What Happened On This Day August 1 In F1 History?

From the death of Jean Behra during the 1959 German Grand Prix to McLaren's 100th pole position at the 1999 German Grand Prix.

Lee Parker

By Lee Parker
Updated on February 11, 2025

Niki Lauda Crash 1976 German Grand Prix
Niki Lauda's near fatal crash at the 1976 German Grand Prix // Image: DPA/Press Association Images

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

1954

The 1954 German Grand Prix marked the 17th running of the event since its inception in 1926 and the 16th time it was held at the Nürburgring circuit.

The race was won by 1951 World Champion Juan Manuel Fangio, who drove the dominant Mercedes-Benz W196 to victory. Ferrari secured the remaining podium spots, with Mike Hawthorn finishing second in a shared drive with Jose Froilan Gonzalez, while Maurice Trintignant claimed third place for Scuderia Ferrari.

1959

Jean Behra died in a sports car race that preceded the 1959 German Grand Prix at AVUS under treacherous wet weather conditions. Behra lost control on the slippery surface, launching his Porsche RSK over the top of the banking where there was no guard rail. He was thrown from his car and died instantly upon hitting a flag pole, fracturing his skull. The French driver competed in 52 Grands Prix, achieving nine podium finishes. Although he never won a race, Behra was widely regarded as one of the best and most aggressive drivers of his era, racing for Gordini, Maserati, BRM, and Ferrari.

Currently, AVUS is a vital part of the German public highway system as Autobahn A 115.

1965

Jim Clark secured his second World Championship in 1965 by driving his Lotus to victory at the 1965 German Grand Prix. This win marked Clark’s sixth victory of the Formula One season in just the seventh race, highlighting his dominance that year.

1976

Niki Lauda nearly lost his life in a dramatic accident at the Nurburgring during the 1976 German Grand Prix. Lauda’s Ferrari veered off track and burst into flames before sliding back onto the track and being struck by two other drivers. The crash was so severe that a priest administered last rites to Lauda after he was rescued from the wreckage by fellow drivers who had stopped to help. Remarkably, Lauda recovered and returned to racing just six weeks later. However, Formula One never raced on the Nordschleife course at the Nurburgring again.

Notably, before the race had started, defending world champion Lauda, who was also leading the current season’s points standings, was deeply concerned about the safety conditions and the organisers’ failure to provide adequate safety support staff, including doctors, helicopters and fire marshals, for the massive German circuit. The forecast of rain heightened his worries. Lauda attempted to organise a boycott of the race, but the other drivers narrowly voted against it by a single vote, and the race proceeded as planned.

Lauda sustained severe burns to his head, resulting in extensive scarring. He lost most of his right ear, the hair on the right side of his head, his eyebrows, and his eyelids. Remarkably, Lauda missed only two races and appeared at a press conference in Monza just six weeks after the accident with his fresh burns still bandaged.

1980

Patrick Depailler tragically lost his life during testing ten days ahead of the 1980 German Grand Prix. Depailler’s car experienced suspension failure, causing him to crash into the Hockenheim circuit’s barrier at Ostkurve, and suffer fatal head injuries. The car skidded along the top of the guard rail for several hundred feet prior to flipping onto its top. Throughout his career, Depailler started 95 races, winning two and achieving 19 podium finishes.

1995

Just days after winning the German Grand Prix, Michael Schumacher married Corinna Betsch during the mid-season break. That year, he would win his second consecutive drivers’ title.

1999

Mika Hakkinen achieved McLaren‘s 100th Formula One pole position at the 1999 German Grand Prix at Hockenheim. However, Eddie Irvine‘s Ferrari claimed victory, marking his third win of the season and giving him an eight-point lead in the championship over Hakkinen. Hakkinen ultimately won the world championship title. Additionally, Mika Salo secured his first podium finish at the 1999 German Grand Prix, finishing second behind his Ferrari teammate Irvine.

2021

Esteban Ocon secured his maiden Formula One victory at the 2021 Hungarian Grand Prix, delivering a historic win for Alpine. It marked the first victory for the Enstone-based team since the 2013 Australian Grand Prix and the first win for a Renault-badged engine since the 2014 Belgian Grand Prix.

Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton and the Ferrari of Carlos Sainz completed the podium, following the disqualification of Sebastian Vettel, who originally finished second with Aston Martin but was penalised due to a fuel sample irregularity. Williams also secured their first double points finish since the 2018 Italian Grand Prix and scored their first championship points since the 2019 German Grand Prix.

2021 Hungarian Grand Prix Race Results
PosNoDriverCarLapsTime/retiredPts
131Esteban OconAlpine Renault702:04:43.19925
DQ5Sebastian VettelAston Martin Mercedes70+1.859s0
244Lewis HamiltonMercedes70+2.736s18
355Carlos SainzFerrari70+15.018s15
414Fernando AlonsoAlpine Renault70+15.651s12
510Pierre GaslyAlphaTauri Honda70+63.614s11
622Yuki TsunodaAlphaTauri Honda70+75.803s8
76Nicholas LatifiWilliams Mercedes70+77.910s6
863George RussellWilliams Mercedes70+79.094s4
933Max VerstappenRed Bull Racing Honda70+80.244s2
107Kimi RäikkönenAlfa Romeo Racing Ferrari69+1 lap1
113Daniel RicciardoMcLaren Mercedes69+1 lap0
1247Mick SchumacherHaas Ferrari69+1 lap0
1399Antonio GiovinazziAlfa Romeo Racing Ferrari69+1 lap0
NC9Nikita MazepinHaas Ferrari3DNF0
NC4Lando NorrisMcLaren Mercedes2DNF0
NC77Valtteri BottasMercedes0DNF0
NC11Sergio PerezRed Bull Racing Honda0DNF0
NC16Charles LeclercFerrari0DNF0
NC18Lance StrollAston Martin Mercedes0DNF0
* Note – Vettel was disqualified after the required fuel sample could not be extracted from his car following the race. Gasly scored an additional point for setting the fastest lap of the race.

F1 Driver Birthdays 1 August

Birth DateF1 Driver
1 August 1961Allen Berg

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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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