2001 Belgian Grand Prix
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This article does not cite any references or sources. (September 2012) |
| Race details | ||
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| Race 14 of 17 in the 2001 Formula One season | ||
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| Date | September 2, 2001 | |
| Official name | LIX Foster's Belgian Grand Prix | |
| Location | Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps | |
| Course | Permanent racing facility 6.968 km (4.330 mi) |
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| Distance | 36 laps, 251.848 km (155.870 mi) | |
| Scheduled Distance | 44 laps, 306.592 km (190.507 mi) | |
| Weather | Overcast, mild, dry, Air Temp: 16°C | |
| Pole position | ||
| Driver |  Juan Pablo Montoya |
Williams-BMW |
| Time | 1:52.072 | |
| Fastest lap | ||
| Driver |  Michael Schumacher |
Ferrari |
| Time | 1:49.758 on lap 3 | |
| Podium | ||
| First | Michael Schumacher |
Ferrari |
| Second |  David Coulthard |
McLaren-Mercedes |
| Third |  Giancarlo Fisichella |
Benetton-Renault |
The 2001 Belgian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on September 2, 2001 at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps. The race was the 14th race of the 2001 Formula One season, and the penultimate European round of the season. The race is notable for the accident of Brazilian Luciano Burti who crashed into a tyre barrier at the Blanchimont corner following a collision with Eddie Irvine and for Michael Schumacher overtaking Alain Prost's previous record of 51 Grand Prix victories. He also eclipsed Prost's record for the most total career points, scoring 10 more points to bring his career total to 769, beating Prost's 768 1/2.
Juan Pablo Montoya took pole position for the race, the second of his Formula One career. But an engine failure on lap two left Ferrari's Michael Schumacher, who also took the fastest lap, to win the race by 10 seconds from the McLaren of David Coulthard. Giancarlo Fisichella completed the podium in third, the final podium finish of the Benetton Team prior to their renaming to Renault F1.
Classification
Notes
- Both drivers from the Arrows and Minardi teams qualified outside of the 107% time, but were allowed to race as the qualifying session was held in rainy conditions.
- The first start was aborted when both pole-sitter Juan Pablo Montoya and Heinz-Harald Frentzen stalled on the grid. As a result, they were relegated to the back of the grid for the second start.
- On lap four, Luciano Burti, while speeding through Blanchimont, made contact with Eddie Irvine's rear wheel, causing his front wing to break off. He lost grip and speared straight into the tyre barrier at over 180 mph. The resulting injuries caused him to miss the rest of the season. The race restarted over 36 laps, with the results of this part of the race counting as the overall results.
- Irvine did not take part in the restart, and nor did Kimi Räikkönen or Fernando Alonso, both of whom had retired before the race was stopped.
- What was the third start was also aborted when Ralf Schumacher couldn't leave the grid, due to the pit jack being left on his car following a rear wing change. He followed Williams team-mate Montoya and Frentzen to the back of the grid, and Michael Schumacher thus found himself at the front for the fourth start.
- Jean Alesi was able to hold off Ralf Schumacher to score his first point for Jordan, which was also the final World Championship point of his career.
Standings after the race
- Bold text indicates the World Champions.
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- Note: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings.
| Previous race: 2001 Hungarian Grand Prix |
FIA Formula One World Championship 2001 season |
Next race: 2001 Italian Grand Prix |
| Previous race: 2000 Belgian Grand Prix |
Belgian Grand Prix | Next race: 2002 Belgian Grand Prix |
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