What Happened On This Day October 3 In F1 History?

From Graham Hill completing a hat-trick of wins in the US Grand Prix in 1965 to James Hunt winning the 1976 Canadian Grand Prix for McLaren.

Lee Parker

By Lee Parker
Updated on June 3, 2025

Jame Hunt 1976 Canadian Grand Prix
James Hunt wins the 1976 Canadian Grand Prix for McLaren // Image: Uncredited

What happened on this day, October 3 in Formula 1 history? Find out interesting facts and stories about Formula 1 on this day.

1941

Andrea de Adamich was born on this day in Trieste. He managed two fourth-place finishes in 36 Formula 1 races over five seasons. His career ended with a spectacular crash at the 1973 British Grand Prix, but he went on to become a successful journalist and TV pundit in his native Italy.

1965

Driving a BRM, Graham Hill completed a hat-trick of successive wins at the 1965 United States Grand Prix after an early battle with Jim Clark in a Lotus-Climax. The thrilling duel ended when Clark retired with engine trouble on the 11th of 110 laps. Dan Gurney finished second for the Brabham team, and his teammate Jack Brabham came in third. Along with the win, Hill took pole and fastest lap. It was also the final year of the 1.5-litre formula; Jim Clark had clinched his second Drivers’ Championship (and won the Indianapolis 500) before the teams arrived in North America for the last two races.

1965 United States Grand Prix Race Results

PosNoDriverCarLapsTime/retiredPts
13Graham HillBRM1102:20:36.1009
28Dan GurneyBrabham Climax110+12.500s6
37Jack BrabhamBrabham Climax110+57.500s4
42Lorenzo BandiniFerrari109+1 lap3
514Pedro RodriguezFerrari109+1 lap2
610Jochen RindtCooper Climax108+2 laps1
711Richie GintherHonda108+2 laps0
815Jo BonnierBrabham Climax107+3 laps0
924Bob BondurantFerrari106+4 laps0
1021Richard AttwoodLotus BRM101+9 laps0
1116Jo SiffertBrabham BRM99+11 laps0
1218Moises SolanaLotus Climax95+15 laps0
1312Ronnie BucknumHonda92+18 laps0
NC4Jackie StewartBRM12DNF0
NC9Bruce McLarenCooper Climax11DNF0
NC5Jim ClarkLotus Climax11DNF0
NC22Innes IrelandLotus BRM9DNF0
NC6Mike SpenceLotus Climax9DNF0

1969

F1 driver Massimiliano Papis was born on this day in Como, Italy. He later became Emerson Fittipaldi‘s son-in-law, but his Formula 1 career was limited to just seven races for Footwork in 1995. He found greater success after switching to sports car racing in the USA.

1971

Tyrrell driver Francois Cevert won the last race of the season, the 1971 United States Grand Prix at Watkins Glen, capping a season in which he had really made his mark with a brace of second-place finishes and third place in the 1971 Drivers’ Championship. It was his only F1 win, achieved at a circuit where he tragically lost his life two years and four days later. Jackie Ickx drove an impressive race, smashing the lap record and cutting Cevert’s lead to three seconds before his Ferrari suffered ignition trouble. Jo Siffert took second for BRM and March driver Ronnie Peterson third.

