What was the 1982 Monaco Grand Prix, the F1 race that nobody wanted to win

With an emotional ending with rain, crashes and many mechanical failures in the cars, the 1982 Grand Prix in the principality had one of the best results in the history of the competition.

The Monaco Grand Prixwhich will take place this Sunday for the 70th time, is the race of the Formula 1 season that all drivers want to win. The crown jewel, as it is known, is one of those achievements that runners look to cross off their bucket list before retirement.

That afternoon at the Monte Carlo Circuit, 20 cars started with the goal of achieving victory at the end of the race, but only 5 of them made it. With an emotional ending with rain, crashes and many mechanical failures in the cars, the 1982 Grand Prix in the principality had one of the best results in the history of the competition.

It is customary in Monaco to be the first to win the race, as being a street circuit it does not cause much overtaking, with the exceptions where good maneuvers are seen by the drivers. 42 years ago, Riccardo Patrese, an Italian who drove for Brabham – he shared a team with the eventual champion, Nelson Piquet -, got a victory that was kept in the books of Formula 1.

In the 1982 season the pilots started the year with a strike, who refuse to race in South Africa, because they demand more freedom to negotiate their contracts and testify in front of the press. Besides, This meant the end of an era for Argentina, as Carlos Alberto Reutemann retired after the Brazilian Grand Prix.

A few laps before the start of the race, René Arnoux and his colleague Alain Prost They have already taken first place, which seems to announce a predictable ending and it will not undergo many changes. However, on lap 14 the number one in the standings had an engine failure and Prost took the lead.

Although the leadership has changed, the winner seems to have a first and last name. Reutemannwho won the Principality in 1980 with dry tires in the rain, spoke in an interview with CORSA and declared: “I’ll only go to the GP if it’s raining, because it will be interesting there.“. At the end, three laps into the race, Grandpa He had the pleasure of seeing a dramatic outcome in the rain.

patresewho was on the verge of victory at Kyalami 1978 and Long Beach 1981, took advantage of Prost’s crash to reach first position, but everything seemed to go dark for him when over-braking on a curve sent the his car. Pironi He caught up to the eventual winner, but on the last lap he ran out of gas. The second in the race at that time was by Cesariswhich unbelievably ran out of gas as well. Derek Dalythe Irishman, racing for Williams, had problems with his rear wing and also missed the checkered flag.

Finally, Patrese approached the finish line in first place, leaving Alfa Romeo, Ferrari and Williams behind. “I had no idea I won. I didn’t even turn around and stop to pick up Didier (Pironi), who asked me if I could give him a ride because his car broke down.said the pilot. Almost by accident, he took the first victory of his life, in a race that no driver seemed to want to win..