alain prost the professor he's the fourth-most laureate driver in Formula One but back in 1981 the Frenchman was only in his second f1 season however by the time he topped the grid of that season's Dutch Grand Prix he'd already sampled every step of the podium when the lights went out that Sunday in Zandvoort he went on a drive that laid the foundations of his reputation as a superb smooth and calculating racer he proved it by fiercely defending the lead from reigning world champion Alain Jones the Australian was third on the grid but within five laps
was all over the rear of process Renault and the Frenchman made the most of the superior power of his turbocharged car pulling away on the straights and he showcased to the utmost accuracy through the corners to keep the Australian at bay when Jones momentarily took the lead Frost showed all his grit and determination to come fighting back immediately what a wonderful fighting Gallic boob that was a lapras refuses to give in you'd think this young creature but I'd be driving in Grand Prix's for years and years the pair lapped faster than anyone else in the
field but the Frenchman held firm and started to put away both flaps everyone up to six not once but twice frost crossed the line to take his second career victory after showing the maturity and confidence of a veteran if ever there was a world champion of the future we're looking at him now Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna's rivalry is now the stuff of legend but back in 1985 no one had yet seen the pair go head-to-head that was until the San Marino Grand Prix Senna led from the start with Frost's McLaren charging through from sixth
the Frenchman climbed his way up the field and reeled in the Brazilian until he was shadowing the black and gold Lotus equal on points in the championship the wheel-to-wheel racing between the two was a titanic fight for pride the more experienced Prost tried every trick up his sleeve to find a way past but Senna defended for his life Senna won the on-track battle but his car ran out of fuel a few laps later Frost would go on to cross the line first and win the race that was until post-race scrutineering found his McLaren to be
2 kilos underweight promptly disqualified neither driver had won the war but despite all of this the pair had given the world a glimpse of the future two incredible races putting their cars on the limit in the ultimate spectacle [Music] bent like a banana that's how MacLaren's chief designer John Barnard described the condition of alain prost scar after this crash at the 1986 belgian grand prix in attempting to avoid gerhard burgers Benison frost collided with the barrier at the Hammond after pitting for repairs frost re-emerged at the bottom of the field but over the next 42
laps he stubbornly showed all his skill to drag the extremely damaged car through the field every trip through a Rouge was a new challenge not knowing how the car would react incredibly not only did he finish the race but crossed the line in an amazing sixth position taking one point for the world championship he would eventually win the finale of the 1986 season in Adelaide was a nail-biter of a race frost stood on the precipice of his second world Drivers Championship but both Williams drivers stood in his way championship leader Nigel Mansell and Nelson Piquet
Mansell would take the title if he finished third or higher while PK needed to win and so did Prost knowing there was no way he could take Pole the Frenchman focused on setting up his McLaren for race day he lined up for from the grid and lost a place to fifth in a frenetic first lap that saw three different race leaders so sender eternity for the started he goes through any piqué go through and try to take center one Brazilian versus another and we've got a third leader before even one lap has been completed Frost
held back letting the race settle down but soon set about making his way back up the order there is Helen frost to his coffin front of Nigel Mansell nail our Proust as ever is starting to charge [Music] masta second a pre-race agreement with Rosberg would have allowed Prost through but before that could become a reality a slow puncture forced the Frenchman to pit for a change of tires he agonizingly sat as his pit crew struggled to lift his car on to the jacks he rejoined in fourth place using his fresh rubber to set a series
of lab records but with 19 laps to go the drama really kicked off this is the sensation I would like to know what is now this could change it will change the World Championship now it was PK versus procced Williams pulled the Brazilian in for a precautionary stop which left Frost in prime position with his fuel gauge reading negative no one knew whether he could make it to the checkered flag and PK piled on the pressure setting the fastest lap of the race but Frost managed to cross the line the world championship of 19 I
cannot believe whether it's fantastic I knew that it was possible you know I've I was always confident but I knew that I need luck a little bit of luck to win this championship but I had some luck today so it's it's really fantastic [Applause] most people will remember the 1987 Japanese Grand Prix weekend for Nigel Mansell's huge accidents in qualifying one which for the second year running ended his title hopes but what is less remembered is one of procced s-- most incredible comeback drives starting on the front row just behind Berger's ferrari the pair shot
into the lead they stretched their legs through lap one to leave the field by a clear margin it looked set to be a Ferrari versus McLaren duel but disaster struck the procced a left rear puncture left him limping back to the pits in 25th position and two laps down the Frenchman's race seemed all but over but his other drivers machinery gave up to the challenges of Suzuka Prost regularly lapped a second faster than anyone else he crossed the line seven setting a fastest lap 1.7 seconds quicker than the next fastest his efforts harked back to
Jim Clark's legendary Drive at Monza in 1967 or by Manuel Fangio's win at the Nurburgring in 1957 the inaugural Brazilian Grand Prix at Sao Paolo looked set to be essence centres day leading away from the lights to the cheers of the home crowd nothing could stop the local hero from taking glory and its Ayrton Senna straight into the league Gerhard Berger shopping on behind him but frost wasn't easily intimidated having started sixth he steadily made his way up the grid by lap 17 he took third place from Berger with this late-breaking maneuver into turn one
