1978 South African Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Ronnie Peterson swept past Patrick Depailler on the final lap to win a dramatic 1978 South African Grand Prix. Five drivers led at Kyalami, but tyre trouble, mechanical failures and fuel shortages repeatedly transformed the contest before Lotus snatched victory at the last opportunity.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Niki Lauda	Brabham
Pole time	1:14.65
Fastest lap	Mario Andretti	Lotus
Fastest-lap time	1:17.090 on lap 2
First	Ronnie Peterson	Lotus
Second	Patrick Depailler	Tyrrell
Third	John Watson	Brabham

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
1 March 1978	Wednesday morning practice cancelled	10:00; cancelled
1 March 1978	Wednesday timed practice	14:30–16:00
2 March 1978	Thursday untimed practice	90 minutes; start unconfirmed
2 March 1978	Thursday final qualifying	13:15–14:15
4 March 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 3 leading the 1978 F1 World Championship on 12 points, with Niki Lauda on 10. Lotus – Ford headed the constructors’ standings after the preceding race with 12 points.

Race entries

Brabham introduced its BT46 and Ferrari brought the new 312T3, while René Arnoux attempted to qualify the Martini. Eddie Cheever joined Hesketh, Keke Rosberg drove for Theodore and Rolf Stommelen took the second Arrows. The Saturday race had an unusual build-up, with official practice on Wednesday and Thursday and Friday left clear for preparation.

Wednesday morning practice cancelled

Work required at Kyalami had not been completed in time for the planned morning session. The lost running compressed the teams’ first opportunity to evaluate their cars, particularly significant for the new Ferrari and Brabham. Officials arranged a longer timed session in the afternoon instead.

Wednesday timed practice

Niki Lauda immediately showed the new Brabham’s promise, setting a time that would ultimately secure pole. Mario Andretti was his closest challenger, while Ronnie Peterson battled gearbox problems. A timing error briefly suggested James Hunt had gone faster, but his corrected lap left Lauda ahead. Ferrari’s new car still needed work to match the leaders, and Alan Jones encountered overheating.

Thursday untimed practice

The morning brought a succession of setbacks. Alan Jones damaged the front of his Williams, Mario Andretti had a steering problem and the Renault suffered an engine failure. Riccardo Patrese’s loose nose restricted cooling before a spin caused further damage. Arnoux also lost an engine, making Martini’s attempt to reach its first Grand Prix more difficult.

Thursday final qualifying

A headwind helped protect Lauda’s Wednesday benchmark. Andretti switched to the spare Lotus after an injection-system failure, while John Watson’s engine trouble forced him into the older spare Brabham. Patrese recovered impressively to set the afternoon’s quickest lap and qualify seventh.

Lauda and Andretti occupied the front row, ahead of the McLarens of James Hunt and Patrick Tambay. Arnoux, Clay Regazzoni, Lamberto Leoni and Hans-Joachim Stuck missed the cut. The two-day programme left the teams Friday to prepare for the race.

Qualifying Classification

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

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Best Time
1	1	Niki Lauda	Brabham	1:14.65
2	5	Mario Andretti	Lotus	1:14.90
3	7	James Hunt	McLaren	1:15.14
4	8	Patrick Tambay	McLaren	1:15.30
5	20	Jody Scheckter	Wolf	1:15.32
6	15	Jean-Pierre Jabouille	Renault	1:15.36
7	35	Riccardo Patrese	Arrows	1:15.48
8	12	Gilles Villeneuve	Ferrari	1:15.50
9	11	Carlos Reutemann	Ferrari	1:15.52
10	2	John Watson	Brabham	1:15.62
11	6	Ronnie Peterson	Lotus	1:15.94
12	4	Patrick Depailler	Tyrrell	1:15.97
13	3	Didier Pironi	Tyrrell	1:16.38
14	26	Jacques Laffite	Ligier	1:16.40
15	14	Emerson Fittipaldi	Fittipaldi	1:16.47
16	9	Jochen Mass	ATS	1:16.60
17	10	Jean-Pierre Jarier	ATS	1:17.12
18	27	Alan Jones	Williams	1:17.16
19	30	Brett Lunger	McLaren	1:17.30
20	19	Vittorio Brambilla	Surtees	1:17.32
21	36	Rolf Stommelen	Arrows	1:17.49
22	25	Héctor Rebaque	Lotus	1:17.50
23	18	Rupert Keegan	Surtees	1:17.57
24	32	Keke Rosberg	Theodore	1:17.62
25	24	Eddie Cheever	Hesketh	1:17.83
26	37	Arturo Merzario	Merzario	1:18.15
27	31	René Arnoux	Martini	1:18.21
28	17	Clay Regazzoni	Shadow	1:18.30
29	23	Lamberto Leoni	Ensign	1:18.38
30	16	Hans-Joachim Stuck	Shadow	1:18.45

