Formula 1 1981 Spanish GP - The Train of Champions: Villeneuve's Spectacular Win - F1 Highlights

Jacques Laffite’s afternoon at Jarama began in the worst possible way. Starting from pole, his Ligier hesitated badly off the line and was swallowed by the pack, emerging from the opening corner down in twelfth place.

Note: I apologize for the constant interruptions in the video.

Alan Jones launched perfectly to take the lead for Williams, ahead of Carlos Reutemann, while Gilles Villeneuve produced a spectacular opening lap, charging from seventh to third. In the process, the Ferrari driver forced his way past Alain Prost, damaging the Renault’s front wing and sending Prost to the pits at the end of lap one. Moments later, Villeneuve caught Reutemann unaware and swept around the outside to claim second.

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Although Jones built a clear advantage, Villeneuve was already struggling with heavy tyre wear on his Michelins compared to the Goodyears around him. The race appeared under Williams’ control, especially with Reutemann bottled up behind the Ferrari and Nelson Piquet stuck further back. Then, without warning, Jones spun off on lap 14. He rejoined outside the points, throwing away a near-certain victory.

Laffite, meanwhile, began an impressive recovery, carving through the field and gaining further ground when Piquet and Mario Andretti collided, eliminating the Brabham and delaying the Alfa Romeo. By mid-race, Villeneuve astonishingly still led, though Reutemann was hindered by gear selection problems. Laffite soon passed both John Watson and Reutemann, closing rapidly on the Ferrari. Before long, Villeneuve headed a tightly packed group of five cars, including Elio de Angelis, all trapped behind the slower Ferrari through Jarama’s twisting sections, despite its turbo advantage on the straights.

Even as Reutemann dropped back with worsening gearbox trouble, the top five remained covered by barely a second. Against expectations, Villeneuve resisted every attack and crossed the line first, with the leading group separated by just 1.24 seconds — one of the closest finishes Formula One had ever seen. Nigel Mansell finished a distant sixth, ahead of a hard-charging but unrewarded Jones in seventh.

The victory brought Villeneuve firmly into the title fight, moving him to within one point of Piquet and three of Jones, while Reutemann, fourth in Spain, still led the championship comfortably.

Race Moments:
0:00 - Formation Lap
3:15 - Race Start
4:45 - Villeneuve Overtakes Reutemann from Outside
15:10 - Jones Opens a Gap
21:32 - Jones Spins Off the Track
28:22 - Reutemann Closes on Villeneuve
41:58 - Prost Spins Off
1:02:21 - Piquet Retires
1:23:17 - Reutemann and Laffite Pressuring Villeneuve
1:33:48 - Villeneuve's Train Continues
1:49:55 - Villeneuve Wins
1:54:38 - Podium

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Watch the other races from this incredible 1981 season:
👉Non-Championship South Africa GP:    • Formula 1 1981 South African GP - Formula ...  
👉Round 1 - USA West GP:    • Formula 1 1981 USA West GP - Politics, Cra...  
👉Round 2 - Brazilian GP:    • Formula 1 1981 Brazilian GP - The Race Tha...  
👉Round 3 - Argentine GP:    • Formula 1 1981 Argentine GP - Piquet’s Sta...  
👉Round 4 - San Marino GP:    • Formula 1 1981 San Marino GP - Piquet’s Ch...  
👉Round 5 - Belgian GP:    • Formula 1 1981 Belgian GP - Tragedy, Chaos...  

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