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The1965 Formula One season was the 19th season ofFIAFormula One racing. It featured the 16thWorld Championship of Drivers, the 8thInternational Cup for F1 Manufacturers, and seven non-championship races open to Formula One cars. The World Championship was contested over ten races between 1 January and 24 October 1965.
Jim Clark won the Drivers' Championship in aLotus-Climax.[1] It was his second and last championship. Lotus were also awarded the International Cup for F1 Manufacturers for the second time.[2]
The followingteams anddrivers competed in the 1965FIAWorld Championship.
Three future champions made their debuts in 1965:
For the first time, the championship started inSouth Africa, and it did on the very first day of the year. Sixteen drivers were invited to the event and guaranteed a place on the grid. There were four places remaining, but fourteen drivers applied. Throughpre-qualifying and subsequentqualifying, the grid was filled. The drivers started in order of their fastest qualifying times:1963 championJim Clark in hisLotus-Climax was onpole position, ahead of1964 championJohn Surtees (Ferrari) and1959 and1960 championJack Brabham (Brabham). After the start, Clark led away with his teammateMike Spence up to second. Not many changes in positions happened after that, until Brabham's engine startedmisfiring, leaking oil, and sending Spence in a spin on the next lap. The podium was taken by Clark, Surtees and1962 championGraham Hill (BRM). Spence and Brabham finished fourth and eighth, respectively.[4]
Just short of a full five months later, theMonaco Grand Prix was held and for this race, the organisers guaranteed one place on the grid for each factory team. The rest of the applicants had to be fast enough during qualifying to gain a starting ticket. In disagreement, Lotus decided to withdraw from the event, instead entering theIndianapolis 500 a day later. Hill started on pole position, ahead of Brabham and Hill's teammateJackie Stewart. Brabham fell back and the two BRMs led away. Hill lost a lot of time when he had to avoid a backmarker, going up the escape road and having to push his car back onto the track. On lap 30, Stewart spun coming out of the fastest corner, before Brabham's Climax engine seized. Hill made it back into the lead, ahead of the Ferraris ofBandini and Surtees.Richard Attwood crashed in the hairpin, the leaders narrowly avoiding him, beforePaul Hawkins crashed into the harbour. His car sank to the bottom but Hawkins was unhurt, as was Attwood. Hill took the win, ahead of Bandini and Stewart, after Surtees ran out of fuel with a lap to go.[5]
For theBelgian Grand Prix, Hill started on pole again, ahead of Clark and Stewart. Rain fell and everyone held a safe distance from the car in front, except Clark, who took the lead through the most dangerous corner on the track, theMasta Kink. He quickly pulled out a big lead and even lapped Hill. Stewart finished second, ahead ofBruce McLaren, Brabham and Hill. Attwood crashed atMasta, his Lotus breaking in half and catching fire, but the driver escaping with only minor burns.[6]
Jim Clark (Lotus) was leading the Drivers' Championship with 18 points, ahead ofGraham Hill (BRM, 15) and debutantJackie Stewart (BRM, 11). In the Manufacturers' Championship, BRM was leading with 19 points, ahead of Lotus (18) andFerrari (12).
TheFrench Grand Prix was run for the first time at theCircuit de Charade, which was described as a quicker, twistier version of theNürburgring.[7] Championship leaderJim Clarkqualified hisLotus onpole position, ahead of two "number two drivers":Jackie Stewart (BRM) andLorenzo Bandini (Ferrari). Their respective team leaders,Graham Hill andJohn Surtees, started thirteenth and fourth. Except from Bandini's accident on lap 36, the race finished as it started: Clark claimed anotherGrand Slam victory, ahead of Stewart and Surtees. Hill recovered to fifth.[8]
TheBritish Grand Prix was run atSilverstone, where Clark scored another pole position, ahead of Hill andHonda driverRichie Ginther. At the start, Ginther challenged Clark for the lead, but fell back to fourth and then retired on lap 26. Surtees was fighting for third place against Lotus driverMike Spence, while his team leader suddenly slowed down. TheClimax engine was losing oil and Clark was coasting round the corners, only using power on the straights. Hill did anything within his might to chase his rival down, but the Lotus hang on to finish with 3 seconds to spare. Surtees came in third.[9]
TheDutch Grand Prix was run just a week later and all eyes were on Clark. It was his rival Hill, however, that scored pole position. Clark started in second, Ginther again in third. Moments before the flag fell, Lotus team ownerColin Chapman was involved in abrawl with theDutchpolice. It would result in hisarrest and a two-dayimprisonment. The race went on unhindered, however, and saw Ginther take the lead. On lap 5, Hill and Clark were back at the front, with the Lotus soon getting ahead. Hill then lost second place to his teammate Stewart and third place toBrabham driverDan Gurney. Clark scored his fifth win of the season, ahead of Stewart, his fourth podium, and Gurney, his first podium of the year.[10]
It was Clark on top again during qualifying for theGerman Grand Prix, with more than 3 seconds over the BRMs of Stewart and Hill. At the start, Surtees's gearbox went wrong and he fell back. It would lead to his retirement on lap 11. Clark and Hill were fighting for the lead, while Stewart'ssuspension failed and he handed third place to Gurney. Clark broke the lap record a couple of times and won his fifth consecutive race. It was the first time sinceJack Brabham in1960 that a driver achieved this feat. Hill was second, Gurney third.[11]
