1991 Belgian Grand Prix

11th round of the 1991 Formula One season March 2019 March 2019 March 2019 February 2024 F1 Belgium Belgian XL Grand Prix de Belgique 25 August 1991 11 16 Spa 1996.jpg Circuit de Spa-FrancorchampsFrancorchamps, Wallonia, Belgium Permanent racing facility 4.312 6.940 44 189.741 305.360 Sunny and hot Ayrton Senna McLaren-Honda 1:47.811 Brazil 1968 Roberto Moreno Benetton-Ford 1:55.161 40 Brazil 1968 Ayrton Senna McLaren-Honda Brazil 1968 Gerhard Berger McLaren-Honda Austria Nelson Piquet Benetton-Ford Brazil 1968 BEL The 1991 Belgian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps on 25 August 1991. It was the eleventh race of the 1991 Formula One World Championship. The 44-lap race was won by Brazilian Ayrton Senna, driving a McLaren-Honda, after he started from pole position. His Austrian teammate Gerhard Berger finished second, with another Brazilian, Nelson Piquet, third in a Benetton-Ford. Senna's Drivers' Championship rival, Briton Nigel Mansell, retired with an electrical failure, allowing Senna to extend his lead over him to 22 points with five races remaining. The race marked the debut of future seven-time World Champion, German Michael Schumacher, driving a Jordan-Ford. Schumacher qualified seventh, which matched the team's season-best grid position, and Schumacher outqualified veteran Andrea de Cesaris. Although he retired on the opening lap with a clutch failure, Schumacher's debut impressed the paddock. His seventh place qualifying was done in a midfield car, the Jordan 191, which he drove half a day of testing and at a track he had never raced at.Chandhok Karun 2021-08-27 Driving the F1 icon that launched Schumacher's career https://www.autosport.com/f1/news/driving-the-f1-icon-that-launched-schumachers-career/6652547/ 2024-02-11 Autosport.com Pre-race The Jordan team dominated the headlines leading up to the Belgian Grand Prix. Driver Bertrand Gachot was serving an eighteen-month prison sentence in an English jail (from which he would ultimately be released after just two months) as a result of an altercation with a London taxi driver, so the team had decided to replace him with young German driver Michael Schumacher. Elsewhere, Johnny Herbert had returned to Lotus after having missed the previous two races due to Formula 3000 commitments in Japan. Qualifying Pre-qualifying report As at the previous event in Hungary, the Friday morning pre-qualifying session was dominated by Brabham, who achieved their second 1–2 in succession. On this occasion, Martin Brundle was fastest, 1.5 seconds quicker than his team-mate Mark Blundell. Third, over 3.5 seconds slower than Brundle, was Olivier Grouillard for Fondmetal, the fourth time this season he had pre-qualified. Over a second behind Grouillard was Alex Caffi, pre-qualifying for the first time in three attempts for Footwork. Missing out by 0.45 of a second in fifth place was Caffi's team-mate Michele Alboreto, the first time he had failed to pre-qualify in his three attempts. A fraction slower in sixth, after suffering a huge accident, was Gabriele Tarquini in the AGS, nearly two seconds ahead of Pedro Chaves in the Coloni. Bottom of the time sheets was the other AGS of Fabrizio Barbazza, who also crashed during the session.Walker Murray 1991 Murray Walker's Grand Prix Year Hazleton Publishing 93–100 0-905138-90-2 Pre-qualifying classification Pos No