| 1975 Race of Champions | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Non-championship race in the1975 Formula One season | |||
 | |||
| Race details[1] | |||
| Date | 16 March 1975 | ||
| Location | Brands Hatch Grand Prix Circuit,Fawkham,Kent,England | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 4.206 km (2.6136 miles) | ||
| Distance | 40 laps, 168.24 km (104.544 miles) | ||
| Weather | Cold, Wet | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Shadow-Ford | ||
| Time | 1:34.9 | ||
| Fastest lap | |||
| Driver |  Tom Pryce | Shadow-Ford | |
| Time | 1:21.1 | ||
| Podium | |||
| First | Shadow-Ford | ||
| Second | Surtees-Ford | ||
| Third | Lotus-Ford | ||
The1975 Race of Champions was a non-championshipFormula One race held atBrands Hatch on 16 March 1975. Weather conditions were inhospitable, with strong winds, heavy rain and even snow showers during the weekend.
There was some pre-race controversy about the decision to top up the grid withFormula 5000 cars-eventually a compromise was reached where only those drivers with Formula 1 experience would be permitted to start.
Ironically the most vehement protester against the Formula 5000 drivers,Emerson Fittipaldi, qualified only 17th, some four rows behind the fastest Formula 5000 driverTom Belsø.
Roelof Wunderink made his début in theEnsign, whilstTony Trimmer qualified well in the newSafir car (previously known as aToken) andMaurizio Flammini was a non-starter after crashing heavily in practice.
Tom Pryce dominated in appalling weather conditions fromJody Scheckter, giving the crowd a home driver to cheer in the absence ofJames Hunt.
The start was delayed as snow fell and teams had to quickly decide which type of tyres to use, but when the flag fell,Jacky Ickx surged through from the second row to lead. In midfield, Belso was hit and spun taking outJochen Mass, who retired despite having minimal damage to the car. As a result of this incident, the decision was taken to bar Formula 5000 cars from future Formula 1 races.
Scheckter took the lead at the end of lap 1 on dry tyres and Pryce was soon catching him, having passedRonnie Peterson and Ickx after a bad start on the damp side of the track.
In second place, with a strong home following wasJohn Watson in theSurtees who gained the place having taken Peterson when they were passing backmarkers at Druids Bend.[2]
Despite not being a Championship round, Pryce's win makes this the only Formula One race won by a Welshman.
Media related to1975 Race of Champions at Wikimedia Commons
| Previous race: 1974 BRDC International Trophy | Formula One non-championship races 1975 season | Next race: 1975 BRDC International Trophy |
| Previous race: 1974 Race of Champions | Race of Champions | Next race: 1976 Race of Champions |
