Grand Prix Gold: Belgium 1977 - Gunnar plays it cool
AUTOSPORT relives the legendary races: Nilsson wins superbly for JPS – Lauda second for Ferrari – Peterson's first points for Tyrrell – poleman Andretti and Watson collide on first lap
Gunnar Nilsson enjoyed the Belgian Grand Prix at Zolder last weekend and he may have been the only one. On a day when the dingy circuit was made even more gloomy by appalling weather, the Swedish JPS Lotus driver scored a magnificent, if somewhat unexpected, victory after taking the lead from Niki Lauda's Ferrari with 20 laps to go. It was one of those wet-dry-wet races where fortunes fluctuate constantly and lap charts are a joke, but Nilsson made no mistakes all afternoon and thoroughly deserved his first grand prix win.
Lauda, after leading for 30 laps, had to be content with second place, being followed in by Ronnie Peterson's Tyrrell P34, the best finish Ronnie has so far achieved for Ken. A good drive by Vittorio Brambilla brought Team Surtees its first points this year, the Italian taking fourth place, ahead of Alan Jones's Shadow and Hans Stuck's Brabham-Alfa Romeo.
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