Driver Constructor Time Gap 1 7 UK Martin Brundle Brabham-Yamaha 1:54.929 — 2 8 UK Mark Blundell Brabham-Yamaha 1:56.446 +1.517 3 14 France Olivier Grouillard Fondmetal-Ford 1:58.447 +3.518 4 10 Italy Alex Caffi Footwork-Ford 1:59.460 +4.531 5 9 Italy Michele Alboreto Footwork-Ford 1:59.910 +4.981 6 17 Italy Gabriele Tarquini AGS-Ford 1:59.972 +5.043 7 31 Portugal Pedro Chaves Coloni-Ford 2:01.921 +6.992 8 18 Italy Fabrizio Barbazza AGS-Ford 1:22:46.766 +1:00.00 Qualifying report Ayrton Senna was fastest most of the weekend and duly took pole position, but Ferrari were right on his heels. Alain Prost qualified third on the road while Jean Alesi had set the fastest first and second sectors only to come across traffic at the end of the lap, resulting in a sixth place start, which would be elevated to fifth. Riccardo Patrese had originally qualified second, but after Saturday qualifying his car was found to not have a reverse gear as per the safety regulations and Patrese's Saturday times were wiped out, he had to start a disappointing seventeenth on the grid. Patrese's misfortune promoted Prost to second, with Nigel Mansell third, Gerhard Berger fourth, Alesi fifth, and Nelson Piquet sixth while the sensation of qualifying, Schumacher, was an amazing seventh for his first Grand Prix. The top ten was completed by Roberto Moreno in the second Benetton, Pierluigi Martini in a Minardi and the ever-impressive Stefano Modena in a Tyrrell. Qualifying classification Pos No Driver Constructor Q1 Q2 Gap 1 1 Brazil 1968 Ayrton Senna McLaren-Honda 1:49.100 1:47.811 — 2 27 France Alain Prost Ferrari 1:51.369 1:48.821 +1.010 3 5 UK Nigel Mansell Williams-Renault 1:50.666 1:48.828 +1.017 4 2 Austria Gerhard Berger McLaren-Honda 1:49.485 12:29.200 +1.674 5 28 France Jean Alesi Ferrari 1:51.832 1:49.974 +2.163 6 20 Brazil 1968 Nelson Piquet Benetton-Ford 1:53.371 1:50.540 +2.729 7 32 Germany Michael Schumacher Jordan-Ford 1:53.290 1:51.212 +3.401 8 19 Brazil 1968 Roberto Moreno Benetton-Ford 1:53.664 1:51.283 +3.472 9 23 Italy Pierluigi Martini Minardi-Ferrari 1:53.460 1:51.299 +3.488 10 4 Italy Stefano Modena Tyrrell-Honda 1:52.899 1:51.307 +3.496 11 33 Italy Andrea de Cesaris Jordan-Ford 1:54.186 1:51.986 +4.175 12 16 Italy Ivan Capelli Leyton House-Ilmor 1:53.603 1:52.113 +4.302 13 8 UK Mark Blundell Brabham-Yamaha 1:54.814 1:52.377 +4.566 14 22 Finland JJ Lehto Dallara-Judd 1:54.211 1:52.417 +4.606 15 15 Brazil 1968 Maurício Gugelmin Leyton House-Ilmor 1:56.027 1:52.623 +4.812 16 7 UK Martin Brundle Brabham-Yamaha 1:54.921 1:52.626 +4.815 17 6 Italy Riccardo Patrese Williams-Renault 1:52.646 no time +4.835 18 25 Belgium Thierry Boutsen Ligier-Lamborghini 1:54.446 1:52.709 +4.898 19 24 Italy Gianni Morbidelli Minardi-Ferrari 1:57.232 1:52.896 +5.085 20 29 France Éric Bernard Lola-Ford 1:55.679 1:53.309 +5.498 21 12 UK Johnny Herbert Lotus-Judd 1:55.523 1:53.361 +5.550 22 3 Japan 1947 Satoru Nakajima Tyrrell-Honda 1:55.874 1:53.494 +5.683 23 14 France Olivier Grouillard Fondmetal-Ford 1:55.945 1:53.628 +5.817 24 11 Finland Mika Häkkinen Lotus-Judd 1:55.483 1:53.799 +5.988 25 21 Italy Emanuele Pirro Dallara-Judd 1:56.131 1:53.839 +6.028 26 26 France Érik Comas Ligier-Lamborghini 1:56.218 1:53.847 +6.036 27 30 Japan 1947 Aguri Suzuki Lola-Ford 1:56.594 1:53.869 +6.058 28 34 Italy Nicola Larini Lambo-Lamborghini 1:56.561 1:54.781 +6.970 29 10 Italy Alex Caffi