What Happened On This Day August 6 In F1 History?

What happened on this day, August 6 in Formula 1 history? Find out interesting facts and stories about Formula 1 on this day.

1961

Stirling Moss, in a Lotus-Climax, triumphed at the 1961 German Grand Prix, outpacing the Ferrari duo of Wolfgang von Trips and Phil Hill.

Although Hill secured pole position, Jack Brabham initially led the race but crashed on the first lap. Hill briefly led before Moss overtook him, and von Trips later passed Hill after a prolonged battle to claim second place.

Moss drove for privateer outfit Rob Walker Racing; it proved to be his 16th and last Grand Prix victory. The race also marked the 100th race since the establishment of the World Championship in 1950.

1967

New Zealander Denny Hulme won the 1967 German Grand Prix for Brabham, finishing ahead of teammate Jack Brabham and fellow Kiwi Chris Amon in a Ferrari. Jim Clark dominated practice, securing pole by nearly ten seconds, with Jacky Ickx in an F2 Matra in a surprising third. Clark led the race initially but retired on lap four due to a buckled suspension.

Interstingly, changes were made to the track to slow the cars down as they approached the pit area. However, it became evident that the cars had advanced significantly over the previous 12 months, rendering the modifications largely ineffective in reducing lap times. Dan Gurney, in an Eagle-Weslake, clocked a time of 8:15.1 on lap 6 of 15 to secure the fasted lap.

1980

Vitantonio Liuzzi was born in Locorotondo, Italy. After winning the F3000 championship with Arden in 2004, Liuzzi joined Red Bull Racing in 2005, sharing the second seat with Christian Klien.

When Red Bull acquired the defunct Minardi team. Liuzzi raced for the rebranded Toro Rosso in 2006 and 2007. Although he lost his seat to Sebastian Bourdais in 2008, Liuzzi became a test driver for Force India in 2009 and secured a full-time position alongside Adrian Sutil in 2010. He secured 26 career points.

2002

Jim Crawford, a former Formula One and Indy 500 driver, passed away at 54. Crawford competed in two F1 races in 1975 for Lotus before transitioning to Champ Cars in the U.S. during the 1980s. Notably, he led eight laps in the 1988 Indianapolis 500, ultimately finishing sixth.

2006

Jenson Button finally clinched his first Formula One victory at the 2006 Hungarian Grand Prix with Honda, an achievement that had long eluded him. Starting 14th on the grid, Button navigated the wet weather conditions and capitalised on a safety car appearance to move up to second place behind Renault driver Fernando Alonso. However, disaster struck for Alonso on lap 51 when a loose wheel nut forced him out of the race, paving the way for Button to secure his maiden win on his 113th attempt.

Pedro de la Rosa secured second place for McLaren-Mercedes, achieving the only podium finish of his career, while Nick Heidfeld finished third, earning BMW Sauber their first-ever podium.

There were other notable events of the 2006 Hungarian Grand Prix. It was the final victory for a Honda engine in Formula One until Max Verstappen won the 2019 Austrian Grand Prix for Red Bull. It marked the last time Honda secured a victory as a full constructor in Formula One. This race also featured the last all-Michelin podium to date. And, the race also marked the debut of Robert Kubica for BMW Sauber, making him Poland’s first-ever F1 driver. Kubica initially finished seventh but was later disqualified for his car being underweight.

F1 Driver Birthday’s 6 August