Phoenix F1 Records & Statistics

Phoenix F1 records and United States Grand Prix statistics

Phoenix Street Circuit hosted a short but memorable chapter of Formula 1 history when the United States Grand Prix moved to downtown Phoenix, Arizona, for three consecutive seasons between 1989 and 1991. Alain Prost won the inaugural race before Ayrton Senna claimed victories in each of the following two editions, giving McLaren a clean sweep of Formula 1 wins at the venue.

The Phoenix story extends beyond the race winners. The 1990 Grand Prix produced Jean Alesi’s celebrated battle with Ayrton Senna, while Ferrari achieved its best result at the circuit in the final race in 1991, when Alain Prost finished second and Jean Alesi set the fastest lap. Phoenix also used two different Formula 1 layouts during its brief stay on the calendar.

Formula 1 raced in Phoenix from 1989 to 1991

The Phoenix Street Circuit hosted the United States Grand Prix in 1989, 1990 and 1991. All three races took place on temporary public roads in downtown Phoenix, replacing Detroit as Formula 1’s principal United States street race at the end of the 1980s.

The first race was held in June 1989 in intense Arizona heat. For 1990, the event moved to March and became the opening round of the Formula 1 season, a position it retained in 1991.

Formula 1 left Phoenix after the third event, meaning its complete World Championship history consists of only three Grands Prix.

Alain Prost won Formula 1’s first Phoenix Grand Prix in 1989

The inaugural Phoenix Formula 1 race took place on 4 June 1989. Ayrton Senna started from pole for McLaren, but teammate Alain Prost ultimately won the 75-lap Grand Prix.

Riccardo Patrese finished second for Williams, 39.696 seconds behind Prost, while American driver Eddie Cheever completed the podium for Arrows.

The race was exceptionally demanding. Only six cars were still running at the finish, underlining the combined challenge of the temporary street circuit, the conditions and mechanical reliability.

Ayrton Senna took the first Formula 1 pole at Phoenix

Ayrton Senna established the first Phoenix qualifying benchmark by taking pole position for the 1989 United States Grand Prix with a 1:30.108 lap.

Alain Prost qualified second for McLaren, while Alessandro Nannini placed his Benetton third. Ferrari’s Nigel Mansell qualified fourth with a 1:31.927, and Gerhard Berger placed the second Ferrari eighth.

Senna also set the fastest lap of the race, recording a 1:33.969 on lap 38, although an electrical problem ended his challenge before the finish.

Ferrari’s first Phoenix race ended with two retirements

Ferrari showed useful qualifying pace during Formula 1’s first visit to Phoenix, particularly through Nigel Mansell’s fourth-place grid position. The race itself was much more difficult.

Mansell retired after completing 31 laps, while Gerhard Berger lasted until lap 61 before also retiring. Ferrari therefore left the 1989 United States Grand Prix without a classified finish or championship points.

The Scuderia would have to wait until Phoenix’s final Formula 1 race in 1991 to achieve a podium at the circuit.

Jean Alesi challenged Ayrton Senna for the lead in 1990

The defining race of Phoenix’s Formula 1 era came in 1990. Jean Alesi, driving for Tyrrell, qualified fourth and made an outstanding start, moving into the lead during the opening phase of the Grand Prix.

Ayrton Senna had started only fifth for McLaren. After closing the gap, Senna attacked Alesi and the pair fought directly for first place, with Alesi briefly repassing the Brazilian after Senna had moved ahead.

Senna eventually established control and won the 72-lap race, but Alesi’s performance became one of the most memorable drives of his early Formula 1 career. He finished second, only 8.685 seconds behind Senna, with Thierry Boutsen third for Williams.

Gerhard Berger took pole at Phoenix in 1990

Gerhard Berger secured pole position for McLaren at the 1990 United States Grand Prix with a 1:28.664 lap. Pierluigi Martini produced a remarkable performance for Minardi to qualify second, only 0.067 seconds slower.

Andrea de Cesaris placed third for Dallara, while Jean Alesi started fourth and eventual race winner Ayrton Senna fifth.

