1982 United States Grand Prix West

The 1982 United States Grand Prix West, held at the Long Beach circuit in California, was the third round of the 1982 Formula One Season.'GRAND PRIX RESULTS: UNITED STATES GP, 1982', grandprix.com, (Inside F1 Inc., 1999), http://www.grandprix.com/gpe/rr360.html, (Accessed 26/07/2015) The race itself was the first of three Championship Grand Prix scheduled for the United States in 1982, a record for a country in a single season.
After a shock result in qualifying which saw Andrea de Cesaris claim a maiden pole position, and the return of an American racing legend, Niki Lauda took his eighteenth career win, and first for McLaren. Keke Rosberg and Riccardo Patrese joined him on the podium, as Championship leader Alain Prost crashed out.
==Background==
The biggest news to come in the two week break between Brazil and the US West was the sudden retirement of Carlos Reutemann. The Argentinian ace had considered retiring at the end of the 1981 season, but had impressed early in 1982, claiming second at the South African Grand Prix. But, with his heart elsewhere, and the Falklands War erupting shortly before the race, Reutemann opted to hang up his helmet.
Williams therefore scrambled to find a replacement, asking several drivers, including Reutemann's rival Alan Jones. Ultimately, however, the team would settle for a one-off drive by an American racing legend, whom had moved back to his homeland to compete in the CART Series. Indeed, Mario Andretti would return to a Formula One cockpit for just one more time, at his home race in Long Beach.
Alain Prost had a comfortable 18 point lead in the championship after winning the opening rounds, eleven points clear of his nearest challenger John Watson of . The ongoing FOCA/FISA dispute appeared to have fallen into the background, with no fresh concerns ahead of the first of three Grand Prix in the US.
There was a notable change to the circuit for 1982, after the Queens hairpin was adjusted into a 90 degree right hand turn much to the dismay of many of the drivers.
==Entry List==
The full entry list for the is outlined below:
No. 	Driver 	Entrant 	Constructor 	Chassis 	Engine 	Model 	Tyre
1 	Nelson Piquet 	Parmalat Racing Team 	 	BT49D 	 	DFV 3.0 V8 	
2 	Riccardo Patrese 	Parmalat Racing Team 	 	BT49C 	 	DFV 3.0 V8 	
3 	Michele Alboreto 	Team Tyrrell 	 	011 	 	DFV 3.0 V8 	
4 	Slim Borgudd 	Team Tyrrell 	 	011 	 	DFV 3.0 V8 	
5 	Mario Andretti 	TAG Williams Team 	 	FW07C 	 	DFV 3.0 V8 	
6 	Keke Rosberg 	TAG Williams Team 	 	FW07C 	 	DFV 3.0 V8 	
7 	John Watson 	Marlboro McLaren International 	 	MP4/1B 	 	DFV 3.0 V8 	
8 	Niki Lauda 	Marlboro McLaren International 	 	MP4/1B 	 	DFV 3.0 V8 	
9 	Manfred Winkelhock 	Team ATS 	 	D5 	 	DFV 3.0 V8 	
10 	Eliseo Salazar 	Team ATS 	 	D5 	 	DFV 3.0 V8 	
11 	Elio de Angelis 	John Player Team Lotus 	 	91 	 	DFV 3.0 V8 	
12 	Nigel Mansell 	John Player Team Lotus 	 	91 	 	DFV 3.0 V8 	
14 	Roberto Guerrero 	Ensign Racing 	 	N181 	 	DFV 3.0 V8 	
15 	Alain Prost 	Equipe Renault Elf 	 	RE30B 	 	EF1 3.0 V6t 	
