The 23rd Gran Premio del Mediterraneo (Grand Prix of the Mediterranean), was the ninth round of the 1984 European Championship for F2 Drivers. This was held on the Isle of Sicily, at the Autodromo di Pergusa, Enna, on 29 July.[1]
| 1984 Mediterranean Grand Prix | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
| Race details | |||
| Date | 29 July 1984 | ||
| Official name | 23rd Gran Premio del Mediterraneo | ||
| Location | Pergusa, Sicily, Italy | ||
| Course | Autodromo di Pergusa | ||
| Course length | 4.950 km (3.076 miles) | ||
| Distance | 45 laps, 222.750 km (138.420 miles) | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Ralt-Honda | ||
| Time | 1:29.48 | ||
| Fastest lap | |||
| Driver |
 Mike Thackwell | Ralt-Honda | |
| Time | 1:30.09 | ||
| Podium | |||
| First | Ralt-Honda | ||
| Second | Ralt-Honda | ||
| Third | Minardi-BMW | ||
Report edit
Entry edit
As the F2 brigade arrived on the Isle of Sicily, the entry had reduced further to just 17 cars. Come qualifying, only 13 cars were on track. One of these, ”Pierre Chauvet” withdrew from the meeting as the weather was too hot for him.[2]
Qualifying edit
Mike Thackwell took pole position for Ralt Racing Ltd, in their Ralt-Honda RH6, averaging a speed of 123.691 mph.[3]
Race edit
The race was held over 45 laps of the hot Enna-Pergusa circuit. Mike Thackwell took the winner spoils for works Ralt team, driving their Ralt-Honda RH6. The Kiwi won in a time of 1hr 08:55.21ins., averaging a speed of 120.632 mph. Second place went to the other works Ralt driver, Roberto Moreno, completing their fourth 1-2 finish of the season. Moreno was just 2½ seconds behind Thackwell. The podium was completed by Alessandro Nannini in the Minardi Team’s M283. Nannini, along with fifth placed driver, Michel Ferté were disqualified for having underweight cars. They were later re-instated on appeal, but no race times were given for these drivers.[4]
Thackwell's victory sealed him, the 1984 European Championship for F2 Drivers title.[5]
Classification edit
Race Result edit
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Entrant | Car - Engine | Time, Laps | Reason Out |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st | 1 | Mike Thackwell
|
Ralt Racing Ltd | Ralt-Honda RH6 | 1hr 08:55.21 | |
| 2nd | 2 |  Roberto Moreno
|
Ralt Racing Ltd | Ralt-Honda RH6 | 1hr 08:57.71 | |
| 3rd | 10 |  Alessandro Nannini
|
Minardi Team | Minardi-BMW M283 | ||
| 4th | 5 |  Pierre Petit
|
Onyx Race Engineering | March-BMW 842 | 1hr 09:27.23 | |
| 5th | 17 | Michel Ferté
|
Martini Racing, France/ORECA | Martini-BMW 001 | ||
| 6th | 4 | Emanuele Pirro
|
Onyx Race Engineering | March-BMW 842 | 1hr 10:21.32 | |
| 7th | 44 |  Tomas Kaiser
|
PMC Motorsport / BS Automotive | March-BMW 842 | 44 | |
| 8th | 15 | Guido Daccò
|
Sanremo Racing Srl | March-BMW 832 | 44 | |
| 9th | 11 | Lamberto Leoni
|
Minardi Team | Minardi-BMW M283 | 42 | Accident |
| DNF | 66 |  Christian Danner
|
PMC Motorsport / BS Automotive | March-BMW 842 | 37 | Engine |
| DNF | 6 | Philippe Streiff
|
AGS Elf (Armagnac Bigorre) | AGS-BMW JH19C | 5 | Clutch, spin |
| DNF | 3 | Beppe Gabbiani
|
Onyx Race Engineering | March-BMW 842 | 2 | Electrical |
| DNF | 9 | Roberto Del Castello
|
Minardi Team | Minardi-BMW M283 | 1 | Accident |
- Fastest lap: Mike Thackwell, 1:30.09secs. (122.881 mph) [6]
Alessandro Nannini and Michel Ferté were disqualified – cars underweight – but they were instated on appeal but no times were given.