What happened on this day, September 2 in Formula 1 history? Find out interesting facts and stories about Formula 1 on this day.
1956
Stirling Moss won the 1956 Italian Grand Prix, but Juan Manuel Fangio secured enough points to win the season’s Drivers’ Championship. Heading into the race, Fangio held an eight-point advantage over his Ferrari teammate Peter Collins and Maserati driver Jean Behra.
During the race, Fangio was forced to retire due to a broken steering arm, and Behra also had to withdraw. Luigi Musso, another Ferrari driver, was asked to hand his car over to Fangio to help secure the Argentine’s fourth title, but he refused. However, Peter Collins, who had a chance to win his first world championship, sportingly offered his car to Fangio during a routine pit stop. Fangio went on to finish in second place, behind Stirling Moss, allowing him and Collins to share the points for second place and securing Fangio’s fourth title.
1956 Italian Grand Prix Race Results
| Pos | No | Driver | Car | Laps | Time/retired | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 36 | Stirling Moss | Maserati | 50 | 2:23:41.300 | 9 |
| 2 | 26 | Peter Collins | Ferrari | SHC | 3 | |
| 2 | 26 | Juan Manuel Fangio | Ferrari | 50 | +5.700s | 3 |
| 3 | 4 | Ron Flockhart | Connaught Alta | 49 | +1 lap | 4 |
| 4 | 38 | Paco Godia | Maserati | 49 | +1 lap | 3 |
| NC | 28 | Luigi Musso | Ferrari | 46 | DNF | 0 |
| 5 | 6 | Jack Fairman | Connaught Alta | 47 | +3 laps | 2 |
| 6 | 40 | Luigi Piotti | Maserati | 47 | +3 laps | 0 |
| 7 | 14 | Toulo de Graffenried | Maserati | 46 | +4 laps | 0 |
| 8 | 22 | Juan Manuel Fangio | Ferrari | SHC | 0 | |
| 8 | 22 | Eugenio Castellotti | Ferrari | 46 | +4 laps | 0 |
| 9 | 12 | André Simon | Gordini | 45 | +5 laps | 0 |
| NC | 46 | Umberto Maglioli | Maserati | SHC | 0 | |
| NC | 46 | Jean Behra | Maserati | 42 | DNF | 0 |
| 10 | 42 | Gerino Gerini | Maserati | 42 | +8 laps | 0 |
| 11 | 44 | Roy Salvadori | Maserati | 41 | +9 laps | 0 |
| NC | 18 | Harry Schell | Vanwall | 32 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 32 | Jean Behra | Maserati | 23 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 48 | Bruce Halford | Maserati | 16 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 20 | Maurice Trintignant | Vanwall | 13 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 16 | Piero Taruffi | Vanwall | 12 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 24 | Eugenio Castellotti | Ferrari | 9 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 10 | Robert Manzon | Gordini | 7 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 34 | Luigi Villoresi | Maserati | SHC | 0 | |
| NC | 34 | Jo Bonnier | Maserati | 7 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 30 | Alfonso de Portago | Ferrari | 6 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 2 | Les Leston | Connaught Alta | 6 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 8 | Hermano da Silva Ramos | Gordini | 3 | DNF | 0 |
1966
F1 driver Olivier Panis was born on this day, 2 September 1966, in Lyon, France. Panis honed his driving skills in karting, progressing through several junior series before moving up to French Formula 3. By 1990, he secured 4th place in the championship and achieved runner-up status the following year. By 1994, he had secured a seat with the Ligier team in F1.
Olivier Panis
F1 Debut 1994 Brazilian Grand Prix
Current/Last Team Toyota Racing
Panis’s only win came in 1996 at the Monaco Grand Prix, where he navigated his way to victory in treacherous wet conditions. It marked Ligier’s first win in 15 years—their last—and was the first French victory in a French car at Monaco in 66 years. Panis ended his career in 2004, having driven for Ligier, Prost, BAR, and Toyota, having secured five podiums and 76 career points.
2001
Ferrari driver and 2001 Drivers’ Champion Michael Schumacher won the 2001 Belgian Grand Prix after starting from third position. David Coulthard finished second for McLaren, while Giancarlo Fisichella secured third place for Benetton, marking the team’s final podium finish in F1.