16 	René Arnoux 	Equipe Renault Elf 	 	RE30B 	 	EF1 3.0 V6t 	
17 	Jochen Mass 	Rothmans March Grand Prix Team 	 	821 	 	DFV 3.0 V8 	
18 	Raul Boesel 	Rothmans March Grand Prix Team 	 	821 	 	DFV 3.0 V8 	
20 	Chico Serra 	Skol Fittipaldi Team 	 	F8D 	 	DFV 3.0 V8 	
22 	Andrea de Cesaris 	Marlboro Team Alfa Romeo 	 	182 	 	1260 3.0 V12 	
23 	Bruno Giacomelli 	Marlboro Team Alfa Romeo 	 	182 	 	1260 3.0 V12 	
25 	Eddie Cheever 	Equipe Talbot Gitanes 	 	JS17B 	 	MS81 3.0 V12 	
26 	Jacques Laffite 	Equipe Talbot Gitanes 	 	JS17B 	 	MS81 3.0 V12 	
27 	Gilles Villeneuve 	Scuderia Ferrari SpA SEFAC 	 	126C2 	 	021 3.0 V6t 	
28 	Didier Pironi 	Scuderia Ferrari SpA SEFAC 	 	126C2 	 	021 3.0 V6t 	
29 	Brian Henton 	Arrows Racing Team 	 	A4 	 	DFV 3.0 V8 	
30 	Mauro Baldi 	Arrows Racing Team 	 	A4 	 	DFV 3.0 V8 	
31 	Jean-Pierre Jarier 	Osella Squadra Corse 	 	FA1C 	 	DFV 3.0 V8 	
32 	Riccardo Paletti 	Osella Squadra Corse 	 	FA1C 	 	DFV 3.0 V8 	
33 	Derek Daly 	Theodore Racing Team 	 	TY02 	 	DFV 3.0 V8 	
35 	Derek Warwick 	Candy Toleman Motorsport 	 	TG181C 	 	415T 3.0 L4t 	
36 	Teo Fabi 	Candy Toleman Motorsport 	 	TG181C 	 	415T 3.0 L4t 	
Source:'USA West 1982: Entrants', statsf1.com, https://www.statsf1.com/en/1982/etats-unis-ouest/engages.aspx	Source:'USA West 1982: Entrants', statsf1.com, https://www.statsf1.com/en/1982/etats-unis-ouest/engages.aspx	Source:'USA West 1982: Entrants', statsf1.com, https://www.statsf1.com/en/1982/etats-unis-ouest/engages.aspx	Source:'USA West 1982: Entrants', statsf1.com, https://www.statsf1.com/en/1982/etats-unis-ouest/engages.aspx	Source:'USA West 1982: Entrants', statsf1.com, https://www.statsf1.com/en/1982/etats-unis-ouest/engages.aspx	Source:'USA West 1982: Entrants', statsf1.com, https://www.statsf1.com/en/1982/etats-unis-ouest/engages.aspx	Source:'USA West 1982: Entrants', statsf1.com, https://www.statsf1.com/en/1982/etats-unis-ouest/engages.aspx	Source:'USA West 1982: Entrants', statsf1.com, https://www.statsf1.com/en/1982/etats-unis-ouest/engages.aspx
==Practice Overview==
There were no real suprises in practice, although Ferrari would test an extra large rear wing, which was fitted to Gilles Villeneuve's car for qualifying and the race. 
==Qualifying==
Unlike in practice, however, qualifying produced a series of shocks that would affect the race on Sunday. Firstly, the Renault's were off the front row, René Arnoux and Alain Prost claiming third and fourth, as the turbocharged cars as a whole were relatively slow compared to the pace shown in the first two meetings of the season. Secondly, Andrea de Cesaris, driving an unfancied Alfa Romeo which had struggled to get into the race at the previous meetings, took pole (his team mate Bruno Giacomelli taking fifth), with Lauda slipping his McLaren into second. Villeneuve, sporting his new wing, claimed seventh, although he was quicker than his team mate Didier Pironi, despite the disappointment in the car's performance. Reigning champion Nelson Piquet would start from sixth place, the Brazilian suffering a sizeable accident during qualifying.
