1971 South African Grand Prix

{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2021}}

{{Use South African English|date=May 2012}}

{{Infobox Grand Prix race report

|Type = F1

|Country = South Africa

|Flag_suffix = 1928

|Grand Prix = South African

|Date = 6 March

|Year = 1971

|Image = Kyalami 1961 - 1988 Layout.png

|Caption = The Kyalami Circuit (1967–1985)

|Official name = Fifth AA Grand Prix of South Africa

|Location = Kyalami, Midrand, Transvaal Province, South Africa

|Course = Permanent racing facility

|Course_mi = 2.550

|Course_km = 4.104

|Distance_laps = 79

|Distance_mi = 201.458

|Distance_km = 324.216

|Weather = Sunny, Hot, Dry

|Pole_Driver = Jackie Stewart

|Pole_Team = Tyrrell-Ford

|Pole_Time = 1:17.8

|Pole_Country = United Kingdom

|Fast_Driver = Mario Andretti

|Fast_Team = Ferrari

|Fast_Time = 1:20.3

|Fast_Lap = 73

|Fast_Country = United States

|First_Driver = Mario Andretti

|First_Team = Ferrari

|First_Country = United States

|Second_Driver = Jackie Stewart

|Second_Team = Tyrrell-Ford

|Second_Country= United Kingdom

|Third_Driver = Clay Regazzoni

|Third_Team = Ferrari

|Third_Country = Switzerland

| Lapchart = {{F1Laps1971|RSA}}

}}

The 1971 South African Grand Prix, formally the Fifth AA Grand Prix of South Africa (Afrikaans: Vyfde AA Suid-Afrikaanse Grand Prix{{cite web|title=Motor Racing Programme Covers: 1971 |url=http://www.progcovers.com/motor/kyalami710306.jpg |publisher=The Programme Covers Project |access-date=7 July 2017}}), was a Formula One motor race held at Kyalami Circuit on 6 March 1971. It was race 1 of 11 in both the 1971 World Championship of Drivers and the 1971 International Cup for Formula One Manufacturers. The race was won by Mario Andretti who was driving for the Ferrari team in what was his first Formula One victory, but would not win another Formula One race until {{f1|1976}}.{{cite web|last1=Leslie|first1=Jack|title=The 5 Drivers with the Biggest Gap between First and Second F1 Wins|url=https://wtf1.com/post/the-5-drivers-with-the-biggest-gaps-between-first-and-second-f1-wins/|website=wtf1.com|access-date=3 January 2018|date=18 August 2017}}

Report

It was expected the 12-cylinder cars would be dominant over the V8 Ford-Cosworths as Ferrari had won four out of the last five Grands Prix in {{F1|1970}}, and they had a strong line-up consisting of Mario Andretti, Clay Regazzoni and Jacky Ickx.

Jackie Stewart took pole in the Tyrrell to join Chris Amon and Regazzoni on the front row. Denny Hulme was suffering with a new suspension that he said was behaving very strangely.{{citation needed|date=September 2016}}

At the start, Regazzoni led the field away at the start – both Stewart and Amon suffering slow starts. Emerson Fittipaldi managed to hold off Hulme until lap three when he dived through to chase the Ferraris. On lap 17, he squeezed through under braking and the orange McLaren once again led a race. Pedro Rodríguez was forced to retire from fourth place when his bodywork started to melt and the hot air began burning his feet. The heat also took its toll on Jo Siffert, whose engine overheated and Howden Ganley who was taken ill with heat exhaustion. On lap 37, John Surtees who had steadily been moving up the field, managed to pass Regazzoni. Surtees however, suffered a gearbox failure on lap 57. Andretti took his first career victory, driving a Ferrari; his teammate Regazzoni finished in third place behind Stewart.

