South African Grand Prix
Kyalami
Grand Prix starting grid
Race starts
Grid positions from race-result records; not a separately verified pre-race grid.
| POS | DRIVER | TEAM |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | Piercarlo Ghinzani | Osella |
| 1 | Nelson Piquet | Brabham |
| 2 | Keke Rosberg | Williams |
| 3 | Nigel Mansell | Team Lotus |
| 4 | Patrick Tambay | Renault |
| 5 | Alain Prost | McLaren |
| 6 | Teo Fabi | Brabham |
| 7 | Elio de Angelis | Team Lotus |
| 8 | Niki Lauda | McLaren |
| 9 | Derek Warwick | Renault |
| 10 | Michele Alboreto | Ferrari |
| 11 | Jacques Laffite | Williams |
| 12 | Manfred Winkelhock | ATS |
| 13 | Ayrton Senna | Toleman |
| 14 | Andrea de Cesaris | Ligier |
| 15 | René Arnoux | Ferrari |
| 16 | Eddie Cheever | Alfa Romeo |
| 17 | François Hesnault | Ligier |
| 18 | Riccardo Patrese | Alfa Romeo |
| 19 | Johnny Cecotto | Toleman |
| 20 | Mauro Baldi | Spirit |
| 21 | Jonathan Palmer | RAM |
| 22 | Philippe Alliot | RAM |
| 23 | Marc Surer | Arrows |
| 24 | Stefan Bellof | Tyrrell |
| 25 | Martin Brundle | Tyrrell |
| 26 | Thierry Boutsen | Arrows |