1980 Monaco Grand Prix
Reutemann's Williams victory at Monaco 1980
The 1980 Monaco Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Monaco on 18 May 1980. It was the sixth round of the 1980 Formula One season. The race was the 38th Monaco Grand Prix. The race was held over 76 laps of the 3.34-kilometre circuit for a total race distance of 254 kilometres.
- Race Event
- 1980 Monaco Grand Prix
- Team
- Williams Racing (Frank Williams Racing Cars)
- Chassis Used
- FW07B
- Engine Supplier
- Cosworth DFV V8
- Key Drivers Involved
- Carlos Reutemann, Alan Jones
- Race Outcome Context
- Dramatic finish involving multiple retirements and strategic battles
Lore & Background
The race is remembered for a memorable and spectacular crash at the start when Derek Daly collided with Bruno Giacomelli's Alfa Romeo 179, which sent Daly's Tyrrell 010 flying over Giacomelli and landing between teammate Jean-Pierre Jarier and Alain Prost's McLaren M29. All four drivers were out on the spot, but none suffered any serious injury. Jan Lammers also collected damage in his ATS D4 but was able to continue. The accident was particularly disappointing for McLaren after John Watson failed to qualify for Monaco's shortened 20 car grid.
In Their Own Story
The morning mist clung to the harbor as the grid formed, the roar of Cosworth engines echoing off the stone walls of Monte Carlo. Carlos Reutemann gripped his wheel, eyes fixed on the tunnel ahead, knowing that one mistake in this labyrinth could end everything. As the lights went out, the pack surged forward, a chaotic ballet of open-wheel machines fighting for every inch of tarmac. The smell of burning rubber and high-octane fuel filled the air, a sensory overload for the spectators lining the barriers. In the pit lane, Frank Williams watched intently, his heart pounding with every lap, knowing that this race could define the season.
Reader's Guide
The race was won by Carlos Reutemann driving a Williams FW07B after polesitter Didier Pironi crashed at the Casino corner on lap 55. The win was the Argentine Reutemann's tenth Formula One victory and his first since the 1978 United States Grand Prix. He also became the fifth winner in six races of the 1980 season. Reutemann won by 1 minute and 13 seconds over French driver Jacques Laffite driving Ligier JS11/15. Third was Brazilian driver Nelson Piquet driving a Brabham BT49. Piquet's third place moved him past René Arnoux and Alan Jones into the lead of the world championship for the first time. Fourth was West German driver Jochen Mass driving an Arrows A3 one lap down on Reutemann ahead of Canadian Gilles Villeneuve in a Ferrari 312T5. A further lap down in sixth was dual-World Champion Emerson Fittipaldi in a Fittipaldi F7. For Mass and Fittipaldi it would be last world championship points they would collect. Reutemann's win put Williams in the lead of the constructor's points race by five points over Ligier.
Did You Know?
- This was the 100th Grand Prix start for an Alfa Romeo-powered car. In those 100 races, an Alfa Romeo-powered car had won 12 Grands Prix, achieved 35 podium finishes, 13 pole positions, 17 fastest laps, 9 Grand Slams and
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