1979 Austrian Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Alan Jones kept Williams’s winning run alive at the 1979 Austrian Grand Prix, overcoming Gilles Villeneuve’s spectacular start and Renault’s qualifying speed at the Österreichring. It was a third successive victory for the team, with Villeneuve second and Jacques Laffite claiming third on the final lap.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	René Arnoux	Renault
Pole time	1:34.07
Fastest lap	Rene Arnoux	Renault
Fastest-lap time	1:35.770 on lap 40
First	Alan Jones	Williams
Second	Gilles Villeneuve	Ferrari
Third	Jacques Laffite	Ligier

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
10 August 1979	Friday free practice	10:00–11:00
10 August 1979	Friday qualifying	12:30–14:00; interrupted
11 August 1979	Saturday free practice	One hour; start unconfirmed
11 August 1979	Saturday qualifying	90 minutes; interrupted
12 August 1979	Warm-up	10:00–10:30
12 August 1979	Race	Start time unconfirmed

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

Championship background

Jody Scheckter arrived at round 11 leading the 1979 F1 World Championship on 35 points, with Jacques Laffite on 28. Ferrari headed the constructors’ standings after the preceding race with 65 points.

Race entries

Derek Daly took the second Tyrrell while Jean-Pierre Jarier continued recovering from illness. ATS introduced a new ground-effect car for Hans-Joachim Stuck, and Lotus arrived with extensively revised rear-end layouts on its 79s. The works Alfa Romeo team remained absent as it prepared new machinery.

Friday free practice

Heavy rain left the circuit soaked, but most teams ventured out because more wet weather remained possible. Nelson Piquet slid off and damaged a steering component, then used the spare Brabham. Derek Daly’s first Tyrrell running came in difficult conditions, while Wolf postponed meaningful comparisons between its differently configured cars.

Friday qualifying

As the circuit dried, Alan Jones and Jean-Pierre Jabouille established themselves at the front. Jones’s soft tyres blistered rapidly, limiting each attempt to a short burst. A tyre failure damaged the new ATS, Patrick Tambay went off and broken or stranded cars caused a stoppage. Clay Regazzoni switched to the spare Williams after losing engine performance.

Saturday free practice

Jean-Pierre Jabouille went onto the grass while passing Derek Daly and needed a replacement turbo unit. Alan Jones then crashed the spare Williams heavily at the chicane, although his race car remained available. Mario Andretti compared Lotus configurations and preferred the less-modified spare, while Keke Rosberg continued evaluating Wolf’s alternatives.

Saturday qualifying

René Arnoux earned his first pole, defeating Alan Jones and Renault team-mate Jean-Pierre Jabouille. An engine failure for Emerson Fittipaldi spread oil and debris and interrupted the session, but Arnoux kept improving once running resumed. Jones continued attacking despite rapid tyre wear.

Niki Lauda qualified ahead of Nelson Piquet at his home race, while Gilles Villeneuve outpaced Jody Scheckter before a late excursion filled the Ferrari’s underside with grass. Derek Daly finished close to Didier Pironi’s pace in the other Tyrrell. Arturo Merzario and Héctor Rebaque failed to qualify.

Qualifying Classification

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

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Best Time
1	16	René Arnoux	Renault	1:34.07
2	27	Alan Jones	Williams	1:34.28
3	15	Jean-Pierre Jabouille	Renault	1:34.45
4	5	Niki Lauda	Brabham	1:35.51
5	12	Gilles Villeneuve	Ferrari	1:35.70
6	28	Clay Regazzoni	Williams	1:35.82
7	6	Nelson Piquet	Brabham	1:35.85
8	26	Jacques Laffite	Ligier	1:35.92
9	11	Jody Scheckter	Ferrari	1:36.10
10	3	Didier Pironi	Tyrrell	1:36.26
11	4	Derek Daly	Tyrrell	1:36.42
12	20	Keke Rosberg	Wolf	1:36.67
13	29	Riccardo Patrese	Arrows	1:36.71
14	8	Patrick Tambay	McLaren	1:36.72
15	1	Mario Andretti	Lotus	1:37.11
16	7	John Watson	McLaren	1:37.16
17	2	Carlos Reutemann	Lotus	1:37.32
18	9	Hans-Joachim Stuck	ATS	1:37.93
19	14	Emerson Fittipaldi	Fittipaldi	1:38.38
20	30	Jochen Mass	Arrows	1:38.85
21	25	Jacky Ickx	Ligier	1:39.31
22	18	Elio de Angelis	Shadow	1:39.44
23	17	Jan Lammers	Shadow	1:39.45
24	22	Patrick Gaillard	Ensign	1:41.10
DNQ	31	Héctor Rebaque	Lotus	1:41.16
DNQ	24	Arturo Merzario	Merzario	1:45.75

