Alain Prost vs Keke Rosberg

Champion of Champions

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Earlier this week we had one pair of team mates from the eighties, now here’s another: 1986 McLaren duo Alain Prost and Keke Rosberg.

That was Rosberg’s final year in Formula 1 and while he endured a win-less season struggling to get the most out of the MP4-2C, Prost clinched his second championship title.

Rosberg spent the previous four seasons with Williams. The team signed him after Alan Jones suddenly announced his retirement late in 1981.

Rosberg joined the world championship-winning outfit having previously driven for minor teams. He won the title in his first year with the team, coming out on top in the turbulent 1982 season after a single win at Dijon.

Over the following seasons he added more wins but as Williams made the switch from Cosworth to Honda turbo power Rosberg found his car was first reliable but short on power, then powerful but lacking reliability.

With the benefit of hindsight, he left the team at exactly the wrong moment, just as the Honda engine was coming good.

Prost came close to succeeding Rosberg as champion in 1983. But his warnings to Renault that they were falling behind in the development race fell on deaf ears, and Nelson Piquet grabbed the championship from him at the final round.

After switching to McLaren, Prost fell short again in 1984. This time by the narrowest-ever margin of half a point, to team mate Niki Lauda. He finally delivered his first title the following year.

While Rosberg arrived at and left McLaren within a year, Ayrton Senna proved a tougher challenge for Prost, beating him to the 1988 title. Prost turned the tables the following year, but controversially collided with Senna at Suzuka to seal his third title.

Prost moved on to Ferrari in 1990 and was in the running for the title once again – until Senna took the opportunity to remove him from the race and the championship at Suzuka.

After a dire 1991 Prost was dropped by the team and spent a year on the sidelines waiting to get a drive for Williams. He won on his return in 1993, wrapped up a fourth title with the dominant FW15C, and then retired for good.

Which of these drivers should go through to the next round of the Champion of Champions? Vote for which you think was best below and explain who you voted for and why in the comments.

Alain ProstKeke Rosberg
Titles1985, 1986, 1989, 19931982
Second in title year/sMichele Alboreto, Nigel Mansell, Ayrton Senna, Ayrton SennaDidier Pironi
TeamsMcLaren, Renault, Ferrari, WilliamsTheodore, ATS, Wolf, Fittipaldi, Williams, McLaren
Notable team matesNiki Lauda, Ayrton Senna, Nigel MansellJacques Laffite, Nigel Mansell, Alain Prost
Starts199114
Wins51 (25.63%)5 (4.39%)
Poles33 (16.58%)5 (4.39%)
Modern points per start112.485.22
% car failures216.5838.60
Modern points per finish314.968.50
NotesLost ’83 title by two points and ’84 title by half a pointFour years with minor teams before sudden promotion to Williams
Controversial clash with Senna sealed third titleWon more races in 1985 than title-winning 1982 campaign
Returned from sabbatical to clinch fourth title with WilliamsRetired after winless 1986 with McLaren
BioAlain ProstKeke Rosberg

1 How many points they scored in their career, adjusted to the 2010 points system, divided by the number of races they started
2 The percentage of races in which they were not classified due to a mechanical failure
3 How many points they scored in their career, adjusted to the 2010 points system, divided by the number of starts in which they did not suffer a race-ending mechanical failure

Which was the better world champion driver?

  • Keke Rosberg (5%)
  • Alain Prost (95%)

Total Voters: 601

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Author information

Keith Collantine
Lifelong motor sport fan Keith set up RaceFans in 2005 - when it was originally called F1 Fanatic. Having previously worked as a motoring...

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114 comments on “Alain Prost vs Keke Rosberg”

  1. For me Alain Prost just has to take this one. He was a really intelligent driver and to come back after a year out and win the title was pretty great!

    To take on Aryton Senna and beat him is a mean feat.

    1. Suomi Oi Suomi
      5th January 2011, 12:03

      To take on Aryton Senna and beat him is a mean feat.

      He NEVER beat Senna in 1989. Prost was a political animal & very close to the then FISA prez Jean-Marie Balestre.

      In 1993 he drove a car which he himself described as a mini concorde i.e. the FW15C.

      1. Woah! I think the facts speak for themselves Suomi.

        And in regards to the FW15C, you still have to be a hell of a driver to win in a great car, we have seen what almost happened to Red Bull this year, having quite clearly the fastest car.

