Monoposto

Nº 19

Nelson Piquet

1981, 1983, 1987 World Champion

Overview

Nelson Piquet Souto Maior, born in Rio de Janeiro on 17 August 1952, won three World Drivers' Championships, in 1981 and 1983 with Brabham and in 1987 with Williams.1

1981

Three wins, 1 point clear of Carlos Reutemann

Las Vegas

He clinched it in the BT49C at the Caesars Palace Grand Prix, finishing fifth while Carlos Reutemann finished outside the points.1

Every Grand Prix finish, 1981

Numeral size follows the result. Round 1 at left.

1983

Three wins, 2 points clear of Alain Prost

Turbo title

In the turbocharged BMW-powered BT52, he took the title in South Africa, where Alain Prost retired and Piquet finished third.1

Every Grand Prix finish, 1983

Numeral size follows the result. Round 1 at left.

1987

Three wins, 12 points clear of Nigel Mansell

Only a driver's best results counted in 1987. He scored 76 points in all, and 73 counted.

With Williams

A high-speed crash at Imola left him concussed, and he was ordered not to race.1 He still beat Nigel Mansell to the title, by 12 points after drops.7

Every Grand Prix finish, 1987

Numeral size follows the result. Round 1 at left.

Image plates

4 photographs, in season order

Helmet

His helmet was white and red, with a thick seam-like line resembling a tennis ball, and teardrop shapes on the sides and top.1 His sons Nelson Jr. and Pedro adopted the same design.1

1981

Auge=mit · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons · Background removed

1983

Auge=mit · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons · Background removed

1987

Auge=mit · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons · Background removed

Three title cars

He won in the Brabham BT49C and BT52, then a Williams FW11.1

A Brabham BT49, the car of his first title.

Fordcapri at English Wikipedia · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons
1981
Brabham BT49C
1983
Brabham BT52
1987
Williams FW11

Road to the title

  1. 1978Formula One debut in Germany, with Ensign.1
  2. 1980First win, at Long Beach.1
  3. 1981–83Two titles with Brabham.1
  4. 1987Third title, with Williams.1

Records

  • Three titles with two teams1

Sources