1990 German Grand Prix
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The 1990 German Grand Prix was a
Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...
motor race held at the
Hockenheimring The Hockenheimring, officially Hockenheimring Baden-Württemberg () is a motor racing circuit situated in the Rhine valley near the town of Hockenheim in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, located on the Bertha Benz Memorial Route. Amongst other mot ...
on 29 July 1990. It was the ninth race of the 1990 Formula One World Championship. The race was the 52nd
German Grand Prix The German Grand Prix () was a motor race that took place most years since 1926, with 75 races having been held. The race has been held at only three venues throughout its history: the Nürburgring in Rhineland-Palatinate, Hockenheimring in B ...
and the 14th to be held at the Hockenheimring. It was the 39th and last Formula One Grand Prix to be held in
West Germany West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...
prior to its re-unification with
East Germany East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...
. The race was held over 45 laps of the seven kilometre circuit for a race distance of 306 kilometres. The race was won by 1988 World Champion, Brazilian driver
Ayrton Senna Ayrton Senna da Silva (; 21 March 1960 – 1 May 1994) was a Brazilian racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Senna won three Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles with McLaren, and—at the time of his death—held ...
driving a McLaren MP4/5B. He took a six-second victory over Italian driver
Alessandro Nannini Alessandro "Sandro" Nannini (born 7 July 1959) is an Italian former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Nannini won the 1989 Japanese Grand Prix with Benetton. Born in Siena, Nannini is the younger brother of musician Gianna ...
driving a Benetton B190 who was just two seconds in front of Senna's Austrian teammate
Gerhard Berger Gerhard Berger (; born 27 August 1959) is an Austrian former racing driver and motorsport executive, who competed in Formula One from to . Berger won 10 Formula One Grands Prix across 14 seasons. Berger competed in Formula One for 14 seasons, ...
. Senna's win put him back into the championship points lead, four ahead of Ferrari driver
Alain Prost Alain Marie Pascal Prost (; born 24 February 1955) is a French former racing driver and motorsport executive, who competed in Formula One from to . Nicknamed "the Professor", Prost won four Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles and†...
.