      2. Yes he did beat Senna in 1989. Accept it.

        1. and he got more points than senna in 1988. but that’s a subject probably best left for a later round.

          1. and another interesting point: rosberg was officially the fastest driver ever because of that lap round silverstone in 1983 (the first 160mph lap, and the only one until montoya broke it at monza in 2004?). by all accounts it was a truly incredible pole.

            still prost wins this round at a canter

        2. Prost beat Senna only because Ayrton had more mechanical failures… The Frenchman was very rarely ahead of the Brazilian because of his own pace… So that makes a difference, at least for me… But back to this duel – Prost wins, but Rosberg wasn t slow, especially in 1985…

          1. To finish first, first you have to finish. If Senna drove in a way that broke his car or sent it crashing into the wall, that’s his issue.

          2. Senna only beat Prost in 1988 because of the “best 11 results” rule ;)

          3. @ Marco by the way.

      3. Had Senna not wiped out Prost at Suzuka would Prost still not have beaten Senna?

    2. I’ve had to vote Prost on this one much to my displeasure. But the fact is he was far superior to Rosberg. I have very little respect for Prost mainly because of the fear Senna seemed to invoke in him and the fact that he wouldn’t stand up to Senna in the same machinery in 1993. He’s always come across a being a bit gutless and I’ll look forward to voting him off in round two.

    3. Quite a devastating poll. Prost could have won 6 if not 7 titles, Rosberg was lucky to have one.

  2. It was a no-brainer for me… Prost hands-down!

    1. I think Keith answered this one for us. Prost is a notable teammate of Rosberg, but Rosberg is not a notable teammate of Prost. LOL

      1. I noticed that as well and felt exactly the same about that interesting fact!

      2. Ha! That’s kind of funny. Prost is a no brainer, but I was tempted to vote for Rosberg just for his manly push broom as I did for Mansell… :-[I

  3. This one isn’t going to be a particularly difficult decision – Prost gets my vote.

    I’ve had the pleasure of meeting Alain which partially sways my vote I suppose!

    Keke may have had only 5 wins but his car control was phenomenal. Unfortunately though this can’t counter the 4 world championships and numerous displays of brilliance from Prost throughout his career. One of the most underrated champions.

  4. Unforunately for Keke, who seems like a great bloke, I gave Alain this one hands down!

    Prost won 4 championships, and should have won more! Held his own against Ayrton Senna…

    Keke just cannot compare unfortunately.

  5. This is easy, Keke goes down for me as possibly the most un-deserving champions ever. 1 win on his way to the title is not champion worthy. If Prost wasn’t blighted by reliability issues that title would’ve been his.

    Prost on the other hand should’ve had more titles, a master at his craft and is in my eyes 2nd to Michael Schumacher as the greatest driver ever. His consistency was incredible and raced/beat some of the true greats of F1. Plus the comeback 4th title was incredible.

    1. Although I agree with most that you’ve said. I wouldn’t call Keke an undeserving champion. He was the most consistent over the season, played to the points system, and won, where the other’s in the season did not capitalise (although personally I think, Gilles Villeneuve would have won it.)

      Keke took advantage of the situation. There are no undeserving WDC’s.

      1. Agreed with Ben. Keke’s drives in later years showed that he was every bit as good as the top drivers of the day. Even teamed against Prost his pace was good, but he didn’t necessarily have the car management skills needed in the fuel restricted era.

      2. I agree. The driver who gets most points during a season wins the championship. Counting wins at the end of the season to determine which driver should’ve win the championship is pure nonsense – if that’s what people want, rules should state so. However, when Bernie proposed that almost no one agreed with him.

        I respect Rosberg for finishing 5th in the final race of 1982, because that’s all he needed in order to win the championship. If Hamilton would’ve been as smart in 2007, he would’ve won the championship easily. Besides, no driver won more than two races that year.

        Still, I have to choose Alain Prost (well, I “choose” him, I’m too lazy to register). He’s four time champion and this pairing is pure cruelty

        1. “The driver who gets most points during a season wins the championship.”

          Not always.

          1. I know that all GP’s weren’t counted in the final standings during 1950-1980 and 1985-1990, but they were when Rosberg won his championship. And in general, my point was that rules state who wins the championship.