Ferrari had a difficult qualifying session. Alain Prost started seventh with a 1:29.910, while Nigel Mansell qualified 17th with a 1:31.363.

Ferrari suffered another double retirement at Phoenix in 1990

Ferrari’s difficult 1990 Phoenix weekend continued into the race. Alain Prost retired after 21 laps, while Nigel Mansell completed 49 laps before his race also ended prematurely.

Neither Ferrari was therefore classified among the finishers. After the first two Formula 1 Grands Prix at Phoenix, the Scuderia still had no points from the Arizona street circuit.

The contrast with the rest of Ferrari’s 1990 season was significant, as Prost would go on to challenge Ayrton Senna for the World Championship and win five races for the Scuderia.

Gerhard Berger holds the fastest race lap on the original Phoenix layout

Gerhard Berger recorded the fastest lap of the 1990 United States Grand Prix with a 1:31.050 on lap 34. That remains the fastest Formula 1 race lap recorded on the original 3.800 km Phoenix layout used in 1989 and 1990.

Nigel Mansell’s best Ferrari lap was a 1:32.814, while Alain Prost recorded a 1:33.170 before retiring.

The circuit was changed for 1991, so Berger’s 1:31.050 belongs specifically to the original Phoenix configuration rather than the shorter layout used for the final Grand Prix.

Phoenix used a different Formula 1 layout in 1991

F1DB separates Phoenix’s Formula 1 history into two configurations. The 1989 and 1990 races used a 3.800 km layout with 15 turns, while the circuit was revised for 1991 to a shorter 3.721 km configuration, also with 15 turns.

The change means lap times from the final Phoenix Grand Prix should not be compared directly with those from the first two races without considering the different track layouts.

Both configurations ran anti-clockwise through the streets of downtown Phoenix.

Ayrton Senna dominated Formula 1’s final Phoenix Grand Prix

The last Formula 1 race held at Phoenix took place on 10 March 1991. Ayrton Senna started from pole and converted that advantage into his second consecutive victory at the circuit.

Senna completed 81 laps to win by 16.322 seconds. Alain Prost finished second for Ferrari, while Nelson Piquet completed the podium for Benetton.

The victory made Senna Phoenix’s only repeat Formula 1 winner and gave McLaren its third win from three United States Grands Prix held at the venue.

Alain Prost gave Ferrari its only Phoenix podium

Ferrari finally achieved a strong race result at Phoenix in 1991. Alain Prost qualified second with a 1:22.555 and maintained that position in the race, finishing behind Ayrton Senna.

Prost’s second place remains Ferrari’s only World Championship podium at the Phoenix Street Circuit.

Jean Alesi qualified the second Ferrari sixth. He was classified 12th after completing 72 laps but did not reach the finish, meaning Prost was Ferrari’s only points scorer in Formula 1’s final Phoenix race.

Jean Alesi set Ferrari’s Phoenix fastest lap in 1991

One year after his famous fight with Ayrton Senna while driving for Tyrrell, Jean Alesi returned to Phoenix as a Ferrari driver and claimed the fastest race lap.

Alesi recorded a 1:26.758 on lap 49. Alain Prost was only 0.087 seconds slower with a 1:26.845, giving Ferrari the two fastest race laps of the 1991 United States Grand Prix.

Alesi’s 1:26.758 remains the Formula 1 race-lap record for the 3.721 km Phoenix layout used in 1991.

Ayrton Senna holds the Phoenix Formula 1 wins record

Ayrton Senna is the most successful Formula 1 driver at Phoenix with two victories. He won for McLaren in 1990 and again in 1991.

Alain Prost is the only other driver to win at the circuit, having taken victory for McLaren in 1989. Senna therefore accounts for two of Phoenix’s three Formula 1 Grand Prix wins.

At constructor level, McLaren holds an unbeaten record with three victories from three races.

McLaren won every Formula 1 race held at Phoenix

No constructor other than McLaren ever won a Formula 1 World Championship race at Phoenix. Alain Prost delivered the team’s first victory in 1989 before Ayrton Senna won the following two editions.

McLaren’s three-from-three record gives the team a 100 per cent winning rate at the venue. It is one of the clearest examples of a constructor dominating the entire Formula 1 history of a short-lived circuit.

