Formula 1 historical archive

Nelson Piquet won the 1981 Argentine Grand Prix

Nelson Piquet won the 1981 Argentine Grand Prix for Brabham, ahead of Carlos Reutemann and Alain Prost at Autódromo Juan y Oscar Gálvez.

Browse the full classification, related season, driver, team, circuit, and championship history.

Race recap

Winner
Nelson Piquet
Team
Brabham
Top listed
Nelson Piquet, Carlos Reutemann, and Alain Prost
Race date
April 12, 1981
Pole
Nelson Piquet
Fastest lap
Nelson Piquet
Classified drivers
29
Circuit
Autódromo Juan y Oscar Gálvez

The decisive result

Nelson Piquet finished first for Brabham. Carlos Reutemann is listed 2 for Williams, with Alain Prost 3 for Renault.

Grid to finish

Bruno Giacomelli from P22 to P10 (+12), Jan Lammers from P23 to P12 (+11), and Ricardo Zunino from P24 to P13 (+11) recorded the largest positive grid-to-finish changes in the classification. Nelson Piquet started from the listed P1 grid position.

Status and fastest lap

The classification lists 5 DNQ, 5 Finished, 4 +1 lap, 3 +2 laps, and 3 Engine. Nelson Piquet holds the fastest-lap entry at 1:45.287 on lap 6. It records the result without speculating about incidents or strategy.

This summary sticks to the classification and does not speculate about incidents, strategy, weather, or causes. Source: F1DB (CC BY 4.0) · updated Jul 26, 2026.

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Race classification
PosDriverConstructorTime / statusPoints
1Nelson PiquetBrabham1:34:32.7409
2Carlos ReutemannWilliams1:34:59.3506
3Alain ProstRenault1:35:22.7204
4Alan JonesWilliams1:35:40.6203
5René ArnouxRenault1:36:04.5902
6Elio de AngelisTeam Lotus+1 lap1
7Riccardo PatreseArrows+1 lap0
8Mario AndrettiAlfa Romeo+1 lap0
9Siegfried StohrArrows+1 lap0
10Bruno GiacomelliAlfa RomeoOut of fuel0
11Andrea de CesarisMcLaren+2 laps0
12Jan LammersATS Wheels+2 laps0
13Ricardo ZuninoTyrrell+2 laps0
DNFGilles VilleneuveFerrariTransmission0
DNFPatrick TambayTheodoreOil leak0
DNFJohn WatsonMcLarenTransmission0
DNFHéctor RebaqueBrabhamElectrical0
DNFChico SerraFittipaldiGearbox0
DNFJacques LaffiteLigierHandling0
DNFMarc SurerEnsignEngine0