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| 1975 Spanish Grand Prix | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
| Race details | |||
| Date | 27 April 1975 | ||
| Official name | XXIGran Premio de España | ||
| Location | Montjuïc circuit,Barcelona,Spain | ||
| Course | Street circuit | ||
| Course length | 3.790 km (2.355 miles) | ||
| Distance | 29 laps, 109.91 km (68.29 miles) | ||
| Scheduled distance | 75 laps, 284.25 km (176.62 miles) | ||
| Weather | Sunny | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Ferrari | ||
| Time | 1:23.4 | ||
| Fastest lap | |||
| Driver |  Mario Andretti | Parnelli-Ford | |
| Time | 1:25.1 on lap 14 | ||
| Podium | |||
| First | McLaren-Ford | ||
| Second | Lotus-Ford | ||
| Third | Brabham-Ford | ||
Lap leaders | |||
The1975 Spanish Grand Prix was aFormula One motor race held atMontjuïc circuit on 27 April 1975. It was race 4 of 14 in both the1975 World Championship of Drivers and the1975 International Cup for Formula One Manufacturers.Lella Lombardi became the first and, as of 2025[update], only woman to score points in the World Championship. Lombardi scored 0.5 points as this was the first time a race was stopped before 60% completion leading to the awarding of half the points that would be awarded for a completed race. During the race, a spectator, a fireman and two journalists were hit by theHill GH1 ofRolf Stommelen, after he crashed and landed in a spectator area, causing their deaths. The race was also future world championAlan Jones' first Grand Prix start.
It was the 21stSpanish Grand Prix since the race was first held in 1913. It was the fourth, and last, Grand Prix to be held on the Montjuïc street circuit. The race was shortened to 29 of its scheduled 75 laps, a race distance of 109 kilometres. The race was won by German driverJochen Mass driving aMcLaren M23. It would be the only Formula One win of his career. Mass had just a second lead over theLotus 72E of Belgian driverJacky Ickx when the race was declared. Argentine racerCarlos Reutemann was declared third in hisBrabham BT44B, a lap behind the race leaders after a penalty was given toJean-Pierre Jarier. This was the last win by aGerman driver untilMichael Schumacher won the1992 Belgian Grand Prix.
Right from the start, the drivers who were members of theGrand Prix Drivers Association were furious that the barriers were not bolted together properly. Thus, they went on strike. Most of the sport's major players refused to take part in practice.Jacky Ickx was not a member of the GPDA, and one of the few marquee drivers who did practice.
Track staff worked overnight to fix the barriers, and to make sure everything would be fixed in time for qualifying on Saturday, some of the teams sent out mechanics to help. The drivers, though, still were not convinced, but the race organizers threatened legal action if no race was run. This, and rumors that theGuardia Civil would seize the cars which were in the paddock, which was atMontjuïc Stadium, forced the drivers to call off the strike.
The defending World ChampionEmerson Fittipaldi, however, was still furious. He did the minimum three laps, but at a very slow pace, then pulled into the pits.