Qualifying


Pre-qualifying report

The Hockenheim circuit had been given all-new pits facilities with a wider pit lane, and a wider start-finish straight. The participants in the Friday morning pre-qualifying sessions were slightly reshuffled prior to this event, the season having reached its mid-point.
Larrousse Larrousse Formula One was a motorsports racing team founded in 1987 by Didier Calmels and former racer Gérard Larrousse, originally under the name Larrousse & Calmels. It was based in Antony, Hauts-de-Seine, Antony, in the southern suburbs of Pa ...
had scored enough points during the previous two half-seasons to be relieved of the requirement to pre-qualify, and could automatically join the rest of the field in the main qualifying sessions from here on. A failure to score any points so far this season meant that
Ligier Ligier () is a French automobile and minibus maker created by former racing driver and rugby player Guy Ligier (1930–2015), specialized in the manufacturing of microcars. Ligier is best known for its involvement in the Formula 1 World Cham ...
were forced to join the pre-qualifying pool.
Osella Osella is an Italian racing car manufacturer and former Formula One team. They participated in 132 List of Formula One Grands Prix, Grands Prix between 1980 and 1990. They achieved two points finishes and scored five world championship points. ...
, AGS,
EuroBrun EuroBrun Racing was a Swiss-Italian Formula One constructor based in Senago, Milan, Italy. They participated in 46 Grands Prix between 1988 and 1990, with an Italian license, entering a total of 76 cars. Background The team was a combination o ...
, Coloni and
Life Life, also known as biota, refers to matter that has biological processes, such as Cell signaling, signaling and self-sustaining processes. It is defined descriptively by the capacity for homeostasis, Structure#Biological, organisation, met ...
were all still required to pre-qualify. Here at Hockenheim, Ligier were comfortably first and second in the one-hour session, with
Philippe Alliot Philippe René Gabriel Alliot (born 27 July 1954) is a French former racing driver and broadcaster, who competed in Formula One from to and from to . Born and raised in Voves, Alliot initially studied political science before dropping out ...
outpacing team-mate
Nicola Larini Nicola Larini (born 19 March 1964) is an Italian former racing driver, who competed in Formula One between and . In touring car racing, Larini won the Deutsche Tourenwagen Meisterschaft in 1993 Deutsche Tourenwagen Meisterschaft, 1993 and the I ...
in their Ford-powered JS33Bs. Third fastest was
Olivier Grouillard Olivier Grouillard (; born 2 September 1958) is a French racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to , and IndyCar in 1993. Born in Fenouillet, Haute-Garonne, Grouillard started kart racing from the age of fourteen competing in event ...
in the Osella, and
Yannick Dalmas Yannick Dalmas (; born 28 July 1961) is a former racing driver from France. He won the 24 Hours of Le Mans four times (in 1992, 1994, 1995 and 1999), each with different teams. Prior to this, he participated in 49 Formula One Grands Prix, debuti ...
was fourth in his AGS. It was Grouillard's eighth pre-qualification from nine events, and Dalmas' third. Those missing out on pre-qualification included fifth-placed
Gabriele Tarquini Gabriele Tarquini (born 2 March 1962) is an Italian former racing driver, who competed in Formula One between and , and World Touring Car from to 2021. In touring car racing, Tarquini won the World Touring Car Championship in with SEAT; ...
in the other AGS, a second slower than his team-mate, and
Roberto Moreno Roberto Pupo Moreno (born 11 February 1959), usually known as Roberto Moreno and also as Pupo Moreno, is a Brazilian former auto racing, racing driver. He participated in 75 Formula One Grands Prix, achieved 1 podium, and scored a total of 15 c ...
, sixth in the EuroBrun. Coloni, having parted ways with
Subaru is the automaker, automobile manufacturing division of Japanese transportation conglomerate (company), conglomerate Subaru Corporation (formerly known as Fuji Heavy Industries), the Automotive industry#By manufacturer, twenty-first largest aut ...
and their uncompetitive flat 12 engine, appeared with the modified but untested C3C, powered by a customer
Cosworth Cosworth is a British automotive engineering company founded in London in 1958, specialising in high-performance internal combustion engines, powertrain, and electronics for auto racing, automobile racing (motorsport) and mainstream Automotiv ...
DFR V8 engine.
Bertrand Gachot Bertrand Jean Gachot (; born 23 December 1962) is a Belgian and French former racing driver and businessman, who competed in Formula One from to . In endurance racing (motorsport), endurance racing, Gachot won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in with ...
spun the car during the session and damaged it, failing to pre-qualify for the ninth consecutive time this season. Also ending his involvement at this early stage for the ninth Grand Prix in a row was
Claudio Langes Claudio Langes (born 4 August 1961) is a former racing driver from Italy. In 1978 he won the Italian 125 cc go-kart championship. In subsequent years he competed in Formula 3 and in Formula 3000, where his best result was a second place at Pergu ...
in the other EuroBrun, ahead only of
Bruno Giacomelli Bruno Giacomelli (; born 10 September 1952) is an Italian former racing driver, who competed in Formula One between and . Giacomelli won one of the two 1976 British Formula 3 Championships and the Formula Two championship. From to , Giacome ...
, who was again a far distant last in the Life.


