What happened on this day, July 21 in Formula 1 history? Find out interesting facts and stories about Formula 1 on this day.
1962
Jim Clark achieved the first of his five British GP victories at the 1962 British Grand Prix.
At a crowded Aintree, Clark demonstrated his immense talent by securing the win, pole position, and fastest lap. While the race lacked much action, the home crowd was delighted to see John Surtees join Clark on the podium in second place. Bruce McLaren completed the podium in third for the Cooper team.
From 1963 onwards, the race would be held at Silverstone Circuit or Brands Hatch.
1962 British Grand Prix Race Results
| Pos | No | Driver | Car | Laps | Time/retired | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 20 | Jim Clark | Lotus Climax | 75 | 2:26:20.800 | 9 |
| 2 | 24 | John Surtees | Lola Climax | 75 | +49.200s | 6 |
| 3 | 16 | Bruce McLaren | Cooper Climax | 75 | +104.800s | 4 |
| 4 | 12 | Graham Hill | BRM | 75 | +116.800s | 3 |
| 5 | 30 | Jack Brabham | Lotus Climax | 74 | +1 lap | 2 |
| 6 | 18 | Tony Maggs | Cooper Climax | 74 | +1 lap | 1 |
| 7 | 34 | Masten Gregory | Lotus Climax | 74 | +1 lap | 0 |
| 8 | 22 | Trevor Taylor | Lotus Climax | 74 | +1 lap | 0 |
| 9 | 8 | Dan Gurney | Porsche | 73 | +2 laps | 0 |
| 10 | 42 | Jackie Lewis | Cooper Climax | 72 | +3 laps | 0 |
| 11 | 40 | Tony Settember | Emeryson Climax | 71 | +4 laps | 0 |
| 12 | 36 | Ian Burgess | Cooper Climax | 71 | +4 laps | 0 |
| 13 | 14 | Richie Ginther | BRM | 70 | +5 laps | 0 |
| 14 | 54 | Carel Godin de Beaufort | Porsche | 69 | +6 laps | 0 |
| 15 | 46 | Jay Chamberlain | Lotus Climax | 64 | +11 laps | 0 |
| 16 | 32 | Innes Ireland | Lotus Climax | 61 | +14 laps | 0 |
| NC | 2 | Phil Hill | Ferrari | 46 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 26 | Roy Salvadori | Lola Climax | 34 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 10 | Jo Bonnier | Porsche | 26 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 44 | Wolfgang Seidel | Lotus BRM | 10 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 48 | Tony Shelly | Lotus Climax | 5 | DNF | 0 |
1985
McLaren driver Alain Prost clinched victory at the 1985 British Grand Prix after an intense battle with Ayrton Senna, which ended when Senna’s Lotus ran out of fuel. Senna had made a brilliant start, overtaking pole-sitter Keke Rosberg to take the lead. He maintained his lead comfortably until about lap 30, when Prost began to challenge him. In the final 10 laps, Senna’s engine started to falter, and on lap 58, Prost seized the opportunity to take the lead.
Senna briefly regained his position, he was ultimately forced to retire due to running out of fuel. Prost went on to win by over a lap ahead of Michele Alboreto in the Ferrari.
In an embarrassing moment for the race director, the chequered flag was mistakenly waved one lap too late, making the race 2.9 miles longer than intended. Fortunately, this error did not affect the final result. Jacques Laffite finished third for Ligier.
