In 1987, de Cesaris switched to Brabham-BMW. With the Bernie Ecclestone-owned team he was able to achieve better results, even though he mostly failed to match his teammate Riccardo Patrese. At the 1987 Belgian Grand Prix at Spa, Belgium, de Cesaris placed third behind Alain Prost and Stefan Johansson, his first points in nearly two years and his first podium finish since the final round of the 1983 season in South Africa. He would not finish another race that season.