Pre-qualifying classification


Qualifying report

After three straight wins by
Ferrari Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello. Founded in 1939 by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988), the company built Auto Avio Costruzioni 815, its first car in 1940, adopted its current name in 1945, and be ...
s Alain Prost,
McLaren McLaren Racing Limited ( ) is a British auto racing, motor racing team based at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, Surrey, England. The team is a subsidiary of the McLaren Group, which owns a majority of the team. McLaren is best known a ...
-
Honda commonly known as just Honda, is a Japanese multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate automotive manufacturer headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Founded in October 1946 by Soichiro Honda, Honda has bee ...
showed that they were back on top in qualifying. Honda promised McLaren a more powerful
V10 engine A V10 engine is a ten- cylinder piston engine where two banks of five cylinders are arranged in a V configuration around a common crankshaft. V10 engines are much less common than V8 and V12 engines. Several V10 diesel engines have been pro ...
at Hockenheim and McLaren had done some modifications to the MP4/5B chassis. Both parties delivered with pole man Senna and second placed Berger (only 0.2 seconds slower) the only drivers to lap in the 1:40's and they did this during the first qualifying session- an indication of the McLaren-Honda car's superior pace at one of the fastest Grand Prix circuits of the year, with both cars lapping at over 150 mph (240 km/h). The
Ferrari Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello. Founded in 1939 by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988), the company built Auto Avio Costruzioni 815, its first car in 1940, adopted its current name in 1945, and be ...
s of Prost and
Nigel Mansell Nigel Ernest James Mansell (; born 8 August 1953) is a British former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Mansell won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with Williams, and won 31 Grands Prix across 15 seasons ...
were over 1.5 seconds slower (with the Englishman complaining of a down on power engine compared to his team mate), and the Williams-
Renault Renault S.A., commonly referred to as Groupe Renault ( , , , also known as the Renault Group in English), is a French Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automobile manufacturer established in 1899. The company curr ...
s of
Riccardo Patrese Riccardo Gabriele Patrese (born 17 April 1954) is an Italian former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Patrese was runner-up in the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with Williams, and won six Grands Prix across 17 ...
and
Thierry Boutsen Thierry Marc Alain Boutsen (; born 13 July 1957) is a Belgian former racing driver, businessman and motorsport executive, who competed in Formula One from to . Boutsen won three Formula One Grands Prix across 11 seasons. Boutsen competed in ...
occupying the 3rd row. So confident were McLaren that their times would not be beaten that both Senna and Berger did over 20 laps each and spent the entire second qualifying session working on their race set up without actually setting anything like a qualifying time, their fastest times over 6 seconds slower than the previous day. McLaren also introduced a new aerodynamic cowling cover for the MP4/5B at Hockenheim designed to lessen the buffeting effect on the drivers heads by diverting air to the sides of the car. This would remain on the car for the rest of the season. Rounding out the top 10 were
Nelson Piquet Nelson Piquet Souto Maior (, born 17 August 1952) is a Brazilian former racing driver and businessman, who competed in Formula One from to . Piquet won three Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, which he won in , , and , and won 23 ...
( Benetton- Ford),
Jean Alesi Jean Robert Alesi (; born Giovanni Roberto Alesi, 11 June 1964) is a French former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Alesi won the 1995 Canadian Grand Prix with Ferrari. Born and raised in Avignon, Alesi started karting a ...
( Tyrrell- Ford),
Alessandro Nannini Alessandro "Sandro" Nannini (born 7 July 1959) is an Italian former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Nannini won the 1989 Japanese Grand Prix with Benetton. Born in Siena, Nannini is the younger brother of musician Gianna ...
(Benetton-Ford) who had a fiery crash during Friday qualifying at the Bremsschikane 2 after riding a kerb and hitting the barrier hard enough to throw the car into the air and back onto the track causing the session to be stopped. Nannini survived the crash with little more than bruised pride. The 10th fastest qualifier was
Ivan Capelli Ivan Franco Capelli (born 24 May 1963) is an Italian sports broadcasting, broadcaster and former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Born and raised in Milan, Capelli began competitive kart racing aged 15. He was widely succe ...
in the Leyton House- Judd. Such was the spread in times that Capelli was some 4.151 seconds slower than Senna.1990 German Grand Prix 2nd Qualifying Session
/ref>


