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The1969 Formula One season was the 23rd season of theFIA'sFormula One motor racing. It featured the 20thWorld Championship of Drivers, the 12thInternational Cup for F1 Manufacturers and four non-championship races open to Formula One cars. The World Championship was contested over eleven races between 1 March and 19 October 1969.
BritishdriverJackie Stewart, driving aMatra-FordCosworth, won more than half of the races and claimed his first Drivers' Championship.[1] TheMatraworks team did not compete in this season, but the privateerMatra International team, led byKen Tyrrell, helped Matra win the Manufacturers' Cup.[2] Both titles were the first titles won by a French constructor, and still remain the only titles won by a car built in France.[3]
The followingteams anddrivers competed in the 1969World Championship.
Going into the second half of the season,Chris Amon leftFerrari. TheItalian team signedMexicandriverPedro Rodríguez fromBRM.
TheBelgian Grand Prix was originally to be held on 8 June, butJackie Stewart, a strong advocate for safety in Formula One, had inspected the track and demanded multiple changes to the circuit. The track owners did not grant his wishes and the drivers boycotted the Grand Prix.[4][5]
Aerodynamics had been the talk of the town since last season and most teams chose to implement front and rear wings, besides the front nose spoilers which had been around a little longer.Lotus had pioneered movable wings, operated by a fourth pedal at the driver's feet, and their rivals had used the winter stop to implement a system of their own.McLaren, for example, gave their drivers a lever next to their left hand to flatten the rear wing, giving more speed on the straight, and connected the brake pedal to the wing to automatically put the wing back to its original position and add downforce for the corner.TyrrellMatra came up with an electrically operated rear wing, automatically flattening the rear wing when fifth gear was selected.[6]
At the beginning of the season, the wings were positioned as high as possible to generate the mostdownforce and secured on the car's suspension to push the tyres into the ground. But when the1969 Spanish Grand Prix featured several dramatic crashes, theFIA (then known as theCommission Sportive Internationale orCSI) banned all use of wings. Only theaerofoils on the nose were still allowed. This was suddenly decided after the firstpractice session of theMonaco Grand Prix.[7]
From the next race on, wings would be allowed again, but only if there no movable parts, if they were rigidly attached tosprung parts of thebodywork (so not to thesuspension) and fell within a certain maximumheight andwidth. These rules were introduced for theDutch Grand Prix and strictly enforced from theFrench Grand Prix on.[7][8][9]
Duringpractice for theSouth African Grand Prix, reigning championGraham Hill broke the pedal operating the wings, while the wings themselves broke on the cars of hisLotus teammatesJochen Rindt andMario Andretti. TheAmerican driver had noticed that, when going through a fast corner, the wing leant sideways so far that it touched the rear tyre and twisted thestruts. Three-time World ChampionJack Brabhamqualified onpole position in thecar bearing his name, ahead of Rindt and1967 championDenny Hulme. WithMatra driverJackie Stewart andFerrari driverChris Amon starting behind them, five different teams occupied the first two rows. At the start, Stewart got up to second behind Brabham, overtook theAustralian before the end of the first lap, and then broke the lap record while still heavy on fuel. Brabham's rear wing collapsed on lap 5 and had both wings cut off in thepits. This allowed him to reach 283.78 km/h (176.33 mph) on the straight but made the car very unstable in the corners, and he decided to retire. Andretti inherited second place, but then retired with agearbox failure, and Rindt suffered from a failingfuel pump. Stewart took an unchallenged victory, ahead of Hill and Hulme.[6]