    2. are you going to try the same argument when Mike Hawthorn comes up? (1 win does equal a championship). Because that would be seriously unfair to Hawthorn if you did.

      1. not to mention its also seriously unfair on Keke…….

        1. Plus championship are won on points not wins. I didn’t realise Bernie posted on here. :D

      2. I guess he might not since Mike still had 5 second place finishes and a third, which makes me assume that he had great speed to match his consistency.

        Keke on the other hand only got on the podium 5 times in a season with six more races than Hawthorn’s, which makes me think that Mike Hawthorn performed better in his championship winning year than K. Rosberg.

    3. keke was the most spectacular. You also have to remember that in 1982 the rest of the field, didn’t get too many win either, and keke didn’t have the fastest car. So undeserving was not.
      Prost on the other hand, was in a diferent league. One of the greats without a doubt.
      Prost wins this one hands down, eventhough i must admit, rosberg captured my imagination, prost didn’t.

    4. Prost on the other hand should’ve had more titles, a master at his craft and is in my eyes 2nd to Michael Schumacher as the greatest driver ever.

      …and if you rank them by total wins, that’s exactly how they rank, with Senna in third.

      1. Yeah, I remember when Schumacher was 1 race away from matching Prost’s record of 51 wins I remember Prost saying that he could get 60 or even 70 wins, I guess he wasn’t predicting what come after…

  6. This is the first one that’s truly difficult for me, largely because I don’t know that much about Rosberg. But I’m going to go with prost, largely because of his approach to driving. He was very smooth and very precise and he didn’t really get that emotional behind the wheel.

  7. Im a major fan of Rosberg so i was hard to vote against him. He was such an electrifing driver to watch and his charges during races were legandary. However he is against one of the very best in Prost who will probably be here in the very later stages. Judging them in 1986 as teams mates i also quite unfair i think for two reasons. 1 The cars were limitied to a certain level of Fuel and if you can get a hold of coverage of that season Rosberg did not pay any attention to those rules and oftain ran out of fuel or destroyed the car by pushing to the limit. 2 The sudden mass amount of techonolgy had board Rosberg out of F1 by the end of the season and he couldnt work around how fast eveything changed

    1. you may not know it, but keke requested all year long, a change in set-up from john barnard, and all he got was “alain is winnig races with this car, so there is nothing wrong with it”. That didn’t help. When at the end of the year, he got what he wanted, he got to the front, but it was too late in the season.
      Another teammate that prost destroyed.

  8. Another KO, and a sad one because I like Rosberg very much, my favorite one-time champion. Yet the Professor is who he is and there are not many who can be compared to him.

  9. Prost has almost many titles as Rosberg has wins (4-5).
    My vote on this goes for Prost.

    1. Hey, I know you from F1NGers! Juan Carlos, right?

      Saludos desde México!

  10. The easiest decision so far … by far!
    Prost of course, as he’s one the best drivers ever to race in F1. Second in statistics to Michael Schumacher, bur ran with far more better opposition than Michael’s.
    He’s also the guy responsible for making a legend out of a Senna in the sense that if Senna wouldn’t run against him, he would never become as focused as he eventually did.
    Also considered by many as the most intelligent racer ever rarelly putting a foot wrong, once an experienced racer.

    I personally still regard Prost as the best ever, so even easier without the other reasons :-)

  11. Prost could have and perhaps should have been a 6 time champion had he won in 83 and 84, where after watching the reviews online I can say he was best driver those two years overall.

    Rosberg lucked into his title after Villeneuves death and Pironis career ending injuries when he was way out infront in title race. However, he was a spectacular driver to watch and a real fighter, particularly on street circuits. But Prost has to be the better all round driver.

    1. Rosberg didn’t luck into anything- he stayed on the road and scored points while Villeneuve and Pironi drove recklessly and paid the price. Keke won it fair and square.

      1. They didn’t. Just a stupid accident.

  12. 2 votes for Keke: guess this is Nico and dad ;-P

    1. maybe Schumacher will also vote for Keke, just to show he was up against a tough competitor last season, LOL.

  13. Rosberg. Prost’s collaboration with Jean-Marie Balestre to try and cheat Senna of his win was completely unacceptable, and taints any WCC Prost had while Balastre was in office (= them all).

