The1973 Formula One season was the 27th season ofFIAFormula One motor racing. It featured the 1973World Championship of Drivers and the 1973International Cup for F1 Manufacturers, which were contested concurrently over a fifteen-race series[1] that commenced on 28 January and ended on 7 October. The season also included two non-championship races which were open to both Formula One andFormula 5000 cars.
The World Championship of Drivers was won byJackie Stewart, driving forElfTeam Tyrrell, for the third time. The International Cup for F1 Manufacturers was awarded toJohn PlayerTeam Lotus.[1] At the final race of the season, Stewart's teammateFrançois Cevert crashed duringSaturday practice and was killed instantly. The Tyrrell team withdrew from the race, handing the Manufacturers' title to Lotus. Subsequently, Stewart made public his decision to retire, but he had decided on this already earlier.
British driverRoger Williamson was also killed during the season, in a tragic crash at theDutch Grand Prix wheremarshals arrived too late on the scene and fellow driverDavid Purley was unable to free Williamson from the burning wreck.
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The following teams and drivers contested the 1973 World Championship.
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There were relatively few changes in the top teams, but no less than usual further down the order:
The calendar was expanded from 12 to 15 races:
Other changes:
Like last year, the championship commenced in January inArgentina.Swiss driverClay Regazzoni had leftFerrari after three years, having scored just one podium finish in1972. He was attracted by theMarlboro-sponsoredBritish Racing Motors team for "an astronomical fee"[5] and delivered early success: hequalified onpole position, ahead of reigning championEmerson Fittipaldi in theLotus and last year's teammateJacky Ickx. But on Sunday, it was sixth-startingFrançois Cevert that took his rivals by surprise: he snatched the lead even before the first corner, before being passed by the pole sitter later in the lap. For the first quarter of the race, five drivers formed a tight leading pack: Regazzoni, Cevert, Fittipaldi, new Lotus driverRonnie Peterson and1971 championJackie Stewart. But then, with hisFirestone tyres overheating, Regazzoni fell back to fifth, while Stewart's conservative start allowed him to get up to second place. Going into the tail end of the race, Fittipaldi overtook Stewart, much to the joy of theSouth American fans, and set a new lap record in his chase for Cevert. After 50 laps in the lead, theFrenchman had to surrender first position and eventually finished 5 seconds behind hisBrazilian rival. Stewart came home in third.[17]
After an inspired promotional campaign,São Paulo were selected to host the first ever World ChampionshipBrazilian Grand Prix.Team Lotus dominatedpractice and qualified 1–2, but it was Peterson ahead of Fittipaldi. Ickx started next to them in third. TheTyrrells of Stewart and Cevert could only managed eighth and ninth, respectively. At the start, however, theScot jumped up to third, behind Fittipaldi and another local hero with a good start,Carlos Pace. Peterson fell back to fourth and then, on lap 6, had a crash due to high right rear wheel collapsing. Pace then retired with suspension damage. Fittipaldi finished with a comfortable lead over Stewart.McLaren driverDenny Hulme was third.[18]
Staying on theSouthern Hemisphere but moving almost 7,500 km (4,700 mi) on,Kyalami hosted theSouth African Grand Prix. In practice, Jackie Stewart was going faster and faster until he suffered a dramaticbrake failure and spun backwards through three layers ofchain link fence. He was unhurt, so his biggest grief came from being unable to defend his time: with the first thirteen drivers separated by less than a second, theScot was relegated to the sixteenth place on the grid. Denny Hulme achieved pole position, ahead of Emerson Fittipaldi and local driverJody Scheckter. The start of the race was rather calm, but on lap 3, Clay Regazzoni crashed into a stationaryMike Hailwood. Both cars burst into flames and Regazzoni was unconscious. Hailwood did not hesitate to rescue him and managed to release theSwiss driver'sseat belts. Hisoveralls caught on fire, so he turned to amarshal with afire extinguisher and then continued to drag Regazzoni from the wrecked BRM. Meanwhile, leader Hulme had to pit twice withpunctures, but Stewart was performing a miraculous recovery drive: he was up to sixth place on lap 6, and was leading the race on lap 7.American driverPeter Revson in his McLaren overtook Fittipaldi for second place and managed to stay there. Scheckter retired with just four laps to go. At least three drivers reported Stewart for overtaking underyellow flags and McLaren's team boss filed the official protest. The stewards handed the Scot a severe reprimand but the race results were upheld.[19]
TheSpanish Grand Prix was held onBarcelona'sstreet circuit that combined tighthairpins with high-speed blind corners, resulting in average speeds of over 160 km/h (99 mph). Peterson qualified on pole position, ahead of Hulme and Cevert. Stewart and Fittipaldi started fourth and seventh, respectively. Around a quarter distance, Hulme and Cevert had topit with damage and theSwede at the front achieved a comfortable lead. On lap 55, however, hisgearbox failed and his Lotus ground to a halt. Stewart retired with brake problems and Fittipaldi endured a slowpuncture. Carlos Reutemann, smelling a sudden victory, was chasing down his fellow Brazilian until hisdriveshaft failed. So the championship leader held on to victory, ahead of François Cevert forTyrrell andGeorge Follmer in theShadow.[20]
In the Drivers' Championship,Emerson Fittipaldi (31 points) held a sizable lead overJackie Stewart (19) andFrançois Cevert (12).Lotus (31 points) was leading in the standings for the Manufacturers' Cup, ahead ofTyrrell (27) andMcLaren (15).