For the first time, theSpanish Grand Prix was run atMontjuïc circuit (although thestreet circuit had existed since 1933). During practice, Rindt hit a stray dog and damaged hissuspension but still managed to qualify on pole, ahead of Amon and Hill. Stewart and Brabham qualified on the second row. Only twelve drivers managed to start the race and Hill crashed out after just six laps, but Rindt led away without trouble. On lap 20, however, his rear wing collapsed while travelling 225 km/h (140 mph) and he crashed into theArmco barrier. He hit the wreckage of Hill's car and then overturned. He was taken into hospital and would miss the next race. Amon inherited the lead with almost 40 seconds over Stewart, until his engine blew on lap 56. WhileJacky Ickx was in second place, his wing collapsed, necessating a pit stop, and later, his Brabham's rearwishbone broke, making retirement unavoidable. Once again, Stewart was unchallenged, two full laps ahead ofBruce McLaren and teammateJean-Pierre Beltoise.[10]
Going into theMonaco Grand Prix, one could have expected unified actions to control the high and fragile wings, but it took theCSI (FIA) until after the first practice was already run. In the meantime, Matra had added even more aerodynamic pieces to their cars' noses and Ferrari had implemented anhydraulically-controlled wing. Stewart set a lap time that looked unbeatable, but when all aerofoils and wings were banned, the FIA also scrapped all times from Thursday practice. After this reset, Stewart was again fastest and qualified on pole, ahead of Ferrari driver Amon and Matra teammate Beltoise, but all three of them retired within six laps of each other. With Brabham and Ickx failing to finish as well, Hill took an easy win, a record fifth victory inMonaco, ahead ofPiers Courage, driving a Brabham forFrank Williams Racing Cars, andJo Siffert, driving a Lotus forRob Walker Racing Team.[11]
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The ban on movable wings was still active during theDutch Grand Prix, but theCSI now allowed aerodynamic devices if they were fixed to the bodywork (and not to the suspension) and could not move. With the regulations formulated quite loosely, though, teams provoked the Dutchscrutineers with some daring designs, only some of which were banned. Furthermore, Matra and Lotus introducedfour-wheel drive cars, but only tried them out in practice. Rindt qualified on pole, with Stewart and Hill next to him, and it was the reigning champion that reached the end of the straight first. With Stewart regelated back to third, Lotus could control the race, but instead, started fighting each other, with Rindt taking the lead on lap 3, while going off track with two wheels. TheAustrian then pulled out a ten-second lead, leaving Hill vulnerable to Stewart's offense. TheScot moved up to second place, but in terms of pace was losing out, until Rindt suffered adrive shaft failure on lap 16. With the Matra let loose and free to take the win, eyes turned to the battle behind him. Siffert clinched second place with a daring move round the outside of Tarzan corner, and after Hill had to make an unforeseen pit stop, it was Amon that scored a third place for Ferrari.[12]
In the Drivers' Championship,Jackie Stewart (Matra) was leading with 27 points, ahead ofGraham Hill (Lotus) with 15 andJo Siffert (Lotus) with 13. For the Manufacturers' Cup, Matra was leading the standings with 27 points, ahead of Lotus (21) andMcLaren (15).
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With the rules on aerodynamic devices now formalised, theFrench Grand Prix would likely show who the favourites would be for the title. And first of all, it wasJackie Stewart claimingpole position forMatra, ahead of1967 championDenny Hulme forMcLaren andJochen Rindt forLotus. Reigning championGraham Hill started down in eighth, out of just thirteen entrants. TheLotus 63 was prepared for theirFormula Three driverJohn Miles, giving him the honour to make the first ever start in afour-wheel driveFormula One car. He did retire with a brokenfuel pump, however, on the first lap. Stewart, meanwhile, took an easy win, with his teammate and home heroJean-Pierre Beltoise finishing in second, andBelgian driverJacky Ickx completing the podium in hisBrabham.[13]
