May 17, 1992: Nigel Mansell sets a Formula 1 record that is yet to be eclipsed

Before the arrival of a certain Sir Lewis Hamilton, it was Nigel Mansell who was the gold standard for British drivers in Formula 1. His devil-may-care attitude on track cost him as much as it helped him. 31 race wins and 32 race crashes tell a story of their own, after all. But he was a champion driver when in form and his 1992 world championship win is one of the most dominant title wins of that era. He was helped, of course, by a Williams car that was more dominant than any other on the track. But a good car is nothing without a good driver.

It was on May 17 that year when Mansell truly laid down the marker for his year. He won the San Marino GP and became the first driver to win the opening five races of the year.

Mansell took pole ahead of teammate Riccardo Patrese. That his fastest lap was over a second more than that of his teammate showed how dominant he was at the time.

His pole position also brought an end to a hot streak of Ayrton Senna. The legendary Brazilian had taken pole in each of the previous seven races at Imola.

Dominant win but in discomfort

The race saw more domination from Nigel Mansell. He led from start to finish, crossing the chequered flag 10 seconds ahead of Patrese. Senna finished third, nearly 40 seconds behind Mansell.

That Mansell won in such easy fashion is made all the more impressive by the fact that he was in severe discomfort inside his car. “It was very tough and I finished the race with cramp and muscle spasms on my right side,” he said.

“It was 32 degrees and I think I must have lost eight pounds in weight. This was not a simple race – we had several ‘alarm calls’ with oil and water.

“Then Gerhard (Berger)’s accident and a marshal out on the track when we were doing 200 mph.”

Mansell would go on to win four more races and clinch the driver’s championship with five races to spare. He also managed 14 pole positions that year, a record not broken until 2011 by Sebastian Vettel.

Nigel Mansell and the unbroke start of season record

Amazingly, no one has broken this record just yet. The driver who came closest to doing so was Michael Schumacher in 2004. Like Mansell, he won the first five races of the season that year.

But like Mansell, he too was unable to win in Monaco that year and stretch the win streak to six.

Given the 2021 season is four races old and already seen two different winners, Mansell’s record will remain intact for at least another season.