# 1951 Belgian Grand Prix

The 1951 Belgian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 17 June 1951 at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps. It was race 3 of 8 in the 1951 World Championship of Drivers

## Report

Despite there being just 13 starters, representing three makes of car, the race attracted a record crowd. There were a further three entries, including two Maseratis, which did not attend the event. Juan Manuel Fangio had a new suspension with special wheels, which had to be concave to make room for the brake drums. These proved an expensive novelty. At his first pit stop, they jammed and his stop lasted over 14 minutes. Giuseppe Farina's Alfa Romeo dominated, holding off the Ferraris of Alberto Ascari and Luigi Villoresi. A quick stop of 39 seconds for wheel change and refuelling preserved his lead until the finish.
This would eventually prove to be the only Grand Prix in Fangio's entire Formula 1 career, barring retirements, that he finished outside of the top four. He scored a point for posting the fastest lap of the race, which meant that despite having finished in ninth place (only the top five finishers scored points), he kept his record of scoring points in every single race he finished.

## Entries

| No | Driver | Entrant | Constructor | Chassis | Engine | Tyre |
| 2 | Juan Manuel Fangio | Alfa Romeo SpA | Alfa Romeo | Alfa Romeo 159B | Alfa Romeo 1.5 L8s | P |
| 4 | Nino Farina | Alfa Romeo SpA | Alfa Romeo | Alfa Romeo 159A | Alfa Romeo 1.5 L8s | P |
| 6 | Consalvo Sanesi | Alfa Romeo SpA | Alfa Romeo | Alfa Romeo 159 | Alfa Romeo 1.5 L8s | P |
| 8 | Alberto Ascari | Scuderia Ferrari | Ferrari | Ferrari 375 | Ferrari Type 375 4.5 V12 | P |
| 10 | Luigi Villoresi | Scuderia Ferrari | Ferrari | Ferrari 375 | Ferrari Type 375 4.5 V12 | P |
| 12 | Piero Taruffi | Scuderia Ferrari | Ferrari | Ferrari 375 | Ferrari Type 375 4.5 V12 | P |
| 14 | Louis Rosier | Ecurie Rosier | Talbot-Lago | Talbot-Lago T26C-DA | Talbot 23CV 4.5 L6 | D |
| 16 | Johnny Claes | Ecurie Belge | Talbot-Lago | Talbot-Lago T26C-DA | Talbot 23CV 4.5 L6 | D |
| 18 | Louis Chiron | Ecurie Rosier | Talbot-Lago | Talbot-Lago T26C | Talbot 23CV 4.5 L6 | D |
| 20 | Philippe Étancelin | Philippe Étancelin | Talbot-Lago | Talbot-Lago T26C-DA | Talbot 23CV 4.5 L6 | D |
| 22 | Yves Giraud-Cabantous | Yves Giraud-Cabantous | Talbot-Lago | Talbot-Lago T26C | Talbot 23CV 4.5 L6 | D |
| 24 | André Pilette | Ecurie Belgique | Talbot-Lago | Talbot-Lago T26C | Talbot 23CV 4.5 L6 | E |
| 26 | Pierre Levegh | Pierre Levegh | Talbot-Lago | Talbot-Lago T26C | Talbot 23CV 4.5 L6 | D |
| 28 | Prince Bira | Ecurie Siam | Maserati-OSCA | Maserati 4CLT-48 | OSCA V12 | P |
| 30 | José Froilán González | Enrico Platé | Maserati | Maserati 4CLT-48 | Maserati 4 CL 1.5 L4s | P |
| 32 | Reg Parnell | G. A. Vandervell | Ferrari | Ferrari 375 tw | Ferrari Type 375 4.5 V12 | P |
| Sources: |||||||

## Classification
### Qualifying

| Pos | No | Driver | Constructor | Time | Gap |
| 1 | 2 | Juan Manuel Fangio | Alfa Romeo | 4:25 | – |
| 2 | 4 | Nino Farina | Alfa Romeo | 4:28 | + 3 |
| 3 | 10 | Luigi Villoresi | Ferrari | 4:29 | + 4 |
| 4 | 8 | Alberto Ascari | Ferrari | 4:30 | + 5 |
| 5 | 12 | Piero Taruffi | Ferrari | 4:32 | + 7 |
| 6 | 6 | Consalvo Sanesi | Alfa Romeo | 4:36 | + 11 |
| 7 | 14 | Louis Rosier | Talbot-Lago-Talbot | 4:45 | + 20 |
| 8 | 22 | Yves Giraud-Cabantous | Talbot-Lago-Talbot | 4:52 | + 27 |
| 9 | 18 | Louis Chiron | Talbot-Lago-Talbot | 5:01 | + 36 |
| 10 | 20 | Philippe Étancelin | Talbot-Lago-Talbot | 5:04 | + 39 |
| 11 | 16 | Johnny Claes | Talbot-Lago-Talbot | 5:09 | + 44 |
| 12 | 24 | André Pilette | Talbot-Lago-Talbot | 5:16 | + 51 |
| 13 | 26 | Pierre Levegh | Talbot-Lago-Talbot | 5:17 | + 52 |
| DNA | 28 | Prince Bira | Maserati | – | – |
| DNA | 30 | José Froilán González | Maserati | – | – |
| DNA | 32 | Reg Parnell | Ferrari | – | – |
| Source: ||||||

### Race

| Pos | No | Driver | Constructor | Laps | Time/Retired | Grid | Points |
| 1 | 4 | Nino Farina | Alfa Romeo | 36 | 2:45:46.2 | 2 | 8 |
| 2 | 8 | Alberto Ascari | Ferrari | 36 | + 2:51.0 | 4 | 6 |
| 3 | 10 | Luigi Villoresi | Ferrari | 36 | + 4:21.9 | 3 | 4 |
| 4 | 14 | Louis Rosier | Talbot-Lago-Talbot | 34 | + 2 Laps | 7 | 3 |
| 5 | 22 | Yves Giraud-Cabantous | Talbot-Lago-Talbot | 34 | + 2 Laps | 8 | 2 |
| 6 | 24 | André Pilette | Talbot-Lago-Talbot | 33 | + 3 Laps | 12 | |
| 7 | 16 | Johnny Claes | Talbot-Lago-Talbot | 33 | + 3 Laps | 11 | |
| 8 | 26 | Pierre Levegh | Talbot-Lago-Talbot | 32 | + 4 Laps | 13 | |
| 9 | 2 | Juan Manuel Fangio | Alfa Romeo | 32 | + 4 Laps | 1 | 1 |
| Ret | 18 | Louis Chiron | Talbot-Lago-Talbot | 28 | Engine | 9 | |
| Ret | 6 | Consalvo Sanesi | Alfa Romeo | 11 | Radiator | 6 | |
| Ret | 12 | Piero Taruffi | Ferrari | 8 | Transmission | 5 | |
| Ret | 20 | Philippe Étancelin | Talbot-Lago-Talbot | 0 | Transmission | 10 | |
| Source: ||||||||

#### Notes

* ^1 – 1 point for fastest lap

## Championship standings after the race
### Drivers' Championship standings

| | Pos | Driver | Points |
| 4 | 1 | Nino Farina | 12 |
| 1 | 2 | Juan Manuel Fangio | 10 |
| 1 | 3 | Lee Wallard | 9 |
| 8 | 4 | Alberto Ascari | 6 |
| 2 | 5 | Piero Taruffi | 6 |
| Source: ||||
* Note: Only the top five positions are listed. Only the best 4 results counted towards the Championship.