F1 pole positions
Polesitters
| No. | Grand Prix | Circuit | Driver | Constructor | Race | Pole margin |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 |  USA West | Long Beach |  Riccardo Patrese |  Arrows-Ford Cosworth | DNF | 0.009s |
| 2 |  Brazil | Jacarepagua | Nelson Piquet | Brabham-Ford Cosworth | 12 | 0.311s |
| 3 |  Argentina | Buenos Aires | Nelson Piquet | Brabham-Ford Cosworth | 1 | 0.316s |
| 4 |  San Marino | Imola |  Gilles Villeneuve | Ferrari | 7 | 0.706s |
| 5 |  Belgium | Zolder | Carlos Reutemann | Williams-Ford Cosworth | 1 | 0.850s |
| 6 |  Monaco | Monte Carlo | Nelson Piquet | Brabham-Ford Cosworth | DNF | 0.078s |
| 7 |  Spain | Jarama |  Jacques Laffite | Ligier-Matra | 2 | 0.270s |
| 8 | France | Dijon-Prenois | Rene Arnoux | Renault | 4 | 0.410s |
| 9 | Britain | Silverstone | Rene Arnoux | Renault | 9R | 0.046s |
| 10 |  Germany | Hockenheim | Alain Prost | Renault | 2 | 0.460s |
| 11 |  Austria | Osterreichring | Rene Arnoux | Renault | 2 | 0.303s |
| 12 |  Netherlands | Zandvoort | Alain Prost | Renault | 1 | 0.079s |
| 13 | Italy | Monza | Rene Arnoux | Renault | DNF | 0.673s |
| 14 | Canada | Montreal | Nelson Piquet | Brabham-Ford Cosworth | 5 | 0.148s |
| 15 | Caesars Palace | Las Vegas | Carlos Reutemann | Williams-Ford Cosworth | 8 | 0.174s |