1985 Belgian Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Ayrton Senna mastered changing conditions to win the 1985 Belgian Grand Prix, finally held at Spa-Francorchamps in September after the original meeting was postponed. Nigel Mansell finished second and Alain Prost third, extending his championship advantage as Ferrari endured a difficult afternoon.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Alain Prost	McLaren
Pole time	1:55.306
Fastest lap	Alain Prost	McLaren
Fastest-lap time	2:01.730 on lap 38
First	Ayrton Senna	Lotus
Second	Nigel Mansell	Williams
Third	Alain Prost	McLaren

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
31 May 1985	Original meeting — free practice	Start time unconfirmed
31 May 1985	Original meeting — qualifying	Start time unconfirmed
1 June 1985	Original meeting — free practice	Stopped; unsafe surface
1 June 1985	Original meeting — qualifying	Cancelled
2 June 1985	Original meeting — warm-up and race	Postponed
13 September 1985	Practice 1	10:00–11:30
13 September 1985	Qualifying 1	Start time unconfirmed
14 September 1985	Practice 2	11:00–12:15 (delayed)
14 September 1985	Qualifying 2	Start time unconfirmed
15 September 1985	Warm-up	10:00–10:30
15 September 1985	Race	Start time unconfirmed

All times are local. The race time is the scheduled start; weather delays and interruptions are described below.

Championship background

Alain Prost arrived at round 13 leading the 1985 F1 World Championship on 65 points, with Michele Alboreto on 53. McLaren – TAG headed the constructors’ standings after the preceding race with 79 points.

Race entries

Christian Danner made his World Championship debut for Zakspeed in place of the injured Jonathan Palmer. Philippe Streiff replaced Andrea de Cesaris at Ligier, while RAM brought only Philippe Alliot. Haas Lola could not enter because it had not been on the original entry list. Niki Lauda withdrew after injuring his wrist in Friday practice, leaving Alain Prost to race alone for McLaren.

The postponed June meeting

The original meeting began on 31 May 1985, but Spa’s recently laid surface soon started breaking up. Michele Alboreto headed the opening practice session while Alain Prost suffered repeated engine failures. Michele Alboreto also led Friday qualifying, ahead of de Elio de Angelis and Ayrton Senna; these times did not form the grid for the September race.

Overnight repairs failed to solve the problem. Saturday practice was stopped with the asphalt still deteriorating, and the remaining Formula 1 running was abandoned. The race scheduled for 2 June 1985 was postponed to 15 September 1985, giving the circuit time to be repaired properly.

Friday Free Practice

Niki Lauda’s Friday morning ended painfully when a sticking throttle sent his McLaren into the barriers. The impact injured his wrist, and he was unable to continue. Lotus also faced engine problems, while Ferrari compared its available specifications in an attempt to recover the pace needed for Michele Alboreto’s title challenge.

Friday Qualifying

Alain Prost headed Friday qualifying with 1:56.563, just ahead of Stefan Johansson and Nelson Piquet. McLaren’s remaining driver had responded strongly to Niki Lauda’s withdrawal, but the small gaps promised a close contest for pole.

Friday Qualifying Classification

1985 Belgian Grand Prix first qualifying session, 13 September 1985

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time	Laps
1	2	Alain Prost	McLaren	1:56.563	—
2	28	Stefan Johansson	Ferrari	1:56.585	—
3	7	Nelson Piquet	Brabham	1:56.643	—
4	5	Nigel Mansell	Williams	1:56.727	—
5	17	Gerhard Berger	Arrows	1:56.770	—
6	27	Michele Alboreto	Ferrari	1:56.999	—
7	6	Keke Rosberg	Williams	1:57.582	—
8	19	Teo Fabi	Toleman	1:57.588	—
9	15	Patrick Tambay	Renault	1:58.105	—
10	20	Piercarlo Ghinzani	Toleman	1:58.820	—
11	11	Elio de Angelis	Lotus	1:58.852	—
12	18	Thierry Boutsen	Arrows	1:59.046	—
13	9	Philippe Alliot	RAM	1:59.626	—
14	22	Riccardo Patrese	Alfa Romeo	1:59.703	—
15	16	Derek Warwick	Renault	1:59.761	—
16	8	Marc Surer	Brabham	2:00.154	—
17	25	Philippe Streiff	Ligier	2:00.599	—
18	12	Ayrton Senna	Lotus	2:00.710	—
19	23	Eddie Cheever	Alfa Romeo	2:00.861	—
20	3	Martin Brundle	Tyrrell	2:00.950	—
21	26	Jacques Laffite	Ligier	2:01.345	—
22	30	Christian Danner	Zakspeed	2:05.059	—
23	29	Pierluigi Martini	Minardi	2:06.007	—
24	24	Huub Rothengatter	Osella	2:06.083	—