    1. I think this is a little harsh, there is no way that Prost won his championships down to Balestre. Later in his career with Senna that argument carries more weight but, at the beginning of it Prost won because of his ability to drive the car smoothly, quickly and safely. Look at the number of retirements around Prost’s championship years and before and it is clear that his skill was a) almost unique and b) worked. His last title came because of a fear to race Senna and that would probably be as good a reason as any to vote against him against a really top driver. Unfortunately no matter what stats and skill Rosberg had, he is not one of them.

    2. Come on, this Senna idolisation is a bit tiring. Prost was simply every bit as good as the Brazilian. That’s why they won 1 title each in 1988 and 1989.

      1. i agree he was as good as senna. But eventhough it’s not the time to talk about senna yet, let’s do it.
        Senna was not a political animal, he was braver, and more spectacular. He was better in the wet, and the best in a qualifying lap.
        Prost was fired from renault in 1983, because he screwed gerard larrouse’s wife. Yes you read it right. larrouse being his boss at the renault team.
        Fast he was, good as well, but not a very nice guy. Better than rosberg, that’s for sure.

        1. Where did you hear that!? I hope it is true!

  14. I’m very aware that Prost had more titles, competed with perhaps the best driver of all time and came out on top several times, and contributed huge amounts to the sport. I understand that in the context of this competition, it seems a no brainer.

    Keke Rosberg wasn’t the better driver, and even his title year was marred by a overwhelming feeling it was gifted to him after Ferrari lost both Pironi and then tragically Gilles Villeneuve.

    BUT, to justify this… less and less convincing choice, the way that Keke Rosberg could overtake was just phenomenal. I think this is known as ‘power-oversteer overtaking’, but it just leaves me speechless. And this lasting memory is why I voted for Rosberg. For me, a champion isn’t just made by the titles he earned, but those lasting images of how they went about doing it.

  15. gotta be prost, no other choice possible

  16. Even though Rosberg is one of my absolute favorite drivers of all time, Prost was a better driver/champion, so I voted for him. It was hard for me to vote against Rosberg though…

  17. This has to be the easiest yet. I’m surprised Rosberg even got any votes.

  18. I am one of the strongest Senna fans and that’s what makes this decision easy. Prost was a master of the controlled race, thinking of all variables and getting his car to the finish. In different circumstances Prost could be 9 time Champion. Rosberg, like several other champions admittedly, was in the right place at the right time. Had Pironi not had his accident, Villeneuve survived and the unbelievable unreliability of Piquet’s Brabham been solved then Rosberg would probably not be champion. Pironi missed the final 5 races and only lost the championship by five points.

    On pure skill alone the vote must go to Prost, he proved that outright speed is not always the only attribute required to a World Champion. The fact that he had 10 times the victories should sway anyone unsure of the era.

  19. Prost won all his titles with a World Champion, or a future World Champion, in the other car. And when he lost the title to his team mate it was with the narrowest margin.Half a point to Lauda, and he even beat Senna on points.

    When I started watching F1 in 1993 I didn’t like him. I was a young Senna fan. I still rate Senna, but now I rate Prost even higher. If just because he was a lot cleaner on the racetrack, making it possible to overtake.

  20. Prost was the dominant force of the 80’s and was 2.5 points away from winning 5 WDC’s in a decade, a feat which only Fangio and MSC have managed. If you take into account the narrow defeat in 90, he could have ended up with no fewer than 7 WDC’s if the cards fell the other way, simply amazing. His skill behind the wheel, blending precision and cunning racecraft with blistering speed when necessary means that he is one of the very best men to have driven a racing car. The more I read about him the more I am impressed by him, and his reputation as the evil whinger in the Senna/Prost rivalry is thoroughly undeserved (coming from an loyal Senna fan).

    Keke on the other hand is a bit of a one trick pony, he had flamboyance behind the wheel (and on his upper lip) but not much else. He took advantage of (many) other drivers misfortunes to take the 82 WDC, and even though I would never say a WDC was undeserving, he was pretty darn lucky in the end.

    Prost takes this hands down.

  21. Alain Prost obviously

  22. Keke is not even mentioned in Prost’s “notable team mates” section. that speaks for itself. how can keke even be in the running for the champion of champions? in my oppinion, from all the champions he would not be far from the bottom in fact.

