For 1988, Brabham pulled out of Formula One and de Cesaris switched to the new Rial team, run by German Günter Schmid, the former boss of the ATS outfit. With a Cosworth engine in the car, de Cesaris managed to qualify for all sixteen races of the season and take fourth place in the Detroit Grand Prix. He also twice ran out of fuel in the last laps while running in the points, in Canada and Australia.