Classic Belgian Grand Prix 1987 - Prost emerges victorious after thrills and spills throughout the field

Prost emerges victorious after thrills and spills throughout the field

Round three of the 1987 Formula One World Championship headed to the Ardennes forests of Spa Francorchamps, where the bellowing noise of turbo and naturally aspirated power would echo throughout the Belgian countryside in another closely fought season. Honda power dominated the championship with Nelson Piquet and Nigel Mansell for Williams invariably battling for the top spot. Defending champion Alain Prost and his team McLaren TAG had generally struggled for pace in qualifying but had showed better race craft and pace to take the opening round in Brazil. Lotus Honda and Ayrton Senna were equipped with active suspension meaning the car could handle the ubiquitous bumps and undulations of street circuits of which there were plenty in 1987. It equally helped the car on the twisty, uneven surface of Rio de Janeiro where he qualified third. It was here that McLaren’s Alain Prost took a typically canny win taking advantage of the Lotus’ tyre wear and Williams’ overheating issues. Piquet, on home ground finished a distant second, some forty second in arrears; backed up in a McLaren sandwich as Stefan Johansson came home third in his only season for the team. It was an uncharacteristic start to a season many thought would be dominated throughout by the turbo Williams’. However, qualifying dominance followed the status quo; Mansell going two seconds quicker than Senna’s Lotus in Rio; and even more impressively 1.3 seconds quicker than his team mate Piquet in Belgium. Heading into the Belgian weekend, it was Mansell who led the standings on ten points; one ahead of Prost. It would prove to be a pivotal weekend for both in Spa.

Behind the Williams lock out on the front row was another Honda in the form of specialist qualifier Ayrton Senna; followed by the two Ferraris of Gerhard Berger and Michele Alboreto with not much to choose between the trios. Further back was Prost’s McLaren, some 2.1 seconds behind Mansell; meanwhile local hero Thierry Boutsen did well to put his Benneton in 7^th place.

All 26 drivers got off the line and charged into La Source for the first time. When they got there, Mansell led from Senna who was desperately trying to fend off Nelson Piquet and ran him out wide on the exit, on the run down to Eau Rouge. Behind them, Thierry Boutsen picked up left rear suspension damage as a result of contact. Andrea de Cesaris also lost time as he suffered a right rear puncture and limped back to the pits. However, a more serious looking incident occurred on the second lap when Philippe Streiff in the Tyrell spun at the top of Radillon. He was then collected by Jonathan Palmer his team mate who tried to avoid the Frenchman. The race was stopped as a result. Streiff was able to take the restart, however Palmer was less fortunate; his engine being ripped off the Tyrell Ford, the car too badly damaged to continue.

At the restart, it was Senna in the Lotus who got better traction off the line and surged into the lead, regulating Piquet to third. Coming round the Pouhon turn, Mansell got close to Senna and tried to pass the Brazilian round the outside of the Fagnes chicane. The two drivers did not give an inch to the other and the inevitable contact occurred. Both races ruined and Piquet assumed the lead immediately. Mansell was able to get himself out of the gravel trap and continue for 16 more laps before retiring due to damage sustained in the contact. Senna was beached and out of the race. Mansell was furious and after pitting and retiring, the Englishman went to the Lotus pit where tempers flared and punches were thrown; a sour end to a promising lead battle.

Meanwhile, in the race, Piquet led from Alboreto, Prost, Boutsen and Berger. The Austrian’s race was to be short lived however as the Ferrari suffered a massive engine failure coming into the bus stop chicane on the second lap. Eager to get it back to the garage, the Ferrari coughed and spluttered its way into the pits; providing a smoke covered scene as the whole top end of the pit lane was engulfed with the remains of the Ferrari. McLaren’s Swedish star Stefan Johansson made up for lost ground as he used his TAG turbo engine to power past Boutsen into fifth place on the run down to Les Combes on lap 3. His team mate Alain Prost was biding his time in third behind Alboreto’s Ferrari before attempting a move. The Italian became very defensive and weaved constantly to defend his second place. However, on the Kemmel straight Prost’s turbo boost was increased and the Frenchman waltzed past to take the place. More disappointingly for Alboreto was that his car was sick and just after the chicane, he pulled off to the side of the road; out with a transmission problem on lap 9.

Drama on the next lap as once more, reliability issues cost the Williams team dear. Piquet was suffering from an exhaust problem and brought his car into the pits, the engine stuttering and going slowly. At the same time, Mansell came in to change tyres and the Williams team had to busy themselves to get Piquet’s car out of the way in time. In the end it mattered not as both the Honda powered car would be out of the race.

Johansson then made it a McLaren one-two as he managed to find a way past the Benneton of Teo Fabi. He then latched onto the back of Prost after the Frenchman’s pit stop, but did not challenge his team leader. Fabi then retired from the race with an engine failure, robbing him of third place and four championship points. Prost could have been robbed of nine championship points after narrowly avoiding the spinning Philippe Alliot in the Lola. This was essentially the only scare for McLaren in a wonderfully tactical drive by both Prost and Johansson in slower but more reliable machinery meant that they romped to a deserved victory and second place. In winning, Prost equalled the win record set by Jackie Stewart in 1973. It was a historic day for the Frenchman as it moved him firmly into championship contention; leading the nearest Williams challenger by 10 points, more than a race win in 1987. Williams’ season was not quite going to plan, however it was the race they needed to kick start their season properly.

Belgian Grand Prix 1987

Race results after 43 laps

1. Alain Prost                  McLaren TAG                        43 laps
2. Stefan Johansson        McLaren TAG            + 24.764
3. Andrea de Cesaris       Brabham BMW           + 1 lap
4. Eddie Cheever                        Arrows Megatron        + 1 lap
5. Satoru Nakajima         Lotus Honda               + 1 lap
6. René Arnoux               Ligier Megatron          + 1 lap

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