Gunnar Nilsson's only Formula One victory, achieved at Zolder in 1977 before his death from cancer in 1978.
Key Facts
- Race distance
- 70 laps
- Winner
- Gunnar Nilsson (Lotus-Ford)
- Second place
- Niki Lauda (Ferrari)
- Third place
- Ronnie Peterson (Tyrrell-Ford)
- Championship round
- 7th race of 1977 F1 season
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
The 1977 Formula One World Championship season was underway, with the seventh round scheduled at the Zolder circuit in Belgium on 5 June 1977. Gunnar Nilsson, driving for the Lotus-Ford team, was competing among a field that included Ferrari's Niki Lauda and fellow Swede Ronnie Peterson in the experimental six-wheeled Tyrrell-Ford.
Gunnar Nilsson won the 70-lap Belgian Grand Prix at Zolder, defeating Niki Lauda in second place and Ronnie Peterson in third. The race was part of both the 1977 World Championship of F1 Drivers and the 1977 International Cup for F1 Constructors, marking Nilsson's sole victory in Formula One.
Nilsson's Belgian Grand Prix win proved to be his only Formula One victory. His career was cut short when he was diagnosed with cancer, and he died in October 1978. The race also featured Peterson's notable third-place finish in the unconventional six-wheeled Tyrrell-Ford, a design that was ultimately banned from the sport.