1990 Formula One season facts for kids

The 1990 Formula One season was a super exciting year for Formula One racing! It was the 41st season of this amazing sport, run by the FIA. The season kicked off on March 11th and wrapped up on November 4th, after 16 thrilling races. Ayrton Senna became the World Champion Driver for the second time, and his team, McLaren, won the Constructors' Championship.

Ayrton Senna won his second title with McLaren.

Defending champion Alain Prost (pictured in 2008), was runner-up for Scuderia Ferrari.

Nelson Piquet, a former triple world champion, finished the season ranked third.

Getting Ready for the Season

Driver Moves

Before the races began, some famous drivers switched teams:

• Gerhard Berger moved from Ferrari to McLaren.
• Alain Prost moved from McLaren to Ferrari. This was a big change!
• Triple world champion Nelson Piquet moved from Lotus to Benetton.

New and Leaving Teams

• The Zakspeed team left Formula One to race sports cars instead.
• A new team called Life joined, using their own special engine design.

Early Races: Pre-Qualifying

At the start of the season, some teams had to "pre-qualify." This meant they had to be fast enough in a special session just to get into the main qualifying rounds! Teams like Lola, AGS, EuroBrun, Osella, Coloni, and Life had to do this.

The Races Unfold

Race One: USA

The first race was in Phoenix, USA. The qualifying session was tricky because of rain. Gerhard Berger started in first place, but Jean Alesi took the lead early on. Ayrton Senna was in fifth. Alesi pulled away, but Senna slowly caught up. Senna finally passed Alesi on lap 35 and won the race!

Race Two: Brazil

In Brazil, Senna started in first place. He led the race for a long time. However, he had a small crash with a slower car, which forced him to pit and drop to third. This allowed Alain Prost to win for Ferrari, with Berger second and Senna third.

Race Three: San Marino

Senna started in first again, but a stone hit his wheel, causing him to spin out of the race early. Thierry Boutsen took the lead, but his engine broke. In the end, Riccardo Patrese won, his first win in a long time!

Race Four: Monaco

Monaco is a super tight street circuit. Senna took pole position. The first start was messy with a crash, so they had to restart. In the second start, Senna led from the beginning and won the race.

Race Five: Canada

The track was wet in Canada. Berger started too early and got a penalty. Senna led the race. As the track dried, everyone pitted for new tires. Senna won again, with Piquet second and Mansell third.

Race Six: Mexico

Berger was on pole in Mexico. Senna passed Patrese and Berger early on. Mansell and Prost, both from Ferrari, started to move up. In a thrilling finish, Prost passed Senna, and then Mansell passed Senna too! Prost won, with Mansell second, giving Ferrari a great 1-2 finish.

Race Seven: France

Nigel Mansell took pole position for Ferrari in France. The race was exciting because two Leyton House cars, driven by Ivan Capelli and Maurício Gugelmin, were leading for a long time because they didn't need to stop for tires. Prost chased Capelli and finally passed him with just three laps left to win!

Race Eight: Great Britain

At his home race in Britain, Mansell started first. Senna passed him at the start, but Mansell got the lead back on lap 2. Mansell then had gearbox problems, allowing Berger to lead, and then Prost to take over. Prost won, with Boutsen second and Senna third.

At the halfway point of the season, Prost was leading the championship with 41 points, and Senna was close behind with 39 points. McLaren was leading the teams' championship.

Race Nine: Germany

Senna and Berger were 1-2 in qualifying for McLaren. Senna kept the lead at the start. Mansell had to retire due to car damage. Senna won the race, showing his strength.

Race Ten: Hungary

The Williams cars were very fast in Hungary, with Boutsen on pole. Boutsen held onto the lead and won the race. Senna finished second, even after having a slow tire puncture early on.

Race Eleven: Belgium

Senna was on pole again in Belgium. There were two restarts due to crashes. In the third start, Senna took the lead and won the race. Prost finished second, and Berger third.

With five races left, Senna had 63 points, 13 points ahead of Prost. McLaren was still leading the Constructors' Championship.

Race Twelve: Italy

Senna took pole in Italy. There was a crash at the start, causing a restart. Senna led from the restart and won the race. Prost and Berger completed the top three.

Race Thirteen: Portugal

The Ferraris of Mansell and Prost started 1-2 in Portugal. However, the McLarens of Senna and Berger got ahead at the start. Later, Mansell passed Senna to take the lead. The race was stopped early due to a crash, and Mansell was declared the winner.

Race Fourteen: Spain

Senna took his 50th career pole position in Spain! Senna led early, but Mansell and Prost worked together for Ferrari. Prost won, with Mansell second, making it another Ferrari 1-2. Senna had to retire with a radiator problem.

With only two races left, Senna had 78 points, and Prost had 69. The championship was very close!

