What Happened On This Day July 2 In F1 History?

What happened on this day, July 2 in Formula 1 history? Find out interesting facts and stories about Formula 1 on this day.

1911

Reg Parnell, a driver and team manager, was born on this day. Parnell became a leading British driver in the immediate post-war era and competed in the inaugural F1 championship in 1950. He won the 1957 New Zealand Grand Prix (not part of the F1 Championship) before moving into management with Aston Martin and later establishing his own F1 team Reg Parnell Racing, in 1960.

Sadly, he died at age 52 on January 7 following a routine appendix operation. At the time of his death, he was building a promising outfit and had recently signed world motorbike champion Mike Hailwood.

1950

Juan-Manuel Fangio triumphed in the inaugural 1950 French Grand Prix at Circuit de Reims-Gueux, France, finishing ahead of teammates Luigi Fagioli and Peter Whitehead.

Initially, Farina led the race but encountered fuel issues that pushed him to the back of the pack. He managed to fight his way back to third place before being forced to retire. This left Fangio to secure the win, finishing 20 seconds ahead of Fagioli, with Whitehead coming in third, three laps behind.

Full Race Report

• 

  1950 French Grand Prix: Full Weekend Report & Highlights

1950 French Grand Prix Race Results

Pos	No	Driver	Car	Laps	Time/retired	Pts
1	6	Juan Manuel Fangio	Alfa Romeo	64	2:57:52.800	9
2	4	Luigi Fagioli	Alfa Romeo	64	+25.700s	6
3	14	Peter Whitehead	Ferrari	61	+3 laps	4
4	44	Robert Manzon	Simca-Gordini	61	+3 laps	3
5	16	Philippe Etancelin	Talbot-Lago		SHC	1
5	16	Eugene Chaboud	Talbot-Lago	59	+5 laps	1
6	26	Charles Pozzi	Talbot-Lago		SHC	0
6	26	Louis Rosier	Talbot-Lago	56	+8 laps	0
7	2	Nino Farina	Alfa Romeo	55	DNF	0
8	18	Yves Giraud-Cabantous	Talbot-Lago	52	+12 laps	0
NC	22	Pierre Levegh	Talbot-Lago	37	DNF	0
NC	40	Felice Bonetto	Maserati Milano	15	DNF	0
NC	42	Johnny Claes	Talbot-Lago	12	DNF	0
NC	20	Louis Rosier	Talbot-Lago	11	DNF	0
NC	32	Reg Parnell	Maserati	10	DNF	0
NC	28	Franco Rol	Maserati	7	DNF	0
NC	30	Louis Chiron	Maserati	7	DNF	0
NC	34	David Hampshire	Maserati	6	DNF	0
NC	12	Raymond Sommer	Talbot-Lago	5	DNF	0
NC	36	Jose Froilan Gonzalez	Maserati	4	DNF	0

1961

The 1961 French Grand Prix, held on July 2 at the Reims-Gueux circuit, was the fourth round of the 1961 Formula One World Championship. Ferrari’s Phil Hill secured pole position with a time of 2:24.9, leading an all-Ferrari front row alongside teammates Wolfgang von Trips and Richie Ginther. The race unfolded under extremely hot conditions, with track temperatures reaching 102 °F (39 °C), leading to track surface degradation, particularly at the circuit’s hairpin turns. Hill led the early stages, but a spin on lap 38 dropped him a lap behind. Von Trips and Ginther also retired due to engine issues, reshuffling the lead battle.

This left Ferrari debutant Giancarlo Baghetti and Porsche’s Dan Gurney in contention for victory. In a dramatic finish, Baghetti overtook Gurney just yards before the finish line, winning by a mere tenth of a second. This remarkable win made Baghetti the first, and to date only, driver to win on their World Championship debut. Jim Clark secured third place for Lotus, finishing over a minute behind the leading duo. Notably, this race also marked Porsche‘s first podium as a constructor and engine supplier in Formula One. ​

