Grand Prix Insider

Next round of the fight of dominance between team-mates Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna as the Brazilian once again proves in qualifying that he his the ultimate driver over a single lap. And he was determined to make his mark in the race asa well.

Ayrton clinched pole with a time of 1m 27.148s while Prost, on 1m 27.919s, was forced to settle for second place. Nelson Piquet, took his Lotus to third place while local colour was provided with Sandro Nannini’s snatching fourth slot on the grid with his Benetton. The other local boy, Michele Alboreto, managed only tenth place in his Ferrari but he ended up starting from the back of the grid after his clutch caused him to stall on the warm-up lap.

During the warm-up lap Prost’s seemd to fail and when the lights went green it almost died completely, leaving the Frenchan struggling away from his starting Postion. Senna to lead the packahead of Piquet who had to free himself from a charging Alesandro Nannini in the Benetton. By the end of the second lap the Brazilians were running clear at the front of an hard-chasing pack, with Prost back in sixth place. That was the last most people saw of Senna for the rest of the afternoon as he simply ran away with the race.

Prost recovered from his poor start and began to confirm the other team’s worst fears about the capabilities of the McLaren. By the seventh lap he was in Piquet’s mirrors, while Senna continued to increase his lead by more than a second a lap. Piquet was taken on lap eight and the race was bound for a McLaren 1-2.

When the leaders began to overtake back-markers Senna displayed his awesome ability to cut through traffic without losing momentum time and time again, while Prost, always concerned for his machinery, was more careful on his way through the field. By now the McLaren were running a full three seconds a lap faster than Piquet’s Lotus.

For entertainment the crowd had to look to the midfielders of Nannini, Patrese, Boutsen and Berger who spent the race engaging is some thrilling wheel-to-wheel duels. However in the end the race was a disaster for Ferrari with the red cars unable to muster even Lotus-like speed. With Senna winning, Prost scores his 24th runner-up finish, a new record the Frenchman was perhaps less keen to achieve.

1988 San Marino Formula 1 Grand Prix, Imola, Italy.

Pole Position: Ayrton Senna, McLaren MP4/4-Honda, 1m 27.148s, 208.198 km/h average.

Race Result: Winner – Ayrton Senna, McLaren MP4/4-Honda, 60 laps x 5.040 km (3.132 miles) = 302.400 km (187.920 miles) total race distance in 1h 32m 41.300s.

2) Alain Prost, McLaren MP4/4-Honda + 2.334s
3) Nelson Piquet, Lotus 100T + 1 volta
4) Thierry Boutsen, Benetton B188 + 1 volta
5) Gerhard Berger, Ferrari F187/88C + 1 volta
6) Alessandro Nannini, Benetton B188 + 1 volta

Fastest Lap: Alain Prost, McLaren MP4/4-Honda, 1m 29.685s on lap 53 = 202.308 km/h (121.085 mph) average.

Milestones among drivers:

- Alain Prost scores his 57th podium finish (new record).

Milestones among teams, constructors and suppliers:

- 5000th F1 Grand Prix for Goodyear as a tire supplier;

- 75th F1 Grand Prix for Zakspeed as constructor, engine builder and team.