1988 Formula 1 Season Free May 2026

The only race McLaren didn't win? The Italian GP at Monza, where both cars retired (Senna crashed, Prost had an engine failure). For the first time, two all-time greats – Ayrton Senna (Brazil, age 28) and Alain Prost (France, age 33) – were teammates at McLaren. Their contrasting styles defined the season:

| Aspect | Ayrton Senna | Alain Prost | |--------|--------------|-------------| | Qualifying | Aggressive, breathtaking, often 0.5–1.0s faster | More measured, focused on race setup | | Racecraft | Fierce, risk-taking, spectacular overtakes | Calculated, smooth, fuel-saving master | | Results | 8 wins, 13 podiums | 7 wins, 14 podiums | | Points | (only best 11 results count) | 87 | 1988 formula 1 season