1961 Dutch Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Wolfgang von Trips led every lap at Zandvoort to claim his first championship victory. Phil Hill completed a Ferrari one-two, but Jim Clark made the Italian team work hard for its result.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Phil Hill	Ferrari
Pole time	1:35.7
Fastest lap	Jim Clark	Lotus
Fastest-lap time	1:35.500 on lap 7
First	Wolfgang von Trips	Ferrari
Second	Phil Hill	Ferrari
Third	Jim Clark	Lotus

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
20 May 1961	Saturday morning timed practice	Start time unconfirmed
20 May 1961	Saturday afternoon timed practice	Start time unconfirmed
21 May 1961	Sunday final qualifying	Start time unconfirmed
22 May 1961	Race	15:15

All times are local. The race time is the scheduled start; weather delays and interruptions are described below.

Championship background

Stirling Moss arrived at round 2 leading the 1961 F1 World Championship on 9 points, with Richie Ginther on 6. Lotus – Climax headed the constructors’ standings after the preceding race with 8 points.

Race entries

Trevor Taylor replaced the injured Innes Ireland at Lotus. The organisers invited fifteen starters, including three Ferraris and four Porsches under works and private entries. Camoradi’s drivers practised as reserves rather than holding guaranteed race places.

Saturday morning timed practice

Cold winds and showers made the opening session uncomfortable. Ferrari had not arrived, and Brabham set the pace. Moss tried the Walker Cooper while Surtees used his repaired Climax engine. Taylor concentrated on learning the circuit in the older Lotus, and the invited reserves began preparing in case a place became available.

Saturday afternoon timed practice

Ferrari arrived with three of its newer V6 engines and immediately worked on springs, geometry and tyre pressures. Its cars were competitive even before the handling satisfied the drivers. Moss preferred the Lotus to his alternative Cooper, while Gurney showed promising Porsche pace. The headwind continued to complicate comparisons.

Sunday final qualifying

Ferrari’s additional unofficial morning running helped resolve its handling problems. Larger rear tyres contributed to a much stronger final session, and the team secured the entire front row with Phil Hill on pole. Moss’s engine swap into the Cooper proved unhelpful. Burgess crashed when his throttle jammed, escaping injury but damaging the reserve Lotus.

Qualifying Classification

Three official timed sessions preceded the Monday race. The invited field determined who could start; practice established the grid rather than a conventional elimination of the slowest entrants.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Timed session 1	Timed session 2	Timed session 3	Best Time
1	1	Phil Hill	Ferrari	No time	1:37.0	1:35.7	1:35.7
2	3	Wolfgang von Trips	Ferrari	No time	1:36.6	1:35.7	1:35.7
3	2	Richie Ginther	Ferrari	No time	1:36.7	1:35.9	1:35.9
4	14	Stirling Moss	Lotus	1:38.1	1:36.2	1:37.6	1:36.2
5	4	Graham Hill	BRM	1:38.6	1:36.7	1:36.3	1:36.3
6	7	Dan Gurney	Porsche	1:38.9	1:36.5	1:36.4	1:36.4
7	10	Jack Brabham	Cooper	1:36.6	1:36.7	1:37.1	1:36.6
8	5	Tony Brooks	BRM	1:39.0	1:36.9	1:36.8	1:36.8
9	12	John Surtees	Cooper	1:40.7	1:36.8	1:37.6	1:36.8
10	17	Masten Gregory	Cooper	1:38.8	1:38.5	1:36.8	1:36.8
11	15	Jim Clark	Lotus	1:39.3	1:37.0	1:36.9	1:36.9
12	6	Jo Bonnier	Porsche	1:39.6	1:37.1	1:38.5	1:37.1
13	9	Hans Herrmann	Porsche	1:39.0	1:38.0	1:39.5	1:38.0
14	18	Ian Burgess	Lotus	No time	1:46.8	1:38.0	1:38.0
15	11	Bruce McLaren	Cooper	1:41.3	1:38.5	1:38.2	1:38.2
16	16	Trevor Taylor	Lotus	1:42.0	1:40.8	1:39.5	1:39.5
17	8	Carel Godin de Beaufort	Porsche	1:42.3	1:40.9	1:39.8	1:39.8

What happened in the 1961 Dutch Grand Prix?

