1997 Belgian Grand Prix
609th World Championship race, 44th World Championship Belgian Grand Prix, 32nd World Championship race at Spa-Francorchamps
Fact File
| Date: | Sunday, 24 August 1997 |
|---|---|
| Winner: |  Michael Schumacher  Ferrari |
| Pole position: |  Jacques Villeneuve  Williams-Renault |
| Fastest lap: | Jacques Villeneuve Williams-Renault |
| Circuit: | Spa-Francorchamps, 44 laps |
| Round: | 12 of 17 |
Race Result
| Pos | Driver | Constructor | Laps | Time | Points | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | +2 | Michael Schumacher | Ferrari | 44 | 1hr 33m 46.717s | 10 |
| 2 | +2 | Giancarlo Fisichella | Jordan-Peugeot | 44 | +26.753s | 6 |
| DQ |  Mika Hakkinen | McLaren-Mercedes | 44 | +30.856s | ||
| 3 | +4 | Heinz-Harald Frentzen | Williams-Renault | 44 | +32.147s | 4 |
| 4 | +7 | Johnny Herbert | Sauber-Petronas | 44 | +39.025s | 3 |
| 5 | -4 | Jacques Villeneuve | Williams-Renault | 44 | +42.103s | 2 |
| 6 | +9 |  Gerhard Berger | Benetton-Renault | 44 | +1m 03.741s | 1 |
| 7 | +1 |  Pedro Diniz | Arrows-Yamaha | 44 | +1m 25.931s | |
| 8 | -6 |  Jean Alesi | Benetton-Renault | 44 | +1m 42.008s | |
| 9 | +4 | Gianni Morbidelli | Sauber-Petronas | 44 | +1m 42.582s | |
| 10 | +7 | Eddie Irvine | Ferrari | 43 | DNF | |
| 11 | +8 | Mika Salo | Tyrrell-Ford Cosworth | 43 | +1 lap | |
| 12 | +6 |  Jan Magnussen | Stewart-Ford Cosworth | 43 | +1 lap | |
| 13 | -4 | Damon Hill | Arrows-Yamaha | 42 | DNF | |
| 14 | +6 |  Ukyo Katayama | Minardi-Hart | 42 | DNF | |
| 15 | PL | Jarno Trulli | Prost-Mugen-Honda | 42 | +2 laps | |
| R |  Jos Verstappen | Tyrrell-Ford Cosworth | 25 | DNF | ||
| R | Ralf Schumacher | Jordan-Peugeot | 21 | DNF | ||
| R | David Coulthard | McLaren-Mercedes | 19 | DNF | ||
| R | Tarso Marques | Minardi-Hart | 18 | DNF | ||
| R | Rubens Barrichello | Stewart-Ford Cosworth | 8 | DNF | ||
| R | Shinji Nakano | Prost-Mugen-Honda | 5 | DNF |
- Mika Hakkinen was disqualified post-race for a fuel irregularity.
Starting Grid
- Highlight: race winner
- Highlight: second place
- Highlight: third place
| Pos | Driver | Constructor | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jacques Villeneuve | Williams-Renault | 1:49.450 |
| 2 | Jean Alesi | Benetton-Renault | 1:49.759 |
| 3 | Michael Schumacher | Ferrari | 1:50.293 |
| 4 | Giancarlo Fisichella | Jordan-Peugeot | 1:50.470 |
| 5 | Mika Hakkinen | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:50.503 |
| 6 | |||
| 7 | Heinz-Harald Frentzen | Williams-Renault | 1:50.656 |
| 8 | Pedro Diniz | Arrows-Yamaha | 1:50.853 |
| 9 | Damon Hill | Arrows-Yamaha | 1:50.970 |
| 10 | David Coulthard | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:51.410 |
| 11 | Johnny Herbert | Sauber-Petronas | 1:51.725 |
| 12 | Rubens Barrichello | Stewart-Ford Cosworth | 1:51.916 |
| 13 | Gianni Morbidelli | Sauber-Petronas | 1:52.094 |
| 14 | |||
| 15 | Gerhard Berger | Benetton-Renault | 1:52.391 |
| 16 | Shinji Nakano | Prost-Mugen-Honda | 1:52.749 |
| 17 | Eddie Irvine | Ferrari | 1:52.793 |