The race wasn’t smooth sailing when an accident involving the Jaguar of Eddie Irvine and Luciano Burti for Prost on lap five resulted in the race up to that point being declared null and void and recommenced with a revised distance of 36 laps. Schumacher led every lap of the restarted race to claim his eighth victory of the season. With this win, his 52nd career victory, Schumacher surpassed four-time world champion Alain Prost‘s all-time wins total, a record he held until Lewis Hamilton broke it at the 2020 Portuguese Grand Prix.
2001 Belgian Grand Prix Race Results
| Pos | No | Driver | Car | Laps | Time/retired | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Michael Schumacher | Ferrari | 36 | 1:08:05.002 | 10 |
| 2 | 4 | David Coulthard | McLaren Mercedes | 36 | +10.098s | 6 |
| 3 | 7 | Giancarlo Fisichella | Benetton Renault | 36 | +27.742s | 4 |
| 4 | 3 | Mika Hakkinen | McLaren Mercedes | 36 | +36.087s | 3 |
| 5 | 2 | Rubens Barrichello | Ferrari | 36 | +54.521s | 2 |
| 6 | 12 | Jean Alesi | Jordan Honda | 36 | +59.684s | 1 |
| 7 | 5 | Ralf Schumacher | Williams BMW | 36 | +59.986s | 0 |
| 8 | 10 | Jacques Villeneuve | BAR Honda | 36 | +64.970s | 0 |
| 9 | 22 | Heinz-Harald Frentzen | Prost Acer | 35 | +1 lap | 0 |
| 10 | 14 | Jos Verstappen | Arrows Asiatech | 35 | +1 lap | 0 |
| 11 | 9 | Olivier Panis | BAR Honda | 35 | +1 lap | 0 |
| 12 | 15 | Enrique Bernoldi | Arrows Asiatech | 35 | +1 lap | 0 |
| 13 | 20 | Tarso Marques | Minardi European | 32 | +4 laps | 0 |
| NC | 11 | Jarno Trulli | Jordan Honda | 31 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 8 | Jenson Button | Benetton Renault | 17 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 6 | Juan Pablo Montoya | Williams BMW | 1 | DNF | 0 |
| NC | 19 | Pedro de la Rosa | Jaguar Cosworth | 1 | DNF | 0 |
2012
Jenson Button won the 2012 Belgian Grand Prix, starting from pole position for the first time since the 2009 Monaco Grand Prix. Sebastian Vettel finished in second place for Red Bull Racing, with Kimi Raikkonen taking third for the Lotus F1 team. The race included a five-car collision at La Source, which resulted in Raikkonen’s teammate Romain Grosjean receiving a race ban.
This race also marked Michael Schumacher’s 300th F1 Grand Prix.
2012 Belgian Grand Prix Race Results
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Team | Laps | Time / Retired | Pts. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | Jenson Button | McLaren | 44 | 1:29:08.530 | 25 |
| 2 | 1 | Sebastian Vettel | Red Bull Racing | 44 | +13.624 | 18 |
| 3 | 9 | Kimi Räikkönen | Lotus F1 | 44 | +25.334 | 15 |
| 4 | 12 | Nico Hülkenberg | Force India | 44 | +27.843 | 12 |
| 5 | 6 | Felipe Massa | Ferrari | 44 | +29.845 | 10 |
| 6 | 2 | Mark Webber | Red Bull Racing | 44 | +31.244 | 8 |
| 7 | 7 | Michael Schumacher | Mercedes | 44 | +53.374 | 6 |
| 8 | 17 | Jean-Éric Vergne | Toro Rosso | 44 | +58.865 | 4 |
| 9 | 16 | Daniel Ricciardo | Toro Rosso | 44 | +1:02.982 | 2 |
| 10 | 11 | Paul di Resta | Force India | 44 | +1:03.783 | 1 |
| 11 | 8 | Nico Rosberg | Mercedes | 44 | +1:05.111 | 0 |
| 12 | 19 | Bruno Senna | Williams | 44 | +1:11.529 | 0 |
