What Happened On This Day October 12 In F1 History?

What happened on this day, October 12 in Formula 1 history? Find out interesting facts and stories about Formula 1 on this day.

1906

Born in Rome on this day, Piero Taruffi was 43 by the time the FIA World Championship came into being, but he raced until he was almost 50, winning once in 18 starts. In 1952, he finished third for Ferrari in the 1952 Drivers’ Championship, and that year came his one win at the 1952 Swiss Grand Prix. Pre-war, he raced bikes, and he also enjoyed success late in his career in sports cars, winning the 1954 Targa Florio for Lancia and the Mille Miglia in 1957, by which time he was 51.

1937

Born on this day, three unmemorable starts in a Brabham and a Lotus in 1964 and 1965 were the extent of Paul Hawkins’ F1 career, but he made far more of a mark in sports car racing. His other F1 claim to fame was that he remains one of only two men – the other being Alberto Ascari – to plunge into the harbour at the Monaco Grand Prix. He died at the age of 31 when he crashed in a race at Oulton Park.

1986

Nigel Mansell‘s title hopes stalled on the grid at the 1986 Mexican Grand Prix, although he stormed back to take fifth and set up an (ultimately frustrating) finale in Australia. “It was a bloody awful race,” Mansell said. “I just want to forget about it.” In a Benetton, Gerhard Berger won his first Grand Prix shortly before switching to Ferrari. Alain Prost finished second for McLaren, while Ayrton Senna completed the podium for Lotus.

1986 Mexican Grand Prix Race Results

Pos	No	Driver	Car	Laps	Time/retired	Pts
1	20	Gerhard Berger	Benetton BMW	68	1:33:18.700	9
2	1	Alain Prost	McLaren TAG	68	+25.438s	6
3	12	Ayrton Senna	Lotus Renault	68	+52.513s	4
4	6	Nelson Piquet	Williams Honda	67	+1 lap	3
5	5	Nigel Mansell	Williams Honda	67	+1 lap	2
6	26	Philippe Alliot	Ligier Renault	67	+1 lap	1
7	18	Thierry Boutsen	Arrows BMW	66	+2 laps	0
8	23	Andrea de Cesaris	Minardi Motori Moderni	66	+2 laps	0
9	17	Christian Danner	Arrows BMW	66	+2 laps	0
10	14	Jonathan  Palmer	Zakspeed	65	DNF	0
11	3	Martin Brundle	Tyrrell Renault	65	+3 laps	0
12	28	Stefan Johansson	Ferrari	64	DNF	0
13	7	Riccardo Patrese	Brabham BMW	64	DNF	0
14	24	Alessandro Nannini	Minardi Motori Moderni	64	+4 laps	0
15	25	Rene Arnoux	Ligier Renault	63	DNF	0
16	22	Allen Berg	Osella Alfa Romeo	61	+7 laps	0
NC	11	Johnny Dumfries	Lotus Renault	53	DNF	0
NC	8	Derek Warwick	Brabham BMW	37	DNF	0
NC	15	Alan  Jones	Lola Ford	35	DNF	0
NC	2	Keke Rosberg	McLaren TAG	32	DNF	0
NC	27	Michele Alboreto	Ferrari	10	DNF	0
NC	4	Philippe Streiff	Tyrrell Renault	8	DNF	0
NC	21	Piercarlo Ghinzani	Osella Alfa Romeo	8	DNF	0
NC	19	Teo Fabi	Benetton BMW	4	DNF	0
NC	16	Patrick Tambay	Lola Ford		DNS	0

1997

The finish that the sport wanted at the 1997 Japanese Grand Prix, where Michael Schumacher’s win for Ferrari left a winner-takes-the-title finale against Jacques Villeneuve (Williams) at the 1997 European Grand Prix a fortnight later came true. Schumacher’s victory was helped dramatically by teammate Eddie Irvine, who helped increase the gap between him and Villeneuve by driving defensively. “Eddie did a brilliant job,” acknowledged Schumacher. “It has to be one of the most satisfying victories of my career.” But the champagne had barely stopped flowing on the podium before Williams started reminding Schumacher of what happened in Australia in 1994 with Damon Hill… Ultimately, Villeneuve went on to win the title in the following race, even though he finished in third.

Williams clinched the 1997 Constructors’ Championship as Ferrari could not pass their points tally with only one race remaining.

