1970 Austrian Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Ferrari turned its growing pace into a commanding one-two at the Österreichring, with Jacky Ickx leading Clay Regazzoni home. Rolf Stommelen earned his only Formula One podium, while home favourite Jochen Rindt retired after starting from pole.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Jochen Rindt	Lotus
Pole time	1:39.23
Fastest lap	Jacky Ickx	Ferrari
Fastest-lap time	1:40.400 on lap 45
First	Jacky Ickx	Ferrari
Second	Clay Regazzoni	Ferrari
Third	Rolf Stommelen	Brabham

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
13 August 1970	Thursday timed practice	Three hours; afternoon
14 August 1970	Friday timed practice	Four hours; afternoon
15 August 1970	Saturday final qualifying	Four hours; afternoon
16 August 1970	Race	15:00

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

Championship background

Jochen Rindt arrived at round 9 leading the 1970 F1 World Championship on 45 points, with Jack Brabham on 25. Lotus – Ford headed the constructors’ standings after the preceding race with 50 points.

Race entries

The Austrian Grand Prix returned to the championship for the first time since 1964, now at the purpose-built Österreichring rather than Zeltweg airfield. Ferrari expanded to three cars for Ickx, Regazzoni and Giunti, and Schenken made his championship debut with De Tomaso. Hill and Peterson were absent, while the organisers accepted all 24 drivers who arrived.

Thursday timed practice

Regazzoni and Giunti immediately set the standard, approaching a 1:40 lap around the unfamiliar circuit. Ickx missed the session and most of the BRM team arrived too late, although Eaton’s car had travelled separately. With steep gradients and blind crests to learn, the generous practice allocation mattered. A shortage of replacement Cosworth engines nevertheless encouraged several teams to conserve their running.

Friday timed practice

Ickx arrived suffering from a heavy cold but quickly joined his team-mates near the front. Lotus narrowed its radiator scoops after a protest over the car’s width, then Rindt produced a 1:39.2 to beat both leading Ferraris. Eaton crashed heavily and Miles damaged the rear of his Lotus, while Brabham’s engine trouble complicated Stommelen’s programme. Surtees sat out the day to protect his only engine.

Saturday final qualifying

Plans for a late attack on pole were ruined by heavy rain midway through the afternoon. Surtees was among the first to venture back out, followed by several others learning the circuit in wet conditions, but nobody could improve the leading times. Rindt retained pole beside Regazzoni. A dispute over the precision of the timing affected Stewart and Giunti’s positions, with Stewart ultimately taking fourth on the grid.

Qualifying Classification

Each driver’s best eligible practice lap determined the qualifying order.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Best Time
1	6	Jochen Rindt	Lotus	1:39.23
2	27	Clay Regazzoni	Ferrari	1:39.70
3	12	Jacky Ickx	Ferrari	1:39.86
4	1	Jackie Stewart	March	1:40.15
5	14	Ignazio Giunti	Ferrari	1:40.21
6	4	Chris Amon	March	1:40.60
7	19	Jean-Pierre Beltoise	Matra	1:40.81
8	10	Jack Brabham	Brabham	1:40.81
9	2	François Cevert	March	1:40.89
10	7	John Miles	Lotus	1:41.46
11	21	Denny Hulme	McLaren	1:41.49
12	15	John Surtees	Surtees	1:41.49
13	20	Henri Pescarolo	Matra	1:41.70
14	16	Jackie Oliver	BRM	1:41.73
15	22	Andrea de Adamich	McLaren	1:41.82
16	8	Emerson Fittipaldi	Lotus	1:41.86
17	11	Rolf Stommelen	Brabham	1:42.09
18	5	Mario Andretti	March	1:42.28
19	26	Tim Schenken	De Tomaso	1:42.41
20	3	Jo Siffert	March	1:42.56
21	23	Peter Gethin	McLaren	1:42.79
22	17	Pedro Rodríguez	BRM	1:43.19
23	18	George Eaton	BRM	1:45.00
24	24	Silvio Moser	Bellasi	1:45.64

What happened in the 1970 Austrian Grand Prix?

Regazzoni and Ickx surged ahead at the start, and Ferrari soon established control. Stewart stopped with fuel leaking into his cockpit, while Rindt’s hopes ended with engine failure. With their main rivals disappearing, the two leading Ferraris could concentrate on bringing home the result.

Ickx led Regazzoni to a one-two, separated by less than a second at the flag. Stommelen finished third for Brabham, securing the only podium of his Formula One career. Beltoise, Hulme and de Adamich completed the points, the latter scoring in the Alfa Romeo-powered McLaren.

The victory was Ickx’s first of the season and confirmed that Ferrari had become a formidable force. Rindt still held a substantial championship advantage, but his retirement disappointed the home crowd. Tragically, this would be his final Grand Prix start.

After the race, Jochen Rindt headed the drivers’ standings with 45 points, followed by Jack Brabham on 25. Lotus – Ford led the constructors’ table on 50, with March – Ford on 33.

