Round 16 · 1986

Adelaide Street Circuit

Adelaide, Australia · October 26, 1986 · Circuit History · Wikipedia

The race, in perspective

Race debrief

What did we expect after qualifying—and who beat it?

R161986
Share this debrief
Preview share card ↗
26 stored results 26/26 Elo snapshots 26/26 numbered grid slots 0/26 qualifying results
Elo × qualifying → race result

Did they beat the expectation?

A strong driver recovering from a poor qualifying position isn't automatically a surprise. This model estimates a finish from both inputs, then compares it with what happened.

Experimental · v1

Expected finish assumes a classified finish. DNFs stay in the full grid but receive no performance verdict. Qualifying is not the starting grid; grid differences are flagged, not silently substituted.

This race has insufficient earlier history: 0/20 races and 0/200 classified finishes with Elo and qualifying. Estimates are withheld.

0/26 entrants have an estimate. Missing Elo or qualifying stays visible below; a grid position is not used as a qualifying result.

Top 3

Beat the estimate

No comparable estimates available for this race yet.

Flop 3

Below the estimate

No comparable estimates available for this race yet.

0/26 entrants assessed. Up to three per side, ranked by expected minus actual finish. DNFs, missing estimates and gaps rounding to 0.0 are excluded. “Flop” means below the model's estimate—not poor driving. A ranked gap can still be inside the usual error range.

Full grid: pre-race Elo rank, qualifying position, estimated finish, actual result and difference from expectation. Positive differences mean finishing ahead of the estimate.
DriverPre-race EloQualifyingExpectedResultP1 ← position → P26vs expectedReading
A. ProstMcLaren #32379 No error range P1 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
N. PiquetWilliams #22410 No error range P2 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
S. JohanssonFerrari #42255 No error range P3 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
M. BrundleTyrrell #122098 No error range P4 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
P. StreiffTyrrell #211997 No error range DNFOut of fuel Not assessedQualifying unavailable
J. DumfriesTeam Lotus #142060 No error range P6 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
R. ArnouxLigier #72201 No error range P7 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
P. AlliotLigier #162036 No error range P8 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
J. PalmerZakspeed #132098 No error range P9 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
T. FabiBenetton #182013 No error range P10 Not assessedQualifying unavailable
P. TambayLola #192005 No error range NCNot classified Not assessedQualifying unavailable
N. MansellWilliams #12441 No error range DNFTyre Not assessedQualifying unavailable
R. PatreseBrabham #202002 No error range DNFElectrical Not assessedQualifying unavailable
K. RosbergMcLaren #112102 No error range DNFTyre Not assessedQualifying unavailable
A. BergOsella #241946 No error range NCNot classified Not assessedQualifying unavailable
D. WarwickBrabham #221973 No error range DNFBrakes Not assessedQualifying unavailable
C. DannerArrows #92145 No error range DNFEngine Not assessedQualifying unavailable
T. BoutsenArrows #82195 No error range DNFEngine Not assessedQualifying unavailable
A. SennaTeam Lotus #52243 No error range DNFEngine Not assessedQualifying unavailable
A. de CesarisMinardi #172030 No error range DNFMechanical Not assessedQualifying unavailable
G. BergerBenetton #62229 No error range DNFEngine Not assessedQualifying unavailable
H. RothengatterZakspeed #251909 No error range DNFSuspension Not assessedQualifying unavailable
A. JonesLola #152047 No error range DNFEngine Not assessedQualifying unavailable
A. NanniniMinardi #231969 No error range DNFAccident Not assessedQualifying unavailable
P. GhinzaniOsella #261836 No error range DNFTransmission Not assessedQualifying unavailable
M. AlboretoFerrari #102132 No error range DNFAccident Not assessedQualifying unavailable
How useful is the model? See the historical check

There is not enough earlier history for a rolling hold-out check yet.

The range scales the 80th percentile of earlier held-out absolute errors to this field size, rounding outward. It is an empirical error guide, not a guaranteed 80% chance for a particular driver. We require at least five checked races and 100 checked finishes before showing it.

Inputs are field-normalised Elo rank and qualifying position. The target is position among all race entries, trained only on classified finishers. Estimates are averages, not a unique predicted finishing order. Penalties, the circuit, weather, incidents and strategy aren't model inputs. Historical qualifying coverage is patchy; this is an exploratory backtest on corrected records, not proof of live forecasting accuracy.

The rating ledger

What changed in Elo?

These are actual rating changes. The expectation model above does not change Elo or fantasy scoring.

Largest Elo gain

Streiff+84.9 Elo

Largest grid-to-finish gain

Brundle+12 places

The bigger picture

Championship after this round

Top five in the stored standings. Points include sprint results where applicable.

