– On September 2, 2001, Michael Schumacher surpassed Alain Prost’s record of 51 Formula 1 wins when he won the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps. Prost had held the record since 1987, when he equaled Jackie Stewart’s mark of 27 wins, and from then until his retirement in 1993 won almost as many races again.
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Schumacher won his fourth world championship in 2001. His victory at the Hungarian Grand Prix meant that he equaled Prost both in wins and titles, securing the crown that year with 94 points compared to David Coulthard’s 51.
Prost knew that his time as the most successful driver in Formula 1 history – in terms of wins – was coming to an end, and he was at peace with it. “He deserves this record,” the Frenchman said about Schumacher at the time.
“I know he was very motivated to reach this record, which is understandable. You can’t win more than 50 races if you’re not good, and he is currently the best, one of the best of all time, and he deserves to hold this record,” said Prost.
Schumacher proved his talent again at Spa-Francorchamps, although he was “only” third after qualifying on a drying track. Williams secured the front row, with Juan Pablo Montoya and Ralf Schumacher about two seconds faster after switching to dry tires earlier than their rivals.
Spectacle at Spa
But the incident-filled race immediately took a bad turn for Williams, as Montoya stalled his car before the second formation lap (after Heinz-Harald Frentzen had suffered the same fate earlier), while Ralf Schumacher’s car was inexplicably left on its jacks before the second start.
This second start followed a severe accident involving Prost’s Luciano Burti after a collision with Jaguar driver Eddie Irvine in the high-speed Blanchimont corner. The Brazilian was out for the rest of the season with a concussion.
Although these first four laps were declared null and void – so they officially never existed – the second starting grid was based on the classification at the end of the first race phase, placing the Schumachers on the front row until the Williams mechanics’ error took Ralf out of the fight for victory and both FW23s ended up at the back of the field.
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Photo gallery: Michael Schumacher: The Ferrari Years
From then on, “Schumi” was unbeatable, although supported by Benetton’s Giancarlo Fisichella, who stormed from fifth to second and slowed the other leaders. The newly crowned four-time champion built a 20-second lead by lap nine, when he made his first pit stop.
Schumacher maintained this pace and extended his advantage to 31 seconds over McLaren’s David Coulthard, who finally found a way past Fisichella on lap 28 – with only eight laps remaining. Despite a mistake on lap 17, when the Ferrari driver went off track at Stavelot, “Schumi” was unstoppable for the win.
Prost pays tribute to Schumacher
He took it easy at the end and crossed the finish line ten seconds ahead of Coulthard, who finished second in the championship, while Fisichella was another 18 seconds behind and Williams narrowly missed out on points. Thus, Schumacher broke Prost’s record in style, although he emphasized that it did not mean too much to him.
“I can’t say that statistics motivate me much,” he said, “but of course it means something to have that number on my account. But I will enjoy it more in a few years when I sit on my sofa with a beer and a cigar and think about it.”
Meanwhile, Prost reiterated how impressed he was with the driver who had now statistically caught up with him. “I know better than anyone how hard it is to become world champion, and how very hard it is to become a four-time world champion,” the Frenchman insisted.
“Michael has the qualities, with his talents, concentration, and motivation to be successful. That’s why I believe he can become a five- or even six-time world champion. He and Ferrari are now a great force. I don’t know if he can win 60 or 70 races, but there is no reason why not,” said Prost.
Schumacher later set a mark of 91 wins, which seemed untouchable for a long time – until Lewis Hamilton and Max Verstappen began rewriting the record books.
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