Footwork-Ford 1:57.556 1:57.338 +9.527 30 35 Belgium Eric van de Poele Lambo-Lamborghini 35:03.624 1:57.746 +9.935 Race Race report At the start both Senna and Prost got away well and the Brazilian led into the first corner. Mansell was third followed by Berger, Piquet, and Schumacher. The German's luck however would run dry just after Eau Rouge when his clutch failed. Out at the front Senna continued to lead but Prost's day ended on lap three when his Ferrari caught on fire, leaving Mansell in second. The determined Englishman proceeded to go after Senna and the two battled lap after lap until Senna pitted for new tyres on lap 15. The stop was a bad one and when Mansell pitted two laps later he was able to emerge ahead of Senna, but just behind Berger who had yet to stop. These stops left Piquet in the lead for one lap before he made his stop. Mansell quickly closed in on Berger and managed to sweep past into Les Fagnes. When Berger stopped a lap later he had problems and then spun on the pit exit and came back right in front of Modena, nearly causing a bad accident. Mansell's big lead would not last, however as on lap 22 his car stopped, having succumbed to electronic problems, his championship hopes taking a major hit. thumb|Ayrton Senna during the race in Spa-Francorchamps on 25 August 1991 Mansell's misery was Alesi's jubilation as the young Frenchman took the lead with Senna closing. Senna continued to close until he had a small problem and lost ten seconds, putting him into the clutches of Piquet's Benetton. The Piquet-Senna battle was soon joined by Patrese and de Cesaris, who had been battling over fourth. Senna led the quartet, but could not pull away because he was suffering from gearbox problems. Alesi had planned to do the entire race without stopping and his strategy was looking very good until lap 30 when his engine expired. This left Senna ahead of Piquet, de Cesaris, and Patrese, who had gone off the track trying to pass Piquet. On Lap 31 de Cesaris managed to out brake Piquet into Les Combes and was looking good for Jordan's first podium finish in second place. Meanwhile, Patrese got past Piquet as well and set off after the Jordan. In the late stages Berger got past Piquet and then moved into third when Patrese started to suffer from gearbox problems. De Cesaris's fairy tale run ended just three laps from the end when his engine blew, promoting Berger to second and Piquet to third; it was triple World Champion Piquet's final podium of his career. Up front Senna limped home to his second consecutive win despite serious gearbox issues. Moreno was fourth, followed by Patrese and Mark Blundell, who scored Brabham's first point of the year (also the team's best result since Stefano Modena finished fifth in a Judd powered BT58 in the 1990 United States Grand Prix). The Fondmetal team and its driver Olivier Grouillard scored their first finish of 1991. Race classification Pos No Driver Constructor Tyre Laps Time/Retired Grid Points 1 1 Brazil 1968 Ayrton Senna McLaren-Honda Goodyear 44 1:27:17.669 1 10 2 2 Austria Gerhard Berger McLaren-Honda Goodyear 44 +1.901 4 6 3 20 Brazil 1968 Nelson Piquet Benetton-Ford Pirelli 44 +32.176 6 4 4 19 Brazil 1968 Roberto Moreno Benetton-Ford Pirelli 44 +37.310 8 3 5 6 Italy Riccardo Patrese Williams-Renault Goodyear 44 +57.187 17 2 6 8 UK Mark Blundell Brabham-Yamaha Pirelli 44 +1:40.035 13 1 7 12 