Formula 1 historical archive

Damon Hill won the 1996 French Grand Prix

Damon Hill won the 1996 French Grand Prix for Williams, ahead of Jacques Villeneuve and Jean Alesi at Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours.

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

Race recap

Winner
Damon Hill
Team
Williams
Top listed
Damon Hill, Jacques Villeneuve, and Jean Alesi
Race date
June 30, 1996
Pole
Not available
Fastest lap
Jacques Villeneuve
Classified drivers
22
Circuit
Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours

The decisive result

Damon Hill finished first for Williams. Jacques Villeneuve is listed 2 for Williams, with Jean Alesi 3 for Benetton.

Grid to finish

Ricardo Rosset from P19 to P11 (+8), Pedro Lamy from P18 to P12 (+6), and Jacques Villeneuve from P6 to P2 (+4) recorded the largest positive grid-to-finish changes in the classification.

Status and fastest lap

The classification lists 5 Finished, 4 +1 lap, 3 Engine, 2 +3 laps, and 1 +2 laps. Jacques Villeneuve holds the fastest-lap entry at 1:18.610 on lap 48. 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
1Damon HillWilliams1:36:28.79510
2Jacques VilleneuveWilliams1:36:36.9226
3Jean AlesiBenetton1:37:15.2374
4Gerhard BergerBenetton1:37:15.6543
5Mika HäkkinenMcLaren1:37:31.5692
6David CoulthardMcLaren+1 lap1
7Olivier PanisLigier+1 lap0
8Martin BrundleJordan+1 lap0
9Rubens BarrichelloJordan+1 lap0
10Mika SaloTyrrell+2 laps0
11Ricardo RossetFootwork+3 laps0
12Pedro LamyMinardi+3 laps0
DNFHeinz-Harald FrentzenSauberThrottle0
DNFUkyo KatayamaTyrrellEngine0
DNFLuca BadoerFortiFuel system0
DNFPedro DinizLigierEngine0
DNFJos VerstappenFootworkSuspension0
DNFEddie IrvineFerrariGearbox0
DNFGiancarlo FisichellaMinardiFuel pump0
DNFAndrea MonterminiFortiElectrical0