1982 United States Grand Prix west

1982 United States Grand Prix West

The 1982 United States Grand Prix West is the 3rd race of the 1982 F1 Season. It was won by Niki Lauda winning his first race since 1978 with Arnoux 2nd and Watson 3rd.

Pre-Race

Just five days after the previous race in Brazil, Carlos Reutemann had shocked his boss Frank Williams, and everyone else in the paddock, by announcing his retirement. When former World Champion (for Williams) Alan Jones insisted he was not available, Williams contacted another former Champion, American Mario Andretti. His commitment to the Patrick Indy racing team posed no conflicts, so he agreed to drive the second Williams for the weekend, saying, "I had nothing else to do, so I accepted."

Significant changes had been made to the course since the previous year's race. The Queen's Hairpin at the end of Shoreline Drive had been transformed into a right-angle turn that led into a new section of track with several demanding corners, leading up to Ocean Boulevard. On the other end of the course, the short straight at the bottom of the hill from Linden Avenue had been lengthened and a chicane had been inserted near the beginning of the curving Shoreline Drive "straight," in anticipation of the pits being moved there from Ocean Boulevard. The changes increased the length of the lap only slightly, but added about ten seconds to the previous year's times as the drivers became acclimated to the new layout.

Pre-Qualifying

Qualifiying

Andrea De Cesaris took a surprise pole with Prost in 2nd and Pironi 3rd. Baldi, Serra, Paletti and Fabi all failed to qualify.

Race

As the cars formed on the grid for the start, Lotus driver Elio de Angelis lined up on the wrong side (he claimed he was waved into the wrong place). He quickly backed out of the spot, bumping his teammate Nigel Mansell behind him. When Mansell put his car into reverse, thinking that de Angelis was coming back further, the green light came on. As a result, Mansell claims to be the only driver to have started a race in reverse. Everyone got away cleanly, though Mansell found himself near the back of the field. At the front, de Cesaris made an excellent start, jumping into the lead ahead of Prost and René Arnoux.

At the end of the first lap, de Cesaris led by two seconds, followed by Arnoux, Prost, Bruno Giacomelli, Villeneuve, Niki Lauda, Didier Pironi, Rosberg, Piquet, Michele Alboreto, John Watson, Cheever and Andretti. On lap six, with the Italian beginning to stretch his lead slightly, his Alfa Romeo teammate Giacomelli closed up on Prost, who was right behind Arnoux. As the three cars approached the hairpin, Giacomelli made a run down the outside of Arnoux, locked up his brakes and slid into the back of Prost's Renault. Both cars were out whilst Arnoux went into the pits, and de Cesaris now led Lauda by 5.7 seconds, with Villeneuve in third. Pironi hit the inside wall whilst under braking for the right hander at the end of Ocean Boulevard and was immediately out.

Lauda now began to cut into de Cesaris' lead, setting the race's fastest lap in the process. On lap 8, de Cesaris was held up by Raul Boesel's March in the chicane entering Shoreline Drive as he came up to lap him. This gave Lauda the momentum he needed to sweep by into the lead at the end of the straight, and the Austrian immediately began to pull away.

At the same time, Rosberg and Villeneuve were in the middle of a smashing battle over fourth place, behind John Watson. Over several laps, Rosberg closed the gap to Villeneuve until, on lap 9, he was right on the Ferrari's tail. On the next lap, the Williams edged briefly ahead between the hairpin and the new chicane, but the Ferrari's horsepower advantage allowed Villeneuve to retake the position down the Shoreline Drive straight. Rosberg repeated his pass in the same spot on the following lap, and this time was able to fight off Villeneuve's attempt to outbrake him into the right-hander at the end of the straight. Villeneuve, in fact, overshot the corner and slid up the escape road. Piquet was just about to slip by when Villeneuve jumped back on the track in front of him and salvaged his hold on fifth place.

Meanwhile, Andretti had advanced from fourteenth on the grid to ninth in the second Williams, with a best lap faster than teammate Rosberg's. On lap 11, however, he lost it in the "marbles" of tire rubber that were collecting off-line and damaged his suspension against the wall in Turn 4. Rosberg continued, his eyes now on Watson's McLaren. Watson had jumped from eleventh on the grid to third in just eight laps, taking advantage of the softer Michelin tire compound he had chosen. For six laps, the two cars were nose to tail, until Watson had to give way on lap 17 as his softer tires went off. Rosberg quickly pulled away and Watson stopped for new rubber just two laps later.

At the front, Lauda suddenly increased his lead over de Cesaris from five seconds to 10 around lap 20, when the Alfa developed brake trouble. Apparently content now with second place, but possibly distracted by smoke from an engine fire, the Italian lost concentration and shockingly flew off the road into the Turn Five wall on lap 22, ripping off two wheels and the right sidepod. This left Lauda almost a full minute ahead of Rosberg, with only Villeneuve, Alboreto and Cheever also on the lead lap.

After a tire stop, Cheever retired from a fine drive in the Talbot Ligier with gearbox failure. On lap 23, John Watson took fourth from Alboreto, who was struggling with damage from a battle with Villeneuve. This became third in the books when the stewards accepted Tyrrell's protest of Ferrari's staggered, two-part rear wing, aimed at circumventing the 110 cm limit on its width, and Villeneuve was disqualified.

Lauda came home nearly 15 seconds ahead for his second win in the United States, along with the 1975 Watkins Glen race, and Arnoux secured a fine second place.