1961 French Grand Prix Race Results

Pos	No	Driver	Car	Laps	Time/retired	Pts
1	50	Giancarlo Baghetti	Ferrari	52	2:14:17.500	9
2	12	Dan Gurney	Porsche	52	+0.100s	6
3	8	Jim Clark	Lotus Climax	52	+61.100s	4
4	6	Innes Ireland	Lotus Climax	52	+70.300s	3
5	4	Bruce McLaren	Cooper Climax	52	+101.800s	2
6	22	Graham Hill	BRM Climax	52	+101.900s	1
7	10	Jo Bonnier	Porsche	52	+195.400s	0
8	42	Roy Salvadori	Cooper Climax	51	+1 lap	0
9	16	Phil Hill	Ferrari	50	+2 laps	0
10	30	Henry Taylor	Lotus Climax	49	+3 laps	0
11	46	Michael  May	Lotus Climax	48	+4 laps	0
12	36	Masten Gregory	Cooper Climax	43	+9 laps	0
13	32	Maurice  Trintignant	Cooper Maserati	42	+10 laps	0
14	38	Ian Burgess	Lotus Climax	42	+10 laps	0
15	18	Richie Ginther	Ferrari	40	DNF	0
NC	26	Stirling Moss	Lotus Climax	31	DNF	0
NC	48	Willy Mairesse	Lotus Climax	27	DNF	0
NC	14	Carel Godin de Beaufort	Porsche	23	DNF	0
NC	28	Lucien Bianchi	Lotus Climax	21	DNF	0
NC	20	Wolfgang von Trips	Ferrari	18	DNF	0
NC	34	Giorgio  Scarlatti	De Tomaso OSCA	15	DNF	0
NC	2	Jack Brabham	Cooper Climax	14	DNF	0
NC	52	Bernard  Collomb	Cooper Climax	6	DNF	0
NC	40	John Surtees	Cooper Climax	4	DNF	0
NC	24	Tony Brooks	BRM Climax	4	DNF	0
NC	44	Jackie  Lewis	Cooper Climax	4	DNF	0

1967

Jack Brabham emerged victorious in the 1967 French Grand Prix, a race characterised by frequent lead changes. Graham Hill started from pole position, with Dan Gurney, Brabham, Jim Clark, and Chris Amon in pursuit. By the second lap, Brabham took the lead, and a lap later, Clark overtook Gurney. Clark then passed Hill on the fifth lap, placing Lotus in a 1-2 position as Hill also overtook Brabham. However, by lap 20, both Clark and Hill were out due to transmission issues, allowing Brabham to regain the lead, followed by Gurney and Amon. Gurney retired on lap 40 with a fuel pipe problem, resulting in a Brabham 1-2 finish. Amon’s Ferrari soon retired with a broken throttle cable. Pedro Rodriguez briefly held third in his Cooper-Maserati but had to pit due to a split fuel line, allowing Jackie Stewart to secure third, where he remained until the finish.

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1967 French Grand Prix Race Results

Pos	No	Driver	Car	Laps	Time/retired	Pts
1	3	Jack Brabham	Brabham Repco	80	2:13:21.300	9
2	4	Denny Hulme	Brabham Repco	80	+49.500s	6
3	10	Jackie Stewart	BRM	79	+1 lap	4
4	18	Jo Siffert	Cooper Maserati	77	+3 laps	3
5	15	Chris  Irwin	BRM	76	DNF	2
6	14	Pedro Rodriguez	Cooper Maserati	76	+4 laps	1
NC	16	Guy  Ligier	Cooper Maserati	68	+12 laps	0
NC	2	Chris Amon	Ferrari	47	DNF	0
NC	9	Dan Gurney	Eagle Weslake	40	DNF	0
NC	12	Jochen Rindt	Cooper Maserati	33	DNF	0
NC	8	Bruce McLaren	Eagle Weslake	26	DNF	0
NC	6	Jim Clark	Lotus Ford	23	DNF	0
NC	17	Bob Anderson	Brabham Climax	16	DNF	0
NC	7	Graham Hill	Lotus Ford	13	DNF	0
NC	11	Mike Spence	BRM	9	DNF	0

1972

Jackie Stewart won the 1972 French Grand Prix, finishing ahead of Emerson Fittipaldi and Chris Amon. However, the race is remembered for the freak accident that ended the F1 career of Helmut Marko.