  1. 1 Prost 72pts +1
  2. 2 Mansell 70pts −1
  3. 3 Piquet 69pts 0
  4. 4 Senna 55pts 0
  5. 5 Johansson 23pts +1

Movement since round 15. A dash means the earlier standing is unavailable.

Explore the season →
Across the garage

Teammate results

Two-driver constructor entries from this race. A result comparison, not an adjustment for strategy or reliability.

McLaren

ProstP1+34.4 Elo
RosbergDNF−3.9 Elo

Non-finish recorded; no finishing gap comparison.

Benetton

FabiP10+45.3 Elo
BergerDNF−82.5 Elo

Non-finish recorded; no finishing gap comparison.

Lola

TambayNC+40.1 Elo
JonesDNF−55.8 Elo

Non-finish recorded; no finishing gap comparison.

Osella

BergNC+23.9 Elo
GhinzaniDNF−27.6 Elo

Non-finish recorded; no finishing gap comparison.

Arrows

DannerDNF−35.4 Elo
BoutsenDNF−53.6 Elo

Non-finish recorded; no finishing gap comparison.

What this analysis can—and cannot—tell you

This debrief is calculated from stored results and rating snapshots. The experimental expectation model learns from earlier races only, using Elo rank and qualifying together; it never feeds back into Elo. It is not a separately reviewed race report.

Elo uses the result order, including retirements. It does not isolate driver skill from the car, reliability, penalties or strategy. Elo seed comparisons use pre-race ratings, never today's ratings. Equal ratings share the midpoint of their rank range (for example, tied first and second become seed 1.5).

Grid gains use numbered starting slots and classified finishes only. Zero or missing grid values are excluded; a position gained is not necessarily an overtake. Qualifying gaps use the latest segment both teammates have a valid time for, never Q1 against Q3.

Lap-by-lap pace, tyre stints, pit-stop execution and safety-car effects are not available in this report. Missing data is omitted, not inferred.

Read the Elo methodology →
26
Result Entries
Avg Elo
Highest Elo (Piquet)
17
Non-finishes

Race

Qualifying

# Driver Grid +/- Points Season Pts Season # Elo Change Elo
P1 🇫🇷 A.Prost 4 +3 +9 72 P1 +34.4 2,413
P2 🇧🇷 N.Piquet 2 +6 69 P3 +22.6 2,433
P3 🇸🇪 S.Johansson 12 +9 +4 23 P5 +41.8 2,297
P4 🇬🇧 M.Brundle 16 +12 +3 8 P11 +69.0 2,167
DNF 🇫🇷 P.Streiff 10 +2 3 P14 +84.9 2,082
P6 🇬🇧 J.Dumfries 14 +8 +1 3 P13 +63.6 2,123
P7 🇫🇷 R.Arnoux 5 -2 0 14 P10 +24.2 2,226
P8 🇫🇷 P.Alliot 8 0 1 P19 +54.6 2,091
P9 🇬🇧 J.Palmer 21 +12 0 0 P22 +33.2 2,131
P10 🇮🇹 T.Fabi 13 +3 0 2 P16 +45.3 2,059
NC 🇫🇷 P.Tambay 17 0 2 P15 +40.1 2,045
DNF 🇬🇧 N.Mansell 1 0 70 P2 -53.5 2,388
DNF 🇮🇹 R.Patrese 19 0 2 P17 +26.3 2,029
DNF 🇫🇮 K.Rosberg 7 0 22 P6 -3.9 2,098
NC 🇨🇦 A.Berg 26 0 0 P28 +23.9 1,970
DNF 🇬🇧 D.Warwick 20 0 0 P21 +11.1 1,984
DNF 🇩🇪 C.Danner 24 0 1 P18 -35.4 2,110
DNF 🇧🇪 T.Boutsen 22 0 0 P20 -53.6 2,141
DNF 🇧🇷 A.Senna 3 0 55 P4 -70.9 2,172
DNF 🇮🇹 A.de Cesaris 11 0 0 P24 -30.3 1,999
DNF 🇦🇹 G.Berger 6 0 17 P7 -82.5 2,147
DNF 🇳🇱 H.Rothengatter 23 0 0 P23 -18.9 1,890
DNF 🇦🇺 A.Jones 15 0 4 P12 -55.8 1,991
DNF 🇮🇹 A.Nannini 18 0 0 P29 -45.6 1,923
DNF 🇮🇹 P.Ghinzani 25 0 0 P27 -27.6 1,808
DNF 🇮🇹 M.Alboreto 9 0 14 P9 -97.0 2,034

Qualifying results are not available for this race.

Elo Changes