    1. How can Keke be in the running for the Champion of Champions? Let me think, hmm, oh yes, he’s a champion.

  23. One way battle for Alain Prost.

  24. There’s a site on the Internet that argues the case that Prost is the greatest ever. It’s got lots of stats and is very interesting. It’s convinced me that maybe he is the greatest

    1. The more I read about Prost the more I am convinced of his genius, and even though= it would be daft to say he is underrated, he is often forgotten when people start taking about the best driver of all time. He may not be the greatest when compared with a Clark or a Senna, but he could well be the most complete racing driver ever.

    2. Got a link for that Damon?

  25. Being a Finn it’s hard to vote against Keke, but clearly Prost wins this round. However, based on pure entertainment value, Rosberg should win this. The overtaking moves he managed to pull off, the incredibly difficult races he won (International Trophy at Silverstone 78, Monaco 83, Dallas 84 etc).

    And to me Keke is one of the most deserving champions of all time. Why? Because he won his championship in a much inferior car. Not many drivers managed to win their championship in a car that didn’t win the constructor’s title as well. Saying that the title was gifted to him is in my opinion completely wrong. Eleven drivers managed to win a race that year – that’s more than twice as many as 2010. 1982 was probably THE craziest season ever in F1.

  26. I guess that if Prost wins the contest, it is because this website is mostly French.

    That’s a nice picture of Prost BTW

  27. Prost – by an even bigger margin than Clark over Surtees.

    What an interesting pairing would’ve been: Keke Rosberg vs Jenson Button or Denny Hulme.

  28. You can make arguments that flatter Rosberg and put down Prost, but to tip the scales towards Rosberg? The stats speak for themselves; not only has Prost won four titles, but he’s been runner up four times as well, one time actually scoring more points but ending up 3 behind due to best 11 results rule, and then 0.5, 2 and 7 points behind. Balestre can’t fix that much success, and Rosberg just can’t match it.

    1. You can make arguments that flatter Rosberg and put down Prost

      I don’t believe I have – that certainly wasn’t my intention.

  29. Being Finnish I rate Rosberg high, but no way he was better than Prost, who belongs in top five in my books.

  30. It’s kind of lopsided. Of course Prost but why pairing Rosberg, a very good driver by the way, against him ? Looks like the odds are for a Schumacher/Senna/Prost gran finale with Lauda/Stewart/Clark as outsiders… But is that really surprising ?

    1. I don’t know about that: Where do you put Alonso? After all he did beat Schumacher when the latter was still at its prime! And what about Hamilton vs Alonso, he did make Alonso very uncomfortable during its prime when he was only a rookie! So on this basis the three should be closely matched (and on relative stats, still are)

      But I guess Hamilton would probably lose a straight fight vs Shcumacher in the pole. It really is a case of against who you are pitted really ! And that’s all the fun of Keith’s approach.

  31. Funny to see, that Prost is mentioned as a notable team mate to Rosberg, but not the other way around. I suppose that sums it up as for the comparison of their impact on the sport!

  32. Although I’ll never say that there is such a thing as an undeserved champion, I must admit that if I had to pick a possible candidate it would be Rosberg.
    His main competition was killed in the 4th round with the
    next biggest threat getting seriously injured with 5 to go. I would say the same thing about Pironi if he had won the championship that year instead of Keke, 1982 was Gilles’ year.

  33. Nothing against Rosberg, he was a quick driver and as deserving as anyone of his WDC, but if Rosberg is a 10, then Prost goes up to 11. You dont win 4 WDCs against some of the best drivers in F1 for no reason. Always feel that History has distorted Prosts achievements after his rivalry with Senna, whose style was always going to be a fan favourite compared to the sensible and calculated ways of Alain. In this round, he gets my vote.

  34. This was quite an easy one but I don’t mean to be harsh on Keke butn complemnentary to Alain who was quite possibly the greatest ever.

    Keke could be blindingly quick on his day, perhaps his son has that trait, and I feel he was a deswerving champion. You can’t luck into a title-you have to deliver and do the very best all season and make sure the team behind you do exactly the same. Every champion needs things to go their way a little but luck always tends to balance out over the course of a season. Keke was consistant and very much deserved his title.

