What Happened On This Day August 30 In F1 History?

From the birth of F1 legend and team owner Bruce McLaren in 1937 to Williams securing the Constructors' Championship in 1992.

Mark Phelan

By Mark Phelan
Updated on February 10, 2025

Bruce McLaren Born 30 August 1937
Bruce McLaren was born 30 August 1937 // Image: Creator: Fox Photos | Credit: Getty Images

What happened on this day, August 30 in Formula 1 history? Find out interesting facts and stories about Formula 1 on this day.

1937

Bruce McLaren was born on this day, 30 August 1937, and was a renowned New Zealand racing car designer, driver, engineer, and inventor. He founded the McLaren team, which remains one of the most successful in Formula 1 history, having since secured 8 Constructors’ Championships and 12 Drivers’ Championships. Outside of F1, McLaren cars were also dominant in CanAm sports car racing, achieving 56 wins—many with McLaren himself driving—between 1967 and 1972, and winning five constructors’ championships. Additionally, McLaren cars have triumphed in three Indianapolis 500 races, the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and the 12 Hours of Sebring.

Tragically, on 2 June 1970, while testing the team’s powerful new Can-Am car just two weeks before the opening race of the series, he lost control when the rear bodywork came loose. The car crashed into a marshal’s post, and Bruce was killed instantly.

He raced for Cooper, McLaren and Eagle in F1 between 1958 and 1970, securing 4 wins, 27 podiums, 188.5 (196.5) career points and 3 fastest laps.

1981

Alain Prost won the 1981 Dutch Grand Prix at Zandvoort, starting from pole position and driving a Renault. Nelson Piquet secured second place in a Brabham, while Alan Jones finished third in a Williams. Carlos Reutemann, in the sister Williams, failed to finish after a collision with Jacques Laffite‘s Ligier. As a result, Piquet moved into the lead of the 1981 Drivers’ Championship, tied on points with Reutemann but holding the advantage with more wins.

1981 Dutch Grand Prix Race Results
PosNoDriverCarLapsTime/retiredPts
115Alain ProstRenault721:40:22.4309
25Nelson PiquetBrabham Ford72+8.240s6
31Alan  JonesWilliams Ford72+35.500s4
46Hector RebaqueBrabham Ford71+1 lap3
511Elio de AngelisLotus Ford71+1 lap2
614Eliseo SalazarEnsign Ford70+2 laps1
730Siegfried StohrArrows Ford69+3 laps0
833Marc SurerTheodore Ford69+3 laps0
94Michele AlboretoTyrrell Ford68DNF0
1010Slim BorguddATS Ford68+4 laps0
NC22Mario AndrettiAlfa Romeo62DNF0
NC7John WatsonMcLaren Ford50DNF0
NC3Eddie  CheeverTyrrell Ford46DNF0
NC32Jean-Pierre JarierOsella Hart29DNF0
NC16Rene ArnouxRenault21DNF0
NC23Bruno GiacomelliAlfa Romeo19DNF0
NC26Jacques LaffiteLigier Matra18DNF0
NC2Carlos ReutemannWilliams Ford18DNF0
NC29Riccardo PatreseArrows Ford16DNF0
NC17Derek DalyMarch Ford5DNF0
NC28Didier PironiFerrari4DNF0
NC12Nigel MansellLotus Ford1DNF0
NC25Patrick TambayLigier Matra0DNF0
NC27Gilles VilleneuveFerrari0DNF0

1992

Benetton driver Michael Schumacher won the 1992 Belgian Grand Prix, making this the first Grand Prix victory for a German driver since Jochen Mass triumphed at the 1975 Spanish Grand Prix. It was the first of Schumacher’s eventual 91 Grand Prix wins—a record later surpassed by Lewis Hamilton in 2020.

Newly crowned World Champion Nigel Mansell finished second in his Williams, with teammate Riccardo Patrese securing third, thereby clinching the 1992 Constructors’ Championship for Williams. Schumacher’s victory was also notable as the last time a Formula One car won a Grand Prix with an H-pattern manual gearbox.

This race also marked Ferrari’s 500th start in a World Championship event as a team and the last race for the Andrea Moda team.