TheBelgian Grand Prix was held atCircuit Zolder for the first time, as part of the 1972 agreement to alternate withNivelles-Baulers. The track was prepared for the event too late and after an hour ofpractice, the drivers' union (GPDA) were threatening with astrike action, complaining that thetarmac was breaking up. After a quick resurfacing job on Friday evening, the track held together during Saturday practice, but now was very slippery, and there was a lot ofsand off theracing line.Ronnie Petersonqualified hisLotus onpole position and held the lead at the start, but was passed by fourth-startingFrançois Cevert (Tyrrell) on the second lap. Championship rivalsJackie Stewart (Tyrrell) andEmerson Fittipaldi (Lotus) had started in sixth and ninth, respectively, but quickly charged through the field. After Cevert spun off on lap 20 and rejoined down in eighth, they were fighting for the lead, with theScot coming out on top. When Fittipaldi had to slow with fuel pressure problems, he had to settle for third, while Cevert recovered to second position.[21]
TheMonaco Grand Prix was held on a heavily revised circuit, the layout becoming even twistier and slower than before. Stewart qualified on pole position, ahead of Peterson, but it was Cevert who took the lead at the start.Clay Regazzoni moved hisBRM ahead of Stewart, going up from eighth to third, and this became second when Cevert hit akerbstone and punctured his tyre. On lap 6, however, he locked up coming out of thetunnel and had to make apit stop. Now Stewart could start chasing down Peterson. When theSwede's Lotus started suffering from dropping fuel pressure, the lead was easily taken and Stewart steadily increased his lead. Fittipaldi got by his teammate for second position, but did not manage to put up a real fight with Stewart. The pair finished within 1.3 seconds of each other, while they lapped the rest of the field, making abundantly clear that they would be the championship contenders for this year.[22]
The F1 circus arrived atAnderstorp Raceway for the firstSwedish Grand Prix and it was local hero Ronnie Peterson who qualified on pole position, ahead of François Cevert. Stewart and Fittipaldi started on the second row. At the start, Fittipaldi got up to second and so, the two Lotuses were leading the two Tyrrells. On lap 33, Stewart passed his teammate, who fell further back behindDenny Hulme in miscommunication with a lapped car. TheMcLaren driver was on a real charge and rejoiced in his rivals' troubles: Fittipaldi's brakes were fading before hisgearbox packed up all together, Stewart lost drive and Peterson had worn out his tyres. Hulme won his first Grand Prix, ahead of Peterson and Cevert. Stewart was a lucky man finishing in fifth and salvaging two points for the championship.[23]
Circuit Paul Ricard played host to theFrench Grand Prix, combining two twisty sections with the 1.8 km (1.1 mi) long Mistral Straight. Stewart qualified on pole, ahead of a surprisingJody Scheckter in just his third F1 race, and championship leader Fittipaldi. Scheckter made the quickest getaway and was followed by fifth-starting Peterson. Astonishingly, Scheckter led the field for 42 laps. While lapping a backmarker, however, theSouth African was hit from behind by now-second placed Fittipaldi. Both cars broke their left frontsuspension. Peterson picked up the scraps to take his first Grand Prix victory, ahead of Cevert andReuteman. Stewart came home in fourth, scoring less points than usual, but important points nonetheless.[24]
In the Drivers' Championship,Jackie Stewart (42 points) had just overtakenEmerson Fittipaldi (41), whileFrançois Cevert was third (31). The Manufacturers' Cup was being fought just as closely byLotus (52 points) andTyrrell (51), ahead ofMcLaren (26) in a distant third.
