This day in Formula 1 History...

[Rokas Charlapavicius]

October 6th:

1963 - Graham Hill won the United States Grand Prix after his main race rival John Surtees, who after exchanging positions with Hill several times looked certain to win, experienced engine trouble. Richie Ginther also regained his position from Surtees after his retirement to finish 2nd in a BRM 1-2. New world champion Jim Clark, who had to recover from a flat battery, drove through the field and finished in 3rd for Lotus, although 1 lap down. Carel Godin de Beaufort finished in 6th in his privately entered Porsche to score his last career point. This was Hill's 6th career win and it elevated him up two positions to 3rd in the standings. This race also saw a dummy grid being used for the first time.

1968 - Jackie Stewart overtook a pole-sitter in his first apperance Mario Andretti and led all the way to win the United States Grand Prix in a Matra. Benefiting from Andretti's misteriously broken nose cone Graham Hill finished in 2nd for Lotus. John Surtees finished in 3rd for Honda after a race long battle with Dan Gurney who recovered from a spin and held 3rd spot near the end of the race only to suffer from a slow puncture and a lack of fuel, dropping to 4th. With his 5th career win Jackie now moved up to 2nd in the standings, 3 points behind Hill. One race was left.

1974 - Carlos Reutemann started from pole position and led to the end to win the United States Grand Prix - the final race of the season. Carlos Pace overtook James Hunt who saw his brakes fading and finished 2nd in a Brabham 1-2. Hunt held on to podium position to finish 3rd in his Hesketh. Emerson Fittipaldi finished in 4th for McLaren and with his 2 championship rivals struggling: Reggazoni, who was tied with Fittipaldi in the championship coming into the race, with damper issues while Scheckter retired with a fuel-system failure, Fittipaldi secured his 2nd and last WDC title. With no of the Ferrari's finishing the race, McLaren also secured their 1st ever constructors title. This was Reutemann's 3rd career win. Sadly, also in this race a young Austrian Helmuth Koinigg was killed after a deflating tire sent him into the barriers. The bottom rail gave way but the top one did not, and young Koinigg had no chance. This was only his 2nd start.

1985 - Nigel Mansell came from 3rd on the grid to score his maiden win at the European Grand Prix for Williams. Pole-sitter Ayrton Senna finished in 2nd for Lotus. Keke Rosberg had a collision with Nelson Piquet, lost a lap, but recovered to complete the double podium for Williams. Alain Prost finished 4th after an up and down day, but with his main championship rival Michele Alboreto retiring, Prost secured his 1 WDC. Prost's team-mate for that race (a replacement for the injured Niki Lauda) John Watson finished in 7th, that was his last ever F1 race. Another replacement, this time for the late Stefan Bellof, a debutant Ivan Capelli failed to finish in a Tyrrell. Also Elio de Angelis finished 5th in the second Lotus to score his last career points.

2012 - Sebastian Vettel scored pole-position for Red Bull Racing, ahead of tommorow's Japanese Grand Prix.

Thank you for taking your time to read. I appreciate it.

 

[Rokas Charlapavicius]

October 7th:

1962 - Jim Clark won Unites States Grand Prix for Lotus. He started from pole and had only lost the lead briefly while in traffic. He retook the lead from Graham Hill on lap 19 and never looked back. Hill easily held on to 2nd as others were lapped. Bruce McLaren finished in 3rd after sliding by Dan Gurney on lap 57. With this win Clark now moved up to 2nd in the standings, meanwhile Hill's 2nd position almost secured him the world title as he needed only 1 point in the remaining race. This was Clark's 3rd career win. Jack Brabham was 4th and scored first points for his own team. Masten Gregory's 6th place in a Lotus gave him his last ever point.

1973 - Ronnie Peterson won the final race of the year from pole at the United States Grand Prix. He was driving for Lotus. James Hunt passed Carlos Reutemann for 2nd on lap 4, then he set off after the leader, but eventually fell just short. He was only .6 of a second behind. Reutemann held onto the podium position. This race also saw a sad conclusion to the constructors championship. Tyrrell was leading it by a point, but their driver Francois Cevert was killed in practice and Tyrrell decided not to take part which meant that in his last ever appearance Jackie Stewart didn't participate. That would have been his 100th start. Lotus took full advantage of that and with finishing in 1st and 6th (Fittipaldi), they took the constructors championship. This was Peterson's 4th career win. Also Peter Revson finished in 5th to score his last ever points.

1979 - Gilles Villeneuve won the United States Grand Prix in the changeable conditions for Ferrari after his main race rival Alan Jones left the pit lane with a poorly tightened wheel nut and lost the wheel not long after, retiring in the process. Rene Arnoux finished in 2nd for Renault after world champion Jody Scheckter retired with a puncture. This and Derek Daly's spin left Didier Pironi in 3rd for Tyrrell. This was Gilles 4th career win. Elio de Angelis finished in 4th for Shadow to score first points of his career. Meanwhile Hans-Joachim Stuck had his last points as he finished in 5th for ATS. This was the last race of the season.

1984 - Alain Prost won the European Grand Prix for McLaren. Michele Alboreto (Ferrari) and pole-sitter Nelson Piquet (Brabham) completed the podium also sharing the fastest lap honours in the process (the last time fastest lap honours were shared). This was Prost's 15th career win which helped him to reduce Lauda's championship lead to 3,5 points going into the final race. Lauda was 4th by the way. Riccardo Patrese finished in 6th to score last points for Alfa Romeo. This was also the first time that the race was held at the new Nurburgring.

2007 - Kimi Raikkonen won the Chinese Grand Prix in changeable conditions after the pole-sitter and championship leader Lewis Hamilton stayed on the track for too long with his intermediates and lost the lead to Kimi on the track. Lewis then managed to beach himself in the gravel trap when he failed to negotiate the entrance to the pit lane suffering first retirement of his career. Another contender Robert Kubica had actually taken the lead with a great strategy only to see his BMW Sauber suffer from a hydraulics issues. Fernando Alonso jumped Felipe Massa on the pit stops to finish in 2nd. Massa completed the podium in the Ferrari. This was Kimi's 14th career win. Sebastian Vettel finished in 4th to score the best ever result for both himself and his Torro Rosso at the time. Vitantonio Liuzzi finished 6th in another Torro Rosso to score his best career finish. There was now a 3-way battle for the title going into the final race, seven points separating Hamilton, Alonso and Raikkonen.

