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.
1974 Austrian Grand Prix Race Results
Pos
No
Driver
Car
Laps
Time/retired
Pts
1
7
Carlos Reutemann
Brabham Ford
54
1:28:44.720
9
2
6
Denny Hulme
McLaren Ford
54
+42.920s
6
3
24
James Hunt
Hesketh Ford
54
+61.540s
4
4
28
John Watson
Brabham Ford
54
+69.390s
3
5
11
Clay Regazzoni
Ferrari
54
+73.080s
2
6
10
Vittorio Brambilla
March Ford
54
+73.820s
1
7
33
David Hobbs
McLaren Ford
53
+1 lap
0
8
17
Jean-Pierre Jarier
Shadow Ford
52
+2 laps
0
9
30
Dieter Quester
Surtees Ford
51
+3 laps
0
10
23
Tim Schenken
Trojan Ford
50
+4 laps
0
11
9
Hans-Joachim Stuck
March Ford
48
DNF
0
12
26
Graham Hill
Lola Ford
48
+6 laps
0
NC
35
Ian Ashley
Token Ford
46
+8 laps
0
NC
1
Ronnie Peterson
Lotus Ford
45
DNF
0
NC
2
Jacky Ickx
Lotus Ford
43
DNF
0
NC
4
Patrick Depailler
Tyrrell Ford
42
DNF
0
NC
8
Carlos Pace
Brabham Ford
41
DNF
0
NC
5
Emerson Fittipaldi
McLaren Ford
37
DNF
0
NC
21
Jacques Laffite
Iso Marlboro Ford
37
+17 laps
0
NC
20
Arturo Merzario
Iso Marlboro Ford
24
DNF
0
NC
14
Jean-Pierre Beltoise
BRM
22
DNF
0
NC
16
Tom Pryce
Shadow Ford
22
DNF
0
NC
12
Niki Lauda
Ferrari
17
DNF
0
NC
27
Rolf Stommelen
Lola Ford
14
DNF
0
NC
3
Jody Scheckter
Tyrrell Ford
8
DNF
0
1985
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.
1985 Austrian Grand Prix Race Results
Pos
No
Driver
Car
Laps
Time/retired
Pts
1
2
Alain Prost
McLaren TAG
52
1:20:12.583
9
2
12
Ayrton Senna
Lotus Renault
52
+30.002s
6
3
27
Michele Alboreto
Ferrari
52
+34.356s
4
4
28
Stefan Johansson
Ferrari
52
+39.073s
3
5
11
Elio de Angelis
Lotus Renault
52
+82.092s
2
6
8
Marc Surer
Brabham BMW
51
+1 lap
1
7
3
Stefan Bellof
Tyrrell Renault
49
DNF
0
8
18
Thierry Boutsen
Arrows BMW
49
+3 laps
0
9
24
Huub Rothengatter
Osella Alfa Romeo
48
+4 laps
0
10
15
Patrick Tambay
Renault
46
DNF
0
NC
26
Jacques Laffite
Ligier Renault
43
DNF
0
NC
29
Pierluigi Martini
Minardi Motori Moderni
40
DNF
0
NC
1
Niki Lauda
McLaren TAG
39
DNF
0
NC
17
Gerhard Berger
Arrows BMW
33
DNF
0
NC
19
Teo Fabi
Toleman Hart
31
DNF
0
NC
16
Derek Warwick
Renault
29
DNF
0
NC
10
Kenny Acheson
RAM Hart
28
DNF
0
NC
7
Nelson Piquet
Brabham BMW
26
DNF
0
NC
5
Nigel Mansell
Williams Honda
25
DNF
0
NC
22
Riccardo Patrese
Alfa Romeo
25
DNF
0
NC
30
Jonathan Palmer
Zakspeed
17
DNF
0
NC
9
Philippe Alliot
RAM Hart
16
DNF
0
NC
25
Andrea de Cesaris
Ligier Renault
13
DNF
0
NC
23
Eddie Cheever
Alfa Romeo
6
DNF
0
NC
6
Keke Rosberg
Williams Honda
4
DNF
0
2002
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.
Round 7 of the 2025 F1 season, arrived in Europe at the Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari for the AWS Formula 1 Gran Premio del Made in Italy e dell'Emilia-Romagna 2025.
