1964 German Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

John Surtees won at the Nürburgring for Ferrari, ahead of Graham Hill and Lorenzo Bandini. The meeting was overshadowed by Carel Godin de Beaufort’s fatal practice accident.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	John Surtees	Ferrari
Pole time	8:38.4
Fastest lap	John Surtees	Ferrari
Fastest-lap time	8:39.000 on lap 11
First	John Surtees	Ferrari
Second	Graham Hill	BRM
Third	Lorenzo Bandini	Ferrari

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
31 July 1964	Friday morning timed practice	Start time unconfirmed
31 July 1964	Friday afternoon timed practice	Start time unconfirmed
1 August 1964	Saturday morning timed practice	Start time unconfirmed
1 August 1964	Saturday final qualifying	Start time unconfirmed
1 August 1964	Additional untimed practice	Start time unconfirmed
2 August 1964	Race	14:00

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

Championship background

Jim Clark arrived at round 6 leading the 1964 F1 World Championship on 30 points, with Graham Hill on 26. Lotus – Climax headed the constructors’ standings after the preceding race with 34 points.

Race entries

Honda made its World Championship debut with Bucknum and a new V12 car. Mitter joined Lotus in a third entry, while Spence continued replacing Arundell. Edgar Barth drove Rob Walker’s Cooper, leaving Bonnier in the Brabham. BRP was absent, and BRM withdrew its experimental four-wheel-drive entry.

Friday morning timed practice

Hill set a strong early benchmark while Clark worked through the setup of a new Lotus. Brabham’s engine failed, Amon suffered ignition trouble and Revson damaged his nose in a spin. Honda’s debut began with overheating, eventually traced to its radiator rather than the initially suspected water pump.

Friday afternoon timed practice

Bandini put Ferrari fastest with its V6, ahead of Surtees in the V8. Clark’s new car improved, while Gurney remained competitive. Honda struggled to run cleanly on all twelve cylinders. Mitter still could not use the spare Lotus because the team wanted it available until Clark was satisfied with his new car.

Saturday morning timed practice

Cooler air helped Surtees break the next lap-time barrier before rain made the circuit slippery. Clark also improved. Bucknum’s engine failed before he completed a full lap, and Ginther damaged his BRM engine after selecting the wrong gear. Both teams began major repairs before the next session.

Saturday final qualifying

Surtees improved again to take pole, narrowly ahead of Clark and Gurney. Hill also damaged his engine after a gear-selection error, while Anderson suffered a suspension failure. De Beaufort crashed at Bergwerk and sustained injuries from which he later died. The tragedy overshadowed the completion of the qualifying programme.

Qualifying Classification

Four timed sessions established the grid. The additional Saturday running did not alter it; it allowed drivers to satisfy the minimum-lap requirement.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Timed session 1	Timed session 2	Timed session 3	Timed session 4	Best Time
1	7	John Surtees	Ferrari	8:45.2	8:43.0	8:39.2	8:38.4	8:38.4
2	1	Jim Clark	Lotus	9:04.1	8:47.9	8:42.2	8:38.8	8:38.8
3	5	Dan Gurney	Brabham	8:47.8	8:43.2	8:56.1	8:39.3	8:39.3
4	8	Lorenzo Bandini	Ferrari	8:49.3	8:42.6	9:03.9	10:40.9	8:42.6
5	3	Graham Hill	BRM	8:44.4	8:44.6	8:43.8	8:46.1	8:43.8
6	6	Jack Brabham	Brabham	9:10.6	8:59.6	8:53.1	8:46.6	8:46.6
7	9	Bruce McLaren	Cooper	9:13.0	8:57.9	9:33.3	8:47.1	8:47.1
8	10	Phil Hill	Cooper	9:26.1	8:52.7	9:07.3	9:01.8	8:52.7
9	14	Chris Amon	Lotus	No time	8:54.0	No time	8:54.7	8:54.0
10	19	Jo Siffert	Brabham	10:04.4	9:02.8	9:05.1	8:56.9	8:56.9
11	4	Richie Ginther	BRM	9:09.4	8:57.9	9:08.4	No time	8:57.9
12	11	Jo Bonnier	Brabham	9:43.3	9:16.5	9:36.7	9:01.3	9:01.3
13	15	Mike Hailwood	Lotus	9:21.6	9:08.4	9:26.9	9:01.9	9:01.9
14	22	Maurice Trintignant	BRM	9:20.7	9:14.0	9:12.5	9:06.8	9:06.8
15	16	Bob Anderson	Brabham	9:19.0	9:07.5	10:25.7	No time	9:07.5
16	26	Tony Maggs	BRM	10:07.7	9:18.7	9:59.9	9:09.6	9:09.6
17	2	Mike Spence	Lotus	9:31.9	9:09.9	9:21.5	9:13.0	9:09.9
18	27	Peter Revson	Lotus	9:50.9	9:50.9	9:23.9	9:13.0	9:13.0
19	23	Gerhard Mitter	Lotus	No time	No time	No time	9:14.1	9:14.1
20	12	Edgar Barth	Cooper	10:33.6	9:27.1	9:38.0	9:14.2	9:14.2
21	18	Giancarlo Baghetti	BRM	9:38.8	9:33.1	9:34.9	9:14.6	9:14.6
22	20	Ronnie Bucknum	Honda	10:04.1	9:34.3	No time	No time	9:34.3
23	29	Carel Godin de Beaufort	Porsche	No time	9:52.4	9:37.9	9:40.4	9:37.9
24	28	André Pilette	Scirocco	No time	10:29.4	13:45.2	10:30.1	10:29.4

Additional untimed practice

Bucknum and Mitter were given an extra opportunity to complete the compulsory minimum of five practice laps. Their times did not count towards grid positions. Ginther used the session to check his repaired BRM, and Bonnier also took further running. This was an eligibility and preparation session after qualifying had finished.