Von Trips took the lead immediately. Behind him, Clark challenged Phil Hill repeatedly, gaining through the corners while the Ferrari recovered ground on the straights. Their contest kept the leading group under pressure.

Clark eventually lost contact as his handling deteriorated, allowing Ferrari to settle into a one-two. Moss fought Ginther for fourth and took the position on the final lap.

Von Trips won from Phil Hill and Clark, with Moss, Ginther and Brabham completing the points. Every starter finished and nobody made a pit stop, a remarkable contrast to the mechanical attrition so common in the period.

After the race, Wolfgang von Trips headed the drivers’ standings with 12 points, followed by Stirling Moss on 12. Ferrari led the constructors’ table on 14, with Lotus – Climax on 12.

1961 Dutch Grand Prix race results

The 1961 Dutch Grand Prix was held on 22 May 1961, with a scheduled start of 15:15 local time.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	3	Wolfgang von Trips	Ferrari	75	2:01:52.1	9
2	1	Phil Hill	Ferrari	75	+0.9	6
3	15	Jim Clark	Lotus	75	+13.1	4
4	14	Stirling Moss	Lotus	75	+22.2	3
5	2	Richie Ginther	Ferrari	75	+22.3	2
6	10	Jack Brabham	Cooper	75	+1:20.1	1
7	12	John Surtees	Cooper	75	+1:26.7	0
8	4	Graham Hill	BRM	75	+1:29.8	0
9	5	Tony Brooks	BRM	74	+1 Lap	0
10	7	Dan Gurney	Porsche	74	+1 Lap	0
11	6	Jo Bonnier	Porsche	73	+2 Laps	0
12	11	Bruce McLaren	Cooper	73	+2 Laps	0
13	16	Trevor Taylor	Lotus	73	+2 Laps	0
14	8	Carel Godin de Beaufort	Porsche	72	+3 Laps	0
15	9	Hans Herrmann	Porsche	72	+3 Laps	0
DNS	17	Masten Gregory	Cooper		Reserve Entry	0
DNS	18	Ian Burgess	Lotus		Reserve Entry	0

1961 Dutch Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time
1	15	Jim Clark	Lotus	7	1:35.500

Only drivers with a recorded lap time appear. No fastest-lap bonus point was awarded.

1961 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 1961 Dutch Grand Prix.

1961 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Wolfgang von Trips	German	Ferrari	12
2	Stirling Moss	British	Lotus	12
3	Phil Hill	American	Ferrari	10
4	Richie Ginther	American	Ferrari	8
5	Jim Clark	British	Lotus	4
6	Dan Gurney	American	Porsche	2
7	Bruce McLaren	New Zealander	Cooper	1
8	Jack Brabham	Australian	Cooper	1
–	John Surtees	British	Cooper	0
–	Maurice Trintignant	French	Cooper	0
–	Graham Hill	British	BRM	0
–	Cliff Allison	British	Lotus	0
–	Tony Brooks	British	BRM	0
–	Hans Herrmann	German	Porsche	0
–	Jo Bonnier	Swedish	Porsche	0
–	Trevor Taylor	British	Lotus	0
–	Carel Godin de Beaufort	Dutch	Porsche	0
–	Michael May	Swiss	Lotus	0
–	Masten Gregory	American	Cooper	0
–	Innes Ireland	British	Lotus	0
–	Ian Burgess	British	Lotus	0

1961 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	Ferrari	14
2	Lotus – Climax	12
3	Porsche	2
4	Cooper – Climax	2
—	Cooper – Maserati	0
—	BRM – Climax	0
—	Emeryson – Maserati	0

Drivers and constructors counted their best 5 results. Only the highest-placed eligible car for each constructor could score constructor points. A victory earned nine driver points but eight constructor points.

1961 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	1961 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	14 May
2	1961 Dutch Grand Prix	Circuit Zandvoort, Zandvoort	22 May
3	1961 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	18 June
4	1961 French Grand Prix	Reims-Gueux, Reims	2 July
5	1961 British Grand Prix	Aintree Motor Racing Circuit, Liverpool	15 July
6	1961 German Grand Prix	Nürburgring, Nürburg	6 August
7	1961 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	10 September
8	1961 United States Grand Prix	Watkins Glen International, Watkins Glen, New York	8 October