With only the top six finishes counting towards the championship,Jim Clark's six wins crowned him the Driver's Champion with 54 points, ahead ofGraham Hill (BRM, 30) andJackie Stewart (BRM, 25). Clark's six wins also gaveLotus the Manufacturers' Championship, ahead of BRM (39) andScuderia Ferrari (21).[11]
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Newly-crowned championJim Clark (Lotus) achieved his fifthpole position of the year at theItalian Grand Prix, ahead ofJohn Surtees forFerrari andJackie Stewart forBRM. At the start, Surtees had problems with hisclutch, so Clark and Stewart were followed byGraham Hill, who had to finish first to stay in the race for the championship. The top three were engaged in aslipstream battle and the lead changed hands lap after lap. With ten laps to go, Clark suddenly stopped with a failingfuel pump, so Hill and Stewart were free to fight over the win in equal machinery. Going into the last lap, Hill touched the grass with his outer wheels, almost spinning but certainly valuable seconds. Stewart won his first race, with Hill in second andDan Gurney in third.[12]
Hill started on pole for theUnited States Grand Prix, ahead of Clark andHonda driverRichie Ginther. Clark quickly grabbed the lead but soon retired with a brokenpiston. As it had happened more often, Ginther fell back, while hisAmerican rival Gurney went up the order. He came within four seconds of Hill when theBrit slid off the track, but when he made a mistake himself, his team leaderJack Brabham took second place. TheAustralian challenged Hill for the lead, but was unable to get by, and then became the third top-runner to take to the grass. The order at the finish was Hill, Gurney, Brabham.[13]
The season ended with theMexican Grand Prix, where Clark scored another pole position, ahead of Americans Gurney and Ginther. The Honda driver took the lead at the start, while Stewart got up to second, before being passed byMike Spence. His teammate Clark suffered his third consecutive retirement, before Stewart went out at the half-way point, and Hill's engine gave out with ten laps to go. Gurney passed Spence for second place and came within 3 seconds of the leader, but Ginther held on to his and Honda's first win.[14]
Jim Clark (Lotus) was awarded the 1965 Drivers' Championship after scoring 54 points, ahead ofGraham Hill (BRM, 40) andJackie Stewart (BRM, 33). Lotus clinched the Manufacturers' Championship as well, with 54 points, ahead of BRM (45), withBrabham just overtakingFerrari for third place (27 and 26 points, respectively).
Points were awarded to the top six classified finishers. Only the best six results counted towards the championship.
The International Cup for F1 Manufacturers only counted the points of the highest-finishing driver for each race. Additionally, like the Drivers' Championship, only the best six results counted towards the cup.
Numbers without parentheses are championship points; numbers in parentheses are total points scored. Points were awarded in the following system:
| Position | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 6th |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Race | 9 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Source:[15] | ||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Pos. | Manufacturer | RSA | MON | BEL | FRA | GBR | NED | GER | ITA | USA | MEX | Pts.[a] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lotus-Climax | 1 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 12 | (3) | 54 (58) |
| 2 | BRM | (3) | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 | (2) | (2) | 1 | 1 | Ret | 45 (61) |
| 3 | Brabham-Climax | 8 | 7 | 4 | (4) | (6) | 3 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 2 | 27 (31) |
| 4 | Ferrari | 2 | 2 | 9 | 3 | 3 | 7 | (6) | 4 | 4 | 7 | 26 (27) |
| 5 | Cooper-Climax | 5 | 5 | 3 | Ret | 10 | Ret | 4 | 5 | 6 | Ret | 14 |
| 6 |  Honda | Ret | 6 | Ret | Ret | 6 | 14 | 7 | 1 | 11 | ||
| 7 | Brabham-BRM | 7 | 6 | 8 | 6 | 8 | 11 | Ret | Ret | 11 | 4 | 5 |
| 8 | Lotus-BRM | 11 | Ret | 13 | Ret | 13 | 10 | Ret | 6 | 10 | 6 | 2 |
| — | Brabham-Ford | 9 | 0 | |||||||||
| — | Alfa Special-Alfa Romeo | 10 | 0 | |||||||||
| — | LDS-Alfa Romeo | 13 | 0 | |||||||||
| — | Cooper-Ford | DNQ | DNS | 0 | ||||||||
| — | LDS-Climax | DNQ | 0 | |||||||||
| — | Lotus-Ford | DNQ | 0 | |||||||||
| Pos. | Manufacturer | RSA | MON | BEL | FRA | GBR | NED | GER | ITA | USA | MEX | Pts. |
Other Formula One races were also held in 1965, which did not count towards the World Championship. The last of them, the1965 Rand Grand Prix, was the first Formula One race for cars with 3-litre engines.
| Race Name | Circuit | Date | Winning driver | Constructor | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IICape South Easter Trophy | Killarney | 9 January |  Paul Hawkins | Brabham-Climax | Report |
| IRace of Champions | Brands Hatch | 13 March | Mike Spence | Lotus-Climax | Report |
| XIVSyracuse Grand Prix | Syracuse | 4 April | Jim Clark | Lotus-Climax | Report |
| ISunday Mirror Trophy | Goodwood | 19 April | Jim Clark | Lotus-Climax | Report |
| XVIIBRDC International Trophy | Silverstone | 15 May | Jackie Stewart | BRM | Report |
| IVMediterranean Grand Prix | Pergusa | 15 August |  Jo Siffert | Brabham-BRM | Report |
| VIIIRand Grand Prix | Kyalami | 4 December | Jack Brabham | Brabham-Climax | Report |