2012 - Sebastian Vettel won the Japanese Grand Prix for Red Bull Racing. He led from start to finish. Felipe Massa came from 10th on the grid and finished in 2nd for Ferrari, scoring his first podium since 2010 Korean Grand Prix. Kamui Kobayashi managed to hold on to 3rd to score his first ever Formula One podium. Championship leader Fernando Alonso made contact with Romain Grosjean at the start, suffered a puncture and retired. This means that Vettel is now hot on his heels in championship, only 4 points behind. This was Vettel's 24th career win. Meanwhile Kamui Kobayashi become the first Japanese on the podium since Takuma Sato in 2004 United States Grand Prix. He also become the first Japanese to finish on the podium at home since Aguri Suzuki in 1990.

See you tommorow...

 

[Rokas Charlapavicius]

October 8th:

1961 - Innes Ireland won the United States Grand Prix for Lotus. He managed to recover from a spin, came up from 11th to 4th and then benefited from a lot of bad luck to others as Jack Brabham retired with an engine failure, a runaway leader Stirling Moss retired with an oil pressure problem and Bruce McLaren retired with a loose magneto wire. Then, just to make the win certain the two chasers also had their troubles: Graham Hill had to pit to repair a magneto problem while Roy Salvadori (in a private Cooper) also blew his engine. This left Innes Ireland with his first and only career win in the last race of the season. Dan Gurney failed to catch Ireland and finished a close 2nd in a Porsche. Tony Brooks finished in 3rd for BRM to score his last career podium. This also turned out to be the last race of Stirling Moss as he suffered career ending injuries at the non-championship Glover Trophy the following year in April.

1972 - Jackie Stewart started from pole and just drove away from the field to win the last race of the season - the United States Grand Prix, driving for Tyrrell. With world champion Emerson Fittipaldi retiring with suspension misaligment and Carlos Reutemann being forced to pit for a new nose cone, Francois Cevert's move on Dennis Hulme ensured a Tyrrell 1-2. Dennis Hulme remained in 3rd for McLaren. Drive of the day, without a doubt, went to Ronnie Peterson who had a crash in the Saturday practice, had to start from 26th in a car that was rebuilt on the last minute and finished in 4th. This was Stewart's 22nd career win.

1978 - Gilles Villeneuve made the locals happy by winning the Canadian Grand Prix -again the last race of the season. He fought his way past his a slower Williams of Alan Jones and then he also passed his team-mate for next year - Jody Scheckter.
Pole-sitter and run away leader Jean-Pierre Jarier (who was going for his first win by the way) suffered a heart breaking retirement when he lost oil pressure, giving away the victory to Gilles. This was Gilles maiden win. Scheckter finished 2nd in a Wolf. Gilles team-mate Carlos Reutemann was 3rd. Meanwhile Derek Daly finished in 6th for Ensign to score his first career point.

2000 - Michael Schumacher won the penultimate race of the season at the Japanese Grand Prix, driving for Ferrari. He had lost out at the start to the McLaren of Mika Hakkinen, but with the great strategy Schumacher leapfrogged Hakkinen after the last pit stop and won. Mika Hakkinen easily maintained 2nd position. Their team-mates also had a fight for a last step of the podium, but David Coulthard maintained his qualifying position to finish 3rd. With this win Michael extended his lead over Hakkinen to 12 points and with only one race remaining after this he secured his 3rd drivers title. That was a first world drivers championship for Ferrari since 1979 when Jody Scheckter won.

2006 - Fernando Alonso won the Japanese Grand Prix after his main championship rival Michael Schumacher (who had been level on points before the race, after making up some 30 points in the championship) suffered a shocking retirement when his Ferrari engine blew up while leading comfortably with 16 laps to go. This was a first Ferrari engine failure for Schumacher since 2000 French GP, but it was the most costly one. Pole-sitter Felipe Massa let Michael and Fernando go through, but finished in 2nd after Schumacher's retirement. Giancarlo Fisichella put the second Renault on the podium in 3rd. This was Alonso's 15th career win which gave him a 10 point lead over Schumi, going into the final race of the season, with 10 points up for grabs leaving Schumacher's title chances very slim.

Hope you enjoyed the read....

Rokas

 

[Rokas Charlapavicius]

October 9th:

1977 - Jody Scheckter won the Canadian Grand Prix after the misfortunes for others. Pole-sitter Mario Andretti and a McLaren of James Hunt had ran away, but Hunt retired after colliding with a lap down car of his team-mate Jochen Mass. Mass was forced to pit for repairs. This left Andretti more then a lap ahead, but then his Lotus engine expired with 3 laps remaining, leaving Scheckter victorious for the 7th time of his career. Patrick Depailler was 2nd, Mass recovered to 3rd - his last ever podium. This was the last time Canadian Grand Prix was held at Mosport.

2005 - Kimi Raikkonen came from 17th on the grid and won Japanese Grand Prix for McLaren after catching up 20 second through the pit stops and on pure pace, passing the Renault of Giancarlo Fisichella on the last lap. Already a world champion Fernando Alonso was 3rd in another Renault, he also came from low on the grid (16th), by using a good strategy. This was Kimi's 9th career win.

2011 - Jenson Button won Japanese Grand Prix after passing Sebastian Vettel during pit stops. It was the same case for Fernando Alonso as Vettel was stuck in traffic on his out lap after the 2nd pit stop. However, Sebastian Vettel did remained in 3rd, securing his 2nd world title with 4 races to spare. This race also saw the most cars on the lead lap of a race ever in Formula One - 19. Also in this race there was Hamilton vs Massa for the fourth time that year as they touched before the 130R, bringing out the safety car - a reason for most cars on the lead lap. Later in the race while in the pit stop exchange, Michael Schumacher led for the first time since his comeback. This was Jenson's 12th career win.

 

[Rokas Charlapavicius]

October 10th:

1959 - Ron Flockhart won the last non-championship event of the season. It was the 4th Silver City Trophy held at Snetterton circuit. He was driving for BRM.