UK Johnny Herbert Lotus-Judd Goodyear 44 +1:44.599 21 8 21 Italy Emanuele Pirro Dallara-Judd Pirelli 43 +1 lap 25 9 7 UK Martin Brundle Brabham-Yamaha Pirelli 43 +1 lap 16 10 14 France Olivier Grouillard Fondmetal-Ford Goodyear 43 +1 lap 23 11 25 Belgium Thierry Boutsen Ligier-Lamborghini Goodyear 43 +1 lap 18 12 23 Italy Pierluigi Martini Minardi-Ferrari Goodyear 42 Gearbox 9 13 33 Italy Andrea de Cesaris Jordan-Ford Goodyear 41 Engine 11 Ret Retired 4 Italy Stefano Modena Tyrrell-Honda Pirelli 33 Oil leak 10 Ret Retired 22 Finland JJ Lehto Dallara-Judd Pirelli 33 Oil pressure 14 Ret Retired 28 France Jean Alesi Ferrari Goodyear 30 Engine 5 Ret Retired 24 Italy Gianni Morbidelli Minardi-Ferrari Goodyear 29 Gearbox 19 Ret Retired 11 Finland Mika Häkkinen Lotus-Judd Goodyear 25 Engine/Spun off 24 Ret Retired 26 France Érik Comas Ligier-Lamborghini Goodyear 25 Engine 26 Ret Retired 5 UK Nigel Mansell Williams-Renault Goodyear 22 Electrical 3 Ret Retired 29 France Éric Bernard Lola-Ford Goodyear 21 Gearbox 20 Ret Retired 16 Italy Ivan Capelli Leyton House-Ilmor Goodyear 13 Engine 12 Ret Retired 3 Japan 1947 Satoru Nakajima Tyrrell-Honda Pirelli 7 Spun off 22 Ret Retired 27 France Alain Prost Ferrari Goodyear 2 Fuel leak 2 Ret Retired 15 Brazil 1968 Maurício Gugelmin Leyton House-Ilmor Goodyear 1 Engine 15 Ret Retired 32 Germany Michael Schumacher Jordan-Ford Goodyear 0 Clutch 7 DNQ Did not qualify 30 Japan 1947 Aguri Suzuki Lola-Ford Goodyear DNQ Did not qualify 34 Italy Nicola Larini Lambo-Lamborghini Goodyear DNQ Did not qualify 10 Italy Alex Caffi Footwork-Ford Goodyear DNQ Did not qualify 35 Belgium Eric van de Poele Lambo-Lamborghini Goodyear DNPQ Did not pre-qualify 9 Italy Michele Alboreto Footwork-Ford Goodyear DNPQ Did not pre-qualify 17 Italy Gabriele Tarquini AGS-Ford Goodyear DNPQ Did not pre-qualify 31 Portugal Pedro Chaves Coloni-Ford Goodyear DNPQ Did not pre-qualify 18 Italy Fabrizio Barbazza AGS-Ford GoodyearSource:http://www.formula1.com/results/season/1991/209/ 1991 Belgian Grand Prix formula1.com 23 December 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20141103035509/http://www.formula1.com/results/season/1991/209/ 3 November 2014https://gparchive.com/formula-1/1991-belgian-grand-prix/ 1991 Belgian Grand Prix - Race Results & History - GP Archive GPArchive.com 25 August 1991 27 November 2021 Championship standings after the race Drivers' Championship standings Pos Driver Points 10px 1 BRA 1968 Ayrton Senna* 71 10px 2 GBR Nigel Mansell* 49 10px 3 ITA Riccardo Patrese* 34 10px 4 AUT Gerhard Berger* 28 10px 1 5 BRA 1968 Nelson Piquet* 22Source:https://www.statsf1.com/en/1991/belgique/championnat.aspx Belgium 1991 - Championship • STATS F1 www.statsf1.com 13 March 2019 Constructors' Championship standings Pos Constructor Points 10px 1 GBR McLaren-Honda* 99 10px 2 GBR Williams-Renault* 83 10px 3 ITA Ferrari* 35 10px 4 GBR Benetton-Ford* 30 10px 5 IRE Jordan-Ford 13Source: Note: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings. Competitors in bold and marked with an asterisk still had a mathematical chance of becoming World Champion. References Henry Alan Alan Henry AUTOCOURSE 1991–92 Hazleton Publishing 1991 198–199 0-905138-87-2 Belgian Grand Prix 1991 1991 Hungarian Grand Prix 1991 Italian Grand Prix 1990 Belgian Grand Prix 1992 Belgian Grand Prix Belgian Grand Prix Category:Belgian Grand Prix Grand Prix Belgium