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1981 BRDC International Trophy
The 33rd BRDC International Trophy was a Formula Two motor race held at Silverstone on 29 March 1981. It was the opening race of the 1981 European Formula Two Championship.
| 1981 BRDC International Trophy Grand Prix | |
|---|---|
| 29 March 1981 | |
| 33rd BRDC International Trophy | |
| Silverstone Circuit, Northamptonshire, Great Britain | |
| Permanent racing facility | |
| 4.719 km (2.932 miles) | |
| 47 laps, 221.793 km (137.804 miles) | |
| Rain | |
| .mw-parser-output .plainlist ol,.mw-parser-output .plainlist ul{line-height:inherit;list-style:none;margin:0;padding:0}.mw-parser-output .plainlist ol li,.mw-parser-output .plainlist ul li{margin-bottom:0} Mike Thackwell | Ralt-Honda |
| 1:18.59 | |
| Geoff Lees | Ralt-Honda |
| 1:22.82 | |
| Mike Thackwell | Ralt-Honda |
| Riccardo Paletti | March-BMW |
| Corrado Fabi | March-BMW |
The 33rd BRDC International Trophy was a Formula Two motor race held at Silverstone on 29 March 1981. It was the opening race of the 1981 European Formula Two Championship.
The 47-lap race was won by New Zealander Mike Thackwell, driving a works Ralt-Honda. Italian Riccardo Paletti finished second in a March-BMW entered by Onyx Race Engineering, with another Italian, Corrado Fabi, third in a works March-BMW.
A total of 46 F2 cars were entered for the event, however just 31 took part in qualifying.
Mike Thackwell took pole position for Ralt Racing Ltd, in their Ralt-Honda RH6/81, averaging a speed of 133.59 mph.
The race was held over 47 laps on a wet Silverstone Grand Prix circuit. Mike Thackwell took the winner spoils for works Ralt team, driving their Ralt-Honda RH6/81. Thackwell won in a time of 1hr 11:44.67mins., averaging a speed of 115.23 mph. Over 30 seconds behind was the second place car, driven by Riccardo Paletti, in the March Onyx Racing Team’s March-BMW 812. The podium was completed by another Italian, Corrado Fabi, in his Roloil Marlboro Racing/March Racing Ltd-entered March-BMW 812, albeit one lap adrift.
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Entrant | Car - Engine | Laps | Time/Retired |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 15 | Mike Thackwell | Ralt Racing Ltd | Ralt-Honda RH6/81 | 47 | 1:11:44.67 | |
| 7 | Riccardo Paletti | March Onyx Racing Team | March-BMW 812 | 47 | + 36.19 | |
| 3 | Corrado Fabi | Roloil Marlboro Racing/March Racing Ltd | March-BMW 812 | 46 | + 1 lap | |
| 77 | Jim Crawford | Plygrange Racing Ltd | Toleman-Hart TG280 | 46 | + 1 lap | |
| 12 | Carlo Rossi | Sanremo Racing Srl | Toleman-Hart TG280 | 46 | + 1 lap | |
| 48 | Brian Robinson | Grange Performance Cars | Chevron-Hart B42 | 46 | + 1 lap | |
| 14 | Geoff Lees | Ralt Racing Ltd | Ralt-Honda RH6/81 | 45 | + 2 laps | |
| 36 | Ray Mallock | Cliff Smith Racing | Ralt-Hart RT4 | 45 | + 2 laps | |
| 1 | Stefan Johansson | Docking Spitzley Team Toleman | Lola-Hart T850 | 45 | + 2 laps | |
| 5 | Christian Danner | March Racing Ltd | March-BMW 812 | 45 | + 2 laps | |
| 10 | Michele Alboreto | Minardi Team | Minardi Fly-BMW 281 | 45 | + 2 laps | |
| 24 | Jürg Lienhard | Lista Racing Team | March-BMW 802 | 45 | + 2 laps | |
| 27 | Sewi Hopfer | Sewi Hopfer Racing | Toleman-Hart TG280 | 44 | + 3 laps | |
| 9 | Johnny Cecotto | Minardi Team | Minardi Fly-BMW 281 | 44 | + 3 laps | |
| 18 | Fredy Schnarwiler | Formel Rennsport Club | Lola-BMW T850 | 43 | + 4 laps | |
| 29 | Warren Booth | Colin Bennett Racing | Chevron-Hart B48 | 43 | + 4 laps | |
| 28 | Guido Daccò | DAC Sport Racing Team | Minardi-BMW GM75 | 42 | + 5 laps | |
| 16 | Eje Elgh | Maurer Motorsport | Maurer-BMW MM81 | 42 | + 5 laps | |
| 2 | Kenny Acheson | Docking Spitzley Team Toleman | Lola-Hart T850 | 41 | + 6 laps | |
| 20 | 'Gianfranco' | Astra Team Merzario Srl | March-BMW 812 | 39 | + 8 laps | |
| 4 | Thierry Boutsen | Marlboro Racing for Zolder/March Racing Ltd | March-BMW 812 | 36 | Spin/gearbox | |
| 11 | Guido Pardini | Sanremo Racing Srl | Lola-BMW T850 | 24 | Crown wheel & pinion | |
| 31 | Kim Mather | Kim Mather | March-Hart 792 | 24 | Wheel bearing | |
| 17 | Roberto Guerrero | Maurer Motorsport | Maurer-BMW MM81 | 21 | Electrical | |
| 8 | Richard Dallest | Team AGS Motul GPA | AGS-BMW JH17 | 8 | Accident | |
| 40 | Paul Smith | BMTR | March-Hart 782 | 8 | Engine | |
| 19 | Piero Necchi | Astra Team Merzario Srl | March-BMW 812 | |||
| 35 | Jochen Dauer | GRS Motorsport | GRS-BMW TC 001 | |||
| 21 | Arturo Merzario | Astra Team Merzario Srl | Merzario-BMW M1 | |||
| 33 | Roy Baker | Roy Baker | Chevron-Hart B48 | |||
| 46 | Bob Howlings | Bob Howlings | Chevron-Hart B42 |
- Fastest lap: Geoff Lees, 1:22.82 secs (125.94 mph)
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