What Happened On This Day March 15 In F1 History?

What happened on this day, March 15 in Formula 1 history? Find out interesting facts and stories about Formula 1 on this day.

1913

Jack Fairman, a British driver, was born on this day in Surrey. He competed in 12 Grands Prix from 1953 to 1961, with the likes of HWM, BRM, Cooper, and Rob Walker Racing, with his best season in 1956, earning five championship points. Fairman’s motorsport career began in 1934 with hillclimbs and trails in an Alvis 12/50, later moving to circuit races at Brooklands. His racing was interrupted by World War II. He passed away in 2002 at a motorsport retirement home in Rugby at the age of 88.

1927

American driver Al Herman was born on this day. He raced in five Grands Prix, all at Indianapolis, with his highest finish being 7th in 1955, which earned him the “Rookie of the Year” title. Tragically, he died at 33 from injuries sustained in a Midget car accident at West Haven Speedway in 1960.

1981

At the 1981 United States Grand Prix West in Long Beach, California, Alan Jones triumphed in his Williams Ford, clinching both the race win and the fastest lap. Riccardo Patrese achieved his and Arrows first pole position, which also remained their only pole. Controversy emerged when the Lotus 88 was disqualified during practice and banned from the race after 11 teams protested its design, particularly its skirts. The car was initially approved by the FISA technical staff and passed by the scrutineers, allowing it to take part in Friday practice. Ultimately, however, the teams’ appeal was allowed, and the car was banned for the rest of the weekend, with Lotus having to qualify and race the more conventional Lotus 81. Jones’s teammate Carlos Reutemann finished second, with Nelson Piquet completing the podium in third for Brabham.

1981 United States Grand Prix West Race Results

Pos	No	Driver	Car	Laps	Time/retired	Pts
1	1	Alan  Jones	Williams Ford	80	1:50:41.330	9
2	2	Carlos Reutemann	Williams Ford	80	+9.190s	6
3	5	Nelson Piquet	Brabham Ford	80	+34.920s	4
4	22	Mario Andretti	Alfa Romeo	80	+49.310s	3
5	3	Eddie  Cheever	Tyrrell Ford	80	+66.700s	2
6	33	Patrick Tambay	Theodore Ford	79	+1 lap	1
7	21	Chico Serra	Fittipaldi Ford	78	+2 laps	0
8	16	Rene Arnoux	Renault	77	+3 laps	0
NC	14	Marc Surer	Ensign Ford	70	DNF	0
NC	28	Didier Pironi	Ferrari	67	DNF	0
NC	25	Jean-Pierre Jarier	Ligier Matra	64	DNF	0
NC	6	Hector Rebaque	Brabham Ford	49	DNF	0
NC	23	Bruno Giacomelli	Alfa Romeo	41	DNF	0
NC	26	Jacques Laffite	Ligier Matra	41	DNF	0
NC	20	Keke Rosberg	Fittipaldi Ford	41	DNF	0
NC	9	Jan Lammers	ATS Ford	41	DNF	0
NC	29	Riccardo Patrese	Arrows Ford	33	DNF	0
NC	32	Beppe Gabbiani	Osella Hart	26	DNF	0
NC	12	Nigel Mansell	Lotus Ford	25	DNF	0
NC	27	Gilles Villeneuve	Ferrari	17	DNF	0
NC	7	John Watson	McLaren Ford	16	DNF	0
NC	11	Elio de Angelis	Lotus Ford	13	DNF	0
NC	15	Alain Prost	Renault	0	DNF	0
NC	8	Andrea de Cesaris	McLaren Ford	0	DNF	0

1994

After winning the 1993 title on his return with Williams, Alain Prost dismissed the possibility of a second return to Formula One with McLaren after months of speculation. He had fueled rumours by testing the new McLaren MP4 9 at Estoril but finally said, “I am not ready to take the risks anymore,” confirming that his decision to retire remained unchanged after the test. “To be truthful, I haven’t changed my mind since I made my original decision. I did the test drive to see if I really wanted to start all over again. The answer is no.”

2015

The 2015 Formula One season kicked off with its first round at the Melbourne Circuit for the 2015 Australian Grand Prix. This was the 80th event of the Australian Grand Prix since its inception in 1928 with the 100 Miles Road Race and the 20th time the event was hosted in Melbourne.

Mercedes’ Nico Rosberg entered the race as the defending winner, but it was his teammate, Lewis Hamilton, who started on pole and led him over the finish line in a Mercedes one-two finish. Sebastian Vettel secured third place on the podium in his debut Ferrari race.

The race also saw the F1 debuts of Max Verstappen and Carlos Sainz, both driving for Toro Rosso. Verstappen made history by becoming the youngest driver to compete in Formula One at just 17 years and 166 days old.

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  F1 Records Broken by Max Verstappen in 2023

2015 Australian Grand Prix Race Results

Pos	No	Driver	Car	Laps	Time/retired	Pts
1	44	Lewis Hamilton	Mercedes	58	1:31:54.067	25
2	6	Nico Rosberg	Mercedes	58	+1.360s	18
3	5	Sebastian Vettel	Ferrari	58	+34.523s	15
4	19	Felipe Massa	Williams Mercedes	58	+38.196s	12
5	12	Felipe Nasr	Sauber Ferrari	58	+95.149s	10
6	3	Daniel Ricciardo	Red Bull Racing Renault	57	+1 lap	8
7	27	Nico Hulkenberg	Force India Mercedes	57	+1 lap	6
8	9	Marcus Ericsson	Sauber Ferrari	57	+1 lap	4
9	55	Carlos Sainz	STR Renault	57	+1 lap	2
10	11	Sergio Perez	Force India Mercedes	57	+1 lap	1
11	22	Jenson Button	McLaren Honda	56	+2 laps	0
NC	7	Kimi Räikkönen	Ferrari	40	DNF	0
NC	33	Max Verstappen	STR Renault	32	DNF	0
NC	8	Romain Grosjean	Lotus Mercedes	0	DNF	0
NC	13	Pastor Maldonado	Lotus Mercedes	0	DNF	0
NC	26	Daniil Kvyat	Red Bull Racing Renault	0	DNS	0
NC	20	Kevin Magnussen	McLaren Honda	0	DNS	0

2020

The 2020 Australian Grand Prix, scheduled as the season opener in Melbourne at the Albert Park Circuit, was officially cancelled on this day. This decision came just hours before the first practice session started in response to the growing concerns about the COVID-19 pandemic in Australia. The cancellation followed McLaren’s withdrawal from the event after a team member tested positive for the coronavirus. The race would have marked the 85th instance of the Australian Grand Prix since the inaugural 100 Miles Road Race in 1928, and it would have been the 25th time the event was held at the Albert Park circuit and the 36th occasion it featured as part of the Formula One World Championship.

F1 Driver Birthdays 15 March

Birthday	F1 Driver
15 March 1913	Jack Fairman (d. 2002)
15 March 1918	Marvin Burke (d. 1994)
15 March 1927	Al Herman (d. 1960)
15 March 1939	Jean-Louis Lafosse (d. 1981)

F1 Driver Deaths 15 March

Death	F1 Driver
15 March	None