1965 United States Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Graham Hill won a third consecutive United States Grand Prix after resisting the Brabhams in changing conditions. Dan Gurney finished second ahead of Jack Brabham at Watkins Glen.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Graham Hill	BRM
Pole time	1:11.25
Fastest lap	Graham Hill	BRM
Fastest-lap time	1:11.900 on lap 105
First	Graham Hill	BRM
Second	Dan Gurney	Brabham
Third	Jack Brabham	Brabham

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
1 October 1965	Friday timed practice	13:00–17:00
2 October 1965	Saturday final qualifying	Start time unconfirmed
3 October 1965	Race	Start time unconfirmed

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 9 leading the 1965 F1 World Championship on 54 points, with Graham Hill on 34. Lotus – Climax headed the constructors’ standings after the preceding race with 54 points.

Race entries

Surtees was absent after a serious sports-car accident in Canada. Bandini led Ferrari’s challenge, with Rodriguez and debutant Bondurant also in Ferraris. Solana joined Lotus for the North American rounds, while Stewart and Rindt faced their first championship visits to Watkins Glen.

Friday timed practice

A damp circuit and cold weather complicated preparation. Stewart learned the track quickly, while Honda struggled to keep all twelve cylinders firing. Clark and Gurney suffered oil leaks from their newer engines. Clark damaged Spence’s suspension after a missed gear selection sent him over a kerb. Hill ended fastest as further rain interrupted the afternoon.

Saturday final qualifying

Hill and Clark traded increasingly fast laps. Clark’s engine then suffered timing-gear damage, so he used Spence’s Lotus to set the fastest outright time. His own car was repaired overnight with parts from Gurney’s discarded engine. Honda experimented with car swaps, and Ginther secured a strong starting position. Bondurant concentrated on learning both his Ferrari and the circuit.

Qualifying Classification

Clark’s fastest lap was set in Spence’s car. By choosing his repaired original Lotus for the race, he started second on the strength of its time; Hill therefore held pole. Fastest practice lap and official pole were not the same distinction.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Best Time
1	3	Graham Hill	BRM	1:11.25
2	5	Jim Clark	Lotus	1:11.35
3	11	Richie Ginther	Honda	1:11.40
4	6	Mike Spence	Lotus	1:11.50
5	2	Lorenzo Bandini	Ferrari	1:11.73
6	4	Jackie Stewart	BRM	1:11.76
7	7	Jack Brabham	Brabham	1:12.20
8	8	Dan Gurney	Brabham	1:12.25
9	9	Bruce McLaren	Cooper	1:12.45
10	15	Jo Bonnier	Brabham	1:12.45
11	16	Jo Siffert	Brabham	1:12.50
12	12	Ronnie Bucknum	Honda	1:12.70
13	10	Jochen Rindt	Cooper	1:12.90
14	24	Bob Bondurant	Ferrari	1:12.90
15	14	Pedro Rodríguez	Ferrari	1:13.00
16	21	Richard Attwood	Lotus	1:13.70
17	18	Moisés Solana	Lotus	1:13.70
18	22	Innes Ireland	Lotus	1:15.00

What happened in the 1965 United States Grand Prix?

Hill led initially before Clark challenged and moved ahead. Their duel ended when Clark retired with engine trouble, while Stewart’s race was compromised by early suspension damage and a throttle problem.

A shower then transformed the contest. Hill ran onto the grass, allowing Gurney and Brabham to close. Brabham briefly challenged around the outside before another encounter sent him onto the wet grass, and Gurney returned to second.

As the track dried, Hill pulled clear and won by twelve seconds. Gurney managed a slipping clutch to finish second, with Brabham third. Hill also set the fastest lap, completing another successful visit to Watkins Glen.

After the race, Jim Clark headed the drivers’ standings with 54 points, followed by Graham Hill on 40. Lotus – Climax led the constructors’ table on 54, with BRM on 45.

