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1983 British Formula Three Championship

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The 1983 British Formula Three Championship was the 33rd season of the British Formula Three Championship, starting at Silverstone on 6 March and concluding at Thruxton on 23 October after 20 races.

The season saw a head-to-head title battle between future Formula One stars Ayrton Senna and Martin Brundle - both driving Toyota-powered Ralt chassis, prepared by West Surrey Racing and Eddie Jordan Racing respectively. Senna built up a commanding advantage by winning the first nine races in succession, but a series of retirements for the Brazilian later in the year allowed Brundle to close the gap. The Brit took the points lead heading into the series finale, but Senna dominated the race to secure the title.

Senna won 12 of the 20 races in the season (60% of that year's races), a record until Jan Magnussen won 14 of the 18 races in the 1994 season (78% of that year's races). Both Senna and Brundle stepped up to F1 in 1984, joining Toleman and Tyrrell respectively.

Other notable drivers from the year included future Le Mans winner Davy Jones, BTCC star David Leslie and Senna's future Lotus teammate Johnny Dumfries. 1983 was also the final season before 'Class B' was established, offering a separate prize for those competing in older cars.

Race calendar and results

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Round Circuit Date Pole Position Fastest Lap Winning Driver Winning Team
1 Silverstone 6 March United Kingdom David Leslie Brazil Ayrton Senna Brazil Ayrton Senna United Kingdom West Surrey Racing
2 Thruxton 13 March Brazil Ayrton Senna United Kingdom Martin Brundle Brazil Ayrton Senna United Kingdom West Surrey Racing
3 Silverstone 20 March Brazil Ayrton Senna Brazil Ayrton Senna Brazil Ayrton Senna United Kingdom West Surrey Racing
4 Donington Park 27 March Brazil Ayrton Senna Brazil Ayrton Senna
United States Davy Jones
Brazil Ayrton Senna United Kingdom West Surrey Racing
5 Thruxton 4 April Brazil Ayrton Senna United Kingdom Martin Brundle Brazil Ayrton Senna United Kingdom West Surrey Racing
6 Silverstone 24 April Brazil Ayrton Senna Brazil Ayrton Senna Brazil Ayrton Senna United Kingdom West Surrey Racing
7 Thruxton 2 May Brazil Ayrton Senna Brazil Ayrton Senna Brazil Ayrton Senna United Kingdom West Surrey Racing
8 Brands Hatch 8 May Brazil Ayrton Senna Brazil Ayrton Senna Brazil Ayrton Senna United Kingdom West Surrey Racing
9 Silverstone 30 May Brazil Ayrton Senna Brazil Ayrton Senna Brazil Ayrton Senna United Kingdom West Surrey Racing
10 Silverstone 12 June United Kingdom Martin Brundle United States Davy Jones United Kingdom Martin Brundle1 Republic of Ireland Eddie Jordan Racing
11 Cadwell Park 19 June Brazil Ayrton Senna United Kingdom Martin Brundle United Kingdom Martin Brundle Republic of Ireland Eddie Jordan Racing
12 Snetterton 3 July United Kingdom Martin Brundle Brazil Ayrton Senna United Kingdom Martin Brundle Republic of Ireland Eddie Jordan Racing
13 Silverstone 16 July Brazil Ayrton Senna Brazil Ayrton Senna Brazil Ayrton Senna United Kingdom West Surrey Racing
14 Donington Park 24 July Brazil Ayrton Senna Brazil Ayrton Senna United Kingdom Martin Brundle Republic of Ireland Eddie Jordan Racing
15 Oulton Park 6 August United Kingdom Martin Brundle Brazil Ayrton Senna United Kingdom Calvin Fish United Kingdom David Price Racing
16 Silverstone 29 August Brazil Ayrton Senna United States Davy Jones Brazil Ayrton Senna United Kingdom West Surrey Racing
17 Oulton Park 11 September Brazil Ayrton Senna United States Davy Jones United Kingdom Martin Brundle Republic of Ireland Eddie Jordan Racing
18 Thruxton 18 September Brazil Ayrton Senna United Kingdom Martin Brundle United Kingdom Martin Brundle Republic of Ireland Eddie Jordan Racing
19 Silverstone 2 October United States Davy Jones United Kingdom Martin Brundle United Kingdom Martin Brundle Republic of Ireland Eddie Jordan Racing
20 Thruxton 23 October Brazil Ayrton Senna Brazil Ayrton Senna Brazil Ayrton Senna United Kingdom West Surrey Racing

^1 Brundle was ineligible to score points as he was using European specification tyres. Allen Berg therefore secured maximum points at this round.[1]

Championship Standings

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Points in brackets include dropped scoresonly the best 17 of 20 scores count towards the championship

Pos. Driver Team SIL THR SIL DON THR SIL THR BRH SIL SIL2 CAD SNE SIL DON OUL SIL OUL THR SIL THR Pts
1 Brazil Ayrton Senna West Surrey Racing 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 Ret DNS Ret 1 2 Ret 1 Ret Ret 2 1 132
2 United Kingdom Martin Brundle Eddie Jordan Racing 2 2 2 2 2 3 2 2 2 1 1 1 2 1 Ret 2 1 1 1 (3) 123
3 United States Davy Jones Murray Taylor Racing 3 Ret 4 3 Ret 2 3 3 5 14 3 2 7 3 2 3 Ret 2 3 2 77
4 United Kingdom Calvin Fish David Price Racing 4 Ret 3 Ret 3 4 Ret 4 4 16 2 3 3 4 1 5 2 3 4 5 67
5 Canada Allen Berg Neil Trundle Racing 10 8 7 Ret 5 7 6 5 3 10 Ret Ret 4 Ret 3 4 5 Ret 5 DNS 32
6 Switzerland Mario Hytten Axxess Racing Team 5 3 Ret 4 4 8 4 Ret 7 Ret 5 5 6 9 7 4 23
7 United Kingdom David Leslie Robinson Motorsport 7 4 5 6 Ret 6 5 6 Ret Ret Ret 8 6 4 Ret 3 4 6 22
8 United States Eric Lang Murray Taylor Racing 12 Ret Ret Ret 10 13 9 11 8 17 4 6 9 7 Ret 11 6 6 15 6 10
9 United Kingdom Tony Trevor Driver 8 6 Ret 8 9 8 8 9 19 6 4 Ret 8 5 7 7 12 9
10 United Kingdom Richard Trott Richard Trott Racing Ret 5 DNS Ret DNS 6 12 5 4 Ret 8
11 United Kingdom Johnny Dumfries Associated Racing 6 5 Ret 8 7 5 Ret Ret Ret Ret DNS 5 Ret 6 16 8
12 United Kingdom David Hunt Eddie Jordan Racing 9 9 5 Ret 7 2
13 United Kingdom Tim Lee-Davey David Luff Racing 9 6 12 Ret 6 10 7 7 22 10 8 11 2
14 United Kingdom Mike Blanchet Tarry Racing 10 17 10 9 21 DNS 12 Ret 10 8 1
15 Jamaica Carlton Tingling Tingling Racing 14 DNS 11 Ret 12 14 DNS 10 10 23 Ret 13 10 6 Ret 8 7 13 9 1

^2 European Championship race where the British runners had to use regulation Avon rubber to be eligible for British championship points.[2]

References

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  1. ^ "British Formula 3 Championship (1951-2014)". motorsportwinners.com. Retrieved 12 March 2015.
  2. ^ "British Formula 3 1983". oldracingcars.com. Retrieved 26 August 2020.