===Qualifying Results===
The full qualifying results for the are outlined below:
Pos. 	No. 	Driver 	Constructor 	Time 	Time 	Gap
Pos. 	No. 	Driver 	Constructor 	Q1 	Q2 	Gap
1 	22 	Andrea de Cesaris 	 	1:31.095 	1:27.316 	—
2 	8 	Niki Lauda 	 	1:28.791 	1:27.436 	+0.120s
3 	16 	René Arnoux 	 	1:31.159 	1:27.763 	+0.447s
4 	15 	Alain Prost 	 	1:29.935 	1:27.979 	+0.663s
5 	23 	Bruno Giacomelli 	 	1:30.669 	1:28.087 	+0.771s
6 	1 	Nelson Piquet 	 	1:29.934 	1:28.276 	+0.960s
7 	27 	Gilles Villeneuve 	 	1:29.949 	1:28.476 	+1.160s
8 	6 	Keke Rosberg 	 	1:28.576 	1:29.042 	+1.260s
9 	28 	Didier Pironi 	 	1:30.125 	1:28.680 	+1.364s
10 	31 	Jean-Pierre Jarier 	 	1:31.383 	1:28.708 	+1.392s
11 	7 	John Watson 	 	1:32.900 	1:28.885 	+1.569s
12 	3 	Michele Alboreto 	 	1:31.084 	1:29.027 	+1.711s
13 	25 	Eddie Cheever 	 	1:31.802 	1:29.336 	+2.020s
14 	5 	Mario Andretti 	 	1:31.190 	1:29.468 	+2.152s
15 	26 	Jacques Laffite 	 	1:31.432 	1:29.587 	+2.271s
16 	11 	Elio de Angelis 	 	1:30.565 	1:29.694 	+2.378s
17 	12 	Nigel Mansell 	 	1:30.117 	1:29.758 	+2.442s
18 	2 	Riccardo Patrese 	 	1:30.281T 	1:29.948T 	+2.632s
19 	14 	Roberto Guerrero 	 	1:31.806 	1:30.186 	+2.870s
20 	29 	Brian Henton 	 	1:32.607 	1:30.474 	+3.158s
21 	17 	Jochen Mass 	 	1:31.808 	1:30.476 	+3.160s
22 	33 	Derek Daly 	 	1:32.502 	1:30.919 	+3.603s
23 	18 	Raul Boesel 	 	1:32.277 	1:30.977 	+3.661s
24 	4 	Slim Borgudd 	 	1:31.768 	1:31.033 	+3.717s
25 	9 	Manfred Winkelhock 	 	1:31.593 	1:31.602 	+4.277s
26 	10 	Eliseo Salazar 	 	1:33.663 	1:31.825 	+4.509s
DNQ 	36 	Teo Fabi 	 	1:34.024 	1:31.988 	+4.672s
DNQ 	32 	Riccardo Paletti 	 	1:33.289 	1:32.146 	+4.830s
DNQ 	20 	Chico Serra 	 	1:32.496 	1:32.510 	+5.180s
DNQ 	30 	Mauro Baldi 	 	1:33.701 	1:34.320 	+6.385s
DNPQ 	35 	Derek Warwick 	 	1:37.264 	1:37.264 	1:37.264
Source:'FORMULA ONE - RACECARD: United States Grand Prix West Qualifying 1982', f1pulse.com, (F1PULSE.COM, 2015), http://f1pulse.com/racecard/Long_Beach_Grand_Prix_1982/3D413A/race_card_qualify.aspx, (Accessed 26/07/2015)'USA West 1982: Qualifications', statsf1.com, https://www.statsf1.com/en/1982/etats-unis-ouest/qualification.aspx'United States (West) Grand Prix', motorsportmagazine.com, http://www.motorsportmagazine.com/archive/article/may-1982/46/united-stateswest-grand-prix	Source:'FORMULA ONE - RACECARD: United States Grand Prix West Qualifying 1982', f1pulse.com, (F1PULSE.COM, 2015), http://f1pulse.com/racecard/Long_Beach_Grand_Prix_1982/3D413A/race_card_qualify.aspx, (Accessed 26/07/2015)'USA West 1982: Qualifications', statsf1.com, https://www.statsf1.com/en/1982/etats-unis-ouest/qualification.aspx'United States (West) Grand Prix', motorsportmagazine.com, http://www.motorsportmagazine.com/archive/article/may-1982/46/united-stateswest-grand-prix	Source:'FORMULA ONE - RACECARD: United States Grand Prix West Qualifying 1982', f1pulse.com, (F1PULSE.COM, 