Saturday Free Practice

Mist delayed Saturday morning practice and the session was shortened. Once visibility improved, the teams resumed their dry-weather work, but the lost track time left less opportunity to refine their race settings. The return to Spa was proceeding far more successfully than the abandoned June meeting, although the Ardennes weather remained a concern.

Saturday Qualifying

Alain Prost improved to 1:55.306 on Saturday, edging Ayrton Senna by less than a tenth. Nelson Piquet and Michele Alboreto completed the second row. Gerhard Berger’s engine trouble prevented him from improving, leaving the Arrows driver dependent on his Friday time.

Saturday Qualifying Classification

1985 Belgian Grand Prix second qualifying session, 14 September 1985

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time	Laps
1	2	Alain Prost	McLaren	1:55.306	—
2	12	Ayrton Senna	Lotus	1:55.403	—
3	7	Nelson Piquet	Brabham	1:55.648	—
4	27	Michele Alboreto	Ferrari	1:56.021	—
5	18	Thierry Boutsen	Arrows	1:56.697	—
6	28	Stefan Johansson	Ferrari	1:56.746	—
7	5	Nigel Mansell	Williams	1:56.996	—
8	11	Elio de Angelis	Lotus	1:57.322	—
9	6	Keke Rosberg	Williams	1:57.465	—
10	8	Marc Surer	Brabham	1:57.729	—
11	19	Teo Fabi	Toleman	1:57.857	—
12	16	Derek Warwick	Renault	1:58.407	—
13	22	Riccardo Patrese	Alfa Romeo	1:58.414	—
14	20	Piercarlo Ghinzani	Toleman	1:58.706	—
15	26	Jacques Laffite	Ligier	1:58.933	—
16	25	Philippe Streiff	Ligier	1:59.245	—
17	15	Patrick Tambay	Renault	1:59.335	—
18	23	Eddie Cheever	Alfa Romeo	1:59.370	—
19	9	Philippe Alliot	RAM	1:59.755	—
20	3	Martin Brundle	Tyrrell	2:01.364	—
21	24	Huub Rothengatter	Osella	2:05.776	—
22	29	Pierluigi Martini	Minardi	2:06.606	—
23	30	Christian Danner	Zakspeed	2:07.046	—
24	17	Gerhard Berger	Arrows	17:20.837	—