    Alain was just in a completely different world. I love raw and quick drivers who can bang out the laptimes and poles as that’s so exciting (a bit like Keke at Silverstone) but what is more understated but even better is when a driver has a relatively low number of poles and even flaps yet an astonishing number of wins such as Alain. It showed that race wise he was quick enough but he was smart enough to not wreck the car or himself and confident enough to stick to that plan. He was more than just a racing driver-he was a tactician and it may not be as exciting a way to do things like Keke but it’s better for getting the results which means he’s a better champion for me.

    1. To me it was clear, as soon as i read who were up against each other in this round. But still I have enjoyed reading other peoples arguments for Prost and for Rosberg as a very deserving champion.

      Prost wins this by a mile.

  35. Even though I like Keke more, it isn’t a popularity contest, so I must concede that Prost is the better driver. A few days ago there was so much talk about how Mansell was so close to a number of other titles, well… take a look at how many Prost came ever so close to and then add that to the 4 he already nabbed. I don’t like the guy much, but he was a helluva driver. Smart and consistent.

  36. I think this is the worst case of C of Cs. People compare Prost to Senna or Mansell, never Keke.

  37. Best seasons of Keke Rosberg in terms of performances:
    1985 – 3rd best driver /231 laps led/
    1982 – 4th best driver /80 laps led/
    1986 – 5th best driver /86 laps led/

    Best seasons of Alain Prost in terms of performances:
    1993 – the best driver /431 laps led/
    1984 – the best driver /345 laps led/
    1981 – the best driver /212 laps led/

    So, really not difficult to decide…:D

    1. Where did you get that info from?

      1. statsf1 website…

  38. Rosbergs pole lap at Silverstone, 1985. It took F1 about 20 years to reach an average speed of 160mph around an F1 track

    1. But considering the FIA doing more and more to limit the speed of F1, that’s not that big of a deal. I mean, If the rules weren’t changed, they’d have gone a lot quicker a lot earlier.

  39. Rosberg showed just how inferior his is compared to Prost in 1986, when he was destroyed by Prost who was in the same car.

  40. Obviously Alain Prost. One of the alltime greats. Rosberg was a fun guy, a true caracter and a good champ. But not that good.

  41. Prost but I do genuinely rate Rosberg as one of the all time greats. Unbelievable car control, he was one of what I would call the ‘quick’ drivers who have tremendous natural speed like Peterson and Rindt.
    As for 1982, as a Gilles fan, Rosberg is the one and only driver I would have wanted to take the title that year, he was the closest to Gilles in terms of sheer speed and car control. Shame he had to matched with Prost in this poll!

  42. Alain Prost Vs

    *Clicks on Alain Prost*

    1. Haha! That just really sums up how good Alain was.

  43. Keith, is the problem not being able to vote from a mobile phone part of the things which will be fixed when the new mobile site launches?

    I logged in which succeeded, but it keeps ‘loading’, after I made my choice and press vote. This from iphone4 with latest os – what’s it? 10? Using safari, of course. In the past the same thing for my Nokia 6120, both with opera and the default browser, however this was before the log in obligation.
    (to be able to login, I used the link in the article, and then log in)

  44. Anyway, I would’ve voted for prost, so I guess my vote doesn’t change much. Of course, I like the fruit of Keke’s loins – Brittney Spears – better then the son of Prost, but that’s not enough, although it brings them close… I mean Brittney Spears, she’s hot!

  45. Poor Keke Rosberg. I think he is heavily underrated. On his day, he was brilliant:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MHEGMK2cCns

  46. Prost is a contender for the best driver of all time. And he was better than Senna. As Kieth hinted at, Prost could conceivably have won seven titles (two by narrowest of margins and one where Senna cheated him).

  47. won 4 championships, could have won 3 more, one of the greatest drivers of all time

  48. I think Alain Prost is a genius. Smart, tactical and quick. Senna may be more talented but Prost’s mind was on another planet. His record against his illustrious team-mates is excellent. For me he is the greatest. Doubt he’ll win this competition unfortunately.

    1. great he was, but so boring to watch. I can hardly understand how he could capture some fan’s imagination.
      I remember how i started to dislike him in the french gp 1982. He was second to arnoux, who didn’t complyed with team orders, and when he was interviewed after the race, he was so upset, that he didn’t even cared that arnoux family was on the grandstand watching. In a sense he remindes me of alonso. A very good driver, but he didn’t make himself any favours when he opened his mouth.

