Alain Prost was waging a war against Ayrton Senna for the 1990 Formula 1 Championship title. Leading up to the Grand Prix of France, the Brazilian had already scored four victories to Prost's two race wins, and Senna held an 8-point advantage.
The start saw Prost's Ferrari teammate, Mansell, make the best of his pole position, while Prost had a poor start and dropped to 6th place behind Patrese. Lap after lap, Prost tried every trick in the book to get by Patrese, whose Williams was faster in a straight line but lost ground to the Ferrari in the corners.
Despite being hindered by a hesitation in the engine that made passing nearly impossible, Prost ran a fast, steady pace. He also benefited from a fast pit stop that put him in position to overtake Berger, Senna, Mansell, Patrese and Nannini when they eventually made their stops. Capelli and Gugelmin, however, remained ahead of Prost after his own stop.
Prost's experience shined brightly when he capitalized on Gugelmin's attempt to pass a back marker. The Frenchman gained slowly on the leader, Capelli, but couldn't quite draw close enough to pass until lap 78 when a warning light distracted Capelli, affording Alain the narrowest of gaps. Prost took full advantage, taking the race lead!
Alain Prost's victory in France marked Ferrari's 100th Grand Prix victory, more wins than any other team in history!
