Michael Schumacher's first Formula One victory, the last GP win with an H-pattern manual gearbox, and the race that clinched the 1992 Constructors' Championship for Williams.
Key Facts
- Race winner
- Michael Schumacher (Benetton-Ford)
- Laps
- 44
- Race in championship
- 12th of the 1992 season
- Ferrari's World Championship start
- 500th start as a team
- Last German GP win before this
- Jochen Mass, 1975 Spanish Grand Prix
- Schumacher's eventual GP wins
- 91 (record later eclipsed by Hamilton in 2020)
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
The 1992 Formula One season saw Nigel Mansell dominate in his Williams-Renault, but Benetton-Ford's Michael Schumacher had emerged as a competitive force. Heading into the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps, Mansell had already secured the Drivers' Championship, setting the stage for supporting teams to challenge for race victories.
On 30 August 1992, Schumacher drove his Benetton-Ford to victory over 44 laps at Spa-Francorchamps, defeating Mansell and Riccardo Patrese. The win was the first for a German driver since 1975 and the last Formula One victory recorded with an H-pattern manual gearbox. It was also Ferrari's 500th World Championship start and the final race for the Andrea Moda team.
Schumacher's victory launched a career that would reach 91 Grand Prix wins, a record that stood until 2020 when Lewis Hamilton surpassed it. Williams secured the Constructors' Championship with Mansell and Patrese finishing second and third. The race marked a technological turning point as H-pattern manual gearboxes disappeared from Formula One competition.