Race results
Race startSeptember 26, 1981 at 20:00Eastern Daylight Time
| POS. | NO. | Driver | Team | TIME | Laps | Fastest Lap | PIT | Grid | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 26 | Jacques Laffite | Ligier | 2:01:25.2 | 63 | - | - | 10 | 9 |
| 2 | 7 | John Watson | McLaren | +6.230 | 63 | - | - | 9 | 6 |
| 3 | 27 | Gilles Villeneuve | Ferrari | +1:50.270 | 63 | - | - | 11 | 4 |
| 4 | 23 | Bruno Giacomelli | Alfa Romeo | +1 Lap | 62 | - | - | 15 | 3 |
| 5 | 5 | Nelson Piquet | Brabham | +1 Lap | 62 | - | - | 1 | 2 |
| 6 | 11 | Elio de Angelis | Team Lotus | +1 Lap | 62 | - | - | 7 | 1 |
| 7 | 22 | Mario Andretti | Alfa Romeo | +1 Lap | 62 | - | - | 16 | 0 |
| 8 | 17 | Derek Daly | March | +2 Laps | 61 | - | - | 20 | 0 |
| 9 | 33 | Marc Surer | Theodore | +2 Laps | 61 | - | - | 19 | 0 |
| 10 | 2 | Carlos Reutemann | Williams | +3 Laps | 60 | - | - | 2 | 0 |
| 11 | 4 | Michele Alboreto | Tyrrell | +4 Laps | 59 | - | - | 22 | 0 |
| - | 3 | Eddie Cheever | Tyrrell | DNF (Engine) | 56 | - | - | 14 | 0 |
| - | 8 | Andrea de Cesaris | McLaren | DNF (Spun off) | 51 | - | - | 13 | 0 |
| - | 15 | Alain Prost | Renault | DNF (Collision) | 48 | - | - | 4 | 0 |
| - | 12 | Nigel Mansell | Team Lotus | DNF (Collision) | 45 | - | - | 5 | 0 |
| - | 9 | Slim Borgudd | ATS | DNF (Spun off) | 40 | - | - | 21 | 0 |
| - | 6 | Hector Rebaque | Brabham | DNF (Spun off) | 35 | - | - | 6 | 0 |
| - | 32 | Jean-Pierre Jarier | Osella | DNF (Collision) | 26 | - | - | 23 | 0 |
| - | 1 | Alan Jones | Williams | DNF (Handling) | 24 | - | - | 3 | 0 |
| - | 28 | Didier Pironi | Ferrari | DNF (Ignition) | 24 | - | - | 12 | 0 |
| - | 14 | Eliseo Salazar | Ensign | DNF (Spun off) | 8 | - | - | 24 | 0 |
| - | 25 | Patrick Tambay | Ligier | DNF (Spun off) | 6 | - | - | 17 | 0 |
| - | 29 | Riccardo Patrese | Arrows | DNF (Spun off) | 6 | - | - | 18 | 0 |
| - | 16 | René Arnoux | Renault | DNF (Collision) | 0 | - | - | 8 | 0 |