1985 British Grand Prix Race Results
| Pos | No | Driver | Car | Laps | Time/retired | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | Alain Prost | McLaren TAG | 65 | 1:18:10.436 | 9 |
| 2 | 27 | Michele Alboreto | Ferrari | 64 | +1 lap | 6 |
| 3 | 26 | Jacques Laffite | Ligier Renault | 64 | +1 lap | 4 |
| 4 | 7 | Nelson Piquet | Brabham BMW | 64 | +1 lap | 3 |
| 5 | 16 | Derek Warwick | Renault | 64 | +1 lap | 2 |
| 6 | 8 | Marc Surer | Brabham BMW | 63 | +2 laps | 1 |
| 7 | 3 | Martin Brundle | Tyrrell Renault | 63 | +2 laps | 0 |
| 8 | 17 | Gerhard Berger | Arrows BMW | 63 | +2 laps | 0 |
| 9 | 22 | Riccardo Patrese | Alfa Romeo | 62 | +3 laps | 0 |
| 10 | 12 | Ayrton Senna | Lotus Renault | 60 | DNF | 0 |
| 11 | 4 | Stefan Bellof | Tyrrell Ford | 59 | +6 laps | 0 |
| NC | 1 | Niki Lauda | McLaren TAG | 57 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 18 | Thierry Boutsen | Arrows BMW | 57 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 25 | Andrea de Cesaris | Ligier Renault | 41 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 29 | Pierluigi Martini | Minardi Motori Moderni | 38 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 11 | Elio de Angelis | Lotus Renault | 37 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 9 | Manfred Winkelhock | RAM Hart | 28 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 6 | Keke Rosberg | Williams Honda | 21 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 5 | Nigel Mansell | Williams Honda | 17 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 23 | Eddie Cheever | Alfa Romeo | 17 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 30 | Jonathan Palmer | Zakspeed | 6 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 19 | Teo Fabi | Toleman Hart | 4 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 28 | Stefan Johansson | Ferrari | 1 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 10 | Philippe Alliot | RAM Hart | DNS | 0 | |
| NC | 15 | Patrick Tambay | Renault | DNS | 0 | |
| NC | 24 | Piercarlo Ghinzani | Osella Alfa Romeo | DNS | 0 |
2002
In 2002, Michael Schumacher secured his fifth Formula One title, matching the legendary record of Juan Manuel Fangio. Schumacher clinched the championship in the 11th round at the 2002 French Grand Prix, held at Magny-Cours, his eighth win of the season and his 96th point of the year. The race itself was uneventful, with Kimi Raikkonen surrendering the lead to Schumacher five laps from the finish after sliding on oil at the Adelaide hairpin. Schumacher’s main championship rival, Ferrari team-mate Rubens Barrichello, failed to start the race due to an engine failure on the grid.
Raikkonen finished second with his McLaren teammate David Coulthard in third place.
2002 French Grand Prix Race Results
| Pos | No | Driver | Car | Laps | Time/retired | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Michael Schumacher | Ferrari | 72 | 1:32:09.837 | 10 |
| 2 | 4 | Kimi Räikkönen | McLaren Mercedes | 72 | +1.105s | 6 |
| 3 | 3 | David Coulthard | McLaren Mercedes | 72 | +31.976s | 4 |
| 4 | 6 | Juan Pablo Montoya | Williams BMW | 72 | +40.676s | 3 |
| 5 | 5 | Ralf Schumacher | Williams BMW | 72 | +41.773s | 2 |
| 6 | 15 | Jenson Button | Renault | 71 | +1 lap | 1 |
| 7 | 7 | Nick Heidfeld | Sauber Petronas | 71 | +1 lap | 0 |
| 8 | 23 | Mark Webber | Minardi Asiatech | 71 | +1 lap | 0 |
| 9 | 17 | Pedro de la Rosa | Jaguar Cosworth | 70 | +2 laps | 0 |
| 10 | 22 | Alex Yoong | Minardi Asiatech | 68 | +4 laps | 0 |
| 11 | 25 | Allan McNish | Toyota | 65 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 16 | Eddie Irvine | Jaguar Cosworth | 52 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 14 | Jarno Trulli | Renault | 49 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 8 | Felipe Massa | Sauber Petronas | 48 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 24 | Mika Salo | Toyota | 48 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 11 | Jacques Villeneuve | BAR Honda | 35 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 12 | Olivier Panis | BAR Honda | 29 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 10 | Takuma Sato | Jordan Honda | 23 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 2 | Rubens Barrichello | Ferrari | DNS | 0 |
2006
BAR set a new land-speed record for a Formula One car but fell short of its ambitious 400 km/h (248 mph) target. The team brought a modified version of its V10 F1 car to the Bonneville salt flats, with South African driver Alan van der Merwe at the wheel. While the BAR, equipped with a fin instead of a rear wing, did pass 400 km/h in one direction, it could not replicate the speed in the opposite direction, which is required to set an official record. The official top speed was an impressive 397.360 km/h average over two consecutive runs. Van der Merwe served as the official driver of the FIA medical car in Formula One events from 2009 until the end of the 2021 season.