a few laps later second place man Thierry butin was out of the equation it was now as Senna Prost won - but not for long a clumsy coming together between back marker Satoru Nakajima and the Brazilian left his McLaren with a broken nose Senna could have waited the long straight was just a corner away and his power advantage would have made the past easy impatience had cost him the Brazilians loss was procced skåne in his gleaming Ferrari he took an emotional 40th win and his sick Brazilian Grand Prix victory a remarkable feat and one that
clearly mattered to him I just wanted to do well and wanted to win this race and I just wanted to push hard from the beginning and I'm very very idea for me for sure tonight maybe my best win in Mackay I mean was the first whispering it's a good start of the season [Applause] after a humiliating defeat to Senna at Donington Park frost came bouncing back at the very next race for the 1993 San Marino Grand Prix in similar wet dry conditions the frenchman made the most of the warm-up session tweaking his setup to ensure
maximum traction on his williams for the race frost had secured pole position but he would we keep it for long teammate Damon Hill and Senna got past at the start and the Frenchman fell back to third things weren't easier at the front though Senna and Hill sliding wide but keeping their positions with equal doses of skill and luck as the race entered its 12th lap the Brazilian pitted for slicks but as he rejoined the track he got boxed in behind hill an opportunity that frost will be waste the Frenchman followed the squabbling Jareau down into
the Tosa curb watching closely as the pair took the racing line he decided to go for it and take the damper inside line swiping them both in one brilliant move to sail to the flag that was until lap 53 when frost slapped I'm alarmingly drop his throttle had stuck open frightening Lee at 200 miles an hour only through incredible car control and race craft did he manage to declutter and brake hard to take the corner crossing the line and immensely relieved Frost took his 46th Grand Prix victory to reduce the championship deficit to Senna to
just two points at the 1993 British Grand Prix fans were treated to an intense intra team tussle for pole home hero Damon Hill the shaving tenths of his French teammates time only for Pross to come back and share the few tenths off again his first battle one frost took pole by 0.128 seconds much to the dismay of the British crap but it was on Sunday that the Frenchman really had to show his tenacity and Racecraft a poor start allowed Hill and Senna to jump him into turn one leaving Frost with everything to do if he
wanted to take the fiftieth victory of his career soon on the tail of his nemesis fans witnessed one of the greatest wheel-to-wheel Jules in f1 history in a much slower McLaren Senna fended off the flying Frenchman lap after lap the two legends showing what it means to be a Formula One driver a fabulous run up the inside through stove finally got the move done and Senna fell behind pushing hard Prost raced off in chase of his teammate quickly closing the gap and putting immense pressure on the inexperienced hill but with less than 20 laps to
go Hill's Renault V 10 X fired spitting out of plume of smoke and flames the three-time world champion had pushed his teammates engine into failure say frost took first place for the 50th time in his career an outstanding mark that only three drivers have surpassed [Applause] [Music] frosts self-proclaimed best and favorite race weekend was the 1990 Mexican Grand Prix and it's easy to see why the Frenchman had struggled to get his qualifying tires working properly so made the bold decision of focusing on race setup he had hoped the plan wouldn't compromise his qualifying performance too
much but when he crossed the line and was only 13 he knew he had his work cut out but the Ferrari driver was determined to pull a rabbit out of the hat on Sunday after morning warm-up Frost was buoyant predicting he would win the race and that's exactly what he did he drove the perfect Grand Prix having said his car up to be easy over the bumpy track and fitted with soft tires he rapidly made his way through the field passing every opponent with skill precision and determination with 15 laps to go he threw his
Ferrari 6-4 one past teammate Nigel Mansell to take it the cheers from the crowd are coming around the circuit a sweeping pass on rival Ayrton Senna and at him to lead of the race and he shot towards the flag to take the top step of the podium [Applause] six out of six wins that's how McLaren started the 1988 Formula One season three wins for Prost treatments for Senna both at the wheel of the most dominant car in Formula One history but as yet the world hadn't seen the two foes really go head-to-head as teammates that
was all about to change in France the professor arrived at Paul Ricard with every intention of winning this was after all his home race setting a blisteringly aggressive lap the Frenchman out-qualified Senna by half a second the first time he'd beaten the Brazilian in qualifying all season with more pressure than put any more pressure he took that form into the race and made an excellent start to storm off into a commanding lead that was until a sticky front left tire at his pit stop allowed Senna to sneak by the chase was on frost slowly reeled
in his teammate he could see the back markers ahead and knew this was his opportunity a Senate ride to lap the Minardi of Pierluigi martini the Frenchman shot up the inside flying through at the first corner to take the lead and slingshotting straight past is our Prost Senna attempted to come back but the wily prosper you exactly where to position his car to block him frost pulled out a 30-second advantage to joyfully take the checkered flag he had kept this special performance for his home crowd a popular victory that would go down in the history
books it's never easy but when you win it's a little bit easier than when you lose until there was was a very good rest I'm not said that everything went well and I was a little bit quicker than Layton all through the rest even when I traffic at the beginning was quite confident to win I was little bit quickest with the first corner and I I break very late [Music]