Combined Qualifying Classification

Each driver’s faster time from the two qualifying sessions determined the overall order.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Friday Time	Saturday Time	Best Time	Laps
1	2	Alain Prost	McLaren	1:56.563	1:55.306	1:55.306	—
2	12	Ayrton Senna	Lotus	2:00.710	1:55.403	1:55.403	—
3	7	Nelson Piquet	Brabham	1:56.643	1:55.648	1:55.648	—
4	27	Michele Alboreto	Ferrari	1:56.999	1:56.021	1:56.021	—
5	28	Stefan Johansson	Ferrari	1:56.585	1:56.746	1:56.585	—
6	18	Thierry Boutsen	Arrows	1:59.046	1:56.697	1:56.697	—
7	5	Nigel Mansell	Williams	1:56.727	1:56.996	1:56.727	—
8	17	Gerhard Berger	Arrows	1:56.770	17:20.837	1:56.770	—
9	11	Elio de Angelis	Lotus	1:58.852	1:57.322	1:57.322	—
10	6	Keke Rosberg	Williams	1:57.582	1:57.465	1:57.465	—
11	19	Teo Fabi	Toleman	1:57.588	1:57.857	1:57.588	—
12	8	Marc Surer	Brabham	2:00.154	1:57.729	1:57.729	—
13	15	Patrick Tambay	Renault	1:58.105	1:59.335	1:58.105	—
14	16	Derek Warwick	Renault	1:59.761	1:58.407	1:58.407	—
15	22	Riccardo Patrese	Alfa Romeo	1:59.703	1:58.414	1:58.414	—
16	20	Piercarlo Ghinzani	Toleman	1:58.820	1:58.706	1:58.706	—
17	26	Jacques Laffite	Ligier	2:01.345	1:58.933	1:58.933	—
18	25	Philippe Streiff	Ligier	2:00.599	1:59.245	1:59.245	—
19	23	Eddie Cheever	Alfa Romeo	2:00.861	1:59.370	1:59.370	—
20	9	Philippe Alliot	RAM	1:59.626	1:59.755	1:59.626	—
21	3	Martin Brundle	Tyrrell	2:00.950	2:01.364	2:00.950	—
22	30	Christian Danner	Zakspeed	2:05.059	2:07.046	2:05.059	—
23	24	Huub Rothengatter	Osella	2:06.083	2:05.776	2:05.776	—
24	29	Pierluigi Martini	Minardi	2:06.007	2:06.606	2:06.007	—

Sunday warm-up

Rain transformed the circuit for Sunday’s warm-up. Nigel Mansell was quickest, with the leading times roughly half a minute slower than those set in dry qualifying. The session gave the drivers vital experience of the wet surface before a race that would demand repeated judgements about grip and tyre choice.

Warm-up Classification

1985 Belgian Grand Prix Warm-up, 15 September 1985

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Time / Gap	Laps
1	5	Nigel Mansell	Williams	2:25.462	—
2	11	Elio de Angelis	Lotus	+1.026s	—
3	12	Ayrton Senna	Lotus	+1.270s	—
4	6	Keke Rosberg	Williams	+1.916s	—
5	28	Stefan Johansson	Ferrari	+2.533s	—
6	18	Thierry Boutsen	Arrows	+2.770s	—
7	17	Gerhard Berger	Arrows	+3.016s	—
8	15	Patrick Tambay	Renault	No time	—
9	16	Derek Warwick	Renault	No time	—
10	2	Alain Prost	McLaren	+4.686s	—
11	22	Riccardo Patrese	Alfa Romeo	+7.243s	—
12	9	Philippe Alliot	RAM	+9.606s	—
13	25	Philippe Streiff	Ligier	+10.613s	—
14	23	Eddie Cheever	Alfa Romeo	+10.913s	—
15	7	Nelson Piquet	Brabham	+11.323s	—
16	27	Michele Alboreto	Ferrari	+11.736s	—
17	3	Martin Brundle	Tyrrell	+11.950s	—
18	8	Marc Surer	Brabham	+12.413s	—
19	26	Jacques Laffite	Ligier	+12.870s	—
20	20	Piercarlo Ghinzani	Toleman	+20.120s	—
21	30	Christian Danner	Zakspeed	+22.053s	—
22	19	Teo Fabi	Toleman	+23.540s	—
23	24	Huub Rothengatter	Osella	+42.506s	—

What happened in the 1985 Belgian Grand Prix?

Ayrton Senna took the lead on the wet opening lap while Nelson Piquet spun at La Source. Alain Prost initially gave chase, but the Williams drivers became stronger as the circuit dried. Both Ferraris retired, with Michele Alboreto suffering clutch trouble and Stefan Johansson spinning out.

The switch to slick tyres put Nigel Mansell and Keke Rosberg ahead of Alain Prost. Ayrton Senna maintained control, then increased his advantage when rain returned late in the race. Keke Rosberg needed a brief stop to address a brake problem, allowing Alain Prost back into third.

