1984 Nürburgring Race of Champions: the race that launched Ayrton Senna

On 12 May 1984, Mercedes-Benz brought together twenty of the world's best drivers on the same circuit and in the same car: the 190E 2.3-16. We tell you exactly what this race was, why it was organised, and why it is still remembered more than forty years later.

What was the 1984 Nürburgring Race of Champions?

The 1984 Nürburgring Race of Champions (known in German as Nürburgring Eröffnungsrennen) was an exhibition race organised by Mercedes-Benz at the Nürburgring GP-Strecke circuit. It did not count towards any championship: it was, above all, a presentation event.

What made it special was the grid. Twenty of the world's best drivers took part, including nine of the fourteen living Formula 1 world champions at the time, as well as two future champions who had not yet won any title: Alain Prost and a young Ayrton Senna. It remains, to this day, the greatest concentration of champions ever assembled in a single race in motorsport history.

Why was this race organised?

Between 1981 and 1984, the historic Nürburgring-Nordschleife layout had remained closed to competition while a new, shorter and safer circuit was being built: the GP-Strecke. Mercedes-Benz took advantage of the reopening to organise an exhibition race that would also serve as a showcase for its new sports model, the 190E 2.3-16, which had made its debut just a few months earlier at the 1983 Frankfurt Motor Show.

So that the race would reflect only the drivers' talent, all of them competed in practically identical examples of the same car, with minor racing modifications.

What car did all the drivers use?

The chosen car was the Mercedes-Benz 190E 2.3-16, the sportiest version of the then newly launched W201, designed to compete with the Audi 80 and the BMW 3 Series E30 of the era. With all the cars being identical, the race became a direct comparison between drivers, with no differences in equipment.

Who made up the grid?

Mercedes divided the twenty guests into three groups: current superstars, champions and already-retired former drivers, and young talents. Among the confirmed names were:

• Niki Lauda, Alain Prost and Ayrton Senna, world champions or future world champions of F1
• Carlos Reutemann and John Watson, recently retired F1 drivers
• Stirling Moss and Hans Herrmann, former historical figures of Mercedes-Benz
• James Hunt and Keke Rosberg, world champions
• Elio de Angelis and Jacques Laffite, active Grand Prix winners
• Klaus Ludwig, Manfred Schurti and Udo Schütz, winners of the Nürburgring 1000 km

The rest of the grid, to make up the twenty, consisted of other world-class drivers.

How did the race unfold and who won?

Senna started as one of the young drivers, with no titles yet and barely a few months of Formula 1 experience. He worked his way up through the field until he was right behind Niki Lauda, then a two-time world champion. With a few laps to go, Senna found the gap to overtake him and crossed the finish line with just three tenths of a second to spare, after twelve racing laps. Carlos Reutemann completed the podium in third place.

Why is this race still remembered?

Although it awarded no points or official trophies, Senna's victory over nine world champions, in the same car as all of them, is considered a key moment in his rise to the forefront of world motorsport. A year later, Senna was so impressed with the 190E 2.3-16 that he bought a road version and drove it personally from the Mercedes factory to his home in the United Kingdom.

The model itself also left its mark: its racing evolution, prepared by AMG, led Klaus Ludwig — one of the twenty drivers on that grid — to be crowned German DTM champion in 1992.