The lead-up to the event was dominated by news regarding the Jordan team. Regular driver Bertrand Gachot was unable to compete as he was serving a two-month prison sentence in England following an altercation with a taxi driver in London. To fill the vacancy, Jordan signed young German driver Michael Schumacher. In other driver movements, Johnny Herbert returned to the Lotus team after missing two rounds due to Formula 3000 obligations in Japan.
Michael Schumacher produced a notable performance during his first Grand Prix weekend. Driving the Jordan 191—a midfield car he had only tested for half a day—Schumacher qualified in seventh position. This result matched Jordan's best grid position of the season and saw the debutant outqualify his veteran teammate, Andrea de Cesaris. Schumacher’s qualifying effort was achieved at a circuit where he had never previously raced.
The Friday morning pre-qualifying session was led by the Brabham team, with Martin Brundle finishing 1.5 seconds ahead of teammate Mark Blundell. Olivier Grouillard and Alex Caffi also successfully pre-qualified. Notable failures to progress included Michele Alboreto and Gabriele Tarquini, the latter of whom suffered a significant accident during the session.
In the main qualifying sessions, Ayrton Senna secured pole position. Riccardo Patrese originally qualified second, but his Saturday times were deleted after officials discovered his Williams lacked a reverse gear, a violation of safety regulations. This promoted Alain Prost to second on the grid, followed by Nigel Mansell, Gerhard Berger, and Jean Alesi.
Ayrton Senna maintained the lead at the start, followed by Alain Prost and Nigel Mansell. Michael Schumacher's race ended almost immediately when his clutch failed shortly after Eau Rouge on the opening lap. On lap 3, Prost retired when his Ferrari caught fire, elevating Mansell to second.
Mansell and Senna engaged in a close battle until the first round of pit stops. A slow stop for Senna allowed Mansell to take the lead on lap 17 after the Briton overtook Gerhard Berger at Les Fagnes. However, Mansell’s championship hopes suffered a setback on lap 22 when his car stopped due to electronic problems.
Jean Alesi took the lead following Mansell's retirement, attempting to finish the race without a pit stop. His lead lasted until lap 30, when his engine expired. This returned Senna to the lead, though the Brazilian was struggling with severe gearbox issues. Behind him, Andrea de Cesaris moved into second place for Jordan after overtaking Nelson Piquet at Les Combes on lap 31.
In the closing stages, de Cesaris was on course for Jordan's first podium until his engine failed three laps from the finish. Senna managed to nurse his car to the finish line to win, followed by Gerhard Berger in second. Nelson Piquet finished third, securing the final podium of his Formula One career. Roberto Moreno finished fourth, while Riccardo Patrese took fifth. Mark Blundell finished sixth, scoring Brabham's first point of the 1991 season.
The victory allowed Ayrton Senna to reach 71 points in the standings, 22 points ahead of Nigel Mansell with five races remaining in the schedule. The race also saw Olivier Grouillard and the Fondmetal team record their first finish of the 1991 season. Mark Blundell's sixth-place finish represented Brabham's best result since the 1990 United States Grand Prix.
Gallery · 1 related image
