What Happened On This Day November 1 In F1 History?

What happened on this day, November 1 in Formula 1 history? Find out interesting facts and stories about Formula 1 on this day.

1936

Born in Stroud, Gloucestershire, Jackie Lewis made his mark racing privately-owned Coopers and ultimately won the 1960 Formula 2 title. He entered Formula One as a privateer in 1961, achieving a notable fourth place at Monza amid a tragic race in which Wolfgang von Trips and 15 spectators lost their lives. This success led to a 1962 drive with Ecurie Galloise, but after struggling that season, Lewis retired, choosing instead a peaceful life as a sheep farmer and never returning to racing.

Jackie Lewis

F1 Debut 1961 Belgian Grand Prix

Current/Last Team Privateer

1962

Ricardo Rodriguez, a talented 20-year-old, tragically lost his life during qualifying for the 1962 Mexican Grand Prix. Eager to impress his home crowd and prove himself to Ferrari—who had opted out of the non-championship race—Rodriguez borrowed Rob Walker’s Lotus. He misjudged the Peraltada corner, entering too fast, and struck a barrier, dying instantly. His brother, Pedro, also a racer, considered quitting but continued, only to meet a similar fate on the track nine years later.

Ricardo Rodriguez

F1 Debut 1961 Italian Grand Prix

Current/Last Team Ferrari

1987

Ferrari enjoyed a better outing at the 1987 Japanese Grand Prix as Gerhard Berger claimed victory, a win simplified by Nigel Mansell’s absence due to a crash during qualifying. With Mansell out, his teammate and bitter rival, Nelson Piquet secured his third World Championship title regardless of the race outcome. “With Nigel out, Nelson probably didn’t push as hard as he would have,” Berger noted. Piquet still chased Ayrton Senna (who finished second) hard until his engine gave out—gifting third place to Stefan Johansson in the McLaren.

The race marked Japan’s return to the Formula 1 calendar, the first race there since James Hunt’s victory in his McLaren at Fuji in 1977. This time, the event took place at the Honda-owned Suzuka Circuit, originally developed as a testing ground for Honda’s motorcycles and cars.

1987 Japanese Grand Prix Race Results

Pos	No	Driver	Car	Laps	Time/retired	Pts
1	28	Gerhard Berger	Ferrari	51	1:32:58.072	9
2	12	Ayrton Senna	Lotus Honda	51	+17.384s	6
3	2	Stefan Johansson	McLaren TAG	51	+17.694s	4
4	27	Michele Alboreto	Ferrari	51	+80.441s	3
5	20	Thierry Boutsen	Benetton Ford	51	+85.576s	2
6	11	Satoru Nakajima	Lotus Honda	51	+96.479s	1
7	1	Alain Prost	McLaren TAG	50	+1 lap	0
8	3	Jonathan Palmer	Tyrrell Ford	50	+1 lap	0
9	18	Eddie Cheever	Arrows Megatron	50	+1 lap	0
10	17	Derek Warwick	Arrows Megatron	50	+1 lap	0
11	7	Riccardo Patrese	Brabham BMW	49	DNF	0
12	4	Philippe Streiff	Tyrrell Ford	49	+2 laps	0
13	26	Piercarlo Ghinzani	Ligier Megatron	48	DNF	0
14	29	Yannick Dalmas	Lola Ford	47	DNF	0
15	6	Nelson Piquet	Williams Honda	46	DNF	0
NC	25	Rene Arnoux	Ligier Megatron	44	DNF	0
NC	21	Alex Caffi	Osella Alfa Romeo	43	DNF	0
NC	14	Roberto Moreno	AGS Ford	38	DNF	0
NC	24	Alessandro Nannini	Minardi Motori Moderni	35	DNF	0
NC	9	Martin Brundle	Zakspeed	32	DNF	0
NC	8	Andrea de Cesaris	Brabham BMW	26	DNF	0
NC	19	Teo Fabi	Benetton Ford	16	DNF	0
NC	10	Christian Danner	Zakspeed	13	DNF	0
NC	16	Ivan Capelli	March Ford	13	DNF	0
NC	23	Adrian Campos	Minardi Motori Moderni	2	DNF	0
NC	30	Philippe Alliot	Lola Ford	0	DNF	0

1998

Mika Hakkinen clinched his first World Championship title with a commanding flag-to-flag victory at the 1998 Japanese Grand Prix, marking a triumphant season for McLaren as they also secured their first Constructors’ Championship since 1991. Michael Schumacher, expected to be Hakkinen’s main challenger, faced a difficult race with Ferrari. Starting from the back of the grid, Schumacher’s hopes faded further after a 165 mph tyre blowout from debris on the track, forcing him to expertly bring his Ferrari to a halt. “I don’t know how to start explaining my feelings,” Hakkinen remarked. “I felt the pressure lifting.” Ferrari’s team principal, Jean Todt, expressed frustration, stating, “We’ve proven we can win grands prix, but someday we must show we can win a world championship.” That day would indeed come.