1997 Japanese Grand Prix Race Results

Pos	No	Driver	Car	Laps	Time/retired	Pts
1	5	Michael Schumacher	Ferrari	53	1:29:48.446	10
2	4	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	Williams Renault	53	+1.378s	6
3	6	Eddie Irvine	Ferrari	53	+26.384s	4
4	9	Mika Hakkinen	McLaren Mercedes	53	+27.129s	3
5	7	Jean Alesi	Benetton Renault	53	+40.403s	2
6	16	Johnny Herbert	Sauber Petronas	53	+41.630s	1
7	12	Giancarlo Fisichella	Jordan Peugeot	53	+56.825s	0
8	8	Gerhard Berger	Benetton Renault	53	+60.429s	0
9	11	Ralf Schumacher	Jordan Peugeot	53	+82.036s	0
10	10	David Coulthard	McLaren Mercedes	52	DNF	0
12	1	Damon Hill	Arrows Yamaha	52	+1 lap	0
13	2	Pedro Diniz	Arrows Yamaha	52	+1 lap	0
14	18	Jos Verstappen	Tyrrell Ford	52	+1 lap	0
NC	21	Tarso Marques	Minardi Hart	46	DNF	0
NC	19	Mika Salo	Tyrrell Ford	46	DNF	0
NC	14	Olivier Panis	Prost Mugen Honda	36	DNF	0
NC	15	Shinji Nakano	Prost Mugen Honda	22	DNF	0
NC	20	Ukyo Katayama	Minardi Hart	8	DNF	0
NC	22	Rubens Barrichello	Stewart Ford	6	DNF	0
NC	23	Jan Magnussen	Stewart Ford	3	DNF	0

2003

At the 2003 Japanese Grand Prix, the remarkable Michael Schumacher wrote his name in the record books by securing his sixth Drivers’ title – and his fourth of five in a row, surpassing the record set by Juan Manuel Fangio in 1957. He finished eighth, but as Ferrari team-mate Rubens Barrichello took the chequered flag to deny his nearest rival Kimi Raikkonen, he took the championship. It was a fair result as Schumacher had six wins to Raikkonen’s one, even if his race was not one of his best, with a couple of scares along the way. It was also enough for Ferrari to seal the 2003 Constructors’ Championship. “The feelings are not there now,” Schumacher said. “I can feel for the team but not for me, they have not sunk in yet. I am empty, exhausted. It’s very strange for me. Most of my championships I have won with a victory but here I am winning it with eighth place so it is a mixed emotion.” Raikkonen’s McLaren teammate, David Coulthard, finished third.

This race was the final one in which cars used launch control and fully automatic gearboxes, both of which were reintroduced at the 2001 Spanish Grand Prix. The FIA banned these electronic driver-aids in the 2004 season. It was also the last Grand Prix appearance for Heinz-Harald Frentzen, a three-time race winner, and Jos Verstappen, the father of future multiple world champion Max Verstappen.

2003 Japanese Grand Prix Race Results

Pos	No	Driver	Car	Laps	Time/retired	Pts
1	2	Rubens Barrichello	Ferrari	53	1:25:11.743	10
2	6	Kimi Räikkönen	McLaren Mercedes	53	+11.085s	8
3	5	David Coulthard	McLaren Mercedes	53	+11.614s	6
4	17	Jenson Button	BAR Honda	53	+33.106s	5
5	7	Jarno Trulli	Renault	53	+34.269s	4
6	16	Takuma Sato	BAR Honda	53	+51.692s	3
7	21	Cristiano da Matta	Toyota	53	+56.794s	2
8	1	Michael Schumacher	Ferrari	53	+59.487s	1
9	9	Nick Heidfeld	Sauber Petronas	53	+60.159s	0
10	20	Olivier Panis	Toyota	53	+61.844s	0
11	14	Mark Webber	Jaguar Cosworth	53	+71.005s	0
12	4	Ralf Schumacher	Williams BMW	52	+1 lap	0
13	15	Justin Wilson	Jaguar Cosworth	52	+1 lap	0
14	12	Ralph Firman	Jordan Ford	51	+2 laps	0
15	19	Jos Verstappen	Minardi Cosworth	51	+2 laps	0
16	18	Nicolas Kiesa	Minardi Cosworth	50	+3 laps	0
NC	11	Giancarlo Fisichella	Jordan Ford	33	DNF	0
NC	8	Fernando Alonso	Renault	17	DNF	0
NC	10	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	Sauber Petronas	9	DNF	0
NC	3	Juan Pablo Montoya	Williams BMW	9	DNF	0

2008

There were accusations and recriminations at the 2008 Japanese Grand Prix, where Lewis Hamilton accused Felipe Massa of deliberately crashing into him as the pair clashed for fifth place on the second lap. The incident put Hamilton to the back of the field, cut his lead in the 2008 Drivers’ Championship over Massa to five points, and left him facing blowing the title for the second year. “I did the corner normally and he came back very aggressively and hit me,” Hamilton fumed. “I think that was pretty much as deliberate as can be.” Massa was more diplomatic. “The duel with Hamilton was hard but fair … I have a good relationship with [him] and I will not do anything to destroy something on purpose.” Fernando Alonso won the race with Renault with Robert Kubica in a BMW Sauber, finishing second with the Ferrari of Kimi Raikkonen, completing the podium in third.

