Gilles Villeneuve vs Didier Pironi

1981·

Gilles Villeneuve out-qualified Didier Pironi 10–5 at Ferrari in 1981, but Didier Pironi won the races 8–7. Grid slots, finishes, points and retirements compared.

Gilles VilleneuveDidier Pironi

10Qualifying5

15 shared races

7Race day8

15 shared races

25Points9

in shared races, as awarded at the time

84Points (today’s rules)50

in shared races, rescored 25-18-15…

Wins: 2/0
Podiums: 3/0
Poles: 1/0
Retirements: 9/7
Best finish: P1/P4
Avg. grid: 7/10.7

Race by race

Round-by-round comparison of Gilles Villeneuve and Didier Pironi
R	Grand Prix	Grid	Gilles Villeneuve	Didier Pironi	Points
1	1United States Grand Prix West	5/11	Halfshaft	Fuel system	0 / 0
2	2Brazilian Grand Prix	7/17	Turbo	Collision	0 / 0
3	3Argentine Grand Prix	7/12	Transmission	Engine	0 / 0
4	4San Marino Grand Prix	1/6	P7	P5	0 / 2
5	5Belgian Grand Prix	7/3	P4	P8	3 / 0
6	6Monaco Grand Prix	2/17	P1	P4	9 / 3
7	7Spanish Grand Prix	7/13	P1	P15▼	9 / 0
8	8French Grand Prix	11/14	Electrical	P5	0 / 2
9	9British Grand Prix	8/4	Spun off	Turbo	0 / 0
10	10German Grand Prix	8/5	P10▼	Electrical	0 / 0
11	11Austrian Grand Prix	3/8	Accident	P9	0 / 0
12	12Dutch Grand Prix	16/12	Collision	Collision	0 / 0
13	13Italian Grand Prix	9/8	Engine	P5	0 / 2
14	14Canadian Grand Prix	11/12	P3	Ignition	4 / 0
15	15Caesars Palace Grand Prix	3/18	Disqualified	P9	0 / 0
	Average finish		P4.3	P7.5

How to read this table

The driver ahead in a round is shown in bold, the other in grey. Grid shows Gilles Villeneuve / Didier Pironi.
P1 a win,P3 a podium,DNF a retirement.
▲ a finish at least 4 places better than that driver’s own average finish this season (see the average row), ▼ at least 4places worse. Retirements are not counted in the average.

Gilles Villeneuve and Didier Pironi in other seasons

Other seasons in which Gilles Villeneuve and Didier Pironi were teammates
Season	Team	Matchup	Quali	Race	Points
1982	Ferrari	Gilles Villeneuve vs Didier Pironi	4–0	1–3	6–10

Gilles Villeneuve’s career Didier Pironi’s career Ferrari 1981 season All teammate battles

How these numbers are calculated

Only races both drivers started are counted. Entries that did not qualify, did not pre-qualify or were withdrawn are excluded, as are cars that never left the grid or the garage, and the Indianapolis 500 of 1950–1960.
Until the mid-1960s drivers could share a car during a race. Each driver is compared from the car they started (which sets their grid position), with the best result of any car they drove and the points from all of them, as officially credited.
Qualifying is compared on grid position rather than session times. Session-by-session qualifying data only exists from 1994, while grid position is recorded for over 99% of entries right back to 1950 — including every race of the 1950s, 60s and 70s.
On race day the driver classified ahead takes the round. If neither was classified, the one who completed more laps is credited; if both retired on the same lap it is scored as a tie and excluded from the tally.
Points are those awarded at the time and include sprint races from 2021. Where the season used an older system, a second points row rescores every round under the current system so seasons from different eras can be compared.
These are points scored in the races both drivers started, not their season totals: races either missed, or contested alongside a different teammate, are left out. Up to 1990 even full-season totals differ from the championship standings, because only a driver’s best results counted towards the title. In 1988 Alain Prost outscored Ayrton Senna 105 to 94 and still lost the championship. Theseason page has the final standings.