Jack Brabham opened the season with a determined victory at Kyalami, recovering from first-corner contact to beat Denny Hulme and Jackie Stewart. It was the triple champion’s 14th and final World Championship win, achieved amid an unusually large wave of new cars and team changes.
Race Guide
Season: 1970 F1 World Championship
Race date: 7 March 1970
Race start time: 15:00 local time (UTC+02:00)
Circuit: Kyalami
Laps: 80 laps
Circuit length: 4.104 km
1969 winner: Jackie Stewart
| Result | Driver / Time | Team |
|---|---|---|
| Pole position | Jackie Stewart | March |
| Pole time | 1:19.3 | |
| Fastest lap | John Surtees | McLaren |
| Fastest-lap time | 1:20.800 on lap 6 | |
| First | Jack Brabham | Brabham |
| Second | Denny Hulme | McLaren |
| Third | Jackie Stewart | March |
Weekend Schedule
| Date | Session | Local Time |
|---|---|---|
| 4 March 1970 | Wednesday timed practice | 14:30 |
| 5 March 1970 | Thursday timed practice | Afternoon |
| 6 March 1970 | Friday final qualifying | Afternoon |
| 7 March 1970 | Saturday untimed testing | Before lunch |
| 7 March 1970 | Race | 15:00 |
All times are local. The race time is the scheduled start; weather delays and interruptions are described below.
Championship background
Stewart began his title defence in a March run by Tyrrell after the team’s split from Matra. Ferrari introduced its flat-12 car with Ickx, while Brabham, McLaren and BRM also brought new machinery. The season opened with established champions facing an expanding generation of drivers and constructors.
Race entries
March made its championship debut with works and customer cars, including Stewart, Amon and Andretti. Hill returned from serious leg injuries in Rob Walker’s Lotus, with Redman standing by if needed. Stommelen joined Brabham, Courage drove the new De Tomaso and Surtees entered a McLaren while preparing his own constructor programme.
Wednesday timed practice
Andretti missed the opening session after damaging his March in testing. BRM withdrew its new cars when another rear hub-shaft failed, while Stewart lost time to engine and fuel-pressure work. Rindt and Hulme shared the best time. Stommelen impressed in the Brabham before an anti-roll-bar failure interrupted his progress.
Thursday timed practice
Stewart and Amon set identical fastest laps in Marches from different teams, with Brabham close behind. Hill showed encouraging pace and decided he was fit to race, although a fuel-injection drive failure ended his running. The new March had made an immediate impression without yet proving its race durability.
Friday final qualifying
Andretti and the repaired BRMs joined the running, but heat, rubber and spilled oil prevented the anticipated improvement. Rindt moved closer without displacing the leading Marches. Brabham spent time guiding Stommelen, while Redman completed a few laps in Hill’s Lotus as a precaution. Stewart retained pole ahead of Amon and Brabham.
Qualifying Classification
Each driver’s best eligible practice lap determined the qualifying order.
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Team | Best Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Jackie Stewart | March | 1:19.3 |
| 2 | 15 | Chris Amon | March | 1:19.3 |
| 3 | 12 | Jack Brabham | Brabham | 1:19.6 |
| 4 | 9 | Jochen Rindt | Lotus | 1:19.9 |
| 5 | 17 | Jacky Ickx | Ferrari | 1:20.0 |
| 6 | 6 | Denny Hulme | McLaren | 1:20.1 |
| 7 | 7 | John Surtees | McLaren | 1:20.2 |
| 8 | 3 | Jean-Pierre Beltoise | Matra | 1:20.2 |
| 9 | 16 | Jo Siffert | March | 1:20.2 |
| 10 | 5 | Bruce McLaren | McLaren | 1:20.3 |
| 11 | 8 | Mario Andretti | March | 1:20.5 |
| 12 | 19 | Jackie Oliver | BRM | 1:20.9 |
| 13 | 25 | Dave Charlton | Lotus | 1:20.9 |
| 14 | 10 | John Miles | Lotus | 1:21.0 |
| 15 | 14 | Rolf Stommelen | Brabham | 1:21.2 |
| 16 | 20 | Pedro Rodríguez | BRM | 1:21.3 |
| 17 | 2 | Johnny Servoz-Gavin | March | 1:21.4 |
| 18 | 4 | Henri Pescarolo | Matra | 1:21.5 |
| 19 | 11 | Graham Hill | Lotus | 1:21.6 |
| 20 | 22 | Piers Courage | De Tomaso | 1:22.0 |
| 21 | 24 | Peter de Klerk | Brabham | 1:22.7 |
| 22 | 23 | John Love | Lotus | 1:23.1 |
| 23 | 21 | George Eaton | BRM | 1:24.6 |
Saturday untimed testing
A short race-day session allowed final checks after evening storms. Conditions were hot, with some cloud arriving before the 15:00 start. Hill prepared to complete the race despite still having difficulty walking, while the many new cars faced their first full championship-distance test.
What happened in the 1970 South African Grand Prix?
Rindt’s first-corner contact disrupted Amon and Brabham, allowing Stewart to escape. Brabham checked that his car was intact and began working forward, passing the cars between him and the leader. He caught Stewart and took command on lap 20.