1970 Austrian Grand Prix race results

The 1970 Austrian Grand Prix was held on 16 August 1970, with a scheduled start of 15:00 local time.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	12	Jacky Ickx	Ferrari	60	1:42:17.3	9
2	27	Clay Regazzoni	Ferrari	60	+ 0.61	6
3	11	Rolf Stommelen	Brabham	60	+ 1:27.88	4
4	17	Pedro Rodríguez	BRM	59	+ 1 Lap	3
5	16	Jackie Oliver	BRM	59	+ 1 Lap	2
6	19	Jean-Pierre Beltoise	Matra	59	+ 1 Lap	1
7	14	Ignazio Giunti	Ferrari	59	+ 1 Lap	0
8	4	Chris Amon	March	59	+ 1 Lap	0
9	3	Jo Siffert	March	59	+ 1 Lap	0
10	23	Peter Gethin	McLaren	59	+ 1 Lap	0
11	18	George Eaton	BRM	58	+ 2 Laps	0
12	22	Andrea de Adamich	McLaren	57	+ 3 Laps	0
13	10	Jack Brabham	Brabham	56	+ 4 Laps	0
14	20	Henri Pescarolo	Matra	56	+ 4 Laps	0
15	8	Emerson Fittipaldi	Lotus	55	+ 5 Laps	0
Ret	21	Denny Hulme	McLaren	30	Engine	0
Ret	15	John Surtees	Surtees	27	Engine	0
Ret	26	Tim Schenken	De Tomaso	25	Engine	0
Ret	6	Jochen Rindt	Lotus	21	Engine	0
Ret	5	Mario Andretti	March	13	Accident	0
Ret	24	Silvio Moser	Bellasi	13	Radiator	0
Ret	1	Jackie Stewart	March	7	Fuel Pipe	0
Ret	7	John Miles	Lotus	4	Brakes	0
Ret	2	François Cevert	March	0	Engine	0

1970 Austrian Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time
1	12	Jacky Ickx	Ferrari	45	1:40.400
1	27	Clay Regazzoni	Ferrari	45	1:40.400

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

1970 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 1970 Austrian Grand Prix.

1970 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Jochen Rindt	Austrian	Lotus	45
2	Jack Brabham	Australian	Brabham	25
3	Denny Hulme	New Zealander	McLaren	20
4	Jacky Ickx	Belgian	Ferrari	19
5	Jackie Stewart	British	March	19
6	Chris Amon	New Zealander	March	14
7	Pedro Rodríguez	Mexican	BRM	13
8	Clay Regazzoni	Swiss	Ferrari	12
9	Jean-Pierre Beltoise	French	Matra	10
10	Rolf Stommelen	German	Brabham	8
11	Henri Pescarolo	French	Matra	8
12	Graham Hill	British	Lotus	7
13	Bruce McLaren	New Zealander	McLaren	6
14	Mario Andretti	American	March	4
15	Ignazio Giunti	Italian	Ferrari	3
16	Emerson Fittipaldi	Brazilian	Lotus	3
17	John Miles	British	Lotus	2
18	Jackie Oliver	British	BRM	2
19	Johnny Servoz-Gavin	French	March	2
20	John Surtees	British	McLaren / Surtees	1
21	Dan Gurney	American	McLaren	1
–	François Cevert	French	March	0
–	Jo Siffert	Swiss	March	0
–	Ronnie Peterson	Swedish	March	0
–	John Love	Rhodesian	Lotus	0
–	Peter Gethin	British	McLaren	0
–	George Eaton	Canadian	BRM	0
–	Peter de Klerk	South African	Brabham	0
–	Andrea de Adamich	Italian	McLaren	0
–	Dave Charlton	South African	Lotus	0
–	Piers Courage	British	De Tomaso	0
–	Pete Lovely	American	Lotus	0
–	Derek Bell	British	Brabham	0
–	Tim Schenken	Australian	De Tomaso	0
–	Silvio Moser	Swiss	Bellasi	0

1970 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	Lotus – Ford	50
2	March – Ford	33
3	Brabham – Ford	33
4	McLaren – Ford	27
5	Ferrari	25
6	Matra	17
7	BRM	13
—	Surtees – Ford	0
—	McLaren – Alfa Romeo	0
—	De Tomaso – Ford	0
—	Bellasi – Ford	0

Drivers counted their best 6 results from rounds 1–7 and their best 5 from rounds 8–13. Only the highest-placed car for each constructor could score constructor points, with the same dropped-results limits applying.

1970 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	1970 South African Grand Prix	Kyalami, Midrand	7 March
2	1970 Spanish Grand Prix	Circuito del Jarama, San Sebastián de los Reyes	19 April
3	1970 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	10 May
4	1970 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	7 June
5	1970 Dutch Grand Prix	Circuit Zandvoort, Zandvoort	21 June
6	1970 French Grand Prix	Circuit de Charade, Clermont-Ferrand	5 July
7	1970 British Grand Prix	Brands Hatch, West Kingsdown	18 July
8	1970 German Grand Prix	Hockenheimring, Hockenheim	2 August
9	1970 Austrian Grand Prix	Österreichring, Spielberg	16 August
10	1970 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	6 September
11	1970 Canadian Grand Prix	Circuit Mont-Tremblant, Saint-Jovite	20 September
12	1970 United States Grand Prix	Watkins Glen International, Watkins Glen, New York	4 October
13	1970 Mexican Grand Prix	Autódromo Hermanos Rodríguez, Mexico City	25 October