1992 Belgian Grand Prix Race Results
PosNoDriverCarLapsTime/retiredPts
119Michael SchumacherBenetton Ford441:36:10.72110
25Nigel MansellWilliams Renault44+36.595s6
36Riccardo PatreseWilliams Renault44+43.897s4
420Martin BrundleBenetton Ford44+46.059s3
51Ayrton SennaMcLaren Honda44+68.369s2
611Mika HakkinenLotus Ford44+70.030s1
721Jyrki JarvilehtoDallara Ferrari44+98.237s0
84Andrea de CesarisTyrrell Ilmor43+1 lap0
910Aguri SuzukiFootwork Mugen Honda43+1 lap0
1014Eric van de PoeleFondmetal Ford43+1 lap0
1116Karl WendlingerMarch Ilmor43+1 lap0
1217Emanuele NaspettiMarch Ilmor43+1 lap0
1312Johnny HerbertLotus Ford42+2 laps0
1433Mauricio GugelminJordan Yamaha42+2 laps0
1532Stefano ModenaJordan Yamaha42+2 laps0
1624Gianni MorbidelliMinardi Lamborghini42+2 laps0
1730Ukyo KatayamaVenturi Lamborghini42+2 laps0
1829Bertrand GachotVenturi Lamborghini40DNF0
NC25Thierry BoutsenLigier Renault27DNF0
NC28Ivan CapelliFerrari25DNF0
NC15Gabriele TarquiniFondmetal Ford25DNF0
NC9Michele AlboretoFootwork Mugen Honda20DNF0
NC27Jean AlesiFerrari7DNF0
NC3Olivier GrouillardTyrrell Ilmor1DNF0

1998

Damon Hill claimed victory at an eventful 1998 Belgian Grand Prix, much to the delight of the Jordan team, with his teammate Ralf Schumacher finishing in second place. It was the first-ever Formula 1 victory for the Jordan team (the second for Mugen Motorsports engines) after 126 race starts, marking his 22nd career win. This triumph was also Hill’s first victory in two years since departing from Williams and would ultimately be his final F1 career win, as well as his 42nd and last podium finish. Jean Alesi took third for the Sauber team, marking his 32nd and final podium finish in his Formula One career.

The race also had an eventful start. Held under extremely wet conditions throughout, on the first lap, David Coulthard lost control of his McLaren, triggering a massive collision involving thirteen drivers, which led to the race being temporarily stopped. The race resumed more than an hour later once the track had been cleared of debris and cars, with the restart missing four of the drivers involved in the incident. At the restart, championship leader and polesitter Mika Hakkinen spun his McLaren at the first corner, where he was struck by Johnny Herbert‘s Sauber, resulting in both drivers retiring from the race.

1998 Belgian Grand Prix Race Results
PosNoDriverCarLapsTime/retiredPts
19Damon HillJordan Mugen Honda441:43:47.40710
210Ralf SchumacherJordan Mugen Honda44+0.932s6
314Jean AlesiSauber Petronas44+7.240s4
42Heinz-Harald FrentzenWilliams Mecachrome44+32.242s3
516Pedro DinizArrows44+51.682s2
612Jarno TrulliProst Peugeot42+2 laps1
77David CoulthardMcLaren Mercedes39+5 laps0
822Shinji NakanoMinardi Ford39+5 laps0
NC5Giancarlo FisichellaBenetton Playlife26DNF0
NC3Michael SchumacherFerrari25DNF0
NC4Eddie IrvineFerrari25DNF0
NC23Esteban TueroMinardi Ford17DNF0
NC1Jacques VilleneuveWilliams Mecachrome16DNF0
NC21Toranosuke TakagiTyrrell Ford10DNF0
NC19Jos VerstappenStewart Ford8DNF0
NC8Mika HakkinenMcLaren Mercedes0DNF0
NC6Alexander WurzBenetton Playlife0DNF0
NC15Johnny HerbertSauber Petronas0DNF0

2009

Kimi Raikkonen secured victory for Ferrari at the 2009 Belgian Grand Prix after starting from sixth on the grid. Giancarlo Fisichella finished second for Force India, having started from the team’s first and only pole position. Sebastian Vettel took third place for Red Bull after beginning the race from eighth on the grid. It was Raikkonen’s first win since the 2008 Spanish Grand Prix and Ferrari’s only victory of the 2009 season.