Eddie Irvine with Ferrari finished second while Hakkinen’s teammate David Coulthard finished in third. It was also the last race for the Tyrrell racing team, as the team was rebranded as British American Racing for the 1999 season.

1998 Japanese Grand Prix Race Results

Pos	No	Driver	Car	Laps	Time/retired	Pts
1	8	Mika Hakkinen	McLaren Mercedes	51	1:27:22.535	10
2	4	Eddie Irvine	Ferrari	51	+6.491s	6
3	7	David Coulthard	McLaren Mercedes	51	+27.662s	4
4	9	Damon Hill	Jordan Mugen Honda	51	+73.491s	3
5	2	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	Williams Mecachrome	51	+73.857s	2
6	1	Jacques Villeneuve	Williams Mecachrome	51	+75.867s	1
7	14	Jean Alesi	Sauber Petronas	51	+96.053s	0
8	5	Giancarlo Fisichella	Benetton Playlife	51	+101.301s	0
9	6	Alexander Wurz	Benetton Playlife	50	+1 lap	0
10	15	Johnny Herbert	Sauber Petronas	50	+1 lap	0
11	11	Olivier Panis	Prost Peugeot	50	+1 lap	0
12	12	Jarno Trulli	Prost Peugeot	48	DNF	0
NC	22	Shinji Nakano	Minardi Ford	40	DNF	0
NC	3	Michael Schumacher	Ferrari	31	DNF	0
NC	21	Toranosuke Takagi	Tyrrell Ford	28	DNF	0
NC	23	Esteban Tuero	Minardi Ford	28	DNF	0
NC	18	Rubens Barrichello	Stewart Ford	25	DNF	0
NC	19	Jos Verstappen	Stewart Ford	21	DNF	0
NC	17	Mika Salo	Arrows	14	DNF	0
NC	10	Ralf Schumacher	Jordan Mugen Honda	13	DNF	0
NC	16	Pedro Diniz	Arrows	2	DNF	0

2002

Eddie Irvine’s career with Jaguar ended abruptly when team boss Niki Lauda dismissed him over the phone. Following a turbulent and often outspoken tenure, Irvine’s departure was met with mixed reactions. “I’m not really bothered if Eddie gets a drive,” Jenson Button commented, acknowledging Irvine’s vocal presence in the sport. “He’s getting older, and there are quick, younger drivers who deserve a chance.”

2009

The 2009 season concluded under the lights of the 2009 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, a relatively quiet race compared to earlier events. Red Bull dominated with a 1-2 finish by Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber, setting up an ominous tone of dominance for the following 2010 season. Newly crowned Brawn GP champion Jenson Button took third, delivering an aggressive performance that kept Webber under pressure until the finish line.

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2009 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix Race Results

Pos	No	Driver	Car	Laps	Time/retired	Pts
1	15	Sebastian Vettel	RBR Renault	55	1:34:03.414	10
2	14	Mark Webber	RBR Renault	55	+17.857s	8
3	22	Jenson Button	Brawn Mercedes	55	+18.467s	6
4	23	Rubens Barrichello	Brawn Mercedes	55	+22.735s	5
5	6	Nick Heidfeld	Sauber BMW	55	+26.253s	4
6	10	Kamui Kobayashi	Toyota	55	+28.343s	3
7	9	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	55	+34.366s	2
8	12	Sebastien Buemi	STR Ferrari	55	+41.294s	1
9	16	Nico Rosberg	Williams Toyota	55	+45.941s	0
10	5	Robert Kubica	Sauber BMW	55	+48.180s	0
11	2	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren Mercedes	55	+52.798s	0
12	4	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	55	+54.317s	0
13	17	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams Toyota	55	+59.839s	0
14	7	Fernando Alonso	Renault	55	+69.687s	0
15	21	Vitantonio Liuzzi	Force India Mercedes	55	+94.450s	0
16	3	Giancarlo Fisichella	Ferrari	54	+1 lap	0
17	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India Mercedes	54	+1 lap	0
18	8	Romain Grosjean	Renault	54	+1 lap	0
NC	1	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren Mercedes	20	DNF	0
NC	11	Jaime Alguersuari	STR Ferrari	18	DNF	0

2015

Nico Rosberg won as Formula 1 returned to Mexico for the first time since 1992. Lewis Hamilton finished second for a Mercedes 1-2 finish, while Valtteri Bottas claimed the final podium place after a difficult afternoon for Ferrari.

