Thierry Boutsen vs Alessandro Nannini

1988·

Thierry Boutsen beat Alessandro Nannini 11–4 at Benetton in 1988, helped by 8 retirements for Alessandro Nannini. Race-by-race qualifying, finishing and points record.

Thierry BoutsenAlessandro Nannini

8Qualifying8

16 shared races

11Race day4

16 shared races, 1 tied

27Points12

in shared races, as awarded at the time

129Points (today’s rules)64

in shared races, rescored 25-18-15…

Wins: 0/0
Podiums: 5/2
Poles: 0/0
Retirements: 3/8
Best finish: P3/P3
Avg. grid: 8.4/7.3

Race by race

Round-by-round comparison of Thierry Boutsen and Alessandro Nannini
R	Grand Prix	Grid	Thierry Boutsen	Alessandro Nannini	Points
1	1Brazilian Grand Prix	7/12	P7	Engine	0 / 0
2	2San Marino Grand Prix	8/4	P4	P6	3 / 1
3	3Monaco Grand Prix	16/6	P8	Gearbox	0 / 0
4	4Mexican Grand Prix	11/8	P8	P7	0 / 0
5	5Canadian Grand Prix	7/5	P3	Ignition	4 / 0
6	6Detroit Grand Prix	5/7	P3	Suspension	4 / 0
7	7French Grand Prix	5/6	Engine	P6	0 / 1
8	8British Grand Prix	12/8	Transmission	P3▲	0 / 4
9	9German Grand Prix	9/6	P6	P18▼	1 / 0
10	10Hungarian Grand Prix	3/5	P3	Overheating	4 / 0
11	11Belgian Grand Prix	6/7	Disqualified	Disqualified	0 / 0
12	12Italian Grand Prix	8/9	P6	P9	1 / 0
13	13Portuguese Grand Prix	13/9	P3	Handling	4 / 0
14	14Spanish Grand Prix	4/5	P9	P3▲	0 / 4
15	15Japanese Grand Prix	10/12	P3	P5	4 / 2
16	16Australian Grand Prix	10/8	P5	Spun off	2 / 0
	Average finish		P5.2	P7.1

How to read this table

The driver ahead in a round is shown in bold, the other in grey. Grid shows Thierry Boutsen / Alessandro Nannini.
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.

Thierry Boutsen’s career Alessandro Nannini’s career Benetton 1988 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 Entries that did not qualify, did not pre-qualify or were withdrawn are excluded, as are cars that never left the grid or the garage, and the Indianapolis 500 of 1950–1960.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.