| 13 | 14 | Kamui Kobayashi | Sauber | 44 | +1:56.119 | 0 |
| 14 | 21 | Vitaly Petrov | Caterham | 43 | +1 Lap | 0 |
| 15 | 24 | Timo Glock | Marussia | 43 | +1 Lap | 0 |
| 16 | 25 | Charles Pic | Marussia | 43 | +1 Lap | 0 |
| 17 | 20 | Heikki Kovalainen | Caterham | 43 | +1 Lap | 0 |
| 18 | 22 | Pedro de la Rosa | HRT | 43 | +1 Lap | 0 |
| Ret | 23 | Narain Karthikeyan | HRT | 29 | Wheel/accident | 0 |
| Ret | 18 | Pastor Maldonado | Williams | 4 | Collision damage | 0 |
| Ret | 15 | Sergio Pérez | Sauber | 0 | Collision damage | 0 |
| Ret | 5 | Fernando Alonso | Ferrari | 0 | Collision | 0 |
| Ret | 4 | Lewis Hamilton | McLaren | 0 | Collision | 0 |
| Ret | 10 | Romain Grosjean | Lotus F1 | 0 | Collision | 0 |
2018
Lewis Hamilton won the 2018 Italian Grand Prix with Mercedes after a fierce battle with Kimi Raikkonen in the Ferrari, overtaking him with nine laps to go. Hamilton and Sebastian Vettel collided on the opening lap, causing Vettel’s Ferrari to spin off the track. Despite Vettel’s protests, the stewards ruled it a racing incident. Vettel eventually fought back to finish in fourth place, just behind Mercedes driver Valtteri Bottas in third.
2018 Italian Grand Prix Race Results
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Team | Laps | Time / Retired | Pts. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 44 | Lewis Hamilton | Mercedes | 53 | 1:16:54.484 | 25 |
| 2 | 7 | Kimi Räikkönen | Ferrari | 53 | +8.705s | 18 |
| 3 | 77 | Valtteri Bottas | Mercedes | 53 | +14.066s | 15 |
| 4 | 5 | Sebastian Vettel | Ferrari | 53 | +16.151s | 12 |
| 5 | 33 | Max Verstappen | Red Bull Racing | 53 | +18.208s | 10 |
| 6 | 31 | Esteban Ocon | Racing Point Force India | 53 | +57.761s | 8 |
| 7 | 11 | Sergio Perez | Racing Point Force India | 53 | +58.678s | 6 |
| 8 | 55 | Carlos Sainz | Renault | 53 | +78.140s | 4 |
| 9 | 18 | Lance Stroll | Williams | 52 | +1 lap | 2 |
| 10 | 35 | Sergey Sirotkin | Williams | 52 | +1 lap | 1 |
| 11 | 16 | Charles Leclerc | Sauber | 52 | +1 lap | 0 |
| 12 | 2 | Stoffel Vandoorne | McLaren | 52 | +1 lap | 0 |
| 13 | 27 | Nico Hulkenberg | Renault | 52 | +1 lap | 0 |
| 14 | 10 | Pierre Gasly | Toro Rosso | 52 | +1 lap | 0 |
| 15 | 9 | Marcus Ericsson | Sauber | 52 | +1 lap | 0 |
| 16 | 20 | Kevin Magnussen | Haas | 52 | +1 lap | 0 |
| Ret | 3 | Daniel Ricciardo | Red Bull Racing | 23 | Clutch | 0 |
| Ret | 14 | Fernando Alonso | McLaren | 9 | Electrics | 0 |
| Ret | 28 | Brendon Hartley | Toro Rosso | 0 | Collision | 0 |
| DSQ | 8 | Romain Grosjean | Haas | 53 | Illegal floor | 0 |
Romain Grosjean originally finished sixth, but was disqualified for a technical infringement with the floor of his car.
F1 Driver Birthdays 2 September
| Birthday | F1 Driver |
|---|---|
| 2 September 1919 | Lance Macklin (d. 2002) |
| 2 September 1958 | Olivier Grouillard |
| 2 September 1966 | Olivier Panis |
| 2 September 1990 | Marcus Ericsson |
F1 Driver Deaths 2 September
| Death | F1 Driver |
|---|---|
| 2 September 1969 | Willy Mairesse (b. 1928) |
F1 Champion 2 September
| Date | Team/Driver |
|---|---|
| 2 September 1956 | Juan Manuel Fangio |
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