Sunday warm-up

Patrick Tambay’s McLaren needed an engine change after the final session, while Ligier searched for the cause of Jacky Ickx’s misfire. Mario Andretti confirmed the conventional spare Lotus for the race. Shadow had to return Elio de Angelis’s car to an older rear-end specification because replacement parts for the latest version were unavailable.

What happened in the 1979 Austrian Grand Prix?

Gilles Villeneuve surged from sixth into the lead at the start, surprising Alan Jones and the Renaults. Jones passed him at the beginning of the fourth lap and pulled away while René Arnoux and Jean-Pierre Jabouille worked through. Jabouille’s clutch trouble eventually contributed to a gearbox failure, ending his pursuit.

Arnoux held second until a late fuel-system problem forced a stop, promoting Villeneuve. Jones’s Williams remained strong and the Australian controlled the closing laps. Behind them, Jody Scheckter’s fading brakes allowed Jacques Laffite to catch and pass him on the final lap.

Jones won ahead of Villeneuve and Laffite, with Scheckter fourth, Clay Regazzoni fifth and Arnoux recovering sixth. Derek Daly narrowly beat John Watson for eighth in their close midfield contest. Williams’s FW07 had now won at three very different circuits, confirming that its breakthrough was no isolated success.

After the race, Jody Scheckter headed the drivers’ standings with 38 points, followed by Gilles Villeneuve on 32. Ferrari led the constructors’ table on 74, with Ligier – Ford on 55.

1979 Austrian Grand Prix race results

The 1979 Austrian Grand Prix was held on 12 August 1979.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	27	Alan Jones	Williams	54	1:27:38.01	9
2	12	Gilles Villeneuve	Ferrari	54	+36.05 secs	6
3	26	Jacques Laffite	Ligier	54	+46.77 secs	4
4	11	Jody Scheckter	Ferrari	54	+47.21 secs	3
5	28	Clay Regazzoni	Williams	54	+48.92 secs	2
6	16	René Arnoux	Renault	53	+1 Lap	1
7	3	Didier Pironi	Tyrrell	53	+1 Lap	0
8	4	Derek Daly	Tyrrell	53	+1 Lap	0
9	7	John Watson	McLaren	53	+1 Lap	0
10	8	Patrick Tambay	McLaren	53	+1 Lap	0
Ret	5	Niki Lauda	Brabham	45	Engine	0
Ret	22	Patrick Gaillard	Ensign	42	Suspension	0
Ret	29	Riccardo Patrese	Arrows	34	Suspension	0
Ret	18	Elio de Angelis	Shadow	34	Engine	0
Ret	6	Nelson Piquet	Brabham	32	Engine	0
Ret	9	Hans-Joachim Stuck	ATS	28	Engine	0
Ret	25	Jacky Ickx	Ligier	26	Engine	0
Ret	2	Carlos Reutemann	Lotus	22	Handling	0
Ret	15	Jean-Pierre Jabouille	Renault	16	Gearbox	0
Ret	20	Keke Rosberg	Wolf	15	Electrical	0
Ret	14	Emerson Fittipaldi	Fittipaldi	15	Brakes	0
Ret	17	Jan Lammers	Shadow	3	Accident	0
Ret	30	Jochen Mass	Arrows	1	Engine	0
Ret	1	Mario Andretti	Lotus	0	Clutch	0
DNQ	31	Héctor Rebaque	Lotus			0
DNQ	24	Arturo Merzario	Merzario			0

1979 Austrian Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time
1	16	Rene Arnoux	Renault	40	1:35.770

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

1979 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 1979 Austrian Grand Prix.