Rosberg held the lead at the start, while Vettel picked up a puncture after contact with Daniel Ricciardo. The Mercedes pair soon pulled clear, leaving the Red Bulls and Williams cars to contest the remaining podium position.

2015 Mexican Grand Prix race results

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	71	1:42:35.038	25
2	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	71	+1.954	18
3	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams	71	+14.592	15
4	26	Daniil Kvyat	Red Bull Racing	71	+16.572	12
5	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing	71	+19.682	10
6	19	Felipe Massa	Williams	71	+21.493	8
7	27	Nico Hülkenberg	Force India	71	+25.860	6
8	11	Sergio Pérez	Force India	71	+34.343	4
9	33	Max Verstappen	Toro Rosso	71	+35.229	2
10	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus F1	71	+37.934	1
11	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus F1	71	+38.538	0
12	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber	71	+40.180	0
13	55	Carlos Sainz	Toro Rosso	71	+48.772	0
14	22	Jenson Button	McLaren	71	+49.214	0
15	53	Alexander Rossi	Manor Marussia	69	+2 Laps	0
16	28	Will Stevens	Manor Marussia	69	+2 Laps	0
Ret	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber	57	Brakes	0
Ret	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	50	Accident	0
Ret	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	21	Collision	0
Ret	14	Fernando Alonso	McLaren	1	Power unit	0

2020

The 2020 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix marked the return of Formula One to the Imola circuit for the first time since the 2006 San Marino Grand Prix, making it the 28th F1 race held at the track. Kimi Raikkonen was the only driver on the grid with prior F1 experience at Imola, having competed there from 2001 to 2006. This Grand Prix weekend was condensed into two days, with only a single 90-minute practice session on Saturday morning before qualifying.

The 63-lap race saw Lewis Hamilton take victory for Mercedes, with his teammate Valtteri Bottas in second, and the Renault of Daniel Ricciardo completing the podium in third. Mercedes clinched the 2020 Constructors’ Championship with this 1-2 finish, setting a new record for consecutive titles with seven. Initially, the race was set to welcome 13,000 fans, but due to a rise in COVID-19 cases, it was ultimately held behind closed doors.

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2020 Emilia Romagna Grand Prix Race Results

Pos	No	Driver	Car	Laps	Time/retired	Pts
1	44	Lewis Hamilton¹	Mercedes	63	1:28:32.430	26
2	77	Valtteri Bottas	Mercedes	63	+5.783s	18
3	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Renault	63	+14.320s	15
4	26	Daniil Kvyat	AlphaTauri Honda	63	+15.141s	12
5	16	Charles Leclerc	Ferrari	63	+19.111s	10
6	11	Sergio Perez	Racing Point BWT Mercedes	63	+19.652s	8
7	55	Carlos Sainz	McLaren Renault	63	+20.230s	6
8	4	Lando Norris	McLaren Renault	63	+21.131s	4
9	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Alfa Romeo Racing Ferrari	63	+22.224s	2
10	99	Antonio Giovinazzi	Alfa Romeo Racing Ferrari	63	+26.398s	1
11	6	Nicholas Latifi	Williams Mercedes	63	+27.135s	0
12	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	63	+28.453s	0
13	18	Lance Stroll	Racing Point BWT Mercedes	63	+29.163s	0
14	8	Romain Grosjean²	Haas Ferrari	63	+32.935s	0
15	23	Alexander Albon	Red Bull Racing Honda	63	+57.284s	0
NC	63	George Russell	Williams Mercedes	51	DNF	0
NC	33	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing Honda	50	DNF	0
NC	20	Kevin Magnussen	Haas Ferrari	47	DNF	0
NC	31	Esteban Ocon	Renault	27	DNF	0
NC	10	Pierre Gasly	AlphaTauri Honda	8	DNF	0

¹Lewis Hamilton scored an additional point for setting the fastest lap of the race on lap 63 – 1:15.484
²Grosjean received a 5-second time penalty for exceeding track limits.

2026

Kimi Antonelli became the youngest Formula 1 world champion in history at the 2026 Mexico City Grand Prix, securing his maiden drivers’ title at just 20 years old after finishing third for Mercedes. The Italian entered the 71-lap race at the Autodromo Hermanos Rodriguez needing only ninth place to wrap up the championship, regardless of where rivals George Russell and Lewis Hamilton finished. Starting fourth, Antonelli navigated a dramatic afternoon featuring a red flag and late Safety Car to claim 15 points and securing the crown with four rounds remaining, surpassing Sebastian Vettel‘s long-standing youngest champion record.

