Nigel Mansell vs Nelson Piquet

1986·

Nigel Mansell edged Nelson Piquet 9–7 in the races and 8–8 in qualifying at Williams in 1986. Nigel Mansell scored 72 points to 69.

Nigel MansellNelson Piquet

8Qualifying8

16 shared races

9Race day7

16 shared races

72Points69

in shared races, as awarded at the time

223Points (today’s rules)217

in shared races, rescored 25-18-15…

Wins: 5/4
Podiums: 9/10
Poles: 2/2
Retirements: 4/4
Best finish: P1/P1
Avg. grid: 3/3.6

Race by race

Round-by-round comparison of Nigel Mansell and Nelson Piquet
R	Grand Prix	Grid	Nigel Mansell	Nelson Piquet	Points
1	1Brazilian Grand Prix	3/2	Spun off	P1	0 / 9
2	2Spanish Grand Prix	3/2	P2	Engine	6 / 0
3	3San Marino Grand Prix	3/2	Engine	P2	0 / 6
4	4Monaco Grand Prix	2/11	P4	P7▼	3 / 0
5	5Belgian Grand Prix	5/1	P1	Turbo	9 / 0
6	6Canadian Grand Prix	1/3	P1	P3	9 / 4
7	7Detroit Grand Prix	2/3	P5	Accident	2 / 0
8	8French Grand Prix	2/3	P1	P3	9 / 4
9	9British Grand Prix	2/1	P1	P2	9 / 6
10	10German Grand Prix	6/5	P3	P1	4 / 9
11	11Hungarian Grand Prix	4/2	P3	P1	4 / 9
12	12Austrian Grand Prix	6/7	Halfshaft	Engine	0 / 0
13	13Italian Grand Prix	3/6	P2	P1	6 / 9
14	14Portuguese Grand Prix	2/6	P1	P3	9 / 4
15	15Mexican Grand Prix	3/2	P5	P4	2 / 3
16	16Australian Grand Prix	1/2	Tyre	P2	0 / 6
	Average finish		P2.4	P2.5

How to read this table

The driver ahead in a round is shown in bold, the other in grey. Grid shows Nigel Mansell / Nelson Piquet.
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.

Nigel Mansell and Nelson Piquet in other seasons

Other seasons in which Nigel Mansell and Nelson Piquet were teammates
Season	Team	Matchup	Quali	Race	Points
1987	Williams	Nigel Mansell vs Nelson Piquet	9–4	6–7	52–76

Nigel Mansell’s career Nelson Piquet’s career Williams 1986 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 Entries that did not qualify, did not pre-qualify or were withdrawn are excluded, as are cars that never left the grid or the garage, and the Indianapolis 500 of 1950–1960.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.