1976 - James Hunt won the United States Grand Prix from pole for McLaren after exchanging positions with Jody Scheckter (Tyrrell, eventually 2nd in the race) several times in the race. Niki Lauda, still the world championship leader for Ferrari, just managed to hold off Hunt's team-mate Jochen Mass for 3rd. It was a legendary drive by Lauda as he revealed his fire-protection face mask soaked in blood after the race (he was still recovering from a crash at the Nordschleife). Lauda now led the championship from Hunt by only 3 points going into the final race of the season. By the way, Lauda's 3rd place made the constructors championship now certain for Ferrari. The win was Hunt's 7th of his career.

2004 - Michael Schumacher led from start to finish to win Japanese Grand Prix for Ferrari. This was his 13th (!) win of the season. His brother Ralf also kept his qualifying position and finished in 2nd for Williams. This was Ralf's first podium since breaking his back at Indy earlier in the year. Jenson Button completed the podium in a BAR, making a 2nd place in the constructors championship almost certain for his team. This race also turned out to be the last race for Olivier Panis as he decided to retire. Panis finished 14th in a Toyota.

2010 - Sebastian Vettel led from start to finish and led the Red Bull 1-2 at the Japanese Grand Prix. Mark Webber was 2nd and extended his lead in the championship. Fernando Alonso finished in 3rd for Ferrari after Robert Kubica lost the wheel while behind the safety at the beginning of the race and also after Lewis Hamilton had lost 3rd gear in his McLaren. This was Vettel's 8th career win which got him level on points with Alonso in 2nd, but 14 points behind the leader Mark Webber.

October 11th:

1952 - Dennis Poore won the 1st Newcastle Journal Trophy held at Charterhall. He was driving for Connaught. This was the penultimate non-championship race of the season.

More to follow.

 

[Rokas Charlapavicius]

October 12th:

1961 - Giancarlo Baghetti won the non-championship 1st Coppa Italia, held at Vallelunga Circuit. He was driving a Porsche which his Scuderia Sant Ambroeus team borrowed from a Ecurie Nationale Suisse team. He won both heats and with Lorenzo Bandini not competing, Baghetti won the national Italian championship. It was his 4th win of the season and a 3rd non-championship race win of the season. This race was organized as a decider just for splitting a tie between Baghetti and Lorenzo, it was not part of the original calendar.

1986 - Gerhard Berger won Mexican Grand Prix for Benetton. He benefited from having a longer lasting Pirelli tires on his car. They allowed Berger to drive a pit stop less race. Alain Prost finished in 2nd for McLaren to close in on the championship leader Nigel Mansell who finished only 5th. Prost also passed Nelson Piquet for 2nd in the standings. Nelson Piquet was 4th in the race for Williams. Pole-sitter Ayrton Senna finished in 3rd for Lotus. It was Berger's first Grand Prix win and also a first win for Benetton team. Also in this race Philippe Alliot scored his first career point by finishing in 6th for Ligier. Nigel Mansell now led the championship by 6 points from Prost and by 7 from Piquet going into the final race.

1997 - Michael Schumacher won Japanese Grand Prix for Ferrari after his main championship rival (and pole sitter) Jacques Villeneuve was demoted to the back of the grid for ignoring yellow flags in practice. Williams appealed and Jacques started from pole, but finished only 5th and Williams team decided to take the appeal back meaning Jacques was disqualified after all. Heinz-Harald Frentzen finished in 2nd for Williams and despite Jacques'es disqualification and a Ferrari 1-3, Williams secured the constructors championship. Eddie Irvine, whose "job" was to block Villeneuve and help Schumacher, finished in 3rd. Michael Schumacher overturned the gap to Jacques Villeneuve and now led him by 1 point going into the final race of the season.

2003 - Rubens Barrichello converted a pole position into his 7th career win in the last race of the season - Japanese Grand Prix. He managed to beat Kimi Raikkonen (McLaren) and by doing that he helped his team-mate Michael Schumacher to hold on to the world championship lead. Schumacher finished only 8th after colliding with Takuma Sato in the beginning of the race and having to make a front wing change. Thanks to Barrichello, Kimi felt just short in a quest for the title, losing out to Schumacher by just 2 points. David Coulthard completed the podium for McLaren.
Michael Schumacher become champion for the 6th time, beating the long standing record of 5 titles by Juan Manuel Fangio.

2008 - Fernando Alonso jumped an early leader Robert Kubica on pit stops to win Japanese Grand Prix for Renault. This was his 21st career win. Kubica eventually finished in 2nd for BMW Sauber after holding off a hard charging Kimi Raikkonen in a Ferrari. Championship leader Lewis Hamilton had a bad day. Firstly, he forced Raikkonen off the circuit and received a drive through and then later he was put into a spin by a WDC contender Felipe Massa and finished only 12th. Massa also got a drive through (for spinning out Hamilton), and then also had a collision with Sebastian Bourdais and finished only 7th. Hamilton now led Massa by 5 points going into the last 2 races of the season. Kubica was 12 points behind in 3rd, still with a chance. That was not the case for the defending champion Raikkonen who was now 21 points behind with 20 on the table.

My apologies for not keeping this up to date, I will try to catch up as soon as possible. I wish you all a great Korean Grand Prix

 

[Rokas Charlapavicius]

October 13th:

1996 - Damon Hill passed his main championship rival and pole-man Jacques Villeneuve at the start to win the Japanese Grand Prix for Williams. Villeneuve's slim championship hopes were destroyed by a bad start and then later by a lost wheel which put him out of the race. Michael Schumacher finished 2nd to consolidate his third place in the championship. Mika Hakkinen completed the podium in a McLaren. By winning his only WDC, Hill also become the only son of a Formula One champion to win the championship himself. This race win was his 21st career win. Meanwhile, Martin Brundle finished 5th for Jordan in what was his last F1 race.

2002 - Michael Schumacher completed the season by winning the Japanese Grand Prix from his 50th pole position for Ferrari. He also got the fastest lap honours in the process. This result meant that Schumacher managed to finish on the podium in every single race of the season. Rubens Barrichello finished a close 2nd to complete a Ferrari 1-2. Kimi Raikkonen completed the podium in a McLaren. Takuma Sato finished in 5th for Jordan to score his first career points.

October 14th:

1956 - Archie Scott Brown won the last event of the season - 1st BRSCC Formula 1 Race. He drove for Connaught. This non-championship event was held at Brands Hatch.