1971 United States Grand Prix Race Results

PosNoDriverCarLapsTime/retiredPts
19Francois  CevertTyrrell Ford591:43:51.9919
214Jo SiffertBRM59+40.062s6
325Ronnie PetersonMarch Ford59+44.070s4
416Howden  GanleyBRM59+56.749s3
58Jackie StewartTyrrell Ford59+60.003s2
65Clay RegazzoniFerrari59+76.426s1
722Graham HillBrabham Ford58+1 lap0
812Jean-Pierre BeltoiseMatra58+1 lap0
915Peter  GethinBRM58+1 lap0
1031David  HobbsMcLaren Ford58+1 lap0
1127Andrea de AdamichMarch Alfa Romeo57+2 laps0
1211Chris AmonMatra57+2 laps0
1317Helmut  MarkoBRM57+2 laps0
1428John  CannonBRM56+3 laps0
1520Mike HailwoodSurtees Ford54OK0
1629Jo BonnierMcLaren Ford54DNF0
1718John SurteesSurtees Ford54+5 laps0
NC33Skip  BarberMarch Ford52+7 laps0
NC2Emerson FittipaldiLotus Ford49+10 laps0
NC30Pete  LovelyLotus Ford49+10 laps0
NC4Jacky IckxFerrari49DNF0
NC7Denny HulmeMcLaren Ford47DNF0
NC23Tim  SchenkenBrabham Ford41DNF0
NC24Chris  CraftBrabham Ford30DNF0
NC21Henri PescaroloMarch Ford23DNF0
NC19Sam  PoseySurtees Ford15DNF0
NC26Nanni  GalliMarch Ford11DNF0
NC3Reine  WisellLotus Ford5DNF0
NC10Peter  RevsonTyrrell Ford1DNF0

1976

McLaren driver James Hunt cut Ferrari driver Niki Lauda‘s lead in the 1976 Drivers’ Championship to eight points with two races remaining, following his victory at the 1976 Canadian Grand Prix in front of 85,000 spectators. Hunt was chased all the way by Patrick Depailler, ultimately winning by just 100 yards. Both drivers needed medical treatment afterward—Hunt for driving into a barrier on his victory lap, and Depailler for burns on his back caused by leaking fuel in his Tyrrell. “The left eye, she is completely closed,” Depailler remarked of his final laps. “Fortunately the pain, she keep me awake.” He collapsed as he exited his car and had to be rushed to the hospital. Meanwhile, Lauda finished back in eighth place, out of the points, with Mario Andretti taking third for Lotus.

1976 Canadian Grand Prix Race Results

PosNoDriverCarLapsTime/retiredPts
111James HuntMcLaren Ford801:40:09.6269
24Patrick DepaillerTyrrell Ford80+6.331s6
35Mario AndrettiLotus Ford80+10.366s4
43Jody ScheckterTyrrell Ford80+19.745s3
512Jochen MassMcLaren Ford80+41.811s2
62Clay RegazzoniFerrari80+46.256s1
78Carlos PaceBrabham Alfa Romeo80+46.472s0
81Niki LaudaFerrari80+72.957s0
910Ronnie PetersonMarch Ford79+1 lap0
1028John WatsonPenske Ford79+1 lap0
1116Tom PryceShadow Ford79+1 lap0
126Gunnar NilssonLotus Ford79+1 lap0
1322Jacky IckxEnsign Ford79+1 lap0
149Vittorio BrambillaMarch Ford79+1 lap0
1518Brett LungerSurtees Ford78+2 laps0
1619Alan  JonesSurtees Ford78+2 laps0
177Larry PerkinsBrabham Alfa Romeo78+2 laps0
1817Jean-Pierre JarierShadow Ford77+3 laps0
1938Henri PescaroloSurtees Ford77+3 laps0
2025Guy EdwardsHesketh Ford75+5 laps0
NC26Jacques LaffiteLigier Matra43DNF0
NC30Emerson FittipaldiFittipaldi Ford41DNF0
NC34Hans-Joachim StuckMarch Ford36DNF0
NC20Arturo MerzarioWolf-Williams11DNF0

2021

The 2021 Singapore Grand Prix was cancelled again due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it was the second consecutive year the event was called off. Originally scheduled as part of the 2021 F1 season, the race was called off in June 2021 because of ongoing travel restrictions and safety concerns in Singapore. This decision reflected the broader challenges faced by the F1 schedule during the pandemic, with several events adjusted or cancelled to accommodate varying global conditions. The cancellation left fans waiting for the Marina Bay Street Circuit’s iconic night race to return in a future season.

F1 Driver Birthdays 3 October

BirthdayF1 Driver
3 October 1927Chuck Hulse (d. 2020)
3 October 1941Andrea De Adamich
3 October 1969Max Papis

F1 Driver Deaths 3 October

DeathF1 Driver
3 OctoberNone

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About The Author

Staff Writer

Lee Parker
Lee Parker

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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