Chris Amon initially led, followed by fellow New Zealander Denny Hulme, with Stewart, Jacky Ickx, and Marko in pursuit. Fittipaldi quickly advanced, passing Hailwood, Schenken, and Marko for fifth. Marko’s race—and his career—tragically ended when a stone thrown from Ronnie Peterson‘s March penetrated his helmet visor and blinded him in the left eye.

Stewart overtook Hulme on lap 17, and after Amon pitted with a puncture, Stewart took the lead. Hulme also stopped for new tyres, dropping down the order and allowing Ickx to take second place. However, Ickx’s Ferrari suffered a puncture, moving Fittipaldi to second, ahead of Peterson and Francois Cevert. In the closing laps, Amon recovered, repassing Peterson and Cevert to secure third place.

1972 French Grand Prix Race Results

Pos	No	Driver	Car	Laps	Time/retired	Pts
1	4	Jackie Stewart	Tyrrell Ford	38	1:52:21.500	9
2	1	Emerson Fittipaldi	Lotus Ford	38	+27.700s	6
3	9	Chris Amon	Matra	38	+31.900s	4
4	7	Francois  Cevert	Tyrrell Ford	38	+49.300s	3
5	12	Ronnie Peterson	March Ford	38	+56.800s	2
6	26	Mike Hailwood	Surtees Ford	38	+96.100s	1
7	2	Denny Hulme	McLaren Ford	38	+108.100s	0
8	19	Wilson Fittipaldi	Brabham Ford	38	+145.100s	0
9	11	Brian  Redman	McLaren Ford	38	+175.500s	0
10	18	Graham Hill	Brabham Ford	38	+179.500s	0
11	3	Jacky Ickx	Ferrari	37	+1 lap	0
12	20	Carlos Reutemann	Brabham Ford	37	+1 lap	0
13	30	Nanni  Galli	Ferrari	37	+1 lap	0
14	28	Andrea de Adamich	Surtees Ford	37	+1 lap	0
15	5	Jean-Pierre Beltoise	BRM	37	+1 lap	0
16	10	Rolf Stommelen	Eifelland Ford	37	+1 lap	0
17	27	Tim  Schenken	Surtees Ford	36	+2 laps	0
18	6	Dave  Walker	Lotus Ford	34	DNF	0
NC	15	Mike  Beuttler	March Ford	33	DNF	0
NC	8	Patrick Depailler	Tyrrell Ford	33	+5 laps	0
NC	24	Reine  Wisell	BRM	25	DNF	0
NC	17	Carlos Pace	March Ford	18	DNF	0
NC	25	Helmut  Marko	BRM	8	DNF	0
NC	14	Niki Lauda	March Ford	4	DNF	0

1978

Mario Andretti clinched the win in the 1978 French Grand Prix, finishing ahead of Ronnie Peterson and James Hunt, while John Watson couldn’t capitalise on his pole position. At the start, Watson was quickly overtaken by Andretti, and Peterson soon passed both Watson and Patrick Tambay, who later pitted with a puncture. Watson then faced pressure from Hunt, and on lap 16, Hunt overtook him, relegating Watson to fourth place for the remainder of the race.

