Riccardo Patrese

Riccardo Patrese was an Italian Formula 1 driver who held the record for the most Grand Prix starts in history for 19 years, finishing runner-up in the 1992 World Championship with Williams.

Riccardo Patrese became the first Formula 1 driver to reach 200 Grand Prix starts in 1990 and retired in 1993 with a then-record 256 starts and six victories — a career longevity record that stood for 19 years — after finishing runner-up in the 1992 World Championship to teammate Nigel Mansell. He made his Formula One debut in 1977 with Shadow, drafted in as a late replacement, and spent his early career with Shadow, Arrows, and Brabham, where he won his first Grand Prix at Monaco in 1982. Patrese joined Williams in 1988 as teammate to Nigel Mansell, and the pairing developed into one of the strongest partnerships on the grid through the early 1990s. He finished third in the World Championship in both 1989 and 1991, before enjoying his finest season in 1992, finishing runner-up to Mansell as Williams dominated the championship, winning races in Mexico, Portugal, and Japan across his final Williams seasons. Patrese became the first driver in Formula One history to reach 200 Grand Prix starts in 1990 and 250 starts in 1993, before retiring at the end of that season with 256 starts from 257 entries — a longevity record that stood for 19 years until surpassed by Rubens Barrichello in 2008. He retired with six Grand Prix wins across a remarkable 17-season career, and later competed in historic racing and the Grand Prix Masters series for retired drivers.

Versatile, resilient racer with strong technical development skills built over an unusually long career

One of the sport's great long-serving professionals, whose career spanned from the ground-effect era to the dawn of active suspension

• Runner-up, 1992 World Championship
• 6x Grand Prix winner
• First driver to reach 200 and 250 Grand Prix starts
• Held record for most F1 starts (256) for 19 years