2009 Belgian Grand Prix Race Results
PosNoDriverCarLapsTime/retiredPts
14Kimi RäikkönenFerrari441:23:50.99510
221Giancarlo FisichellaForce India Mercedes44+0.939s8
315Sebastian VettelRBR Renault44+3.875s6
45Robert KubicaSauber BMW44+9.966s5
56Nick HeidfeldSauber BMW44+11.276s4
62Heikki KovalainenMcLaren Mercedes44+32.763s3
723Rubens BarrichelloBrawn Mercedes44+35.461s2
816Nico RosbergWilliams Toyota44+36.208s1
914Mark WebberRBR Renault44+36.959s0
1010Timo GlockToyota44+41.490s0
1120Adrian SutilForce India Mercedes44+42.636s0
1212Sebastien BuemiSTR Ferrari44+46.106s0
1317Kazuki NakajimaWilliams Toyota44+54.241s0
143Luca BadoerFerrari44+102.177s0
NC7Fernando AlonsoRenault26DNF0
NC9Jarno TrulliToyota21DNF0
NC1Lewis HamiltonMcLaren Mercedes0DNF0
NC22Jenson ButtonBrawn Mercedes0DNF0
NC11Jaime AlguersuariSTR Ferrari0DNF0
NC8Romain GrosjeanRenault0DNF0

2020

Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton won the 2020 Belgian Grand Prix leading every lap from start to finish, with teammate Valtteri Bottas and Red Bull driver Max Verstappen maintaining their positions in second and third throughout the entire race. Daniel Ricciardo set the fastest lap on the final lap with a time of 1:47.483, earning an additional championship point.

A minute of silence was observed before the race to commemorate the one-year anniversary of Anthoine Hubert’s passing. Pierre Gasly, one of Hubert’s closest friends, honoured him by wearing a tribute helmet, while all teams and drivers displayed a star sticker on their chassis and helmets in memory of Hubert.

2020 Belgian Grand Prix Race Results
PosNoDriverCarLapsTime/retiredPts
144Lewis HamiltonMercedes441:24:08.76125
277Valtteri BottasMercedes44+8.448s18
333Max VerstappenRed Bull Racing Honda44+15.455s15
43Daniel RicciardoRenault44+18.877s13
531Esteban OconRenault44+40.650s10
623Alexander AlbonRed Bull Racing Honda44+42.712s8
74Lando NorrisMcLaren Renault44+43.774s6
810Pierre GaslyAlphaTauri Honda44+47.371s4
918Lance StrollRacing Point BWT Mercedes44+52.603s2
1011Sergio PerezRacing Point BWT Mercedes44+53.179s1
1126Daniil KvyatAlphaTauri Honda44+70.200s0
127Kimi RäikkönenAlfa Romeo Racing Ferrari44+71.504s0
135Sebastian VettelFerrari44+72.894s0
1416Charles LeclercFerrari44+74.920s0
158Romain GrosjeanHaas Ferrari44+76.793s0
166Nicholas LatifiWilliams Mercedes44+77.795s0
1720Kevin MagnussenHaas Ferrari44+85.540s0
NC99Antonio GiovinazziAlfa Romeo Racing Ferrari9DNF0
NC63George RussellWilliams Mercedes9DNF0
NC55Carlos SainzMcLaren Renault0DNS0
Note – Ricciardo scored an additional point for setting the fastest lap of the race.

F1 Driver Birthdays 30 August

BirthdayF1 Driver
30 August 1923Neal Carter
30 August 1928Lucky Casner
30 August 1935Gerhard Mitter
30 August 1937Bruce McLaren
30 August 1941Ignazio Giunti

F1 Driver Deaths 30 August

DeathF1 Driver
30 August 1959Ed Elisian

F1 Champion 30 August

DateTeam/Driver
30 August 1992Williams

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About The Author

Staff Writer

Mark Phelan
Mark Phelan

Mark is a staff writer specialising in the history of Formula 1 races. Mark researches most of our historic content from teams to drivers and races. He has followed Formula 1 since 1988, and admits to having a soft spot for British drivers from James Hunt and Nigel Mansell to Lando Norris. He loves a great F1 podcast and has read pretty much every drivers biography.

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