1978 French Grand Prix Race Results

Pos	No	Driver	Car	Laps	Time/retired	Pts
1	5	Mario Andretti	Lotus Ford	54	1:38:51.920	9
2	6	Ronnie Peterson	Lotus Ford	54	+2.930s	6
3	7	James Hunt	McLaren Ford	54	+19.800s	4
4	2	John Watson	Brabham Alfa Romeo	54	+36.880s	3
5	27	Alan  Jones	Williams Ford	54	+41.810s	2
6	20	Jody Scheckter	Wolf Ford	54	+54.530s	1
7	26	Jacques Laffite	Ligier Matra	54	+54.740s	0
8	35	Riccardo Patrese	Arrows Ford	54	+84.880s	0
9	8	Patrick Tambay	McLaren Ford	54	+87.060s	0
10	3	Didier Pironi	Tyrrell Ford	54	+89.980s	0
11	16	Hans-Joachim Stuck	Shadow Ford	53	+1 lap	0
12	12	Gilles Villeneuve	Ferrari	53	+1 lap	0
13	9	Jochen Mass	ATS Ford	53	+1 lap	0
14	31	Rene Arnoux	Martini Ford	53	+1 lap	0
15	36	Rolf Stommelen	Arrows Ford	53	+1 lap	0
16	10	Keke Rosberg	ATS Ford	52	+2 laps	0
17	19	Vittorio Brambilla	Surtees Ford	52	+2 laps	0
18	11	Carlos Reutemann	Ferrari	49	+5 laps	0
NC	30	Brett Lunger	McLaren Ford	45	DNF	0
NC	14	Emerson Fittipaldi	Fittipaldi Ford	43	DNF	0
NC	18	Rupert Keegan	Surtees Ford	40	DNF	0
NC	33	Bruno Giacomelli	McLaren Ford	28	DNF	0
NC	4	Patrick Depailler	Tyrrell Ford	10	DNF	0
NC	1	Niki Lauda	Brabham Alfa Romeo	10	DNF	0
NC	17	Clay Regazzoni	Shadow Ford	4	DNF	0
NC	15	Jean-Pierre Jabouille	Renault	1	DNF	0

1995

Michael Schumacher secured a straightforward win at the 1995 French Grand Prix, finishing ahead of the Williams duo of Damon Hill and David Coulthard. At the start, Hill overtook pole-sitter Schumacher, while Rubens Barrichello in the Jordan passed Coulthard to claim third. Schumacher then delivered a series of impressive laps during the first pit-stop sequence, gaining an eight-second advantage over Hill. This gap continued to widen, ensuring Schumacher’s win even before his final stop.

1995 French Grand Prix Race Results

Pos	No	Driver	Car	Laps	Time/retired	Pts
1	1	Michael Schumacher	Benetton Renault	72	1:38:28.429	10
2	5	Damon Hill	Williams Renault	72	+31.309s	6
3	6	David Coulthard	Williams Renault	72	+62.826s	4
4	25	Martin Brundle	Ligier Mugen Honda	72	+63.293s	3
5	27	Jean Alesi	Ferrari	72	+77.869s	2
6	14	Rubens Barrichello	Jordan Peugeot	71	+1 lap	1
7	8	Mika Hakkinen	McLaren Mercedes	71	+1 lap	0
8	26	Olivier Panis	Ligier Mugen Honda	71	+1 lap	0
9	15	Eddie Irvine	Jordan Peugeot	71	+1 lap	0
10	30	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	Sauber Ford	71	+1 lap	0
11	7	Mark Blundell	McLaren Mercedes	70	+2 laps	0
12	28	Gerhard Berger	Ferrari	70	+2 laps	0
13	24	Luca Badoer	Minardi Ford	69	+3 laps	0
14	9	Gianni Morbidelli	Footwork Hart	69	+3 laps	0
15	4	Mika Salo	Tyrrell Yamaha	69	+3 laps	0
16	22	Roberto Moreno	Forti Ford	66	+6 laps	0
NC	17	Andrea Montermini	Pacific Ilmor	62	DNC	0
NC	29	Jean-Christophe Boullion	Sauber Ford	48	DNF	0
NC	16	Bertrand Gachot	Pacific Ilmor	24	DNF	0
NC	23	Pierluigi Martini	Minardi Ford	23	DNF	0
NC	2	Johnny Herbert	Benetton Renault	2	DNF	0
NC	3	Ukyo Katayama	Tyrrell Yamaha	0	DNF	0
NC	10	Taki Inoue	Footwork Hart	0	DNF	0
NC	21	Pedro Diniz	Forti Ford	0	DNF	0

2000

David Coulthard dominated the 2000 French Grand Prix, leading his teammate Mika Hakkinen to secure a McLaren 1-2 finish. Michael Schumacher started from pole, with Coulthard in second. However, Coulthard’s battle on passing Schumacher allowed Rubens Barrichello to slip into second, although Coulthard regained the position on lap 22. Coulthard then successfully challenged Schumacher despite a wheel-banging move. Schumacher’s race ended in disappointment with an engine failure, while Hakkinen moved past Barrichello for second after a disastrous pit stop for the Brazilian. Jacques Villeneuve finished fourth for BAR, ahead of Ralf Schumacher in the Williams.