Duringpractice for theBritish Grand Prix, it was again Stewart who set the pace from the beginning, and he was comfortable to switch to the four-wheel driveMatra MS84. McLaren launched their four-wheel drive car, theM9A-1, while Lotus came prepared with two four-wheel drive cars, having convinced Hill to give it a try. But it was Rindt in the two-wheel driveLotus 49B that gave Stewart a real run for his money: theAustrian came within two tenths of a second of theScot, who felt another defensive lap was necessary. Going through the last corner, however, he hit a loosekerb and crashed backwards into the wall. Regulations at the time stated that positions on the starting grid were decided by the fastest time set in the car that actually started the race. Given that the Matra was irreparable in the time available and Stewart had to take over his teammate's car, thestewards took Stewart's fastest time in that car and placed him second on the grid. At the start, Rindt managed to just stay ahead and the two rivals sailed away into the distance. Sixth-startingJohn Surtees got up to third, but hissuspension collapsed before the first lap was completed, giving the place to Hulme. Stewart took the lead on lap 6 but had to hand it back on lap 16, when the pair came across Beltoise, trying to find his feet in the MS84. Hulme retired with a faultyignition, giving way toBruce McLaren, who was then passed by Jacky Ickx. On lap 62, Rindt'srear wing collapsed and he had topit. This handed Stewart his fifth win in six races, ahead of Ickx and McLaren. Rindt came home in fourth.[14]
For theGerman Grand Prix, twelveFormula Two cars complemented the grid, and one of them,Gerhard Mitter, was sadly killed during practice. On the F1 grid, it was Ickx who set his first pole position of the year, ahead of Stewart and Rindt, and the Belgian made a good start.Mario Andretti, coming over from theUnited States to further develop the four-wheel drive Lotus, slowed down during the first lap and sawVic Elford crashing into him and flying into the trees. The McLaren driver broke his arm in three places. Meanwhile, Ickx fell back to fourth place, but he made an inspired recovery to second place. He closed up and the leading pair went nose-to-tail for two full laps. Ickx made a heroic pass under braking, but locked up, and Stewart held on. On lap 6, the Brabham took the lead firmly and quickly set a lap record. He eventually took the win with a minute advantage over the championship leader. Bruce McLaren and Graham Hill finished third and fourth, respectively.[15]
Ickx had climbed up to second place in the standings, but was looking at such a distance to Stewart, that the championship would be decided at theItalian Grand Prix if the Scot managed to win the race. Duringqualifying, he did not manage more than third, behind Rindt and Hulme, but overtook theNew Zealander at the start and the Austrian later in the first lap. Ickx had to pit when hisoil pressure dropped. The three at the front traded places a couple of times, with a group of five drivers behind them joining in theslipstream battle. Hill had started in ninth but was charging Stewart for the lead near the end of the race, until his drive shaft broke with four laps to go. After at least fourteen lead changes and even a lot more in the remaining points-paying positions, it was Stewart's teammate Beltoise who made a do-or-die move into the last corner of the race. He went too fast and ran wide, but hindered Rindt while doing so, which was just as good a result. The top four finished within 0.19 seconds of each other and Stewart was given the win, ahead of Rindt, Beltoise and McLaren. Ickx had retired three laps from the end when he ran out of fuel.[16]
His sixth win of the season gaveJackie Stewart (Matra) an unsurmountable lead in the Drivers' Championship. He stood at 60 points, ahead ofBruce McLaren (McLaren) with 24 andJacky Ickx (Brabham) with 22. Matra now also had enough to be awarded the Manufacturers' Cup with 60 points, ahead ofLotus with 34 and Brabham with 30.
After he was injured in a testing accident in June,[17] triple World ChampionJack Brabham returned to the grid for theCanadian Grand Prix. He would finish this season and then retire, also selling his shares of theBrabham team to co-founderRon Tauranac. Inpractice, at least three drivers spun or crashed out on the slippery sandy surface ofMosport, butJacky Ickx managed toqualify onpole position, five tenths ahead of the competition. It wasJochen Rindt, however, that took the lead into the first corner, before freshly crowned championJackie Stewart snatched it on lap 6. Behind the leaders,Jean-Pierre Beltoise collided with local driverAl Pease, who was already being lapped before a quarter of the race was run. After this, theCanadian wasdisqualified for "driving too slowly", the only time that has ever happened. On lap 33, Ickx overtook Stewart, but their wheels struck and they both spun. Stewart landed in a ditch and stalled his engine, but Ickx could continue to take a suddenly easy victory. Jack Brabham finished second, theAustralian's first podium of the year, ahead of Rindt in third.Johnny Servoz-Gavin finished sixth, scoring the first and only ever championship point in afour-wheel drive Formula One car.[18]
