	2	Engine	0

1992 Japanese Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time
1	5	Nigel Mansell	Williams	44	1:40.646
2	6	Riccardo Patrese	Williams	44	1:40.910
3	2	Gerhard Berger	McLaren	34	1:42.280
4	20	Martin Brundle	Benetton	43	1:43.105
5	30	Ukyo Katayama	Venturi	43	1:43.233
6	11	Mika Hakkinen	Lotus	34	1:43.288
7	4	Andrea de Cesaris	Tyrrell	29	1:44.760
8	29	Bertrand Gachot	Venturi	33	1:44.960
9	12	Johnny Herbert	Lotus	14	1:45.028
10	26	Erik Comas	Ligier	28	1:45.340
11	32	Stefano Modena	Jordan	35	1:45.413
12	27	Jean Alesi	Ferrari	34	1:45.455
13	17	Emanuele Naspetti	March	35	1:45.613
14	23	Christian Fittipaldi	Minardi	34	1:45.638
15	22	Pierluigi Martini	Dallara	33	1:45.650
16	28	Nicola Larini	Ferrari	35	1:45.661
17	24	Gianni Morbidelli	Minardi	38	1:45.827
18	21	Jyrki Jarvilehto	Dallara	33	1:45.846
19	10	Aguri Suzuki	Footwork	32	1:45.928
20	19	Michael Schumacher	Benetton	10	1:46.218
21	1	Ayrton Senna	McLaren	2	1:46.229
22	9	Michele Alboreto	Footwork	38	1:46.560
23	33	Mauricio Gugelmin	Jordan	19	1:47.633
24	16	Jan Lammers	March	21	1:48.218
25	3	Olivier Grouillard	Tyrrell	6	1:48.225
26	25	Thierry Boutsen	Ligier	1	2:00.768

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

1992 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 1992 Japanese Grand Prix.

1992 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Nigel Mansell	British	Williams	108
2	Riccardo Patrese	Italian	Williams	56
3	Ayrton Senna	Brazilian	McLaren	50
4	Michael Schumacher	German	Benetton	47
5	Gerhard Berger	Austrian	McLaren	39
6	Martin Brundle	British	Benetton	34
7	Jean Alesi	French	Ferrari	15
8	Mika Häkkinen	Finnish	Lotus	11
9	Andrea de Cesaris	Italian	Tyrrell	8
10	Michele Alboreto	Italian	Footwork	6
11	Érik Comas	French	Ligier	4
12	Karl Wendlinger	Austrian	March	3
13	Ivan Capelli	Italian	Ferrari	3
14	Johnny Herbert	British	Lotus	2
15	Pierluigi Martini	Italian	Dallara	2
16	Christian Fittipaldi	Brazilian	Minardi	1
17	Bertrand Gachot	Belgian	Venturi	1
–	JJ Lehto	Finnish	Dallara	0
–	Aguri Suzuki	Japanese	Footwork	0
–	Thierry Boutsen	Belgian	Ligier	0
–	Gianni Morbidelli	Italian	Minardi	0
–	Maurício Gugelmin	Brazilian	Jordan	0
–	Stefano Modena	Italian	Jordan	0
–	Olivier Grouillard	French	Tyrrell	0
–	Ukyo Katayama	Japanese	Venturi	0
–	Paul Belmondo	French	March	0
–	Eric van de Poele	Belgian	Brabham / Fondmetal	0
–	Emanuele Naspetti	Italian	March	0
–	Damon Hill	British	Brabham	0
–	Nicola Larini	Italian	Ferrari	0
–	Gabriele Tarquini	Italian	Fondmetal	0
–	Andrea Chiesa	Swiss	Fondmetal	0
–	Roberto Moreno	Brazilian	Andrea Moda	0
–	Jan Lammers	Dutch	March	0
–	Alessandro Zanardi	Italian	Minardi	0
–	Perry McCarthy	British	Andrea Moda	0

1992 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	Williams	164
2	McLaren	89
3	Benetton	81
4	Ferrari	18
5	Lotus	13
6	Tyrrell	8
7	Footwork	6
8	Ligier	4
9	March	3
10	Dallara	2
11	Minardi	1
12	Venturi	1
–	Jordan	0
–	Fondmetal	0
–	Brabham	0
–	Andrea Moda	0

1992 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	1992 South African Grand Prix	Kyalami, Midrand	1 March
2	1992 Mexican Grand Prix	Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, Mexico City	22 March
3	1992 Brazilian Grand Prix	Autódromo José Carlos Pace, São Paulo	5 April
4	1992 Spanish Grand Prix	Circuit de Catalunya, Montmeló	3 May
5	1992 San Marino Grand Prix	Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari, Imola	17 May
6	1992 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	31 May
7	1992 Canadian Grand Prix	Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve, Montréal	14 June
8	1992 French Grand Prix	Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours, Magny-Cours	5 July
9	1992 British Grand Prix	Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone	12 July
10	1992 German Grand Prix	Hockenheimring, Hockenheim	26 July
11	1992 Hungarian Grand Prix	Hungaroring, Mogyoród	16 August
12	1992 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	30 August
13	1992 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	13 September
14	1992 Portuguese Grand Prix	Autódromo do Estoril, Estoril	27 September
15	1992 Japanese Grand Prix	Suzuka International Racing Course, Suzuka	25 October
16	1992 Australian Grand Prix	Adelaide Street Circuit, Adelaide	8 November