2001 - Michael Schumacher won Japanese Grand Prix from pole for Ferrari in what was the last race of the season. Juan Pablo Montoya finished in 2nd for Williams to score his fourth podium finish of his debut season. David Coulthard was let passed by Mika Hakkinen late in the race and finished 3rd for McLaren. Hakkinen did finish in 4th in what turned out to be his last f1 race as his planned sabbatical eventually turned into a retirement. This was also the last start for Jean Alesi. His race ended after the collision with Sauber's Kimi Raikkonen. There was another "last" as Prost team had their last ever appearance before going bankrupt. They didn't perform too well with Heinz-Harald Frentzen finishing in 12th, while Tomas Enge (also in his last race) failed to finish.

2012 - Sebastian Vettel jumped his team-mate Mark Webber at the start and that was all it took (and driving some laps, of course) for him to win Korean Grand Prix for Red Bull Racing. Webber managed to keep his 2nd place to completed a Red Bull 1-2. Fernando Alonso finished in 3rd for Ferrari, but lost his championship lead. Sebastian Vettel has become the championship leader for the first time since Spanish Grand Prix in the middle of May. This was Vettel's 24th career win.

October 15th:

1983 - Riccardo Patrese won the South African Grand Prix for Brabham after being let past by a very careful championship contender Nelson Piquet. Championship leader coming into the race Alain Prost (Renault) retired with a turbo problem. By finishing in 3rd, Piquet erased Prost's points advantage and emerged as champion. Andrea de Cesaris got 2nd place for Alfa Romeo after the engine failure for Niki Lauda. This was Patrese's second career win and Piquet's second WDC.

Thanks for reading

 

[Rokas Charlapavicius]

October 16th:

1994 - Michael Schumacher won European Grand Prix for Benetton. He started from pole, but lost the lead to his main championship rival Damon Hill (Williams) at the start. This, however, changed on the first pit stop exchange as Schumacher jumped Hill in a strategic battle. Status quo was maintained after the second pit stop. The podium was completed by the McLaren of Mika Hakkinen. This was Schumacher's 10th career win which helped him to extend his championship lead to 5 points over Hill going into the final two races of the season.

2005 - Already a world champion Fernando Alonso completed his championship winning season in style as he won Chinese Grand Prix for Renault, taking lights-to-flag victory. Kimi Raikkonen benefited from a drive through penalty issued to Giancarlo Fisichella and finished in 2nd for McLaren, also taking the fastest lap honours which was his 10th fastest lap of the season - a record equalling achievement. Ralf Schumacher also benefited from Fisichella's misfortune, but he held off Fisi by only 0.8 of a second and completed the podium for Toyota. That was Alonso's 8th career win. Meanwhile Christian Klien finished in 5th for Red Bull in what turned out to be his best career finish.

2011 - Sebastian Vettel won Korean Grand Prix for Red Bull Racing after slipstreaming pass the pole-sitter Lewis Hamilton before turn 4 on lap one. After that he never looked back. Lewis Hamilton held on to 2nd position for McLaren. Mark Webber also moved into the podium position in the first lap after passing Jenson Button and Felipe Massa who held up each other. Webber went on to complete the podium for Red Bull Racing. This was Vettel's 20th career win. By the way this 1-3 result now made both championships certain for RBR with three races to go. Meanwhile Sebastian Buemi finished in 9th for Scuderia Torro-Rosso to score his last career points.

Thanks for reading

 

[Rokas Charlapavicius]

October 17th:

1953 - Bob Gerard won a non-championship 1st Curtis Trophy. He drove his Cooper around Snetterton faster than anyone else. This was his second non-championship race win in a row. This was also the last event of the season.

1981 - Alan Jones (Williams) jumped everyone at the start and never looked back as he won the last race of the season called Caesars Palace Grand Prix. Alain Prost also benefited from a bad start by the pole man and championship leader Carlos Reutemann and then passed Gilles Villeneuve's Ferrari to finish in 2nd for Renault. Bruno Giacomelli recovered from a spin and moved up to 3rd in an Alfa Romeo after a black flag for Gilles Villeneuve who had improperly positioned himself on the grid. Gilles retired shortly after that, because of an engine fire. Sadly, Reutemann dropped through the field because of the loss of fourth gear. This problem slowly dropped him outside of the points in 8th. This was a gift for Nelson Piquet, who despite being on a verge of exhaustion did manage to nurse himself to the finish in 5th for Brabham, and the 2 points he got were enough to beat Carlos in the standings by a single point. This was Nelson Piquet's 1st WDC. Meanwhile, for Alan Jones it was his 12th and last career win. It was also the only career podium for Bruno Giacomelli.

1999 - Eddie Irvine was let passed by Michael Schumacher twice and won the inaugural Malaysian Grand Prix for Ferrari. Michael Schumacher, who took pole by a second in his first race since breaking both legs at the British Grand Prix, was helping his team-mate to try to win the championship and surrended the lead to finish in 2nd, completing a Ferrari 1-2. Mika Hakkinen, the championship leader coming into the race finished in 3rd for McLaren, but lost the WDC lead in the process. The whole result, however, wasn't a clear cut as both Ferrari's were disqualified due to an infringement on their bargeboards. However, after an appeal, both drivers were reinstated. So, Eddie Irvine did win it in the end to score his 4th and last career win and took the 4 points advantage over Mika Hakkinen going into the final race of the season. Meanwhile, Johnny Herbert finished in 4th for Stewart, to score his last career points.

Thanks for reading

 

[Rokas Charlapavicius]

October 18th:

1987 - Nigel Mansell won the two part Mexican Grand Prix from pole. A reason for the need of two heats was the crash of Derek Warwick (Arrows). Nigel Mansell won the first heat and was close enough to Nelson Piquet in the second heat to keep his aggregate lead. Piquet, despite winning in the second heat and also picking up the fastest lap in the process, finished in 2nd to complete a Williams 1-2. Riccardo Patrese was in 3rd for Brabham nearly one and a half minutes behind. That was 13th win of Mansell's career. It kept him in the championship hunt. He was 12 points behind Piquet with 2 races remaining. Meanwhile, Teo Fabi finished in 5th for Benetton and scored his last ever points.