Going into the second half of the championship, theBritish Grand Prix was held at the fastSilverstone Circuit. The 450 bhp (340 kW) cars were expected to hit average speeds of nearly 225 km/h (140 mph). Fans and rivals were eager to see the pace ofJody Scheckter, after he was robbed of an apparent victory inFrance. TheSouth African could manage a sixth starting place.Pole position was forRonnie Peterson (Lotus), withDenny Hulme andPeter Revson (bothMcLarens) next to him. Championship rivalsJackie Stewart andEmerson Fittipaldi filled the second row of the grid. At the start, Stewart shot up to take the lead, ahead of Peterson and eighth-startingReutemann. Going through Woodcote corner for the first time, Scheckter lost the back end of his McLaren, hit thepit wall and came to a halt in the middle of the track. Revson hit Scheckter'srear wing and another nine cars came together in apile-up. The race wassuspended (only the second time in history that had happened) whilemarshals extricatedAndrea de Adamich from the wreckage with a brokenankle. Ninety minutes after the first start, the race got underway again and Peterson led fromLauda and Stewart. TheScot quickly got up to second and then tried his luck for first, but spun on thekerb. When Lauda made a pit stop, Fittipaldi was second, until he was hit with atransmission failure. During a short rain shower, Peterson lost the lead to Revson and theAmerican managed to win his first Grand Prix. Hulme was third, ahead of future championJames Hunt in fourth.[25]
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Scuderia Ferrari had decided to withdraw from theDutch Grand Prix to focus on upgrading their cars, seeing that they had played no part in the championship so far this year. Fittipaldi crashed during Saturday practice when his left front wheel broke coming on to the start-finish straight. His ankles were badly bruised. His teammate Peterson qualified on pole for the sixth time this season, ahead of Stewart and Cevert (Tyrrell). The top two remained the same at the start, but eighth-startingCarlos Pace took the place of Cevert in third. Fittipaldi had started the race but pitted on the second lap and was helped out of his car. On lap 8,Roger Williamson crashed hisMarch at the same corner asPiers Courage in1970. He was trapped in his overturned and burning car. With the crash taking place at the far end of the track, no one of the marshals understood this, instead mistakingDavid Purley, having abandoned his race to rescue Williamson, for the driver that had crashed, and they tried to drag him away. The race, meanwhile, continued and Peterson's lead grew ever bigger, until on lap 40, his engine was losing speed. He eventually retired on lap 66. Stewart took his fourth victory of the season ahead of Cevert and Hunt, the future champion's claiming his first podium finish. Local driverGijs van Lennep finished sixth and scored a point as well.[26]
The fearsomeNürburgring Nordschleife constituted the arena for theGerman Grand Prix. Stewart started on pole, ahead of Peterson and Cevert. Fittipaldi was down in fourteenth, still recovering from his injuries. Peterson retired halfway through the first lap and the Tyrrells were unchallenged.Jacky Ickx was third forMcLaren. Future champion Niki Lauda had crashed on the second lap, completely demolishing hisBRM and breaking hiswrist.[27]
In the Drivers' Championship,Emerson Fittipaldi (42 points) had fallen down to third after a streak of four races without points.Jackie Stewart (60) was leading teammateFrançois Cevert (45).Tyrrell (71 points) had also taken a firm grip on the Manufacturers' Cup overLotus (59) andMcLaren (42).
Lotus were not giving up their hunt for the title:Emerson Fittipaldi andRonnie Petersonqualified 1-2 for theAustrian Grand Prix. Their rivals atTyrrell,Jackie Stewart andFrançois Cevert, started seventh and tenth, respectively.Denny Hulme (McLaren) started third but overtook Fittipaldi before the first corner. On lap 4, Stewart overtookArturo Merzario for fourth place. Cevert tried the same on lap 6, but hit theFerrari and had to retire with a damagedwishbone. Hulme had topit when he lost acylinder. Fittipaldi was allowed to pass Peterson to keep his championship fight alive, but on lap 48, his engine suddenly died. Hisfuel line had come loose and it meant another retirement for the1972 champion. Peterson won, ahead of Stewart andPace.[28]
If Stewart would manage to finish third or higher in theItalian Grand Prix, he would clinch the Drivers' Championship. A lower points finish would almost necessitate Fittipaldi to win and Cevert to get on the podium to stay in the championship fight. It was Peterson who claimed his seventhpole position of the season, ahead of theMcLarens ofPeter Revson andDenny Hulme. Stewart started in sixth, with his teammate and closest rival Cevert in eleventh. Fittipaldi started in fourth but was second before the first corner. Stewart got up to that vital fourth position, until he had to pit with a flat rear tyre. He rejoined in nineteenth, but by half distance, he was up in eighth place. With seven laps to go, he overtook his teammate for fourth position, so Fittipaldi would have to win the race. However, Peterson stayed ahead and Fittipaldi finished second ahead of Revson. Stewart was awarded the 1973 Drivers' Championship.[29]