| Pos | No | Driver | Constructor | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 12 |  Niki Lauda | Ferrari | 1:23.4 |
| 2 | 11 |  Clay Regazzoni | Ferrari | 1:23.5 |
| 3 | 24 |  James Hunt | Hesketh-Ford | 1:23.8 |
| 4 | 27 | Mario Andretti | Parnelli-Ford | 1:23.9 |
| 5 | 9 |  Vittorio Brambilla | March-Ford | 1:24.2 |
| 6 | 18 | John Watson | Surtees-Ford | 1:24.3 |
| 7 | 4 |  Patrick Depailler | Tyrrell-Ford | 1:24.4 |
| 8 | 16 | Tom Pryce | Shadow-Ford | 1:24.5 |
| 9 | 22 |  Rolf Stommelen | Hill-Ford | 1:24.7 |
| 10 | 17 | Jean-Pierre Jarier | Shadow-Ford | 1:25.0 |
| 11 | 2 | Jochen Mass | McLaren-Ford | 1:25.2 |
| 12 | 5 |  Ronnie Peterson | Lotus-Ford | 1:25.3 |
| 13 | 3 |  Jody Scheckter | Tyrrell-Ford | 1:25.4 |
| 14 | 8 |  Carlos Pace | Brabham-Ford | 1:25.8 |
| 15 | 7 |  Carlos Reutemann | Brabham-Ford | 1:25.8 |
| 16 | 6 |  Jacky Ickx | Lotus-Ford | 1:26.3 |
| 17 | 28 | Mark Donohue | Penske-Ford | 1:26.3 |
| 18 | 21 | Tony Brise | Williams-Ford | 1:26.4 |
| 19 | 31 |  Roelof Wunderink | Ensign-Ford | 1:26.6 |
| 20 | 25 |  Alan Jones | Hesketh-Ford | 1:26.7 |
| 21 | 30 | Wilson Fittipaldi | Fittipaldi-Ford | 1:27.2 |
| 22 | 23 | François Migault | Hill-Ford | 1:27.9 |
| 23 | 14 | Bob Evans | BRM | 1:28.8 |
| 24 | 10 | Lella Lombardi | March-Ford | 1:30.3 |
| 25 | 20 | Arturo Merzario | Williams-Ford | 1:54.3 |
| 26 | 1 | Emerson Fittipaldi | McLaren-Ford | 2:10.2 |
| Source:[2] | ||||
On the morning of the race, Fittipaldi announced he would not race, and went back home. During the morning,Ken Tyrrell went out onto the circuit with awrench to make sure the barriers were in good condition. The race was due to start at 12:30pm but there were delays.
The twoFerraris ofNiki Lauda (on pole) andClay Regazzoni qualified on the front row. At the start,Vittorio Brambilla'sMarch tangled withMario Andretti'sParnelli. Andretti's car hit the back of Lauda's, sending him into Regazzoni. Lauda was out immediately, while Regazzoni took his car to the garage, where repairs were made, and Regazzoni was sent back out.Patrick Depailler also retired on the first lap because of suspension damage, andWilson Fittipaldi andArturo Merzario withdrew in protest.
After the first-corner incidents,James Hunt was shown as the leader. Despite being involved in contact, Andretti had managed to keep going and was running in second.John Watson was in third,Rolf Stommelen was fourth, Brambilla fifth, andCarlos Pace sixth.
On lap four, the engine inJody Scheckter'sTyrrell blew, and oil on the circuit causedAlan Jones andMark Donohue to crash. Three laps later, Hunt also slipped in the oil and crashed. The top three had become Andretti, Watson, and Stommelen. Watson's car suffered from vibrations and dropped out. Andretti's rear suspension lasted only seven more laps before it failed, causing him to crash out of the lead.Jean-Pierre Jarier and Brambilla stopped to change tyres, whileTom Pryce andTony Brise tangled. Stommelen was now in the top spot, followed by Pace,Ronnie Peterson,Jochen Mass, and Ickx. On lap 24, Peterson was out after he tangled withFrançois Migault while trying to lap the Frenchman.
Two laps later, tragedy struck. The rear wing on Stommelen'sEmbassy Hill broke, sending him into the barrier. He bounced off it and back into the road, hitting the barrier across the way, and flying over it. While trying to avoid Stommelen as he crossed the track, Pace crashed. Four people were killed by Stommelen's flying car: fireman Joaquín Benaches Morera, spectator Andrés Ruiz Villanova, and two photo-journalists, Mario de Roia and Antonio Font Bayarri.[3] Stommelen himself suffered a broken leg, a broken wrist, and two cracked ribs.
The race continued for another four laps, during which Mass passed Ickx for the lead. On lap 29, the race was halted with Mass the winner, Ickx second, andJean-Pierre Jarier crossed the line in third position.Carlos Reutemann finished fourth ahead of Brambilla in fifth.Lella Lombardi finished in sixth and became the only woman in Formula One to score championship points. With the race being stopped before 60% of the scheduled race distance was reached,[4] only half points were awarded for the first time in the history of the championship. After the race, stewards found that Jarier had overtaken in a portion of the track covered by a yellow flag caution. Jarier was given a sixty-second penalty that relegated him to fourth position.[5]
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