1979 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Jody Scheckter	South African	Ferrari	38
2	Gilles Villeneuve	Canadian	Ferrari	32
3	Jacques Laffite	French	Ligier	32
4	Alan Jones	Australian	Williams	25
5	Clay Regazzoni	Swiss	Williams	24
6	Patrick Depailler	French	Ligier	20
7	Carlos Reutemann	Argentine	Lotus	20
8	Jean-Pierre Jarier	French	Tyrrell	13
9	John Watson	British	McLaren	13
10	Mario Andretti	American	Lotus	12
11	René Arnoux	French	Renault	11
12	Jean-Pierre Jabouille	French	Renault	9
13	Didier Pironi	French	Tyrrell	8
14	Riccardo Patrese	Italian	Arrows	2
15	Jochen Mass	German	Arrows	2
16	Emerson Fittipaldi	Brazilian	Fittipaldi	1
17	Niki Lauda	Austrian	Brabham	1
18	Jacky Ickx	Belgian	Ligier	1
–	Elio de Angelis	Italian	Shadow	0
–	Nelson Piquet	Brazilian	Brabham	0
–	Patrick Tambay	French	McLaren	0
–	Geoff Lees	British	Tyrrell	0
–	Derek Daly	Irish	Ensign / Tyrrell	0
–	Hans-Joachim Stuck	German	ATS	0
–	James Hunt	British	Wolf	0
–	Hector Rebaque	Mexican	Lotus	0
–	Keke Rosberg	Finnish	Wolf	0
–	Jan Lammers	Dutch	Shadow	0
–	Patrick Gaillard	French	Ensign	0
–	Bruno Giacomelli	Italian	Alfa Romeo	0
–	Arturo Merzario	Italian	Merzario	0

1979 Post-Race F1 Constructors' Championship Standings

POS	Car	PTS
1	Ferrari	74
2	Ligier – Ford	55
3	Williams – Ford	49
4	Lotus – Ford	37
5	Tyrrell – Ford	21
6	Renault	20
7	McLaren – Ford	13
8	Arrows – Ford	4
9	Brabham – Alfa Romeo	1
10	Fittipaldi – Ford	1
—	Shadow – Ford	0
—	Wolf – Ford	0
—	ATS – Ford	0
—	Ensign – Ford	0
—	Alfa Romeo	0
—	Merzario – Ford	0
—	Kauhsen – Ford	0

Drivers counted their best 4 results from rounds 1–7 and their best 4 from rounds 8–15. Both cars could score constructor points, with every round counting.

1979 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	1979 Argentine Grand Prix	Autódromo Oscar Alfredo Gálvez, Buenos Aires	21 January
2	1979 Brazilian Grand Prix	Autódromo de Interlagos, São Paulo	4 February
3	1979 South African Grand Prix	Kyalami, Midrand	3 March
4	1979 United States West Grand Prix	Long Beach Street Circuit, Long Beach, California	8 April
5	1979 Spanish Grand Prix	Circuito del Jarama, San Sebastián de los Reyes	29 April
6	1979 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit Zolder, Heusden-Zolder	13 May
7	1979 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	27 May
8	1979 French Grand Prix	Dijon-Prenois, Dijon	1 July
9	1979 British Grand Prix	Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone	14 July
10	1979 German Grand Prix	Hockenheimring, Hockenheim	29 July
11	1979 Austrian Grand Prix	Österreichring, Spielberg	12 August
12	1979 Dutch Grand Prix	Circuit Zandvoort, Zandvoort	26 August
13	1979 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	9 September
14	1979 Canadian Grand Prix	Circuit Île Notre-Dame, Montréal	30 September
15	1979 United States Grand Prix	Watkins Glen International, Watkins Glen, New York	7 October