Andrea de Cesaris crashes out of the 1985 Austrian Grand Prix // Image: Uncredited
What happened on this day, August 18 in Formula 1 history? Find out interesting facts and stories about Formula 1 on this day.
1957
Stirling Moss claimed victory at the inaugural 1957 Pescara Grand Prix in Italy, an addition to the calendar following the cancellations of the Belgian and Dutch GPs. Ferrari did not enter with their cars for Mike Hawthorn and Peter Collins, partly because Juan Manuel Fangio had already secured the championship and also in protest against the Italian government’s moves to ban road racing. The race became a duel between Moss’ Vanwall and Fangio’s Maserati, with Moss winning after Fangio spun on oil left by Luigi Musso’s privateer Ferrari.
1957 Pescara Grand Prix Race Results
Pos
No
Driver
Car
Laps
Time/retired
Pts
1
26
Stirling Moss
Vanwall
18
2:59:22.700
9
2
2
Juan Manuel Fangio
Maserati
18
+193.900s
6
3
6
Harry Schell
Maserati
18
+406.800s
4
4
14
Masten Gregory
Maserati
18
+496.500s
3
5
30
Stuart Lewis-Evans
Vanwall
17
+1 lap
2
6
8
Giorgio Scarlatti
Maserati
17
+1 lap
0
7
24
Jack Brabham
Cooper Climax
15
+3 laps
0
NC
10
Paco Godia
Maserati
10
DNF
0
NC
20
Bruce Halford
Maserati
9
DNF
0
NC
34
Luigi Musso
Ferrari
9
DNF
0
NC
16
Jo Bonnier
Maserati
7
DNF
0
NC
4
Jean Behra
Maserati
4
DNF
0
NC
22
Roy Salvadori
Cooper Climax
3
DNF
0
NC
12
Luigi Piotti
Maserati
1
DNF
0
NC
18
Horace Gould
Maserati
1
DNF
0
NC
28
Tony Brooks
Vanwall
1
DNF
0
1974
Carlos Reutemann triumphed at the 1974 Austrian Grand Prix, finishing ahead of Denny Hulme and James Hunt. Starting from second on the grid, Reutemann took the lead at the start and maintained his position throughout the race. While Reutemann led effortlessly, numerous cars, including those of Scheckter, Lauda, Peterson, Pace, and Fittipaldi, retired behind him.
Italian driver Andrea de Cesaris, notorious for his crashes and nicknamed ‘Andrea de Crasheris,’ had another spectacular accident at the 1985 Austrian Grand Prix. His Ligier veered off the circuit and somersaulted several times. Despite walking away unscathed, a shaken De Cesaris was immediately sacked by Guy Ligier upon his return to the pits. Ligier reportedly said, “I can no longer afford the services of this young man.” Alain Prost went on to win the race ahead of Ayrton Senna in a Lotus and Michele Alboreto for Ferrari.
Rubens Barrichello led a Ferrari 1-2 finish at the 2002 Hungarian Grand Prix, securing another Constructors’ title for the team. In an otherwise uneventful race, Michael Schumacher finished second, and Ralf Schumacher took third. The only real moment of interest from the race arose when Mika Salo received a 25-second post-race penalty for an unsafe pit stop while trying to stay ahead of Pedro de la Rosa.
Lee is our staff writer specialising in anything technical within Formula 1 from aerodynamics to engines. Lee writes most of our F1 guides for beginners and experienced fans as well as our F1 on this day posts having followed the sport since 1991, researching and understanding how teams build the ultimate machines. Like everyone else on the team he listens to podcasts about F1 and enjoys reading biographies of former drivers.
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