1969 Spanish Grand Prix
The Grand Prix of Spain 1969 was on May 4 at the Circuit de Montjuïc in Barcelona and was the second race of the Formula 1 season 1969.
- 3.1 Start -up
- 3.2 race
- 4.1 Drivers' Championship
- 4.2 Constructors' Championship
Reports
Background
The racetrack on Montjuïc in Barcelona, on the 1968-1975 biennially, alternating with the Circuito del Jarama near Madrid of Spanish Grand Prix was held, had been equipped for the Grand Prix in 1969 with guard rails. Nevertheless, it was still considered one of the most difficult and dangerous stretches of Formula 1 history.
In the two months that elapsed between the first world championship race in South Africa and Spain -GP, not the World Cup scoring two Formula 1 races in Britain had taken place. Jackie Stewart and Jack Brabham could choose one of these events for each.
Only 14 drivers were reported for the Grand Prix of Spain, as local private driver who had completed the field in South Africa were missing. Within the factory teams, there were no significant changes. Lotus renounced this time on the use of a third company car. For the first time the private team of Frank Williams stepped in to a world championship race, with the driver Piers Courage.
As with the first run, the teams competed again with partly lush wing designs on the car.
Training
Jochen Rindt scored in his best practice lap was the only driver this weekend for a time under 1:26 min, thus securing the pole position ahead of Chris Amon and Graham Hill. Jackie Stewart and Jack Brabham were the second row in front of Jo Siffert, Jacky Ickx and Denis Hulme in series three.
Race
Rindt went from pole position in the lead and was able to quickly open a lead over second- placed Amon. This was followed by Hill, who had fought his way to third place, before Siffert in fourth place.
In the ninth round broke out in the region of the round at the end of the start-finish straight at 230 km / h, the rear wing at Hills Lotus 49 The thus become uncontrollable car struck on both sides of the track several times violently into the barriers and eventually came to approximately 150 meters to a halt. Hill was unhurt and proceeded to walk back to the pits. The wreck of his car was meanwhile not recovered, but was, as was customary, left on the side of the track in front of the barrier. Hill observed during his footpath the identical car of his teammate Jochen Rindt and noted that a similar case of metal fatigue suggested. He then tried to warn Rindt with hand signals, but this failed. On lap 20 was confirmed Hills presumption by Rindt at the same place as a few minutes earlier had a nearly identical accident. Also Rindt's car struck several times into the barriers one, even slipped several meters on them along and finally rammed at high speed the wreck of Hills Lotus, after which he turned over and lay upside down. Hill rushed back there and helped the marshals in recovering the pilot, who was hard to break free from his strong bent monocoque. With a broken nose and a concussion Rindt got off relatively lightly.
Now Cris Amon was a relatively comfortable lead in the lead. As was also little later signaled to him by his pit crew that placed second Siffert had failed on lap 31, he took out speed, since the projection seemed unaufholbar on the now second placed Stewart. However, Amon had the bad luck that in round 57 failed its cooling and thereby failed the engine. From this point, Stewart was in the lead, initially closely followed by Jacky Ickx, who had, however, also struggling with problems with his rear wing. The fact that he was install a new one the box, he finally fell back to third place and had the second place Bruce McLaren left. A few laps Ickx had to finally give up because its rear suspension was probably damaged due to the generated by the rear wing downforce. The third place thus went to Jean -Pierre Beltoise.
Jackie Stewart won the race, ultimately with more than two laps ahead of the runner-up. A similar situation existed in the course of Formula 1 history only once, namely at the Grand Prix of Australia in 1995 when Damon Hill won two laps ahead of Olivier Panis.
After the race was discussed due to the two heavy accidents banning the towering wing.
Message list
Classifications
Line-up
Race
WM stands after the race
The first six of the race were 9, 6, 4, 3, 2 and 1 point (s).