2009 - Mark Webber won Brazilian Grand Prix for Red Bull after jumping pass pole-sitter and early race leader Rubens Barrichello after the pit stops. Robert Kubica passed Barrichello after the first pit stops and went on to finish in 2nd for Sauber. Lewis Hamilton came from 17th on the grid and finished in 3rd for McLaren, despite pitting on early to switch strategy. The championship was also decided as Sebastian Vettel finished 4th ahead of WDC leader Jenson Button (5th), but didn't reduce the lead enough meaning that Jenson Button became champion for the first (and so far only) time, driving for Brawn. For Mark Webber it was his 2nd career win. By the way, this race also saw the debut of nowadays Sauber driver Kamui Kobayashi, who replaced injured Timo Glock. Kobayashi finished in 9th for Toyota.

Thanks for reading this

 

[Rokas Charlapavicius]

October 19th:

1958 - Stirling Moss won Moroccan Grand Prix - the final race of the season. He demolished the field in his Vanwall and finished one and a half minutes ahead of his main championship rival Mike Hawthorn (Ferrari). This was Stirling's 10th career win, but it was not enough to beat Hawthorn in the world championship, so it was Hawthorn who became the first british driver to win the WDC. He wouldn't had been champion if didn't had benefited from the gentlemanliness of Moss, as demonstrated at the PortugueseGP earlier in the year. Hawthorn was disqualified from that race for bump starting his stalled car downhill in the opposite direction, on the way to a 2nd place finish. Moss interceded on Hawthorn's behalf and the decision was reversed. So, this event meant that after the final race of the season Hawthorn had accumulated enough points to beat Moss by a single point. Going back to the race, the podium was completed by Ferrari of Phil Hill. Also Jo Bonnier scored his first career points by finishing in 4th for BRM. That was the last race for Hawthorn who retired from Formula One. His retirement didn't last long as he was killed in a car accident in January next year.

1969 - Dennis Hulme came from fourth on the grid to win Mexican Grand Prix for McLaren. This was Hulme's 5th career win. Jacky Ickx drove the fastest lap of the race, but felt just short in the pursuit of Hulme and finished in close 2nd for Brabham. Hulme's team-mate and pole sitter Jack Brabham completed the podium in 3rd. 69' world champion Jackie Stewart was 4th in his Matra. This was the last race of the season.

1985 - Nigel Mansell led from pole position and won South African Grand Prix for Williams. His team-mate Keke Rosberg spun off from the lead as he hit an oil patch made by Ghinzani's blown up Toleman. Nevertheless Rosberg recovered to finish 2nd, completing a Williams 1-2. Already 85' world champion Alain Prost came from ninth on the grid to finish in 3rd for McLaren, he was a lap down. The race was marked with some teams boycotting the event due to apartheid which meant that there was only 20 cars on the grid, while only 7 finished. This was Mansell's 2nd career win and in second win in succesion. Also in this race Gerhard Berger finished in 5th for Arrows and scored his first career points.

2008 - Lewis Hamilton won from pole position at the Chinese Grand Prix. Felipe Massa finished in 2nd for Ferrari after being let passed by his team-mate Kimi Raikkonen who was helping Felipe to boost his championship chances. Kimi completed the podium for Ferrari. With his 9th career win Lewis extended his championship lead over Massa to 7 points going into the final race of the season. Meanwhile, Nelson Piquet Jr. finished in 8th for Renault and scored his last career point.

Hopefully you enjoyed the read
If you could be bothered any feedback would be appreciated.

Rokas
.

 

[Rokas Charlapavicius]

October 20th:

1991 - Gerhard Berger won Japanese Grand Prix in a McLaren 1-2. Meanwhile his team-mate Ayrton Senna held off Nigel Mansell's Williams in the early running. Mansell, who was a championship contender entering the race, crashed out of it while chasing Senna for 2nd. After this accident Berger let Senna through to the lead, only to see Senna letting him go back through on the last lap. So, Gerhard Berger won, scoring his 6th career win and his first for McLaren, Ayrton Senna finished 2nd and with Mansell failing to finish he secured his third and last WDC. Riccardo Patrese finished in a distant 3rd and completed the podium for Williams.

October 21st:

1984 - Alain Prost won Portuguese Grand Prix for McLaren, but just missed out on the championship. His main rival Niki Lauda needed at least second place finish, but he was in third for most of the race. He got a big slice of luck when Nigel Mansell spun off in his Lotus. This gained Lauda two extra points and gave him the championship by the lowest points difference in history - half a point from Prost. Podium was completed by a rising star Ayrton Senna in his Toleman. This was Prost's 16th career win and Lauda's 3rd and last WDC.

1990 -

This incident meant that Ayrton Senna became champion for the second time in his career. After this incident Gerhard Berger inherited the lead for McLaren, but it was to be short lived as he spun on the dirt left on the track after the famous collision. Then Nigel Mansell became the new leader, but his driveshaft failed after the pit-stop as he was driving away. This left the two Benetton's in the lead and they remained there to the end. Nelson Piquet won the Japanese Grand Prix and scored his 21st career win, Roberto Moreno was 2nd and scored his only ever podium. Aguri Suzuki made his no-stop strategy work and finished in 3rd for Larrousse - that was the only ever podium for both Suzuki and this team. This is still the last race to date where no european driver finished on the podium.

2007 - Kimi Raikkonen won the Brazilian Grand Prix for Ferrari while championship leader and heavy favourite Lewis Hamilton suffered a gearbox problem early in the race and dropped to the rear of the field while the problem sorted it self out. He later recovered to 7th, but it was not enough as he lost 8 points to the winner Raikkonen. Another contender for the championship Fernando Alonso was forced to see both Ferrari's of Raikkonen and Felipe Massa pulling away and finished in 3rd and lost 4 points to Raikkonen. These results meant that Raikkonen erased 7 point deficit to Hamilton and 3 point gap to Alonso and emerged victorious, becoming world champion for the first time. He finished 1 point ahead both Hamilton and Alonso. This was Kimi Raikkonen's 15th career win and his only WDC. He also became only the second driver in history to enter the final race laying 3rd in the standings and emerge as champion. First time it happened was when Nino Farina won the 1950 championship.