2024
At the halfway mark of the 2024 Formula 1 season, with six different winners emerging from the first 12 races, four teams consistently battling for dominance, and Lewis Hamilton’s much-anticipated win at Silverstone in the previous round, the thrilling season continued with at the 2024 Hungarian Grand Prix in Budapest, a double-header before the summer break.
On race day, Oscar Piastri claimed his first F1 Grand Prix victory amidst intra-team drama with McLaren teammate Lando Norris. The race began with Piastri leading into Turn 1 after a three-wide battle with Red Bull’s Max Verstappen. Piastri maintained his lead for much of the race until the second round of pit stops. Norris was brought in first to cover Lewis Hamilton, resulting in Norris emerging ahead of Piastri. Despite several team orders, Norris hesitated to relinquish the lead for several laps. It wasn’t until Lap 68 of 70 that Norris finally allowed Piastri to pass. Piastri secured the win, finishing two seconds ahead of Norris for a McLaren 1-2 finish. Meanwhile, Lewis Hamilton secured third place for Mercedes, overcoming his own challenges following a late-race collision with the Red Bull of Verstappen.
Full Race Report
2024 Hungarian Grand Prix Race Results
| Pos | No | Driver | Car | Laps | Time/Retired | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 81 | Oscar Piastri | McLaren Mercedes | 70 | 1:38:01.989 | 25 |
| 2 | 4 | Lando Norris | McLaren Mercedes | 70 | +2.141s | 18 |
| 3 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 70 | +14.880s | 15 |
| 4 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Ferrari | 70 | +19.686s | 12 |
| 5 | 1 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull Racing Honda RBPT | 70 | +21.349s | 10 |
| 6 | 55 | Carlos Sainz | Ferrari | 70 | +23.073s | 8 |
| 7 | 11 | Sergio Pérez | Red Bull Racing Honda RBPT | 70 | +39.792s | 6 |
| 8 | 63 | George Russell1 | Mercedes | 70 | +42.368s | 5 |
| 9 | 22 | Yuki Tsunoda | RB-Honda RBPT | 70 | +77.259s | 2 |
| 10 | 18 | Lance Stroll | Aston Martin Aramco Mercedes | 70 | +77.976s | 1 |
| 11 | 14 | Fernando Alonso | Aston Martin Aramco Mercedes | 70 | +82.460s | 0 |
| 12 | 3 | Daniel Ricciardo | RB-Honda RBPT | 69 | +1 lap | 0 |
| 13 | 27 | Nico Hulkenberg | Haas Ferrari | 69 | +1 lap | 0 |
| 14 | 23 | Alexander Albon | Williams Mercedes | 69 | +1 lap | 0 |
| 15 | 20 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas Ferrari | 69 | +1 lap | 0 |
| 16 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | Kick Sauber Ferrari | 69 | +1 lap | 0 |
| 17 | 2 | Logan Sargeant | Williams Mercedes | 69 | +1 lap | 0 |
| 18 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | Alpine Renault | 69 | +1 lap | 0 |
| 19 | 24 | Zhou Guanyu | Kick Sauber Ferrari | 69 | +1 lap | 0 |
| NC | 10 | Pierre Gasly | Alpine Renault | 33 | DNF | 0 |
F1 Driver Birthdays 21 July
| Births | F1 Driver |
|---|---|
| 21 July 1929 | Mauritz von Strachwitz (d. 2022) |
| Births | F1 Mentions |
|---|---|
| 21 July 1976 | Claire Williams Former Deputy Team Principal at Williams, and the daughter of the team’s founder, Sir Frank Williams. |
F1 Driver Deaths 21 July
| Deaths | F1 Driver |
|---|---|
| 21 July 2020 | Ralph Liguori (b. 1926) |
F1 Champions 21 July
| Date | Driver/Team |
|---|---|
| 21 July 2002 | Michael Schumacher |
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