Published evidence
Grande Prêmio do Brasil 1981 · race
A historical profile with source-linked evidence. Further research is in progress.
THE HISTORICAL RECORD
Profile & context
- Name
- Grande Prêmio do Brasil 1981 · race
PROVENANCE
Sources behind this page
F1DB
v2026.17.0 · session/344-race
Original reference ↗Historical source & scope
F1DB v2026.17.0 · CC BY 4.0. Normalisation, links and calculations by MotorPedia. Original source observations retained.
Source-reported facts are not independent historical confirmation. Missing times and points remain unknown; source-rounded points retain their published precision. Constructor, entrant and team identities are kept distinct.
Grand Prix context
Grande Prêmio do Brasil 1981 · Autódromo Internacional Nelson Piquet
Technical formula: Formula 1. World Championship membership is separate from technical regulations.
1981 Formula 1 World Championship · round 2
Race classification
| Position | Driver | Constructor | Recorded details | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Carlos Reutemann | Williams | 2:00:23.660 · 62 laps · ford | 9 |
| 2 | Alan Jones | Williams | 2:00:28.100 · 62 laps · ford | 6 |
| 3 | Riccardo Patrese | Arrows | 2:01:26.740 · 62 laps · ford | 4 |
| 4 | Marc Surer | Ensign | 2:01:40.690 · 62 laps · ford | 3 |
| 5 | Elio de Angelis | Lotus | 2:01:50.080 · 62 laps · ford | 2 |
| 6 | Jacques Laffite | Ligier | 2:01:50.490 · 62 laps · matra | 1 |
| 7 | Jean-Pierre Jarier | Ligier | 2:01:53.910 · 62 laps · matra | Unknown / not applicable |
| 8 | John Watson | McLaren | Time not recorded · 61 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| 9 | Keke Rosberg | Fittipaldi | Time not recorded · 61 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| 10 | Patrick Tambay | Theodore | Time not recorded · 61 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| 11 | Nigel Mansell | Lotus | Time not recorded · 61 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| 12 | Nelson Piquet | Brabham | Time not recorded · 60 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| 13 | Ricardo Zunino | Tyrrell | Time not recorded · 57 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| NC | Eddie Cheever | Tyrrell | Time not recorded · 49 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| NC | Bruno Giacomelli | Alfa Romeo | Time not recorded · 40 laps · alfa-romeo | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNF | Gilles Villeneuve | Ferrari | Turbo · Time not recorded · 25 laps · ferrari | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNF | Héctor Rebaque | Brabham | Spun off · Time not recorded · 22 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNF | Alain Prost | Renault | Collision · Time not recorded · 20 laps · renault | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNF | Siegfried Stohr | Arrows | Accident · Time not recorded · 20 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNF | Didier Pironi | Ferrari | Collision · Time not recorded · 19 laps · ferrari | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNF | Andrea de Cesaris | McLaren | Engine · Time not recorded · 9 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNF | Chico Serra | Fittipaldi | Collision · Time not recorded · 0 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNF | René Arnoux | Renault | Collision · Time not recorded · 0 laps · renault | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNF | Mario Andretti | Alfa Romeo | Collision · Time not recorded · 0 laps · alfa-romeo | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNQ | Jan Lammers | ATS | Time not recorded · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNQ | Beppe Gabbiani | Osella | Time not recorded · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNQ | Miguel Ángel Guerra | Osella | Time not recorded · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNQ | Eliseo Salazar | March | Time not recorded · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNQ | Derek Daly | March | Time not recorded · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNS | Jean-Pierre Jabouille | Ligier | Car raced by Jarier · Time not recorded · matra | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNP | Ricardo Londoño | Ensign | Car raced by Surer · Time not recorded · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