Thanks for reading, hopefully you enjoyed it

Rokas

 

[Rokas Charlapavicius]

October 22nd:

1967 - Jim Clark demolished the field from pole position to win Mexican Grand Prix for Lotus. He also took fastest lap honours in what was the last race of the season. Championship contender Jack Brabham was the only driver not to be lapped by Clark, so he ended up in 2nd in his own car. This result was not good enough for Jack as he needed to win with Denny Hulme finishing in 5th. His team-mate Hulme finished in 3rd and easily held on to the lead in the standings to win his only WDC. This was Clark's 24th career win. Meanwhile, Mike Spence finished in 5th for BRM and scored his last career points. By the way, the constructors championship was won earlier by Brabham.

1972 - Jean-Pierre Beltoise drove his BRM to victory in the last event of the season - 2nd World Championship Victory Race. Two "Surtees" drivers completed the podium - Carlos Pace in 2nd, Andrea de Adamich in 3rd. This was a non-championship event held at Brands Hatch.

1989 - Alessandro Nannini won Japanese Grand Prix after this attempt by Senna to pass Prost for lead with only a handful of laps to go (the lead which Prost took at the start from pole man Senna and had it up to that point, by the way)...

Although Ayrton Senna managed to catch and pass Nannini for the win after his unscheduled pit stop (such was the lead of the McLaren's at the time of the collision that the incident, time spent while being stalled, a slow in lap and a pit stop was not enough for Nannini to benefit enough) he was immediately disqualified for supposedly causing that collision. This decision gave Alain Prost his third WDC. Meanwhile for Alessandro Nannini (driving for Benetton) it was his only career win.
The podium was completed by the two Williams drivers: Riccardo Patrese in 2nd, Thierry Boutsen in 3rd.

1995 - Michael Schumacher recovered from a bad start (which saw him go down to 5th), passed Gerhard Berger on lap 5, jumped Jean Alesi and Damon Hill after the first pit stop and David Coulthard after the second pit stop to win the Pacific Grand Prix held at Aida circuit in Japan. Pole-man and leader for most of the race David Coulthard eventually had to settle for 2nd. His team-mate and championship contender Damon Hill completed the podium and with that he put the final nail in his championship hopes as Schumacher was now too far ahead in the championship to be caught with two races to go. This was Michael Schumacher's 18th career win and with that win he secured his 2nd WDC.

2000 - Michael Schumacher won the last race of the season at the Malaysian Grand Prix after McLaren had their troubles. Mika Hakkinen took the lead at the start only to get a penalty for it because he jumped it. Meanwhile, David Coulthard had to make a pit stop earlier then expected because of the dirt in the radiators. This left Schumacher cruising to his xxth career win, David Coulthard stayed in 2nd for McLaren. Rubens Barrichello brought the second Ferrari home in 3rd, despite being sick. Hakkinen recovered to 4th. This race also saw the conclusion of the constructors championship. McLaren needed to outscore Ferrari by 14 points, but a Ferrari 1-3 made everything clear. This was also the last race for Johnny Herbert. His race ended with a massive accident in his Jaguar.

2006 - Felipe Massa won his home Brazilian Grand Prix for Ferrari from pole position. He was never really challenged and become the first brazilian to win his home Grand Prix since Ayrton Senna in 1993. Fernando Alonso managed to jump Kimi Raikkonen in the pit-stops and finished in 2nd for Renault, easily securing his 2nd WDC as he needed only one point in that race. Raikkonen eventually finished outside the podium as he was passed by the BAR of Jenson Button. Michael Schumacher (in what was his last race before his first retirement) had to win and hope that Alonso fails to finish. Unfortunately he made contact with Fisichella early in the race and suffered a puncture. Afterwards he put in a stunning drive and drove from last up to 4th. This was Felipe Massa's 2nd career win. This was also the last race for V10 engines .

Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed it

Rokas

 

[Rokas Charlapavicius]

Little was happening on...

October 23rd:

1955 - Tony Brooks ended the season on a high as he won the 5th Gran Premio de Siracusa, driving for Connaught. That was his first ever win with a world championship car, I think. This was a non-championship event and also the last race of the season.

1966 - John Surtees lost the lead to Jack Brabham at the start, but passed him on lap 6 and never looked back as he drove his Cooper to victory at Mexican Grand Prix - the last race of the season. 66' world champion Jack Brabham was never close enough to challenge Surtees and finished in 2nd in his car. He was the only driver on the lead lap. Jack's team-mate Denny Hulme completed the podium, but he was a lap down. That was a 5th career win for Surtees. Meanwhile, Richie Ginther finished in 4th for Honda, scoring his last career points.

1977 - James Hunt jumped pole-sitter Mario Andretti at the start and demolished the field as he went on to win the last race of the season at the Japanese Grand Prix. His team-mate Jochen Mass was going to complete a McLaren 1-2, but he was forced to retire with engine failure. John Watson, another podium contender, passed fading Jody Scheckter and inherited 2nd after Mass'es retirement only to retire himself a lap later because of a gearbox failure. Then Carlos Reutemann inherited 2nd, but he was passed by Jacques Laffite. However, Laffite ran out of fuel on the last lap giving 2nd place back to Reutemann in his Ferrari. Patrick Depailler also benefited from Laffite's misfortune and completed the podium for Tyrrell. This was James Hunt's 10th and last career win. Meanwhile, Riccardo Patrese finished in 6th for Shadow and scored his first career point.

Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed it

Rokas

 

[Rokas Charlapavicius]

Too much was happening on...

October 24th (part 1):

1954 - Mike Hawthorn won Spanish Grand Prix for Ferrari. Harry Schell was the initial leader off the line, passing pole sitter Alberto Ascari. Ascari regained the lead on lap 3 only to retire early due to clutch problem in his new Lancia D50. Harry Schell then got back into the lead and was involved in a tight battle with Maurice Trintignant as they exchanged positions 8 times in 11 laps. But on lap 24 Hawthorn got the lead and never looked back. Only driver that was challenging him for the lead was the 54' champion Juan Manuel Fangio in his Mercedes. However, his challenge was cut short by an oil loss. It wasn't terminal so Juan Manuel Fangio lost only one position and finished in 3rd. Luigi Musso benefited from Fangio's misfortune and finished in 2nd for Maserati. This was Hawthorn's 2nd career win and also Musso's first ever podium. Despite retiring, Alberto Ascari still got a point for fastest lap which turned out be his last ever point. This was the last race of the season.