Ayrton Senna won by 28 seconds from Nigel Mansell, with Alain Prost taking valuable championship points in third. Keke Rosberg finished fourth, followed by the recovering Nelson Piquet and Derek Warwick after Thierry Boutsen lost a points finish to gearbox trouble. Alain Prost left Belgium sixteen points ahead of Michele Alboreto.

After the race, Alain Prost headed the drivers’ standings with 69 points, followed by Michele Alboreto on 53. McLaren – TAG led the constructors’ table on 83, with Ferrari on 77.

1985 Belgian Grand Prix race results

The 1985 Belgian Grand Prix was held on 15 September 1985.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	12	Ayrton Senna	Lotus	43	1:34:19.893	9
2	5	Nigel Mansell	Williams	43	+ 28.422	6
3	2	Alain Prost	McLaren	43	+ 55.109	4
4	6	Keke Rosberg	Williams	43	+ 1:15.290	3
5	7	Nelson Piquet	Brabham	42	+ 1 lap	2
6	16	Derek Warwick	Renault	42	+ 1 lap	1
7	17	Gerhard Berger	Arrows	42	+ 1 lap	0
8	8	Marc Surer	Brabham	42	+ 1 lap	0
9	25	Philippe Streiff	Ligier	42	+ 1 lap	0
10	18	Thierry Boutsen	Arrows	40	Gearbox	0
11	26	Jacques Laffite	Ligier	38	Accident	0
12	29	Pierluigi Martini	Minardi	38	+ 5 laps	0
13	3	Martin Brundle	Tyrrell	38	+ 5 laps	0
NC	24	Huub Rothengatter	Osella	37	+ 6 laps	0
Ret	22	Riccardo Patrese	Alfa Romeo	31	Engine	0
Ret	23	Eddie Cheever	Alfa Romeo	26	Gearbox	0
Ret	15	Patrick Tambay	Renault	24	Gearbox	0
Ret	19	Teo Fabi	Toleman	23	Throttle	0
Ret	11	Elio de Angelis	Lotus	17	Turbo	0
Ret	30	Christian Danner	Zakspeed	16	Gearbox	0
Ret	9	Philippe Alliot	RAM	10	Accident	0
Ret	28	Stefan Johansson	Ferrari	7	Spun off	0
Ret	20	Piercarlo Ghinzani	Toleman	7	Accident	0
Ret	27	Michele Alboreto	Ferrari	3	Clutch	0
DNS	1	Niki Lauda	McLaren		Driver injured	0

1985 Belgian Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time
1	2	Alain Prost	McLaren	38	2:01.730
2	8	Marc Surer	Brabham	42	2:02.266
3	7	Nelson Piquet	Brabham	35	2:02.655
4	6	Keke Rosberg	Williams	40	2:03.363
5	5	Nigel Mansell	Williams	37	2:03.479
6	12	Ayrton Senna	Lotus	40	2:03.700
7	17	Gerhard Berger	Arrows	41	2:04.142
8	25	Philippe Streiff	Ligier	38	2:04.685
9	26	Jacques Laffite	Ligier	35	2:04.835
10	19	Teo Fabi	Toleman	18	2:06.350
11	3	Martin Brundle	Tyrrell	37	2:06.557
12	23	Eddie Cheever	Alfa Romeo	20	2:06.658
13	16	Derek Warwick	Renault	20	2:06.697
14	18	Thierry Boutsen	Arrows	30	2:07.488
15	15	Patrick Tambay	Renault	20	2:07.582
16	22	Riccardo Patrese	Alfa Romeo	18	2:08.113
17	11	Elio de Angelis	Lotus	16	2:09.675
18	30	Christian Danner	Zakspeed	16	2:11.835
19	29	Pierluigi Martini	Minardi	38	2:15.557
20	24	Huub Rothengatter	Osella	32	2:19.005
21	9	Philippe Alliot	RAM	7	2:22.744
22	28	Stefan Johansson	Ferrari	3	2:24.045
23	20	Piercarlo Ghinzani	Toleman	3	2:29.896
24	27	Michele Alboreto	Ferrari	3	2:30.110

Only drivers with a recorded lap time appear. No fastest-lap bonus point was awarded.

