What happened on this day, August 7 in Formula 1 history? Find out interesting facts and stories about Formula 1 on this day.
1944
Dave Morgan was born on this day 7 August 1944. A British racing driver from England, he competed in a single F1 World Championship race, the 1975 British Grand Prix, with team Surtees. During a storm in the closing laps, Morgan, along with several others, crashed and was classified 18th, earning no championship points.
He died on 6 November 2018, following a stroke in Leatherhead, Surrey, England, aged 74.
1966
Due to a limited number of cars on the Formula One grid, organisers allowed F2 cars to compete simultaneously in the 1966 German Grand Prix. During the race, Jim Clark, driving a Lotus, made a rare mistake, resulting in a crash that paved the way for Jack Brabham to claim his fourth consecutive win while driving his Brabham BT19. Brabham secured the win with a 43-second lead over the Cooper T81, driven by the 1964 World Champion, John Surtees. Surtees’ Austrian teammate, Jochen Rindt, finished in third place. The highest-placed Formula 2 driver was Frenchman Jean-Pierre Beltoise, who finished eighth in a Matra Sports-entered Matra MS5.
On the opening lap, F2 drivers Jacky Ickx and John Taylor collided near the bridge between Quiddelbacher and Flugplatz, causing Taylor’s car to spin and catch fire. Taylor sustained severe burns and tragically died a month later from his injuries.
This was the final Formula One race on the original Nürburgring Nordschleife before the addition of the Hohenrain chicane, which was introduced to slow the cars entering the pits.
1983
Rene Arnoux won his second race of the season at the 1983 German Grand Prix in Hockenheim. He concluded the 1983 season in third place, marking the best championship result of his career with three race wins and seven podium finishes for Ferrari.
Italian Andrea de Cesaris secured second place in an Alfa Romeo, while fellow Italian Riccardo Patrese took third in a Brabham-BMW.
The Drivers’ Championship leader, Frenchman Alain Prost, finished fourth in his Renault. Despite this, he extended his lead in the championship to nine points over Brazilian Nelson Piquet.
1988
Ayrton Senna and Alain Prost secured McLaren–Honda‘s tenth 1-2 finish of a dominant season at the 1988 Hungarian Grand Prix. McLaren clinched the constructors’ title with an impressive 199 points, while Ferrari lagged behind in second place with only 65 points.
Belgian Thierry Boutsen finished third in a Benetton-Ford. Senna’s sixth win of the season brought him level on points with Prost at the top of the 1988 Drivers’ Championship.
Formula One History Recommends
F1 Driver Birthday’s 7 August
| Birth Date | F1 Driver |
|---|---|
| 7 August 1944 | Dave Morgan |
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