What happened in the 1964 German Grand Prix?

Surtees emerged from the early contest in control, with Hill providing the strongest sustained opposition. Ferrari’s pace around the demanding Nordschleife converted the pole position into a genuine victory challenge.

Clark retired with engine trouble, while Gurney’s race was also disrupted by mechanical problems. Surtees maintained his advantage as reliability reshaped the order behind him.

Surtees won ahead of Hill and Bandini, giving Ferrari two podium finishes. Siffert, Trintignant and Maggs completed the points. Honda’s debut ended in retirement, while the weekend remained marked by the loss of de Beaufort.

After the race, Graham Hill headed the drivers’ standings with 32 points, followed by Jim Clark on 30. Lotus – Climax led the constructors’ table on 34, with BRM on 33.

1964 German Grand Prix race results

The 1964 German Grand Prix was held on 2 August 1964, with a scheduled start of 14:00 local time.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	7	John Surtees	Ferrari	15	2:12:04.8	9
2	3	Graham Hill	BRM	15	+ 1:15.6	6
3	8	Lorenzo Bandini	Ferrari	15	+ 4:52.8	4
4	19	Jo Siffert	Brabham	15	+ 5:23.1	3
5	22	Maurice Trintignant	BRM	14	Battery	2
6	26	Tony Maggs	BRM	14	+ 1 lap	1
7	4	Richie Ginther	BRM	14	+ 1 lap	0
8	2	Mike Spence	Lotus	14	+ 1 lap	0
9	23	Gerhard Mitter	Lotus	14	+ 1 lap	0
10	5	Dan Gurney	Brabham	14	+ 1 lap	0
11	14	Chris Amon	Lotus	12	Suspension	0
12	6	Jack Brabham	Brabham	11	Transmission	0
13	20	Ronnie Bucknum	Honda	11	Accident	0
14	27	Peter Revson	Lotus	10	Accident	0
Ret	1	Jim Clark	Lotus	7	Engine/Valve	0
Ret	9	Bruce McLaren	Cooper	4	Engine/Valve	0
Ret	16	Bob Anderson	Brabham	4	Suspension	0
Ret	12	Edgar Barth	Cooper	3	Clutch	0
Ret	18	Giancarlo Baghetti	BRM	2	Throttle	0
Ret	10	Phil Hill	Cooper	1	Engine	0
Ret	15	Mike Hailwood	Lotus	0	Engine	0
Ret	11	Jo Bonnier	Brabham	0	Ignition	0
DNS	29	Carel Godin de Beaufort	Porsche		Fatal accident during qualifying	0
DNQ	28	André Pilette	Scirocco			0

1964 German Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time
1	7	John Surtees	Ferrari	11	8:39.000

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

1964 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 1964 German Grand Prix.

1964 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Graham Hill	British	BRM	32
2	Jim Clark	British	Lotus	30
3	John Surtees	British	Ferrari	19
4	Richie Ginther	American	BRM	11
5	Peter Arundell	British	Lotus	11
6	Jack Brabham	Australian	Brabham	11
7	Dan Gurney	American	Brabham	10
8	Bruce McLaren	New Zealander	Cooper	7
9	Lorenzo Bandini	Italian	Ferrari	6
10	Jo Siffert	Swiss	Lotus / Brabham / Brabham	3
11	Jo Bonnier	Swedish	Cooper / Brabham / Brabham	2
12	Chris Amon	New Zealander	Lotus	2
13	Maurice Trintignant	French	BRM	2
14	Bob Anderson	British	Brabham	1
15	Phil Hill	American	Cooper	1
16	Mike Hailwood	British	Lotus	1
17	Tony Maggs	South African	BRM	1
–	Trevor Taylor	British	BRP / Lotus	0
–	Mike Spence	British	Lotus	0
–	Giancarlo Baghetti	Italian	BRM	0
–	Gerhard Mitter	German	Lotus	0
–	Innes Ireland	British	Lotus / BRP	0
–	Ronnie Bucknum	American	Honda	0
–	Peter Revson	American	Lotus / Lotus	0
–	John Taylor	British	Cooper	0
–	André Pilette	Belgian	Scirocco	0
–	Carel Godin de Beaufort	Dutch	Porsche	0
–	Ian Raby	British	Brabham	0
–	Edgar Barth	German	Cooper	0
–	Frank Gardner	Australian	Brabham	0
–	Richard Attwood	British	BRM	0

1964 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	Lotus – Climax	34
2	BRM	33
3	Ferrari	19
4	Brabham – Climax	17
5	Cooper – Climax	10
6	Brabham – BRM	3
7	Lotus – BRM	3
—	BRP – BRM	0
—	Honda	0
—	Cooper – Ford	0
—	Scirocco – Climax	0
—	Porsche	0
—	Brabham – Ford	0

Drivers and constructors counted their best 6 results. Only the highest-placed eligible car for each constructor could score constructor points.

1964 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	1964 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	10 May
2	1964 Dutch Grand Prix	Circuit Zandvoort, Zandvoort	24 May
3	1964 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	14 June
4	1964 French Grand Prix	Reims-Gueux, Reims	28 June
5	1964 British Grand Prix	Brands Hatch, West Kingsdown	11 July
6	1964 German Grand Prix	Nürburgring, Nürburg	2 August
7	1964 Austrian Grand Prix	Zeltweg Airfield, Zeltweg	23 August
8	1964 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	6 September
9	1964 United States Grand Prix	Watkins Glen International, Watkins Glen, New York	4 October
10	1964 Mexican Grand Prix	Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, Mexico City	25 October