What happened on this day, September 4 in Formula 1 history? Find out interesting facts and stories about Formula 1 on this day.
1960
Ferrari dominated the 1960 Italian Grand Prix, with Phil Hill leading a 1-2-3 finish for the team, followed by teammates Richie Ginther and Willy Mairesse. Wolfgang von Trips capped off a fantastic day for Ferrari by finishing fifth in his F2 Ferrari, behind Giulio Cabianca’s Cooper-Castellotti.
The 1960 season had been frustrating for Ferrari’s Formula One team as they raced their outdated Dino 246, a front-engined car, while rear-engined designs were proving dominant. With the British teams boycotting the Italian Grand Prix and Jack Brabham already clinching the championship, Ferrari had yet to secure a victory. Seizing this opportunity, the Italian organisers chose to play to Ferrari’s strength in straight-line speed by using the combined Monza road and banked oval circuit, making the already fast Monza track even faster.
This race also marked the final Formula One World Championship win for a front-engined car, although the Ferguson P99, a front-engined car, did win the non-championship Gold Cup at Oulton Park in 1961.
1966
Ferrari and Italian driver Ludovico Scarfiotti thrilled the home crowd by securing his first Grand Prix victory at the 1966 Italian Grand Prix. Although Scarfiotti and his teammate Mike Parkes qualified on the front row, it was Lorenzo Bandini who made an impressive start from fifth, leading after the first lap while Scarfiotti fell back to seventh. However, Scarfiotti staged a remarkable comeback through the field, and after the retirements of Jack Brabham and John Surtees, he went on to win, with Parkes finishing second. The race’s most dramatic moment was on lap 17 when Richie Ginther’s Honda suffered a tyre failure at Curva Grande, crashing into the trees. Miraculously, Ginther was unharmed, though his car was destroyed.
Although the season’s points leader, Jack Brabham, had to stop on lap seven due to an oil leak, he still secured his third World Championship, achieving the unique distinction of becoming World Champion in a car of his own make.
2005
The 2005 Italian Grand Prix was only the second time in history that every car that started the race was still running at the finish (at that time). Juan Pablo Montoya won the race for McLaren, with Renault drivers Fernando Alonso and Giancarlo Fisichella finishing second and third, respectively. Fisichella dedicated his podium finish to Michele Alboreto, the last Italian to stand on the podium at Monza before him.
2009
“Crashgate” came to light on this day when the FIA announced it would charge Renault following claims by Nelson Piquet Jr. that he had deliberately crashed his car during the previous year’s 2008 Singapore Grand Prix under team orders. The hearing was scheduled for 21 September, but by then, Renault boss Flavio Briatore and engineer Pat Symonds had already resigned.
2016
Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton, the previous year’s race winner, entered the 2016 Italian Grand Prix leading the World Drivers’ Championship by nine points over his teammate Nico Rosberg. Hamilton had a poor start, allowing Nico Rosberg, Sebastian Vettel, Kimi Raikkonen, Valtteri Bottas, and Daniel Ricciardo to pass him. Rosberg quickly established a comfortable lead while Hamilton began to recover, overtaking Ricciardo and then Bottas soon after. However, Hamilton lacked the pace and tyre performance to challenge Rosberg, who went on to win the race and Hamilton coming second. Sebastian Vettel finished third, just ahead of his Ferrari teammate Raikkonen. Ricciardo took fifth place, followed by Bottas in sixth.
2022
Max Verstappen won the 2022 Dutch Grand Prix for Red Bull ahead of Mercedes driver George Russell and the Ferrari of Charles Leclerc. Verstappen’s win took him to the 30th F1 race win of his career and the fourth race win in a row. Further down the field, post-race, Carlos Sainz finished fifth but received a five-second penalty for an unsafe pit-stop release, demoting him to eighth, and Sebastian Vettel finished 13th, but he received a five-second time penalty for ignoring blue flags, demoting him to 14th
F1 Driver Birthdays 4 September
| Birthday | F1 Driver |
|---|---|
| 4 September 1920 | Jackie Holmes |
| 4 September 1920 | Clemar Bucci |
| 4 September 1924 | Bobby Grim |
| 4 September 1933 | Bill Moss |
F1 Driver Deaths 4 September
| Death | F1 Driver |
|---|---|
| 4 September 1997 | Chuck Arnold |
F1 Champion 4 September
| Date | Team/Driver |
|---|---|
| 4 September 1966 | Jack Brabham |
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