What happened on this day, July 30 in Formula 1 history? Find out interesting facts and stories about Formula 1 on this day.
1972
Jacky Ickx led a Ferrari 1-2 finish at the 1972 German Grand Prix, with Jackie Stewart and Emerson Fittipaldi failing to finish. Ronnie Peterson took third place, while Howden Ganley and Brian Redman secured surprising top-five finishes.
1978
Mario Andretti won the 1978 German Grand Prix, but the standout performance was from Jody Scheckter, who fought back to second place after dropping to the back of the field at the end of the opening lap.
This race marked the debut of future world champion Nelson Piquet. Mario Andretti secured pole position, with Ronnie Peterson in second and Niki Lauda in third. At the start, Peterson got off the line faster and took the lead from Andretti, holding it for four laps until Andretti reclaimed it. Lauda initially ran in third place but was soon overtaken by Alan Jones. The pair battled until Lauda’s engine failed, marking his fifth engine-related retirement of the year. The two Lotus cars dominated at the front, with Jones running comfortably in third until a fuel vaporization problem forced his retirement. Lotus’s hopes of a 1-2 finish were dashed when Peterson’s gearbox failed. Andretti remained unaffected and cruised to his fifth win of the season, with Jody Scheckter finishing second and Jacques Laffite third.
1989
Ayrton Senna led a 1-2 finish for McLaren, with teammate Alain Prost coming in second and Nigel Mansell finishing third in his Ferrari. The race results mirrored the qualifying positions.
1995
Michael Schumacher won the 1995 German Grand Prix. Benetton‘s two-stop strategy for Schumacher proved superior to David Coulthard‘s one-stop approach, as he secured second for Williams. Schumacher’s pace allowed him to pull away from the field, creating enough of a gap to make his second pit stop and still maintain the lead. This victory made Schumacher the first German to win a World Championship German Grand Prix and the first German to win his home race since the 1930s. After the race, Schumacher’s car broke down, as did his teammates Johnny Herbert and the Ligier of Aguri Suzuki, whose car even caught fire. Pole-sitter Damon Hill missed the opportunity to spoil Schumacher’s party by spinning off on the second lap.
2000
A disgruntled Mercedes employee endangered his own life and the lives of the drivers at the 2000 German Grand Prix by cutting through the track fence and running onto the track with a message about the German car manufacturer. He managed to cross the track before marshals apprehended him, causing a major disruption. Mika Hakkinen had been poised to secure a McLaren 1-2 finish, but the deployment of the safety car shuffled the grid. This allowed Rubens Barrichello to claim his first Formula One victory, starting from 18th on the grid. It was the first win for a Brazilian driver since Ayrton Senna‘s last victory at the 1993 Australian Grand Prix.
The race result tied Häkkinen and David Coulthard for second place in the standings, while Schumacher’s lead in the World Drivers’ Championship was reduced to just two points. Barrichello was eight points behind the McLaren drivers. With six races left in the season, McLaren trailed Ferrari by four points and held a 76-point advantage over Williams in the World Constructors’ Championship. The track intruder, identified as 47-year-old Frenchman Robert Sehli, eventually apologised and was fined by the track administration.
2006
Michael Schumacher clinched his fourth home win at the 2006 German Grand Prix with a commanding performance in front of his home fans. Felipe Massa completed a straightforward day for Ferrari by coming home in seond. The main excitement came from a third-place battle between Kimi Raikkonen and Jenson Button, with Raikkonen overtaking Button’s Honda in the final laps.
F1 Driver Birthday’s 30 July
| Birth Date | F1 Driver |
|---|---|
| n/a | n/a |
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