1985 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 1985 Belgian Grand Prix.

1985 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Alain Prost	French	McLaren	69
2	Michele Alboreto	Italian	Ferrari	53
3	Ayrton Senna	Brazilian	Lotus	32
4	Elio de Angelis	Italian	Lotus	31
5	Keke Rosberg	Finnish	Williams	21
6	Nelson Piquet	Brazilian	Brabham	21
7	Stefan Johansson	Swedish	Tyrrell / Ferrari	21
8	Niki Lauda	Austrian	McLaren	14
9	Nigel Mansell	British	Williams	13
10	Patrick Tambay	French	Renault	11
11	Jacques Laffite	French	Ligier	10
12	Thierry Boutsen	Belgian	Arrows	9
13	Marc Surer	Swiss	Brabham	5
14	Derek Warwick	British	Renault	5
15	Stefan Bellof	German	Tyrrell	4
16	Andrea de Cesaris	Italian	Ligier	3
17	René Arnoux	French	Ferrari	3
–	Martin Brundle	British	Tyrrell	0
–	Gerhard Berger	Austrian	Arrows	0
–	Riccardo Patrese	Italian	Alfa Romeo	0
–	Eddie Cheever	American	Alfa Romeo	0
–	Philippe Streiff	French	Ligier	0
–	Piercarlo Ghinzani	Italian	Osella / Toleman	0
–	Huub Rothengatter	Dutch	Osella	0
–	Philippe Alliot	French	RAM	0
–	Pierluigi Martini	Italian	Minardi	0
–	Jonathan Palmer	British	Zakspeed	0
–	Manfred Winkelhock	German	RAM	0
–	Teo Fabi	Italian	Toleman	0
–	Kenny Acheson	British	RAM	0
–	Mauro Baldi	Italian	Spirit	0
–	Christian Danner	German	Zakspeed	0
–	François Hesnault	French	Brabham / Renault	0
–	Alan Jones	Australian	Lola	0

1985 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	McLaren – TAG	83
2	Ferrari	77
3	Lotus – Renault	63
4	Williams – Honda	34
5	Brabham – BMW	26
6	Renault	16
7	Ligier – Renault	13
8	Arrows – BMW	9
9	Tyrrell – Ford	4
—	Tyrrell – Renault	0
—	Alfa Romeo	0
—	Osella – Alfa Romeo	0
—	RAM – Hart	0
—	Minardi – Motori Moderni	0
—	Zakspeed	0
—	Toleman – Hart	0
—	Minardi – Ford	0
—	Spirit – Hart	0
—	Lola – Hart	0

Drivers counted their best eleven results; constructors counted every round. The standings here show the position after this race.

1985 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	1985 Brazilian Grand Prix	Jacarepaguá, Rio de Janeiro	7 April
2	1985 Portuguese Grand Prix	Autódromo do Estoril, Estoril	21 April
3	1985 San Marino Grand Prix	Autodromo Dino Ferrari, Imola	5 May
4	1985 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	19 May
5	1985 Canadian Grand Prix	Circuit Gilles-Villeneuve, Montréal	16 June
6	1985 Detroit Grand Prix	Detroit Street Circuit, Detroit, Michigan	23 June
7	1985 French Grand Prix	Circuit Paul Ricard, Le Castellet	7 July
8	1985 British Grand Prix	Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone	21 July
9	1985 German Grand Prix	Hockenheimring, Hockenheim	4 August
10	1985 Austrian Grand Prix	Österreichring, Spielberg	18 August
11	1985 Dutch Grand Prix	Circuit Zandvoort, Zandvoort	25 August
12	1985 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	8 September
13	1985 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	15 September
14	1985 European Grand Prix	Brands Hatch, West Kingsdown	6 October
15	1985 South African Grand Prix	Kyalami, Midrand	19 October
16	1985 Australian Grand Prix	Adelaide Street Circuit, Adelaide	3 November