1981 French Grand Prix

The 1981 French Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Dijon-Prenois near Dijon, France on 5 July 1981. It was the eighth race of the 1981 FIA Formula One World Championship.

1981 French Grand Prix
Race 8 of 15 in the 1981 Formula One World Championship
Race details
Date 5 July 1981
Official name 67e Grand Prix de France[1]
Location Dijon-Prenois, Dijon, France
Course Permanent racing facility
Course length 3.801 km (2.361 miles)
Distance 80 laps, 304.08 km (188.88 miles)
Weather Dry, then wet at half distance, then dry again
Pole position
Driver Renault
Time 1:05.95
Fastest lap
Driver France Alain Prost Renault
Time 1:09.14 on lap 64
Podium
First Renault
Second McLaren-Ford
Third Brabham-Ford
Lap leaders

The 80-lap race was won by Alain Prost, driving a Renault. On home soil, Prost scored the first of an eventual 51 Grand Prix victories, in a race that was stopped after 58 laps due to heavy rain and then restarted, with aggregate times determining the final positions. John Watson finished second in his McLaren-Ford, while Nelson Piquet, who had been leading in his Brabham-Ford when the race was stopped, finished third.

Prior to the race, Jean-Pierre Jabouille decided to retire from Formula One, having not fully recovered from the leg injuries he had sustained in Canada the previous year. His place at Ligier was taken for the rest of the season by Patrick Tambay, who moved from Theodore.[2]

Classification edit

Qualifying edit

Pos No Driver Constructor Q1 Q2 Gap
1 16   René Arnoux Renault 1:07.09 1:05.95  —
2 7   John Watson McLaren-Ford 1:07.05 1:06.36 +0.41
3 15   Alain Prost Renault 1:07.57 1:06.36 +0.41
4 5   Nelson Piquet Brabham-Ford 1:09.21 1:06.91 +0.96
5 8   Andrea de Cesaris McLaren-Ford 1:08.83 1:07.03 +1.08
6 26   Jacques Laffite Ligier-Matra 1:08.71 1:07.09 +1.14
7 2   Carlos Reutemann Williams-Ford 1:08.83 1:07.42 +1.47
8 11   Elio de Angelis Lotus-Ford 1:08.40 1:07.52 +1.57
9 1   Alan Jones Williams-Ford 1:09.28 1:07.53 +1.58
10 22   Mario Andretti Alfa Romeo 1:10.09 1:07.56 +1.61
11 27   Gilles Villeneuve Ferrari 1:07.60 1:07.68 +1.65
12 23   Bruno Giacomelli Alfa Romeo 1:09.81 1:07.63 +1.68
13 12   Nigel Mansell Lotus-Ford 1:09.06 1:07.72 +1.77
14 28   Didier Pironi Ferrari 1:08.09 1:08.27 +2.14
15 6   Héctor Rebaque Brabham-Ford 1:09.69 1:08.21 +2.26
16 25   Patrick Tambay Ligier-Matra 1:09.51 1:08.47 +2.52
17 20   Keke Rosberg Fittipaldi-Ford 1:10.13 1:09.35 +3.40
18 29   Riccardo Patrese Arrows-Ford 1:09.37 1:10.14 +3.42
19 3   Eddie Cheever Tyrrell-Ford 1:11.50 1:09.88 +3.93
20 17   Derek Daly March-Ford 1:12.10 1:09.94 +3.99
21 33   Marc Surer Theodore-Ford 1:19.46 1:10.12 +4.17
22 14   Eliseo Salazar Ensign-Ford 1:15.59 1:10.50 +4.55
23 4   Michele Alboreto Tyrrell-Ford 1:12.37 1:10.64 +4.69
24 21   Chico Serra Fittipaldi-Ford 1:13.60 1:10.86 +4.91
25 30   Siegfried Stohr Arrows-Ford 1:13.13 1:11.24 +5.29
26 35   Brian Henton Toleman-Hart 1:29.13 1:11.28 +5.33
27 9   Slim Borgudd ATS-Ford 1:14.62 1:12.20 +6.25
28 31   Beppe Gabbiani Osella-Ford 1:12.24 1:36.20 +6.29
29 36   Derek Warwick Toleman-Hart 1:13.65 no time +7.70
Source: [3]

Race edit

Pos No Driver Constructor Tyre Laps Time/Retired Grid Points
1 15   Alain Prost Renault M 80 1:35:48.13 3 9
2 7   John Watson McLaren-Ford M 80 + 2.29 2 6
3 5   Nelson Piquet Brabham-Ford G 80 + 24.22 4 4
4 16   René Arnoux Renault M 80 + 42.30 1 3
5 28   Didier Pironi Ferrari M 79 + 1 Lap 14 2
6 11   Elio de Angelis Lotus-Ford M 79 + 1 Lap 8 1
7 12   Nigel Mansell Lotus-Ford M 79 + 1 Lap 13  
8 22   Mario Andretti Alfa Romeo M 79 + 1 Lap 10  
9 6   Héctor Rebaque Brabham-Ford G 78 + 2 Laps 15  
10 2   Carlos Reutemann Williams-Ford G 78 + 2 Laps 7  
11 8   Andrea de Cesaris McLaren-Ford M 78 + 2 Laps 5  
12 33   Marc Surer Theodore-Ford A 78 + 2 Laps 21  
13 3   Eddie Cheever Tyrrell-Ford M 77 + 3 Laps 19  
14 29   Riccardo Patrese Arrows-Ford M 77 + 3 Laps 18  
15 23   Bruno Giacomelli Alfa Romeo M 77 + 3 Laps 12  
16 4   Michele Alboreto Tyrrell-Ford M 77 + 3 Laps 23  
17 1   Alan Jones Williams-Ford G 76 Collision 9  
Ret 26   Jacques Laffite Ligier-Matra M 57 Suspension 6  
Ret 17   Derek Daly March-Ford A 55 Engine 20  
Ret 27   Gilles Villeneuve Ferrari M 41 Electrical 11  
Ret 25   Patrick Tambay Ligier-Matra M 30 Wheel Bearing 16  
Ret 20   Keke Rosberg Fittipaldi-Ford M 11 Suspension 17  
Ret 14   Eliseo Salazar Ensign-Ford A 6 Suspension 22  
DNS 21   Chico Serra Fittipaldi-Ford M 0 Non starter 24  
DNQ 30   Siegfried Stohr Arrows-Ford M    
DNQ 35   Brian Henton Toleman-Hart P    
DNQ 9   Slim Borgudd ATS-Ford M    
DNQ 31   Beppe Gabbiani Osella-Ford M    
DNQ 36   Derek Warwick Toleman-Hart P        
Source: [4][5]

Championship standings after the race edit

  • Note: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings.

References edit

  1. ^ "Motor Racing Programme Covers: 1981". The Programme Covers Project. Retrieved 21 October 2017.
  2. ^ "Grand Prix Results: French GP, 1981". Grandprix.com. Retrieved 21 October 2017.
  3. ^ Hamilton, Maurice, ed. (1981). AUTOCOURSE 1981–82. Hazleton Publishing Ltd. p. 156. ISBN 0-905138-17-1.
  4. ^ "1981 French Grand Prix". formula1.com. Archived from the original on 16 May 2014. Retrieved 23 December 2015.
  5. ^ "1981 French Grand Prix - Race Results & History - GP Archive". GPArchive.com. 5 July 1981. Retrieved 7 November 2021.
  6. ^ a b "France 1981 - Championship • STATS F1". www.statsf1.com. Retrieved 17 March 2019.


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1981 Spanish Grand Prix
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