Classification

= Qualifying =

class="wikitable sortable" style="font-size: 95%"
Pos

! No

! Driver

! Constructor

! Time

! Gap

1

| 9

| {{flagicon|UK}} Jackie Stewart

| Tyrrell-Ford

| 1:17.8

|align="center"| —

2

| 19

| {{flagicon|NZL}} Chris Amon

| Matra

| 1:18.4

| +0.6

3

| 5

| {{flagicon|SUI}} Clay Regazzoni

| Ferrari

| 1:18.7

| +0.9

4

| 6

| {{flagicon|USA}} Mario Andretti

| Ferrari

| 1:19.0

| +1.2

5

| 2

| {{flagicon|BRA}} Emerson Fittipaldi

| Lotus-Ford

| 1:19.1

| +1.3

6

| 20

| {{flagicon|UK}} John Surtees

| Surtees-Ford

| 1:19.1

| +1.3

7

| 11

| {{flagicon|NZL}} Denny Hulme

| McLaren-Ford

| 1:19.1

| +1.3

8

| 4

| {{flagicon|BEL}} Jacky Ickx

| Ferrari

| 1:19.2

| +1.4

9

| 10

| {{flagicon|FRA}} François Cevert

| Tyrrell-Ford

| 1:19.2

| +1.4

10

| 16

| {{flagicon|MEX}} Pedro Rodríguez

| BRM

| 1:19.3

| +1.5

11

| 12

| {{flagicon|UK}} Peter Gethin

| McLaren-Ford

| 1:19.6

| +1.8

12

| 15

| {{flagicon|South Africa|1928}} Dave Charlton

| Brabham-Ford

| 1:19.8

| +2.0

13

| 7

| {{flagicon|SWE}} Ronnie Peterson

| March-Ford

| 1:19.9

| +2.1

14

| 3

| {{flagicon|SWE}} Reine Wisell

| Lotus-Ford

| 1:19.9

| +2.1

15

| 21

| {{flagicon|GER}} Rolf Stommelen

| Surtees-Ford

| 1:20.1

| +2.3

16

| 17

| {{flagicon|SUI}} Jo Siffert

| BRM

| 1:20.2

| +2.4

17

| 28

| {{flagicon|UK}} Brian Redman

| Surtees-Ford

| 1:20.2

| +2.4

18

| 22

| {{flagicon|FRA}} Henri Pescarolo

| March-Ford

| 1:20.2

| +2.4

19

| 14

| {{flagicon|UK}} Graham Hill

| Brabham-Ford

| 1:20.5

| +2.7

20

| 25

| {{flagicon|South Africa|1928}} Jackie Pretorius

| Brabham-Ford

| 1:21.7

| +3.9

21

| 24

| {{flagicon|Rhodesia}} John Love

| March-Ford

| 1:21.9

| +4.1

22

| 8

| {{flagicon|ITA}} Andrea de Adamich

| March-Alfa Romeo

| 1:22.2

| +4.4

23

| 23

| {{flagicon|SWE}} Jo Bonnier

| McLaren-Ford

| 1:22.3

| +4.5

24

| 27

| {{flagicon|NZL}} Howden Ganley

| BRM

| 1:23.7

| +5.9

25

| 26

| {{flagicon|ESP|1945}} Alex Soler-Roig

| March-Ford

| 1:25.8

| +8.0

= Race =

class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%;"
PosNoDriverConstructorLapsTime/RetiredGridPoints
1

