Ronnie Peterson mastered a wet, interrupted 1978 Austrian Grand Prix to claim his final Formula 1 victory. Patrick Depailler finished second and Gilles Villeneuve earned his first podium, while Mario Andretti’s early retirement interrupted his march towards the championship.
Race Guide
Season: 1978 F1 World Championship
Race date: 13 August 1978
Race start time: Start time unconfirmed local time (UTC+01:00)
Circuit: Österreichring
Laps: 54 laps
Circuit length: 5.942 km
1977 winner: Alan Jones
| Result | Driver / Time | Team |
|---|---|---|
| Pole position | Ronnie Peterson | Lotus |
| Pole time | 1:37.71 | |
| Fastest lap | Ronnie Peterson | Lotus |
| Fastest-lap time | 1:43.120 on lap | |
| First | Ronnie Peterson | Lotus |
| Second | Patrick Depailler | Tyrrell |
| Third | Gilles Villeneuve | Ferrari |
Weekend Schedule
| Date | Session | Local Time |
|---|---|---|
| 11 August 1978 | Friday pre-qualifying | 08:00–08:45 |
| 11 August 1978 | Friday morning timed practice | 10:00–11:30 |
| 11 August 1978 | Friday afternoon timed practice | Start time unconfirmed |
| 12 August 1978 | Saturday untimed practice | 90 minutes; start unconfirmed |
| 12 August 1978 | Saturday final qualifying | 13:10 start; restarted 13:22 |
| 13 August 1978 | Warm-up | 30 minutes; morning start unconfirmed |
| 13 August 1978 | Race | Start time unconfirmed |
All times are local. The race time is the scheduled start; weather delays and interruptions are described below.
Championship background
Mario Andretti arrived at round 12 leading the 1978 F1 World Championship on 54 points, with Ronnie Peterson on 36. Lotus – Ford headed the constructors’ standings after the preceding race with 67 points.
Race entries
Arrows introduced the A1 after the court ruling against its earlier design in the dispute with Shadow. Nelson Piquet moved to a privately entered McLaren, Derek Daly returned to Ensign and Hans Binder drove for ATS. The organisers added a short pre-qualifying session at late notice, leaving the smaller teams facing an extra hurdle.
Friday pre-qualifying
Rolf Stommelen was eliminated when a fuel leak stopped his new Arrows A1 during the preliminary session. With only one driver due to miss official practice, the mechanical problem was decisive. The other seven runners progressed, including Piquet in the McLaren and the returning Ensign drivers.
Friday pre-qualifying Classification
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Team | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | 23 | Harald Ertl | Ensign | — |
| — | 25 | Héctor Rebaque | Lotus | — |
| — | 29 | Nelson Piquet | McLaren | — |
| — | 30 | Brett Lunger | McLaren | — |
| — | 31 | René Arnoux | Martini | — |
| — | 32 | Keke Rosberg | Wolf | — |
| — | 37 | Arturo Merzario | Merzario | — |
| 8 | 36 | Rolf Stommelen | Arrows | 1:44.88 |
Friday morning timed practice
Peterson set a formidable benchmark, while Reutemann recovered from an alternator problem by using the spare Ferrari. Renault’s revised intercooler arrangement worked encouragingly on the fast circuit. Brabham’s drivers were unhappy with their side-radiator cars, and Patrese spent the session learning the new Arrows. Rosberg changed Wolves after a wheel-bearing problem caused a front brake to lock.
Friday afternoon timed practice
Lotus experimented with the shape of Andretti’s front suspension wishbones to address his concerns about airflow and balance. His pace improved, but Peterson could not respond after an engine failure. Brabham reverted to front radiators, then Lauda suffered transmission trouble and another engine failure in the spare. Jabouille’s Renault climbed to third overall, confirming its high-speed promise.
Saturday untimed practice
Andretti now had round-section front wishbones fitted, while Peterson and the Brabham drivers received replacement engines. Hunt and Tambay exchanged McLarens, seeking a better feel from their cars. Surtees briefly tried Brian Henton in Keegan’s car, and Brambilla crashed. Piquet’s engine was also down on power, leaving his mechanics with another urgent change before qualifying.
Saturday final qualifying
A parachute display mistakenly went ahead after cancellation, forcing an immediate interruption. Once practice resumed, Lauda set the pace before rain ended meaningful dry running after only a few minutes. Peterson’s Friday time therefore secured pole ahead of Andretti and Jabouille.
As the rain intensified, Reutemann ventured out on wet tyres, followed by several leading rivals to assess the conditions. Patrese, Rosberg, Daly, Regazzoni and Binder had improved before the weather turned, but the session offered little chance to reshape the front of the grid. Random post-session checks found no irregularities in the selected cars.
Qualifying Classification
Each driver’s best eligible practice lap determined the qualifying order.