2015), http://f1pulse.com/racecard/Long_Beach_Grand_Prix_1982/3D413A/race_card_qualify.aspx, (Accessed 26/07/2015)'USA West 1982: Qualifications', statsf1.com, https://www.statsf1.com/en/1982/etats-unis-ouest/qualification.aspx'United States (West) Grand Prix', motorsportmagazine.com, http://www.motorsportmagazine.com/archive/article/may-1982/46/united-stateswest-grand-prix	Source:'FORMULA ONE - RACECARD: United States Grand Prix West Qualifying 1982', f1pulse.com, (F1PULSE.COM, 2015), http://f1pulse.com/racecard/Long_Beach_Grand_Prix_1982/3D413A/race_card_qualify.aspx, (Accessed 26/07/2015)'USA West 1982: Qualifications', statsf1.com, https://www.statsf1.com/en/1982/etats-unis-ouest/qualification.aspx'United States (West) Grand Prix', motorsportmagazine.com, http://www.motorsportmagazine.com/archive/article/may-1982/46/united-stateswest-grand-prix	Source:'FORMULA ONE - RACECARD: United States Grand Prix West Qualifying 1982', f1pulse.com, (F1PULSE.COM, 2015), http://f1pulse.com/racecard/Long_Beach_Grand_Prix_1982/3D413A/race_card_qualify.aspx, (Accessed 26/07/2015)'USA West 1982: Qualifications', statsf1.com, https://www.statsf1.com/en/1982/etats-unis-ouest/qualification.aspx'United States (West) Grand Prix', motorsportmagazine.com, http://www.motorsportmagazine.com/archive/article/may-1982/46/united-stateswest-grand-prix	Source:'FORMULA ONE - RACECARD: United States Grand Prix West Qualifying 1982', f1pulse.com, (F1PULSE.COM, 2015), http://f1pulse.com/racecard/Long_Beach_Grand_Prix_1982/3D413A/race_card_qualify.aspx, (Accessed 26/07/2015)'USA West 1982: Qualifications', statsf1.com, https://www.statsf1.com/en/1982/etats-unis-ouest/qualification.aspx'United States (West) Grand Prix', motorsportmagazine.com, http://www.motorsportmagazine.com/archive/article/may-1982/46/united-stateswest-grand-prix	Source:'FORMULA ONE - RACECARD: United States Grand Prix West Qualifying 1982', f1pulse.com, (F1PULSE.COM, 2015), http://f1pulse.com/racecard/Long_Beach_Grand_Prix_1982/3D413A/race_card_qualify.aspx, (Accessed 26/07/2015)'USA West 1982: Qualifications', statsf1.com, https://www.statsf1.com/en/1982/etats-unis-ouest/qualification.aspx'United States (West) Grand Prix', motorsportmagazine.com, http://www.motorsportmagazine.com/archive/article/may-1982/46/united-stateswest-grand-prix
*Bold indicates a driver's best/qualifying time.
*T Indicates a driver using a spare/test car to set their time in this session.
===Grid===
The grid for the is shown below:
==Race==
De Cesaris, despite his impressive display was expected to go backwards off the line, while there were mumblings of a protest against Villeneuve's car after qualifying (with the Ferrari effectively sporting two rear wings which had a combined length greater than those allowed in the regulations).  There was a clarification made by the FIA overnight, and the pace of VIlleneuve against his team mate meant no official protest was submitted prior to the race.