What happened in the 1978 South African Grand Prix?

Mario Andretti emerged from the start ahead, but overheating tyres undermined his early advantage. Jody Scheckter took over before Riccardo Patrese swept the Arrows into the lead. Patrese drove confidently clear, threatening an extraordinary victory in only the team’s second Grand Prix.

The race unravelled for several leading contenders. Niki Lauda’s engine failed, both Ferraris retired and Scheckter slid off after fuel-delivery problems. Patrese then suffered an engine failure with victory in sight, handing the lead to Patrick Depailler. Peterson had been fighting his way forward, while Andretti’s late fuel stop removed another obstacle.

Depailler’s Tyrrell was struggling with gearbox-oil loss and faltering fuel delivery as Peterson closed in. The Lotus drew alongside on the last lap and completed the decisive pass through the closing sequence of corners. Peterson won by less than half a second, with John Watson third, Alan Jones fourth, Jacques Laffite fifth and Didier Pironi sixth.

After the race, Mario Andretti headed the drivers’ standings with 12 points, followed by Ronnie Peterson on 11. Lotus – Ford led the constructors’ table on 21, with Brabham – Alfa Romeo on 14.

1978 South African Grand Prix race results

The 1978 South African Grand Prix was held on 4 March 1978.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	6	Ronnie Peterson	Lotus	78	1:42:15.767	9
2	4	Patrick Depailler	Tyrrell	78	+0.466	6
3	2	John Watson	Brabham	78	+4.442	4
4	27	Alan Jones	Williams	78	+30.986	3
5	26	Jacques Laffite	Ligier	78	+1:09.218	2
6	3	Didier Pironi	Tyrrell	77	+1 Lap	1
7	5	Mario Andretti	Lotus	77	+1 Lap	0
8	10	Jean-Pierre Jarier	ATS	77	+1 Lap	0
9	36	Rolf Stommelen	Arrows	77	+1 Lap	0
10	25	Héctor Rebaque	Lotus	77	+1 Lap	0
11	30	Brett Lunger	McLaren	76	+2 Laps	0
12	19	Vittorio Brambilla	Surtees	76	+2 Laps	0
Ret	35	Riccardo Patrese	Arrows	63	Engine	0
Ret	20	Jody Scheckter	Wolf	59	Spun Off	0
Ret	8	Patrick Tambay	McLaren	56	Accident	0
Ret	12	Gilles Villeneuve	Ferrari	55	Oil Leak	0
Ret	11	Carlos Reutemann	Ferrari	55	Spun Off	0
Ret	1	Niki Lauda	Brabham	52	Engine	0
Ret	18	Rupert Keegan	Surtees	52	Engine	0
Ret	9	Jochen Mass	ATS	43	Engine	0
Ret	37	Arturo Merzario	Merzario	39	Suspension	0
Ret	15	Jean-Pierre Jabouille	Renault	38	Engine	0
Ret	32	Keke Rosberg	Theodore	15	Clutch	0
Ret	14	Emerson Fittipaldi	Fittipaldi	8	Transmission	0
Ret	24	Eddie Cheever	Hesketh	8	Oil Leak	0
Ret	7	James Hunt	McLaren	5	Engine	0
DNQ	31	René Arnoux	Martini			0
DNQ	17	Clay Regazzoni	Shadow			0
DNQ	23	Lamberto Leoni	Ensign			0
DNQ	16	Hans-Joachim Stuck	Shadow			0

1978 South African Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time
1	5	Mario Andretti	Lotus	2	1:17.090

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 South African Grand Prix.

