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Turbo rules

10. Apr 2021 
by Ziv Knoll
3697 views

The 1983 South African Grand Prix held at Kyalami was the fifteenth and final race of the 1983 season. Before the race, three drivers were still in a position to win the World Drivers’ title.

Alain Prost (Renault) led the championship with 57 points, followed by Nelson Piquet (Brabham-BMW) with 55 points and René Arnoux (Ferrari) with 49.

At the start, Piquet passed Tambay (who had started on pole in his Ferrari) to take the lead, with team mate Patrese moving into second place.

Arnoux and Prost soon retired with engine failures. Needing only to finish fourth or higher, Piquet took zero risk, slowed down and was overtaken by Patrese, Lauda (McLaren) and de Cesaris (Alfa Romeo).

The race finished with Riccardo Patrese (picture below) taking a nice victory, ahead of the surprisingly reliable Andrea de Cesaris, and Nelson Piquet in third, who captured his second crown for two points.

It also was the first time a turbocharged car won the championship, and it was BMW’s first and only championship in Formula One.

Source: DR

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