Motor Racing Roundup : Senna Leaves Belgian Grand Prix Field Awash

World champion Ayrton Senna of Brazil won the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa-Francorchamps Sunday, narrowing the gap in the world standings on McLaren teammate Alain Prost of France. Prost finished second.

Nigel Mansell of Britain finished third, only yards behind Prost. Hometown favorite Thierry Boutsen finished fourth in a race that was affected by rain and a wet track throughout.

Leading from start to finish in the 190-mile race, Senna won in 1 hour 40 minutes 54.196 seconds, 1.304 seconds ahead of Prost. Mansell trailed by 1.824 seconds.

In the standings for the world championship, Senna, with 51 points, trails Prost by 11. Mansell has 38. It was Senna’s fifth victory this season and his second in a row in Belgium.

While Senna led, Prost and Mansell battled for second place throughout the late part of the race. But Prost never allowed Mansell to get through, despite the Briton’s many attempts to pass.

When he got close to Prost, Mansell said he often “could not see anything at all” because of the water coming from Prost’s tires.

Alessandro Nannini of Italy finished fifth, driving a Benetton Ford, and Briton Derek Warwick drove his Arrows Ford to sixth place.

Senna got off to a fast start, leaving all opposition in the dense spray that hung between the pines lining the hilly circuit. It reduced visibility to nearly zero at some stages. The wetness “was bad for me, but it was worse for those who came behind,” Senna said.

Senna steadily moved away from the pack and led by 15 seconds after as many laps. From then on he controlled the race from the front, making sure no one got close.

The race had to be delayed 30 minutes after rain resulted in parts of the circuit being covered with mud.

The two McLaren Hondas set the pace from the start, trailed at first by the two Ferraris of Austrian Gerhard Berger and Mansell. The Williams Renaults of Boutsen and Italian Ricardo Patrese followed.

Berger spun off the slippery track on the seventh lap. The Austrian has been unable to finish a Grand Prix in 11 attempts this season.

Mikael Ericsson of Sweden, with co-driver Claes Billstam, won his second consecutive race in the World Car Rally Championship series, at Jyvaskyla, Finland.

Ericsson became the first foreigner in 18 years to win the Rally of the 1,000 Lakes, over 500 kilometers of special stages mostly on narrow, curvy, gravel roads on which Finnish drivers normally excel.

Ericsson beat Timo Salonen of Finland by 1:41 and was 2:35 ahead of Carlos Sainz of Spain.

Ericsson gained a tie for second place, with Didier Auriol of France, with 50 points in the world championship standings. Defending champion Massimo Biasion of Italy leads with 86.

Kevin Schwantz of the United States outraced countrymen Eddie Lawson and Wayne Rainey for his fifth 500-cc Grand Prix motorcycle victory of the season, at Brno, Czechoslovakia.

Schwantz, on a Yamaha, covered the 200.66-mile distance in 48 minutes 20.649 seconds. Lawson, on a Honda, clocked 48:25.926, and Rainey was timed on a Yamaha in 48:46.700.

After 14 races and with one to go, Lawson leads the world championship standings with 211 points, followed by Rainey with 195.5 and Christian Sarron of France with 157.5.