1972 Monaco Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Jean-Pierre Beltoise mastered a soaking Monaco Grand Prix to claim his only World Championship victory. The Frenchman led throughout for BRM, leaving even wet-weather specialist Jacky Ickx unable to challenge him and delivering what became the team’s final championship win.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Emerson Fittipaldi	Lotus
Pole time	1:21.4
Fastest lap	Jean-Pierre Beltoise	BRM
Fastest-lap time	1:40.000 on lap 9
First	Jean-Pierre Beltoise	BRM
Second	Jacky Ickx	Ferrari
Third	Emerson Fittipaldi	Lotus

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
11 May 1972	Thursday timed practice	Afternoon; delayed
12 May 1972	Friday timed practice	Approximately 08:40–10:10
13 May 1972	Saturday final qualifying	Afternoon
14 May 1972	Sunday extra practice and warm-up	Morning; start unconfirmed
14 May 1972	Race	Start time unconfirmed

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

Championship background

Emerson Fittipaldi arrived at round 4 leading the 1972 F1 World Championship on 15 points, with Denny Hulme on 15. McLaren – Ford headed the constructors’ standings after the preceding race with 17 points.

The pits moved to the harbour front and a new, tighter chicane changed the approach to Tabac. Drivers had to learn the revised layout during official practice, with no opportunity for the extensive private running available at permanent circuits.

Race entries

Brian Redman replaced the Indianapolis-bound Peter Revson at McLaren, while Ferrari ran Ickx and Regazzoni without Andretti. BRM exchanged Soler-Roig for Marko. Agreement to admit 25 starters meant every driver present could race, after Tecno again failed to appear.

Thursday timed practice

Ickx led the first dry session, with Hulme and Stewart close behind in their spare cars. Hulme’s intended race car suffered clutch trouble and Hill’s Brabham caught fire while being started. Redman impressed on his first Monaco appearance and first drive in the McLaren, while a late tyre experiment failed to improve Fittipaldi’s position.

Friday timed practice

Fittipaldi found a smooth rhythm and beat the Ferraris to fastest time, a lap that secured pole when Saturday turned wet. Ickx and Regazzoni pushed hard, while Hulme followed Stewart closely and finished ahead of him. Brothers Emerson and Wilson also circulated together for a time as the elder Fittipaldi learned the circuit in his Brabham.

Saturday final qualifying

Persistent rain removed any chance of changing the dry-weather grid. Most drivers nevertheless went out to gain wet running, with frequent trips down the chicane escape road and a minor barrier strike for Stommelen. Ickx, Regazzoni and Fittipaldi remained the quickest; Hulme and Marko stayed in the pits, and fuel-pump trouble restricted Wilson Fittipaldi to one lap.

Qualifying Classification

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

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Best Time
1	8	Emerson Fittipaldi	Lotus	1:21.4
2	6	Jacky Ickx	Ferrari	1:21.6
3	7	Clay Regazzoni	Ferrari	1:21.9
4	17	Jean-Pierre Beltoise	BRM	1:22.5
5	18	Peter Gethin	BRM	1:22.6
6	16	Chris Amon	Matra	1:22.6
7	14	Denny Hulme	McLaren	1:22.7
8	1	Jackie Stewart	Tyrrell	1:22.9
9	22	Henri Pescarolo	March	1:22.9
10	15	Brian Redman	McLaren	1:23.1
11	11	Mike Hailwood	Surtees	1:23.7
12	2	François Cevert	Tyrrell	1:23.8
13	10	Tim Schenken	Surtees	1:23.9
15	3	Ronnie Peterson	March	1:24.1
16	28	Reine Wisell	BRM	1:24.4
17	26	Helmut Marko	BRM	1:24.6
18	12	Andrea de Adamich	Surtees	1:24.7
19	20	Graham Hill	Brabham	1:24.7
20	19	Howden Ganley	BRM	1:24.7
21	21	Wilson Fittipaldi	Brabham	1:25.2
22	4	Niki Lauda	March	1:25.6
23	5	Mike Beuttler	March	1:26.5
24	23	Carlos Pace	March	1:26.6
25	27	Rolf Stommelen	Eifelland	1:29.5

Sunday extra practice and warm-up

More heavy rain prompted an additional half-hour of practice before the race, followed by further warm-up laps. Drivers assessed the standing water and poor visibility before assembling on a 25-car grid. The race began a few minutes late, with conditions still extremely difficult.

What happened in the 1972 Monaco Grand Prix?

Beltoise launched brilliantly and took the lead at Sainte Dévote. Regazzoni and Fittipaldi both overshot the chicane early on, giving Ickx a clear run into second, but the leading BRM was already pulling away. Beltoise combined aggression with growing confidence as the race settled into its wet-weather rhythm.

Stewart mounted an energetic recovery before a spin interrupted his progress. A collision between Ganley and Hailwood spread oil across the wet road; Regazzoni then crashed, while electrical problems increasingly slowed Stewart’s Tyrrell. Fittipaldi passed him for third near the finish.

Beltoise completed all 80 laps more than a minute and a half ahead of Ickx. Fittipaldi, Stewart, Redman and Amon took the remaining points. It was a remarkable breakthrough for Beltoise and a welcome transformation in fortunes for BRM after a difficult opening to the season.

