The 1981 San Marino Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Imola on 3 May 1981.
| 1981 San Marino Grand Prix | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 4 of 15 in the 1981 Formula One World Championship | |||
 | |||
| Race details | |||
| Date | 3 May 1981 | ||
| Official name | 1º Gran Premio di San Marino | ||
| Location | Autodromo Dino Ferrari, Imola, Emilia-Romagna, Italy | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 5.000 km (3.107 miles) | ||
| Distance | 60 laps, 300.000 km (186.411 miles) | ||
| Weather | Rain, cold | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Ferrari | ||
| Time | 1:34.523 | ||
| Fastest lap | |||
| Driver |
 Gilles Villeneuve | Ferrari | |
| Time | 1:48.064 on lap 46 | ||
| Podium | |||
| First | Brabham-Ford | ||
| Second | Arrows-Ford | ||
| Third | Williams-Ford | ||
The race was the first to bear the title "San Marino Grand Prix", although several non-championship Formula One races and the 1980 Italian Grand Prix had previously been held at the circuit. The Acque-Minerali chicane had been widened from the year before and was faster; the chicane in its original narrow configuration in 1980 was unpopular with drivers because it was very slow.
The Lotus team withdrew their entries because the FIA upheld the ban on the Lotus 88 and team owner Colin Chapman felt the 81s were no longer competitive.[1]
Didier Pironi held the lead until late in the race and was passed by Nelson Piquet, who eventually won the race. As well as being Michele Alboreto's Grand Prix debut, the race is also notable for the recovery of Gilles Villeneuve to seventh place, after misjudgement of tyre selection for the conditions. While the team did not qualify for the race, it was the first race entered by Toleman, which is now Renault Sport F1.
Classification
Qualifying
| Pos | No | Driver | Constructor | Q1 | Q2 | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 27 | Gilles Villeneuve
|
Ferrari | 1:35.576 | 1:34.523 | — |
| 2 | 2 |  Carlos Reutemann
|
Williams-Ford | 1:35.844 | 1:35.229 | +0.706 |
| 3 | 16 |  René Arnoux
|
Renault | 1:35.281 | 1:35.292 | +0.758 |
| 4 | 15 | Alain Prost
|
Renault | 1:35.579 | 3:58.089 | +1.056 |
| 5 | 5 |  Nelson Piquet
|
Brabham-Ford | 1:37.417 | 1:35.733 | +1.210 |
| 6 | 28 | Didier Pironi
|
Ferrari | 1:36.168 | 1:35.868 | +1.345 |
| 7 | 7 |  John Watson
|
McLaren-Ford | 1:37.639 | 1:36.241 | +1.718 |
| 8 | 1 |  Alan Jones
|
Williams-Ford | 1:36.280 | 1:36.317 | +1.757 |
| 9 | 29 |  Riccardo Patrese
|
Arrows-Ford | 1:37.061 | 1:36.390 | +1.867 |
| 10 | 26 | Jacques Laffite
|
Ligier-Matra | 1:38.908 | 1:36.477 | +1.954 |
| 11 | 23 | Bruno Giacomelli
|
Alfa Romeo | 1:39.372 | 1:36.776 | +2.253 |
| 12 | 22 |  Mario Andretti
|
Alfa Romeo | 1:37.587 | 1:36.919 | +2.396 |
| 13 | 6 |  Héctor Rebaque
|
Brabham-Ford | 1:38.822 | 1:37.264 | +2.741 |
| 14 | 8 | Andrea de Cesaris
|
McLaren-Ford | 1:38.019 | 1:37.382 | +2.859 |
| 15 | 20 |  Keke Rosberg
|
Fittipaldi-Ford | 1:37.459 | 1:37.906 | +2.936 |
| 16 | 33 | Patrick Tambay
|
Theodore-Ford | 1:39.215 | 1:37.545 | +3.022 |
| 17 | 4 | Michele Alboreto
|
Tyrrell-Ford | 1:39.341 | 1:37.771 | +3.248 |
| 18 | 25 | Jean-Pierre Jabouille
|
Ligier-Matra | 1:38.140 | 1:38.702 | +3.617 |
| 19 | 3 | Eddie Cheever
|
Tyrrell-Ford | 1:38.369 | 1:38.266 | +3.743 |
| 20 | 32 | Beppe Gabbiani
|
Osella-Ford | 1:39.245 | 1:38.302 | +3.779 |
| 21 | 14 |  Marc Surer
|
Ensign-Ford | 1:38.341 | 1:38.488 | +3.818 |
| 22 | 31 | Miguel Angel Guerra
|
Osella-Ford | 1:39.799 | 1:38.773 | +4.250 |
| 23 | 18 |  Eliseo Salazar
|
March-Ford | 1:39.161 | 1:38.827 | +4.304 |
| 24 | 10 |  Slim Borgudd
|
ATS-Ford | 1:41.196 | 1:39.079 | +4.556 |
| 25 | 30 | Siegfried Stohr
|
Arrows-Ford | 1:39.112 | 1:39.553 | +4.589 |
| 26 | 17 |  Derek Daly
|
March-Ford | 1:39.453 | 1:39.157 | +4.634 |
| 27 | 9 |  Jan Lammers
|
ATS-Ford | 1:40.872 | 1:39.419 | +4.896 |
| 28 | 21 | Chico Serra
|
Fittipaldi-Ford | 1:51.453 | 1:41.114 | +6.591 |
| 29 | 36 | Derek Warwick
|
Toleman-Hart | 1:54.020 | 1:43.187 | +8.664 |
| 30 | 35 | Brian Henton
|
Toleman-Hart | 1:49.951 | no time | +15.428 |
| WD | 11 | Elio de Angelis
|
Lotus-Ford | — | — | — |
| WD | 12 | Nigel Mansell
|
Lotus-Ford | — | — | — |
Source:[2]
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Race
Championship standings after the race
|
|
- Note: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings.
References
- ^ Lang, Mike (1992). Grand Prix! Vol 4. Haynes Publishing Group. p. 29. ISBN 0-85429-733-2.
- ^ Hamilton, Maurice (ed.) (1981). AUTOCOURSE 1981–82. Hazleton Publishing Ltd. p. 118. ISBN 0-905138-17-1.
{{cite book}}:|first=has generic name (help) - ^ "1981 San Marino Grand Prix". formula1.com. Archived from the original on 16 May 2014. Retrieved 23 December 2015.