| 6

| {{flagicon|USA}} Mario Andretti

| Ferrari

| 79

| 1:47:35.5

| 4

| 9

2

| 9

| {{flagicon|UK}} Jackie Stewart

| Tyrrell-Ford

| 79

| + 20.9

| 1

| 6

3

| 5

| {{flagicon|SUI}} Clay Regazzoni

| Ferrari

| 79

| + 31.4

| 3

| 4

4

| 3

| {{flagicon|SWE}} Reine Wisell

| Lotus-Ford

| 79

| + 1:09.4

| 14

| 3

5

| 19

| {{flagicon|NZL}} Chris Amon

| Matra

| 78

| + 1 Lap

| 2

| 2

6

| 11

| {{flagicon|NZL}} Denny Hulme

| McLaren-Ford

| 78

| + 1 Lap

| 7

| 1

7

| 28

| {{flagicon|UK}} Brian Redman

| Surtees-Ford

| 78

| + 1 Lap

| 17

|  

8

| 4

| {{flagicon|BEL}} Jacky Ickx

| Ferrari

| 78

| + 1 Lap

| 8

|  

9

| 14

| {{flagicon|UK}} Graham Hill

| Brabham-Ford

| 77

| + 2 Laps

| 19

|  

10

| 7

| {{flagicon|SWE}} Ronnie Peterson

| March-Ford

| 77

| + 2 Laps

| 13

|  

11

| 22

| {{flagicon|FRA}} Henri Pescarolo

| March-Ford

| 77

| + 2 Laps

| 18

|  

12

| 21

| {{flagicon|GER}} Rolf Stommelen

| Surtees-Ford

| 77

| + 2 Laps

| 15

|  

13

| 8

| {{flagicon|ITA}} Andrea de Adamich

| March-Alfa Romeo

| 75

| + 4 Laps

| 22

|  

Ret

| 2

| {{flagicon|BRA}} Emerson Fittipaldi

| Lotus-Ford

| 58

| Engine

| 5

|  

Ret

| 20

| {{flagicon|UK}} John Surtees

| Surtees-Ford

| 56

| Gearbox

| 6

|  

Ret

| 10

| {{flagicon|FRA}} François Cevert

| Tyrrell-Ford

| 45

| Accident

| 9

|  

Ret

| 27

| {{flagicon|NZL}} Howden Ganley

| BRM

| 42

| Physical

| 24

|  

Ret

| 16

| {{flagicon|MEX}} Pedro Rodríguez

| BRM

| 33

| Overheating

| 10

|  

Ret

| 15

| {{flagicon|South Africa|1928}} Dave Charlton

| Brabham-Ford

| 31

| Engine

| 16

|  

Ret

| 17

| {{flagicon|SUI}} Jo Siffert

| BRM

| 31

| Overheating

| 12

|  

Ret

| 24

| {{flagicon|Rhodesia}} John Love

| March-Ford

| 30

| Differential

| 21

|  

Ret

| 25

| {{flagicon|South Africa|1928}} Jackie Pretorius

| Brabham-Ford

| 22

| Engine

| 20

|  

Ret

| 12

| {{flagicon|UK}} Peter Gethin

| McLaren-Ford

| 7

| Fuel Leak

| 11

|  

Ret

| 23

| {{flagicon|SWE}} Jo Bonnier

| McLaren-Ford

| 5

| Suspension

| 23

|  

Ret

| 26

| {{flagicon|Spain|1945}} Alex Soler-Roig

| March-Ford

| 5

| Engine

| 25

|  

colspan="8"|{{center|Source:{{cite web |url=http://www.formula1.com/results/season/1971/514/ |title=1971 South African Grand Prix |publisher=formula1.com |access-date=22 December 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131017005040/http://www.formula1.com/results/season/1971/514/ |archive-date=17 October 2013}}}}

Notes

  • This was the Formula One World Championship debut for New Zealand driver Howden Ganley.
  • This race marked the 200th podium finish for a British driver.
  • This race saw the first podium finish for British constructor Tyrrell.

Championship standings after the race

{{col-begin}}

{{col-2}}

;Drivers' Championship standings

class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%;"
Pos

! Driver

! Points

align="center"| 1

| {{flagicon|USA}} Mario Andretti

| align="left"| 9

align="center"| 2

| {{flagicon|United Kingdom}} Jackie Stewart

| align="left"| 6

align="center"| 3

| {{flagicon|Switzerland}} Clay Regazzoni

| align="left"| 4

align="center"| 4

| {{flagicon|SWE}} Reine Wisell

| align="left"| 3

align="center"| 5

| {{flagicon|NZL}} Chris Amon

| align="left"| 2

colspan=4|Source:{{Cite web|url=https://www.statsf1.com/en/1971/afrique-du-sud/championnat.aspx|title=South Africa 1971 - Championship • STATS F1|website=statsf1.com|access-date=20 March 2019}}

{{col-2}}

;Constructors' Championship standings

class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%;"
Pos

! Constructor

! Points

align="center"| 1

| {{flagicon|ITA}} Ferrari

| align="left"| 9

align="center"| 2

| {{flagicon|UK}} Tyrrell-Ford

| align="left"| 6

align="center"| 3

| {{flagicon|UK}} Lotus-Ford

| align="left"| 3

align="center"| 4

| {{flagicon|FRA}} Matra

| align="left"| 2

align="center"| 5

| {{flagicon|UK}} McLaren-Ford

| align="left"| 1

colspan=4|Source:

{{col-end}}

  • Note: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings.

References

{{reflist | em30}}