1983 British Formula Three Championship

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.

1983 British Formula 3 International Series
Previous: 1982 Next: 1984

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 [Winning 60% of that year's races], a record until Jan Magnussen won 14 of the 18 races in the 1994 season [Winning 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
Round Circuit Date Pole Position Fastest Lap Winning Driver Winning Team
1 Silverstone 6 March David Leslie Ayrton Senna Ayrton Senna West Surrey Racing
2 Thruxton 13 March Ayrton Senna Martin Brundle Ayrton Senna West Surrey Racing
3 Silverstone 20 March Ayrton Senna Ayrton Senna Ayrton Senna West Surrey Racing
4 Donington Park 27 March Ayrton Senna Ayrton Senna
Davy Jones		 Ayrton Senna West Surrey Racing
5 Thruxton 4 April Ayrton Senna Martin Brundle Ayrton Senna West Surrey Racing
6 Silverstone 24 April Ayrton Senna Ayrton Senna Ayrton Senna West Surrey Racing
7 Thruxton 2 May Ayrton Senna Ayrton Senna Ayrton Senna West Surrey Racing
8 Brands Hatch 8 May Ayrton Senna Ayrton Senna Ayrton Senna West Surrey Racing
9 Silverstone 30 May Ayrton Senna Ayrton Senna Ayrton Senna West Surrey Racing
10 Silverstone 12 June Martin Brundle Davy Jones Martin Brundle1 Eddie Jordan Racing
11 Cadwell Park 19 June Ayrton Senna Martin Brundle Martin Brundle Eddie Jordan Racing
12 Snetterton 3 July Martin Brundle Ayrton Senna Martin Brundle Eddie Jordan Racing
13 Silverstone 16 July Ayrton Senna Ayrton Senna Ayrton Senna West Surrey Racing
14 Donington Park 24 July Ayrton Senna Ayrton Senna Martin Brundle Eddie Jordan Racing
15 Oulton Park 6 August Martin Brundle Ayrton Senna Calvin Fish David Price Racing
16 Silverstone 29 August Ayrton Senna Davy Jones Ayrton Senna West Surrey Racing
17 Oulton Park 11 September Ayrton Senna Davy Jones Martin Brundle Eddie Jordan Racing
18 Thruxton 18 September Ayrton Senna Martin Brundle Martin Brundle Eddie Jordan Racing
19 Silverstone 2 October Davy Jones Martin Brundle Martin Brundle Eddie Jordan Racing
20 Thruxton 23 October Ayrton Senna Ayrton Senna Ayrton Senna 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

Points in brackets include dropped scores – only 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 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 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 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 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 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 Mario Hytten Axxess Racing Team 5 3 Ret 4 4 8 4 Ret 7 Ret 5 5 6 9 7 4 23
7 David Leslie Robinson Motorsport 7 4 5 6 Ret 6 5 6 Ret Ret Ret 8 6 4 Ret 3 4 6 22
8 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 Tony Trevor Driver 8 6 Ret 8 9 8 8 9 19 6 4 Ret 8 5 7 7 12 9
10 Richard Trott Richard Trott Racing Ret 5 DNS Ret DNS 6 12 5 4 Ret 8
11 Johnny Dumfries Associated Racing 6 5 Ret 8 7 5 Ret Ret Ret Ret DNS 5 Ret 6 16 8
12 David Hunt Eddie Jordan Racing 9 9 5 Ret 7 2
13 Tim Lee-Davey David Luff Racing 9 6 12 Ret 6 10 7 7 22 10 8 11 2
14 Mike Blanchet Tarry Racing 10 17 10 9 21 DNS 12 Ret 10 8 1
15 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
  1. "British Formula 3 Championship (1951-2014)". motorsportwinners.com. Retrieved 12 March 2015.
  2. "British Formula 3 1983". oldracingcars.com. Retrieved 26 August 2020.
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