TheUnited States Grand Prix was the penultimate round of the championship and saw Rindt take his fifth pole position of the year, ahead ofHulme and Stewart. Ickx started down in eighth after a hair-raising spin off the track in practice. After the start, Rindt and Stewart left the field behind and theScot took the lead on lap 12, when theAustrian made a slight error. Rindt kept pressing, however, and was back in front on lap 21, the two already running half a lap ahead of the competition. On lap 36, Stewart's engine suffered an oil leak and he had to retire, leaving Rindt to take, after seven career podiums, his first victory.1968 championGraham Hill suffered a flat tyre and spun off. His car hit the banks and turning over, violently throwing him out of the car. Hill broke both his legs. Ickx had also retired, so there was room for some other names on the podium:Piers Courage was second in theBrabham run byFrank Williams Racing Cars and1964 championJohn Surtees was third forBRM.[19]
In qualifying for theMexican Grand Prix, Jack Brabham claimed pole with a new lap record. Going into his supposedly final race, the Australian had lost none of his speed, beating the old record by more than a second. Ickx and Stewart started beside him on the front row, and it was the Scot who took the lead, before Ickx took it on lap 2. Stewart then fell back a bit, with fourth-starting Hulme rising to the occasion. On lap 10, theMcLaren passed the Brabham for the lead and sailed away. Ickx made two attempts later in the race but was unable to pass theNew Zealander, finishing 2.5 seconds behind him. Jack Brabham finished third, Stewart fourth.[20]
Jackie Stewart (Matra) finished first in the Drivers' Championship with 63 points, ahead ofJacky Ickx (Brabham) with 37 andBruce McLaren (McLaren) with 26. In the standings for the Manufacturers' Cup, Matra had achieved 66 points, ahead of Brabham with 49 andLotus with 47.
Points were awarded to the top six classified finishers. Formula 2 cars were not eligible for Championship points. The International Cup for F1 Manufacturers only counted the points of the highest-finishing driver for each race. For both the Championship and the Cup, the best five results from rounds 1-6 and the best four results from rounds 7-11 were counted.
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:[21] | ||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Formula 2 cars occupied the positions between fifth and tenth at the German GP, but the drivers who drove these cars did not earn points for the championship. The fifth and sixth points went to the eleventh and twelfth in the race, Siffert and Beltoise.
| Pos. | Manufacturer | RSA | ESP | MON | NED | FRA | GBR | GER | ITA | CAN | USA | MEX | Pts. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Matra-Ford | 1 | 1 | Ret | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | NC | 4 | 66 | |
| 2 | Brabham-Ford | Ret | 6 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 2 | 1 | (5) | 1 | 2 | 2 | 49 (51) | |
| 3 | Lotus-Ford | 2 | Ret | 1 | 2 | 6 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 9 | 47 | |
| 4 | McLaren-Ford | 3 | 2 | (5) | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 5 | Ret | 1 | 38 (40) | |
| 5 | BRM | 7 | 5 | Ret | 9 | Ret | Ret | NC | NC | 3 | 6 | 7 | ||
| 6 | Ferrari | Ret | Ret | Ret | 3 | Ret | Ret | 6 | Ret | 5 | 7 | 7 | ||
| — | Cooper-Maserati | 7 | WD | 0 | ||||||||||
| — | Brabham-Repco | 8 | 0 | |||||||||||
| — | Brabham-Climax | Ret | 0 | |||||||||||
| — | Eagle-Climax | DSQ | 0 | |||||||||||
| Pos. | Manufacturer | RSA | ESP | MON | NED | FRA | GBR | GER | ITA | CAN | USA | MEX | Pts. |
Other Formula One races were held in 1969, which did not count towards the World Championship. The Madrid Grand Prix and Gold Cup were held concurrently withFormula 5000 cars.
| Race name | Circuit | Date | Winning driver | Constructor | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IVRace of Champions | Brands Hatch | 16 March | Jackie Stewart | Matra-Cosworth | Report |
| XXIBRDC International Trophy | Silverstone | 30 March |  Jack Brabham | Brabham-Cosworth | Report |
| Madrid Grand Prix | Jarama | 13 April | Keith Holland | Lola-Chevrolet | Report |
| XVIInternational Gold Cup | Oulton Park | 16 August |  Jacky Ickx | Brabham-Cosworth | Report |