2000 French Grand Prix Race Results

Pos	No	Driver	Car	Laps	Time/retired	Pts
1	2	David Coulthard	McLaren Mercedes	72	1:38:05.538	10
2	1	Mika Hakkinen	McLaren Mercedes	72	+14.748s	6
3	4	Rubens Barrichello	Ferrari	72	+32.409s	4
4	22	Jacques Villeneuve	BAR Honda	72	+61.322s	3
5	9	Ralf Schumacher	Williams BMW	72	+63.981s	2
6	6	Jarno Trulli	Jordan Mugen Honda	72	+75.604s	1
7	5	Heinz-Harald Frentzen	Jordan Mugen Honda	71	+1 lap	0
8	10	Jenson Button	Williams BMW	71	+1 lap	0
9	11	Giancarlo Fisichella	Benetton Playlife	71	+1 lap	0
10	17	Mika Salo	Sauber Petronas	71	+1 lap	0
11	16	Pedro Diniz	Sauber Petronas	71	+1 lap	0
12	15	Nick Heidfeld	Prost Peugeot	71	+1 lap	0
13	7	Eddie Irvine	Jaguar Cosworth	70	+2 laps	0
14	14	Jean Alesi	Prost Peugeot	70	+2 laps	0
15	20	Marc Gene	Minardi Fondmetal	70	+2 laps	0
NC	3	Michael Schumacher	Ferrari	58	DNF	0
NC	18	Pedro de la Rosa	Arrows Supertec	45	DNF	0
NC	12	Alexander Wurz	Benetton Playlife	34	DNF	0
NC	21	Gaston Mazzacane	Minardi Fondmetal	31	DNF	0
NC	19	Jos Verstappen	Arrows Supertec	25	DNF	0
NC	8	Johnny Herbert	Jaguar Cosworth	20	DNF	0
NC	23	Ricardo Zonta	BAR Honda	16	DNF	0

2006

Michael Schumacher won a gruelling 2006 United States Grand Prix, with only nine cars making it to the finish. Felipe Massa initially led the race following Ferrari’s dominant performance in qualifying, but Schumacher took the lead after the pit stops. Mass would finish second with Giancarlo Fisichella securing third place, followed by Jarno Trulli in the Toyota.

Fernando Alonso finished fifth in the second Renault, maintaining a 19-point lead over Schumacher in the championship standings.

2006 United States Grand Prix Race Results

Pos	No	Driver	Car	Laps	Time/retired	Pts
1	5	Michael Schumacher	Ferrari	73	1:34:35.199	10
2	6	Felipe Massa	Ferrari	73	+7.984s	8
3	2	Giancarlo Fisichella	Renault	73	+16.595s	6
4	8	Jarno Trulli	Toyota	73	+23.604s	5
5	1	Fernando Alonso	Renault	73	+28.410s	4
6	11	Rubens Barrichello	Honda	73	+36.516s	3
7	14	David Coulthard	RBR Ferrari	72	+1 lap	2
8	20	Vitantonio Liuzzi	STR Cosworth	72	+1 lap	1
9	10	Nico Rosberg	Williams Cosworth	72	+1 lap	0
NC	7	Ralf Schumacher	Toyota	62	DNF	0
NC	19	Christijan Albers	MF1 Toyota	37	DNF	0
NC	17	Jacques Villeneuve	Sauber BMW	23	DNF	0
NC	18	Tiago Monteiro	MF1 Toyota	9	DNF	0
NC	22	Takuma Sato	Super Aguri Honda	6	DNF	0
NC	12	Jenson Button	Honda	3	DNF	0
NC	3	Kimi Räikkönen	McLaren Mercedes	0	DNF	0
NC	16	Nick Heidfeld	Sauber BMW	0	DNF	0
NC	4	Juan Pablo Montoya	McLaren Mercedes	0	DNF	0
NC	9	Mark Webber	Williams Cosworth	0	DNF	0
NC	21	Scott Speed	STR Cosworth	0	DNF	0
NC	15	Christian Klien	RBR Ferrari	0	DNF	0
NC	23	Franck Montagny	Super Aguri Honda	0	DNF	0

