Schlesser was working as a test driver for
Williams when he gained his first taste of Formula One (F1) in early 1983 when he bought a drive in the
RAM team's
March-RAM 01-
Cosworth. His first race was the non-championship
Race of Champions at
Brands Hatch, where he started last of the 13 entrants and finished 6th. A week later, at the
French Grand Prix at
Paul Ricard, he was the slowest of the 29 cars in qualifying and thus failed to qualify. He did not take part in another F1 race for five years, though he continued to test for Williams, and was active in
sports car racing.
1988 Italian Grand Prix In 1988, Williams called upon Schlesser to deputise for an unwell
Nigel Mansell at the
Italian Grand Prix at
Monza. With 26 of the 31 cars allowed to start, Schlesser qualified 22nd, and thus made his Grand Prix debut the day before his 40th birthday. In the race, Schlesser worked his way up to 11th, while
Ayrton Senna led from pole position in his
McLaren. In the closing stages, the
Ferraris of
Gerhard Berger and
Michele Alboreto started to catch Senna, and were only a few seconds behind at the start of lap 49, with three laps remaining. At that point, Senna came up to lap Schlesser for the second time. Going into the tight Rettifilo chicane at the end of the start-finish straight, Schlesser went wide, expecting Senna to pass on the inside, and in the process locked his brakes. Wishing to keep his car on the track, Schlesser turned inside, and his left front wheel hit Senna's right rear. With the rear suspension broken, the McLaren spun and beached itself on a kerb, leaving the Ferraris to secure a one-two finish on home soil, less than a month after
Enzo Ferrari's death. Twenty-five years later, at the
2013 Monaco Grand Prix, McLaren chairman
Ron Dennis was reintroduced to Schlesser. Dennis said, "This is the man who ruined my life and our perfect record back in 1988." Schlesser said that "what happened that day at Monza kept you hungry." ==Touring car and sports car racing==