Qualifying classification


Race


Race report

The circuit's fast nature resulted in several engine failures, although the four big teams of the era took all six points-paying positions. The first driver to retire with an engine failure was
Michele Alboreto Michele Alboreto (; 23 December 1956 – 25 April 2001) was an Italian racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Alboreto was runner-up in the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with Scuderia Ferrari, Ferrari, and won five F ...
on lap 11, he was then followed out by Mauricio Gugelmin and
David Brabham David Philip Brabham (born 5 September 1965) is an Australian racing driver and one of the most successful and experienced specialists in sports car racing. He has won three international Sports Car series and is one of four Australians to have ...
2 laps later along with
Pierluigi Martini Pierluigi Martini (; born 23 April 1961) is an Italian former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to and from to . In endurance racing (motorsport), endurance racing, Martini won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in with BMW in motorsport ...
in the only Minardi by lap 21. Also involved with the engine failures were
Nelson Piquet Nelson Piquet Souto Maior (, born 17 August 1952) is a Brazilian former racing driver and businessman, who competed in Formula One from to . Piquet won three Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles, which he won in , , and , and won 23 ...
in the Benetton on lap 24 and
Satoru Nakajima is a Japanese former racing driver and motorsport executive, who competed in Formula One from to . Born and raised in Okazaki, Aichi, Nakajima began his racing career at the Suzuka Circuit in 1973. He progressed to Japanese Formula Two in ...
in the Tyrrell one lap later. Berger got a stronger start off the line than Senna did but the Brazilian was able to hold on to the lead through the first corner. Senna lead the first lap ahead of Berger, Prost, Mansell, Patrese and Piquet. The order of the top 6 remained the same until the 11th lap when Piquet made an attempt to pass Patrese in the Williams, but had to take an escape road and was overtaken for 6th by teammate Nannini as a result. Meanwhile Mansell in the second Ferrari missed his braking point at the Ostkurve chicane on lap 14 and broke his front wing which also damaged his car, his fourth position was not lost but he was forced to retire in the pits 2 laps later due to the damage being too great. Back upfront Nannini overtook Patrese for the lead as the Williams and Benetton teams had planned to go the race distance with no pit-stops. However, the gamble for Williams had failed since Patrese's tires were badly damaged in the closing stages and was forced to eventually pit. While Boutsen in the other Williams was eventually overtaken by Prost for fourth position and by teammate Patrese for 5th, but managed to hold on to 6th for the closing laps. Senna eventually passed Nannini on lap 34 whilst overlapping
JJ Lehto Jyrki Juhani Järvilehto (; born 31 January 1966), commonly known as JJ Lehto, is a Finnish former racing driver and broadcaster, who competed in Formula One from to . In sportscar racing, Lehto won the American Le Mans Series in 2004 and is a ...
and eventually took the victory.
Ayrton Senna Ayrton Senna da Silva (; 21 March 1960 – 1 May 1994) was a Brazilian racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Senna won three Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles with McLaren, and—at the time of his death—held ...
won the race by 6 seconds ahead of
Alessandro Nannini Alessandro "Sandro" Nannini (born 7 July 1959) is an Italian former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Nannini won the 1989 Japanese Grand Prix with Benetton. Born in Siena, Nannini is the younger brother of musician Gianna ...
in the remaining Benetton,
Gerhard Berger Gerhard Berger (; born 27 August 1959) is an Austrian former racing driver and motorsport executive, who competed in Formula One from to . Berger won 10 Formula One Grands Prix across 14 seasons. Berger competed in Formula One for 14 seasons, ...
in the second
McLaren McLaren Racing Limited ( ) is a British auto racing, motor racing team based at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, Surrey, England. The team is a subsidiary of the McLaren Group, which owns a majority of the team. McLaren is best known a ...
,
Alain Prost Alain Marie Pascal Prost (; born 24 February 1955) is a French former racing driver and motorsport executive, who competed in Formula One from to . Nicknamed "the Professor", Prost won four Formula One World Drivers' Championship titles and†...
in the remaining
Ferrari Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello. Founded in 1939 by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988), the company built Auto Avio Costruzioni 815, its first car in 1940, adopted its current name in 1945, and be ...
,
Riccardo Patrese Riccardo Gabriele Patrese (born 17 April 1954) is an Italian former racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Patrese was runner-up in the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in with Williams, and won six Grands Prix across 17 ...
and
Thierry Boutsen Thierry Marc Alain Boutsen (; born 13 July 1957) is a Belgian former racing driver, businessman and motorsport executive, who competed in Formula One from to . Boutsen won three Formula One Grands Prix across 11 seasons. Boutsen competed in ...
in the Williams. Both
Onyx Grand Prix Onyx Grand Prix is a former Formula One constructor from Britain that competed in the and Formula One seasons. The team participated in 26 World Championship Grands Prix (25 starts) and scored six World Constructors' Championship points. It ...
teammates
JJ Lehto Jyrki Juhani Järvilehto (; born 31 January 1966), commonly known as JJ Lehto, is a Finnish former racing driver and broadcaster, who competed in Formula One from to . In sportscar racing, Lehto won the American Le Mans Series in 2004 and is a ...
and
Gregor Foitek Gregor Foitek (; born 27 March 1965) is a Swiss former racing driver. He won the 1986 Swiss Formula 3 Championship. Moving up to Formula 3000 he was widely blamed for causing a race-stopping crash at Brands Hatch in 1988, and at the restart nudg ...
both got their renamed Monteverdi ORE-1Bs into the race, the last time either car would qualify for a race prior to the team's dissolution in August.
Philippe Alliot Philippe René Gabriel Alliot (born 27 July 1954) is a French former racing driver and broadcaster, who competed in Formula One from to and from to . Born and raised in Voves, Alliot initially studied political science before dropping out ...
was disqualified because marshals helped his Ligier JS33B rejoin the race after being blocked by the spinning Dallara 190 of
Emanuele Pirro Emanuele Pirro (; born 12 January 1962) is an Italian racing driver who competed in Formula One from to . In endurance racing (motorsport), endurance racing, Pirro is a List of 24 Hours of Le Mans winners, five-time winner of the 24 Hours of L ...
. Fastest lap of the race was set by Thierry Boutsen in his Williams, his first such achievement.


Race classification


Championship standings after the race

;Drivers' Championship standings ;Constructors' Championship standings * Note: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings.


References

{{F1GP 90-99
German Grand Prix The German Grand Prix () was a motor race that took place most years since 1926, with 75 races having been held. The race has been held at only three venues throughout its history: the Nürburgring in Rhineland-Palatinate, Hockenheimring in B ...
German Grand Prix Grand Prix
German Grand Prix The German Grand Prix () was a motor race that took place most years since 1926, with 75 races having been held. The race has been held at only three venues throughout its history: the Nürburgring in Rhineland-Palatinate, Hockenheimring in B ...