===Report===
Contrary to popular though, de Cesaris had the best start of any of the leaders, getting clear of the charging Arnoux (who leapt ahead of Lauda at the start). De Cesaris immediately began building a lead, as it became clear early on that Arnoux was holding up Lauda and de Cesaris' team mate Bruno Giacomelli (whom had overtaken the slow starting Alain Prost on the opening lap). The ATS cars of Manfred Winkelhock and Eliseo Salazar both tapped the wall (in seperate incidents) in the early stages, causing both to retire.
The front of the field suddenly changed in the space of a lap, as Lauda pressed Arnoux on lap 5. The Austrian pulled right to go to the inside of Arnoux, while Giacomelli (who had joined the pair as they duelled) stayed behind Arnoux as they went into the old hairpin. Giacomelli misjudged his breaking ability, slamming into the back of Arnoux's car and putting both out of the race. Villeneve was promoted to third, while his team mate, Didier Pironi retired with accident damage.
Lauda reeled in the young Italian over the next ten laps, as his team mate John Watson forced Villeneuve into a mistake to take third,http://www.grandprix.com/gpe/rr360.html Lauda applied pressure on his significantly less experienced rival, Lauda overtaking when De Cesaris became stuck behind the backmarker of Raul Boesel. Just before Lauda's move, Prost retired with break failure, and was forced to watch as Lauda began to eat into his championship lead. A few laps later Mario Andretti retired with suspension damage.
Villeneuve and Keke Rosberg began a scrap for forth which would last for a couple of laps, as they both caught Watson. Rosberg initially got ahead of the Ferrari at the Queen's hairpin, but the more powerful Ferrari jumped back ahead. Rosberg tried again, and two laps later got ahead, having forced Villeneuve onto the marbles on the outside of the track (which brought Nelson Piquet into the frame). Rosberg proceeded to catch as pass Watson over the next few laps.
The race began to calm, although there were two further incidents that would affect the order at the front. First Piquet made a mistake to end his race in the barrier at one third distance (having already crashed in practice), meaning Prost could breath slightly more easily (as Piquet was the closest to him in the points). A few laps later, de Cesaris suffered an engine failure, putting him both into the wall and out of the race. Lauda, meanwhile, began to drive within himself to ensure his win.
Lauda crossed the line to take his first win since 1978, in only his third race since his return. Rosberg joined him in second, having demonstrated his ability throughout, while Villeneuve had a relatively quiet drive to third (Watson dropped to seventh with a pitstop). Riccardo Patrese who had been missing his front wing throughout the race, caught and passed Michele Alboreto in the Tyrrell in the closing stages to take fourth. This result changed, however, when Patrese's team Brabham and Tyrrell, protested against Villeneuve's Ferrari, concerning its rear wing. The FIA deemed the wing to now be illegal, meaning Villeneuve was disqualified, promotied Patrese to the podium, and Watson into the points.
