1989 Japanese Grand Prix
Pos No Driver Constructor Laps Time/Retired Grid
1 19 Alessandro Nannini Benetton - Ford 53 1:35:06.277 6
2 6 Riccardo Patrese Williams - Renault 53 + 11.904 5
3 5 Thierry Boutsen Williams - Renault 53 + 13.446 7
4 11 Nelson Piquet Lotus - Judd 53 + 1:44.225 11
5 7 Martin Brundle Brabham - Judd 52 + 1 Lap 13
6 9 Derek Warwick Arrows - Ford 52 + 1 Lap 25
7 15 Maurício Gugelmin March - Judd 52 + 1 Lap 20
8 10 Eddie Cheever Arrows - Ford 52 + 1 Lap 24
9 21 Alex Caffi Dallara - Ford 52 + 1 Lap 15
10 22 Andrea de Cesaris Dallara - Ford 51 + 2 Laps 16
DSQ 1 Ayrton Senna McLaren - Honda 53 Rejoined Track Illegally 1
Ret 2 Alain Prost McLaren - Honda 46 Collision 2
Ret 8 Stefano Modena Brabham - Judd 46 Engine 9
Ret 27 Nigel Mansell Ferrari 43 Engine 4
Ret 12 Satoru Nakajima Lotus - Judd 41 Engine 12
Ret 4 Jean Alesi Tyrrell - Ford 37 Gearbox 18
Ret 30 Philippe Alliot Lola - Lamborghini 36 Engine 8
Ret 28 Gerhard Berger Ferrari 34 Gearbox 3
Ret 20 Emanuele Pirro Benetton - Ford 33 Collision 22
Ret 26 Olivier Grouillard Ligier - Ford 31 Engine 23
Classification -- Race
The 1989 Japanese Grand Prix (formally the XV Fuji Television Japanese Grand Prix) was a Formula One motor race held at Suzuka Circuit, Japan, on 22 October 1989. It was the 15th and penultimate round of the 1989 Formula One season. The 53-lap race was won by Alessandro Nannini for the Benetton team, from a sixth position start. Riccardo Patrese finished second for the Williams team, with Thierry Boutsen third in the other Williams car. This race would become one of the most notorious in F1 history, as the culmination of Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna's tumultuous two year rivalry as teammates at McLaren. The Japanese Grand Prix decided the 1989 Drivers' Championship in Prost's favour, after a collision on lap 46 at the final chicane between him and Senna put them both off the track. While Prost abandoned his stalled car, Senna restarted his, made a pit stop to change his front wing, and overhauled Alessandro Nannini to take victory. Following the race Senna was controversially disqualified for using the chicane's escape road to rejoin the circuit, handing the title to Prost.