Williams, Arrows, Tyrrell, Benetton and Ferrari all reached the podium at Phoenix but never won there.

Ayrton Senna holds the fastest qualifying lap on the 1991 Phoenix layout

Ayrton Senna took pole for Formula 1’s final Phoenix Grand Prix with a 1:21.434. The lap was more than a second faster than Alain Prost’s Ferrari, which qualified second with a 1:22.555.

Riccardo Patrese started third for Williams, with Nigel Mansell fourth and Nelson Piquet fifth. Jean Alesi put the second Ferrari sixth on the grid.

Senna’s 1:21.434 therefore remains the fastest Formula 1 qualifying benchmark for the revised 3.721 km Phoenix Street Circuit.

Ayrton Senna took two of Phoenix’s three pole positions

Senna’s qualifying record at Phoenix mirrored his success in the races. He took pole position in 1989 and 1991, giving him two of the circuit’s three Formula 1 poles.

Gerhard Berger claimed the remaining pole for McLaren in 1990. As a result, McLaren also recorded a perfect three-from-three record in qualifying at Phoenix.

Ferrari never secured pole position at the circuit, although Alain Prost started alongside Senna from the front row in 1991.

Ferrari’s Formula 1 record at Phoenix

Ferrari competed in all three Formula 1 World Championship races held at Phoenix but never won at the circuit. The team’s first two visits ended without a points finish after both cars retired in 1989 and again in 1990.

The Scuderia’s strongest performance came in 1991. Alain Prost qualified second and finished second, while Jean Alesi recorded the fastest race lap.

Ferrari’s Phoenix record therefore includes one podium and one fastest race lap, but no race victory or pole position.

Phoenix’s two Formula 1 lap-record sets

Because Phoenix used two different configurations, its historical Formula 1 lap records are best separated by layout rather than combined into one unrestricted ranking.

On the 3.800 km layout used in 1989 and 1990, Gerhard Berger’s 1:28.664 is the fastest qualifying benchmark, while his 1:31.050 is the fastest race lap.

On the shorter 3.721 km configuration introduced for 1991, Ayrton Senna holds the qualifying benchmark at 1:21.434 and Ferrari’s Jean Alesi holds the fastest race lap at 1:26.758.

The 1989 Phoenix race was held in extreme Arizona heat

The timing of the inaugural race created one of the major challenges of Formula 1’s first Phoenix weekend. The Grand Prix was staged in early June, when temperatures in Arizona were already extremely high.

The demanding conditions contributed to a difficult race in which mechanical problems and retirements dramatically reduced the field. Only six cars were still running when Alain Prost took the chequered flag.

Formula 1 responded by moving the Grand Prix to March for both 1990 and 1991, avoiding the worst of the summer heat and turning Phoenix into the season-opening race.

Why Formula 1 left Phoenix after 1991

The Phoenix Grand Prix had originally been conceived as a longer-term Formula 1 event, but the race struggled to generate the local spectator interest required to establish a sustainable future.

The temporary downtown circuit also created limitations for spectators, with many grandstands providing views of only a small part of the street layout. Despite the memorable Senna-Alesi battle in 1990, the event disappeared from the Formula 1 calendar after the 1991 race.

Its departure began a lengthy absence for the United States Grand Prix. Formula 1 did not hold another World Championship race in the United States until Indianapolis joined the calendar in 2000.

Phoenix records versus United States Grand Prix records

Phoenix statistics represent only one chapter of Formula 1’s much broader history in the United States. The United States Grand Prix and other American World Championship events have been staged at venues including Sebring, Riverside, Watkins Glen, Detroit, Indianapolis and Circuit of The Americas.

Phoenix is distinctive because its three-race history was completely dominated by McLaren victories, while Ayrton Senna became the only repeat winner and Ferrari achieved its sole podium during the venue’s final Grand Prix.

Explore more Formula 1 circuit records

Use the F1 Circuit Records & Statistics database to compare Phoenix with other current and historic Formula 1 venues. You can also browse our Watkins Glen F1 Records & Statistics page and the Formula 1 circuits section for broader Grand Prix history and circuit information.