===Results===
Pos.	No.	Driver 	Constructor	Laps	Time/Retired 	Grid	Points	
1 	8 	Niki Lauda 	 	75 	1:58:25.318 	2 	9 	
2 	6 	Keke Rosberg 	 	75 	+14.660s 	8 	6 	
DSQ 	27 	Gilles Villeneuve 	 	75 	Disqualified (Illegal rear wing)	7 	 	
3 	2 	Riccardo Patrese 	 	75 	+1:19.143 	18 	4 	
4 	3 	Michele Alboreto 	 	75 	+1:20.947 	12 	3 	
5 	11 	Elio de Angelis 	 	74 	+1 lap 	16 	2 	
6 	7 	John Watson 	 	74 	+1 lap 	11 	1 	
7 	12 	Nigel Mansell 	 	73 	+2 laps 	17 	 	
8 	17 	Jochen Mass 	 	73 	+2 laps 	21 	 	
9 	18 	Raul Boesel 	 	70 	+5 laps 	23 	 	
10 	4 	Slim Borgudd 	 	68 	+7 laps 	24 	 	
Ret 	25 	Eddie Cheever 	 	59 	Gearbox 	13 	 	
Ret 	22 	Andrea de Cesaris 	 	33 	Accident 	1 	 	
Ret 	29 	Brian Henton 	 	32 	Accident 	20 	 	
Ret 	14 	Roberto Guerrero 	 	27 	Accident 	19 	 	
Ret 	26 	Jacques Laffite 	 	26 	Spin 	15 	 	
Ret 	31 	Jean-Pierre Jarier	 	26 	Spin 	10 	 	
Ret 	1 	Nelson Piquet 	 	25 	Accident 	6 	 	
Ret 	33 	Derek Daly 	 	23 	Accident 	22 	 	
Ret 	5 	Mario Andretti 	 	19 	Accident / Rear suspension 	14 	 	
Ret 	15 	Alain Prost 	 	10 	Brakes / Accident 	4 	 	
Ret 	28 	Didier Pironi 	 	6 	Accident 	9 	 	
Ret 	16 	René Arnoux 	 	5 	Accident 	3 	 	
Ret 	23 	Bruno Giacomelli 	 	5 	Accident 	5 	 	
Ret 	10 	Eliseo Salazar 	 	3 	Accident 	26 	 	
Ret 	9 	Manfred Winkelhock	 	1 	Accident 	25 	 	
DNQ 	36 	Teo Fabi 	 	 	 	 	 	
DNQ 	32 	Riccardo Paletti 	 	 	 	 	 	
DNQ 	20 	Chico Serra 	 	 	 	 	 	
DNQ 	30 	Mauro Baldi 	 	 	 	 	 	
DNQ 	35 	Derek Warwick 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
 	 	 	 	 	 	 	 	
==Milestones==
*First (and only) pole position for Andrea de Cesaris.
*Last pole position for Alfa Romeo.
*Second victory in the United States for Niki Lauda.
**Also Lauda's first win since the 1978 Italian Grand Prix.
==Standings==
Alain Prost retained his Championship lead, although the now second placed Niki Lauda was just five points behind. Keke Rosberg left the US in third, tied on points (but judged ahead on other results) of John Watson, with Carlos Reutemann still in the top five, despite retiring from Formula One. Riccardo Patrese and Elio de Angelis were the latest names to get off the ground, while Didier Pironi and Ferrari still only had one point.
Renault still led the Constructors' Championship, although McLaren had closed to within two points, with Williams also gaining. Team Lotus and Tyrrell were locked together on six points, while Brabham gained their first points of the season through Patrese. ATS were the only other team to have scored points, although they still led Ferrari.
1982 Drivers' World Championship	1982 Drivers' World Championship	1982 Drivers' World Championship	1982 Drivers' World Championship
Pos. 	Driver 	Pts 	+/-
1 	Alain Prost 	18 	
2 	Niki Lauda 	13 	5
3 	Keke Rosberg 	8 	6
4 	John Watson 	8 	2
5 	 Carlos Reutemann 	6 	2
6 	Michele Alboreto 	6 	
7 	Nigel Mansell 	4 	3
=8 	René Arnoux 	4 	4
=8 	Riccardo Patrese 	4 	2
10 	Elio de Angelis 	2 	1
11 	Manfred Winkelhock 	2 	3
12 	Didier Pironi 	1 	2
Only point scoring drivers are shown.
1982 Constructors' World Championship	1982 Constructors' World Championship	1982 Constructors' World Championship	1982 Constructors' World Championship
Pos. 	Team 	Pts 	+/-
1 	 	22 	
2 	 	20 	
3 	 	14 	
=4 	 	6 	
=4 	 	6 	1
6 	 	4 	2
7 	 	2 	1
8 	 	1 	1
Only point scoring constructors are shown.
==References==
Category:Grand Prix articles
Category:1982 Grands Prix
CategorY:United States Grand Prix West
Category:Formula One races in the United States