Max Verstappen claimed his third victory of the season and record-extending sixth win at the Mexico City circuit, beating Hamilton by just 0.799s after a fierce battle for the lead. The Red Bull driver climbed from fifth to second on the opening lap before benefiting from a penalty handed to Charles Leclerc for cutting the track while fighting Hamilton. Verstappen maintained his lead following a standing restart caused by Valtteri Bottas‘ heavy accident, before defending against Hamilton again after a late Safety Car triggered by Arvid Lindblad‘s collision with Oscar Piastri. Leclerc finished fourth, narrowly ahead of Lando Norris, while Russell and Piastri completed the top seven.

Further down the order, Alpine enjoyed a double points finish as Franco Colapinto claimed eighth and Pierre Gasly took 10th, with Liam Lawson recovering from a pit-lane start to finish ninth. Gabriel Bortoleto missed out on points in 11th, ahead of Isack Hadjar, who was spun by Russell on the opening lap, while Ryo Hirakawa finished 13th on his F1 debut for Haas. Nico Hulkenberg received a 10-second penalty for contact with Oliver Bearman, and home hero Sergio Perez finished 17th as the final classified driver. Lindblad, Bearman, Bottas and both Aston Martins retired, leaving Verstappen celebrating another Mexico City victory while Antonelli and Mercedes marked a historic world championship triumph.

Post-race, it was announced that Ryo Hirakawa scored his first F1 point on his Haas debut (having replaced Esteban Ocon) after post-race penalties dropped both Alpine drivers out of the top 10. Franco Colapinto fell from eighth to 15th following a 10-second penalty for speeding under single yellow flags, while Pierre Gasly dropped from 10th to 17th after receiving a 30-second penalty for failing to slow under double-waved yellows. Oscar Piastri also received a 10-second penalty for his collision with Arvid Lindblad, promoting Liam Lawson to seventh, Gabriel Bortoleto to eighth, Isack Hadjar to ninth and Hirakawa to 10th.

2026 Mexico City Grand Prix race results

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	3	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing	71	02:20:29	25
2	44	Lewis Hamilton	Ferrari	71	+0.799s	18
3	12	Kimi Antonelli	Mercedes	71	+4.006s	15
4	16	Charles Leclerc	Ferrari	71	+10.707s	12
5	1	Lando Norris	McLaren	71	+11.778s	10
6	63	George Russell	Mercedes	71	+12.263s	8
7	30	Liam Lawson	Racing Bulls	71	+20.899s	6
8	5	Gabriel Bortoleto	Audi	71	+22.041s	4
9	6	Isack Hadjar	Red Bull Racing	71	+22.503s	2
10	50	Ryo Hirakawa	Haas F1 Team	71	+25.373s	1
11	23	Alexander Albon	Williams	71	+27.562s	0
12	55	Carlos Sainz	Williams	71	+28.638s	0
13	81	Oscar Piastri	McLaren	71	+29.475s	0
14	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Audi	71	+29.977s	0
15	43	Franco Colapinto	Alpine	71	+30.204s	0
16	11	Sergio Perez	Cadillac	71	+30.695s	0
17	10	Pierre Gasly	Alpine	71	+51.483s	0
NC	41	Arvid Lindblad	Racing Bulls	58	DNF	0
NC	87	Oliver Bearman	Haas F1 Team	47	DNF	0
NC	77	Valtteri Bottas	Cadillac	42	DNF	0
NC	18	Lance Stroll	Aston Martin	5	DNF	0
NC	14	Fernando Alonso	Aston Martin	5	DNF	0

F1 Driver Birthdays 1 November

Birthday	F1 Driver
1 November 1898	Arthur Legat (d. 1960)
1 November 1918	Ken Miles (d. 1966) British driver. In 1961, he was entered into the United States Grand Prix at Watkins Glen, but did not participate in the race.
1 November 1926	Bob Veith (d. 2006)
1 November 1928	Ted Whiteaway (d. 1995)
1 November 1936	Jackie Lewis
1 November 1996	Sean Gelael Indonesian racing driver who served as a development driver for Toro Rosso.

F1 Driver Deaths 1 November

Death	F1 Driver
1 November 1962	Ricardo Rodriguez (b. 1942)
1 November 2017	Ernie Pieterse (b. 1938)

F1 Champion 1 November

Date	Team/Driver
1 November 1987	Nelson Piquet
1 November 1998	Mika Hakkinen
1 November 2026	Kimi Antonelli
1 November 1998	McLaren
1 November 2020	Mercedes

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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.

What Happened On This Day November 1 In F1 History?