  49. Even though I voted for Prost, Rosbert was really fun to watch and his win in only his 2nd F1 race was a hint of how good this driver was, beating the class of the field, including Lauda, Fittipaldi and Paterson among others … in a Theodore!e

  50. nano_rock (@)
    6th January 2011, 6:10

    Alain was THE KING

  51. Prost,

    Because Rosberg shouldn’t have won a title at all in the first place. Somehow both Ferrari drivers managed to get killed or injured before they could clinch the title, in obviously the best car.

    @Keith: the poll says Hakkinen vs. Villeneuve in stead of Prost vs. Rosberg

  52. I’ve always wondered how much Alain’s nose shape had inspired Newey while designing the FW15.

  53. Keke was a figure back then!!!! In any footage from those years, if he wasn’t wearing his helmet, he was smoking like insane!!! No doubt that he was extreamly fast as well. But Prost wins this one….easy. Prost was brilliant, with the best feel of the car and feedback for the mechanics. In my opinion the driver with the greatest race pace (when refulling was banned). You can easily witness his sheer brilliance is races like 1990 French GP.

  54. Prost, because I never got into a fight arguing about Rosberg’s name when I was five.

  55. Definitely Prost. Keke was great to watch but he wasn’t an all round complete driver like Prost.

    As a fanatical Ayrton Senna fan, I have to say Prost did beat Senna fair and square in over the whole season in 1989. Senna’s superhuman efforts at the end of the season made it look different, but he just made too many mistakes, got himself in too many dangerous situations where he just didn’t need to be.

    But Senna positively humiliated him from 1991 onwards, but that’s another story.

    1. 1989 was close, but thanks to balestre we would never know what would have happened.
      With the victory in suzuka that was taken from him, he would have gone to australia with a shot at the title. And at least prost wouldn’t have been able to stop in the first lap, and would have had to race in the wet. Shame on all of them. Senna had a year later, to take matters into his own hands, when balestre was trying to make prost the champion of champions without deserving it.

  56. read this and tell me if prost would have been able to do it. Keke all the way!!!
    “I had a bad year,” Keke recalls. “I was often very fast but I kept blowing front tyres. I pushed the fronts too hard, but they didn’t warn you. It just burst. It was the shoulder that went all the time. I had a huge shunt at Willow Springs in testing. I went about three miles across the desert in a cloud of dust.

    “I had another big one at Laguna Seca. My first lap of qualifying was good, but not quite good enough. My brain said you should not do a second lap, but my heart said, ‘Go for it.’ And the right front tyre burst in turn one.

    “In those days there was an earth bank and nothing else, and I hit the bank very, very hard in a Lola tub. The Lola limp was one of the best-known illnesses among racing drivers and I was lucky I didn’t break my legs. In fact, I didn’t break anything. But boy, was I messed up!

    “It was a huge shunt. I had a girlfriend who used to fly for American Airlines and she nursed me that night because I was completely gone.

    “When we did the warm-up on Sunday morning we taped my gloves to the steering wheel because I had no strength in my hands. I drove the warm-up in the spare car but I was so dizzy and felt so bad that I went straight back to the hotel and lay down for three hours. Then I came back and drove the race.

    “I was running very strong. I think I was fourth, but of course I didn’t know where I was. I’d run out of brakes and was just not all there, and I didn’t have the strength to catch a slide out of the last turn. I spun and stalled the thing.”

    Rosberg struggled home in sixth place a lap down and then recuperated in LA before the season-closer at Riverside. “My friend Mike Brockman took me to Los Angeles and I laid in his bed for nearly two weeks. I was so bad he came back from the office every day at lunchtime to feed me.”

  57. Prost is another overrated driver…he was the Schumacher of the 80’s…he was never fast just like Schumacher, promoted by european investors just like Schumacher, signed contracts which prevented his teammates from winning just like Schumacher, 2 secs slower than Ayrton on most tracks, i don’t really see how a worthy champion can be 2 secs slower slower than his teammate…he is the first and only driver to push his teammate out of the track in order to win a title.