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Team | Best Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | Ronnie Peterson | Lotus | 1:37.71 |
| 2 | 5 | Mario Andretti | Lotus | 1:37.76 |
| 3 | 15 | Jean-Pierre Jabouille | Renault | 1:38.32 |
| 4 | 11 | Carlos Reutemann | Ferrari | 1:38.50 |
| 5 | 26 | Jacques Laffite | Ligier | 1:38.71 |
| 6 | 14 | Emerson Fittipaldi | Fittipaldi | 1:38.77 |
| 7 | 20 | Jody Scheckter | Wolf | 1:38.85 |
| 8 | 7 | James Hunt | McLaren | 1:39.10 |
| 9 | 3 | Didier Pironi | Tyrrell | 1:39.23 |
| 10 | 2 | John Watson | Brabham | 1:39.35 |
| 11 | 12 | Gilles Villeneuve | Ferrari | 1:39.40 |
| 12 | 1 | Niki Lauda | Brabham | 1:39.49 |
| 13 | 4 | Patrick Depailler | Tyrrell | 1:39.51 |
| 14 | 8 | Patrick Tambay | McLaren | 1:39.59 |
| 15 | 27 | Alan Jones | Williams | 1:39.81 |
| 16 | 35 | Riccardo Patrese | Arrows | 1:40.11 |
| 17 | 30 | Brett Lunger | McLaren | 1:40.80 |
| 18 | 25 | Héctor Rebaque | Lotus | 1:40.84 |
| 19 | 22 | Derek Daly | Ensign | 1:41.02 |
| 20 | 29 | Nelson Piquet | McLaren | 1:41.15 |
| 21 | 19 | Vittorio Brambilla | Surtees | 1:41.16 |
| 22 | 17 | Clay Regazzoni | Shadow | 1:41.42 |
| 23 | 16 | Hans-Joachim Stuck | Shadow | 1:41.58 |
| 24 | 23 | Harald Ertl | Ensign | 1:41.60 |
| 25 | 32 | Keke Rosberg | Wolf | 1:41.72 |
| 26 | 31 | René Arnoux | Martini | 1:41.84 |
| 27 | 37 | Arturo Merzario | Merzario | 1:41.85 |
| 28 | 9 | Jochen Mass | ATS | 1:42.47 |
| 29 | 18 | Rupert Keegan | Surtees | 1:43.06 |
| 30 | 10 | Hans Binder | ATS | 1:44.46 |
Sunday warm-up
Sunday initially appeared warm and dry. Hunt remained in Tambay’s car after their earlier exchange, while Brambilla crashed and was assigned Keegan’s Surtees because his team-mate had not qualified. Lauda’s leaking radiator required repairs before the start. The reassuring morning conditions would not last.
What happened in the 1978 Austrian Grand Prix?
Peterson led as rain made the opening laps treacherous. Andretti crashed out, and further incidents left cars stranded around the circuit before the race was stopped. The restart used the surviving cars and the established order, with the final result decided on aggregate rather than treating the second part as a new Grand Prix.
Peterson led again when racing resumed, followed by Depailler and Lauda. Restart eligibility caused controversy: Reutemann was eventually disqualified for outside assistance, and Patrese also lost his result after his damaged car had been recovered and repaired. Lauda subsequently crashed out, promoting Villeneuve.
As the circuit dried, the leaders changed to slick tyres without altering the top three. Peterson completed a superb victory ahead of Depailler and Villeneuve. Emerson Fittipaldi finished fourth, Jacques Laffite fifth and Vittorio Brambilla sixth. Andretti remained the championship leader, but Peterson had substantially reduced his team-mate’s advantage.
After the race, Mario Andretti headed the drivers’ standings with 54 points, followed by Ronnie Peterson on 45. Lotus – Ford led the constructors’ table on 76, with Brabham – Alfa Romeo on 40.
1978 Austrian Grand Prix race results
The 1978 Austrian Grand Prix was held on 13 August 1978.
1978 Austrian Grand Prix Fastest Laps
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Team | Lap | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | Ronnie Peterson | Lotus | 1:43.120 |
Only drivers with a recorded lap time appear. No fastest-lap bonus point was awarded.
1978 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings
Championship standings after the 1978 Austrian Grand Prix.
1978 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings
1978 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings
| POS | Car | PTS |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lotus – Ford | 76 |
| 2 | Brabham – Alfa Romeo | 40 |
| 3 | Tyrrell – Ford | 36 |
| 4 | Ferrari | 35 |
| 5 | Ligier – Matra | 16 |
| 6 | Wolf – Ford | 14 |
| 7 | Fittipaldi – Ford | 13 |
| 8 | McLaren – Ford | 12 |
| 9 | Arrows – Ford | 8 |
| 10 | Shadow – Ford | 6 |
| 11 | Williams – Ford | 5 |
| 12 | Surtees – Ford | 1 |
| — | ATS – Ford | 0 |
| — | Martini – Ford | 0 |
| — | Renault | 0 |
| — | Ensign – Ford | 0 |
| — | Merzario – Ford | 0 |
| — | Theodore – Ford | 0 |
| — | Hesketh – Ford | 0 |
| — | March – Ford | 0 |
Drivers counted their best 7 results from rounds 1–8 and their best 7 from rounds 9–16. Only the highest-placed car for each constructor could score constructor points, with the same dropped-results limits applying.
1978 Formula 1 Race Calendar
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