1965 United States Grand Prix race results

The 1965 United States Grand Prix was held on 3 October 1965.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	3	Graham Hill	BRM	110	2:20:36.1	9
2	8	Dan Gurney	Brabham	110	+12.5 secs	6
3	7	Jack Brabham	Brabham	110	+57.5 secs	4
4	2	Lorenzo Bandini	Ferrari	109	+1 Lap	3
5	14	Pedro Rodríguez	Ferrari	109	+1 Lap	2
6	10	Jochen Rindt	Cooper	108	+2 Laps	1
7	11	Richie Ginther	Honda	108	+2 Laps	0
8	15	Jo Bonnier	Brabham	107	+3 Laps	0
9	24	Bob Bondurant	Ferrari	106	+4 Laps	0
10	21	Richard Attwood	Lotus	101	+9 Laps	0
11	16	Jo Siffert	Brabham	99	+11 Laps	0
12	18	Moisés Solana	Lotus	95	+15 Laps	0
13	12	Ronnie Bucknum	Honda	92	+18 Laps	0
Ret	4	Jackie Stewart	BRM	12	Suspension	0
Ret	5	Jim Clark	Lotus	11	Engine	0
Ret	9	Bruce McLaren	Cooper	11	Oil Pressure	0
Ret	6	Mike Spence	Lotus	9	Engine	0
Ret	22	Innes Ireland	Lotus	9	Unwell	0

1965 United States Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time
1	3	Graham Hill	BRM	105	1:11.900

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

1965 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 1965 United States Grand Prix.

1965 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Jim Clark	British	Lotus	54
2	Graham Hill	British	BRM	40
3	Jackie Stewart	British	BRM	33
4	Dan Gurney	American	Brabham	19
5	John Surtees	British	Ferrari	17
6	Lorenzo Bandini	Italian	Ferrari	13
7	Bruce McLaren	New Zealander	Cooper	10
8	Jack Brabham	Australian	Brabham	9
9	Mike Spence	British	Lotus	6
10	Denny Hulme	New Zealander	Brabham	5
11	Jochen Rindt	Austrian	Cooper	4
12	Pedro Rodríguez	Mexican	Ferrari	2
13	Jo Siffert	Swiss	Brabham	2
14	Richie Ginther	American	Honda	2
15	Richard Attwood	British	Lotus	1
–	Jo Bonnier	Swedish	Brabham	0
–	Frank Gardner	Australian	Brabham	0
–	Masten Gregory	American	BRM	0
–	Bob Anderson	British	Brabham	0
–	Innes Ireland	British	Lotus	0
–	Paul Hawkins	Australian	Brabham / Lotus	0
–	Bob Bondurant	American	Ferrari	0
–	Peter de Klerk	South African	Alfa Romeo	0
–	Tony Maggs	South African	Lotus	0
–	Ian Raby	British	Brabham / Brabham	0
–	Lucien Bianchi	Belgian	BRM	0
–	Nino Vaccarella	Italian	Ferrari	0
–	Moisés Solana	Mexican	Lotus	0
–	Ronnie Bucknum	American	Honda	0
–	Sam Tingle	Rhodesian	LDS	0
–	Roberto Bussinello	Italian	BRM	0
–	David Prophet	British	Brabham	0
–	Chris Amon	New Zealander	Lotus	0
–	Gerhard Mitter	German	Lotus	0
–	Mike Hailwood	British	Lotus	0
–	John Rhodes	British	Cooper	0
–	Giacomo Russo	Italian	Lotus	0
–	John Love	Rhodesian	Cooper	0
–	Giancarlo Baghetti	Italian	Brabham	0
–	Giorgio Bassi	Italian	BRM	0
–	Ray Reed	South African	RE	0
–	David Clapham	South African	Cooper	0
–	Alex Blignaut	South African	Cooper	0

1965 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	Lotus – Climax	54
2	BRM	45
3	Ferrari	26
4	Brabham – Climax	24
5	Cooper – Climax	14
6	Brabham – BRM	2
7	Honda	2
8	Lotus – BRM	1
—	Brabham – Ford	0
—	Alfa Special – Alfa Romeo	0
—	LDS – Alfa Romeo	0
—	Cooper – Ford	0
—	LDS – Climax	0
—	Lotus – Ford	0

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

1965 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	1965 South African Grand Prix	Prince George Circuit, East London	1 January
2	1965 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	30 May
3	1965 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	13 June
4	1965 French Grand Prix	Circuit de Charade, Clermont-Ferrand	27 June
5	1965 British Grand Prix	Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone	10 July
6	1965 Dutch Grand Prix	Circuit Zandvoort, Zandvoort	18 July
7	1965 German Grand Prix	Nürburgring, Nürburg	1 August
8	1965 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	12 September
9	1965 United States Grand Prix	Watkins Glen International, Watkins Glen, New York	3 October
10	1965 Mexican Grand Prix	Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, Mexico City	24 October