1965 - Richie Ginther jumped pole sitter Jim Clark at the start and led every lap on his way to winning Mexican Grand Prix for Honda. His only real challengers Jim Clark (65' world champion in a Lotus) and Graham Hill (BRM) both retired with engine issues. Dan Gurney got the fastest lap, but never got close enough to challenge Ginther and finished in 2nd for Brabham. Mike Spence completed the podium in his Lotus. This was a first ever win for Honda (and tire supplier Goodyear for that matter) and Ginther's only ever win. For Mike Spence, his podium finish was also the only such achievement in his career. Meanwhile, Ronnie Bucknum finished in 5th, also for Honda and scored his only ever points. By the way, this was also the last race of the season.

1971 - Peter Gethin, driving for BRM, was declared a winner of a non-championship event called the 1st World Championship Victory Race (held in Brands Hatch) after the race was stopped following a fatal accident of Jo Siffert . Emerson Fittipaldi was declared 2nd in his Lotus and also got the fastest lap in the process. Jackie Stewart completed the podium in his Tyrrell. Jo Siffert, despite his unfortunate accident, was actually classified 4th in his BRM on countback. This was a sad way to end the season...

1976 - Mario Andretti passed a fading James Hunt and benefited from Patrick Depailler's puncture to win the Japanese Grand Prix for Lotus. The race started in horrible conditions which actually decided the title. Championship leader Niki Lauda (Ferrari) was unhappy with the decision to race in the conditions and withdrawn, leaving a clear path for Hunt (who now only needed to finish no lower than 4th). Hunt was easily on his way to the title until the conditions got more dry and he started to lose pace. To add to that he also suffered a puncture and dropped to 5th. He left his charge very late and together with Depailler they passed Alan Jones and Clay Regazzoni with just over one lap to go. These two positions gave Hunt 2 extra points which were enough to pass Niki Lauda in the standings, so Hunt became '76 champion, a point ahead of Lauda. Going back to the race, Mario Andretti scored his 2nd career win. For James Hunt, it was his only WDC. Meanwhile Ferrari took the constructors crown, despite Lauda's withdrawal.

Sorry for falling behind again and I hope you enjoyed the read

To be continued...

Rokas

 

[Rokas Charlapavicius]

October 24th (part 2):

1993 - Ayrton Senna won Japanese Grand Prix after passing pole-sitter (for the last time of his career) Alain Prost and demolishing him on pure pace in the wet. Senna won despite having to make an extra pit stop because he was the only driver to make a dry tire change before the rainfall. 93' world champion Alain Prost had no chance and had to settle for 2nd in a Williams. Mika Hakkinen had a very lonely drive and finished in 3rd for McLaren. This was Senna's 40th career win. Meanwhile, for Mika Hakkinen it was his first ever podium. Another "first" was Rubens Barrichello and his first ever points which he got by finishing in 5th for Jordan. His team-mate for this race Eddie Irvine (on his f1 debut, by the way) also managed to get his first ever point by finishing in 6th.

2004 - Juan Pablo Montoya won the last race of the season at the Brazilian Grand Prix for Williams. Many different drivers led in the beginning of the race because track was drying up after the light pre-race drizzle which forced many drivers to pit, but eventually it boiled down to a battle between Kimi Raikkonen in a McLaren and Juan Pablo Montoya. Montoya led for most of the race, but then he got jumped by Raikkonen on the pit stop exchange. However, it didn't take long before Montoya passed Raikkonen on the track with a great move and went on to win. Pole-sitter Rubens Barrichello was never in the running for the victory, but he did finish in 3rd and completed the podium for Ferrari. This was Juan Pablo Montoya's 4th career win and his last for Williams.

2010 - Fernando Alonso benefited from a disaster of Red Bull Racing and won Korean Grand Prix for Ferrari. Red Bull drivers were 1-2 in qualifying and led the race behind the safety car as the conditions were bad. Then, a few laps after the restart the first of the Red Bull's Mark Webber spun off and was collected by Nico Rosberg's Mercedes in the process, causing the SC. Meanwhile, his team-mate and joint championship leader Sebastian Vettel was on his way to victory late in the race, but then he had an engine failure in his Red Bull forcing him to retire. This meant that Fernando Alonso took the win and became the new championship leader. Lewis Hamilton actually had the lead briefly after the restart, but went wide and had to settle for 2nd in his McLaren. Felipe Massa completed the podium in the other Ferrari. That was Alonso's 26th career win. Meanwhile, Vitantonio Liuzzi finished in 6th for Force India, repeated his best career finish and scored his last ever points.

Thanks for reading, hope you enjoyed it.

Rokas

 

[Rokas Charlapavicius]

October 25th:

1964 - Dan Gurney won Mexican Grand Prix for Brabham, in a race which saw one of the most dramatic title deciders in history. There was a three way battle for the championship with Graham Hill (39 points, BRM), John Surtees (34 points, Ferrari) and Jim Clark (30 points, Lotus) all with a shot at the title. At the beginning, championship contenders were in this order: Jim Clark was leading from pole (that was all he could have done to win the WDC and he was easily on his way to it, while the other positions seemed to go in his favour), Graham Hill was in 3rd (which would had been enough if Clark didn't won), John Surtees was only in 5th (seemingly with no chance). But then Lorenzo Bandini ran into the back of Hill, demolishing Graham cars exhaust and his championship chances which meant that Jim Clark was now on his way to the title as he basically needed to finish the remaining laps and win. But then, there was yet another unbelievable turn of events when a disaster struck Clark as his Lotus engine expired on the last lap. Meanwhile, John Surtees moved up to 3rd which despite Clark's retirement would not have been enough. Luckily for him, his team-mate Lorenzo Bandini was in 2nd, so Ferrari forced Bandini to slow down and give the position to Surtees. This meant that Surtees did gained enough points and became the 64' champion. Going back to the race results - Dan Gurney emerged in front after all of this and scored his 3rd career win. John Surtees finished in 2nd and won his only WDC. Lorenzo Bandini was 3rd. Meanwhile, Pedro Rodriguez finished in 6th for Ferrari and scored his first ever point.

