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 |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nigel Mansell | Williams |
| 2 | Nelson Piquet | Brabham |
| 3 | Keke Rosberg | Williams |
| 4 | Ayrton Senna | Team Lotus |
| 5 | Marc Surer | Brabham |
| 6 | Elio de Angelis | Team Lotus |
| 7 | Teo Fabi | Toleman |
| 8 | Niki Lauda | McLaren |
| 9 | Alain Prost | McLaren |
| 10 | Thierry Boutsen | Arrows |
| 11 | Gerhard Berger | Arrows |
| 12 | Riccardo Patrese | Alfa Romeo |
| 13 | Piercarlo Ghinzani | Toleman |
| 14 | Eddie Cheever | Alfa Romeo |
| 15 | Michele Alboreto | Ferrari |
| 16 | Stefan Johansson | Ferrari |
| 17 | Martin Brundle | Tyrrell |
| 18 | Alan Jones | Lola |
| 19 | Philippe Streiff | Tyrrell |
| 20 | Pierluigi Martini | Minardi |
| 21 | Huub Rothengatter | Osella |