Race Fifteen: Japan

Before the Japanese Grand Prix, Alessandro Nannini had a helicopter crash and couldn't race anymore. He was replaced by Roberto Moreno.

Senna was on pole in Japan, but he was unhappy with where the pole position was on the track. He felt it gave Prost an advantage into the first corner. At the start, Senna and Prost crashed into each other, and both were out of the race! This meant Ayrton Senna was the new World Champion!

After the crash, Berger was leading, but he also spun out. This left the Benetton cars in the lead. Nelson Piquet won, with Roberto Moreno in second, giving Benetton a fantastic 1-2 finish. This also meant McLaren won the Constructors' Championship!

Race Sixteen: Australia

The final race of the year was in Australia. Senna started first. Mansell passed Berger early on. Senna led for most of the race, but then he had a gearbox problem and crashed out. This allowed Nelson Piquet to win his second race in a row! Mansell finished second, and Prost third.

At the end of the season, Ayrton Senna was the World Champion with 78 points. Alain Prost was second with 71 points. McLaren won the Constructors' Championship with 121 points.

Drivers and Teams

Here are the teams and drivers who raced in the 1990 Formula One World Championship:

Race Calendar

Here's where the races happened in 1990:

Round	Race Title	City/Location	Date
1	United States GP	Phoenix	March 11
2	Brazilian GP	São Paulo	March 25
3	San Marino GP	Imola	May 13
4	Monaco GP	Monaco	May 27
5	Canadian GP	Montreal	June 10
6	Mexican GP	Mexico City	June 24
7	French GP	Le Castellet	July 8
8	British GP	Silverstone	July 15
9	German GP	Hockenheim	July 29
10	Hungarian GP	Mogyoród	August 12
11	Belgian GP	Spa-Francorchamps	August 26
12	Italian GP	Monza	September 9
13	Portuguese GP	Estoril	September 23
14	Spanish GP	Jerez	September 30
15	Japanese GP	Suzuka	October 21
16	Australian GP	Adelaide	November 4

Final Standings

Race Winners

Here are the winners of each race:

Round	Grand Prix	Winning Driver	Winning Team
1	United States Grand Prix	Ayrton Senna	McLaren-Honda
2	Brazilian Grand Prix	Alain Prost	Ferrari
3	San Marino Grand Prix	Riccardo Patrese	Williams-Renault
4	Monaco Grand Prix	Ayrton Senna	McLaren-Honda
5	Canadian Grand Prix	Ayrton Senna	McLaren-Honda
6	Mexican Grand Prix	Alain Prost	Ferrari
7	French Grand Prix	Alain Prost	Ferrari
8	British Grand Prix	Alain Prost	Ferrari
9	German Grand Prix	Ayrton Senna	McLaren-Honda
10	Hungarian Grand Prix	Thierry Boutsen	Williams-Renault
11	Belgian Grand Prix	Ayrton Senna	McLaren-Honda
12	Italian Grand Prix	Ayrton Senna	McLaren-Honda
13	Portuguese Grand Prix	Nigel Mansell	Ferrari
14	Spanish Grand Prix	Alain Prost	Ferrari
15	Japanese Grand Prix	Nelson Piquet	Benetton-Ford
16	Australian Grand Prix	Nelson Piquet	Benetton-Ford

Top Drivers of 1990

Drivers earned points for finishing in the top six: 9 points for 1st, 6 for 2nd, 4 for 3rd, 3 for 4th, 2 for 5th, and 1 for 6th. Only their best 11 race results counted towards the championship.

Pos	Driver	Points
1	Ayrton Senna	78
2	Alain Prost	71
3	Nelson Piquet	43
4	Gerhard Berger	43
5	Nigel Mansell	37
6	Thierry Boutsen	34
7	Riccardo Patrese	23
8	Alessandro Nannini	21

Top Teams of 1990

Teams earned points for their drivers' top six finishes in each race. All results counted for the Constructors' Championship.

McLaren won the 1990 Formula One World Championship for Constructors

Ferrari placed second in the 1990 Formula One World Championship for Constructors

Pos	Constructor	Points
1	McLaren-Honda	121
2	Ferrari	110
3	Benetton-Ford	71
4	Williams-Renault	57
5	Tyrrell-Ford	16
6	Lola-Lamborghini	11

Images for kids

• 

  Ayrton Senna won his second title with McLaren.

• 

  Defending champion Alain Prost (pictured in 2008) was runner-up for Ferrari.

• 

  Nelson Piquet, former triple world champion, finished the season ranked third for Benetton.

• 

  McLaren won the 1990 Formula One World Championship for Constructors

• 

  Ferrari placed second in the 1990 Formula One World Championship for Constructors

• 

  Benetton placed third in the 1990 Formula One World Championship for Constructors

See also

In Spanish: Temporada 1990 de Fórmula 1 para niños