1978 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Mario Andretti	American	Lotus	12
2	Ronnie Peterson	Swedish	Lotus	11
3	Niki Lauda	Austrian	Brabham	10
4	Patrick Depailler	French	Tyrrell	10
5	Carlos Reutemann	Argentine	Ferrari	9
6	Emerson Fittipaldi	Brazilian	Fittipaldi	6
7	John Watson	British	Brabham	4
8	Alan Jones	Australian	Williams	3
9	James Hunt	British	McLaren	3
10	Jacques Laffite	French	Ligier	2
11	Clay Regazzoni	Swiss	Shadow	2
12	Didier Pironi	French	Tyrrell	2
13	Patrick Tambay	French	McLaren	1
–	Jochen Mass	German	ATS	0
–	Jean-Pierre Jarier	French	ATS	0
–	Gilles Villeneuve	Canadian	Ferrari	0
–	Rolf Stommelen	German	Arrows	0
–	Hector Rebaque	Mexican	Lotus	0
–	Riccardo Patrese	Italian	Arrows	0
–	Jody Scheckter	South African	Wolf	0
–	Brett Lunger	American	McLaren	0
–	Vittorio Brambilla	Italian	Surtees	0
–	Hans-Joachim Stuck	German	Shadow	0
–	Danny Ongais	American	Ensign	0
–	Rupert Keegan	British	Surtees	0
–	Arturo Merzario	Italian	Merzario	0
–	Lamberto Leoni	Italian	Ensign	0
–	Jean-Pierre Jabouille	French	Renault	0
–	Keke Rosberg	Finnish	Theodore	0
–	Eddie Cheever	American	Theodore / Hesketh	0

1978 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	Lotus – Ford	21
2	Brabham – Alfa Romeo	14
3	Tyrrell – Ford	11
4	Ferrari	9
5	Fittipaldi – Ford	6
6	McLaren – Ford	3
7	Williams – Ford	3
8	Ligier – Matra	2
9	Shadow – Ford	2
—	ATS – Ford	0
—	Arrows – Ford	0
—	Wolf – Ford	0
—	Surtees – Ford	0
—	Ensign – Ford	0
—	Merzario – Ford	0
—	Theodore – Ford	0
—	Hesketh – Ford	0
—	Renault	0
—	Martini – 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

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	1978 Argentine Grand Prix	Autódromo Oscar Alfredo Gálvez, Buenos Aires	15 January
2	1978 Brazilian Grand Prix	Jacarepaguá, Rio de Janeiro	29 January
3	1978 South African Grand Prix	Kyalami, Midrand	4 March
4	1978 United States West Grand Prix	Long Beach Street Circuit, Long Beach, California	2 April
5	1978 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	7 May
6	1978 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit Zolder, Heusden-Zolder	21 May
7	1978 Spanish Grand Prix	Circuito del Jarama, San Sebastián de los Reyes	4 June
8	1978 Swedish Grand Prix	Scandinavian Raceway, Anderstorp	17 June
9	1978 French Grand Prix	Circuit Paul Ricard, Le Castellet	2 July
10	1978 British Grand Prix	Brands Hatch, West Kingsdown	16 July
11	1978 German Grand Prix	Hockenheimring, Hockenheim	30 July
12	1978 Austrian Grand Prix	Österreichring, Spielberg	13 August
13	1978 Dutch Grand Prix	Circuit Zandvoort, Zandvoort	27 August
14	1978 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	10 September
15	1978 United States Grand Prix	Watkins Glen International, Watkins Glen, New York	1 October
16	1978 Canadian Grand Prix	Circuit Île Notre-Dame, Montréal	8 October