Hulme also passed Stewart, while Bruce McLaren’s pursuit ended with engine failure. Several Marches suffered cooling trouble, and Ickx retired the new Ferrari. Brabham remained firmly in control, combining pace with the confidence of a driver thoroughly at home at Kyalami.
Brabham won from Hulme and Stewart. Beltoise brought Matra home fourth, Miles overcame a fuel leak to finish fifth and Hill earned sixth on his courageous return. Stewart’s podium gave March an immediate championship result, but the opening victory belonged to the most experienced driver in the field.
After the race, Jack Brabham headed the drivers’ standings with 9 points, followed by Denny Hulme on 6. Brabham – Ford led the constructors’ table on 9, with McLaren – Ford on 6.
1970 South African Grand Prix race results
The 1970 South African Grand Prix was held on 7 March 1970, with a scheduled start of 15:00 local time.
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Team | Laps | Time / Retired | Pts. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 12 | Jack Brabham | Brabham | 80 | 1:49:34.6 | 9 |
| 2 | 6 | Denny Hulme | McLaren | 80 | +8.1 | 6 |
| 3 | 1 | Jackie Stewart | March | 80 | +17.1 | 4 |
| 4 | 3 | Jean-Pierre Beltoise | Matra | 80 | +1:13.1 | 3 |
| 5 | 10 | John Miles | Lotus | 79 | +1 lap | 2 |
| 6 | 11 | Graham Hill | Lotus | 79 | +1 lap | 1 |
| 7 | 4 | Henri Pescarolo | Matra | 78 | +2 laps | 0 |
| 8 | 23 | John Love | Lotus | 78 | +2 laps | 0 |
| 9 | 20 | Pedro Rodríguez | BRM | 76 | +4 laps | 0 |
| 10 | 16 | Jo Siffert | March | 75 | +5 laps | 0 |
| 11 | 24 | Peter de Klerk | Brabham | 75 | +5 laps | 0 |
| 12 | 25 | Dave Charlton | Lotus | 73 | Engine | 0 |
| 13 | 9 | Jochen Rindt | Lotus | 72 | Engine | 0 |
| Ret | 17 | Jacky Ickx | Ferrari | 60 | Engine | 0 |
| Ret | 7 | John Surtees | McLaren | 60 | Engine | 0 |
| Ret | 21 | George Eaton | BRM | 58 | Engine | 0 |
| Ret | 2 | Johnny Servoz-Gavin | March | 57 | Engine | 0 |
| Ret | 5 | Bruce McLaren | McLaren | 39 | Engine | 0 |
| Ret | 22 | Piers Courage | De Tomaso | 39 | Accident | 0 |
| Ret | 8 | Mario Andretti | March | 26 | Overheating | 0 |
| Ret | 14 | Rolf Stommelen | Brabham | 23 | Engine | 0 |
| Ret | 19 | Jackie Oliver | BRM | 22 | Gearbox | 0 |
| Ret | 15 | Chris Amon | March | 14 | Overheating | 0 |
| DNS | 11 | Brian Redman | Lotus | Car raced by Graham Hill | 0 |
1970 South African Grand Prix Fastest Laps
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Team | Lap | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 7 | John Surtees | McLaren | 6 | 1:20.800 |
| 1 | 12 | Jack Brabham | Brabham | 71 | 1:20.800 |
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 South African Grand Prix.
1970 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings
| POS | Driver | Nationality | Car | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jack Brabham | Australian | Brabham | 9 |
| 2 | Denny Hulme | New Zealander | McLaren | 6 |
| 3 | Jackie Stewart | British | March | 4 |
| 4 | Jean-Pierre Beltoise | French | Matra | 3 |
| 5 | John Miles | British | Lotus | 2 |
| 6 | Graham Hill | British | Lotus | 1 |
| – | Henri Pescarolo | French | Matra | 0 |
| – | John Love | Rhodesian | Lotus | 0 |
| – | Pedro Rodríguez | Mexican | BRM | 0 |
| – | Jo Siffert | Swiss | March | 0 |
| – | Peter de Klerk | South African | Brabham | 0 |
| – | Dave Charlton | South African | Lotus | 0 |
| – | Jochen Rindt | Austrian | Lotus | 0 |
| – | Jacky Ickx | Belgian | Ferrari | 0 |
| – | John Surtees | British | McLaren | 0 |
| – | George Eaton | Canadian | BRM | 0 |
| – | Johnny Servoz-Gavin | French | March | 0 |
| – | Bruce McLaren | New Zealander | McLaren | 0 |
| – | Piers Courage | British | De Tomaso | 0 |
| – | Mario Andretti | American | March | 0 |
| – | Rolf Stommelen | German | Brabham | 0 |
| – | Jackie Oliver | British | BRM | 0 |
| – | Chris Amon | New Zealander | March | 0 |
1970 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings
| POS | Car | PTS |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brabham – Ford | 9 |
| 2 | McLaren – Ford | 6 |
| 3 | March – Ford | 4 |
| 4 | Matra | 3 |
| 5 | Lotus – Ford | 2 |
| — | BRM | 0 |
| — | Ferrari | 0 |
| — | De Tomaso – 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
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