2023

The 2023 Austrian Grand Prix, officially known as the Formula 1 Rolex Großer Preis von Österreich 2023, took place on July 2 at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, Austria. Red Bull Racing‘s Max Verstappen secured pole position with a time of 1:04.391 and dominated the race, leading from start to finish. He also recorded the fastest lap on the final lap, clocking 1:07.012. Ferrari’s Charles Leclerc finished second, crossing the line 5.155 seconds behind Verstappen, while Verstappen’s teammate Sergio Pérez completed the podium in third place.

The race was impacted by numerous penalties for track limits violations. Post-race, Aston Martin lodged a protest, leading to a comprehensive review by the FIA. This resulted in twelve additional penalties being issued to various drivers for exceeding track limits, highlighting the challenges posed by the circuit’s layout. Despite these infractions, the podium positions remained unchanged.

The win solidified Verstappen’s lead in the Drivers’ Championship standings, while Red Bull Racing continued to dominate the Constructors’ Championship.

2023 Austrian Grand Prix Race Results

Pos	No	Driver	Car	Laps	Time/retired	Pts
1	1	Max Verstappen	Red Bull Racing Honda RBPT	71	1:25:33.607	26
2	16	Charles Leclerc	Ferrari	71	+5.155s	18
3	11	Sergio Perez	Red Bull Racing Honda RBPT	71	+17.188s	15
4	4	Lando Norris	McLaren Mercedes	71	+26.327s	12
5	14	Fernando Alonso	Aston Martin Aramco Mercedes	71	+30.317s	10
6	55	Carlos Sainz	Ferrari	71	+31.377s	8
7	63	George Russell	Mercedes	71	+48.403s	6
8	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	71	+49.196s	4
9	18	Lance Stroll	Aston Martin Aramco Mercedes	71	+59.043s	2
10	10	Pierre Gasly	Alpine Renault	71	+67.667s	1
11	23	Alexander Albon	Williams Mercedes	71	+79.767s	0
12	24	Zhou Guanyu	Alfa Romeo Ferrari	70	+1 lap	0
13	2	Logan Sargeant	Williams Mercedes	70	+1 lap	0
14	31	Esteban Ocon	Alpine Renault	70	+1 lap	0
15	77	Valtteri Bottas	Alfa Romeo Ferrari	70	+1 lap	0
16	81	Oscar Piastri	McLaren Mercedes	70	+1 lap	0
17	21	Nyck De Vries	AlphaTauri Honda RBPT	70	+1 lap	0
18	20	Kevin Magnussen	Haas Ferrari	70	+1 lap	0
19	22	Yuki Tsunoda	AlphaTauri Honda RBPT	70	+1 lap	0
NC	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Haas Ferrari	12	DNF	0
Note – Verstappen scored an additional point for setting the fastest lap of the race. De Vries received a five-second time penalty for forcing another driver off track. Sargeant, Magnussen, Ocon (x2), De Vries and Tsunoda received five-second time penalties for exceeding track limits. Tsunoda, Sainz, Hamilton, Gasly, Albon, Ocon (x2) and De Vries received 10-second time penalties for exceeding track limits.

F1 Driver Birthdays 2 July

Birthday	F1 Driver
2 July 1911	Reg Parnell (d. 1964)
2 July 1922	Jacques Pollet (d. 1997)

F1 Driver Deaths 2 July

Death	F1 Driver
2 July 1962	Peter Ryan (b. 1940)
2 July 1985	David Purley (b. 1945)
2 July 1994	Gianbattista Guidotti (b. 1902)
2 July 1996	Hal Robson (b. 1912)