Qualifying
| Position | Driver | Constructor | Recorded details | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nelson Piquet | Brabham | 1:35.079 · ford | |
| 2 | Carlos Reutemann | Williams | 1:35.390 · ford | |
| 3 | Alan Jones | Williams | 1:36.337 · ford | |
| 4 | Riccardo Patrese | Arrows | 1:36.667 · ford | |
| 5 | Alain Prost | Renault | 1:36.670 · renault | |
| 6 | Bruno Giacomelli | Alfa Romeo | 1:37.283 · alfa-romeo | |
| 7 | Gilles Villeneuve | Ferrari | 1:37.497 · ferrari | |
| 8 | René Arnoux | Renault | 1:37.561 · renault | |
| 9 | Mario Andretti | Alfa Romeo | 1:37.597 · alfa-romeo | |
| 10 | Elio de Angelis | Lotus | 1:37.734 · ford | |
| 11 | Héctor Rebaque | Brabham | 1:37.777 · ford | |
| 12 | Keke Rosberg | Fittipaldi | 1:37.981 · ford | |
| 13 | Nigel Mansell | Lotus | 1:38.003 · ford | |
| 14 | Eddie Cheever | Tyrrell | 1:38.160 · ford | |
| 15 | John Watson | McLaren | 1:38.263 · ford | |
| 16 | Jacques Laffite | Ligier | 1:38.273 · matra | |
| 17 | Didier Pironi | Ferrari | 1:38.565 · ferrari | |
| 18 | Marc Surer | Ensign | 1:38.570 · ford | |
| 19 | Patrick Tambay | Theodore | 1:38.726 · ford | |
| 20 | Andrea de Cesaris | McLaren | 1:38.780 · ford | |
| 21 | Siegfried Stohr | Arrows | 1:39.190 · ford | |
| 22 | Chico Serra | Fittipaldi | 1:39.326 · ford | |
| 23 | Jean-Pierre Jarier | Ligier | 1:39.398 · matra | |
| 24 | Ricardo Zunino | Tyrrell | 1:39.798 · ford | |
| 25 | Jan Lammers | ATS | 1:39.844 · ford | |
| 26 | Jean-Pierre Jabouille | Ligier | 1:40.306 · matra | |
| 27 | Beppe Gabbiani | Osella | 1:40.709 · ford | |
| 28 | Miguel Ángel Guerra | Osella | 1:40.984 · ford | |
| 29 | Eliseo Salazar | March | 1:43.267 · ford | |
| 30 | Derek Daly | March | Time not recorded · ford |
Starting grid
| Position | Driver | Constructor | Recorded details | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Nelson Piquet | Brabham | 1:35.079 · ford | |
| 2 | Carlos Reutemann | Williams | 1:35.390 · ford | |
| 3 | Alan Jones | Williams | 1:36.337 · ford | |
| 4 | Riccardo Patrese | Arrows | 1:36.667 · ford | |
| 5 | Alain Prost | Renault | 1:36.670 · renault | |
| 6 | Bruno Giacomelli | Alfa Romeo | 1:37.283 · alfa-romeo | |
| 7 | Gilles Villeneuve | Ferrari | 1:37.497 · ferrari | |
| 8 | René Arnoux | Renault | 1:37.561 · renault | |
| 9 | Mario Andretti | Alfa Romeo | 1:37.597 · alfa-romeo | |
| 10 | Elio de Angelis | Lotus | 1:37.734 · ford | |
| 11 | Héctor Rebaque | Brabham | 1:37.777 · ford | |
| 12 | Keke Rosberg | Fittipaldi | 1:37.981 · ford | |
| 13 | Nigel Mansell | Lotus | 1:38.003 · ford | |
| 14 | Eddie Cheever | Tyrrell | 1:38.160 · ford | |
| 15 | John Watson | McLaren | 1:38.263 · ford | |
| 16 | Jacques Laffite | Ligier | 1:38.273 · matra | |
| 17 | Didier Pironi | Ferrari | 1:38.565 · ferrari | |
| 18 | Marc Surer | Ensign | 1:38.570 · ford | |
| 19 | Patrick Tambay | Theodore | 1:38.726 · ford | |
| 20 | Andrea de Cesaris | McLaren | 1:38.780 · ford | |
| 21 | Siegfried Stohr | Arrows | 1:39.190 · ford | |
| 22 | Chico Serra | Fittipaldi | 1:39.326 · ford | |
| 23 | Jean-Pierre Jarier | Ligier | 1:39.398 · matra | |
| 24 | Ricardo Zunino | Tyrrell | 1:39.798 · ford |
Championship progression
| Position | Driver | Constructor | Recorded details | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alan Jones | Not applicable / not recorded | Time not recorded | 15 |
| 1 | Carlos Reutemann | Not applicable / not recorded | Time not recorded | 15 |
| 3 | Nelson Piquet | Not applicable / not recorded | Time not recorded | 4 |
| 3 | Riccardo Patrese | Not applicable / not recorded | Time not recorded | 4 |
| 5 | Mario Andretti | Not applicable / not recorded | Time not recorded | 3 |
| 5 | Marc Surer | Not applicable / not recorded | Time not recorded | 3 |
| 7 | Eddie Cheever | Not applicable / not recorded | Time not recorded | 2 |
| 7 | Elio de Angelis | Not applicable / not recorded | Time not recorded | 2 |
| 9 | Patrick Tambay | Not applicable / not recorded | Time not recorded | 1 |
| 9 | Jacques Laffite | Not applicable / not recorded | Time not recorded | 1 |