For theCanadian Grand Prix, Peterson started on pole, ahead of Revson andScheckter. A heavy shower fell before the start and all-but-one drivers started onfull wet tyres. After the start, Peterson was leading Scheckter andLauda, while Revson fell back to seventh. Lauda was comfortable in the wet conditions and actually grabbed the lead on lap 4. Peterson crashed out on lap 16, before the track dried up and everyone started coming into thepits. The race organisers got confused with the order of the cars, even more when Scheckter and Cevert crashed and, as was agreed after theDutch Grand Prix, thepace car was deployed. No one, however, knew for sure who was in the lead and the pace car driver picked upHowden Ganley as such. After ten laps, during which the track had completely dried, the field was released and Ganley hold off Stewart and Fittipaldi for eight laps. Post-race analysis showed that, actually,Jackie Oliver lost the lead on that lap to Peter Revson. Lotus team bossColin Chapman believed Fittipaldi won after passing Ganley, but three hours after the race finished, Revson was declared the winner, with Fittipaldi in second and Oliver in third.[30]
The 1973 season ended on a low-point when François Cevert crashed during practice for theUnited States Grand Prix and was killed on impact. Tyrrell withdrew from the event, giving up the Manufacturers' Title to Lotus. Peterson started on pole for the ninth time this year, ahead ofReutemann and Fittipaldi. Future championHunt in his littleMarch passed Fittipaldi and Reutemann and came within a second of Peterson. TheSwede held on to take his third win in four races, ahead of hero-of-the-day Hunt and Reutemann.[31]
The Drivers' Championship was awarded toJackie Stewart (Tyrrell, 71 points), ahead ofEmerson Fittipaldi (Lotus, 55) andRonnie Peterson (Lotus, 52). The Manufacturers' Cup was won by Lotus (92 points), ahead of Tyrrell (82) andMcLaren (58).
The following races counted towards both the 1973 World Championship of Drivers and the 1973 International Cup for F1 Manufacturers.
Points were awarded to the top six classified finishers. 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 seven results from rounds 1-8 and the best six results from rounds 9-15 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:[32] | ||||||
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| Pos. | Manufacturer | ARG | BRA | RSA | ESP | BEL | MON | SWE | FRA | GBR | NED | GER | AUT | ITA | CAN | USA | Pts. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lotus-Ford[33] | 1 | 1 | 3 | 1 | (3) | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 11 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 92 (96) | |
| 2 | Tyrrell-Ford | 2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | (3) | 2 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 5 | DNS | 82 (86) | |
| 3 | McLaren-Ford | 5 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 7 | 5 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 8 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 58 | |
| 4 | Brabham-Ford | 6 | 11 | 7 | 10 | 4 | 7 | 4 | 3 | 6 | Ret | 5 | 4 | 6 | 8 | 3 | 22 | |
| 5 | March-Ford | 10 | Ret | NC | 7 | 11 | 9 | 8 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 15 | Ret | 9 | 7 | 2 | 14 | |
| 6 | Ferrari | 4 | 4 | 4 | 12 | Ret | Ret | 6 | 5 | 8 | WD | WD | 7 | 8 | 15 | 16 | 12 | |
| 7 | BRM | 7 | 6 | Ret | 5 | 5 | Ret | 9 | 9 | 7 | 5 | Ret | 5 | 13 | 4 | 8 | 12 | |
| 8 | Shadow-Ford | WD | 6 | 3 | 9 | 10 | 14 | 10 | Ret | 10 | 8 | Ret | 10 | 3 | 13 | 9 | ||
| 9 | Surtees-Ford | Ret | 12 | 8 | Ret | 8 | 8 | 10 | 13 | Ret | 7 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 9 | Ret | 7 | |
| 10 | Iso-Marlboro-Ford | NC | 7 | 10 | 11 | Ret | Ret | 11 | 14 | 9 | 6 | 10 | 9 | NC | 6 | 7 | 2 | |
| 11 | Tecno | 6 | Ret | WD | WD | Ret | Ret | WD | DNS | WD | 1 | |||||||
| — | Ensign-Ford | WD | WD | WD | 15 | 13 | DNS | WD | Ret | Ret | NC | Ret | 0 | |||||
| Pos. | Manufacturer | ARG | BRA | RSA | ESP | BEL | MON | SWE | FRA | GBR | NED | GER | AUT | ITA | CAN | USA | Pts. | |
| Source:[34] | ||||||||||||||||||
Ensign, which did not score points during the championship, was not given a classification in the official FIA results.[1]
The 1973 Formula One season included two non-championship races which were open to both Formula One andFormula 5000 cars.[35][36]
| Race Name | Circuit | Date | Winning driver | Constructor | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| VIIIRace of Champions | Brands Hatch | 18 March | Peter Gethin | Chevron-Chevrolet | Report |
| XXVBRDC International Trophy | Silverstone | 8 April | Jackie Stewart | Tyrrell-Ford | Report |
