| 1975 Dutch Grand Prix | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
| Race details | |||
| Date | 22 June 1975 | ||
| Official name | XXIIGrand Prix Zandvoort | ||
| Location | Zandvoort | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 4.226 km (2.626 miles) | ||
| Distance | 75 laps, 316.950 km (196.944 miles) | ||
| Weather | Wet, drying later | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Ferrari | ||
| Time | 1:20.29[1] | ||
| Fastest lap | |||
| Driver |  Niki Lauda | Ferrari | |
| Time | 1:21.54[2] on lap 55 | ||
| Podium | |||
| First | Hesketh-Ford | ||
| Second | Ferrari | ||
| Third | Ferrari | ||
Lap leaders
| |||
The1975 Dutch Grand Prix was aFormula Onemotor race held atCircuit Zandvoort on 22 June 1975. It was race 8 of 14 in both the1975 World Championship of Drivers and the1975 International Cup for Formula One Manufacturers. It was the 24thDutch Grand Prix. It was held over 75 laps of the four kilometre circuit for a race distance of 317 kilometres.
The race is memorable for one of the greatest underdog victories in Formula One. British driver and future world championJames Hunt won his first Formula One Grand Prix, giving small privateer operationHesketh Racing the highlight of its six-year history with its first and only Grand Prix win. Hunt drove hisHesketh 308 to a one-second win over theFerrari 312T of the World Championship points leader, Austrian driverNiki Lauda. Third was taken by Lauda'sFerrari team mate, Swiss driverClay Regazzoni.
Niki Lauda dominated practice, with teammateClay Regazzoni joining him on the front row.Jean-Pierre Jarier had a crash and theMaki team's weekend ended abruptly in a cloud of smoke from engine problems.James Hunt had a storming practice to take third place on the grid. On Saturday afternoon, weather conditions meant practice times would not improve, so Hunt was sent out to get some extra testing – during which something in the metering unit broke. This was fortunate as the Dutch Grand Prix did not have Sunday morning practice, so had it not been for those extra laps, the mechanical problems would have occurred during the race itself.
The race was delayed by rainstorms as the teams persuaded the organizers to let them run on wet tyres. Lauda led fromJody Scheckter whilstVittorio Brambilla andPatrick Depailler collided.Jochen Mass was having metering unit troubles andJacky Ickx exploded his engine. Meanwhile, Hunt had changed onto dry tyres and was gaining time rapidly on the drying surface to take the lead from Jarier and Lauda by lap 15. The Austrian championship leader was finding overtaking a very difficult prospect indeed.Emerson Fittipaldi dropped out with engine problems whilstJohn Watson broke a wing support andCarlos Reutemann got pastTom Pryce who was suffering from brake problems.
On lap 43, Jarier spun when a tyre burst. Lauda now pursued Hunt desperately for over 20 laps, putting him under immense pressure. Hunt had cracked under similar pressure in Buenos Aires, but this time he resisted. TheFerrari managed to gain on the slow corners, but Hunt pulled ahead on the fast corners and down the straight. The TV directors were so confused that the captions showed three laps left to go when a massive roar from the grandstands signalled it was all over. Hunt became the first Englishman sincePeter Gethin to win a Grand Prix.
Lauda's second place reinforced his championship lead, which expanded to 13 points over Brabham driverCarlos Reutemann.
| Pos. | Driver | Constructor | Time/Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Niki Lauda | Ferrari | 1:20.29 |
| 2 |  Clay Regazzoni | Ferrari | +0.28 |
| 3 |  James Hunt | Hesketh–Ford | +0.41 |
| 4 |  Jody Scheckter | Tyrrell–Ford | +0.45 |
| 5 |  Carlos Reutemann | Brabham–Ford | +0.58 |
| 6 |  Emerson Fittipaldi | McLaren–Ford | +0.62 |
| 7 | Tony Brise | Hill–Ford | +0.65 |
| 8 |  Jochen Mass | McLaren–Ford | +0.72 |
| 9 | Carlos Pace | Brabham–Ford | +0.77 |
| 10 |  Jean-Pierre Jarier | Shadow–Ford | +0.81 |
| 11 |  Vittorio Brambilla | March–Ford | +0.85 |
| 12 | Tom Pryce | Shadow–Ford | +0.87 |
| 13 | Patrick Depailler | Tyrrell–Ford | +0.91 |
| 14 | John Watson | Surtees–Ford | +0.94 |
| 15 | Jacques Laffite | Williams–Ford | +1.03 |
| 16 |  Ronnie Peterson | Lotus–Ford | +1.17 |
| 17 |  Alan Jones | Hill–Ford | +1.72 |
| 18 |  Mark Donohue | Penske–Ford | +2.04 |
| 19 | Ian Scheckter | Williams–Ford | +2.53 |
| 20 | Bob Evans | BRM | +2.68 |
| 21 |  Jacky Ickx | Lotus–Ford | +2.91 |
| 22 |  Gijs van Lennep | Ensign–Ford | +3.01 |
| 23 | Lella Lombardi | March–Ford | +3.70 |
| 24 | Wilson Fittipaldi | Fittipaldi–Ford | +3.86 |
| 25 |  Hiroshi Fushida | Maki–Ford | +13.08 |
| Source:[4] | |||
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| Previous race: 1975 Swedish Grand Prix | FIA Formula One World Championship 1975 season | Next race: 1975 French Grand Prix |
| Previous race: 1974 Dutch Grand Prix | Dutch Grand Prix | Next race: 1976 Dutch Grand Prix |