2008 Japanese Grand Prix Race Results

Pos	No	Driver	Car	Laps	Time/retired	Pts
1	5	Fernando Alonso	Renault	67	1:30:21.892	10
2	4	Robert Kubica	Sauber BMW	67	+5.283s	8
3	1	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	67	+6.400s	6
4	6	Nelson Piquet	Renault	67	+20.570s	5
5	11	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	67	+23.767s	4
6	15	Sebastian Vettel	STR Ferrari	67	+39.207s	3
7	2	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	67	+46.158s	2
8	10	Mark Webber	Red Bull Renault	67	+50.811s	1
9	3	Nick Heidfeld	Sauber BMW	67	+54.120s	0
10	14	Sebastien Bourdais	STR Ferrari	67	+59.085s	0
11	7	Nico Rosberg	Williams Toyota	67	+62.096s	0
12	22	Lewis Hamilton	McLaren Mercedes	67	+78.900s	0
13	17	Rubens Barrichello	Honda	66	+1 lap	0
14	16	Jenson Button	Honda	66	+1 lap	0
15	8	Kazuki Nakajima	Williams Toyota	66	+1 lap	0
NC	21	Giancarlo Fisichella	Force India Ferrari	21	DNF	0
NC	23	Heikki Kovalainen	McLaren Mercedes	16	DNF	0
NC	20	Adrian Sutil	Force India Ferrari	8	DNF	0
NC	12	Timo Glock	Toyota	6	DNF	0
NC	9	David Coulthard	Red Bull Renault	0	DNF	0

2014

At the 2014 Russian Grand Prix, Lewis Hamilton dominated from start to finish to secure the win, marking his fourth consecutive victory of the season. He was joined on the podium by his Mercedes teammate Nico Rosberg, who finished second, for a Mercedes 1-2 finish, after recovering from an early mistake when he locked up his brakes into turn 2 attempting to outbrake Hamilton and had to pit on the first lap. Valtteri Bottas in a Williams rounded out the podium in third. Rosberg’s early pit stop forced him to drive the remainder of the race on a single set of tyres, while Bottas set the fastest lap in the race’s final moments.

Hamilton and Rosberg’s points haul was enough for the Mercedes team to clinch the 2014 Constructors’ Championship title.

Formula One History Recommends

• 

  Which F1 Team Has the Most 1-2 Finishes in Formula 1 History?

2014 Russian Grand Prix Race Results

Pos	No	Driver	Car	Laps	Time/retired	Pts
1	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	53	1:31:50.744	25
2	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	53	+13.657s	18
3	77	Valtteri Bottas	Williams Mercedes	53	+17.425s	15
4	22	Jenson Button	McLaren Mercedes	53	+30.234s	12
5	20	Kevin Magnussen	McLaren Mercedes	53	+53.616s	10
6	14	Fernando Alonso	Ferrari	53	+60.016s	8
7	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing Renault	53	+61.812s	6
8	1	Sebastian Vettel	Red Bull Racing Renault	53	+66.185s	4
9	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	53	+78.877s	2
10	11	Sergio Perez	Force India Mercedes	53	+80.067s	1
11	19	Felipe Massa	Williams Mercedes	53	+80.877s	0
12	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India Mercedes	53	+81.309s	0
13	25	Jean-Eric Vergne	STR Renault	53	+97.295s	0
14	26	Daniil Kvyat	STR Renault	52	+1 lap	0
15	21	Esteban Gutierrez	Sauber Ferrari	52	+1 lap	0
16	99	Adrian Sutil	Sauber Ferrari	52	+1 lap	0
17	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus Renault	52	+1 lap	0
18	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus Renault	52	+1 lap	0
19	9	Marcus Ericsson	Caterham Renault	51	+2 laps	0
NC	10	Kamui Kobayashi	Caterham Renault	21	DNF	0
NC	4	Max Chilton	Marussia Ferrari	9	DNF	0

F1 Driver Birthdays 12 October

Birthday	F1 Driver
12 October 1906	Piero Taruffi (d. 1988)
12 October 1918	Frank Armi (d. 1992)
12 October 1937	Paul Hawkins (d. 1969)
12 October 1943	Bertil Roos (d. 2016)

F1 Driver Deaths 12 October

Death	F1 Driver
12 October 1985	Duke Dinsmoor (b. 1913)
12 October 2006	Eugene Martin (b. 1915)
12 October 2019	Nanni Galli (b. 1940)

F1 Champion 12 October

Date	Team/Driver
12 October 2003	Michael Schumacher
12 October 1997	Williams
12 October 2003	Ferrari
12 October 2014	Mercedes