1970 - Jacky Ickx moved into the lead at the start from 3rd on the grid and went on to win the Mexican Grand Prix for Ferrari. His only real challenger Jackie Stewart (Tyrrell) was forced to retire after colliding with a dog. This left Clay Regazzoni to claim the spoils and finish in 2nd to complete a Ferrari 1-2. Denny Hulme (McLaren) finished in 3rd, after Jack Brabham (former world champion in his last ever race) retired with an engine failure in his Brabham. This was Jacky Ickx's 6th career win.

1992 - Riccardo Patrese won Japanese Grand Prix for Williams after pole-sitter and leader for most of the race Nigel Mansell (92' champion) developed and engine issue which eventually forced his retirement. Gerhard Berger benefited from this and his team-mate Ayrton Senna's engine failure very early on and finished in 2nd for McLaren. Martin Brundle came from 13th on the grid to complete the podium for Benetton. This was Patrese's 6th and last career win. Meanwhile, Christian Fittipaldi (nephew of the double world champion Emerson) finished in 6th for Minardi and scored his first ever point.


October 26th:

1986 - Alain Prost won Australian Grand Prix for McLaren. Keke Rosberg (Williams) took the lead early and seemed on his way to easy victory, but then he suffered a punture and that meant that the top three championship contenders were in top 3 positions, despite having their own troubles: Nelson Piquet was in first (with a real shot at the title after recovering from a spin early in the race), Nigel Mansell was in 2nd (and needed to finish only in 3rd to win the title, so he was in a strong position), Alain Prost was in 3rd (he had to recover from a puncture and he did that brilliantly). Mansell was passed for second by Prost, shortly after Rosberg's problems, but he was still in the championship winning position, until....

After this, Mansell was still in the strong position as Prost was not leading. But then Williams decided to call Piquet into the pits as a precaution. After the pit stop Piquet failed to catch Prost for the win, so with that pit stop Williams gave away the win and the championship to Prost and his McLaren. This was Prost's 25th career win and his 2nd WDC. Meanwhile, Johnny Dumfries finished in 6th for Lotus and scored a point in his last ever race.

1997 - Mika Hakkinen won European Grand Prix after the famous collision between Schumacher and Villeneuve. Jacques Villeneuve (Williams-Renault) was the pole sitter for the race (by the way, top 3 in qualifying got identical times. Villeneuve, Schumacher and Frentzen all made a time of 1:21.071, but JV got the pole because he set the time first). However, championship leader Michael Schumacher (Ferrari) took the lead at the start and led until lap 48, when Villeneuve caught him and made the move for the lead...

After the incident, the damage that Villeneuve suffered slowed him down a lot and he was eventually passed by both McLaren's of David Coulthard and Mika Hakkinen. Then the McLaren's also decided to switch positions and Mika Hakkinen went on to win in a strangest possible way. All of these switches happened on the last lap. This was Hakkinen's first ever win. Jacques Villeneuve's 3rd place secured him his only WDC. Meanwhile, Gerhard Berger finished 4th for Benetton in his last ever race.

Thanks for reading this and I hope you enjoyed it.

Rokas

 

[Rokas Charlapavicius]

October 27th:

1957 - Jean Behra won the last race of the season - non-championship 6th Moroccan Grand Prix held at Ain-Diab circuit, driving for Maserati. He emerged in the lead after the pole man Tony Brooks suffered from electrical problems early and eventually won by half a minute. Stuart Lewis-Evans was in 2nd for Vanwall. Maurice Trintignant came from 8th on the grid and finished in 3rd for BRM. For Behra, it was his fourth non-championship race win in a row and fifth of the season.

1963 - Jim Clark (with his first world title already in the bag) demolished the field on his way to winning Mexican Grand Prix for Lotus. He did it from pole and also made the fastest lap. Jack Brabham came from 10th on the grid to finish in 2nd for his own team, although over one and a half minutes down. Richie Ginther was the last car on the lead lap and finished almost two minutes down in 3rd for BRM. This was Clark's 9th career win. Meanwhile, 11th placed Moises Solana drove a car with a #13 on it. This was the only time that ever happened.

2012 - Sebastian Vettel scored his 35th career pole position driving for Red Bull Racing, ahead of tomorrow's Indian Grand Prix.

Thanks for reading.

Rokas

 

[Rokas Charlapavicius]

October 28th:

1951 - Juan Manuel Fangio won Spanish Grand Prix for Alfa Romeo after pole-sitter Alberto Ascari and all of his Ferrari team-mates suffered from tire problems. This meant that Fangio took the lead on lap 3 and maintained his world championship lead to win his first WDC. Jose Froilan Gonzalez had the least tire problems of all the Ferrari's and finished in 2nd. Outgoing world champion Nino Farina completed the podium for the Alfa's in their last race until their return to the sport as engine supplier in 1961. This was Fangio's 6th career win.

And then, 61 years later...

2012 - Sebastian Vettel had no competition as he won today's Indian Grand Prix for Red Bull Racing, leading from start to finish. Fernando Alonso came from 5th on the grid, beat both McLaren's early on and then also benefited from Mark Webber's apparent KERS problem and finished in 2nd for Ferrari and felt further behind in the championship. Webber's problems denied Red Bull a 1-2, but he did held on to the podium position. This was Vettel's 26th career win and his fourth win in a row. He now holds 13 point lead over Alonso going into the final 3 races of the season.

Thanks for reading.

Rokas

 

[Rokas Charlapavicius]

October 29th:

1950 - Alberto Ascari won a non-championship 10th Penya Rhin Grand Prix held at Pedralbes street circuit in Spain. He drove his Ferrari to victory and scored his first ever Formula One race victory. This was the last race of the season.

1995 - Michael Schumacher won the penultimate race of the season at the Japanese Grand Prix in changeable conditions. Jean Alesi was making his tire strategy work and despite the stop and go penalty for a jump start and the spin he was making insane progress because by lap 10 he was in 2nd!!!. Unfortunately, his Ferrari suffered a driveshaft failure. Then a disaster struck the pursuing Williams drivers Damon Hill and David Coulthard (and quite a few of others) because they both went off from 2nd and 3rd places at "Spoon" and lost time. Reason for the "trip" was that Spoon curve was only place where rain had re-appeared. This elevated Mika Hakkinen to an eventual 2nd for McLaren. Johnny Herbert got third for Benetton. This 1-3 result meant that Benetton became the constructors champions for the first and only time in their history. Meanwhile, Schumacher got his 19th career win and his last for Benetton.