Nelson Piquet claimed the 1983 Drivers' Championship for Brabham using a turbocharged engine for the first time in F1 history, while Ferrari won the Constructors' title.
Key Facts
- Season number
- 37th FIA Formula One season
- Races contested
- 15
- Season span
- 13 March – 15 October 1983
- Drivers' Champion
- Nelson Piquet (Brabham)
- Constructors' Champion
- Ferrari
- First turbo-engine championship
- Yes — Piquet's title was the first won with a turbocharged engine
By the Numbers
Cause → Event → Consequence
Alain Prost of Renault led the Drivers' Championship from the Belgian Grand Prix onward and appeared on course to claim his first title, while Ferrari mounted a consistent campaign across both constructors and drivers despite no single driver dominating.
The 1983 FIA Formula One World Championship ran over fifteen races from March to October. Nelson Piquet, driving for Brabham, overtook Prost at the final race in South Africa after Prost retired, securing the championship. Ferrari, led by René Arnoux in third place overall, accumulated enough points across both drivers to claim the Constructors' title.
Piquet's victory marked the first Drivers' Championship won with a turbocharged engine, signalling a technological shift in Formula One. Ferrari's Constructors' title, won without either driver finishing in the top two of the standings, remained a unique feat. The season also saw the last non-championship Formula One race held, ending that tradition.
Result
at Multiple circuits; final race at Kyalami, South Africa