After the race, Emerson Fittipaldi headed the drivers’ standings with 19 points, followed by Jacky Ickx on 16. McLaren – Ford led the constructors’ table on 19, with Lotus – Ford on 19.

1972 Monaco Grand Prix race results

The 1972 Monaco Grand Prix was held on 14 May 1972.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	17	Jean-Pierre Beltoise	BRM	80	2:26:55.3	9
2	6	Jacky Ickx	Ferrari	80	+ 38.2	6
3	8	Emerson Fittipaldi	Lotus	79	+ 1 lap	4
4	1	Jackie Stewart	Tyrrell	78	+ 2 laps	3
5	15	Brian Redman	McLaren	77	+ 3 laps	2
6	16	Chris Amon	Matra	77	+ 3 laps	1
7	12	Andrea de Adamich	Surtees	77	+ 3 laps	0
8	26	Helmut Marko	BRM	77	+ 3 laps	0
9	21	Wilson Fittipaldi	Brabham	77	+ 3 laps	0
10	27	Rolf Stommelen	Eifelland	77	+ 3 laps	0
11	3	Ronnie Peterson	March	76	+ 4 laps	0
12	20	Graham Hill	Brabham	76	+ 4 laps	0
13	5	Mike Beuttler	March	76	+ 4 laps	0
14	9	Dave Walker	Lotus	75	+ 5 laps	0
15	14	Denny Hulme	McLaren	74	+ 6 laps	0
16	4	Niki Lauda	March	74	+ 6 laps	0
17	23	Carlos Pace	March	72	+ 8 laps	0
NC	2	François Cevert	Tyrrell	70	+ 10 laps	0
Ret	22	Henri Pescarolo	March	58	Accident	0
Ret	7	Clay Regazzoni	Ferrari	51	Accident	0
Ret	11	Mike Hailwood	Surtees	48	Accident	0
Ret	19	Howden Ganley	BRM	47	Accident	0
Ret	10	Tim Schenken	Surtees	31	Accident	0
Ret	18	Peter Gethin	BRM	27	Accident	0
Ret	28	Reine Wisell	BRM	16	Engine	0

1972 Monaco Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time
1	17	Jean-Pierre Beltoise	BRM	9	1:40.000

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

1972 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 1972 Monaco Grand Prix.

1972 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Emerson Fittipaldi	Brazilian	Lotus	19
2	Jacky Ickx	Belgian	Ferrari	16
3	Denny Hulme	New Zealander	McLaren	15
4	Jackie Stewart	British	Tyrrell	12
5	Jean-Pierre Beltoise	French	BRM	9
6	Clay Regazzoni	Swiss	Ferrari	7
7	Peter Revson	American	McLaren	6
8	Andrea de Adamich	Italian	Surtees	3
9	Mario Andretti	American	Ferrari	3
10	Ronnie Peterson	Swedish	March	3
11	Tim Schenken	Australian	Surtees	2
12	Brian Redman	British	McLaren	2
13	Graham Hill	British	Brabham	1
14	Chris Amon	New Zealander	Matra	1
15	Carlos Pace	Brazilian	March	1
–	Wilson Fittipaldi	Brazilian	Brabham	0
–	Niki Lauda	Austrian	March	0
–	Carlos Reutemann	Argentine	Brabham	0
–	Helmut Marko	Austrian	BRM	0
–	Henri Pescarolo	French	March	0
–	David Walker	Australian	Lotus	0
–	François Cevert	French	Tyrrell	0
–	Howden Ganley	New Zealander	BRM	0
–	Rolf Stommelen	German	March	0
–	Mike Beuttler	British	March	0
–	John Love	Rhodesian	Surtees	0
–	Reine Wisell	Swedish	BRM	0
–	Peter Gethin	British	BRM	0
–	Mike Hailwood	British	Surtees	0
–	Alex Soler-Roig	Spanish	BRM	0
–	Dave Charlton	South African	Lotus	0

1972 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	McLaren – Ford	19
2	Lotus – Ford	19
3	Ferrari	19
4	Tyrrell – Ford	12
5	BRM	9
6	Surtees – Ford	5
7	March – Ford	4
8	Brabham – Ford	1
9	Matra	1
—	Eifelland – Ford	0

Drivers counted their best 5 results from rounds 1–6 and their best 5 from rounds 7–12. Only the highest-placed car for each constructor could score constructor points, with the same dropped-results limits applying.

1972 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	1972 Argentine Grand Prix	Autódromo Oscar Alfredo Gálvez, Buenos Aires	23 January
2	1972 South African Grand Prix	Kyalami, Midrand	4 March
3	1972 Spanish Grand Prix	Circuito del Jarama, San Sebastián de los Reyes	1 May
4	1972 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	14 May
5	1972 Belgian Grand Prix	Nivelles-Baulers, Nivelles	4 June
6	1972 French Grand Prix	Circuit de Charade, Clermont-Ferrand	2 July
7	1972 British Grand Prix	Brands Hatch, West Kingsdown	15 July
8	1972 German Grand Prix	Nürburgring, Nürburg	30 July
9	1972 Austrian Grand Prix	Österreichring, Spielberg	13 August
10	1972 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	10 September
11	1972 Canadian Grand Prix	Mosport Park, Bowmanville	24 September
12	1972 United States Grand Prix	Watkins Glen International, Watkins Glen, New York	8 October