    1. i like your aproach manu, but i think the comments are a little bit over the top.
      Senna was the master of a flyer, and was a second and a half faster than prost on some ocasions, but prost was a match most of the time. Being even faster at some tracks like paul ricard, mexico, jacarepagua.
      As much as i dislike the french driver, i have to admit he was good. But he was so unspectacular, he made me sick.

    2. Your anti-Prost/Schumacher rant makes you look like a disgrace to Senna fans.

  58. is your job here to judge people?

    1. No, it isn’t.

      Let me run through what I disagree with:

      he was never fast

      A driver who was “never fast” would have been embarrassed by Senna. But no, Prost beat him in 1989. Nor would another slow driver have taken Hakkinen and Villeneuve to the final round in inferior cars in 97-98.

      romoted by european investors

      So what? That’s one of the stupidest arguments i’ve ever read or heard. Maybe people invested in them because when in lower divisions of racing they were fast?

      signed contracts which prevented his teammates from winning

      Never happened.

      2 secs slower than Ayrton on most tracks

      That’s funny, you see, I thought that race results are where you get the points, rather than qualifying. In their two years as teammates Senna was often faster, but not as consistent as Prost. You need that little element called consistency to win titles. Kinda like Schumacher finishing on the podium in every race in 2002.

      i don’t really see how a worthy champion can be 2 secs slower slower than his teammate

      Because Prost was less likely to crash out while leading comfortably. Like Monaco 1988.

      he is the first and only driver to push his teammate out of the track in order to win a title

      That was partially down to Senna’s poor lunge up the inside. I assume that it’s ok to you if it’s at turn 1 at Suzuka and on a Ferrari?

      It’s fine to not like a driver but to not recognise the talent of not one, but two clear all time greats simply because you’re too much of a Senna fanboy? I pity you.

  59. i dont want to insult you only because i respect f1fanatic but since you are the Schumacher’s guardian of this blog (every blog has one) i would like to inform you that you have no idea what you are talkin about!!!…you just live your own myth…
    follow the next steps and you ll find the truth…

    1..Ask Nigel Mansell if he had the right to win in 1990 in Ferrari.

    2.ask Ballestre why did he loose his position as president in 1991 against Mosley if Suzuka 1989 was Ayrtons mistake

    abstract from wikipedia
    “In 1991, Mosley challenged Balestre for the presidency of FISA. Mosley said that his decision to challenge the Frenchman was prompted by Balestre’s reported intervention on behalf of his countryman Alain Prost to ensure that race stewards disqualified Brazilian driver Ayrton Senna from the 1989 Japanese Grand Prix.”

    3.ask Jo Ramirez why Prost was 2 secs slower than his teammate

    4…finaly the most important of all…ask yourself why do you have to defend Michael Schumacher…he doesnt worth it.

    aufwiedersehen

    1. In 1990, Mansell had the right to win, but like Felipe Massa early this year, allowed his teammate to mould the team around him. As a result, Prost produced the far better results.

      The old wives tale about Prost collaborating with Balestre gets very tiring. Nothing more than an excuse levelled against Prost for happening to beat Senna. As we know, Wikipedia is always a brilliant reference.

      There seems to be barely any record of qualifying times available from that period, but you must face it- being faster in qualifying doesn’t mean a thing if you don’t translate that into wins. Prost was just as able to win races as Senna was, and was more likely to bring the car home.

      And I defend Michael Schumacher because I grew up watching him race, and clearly saw he was one of the best drivers of all time. Any sane F1Fanatic would agree, no matter whether they like him or not. Prost was right up there too.

      Anyway, i’m assuming you’ll not start seeing sense, and continue to be a Senna-widow accusing others of being “guardians” so enjoy your life of poisonous hatred for everyone not called Aryton Senna :)

      Good day.

  60. Has to be Prost. He could’ve won the title 6 if not 7 times. He was also well capable of outdoing Senna and I’m saying this as a Senna fan. Rosberg, though a good driver was largely helped not only by his consistent driving, but also by the tragic death of Gilles Villeneuve and the career-ending injuries suffered by Didier Pironi. Still, a well deserved title for Keke.

  61. whatever m8…even if i show you the blue sky you ll say its green…live your myth

    1. I know it’s blue, but I would say it’s green, just to annoy someone who comes up with myths about Prost and Schumacher not being fast drivers. Or indeed someone who thinks that being backed by European investors means you can’t be talented.

      Good night.

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