| 18 | Jan Magnussen | Stewart-Ford Cosworth | 1:52.886 |
| 19 | Mika Salo | Tyrrell-Ford Cosworth | 1:52.897 |
| 20 | Ukyo Katayama | Minardi-Hart | 1:53.544 |
| 21 | Jos Verstappen | Tyrrell-Ford Cosworth | 1:53.725 |
| 22 | Tarso Marques | Minardi-Hart | 1:54.505 |
| Started from the pit lane | |||
| Ralf Schumacher | Jordan-Peugeot | 1:50.520 | |
| Jarno Trulli | Prost-Mugen-Honda | 1:52.274 | |
Qualifying Result
| Pos | Driver | Constructor | Time | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jacques Villeneuve | Williams-Renault | 1:49.450 | |
| 2 | Jean Alesi | Benetton-Renault | 1:49.759 | 0.309 |
| 3 | Michael Schumacher | Ferrari | 1:50.293 | 0.843 |
| 4 | Giancarlo Fisichella | Jordan-Peugeot | 1:50.470 | 1.020 |
| 5 | Mika Hakkinen | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:50.503 | 1.053 |
| 6 | Ralf Schumacher | Jordan-Peugeot | 1:50.520 | 1.070 |
| 7 | Heinz-Harald Frentzen | Williams-Renault | 1:50.656 | 1.206 |
| 8 | Pedro Diniz | Arrows-Yamaha | 1:50.853 | 1.403 |
| 9 | Damon Hill | Arrows-Yamaha | 1:50.970 | 1.520 |
| 10 | David Coulthard | McLaren-Mercedes | 1:51.410 | 1.960 |
| 11 | Johnny Herbert | Sauber-Petronas | 1:51.725 | 2.275 |
| 12 | Rubens Barrichello | Stewart-Ford Cosworth | 1:51.916 | 2.466 |
| 13 | Gianni Morbidelli | Sauber-Petronas | 1:52.094 | 2.644 |
| 14 | Jarno Trulli | Prost-Mugen-Honda | 1:52.274 | 2.824 |
| 15 | Gerhard Berger | Benetton-Renault | 1:52.391 | 2.941 |
| 16 | Shinji Nakano | Prost-Mugen-Honda | 1:52.749 | 3.299 |
| 17 | Eddie Irvine | Ferrari | 1:52.793 | 3.343 |
| 18 | Jan Magnussen | Stewart-Ford Cosworth | 1:52.886 | 3.436 |
| 19 | Mika Salo | Tyrrell-Ford Cosworth | 1:52.897 | 3.447 |
| 20 | Ukyo Katayama | Minardi-Hart | 1:53.544 | 4.094 |
| 21 | Jos Verstappen | Tyrrell-Ford Cosworth | 1:53.725 | 4.275 |
| 22 | Tarso Marques | Minardi-Hart | 1:54.505 | 5.055 |
Championship Standings
How the championship standings stood post-race.
Driver
| Pos | Driver | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Michael Schumacher | 66 |
| 2 | Jacques Villeneuve | 55 |
| 3 | Heinz-Harald Frentzen | 23 |
| 4 | Jean Alesi | 22 |
| 5 | Gerhard Berger | 21 |
| 6 | Eddie Irvine | 18 |
| 7 | Olivier Panis | 15 |
| 8 | David Coulthard | 14 |
| 9 | Giancarlo Fisichella | 14 |
| 10 | Mika Hakkinen | 14 |
| 11 | Johnny Herbert | 14 |
| 12 | Ralf Schumacher | 11 |
| 13 | Damon Hill | 7 |
| 14 | Rubens Barrichello | 6 |
| 15 | Alexander Wurz | 4 |
| 16 | Jarno Trulli | 3 |
| 17 | Mika Salo | 2 |
| 18 | Shinji Nakano | 2 |
| 19 | Nicola Larini | 1 |
Statistics & Milestones
- Wins
- Driver: 26th for Michael Schumacher
- Constructor: 112th for Ferrari
- Podiums
- Driver: 53rd for Michael Schumacher, 4th for Heinz-Harald Frentzen, 2nd for Giancarlo Fisichella
- Constructor: 398th for Ferrari, 235th for Williams, 6th for Jordan
- Poles
- Driver: 10th for Jacques Villeneuve
- Constructor: 105th for Williams
- Fastest laps
- Driver: 8th for Jacques Villeneuve
- Constructor: 106th for Williams
- Front row starts
- Driver: 18th for Jacques Villeneuve, 7th for Jean Alesi