1961 United States Grand Prix (lost footage of Formula One World Championship race; 1961)

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Revision as of 11:55, 1 October 2022 by SpaceManiac888 (talk | contribs) (Final race of the 1961 Season ends with Innes Ireland claiming his sole World Championship victory, and Team Lotus' first. Also marked the final World Championship start for Stirling Moss, and interestingly enough, business tycoon Howard Hughes' final public apperance.)
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1961unitedstatesgrandprix1.jpg

Programme for the race.

Status: Lost

The 1961 United States Grand Prix was the eighth and final race of the 1961 Formula One Season. Occurring on 8th October at Watkins Glen, the race, one of a few World Championship events not to feature Ferrari, was ultimately won by Lotus-Climax's Innes Ireland, his sole World Championship victory and Team Lotus' first. It also marked the final World Championship start for Stirling Moss.

Background

The 1961 United States Grand Prix was the 11th running of the event, lasting for 100 laps.[1][2] The second instance as part of the Formula One World Championship, the United States Grand Prix would be held at Watkins Glen from 1961 to 1980.[3][1] Since then, the race has been held on and off as part of the Formula One calendar, before making an annual return from 2012 onwards, being held at the Circuit of the Americas.[3][1]

Heading into the event, it was confirmed that Ferrari were to be absent.[4][5][6] Having already secured both the Drivers' and Constructors' titles, the team opted to withdraw from the race following legal issues in Italy concerning the deaths of Wolfgang von Trips and 15 spectators at the 1961 Italian Grand Prix.[4][5][6] World Champion and American driver Phil Hill was not granted a Ferrari car despite numerous sums of money being offered to Enzo Ferrari to change his mind, nor was released from his Ferrari contract, so was forced to attend only as the Grand Marshal for the event.[6][4] However, other American stars such as Porsche's Dan Gurney, as well as one-off competitors like Cooper-Climax's Roger Penske and Lotus-Climax's Jim Hall were to compete in qualifying.[5][6][4] After most spent the first qualifying session learning the track, the second saw many of the fastest times be posted. Cooper-Climax's Jack Brabham achieved pole position with a time of 1:17.[4][5][6][2] Directly behind him was BRM's Graham Hill, with Moss lining up third in a Rob Walker Lotus-Climax.[4][5][6][2] Ireland would start eighth out of 19 competitors.[2][4]

Also of note is that business tycoon Howard Hughes was present in the pits, where he proceeded to discuss potentially buying Cooper Cars from John Cooper.[6] Ultimately, no deal was made, although Cooper later stated that had an offer been made, he would have accepted it.[6] The encounter is significant because it marked the final known public appearance of Hughes, whose worsening mental and physical health saw him delve further into a reclusive existence for the remaining years of his life.[7][6]

The Race

With the starting order decided, the 1961 United States Grand Prix commenced on 8th October.[2] While Brabham led the field at the start, it was Moss who then moved up into first after having overtaken the Australian and Graham Hill.[6][4][5][2] On lap 3, Ireland attempted to overtake Hill, but a spin saw it fall down to 11th.[4][6] However, he made a strong recovery, eventually moving up to fourth behind Cooper-Climax's Bruce McLaren on lap 8.[4] Two laps earlier, Brabham re-passed Moss for first, but the pair would engage in swapping the lead throughout the early stages of the event.[4][6][5][2] By lap 34, Moss had overtaken Brabham in a few instances, but the Cooper proved faster on the uphill climb, enabling Brabham to regain the lead.[4][6][2] McLaren meanwhile lost fifth gear and proved easy pickings for Ireland and Hill.[4][6] On lap 39, Moss again passed Brabham, the latter now experiencing engine issues following a loss of coolant.[4][6][2] A pit stop for water did not resolve the situation, and he retired on lap 58.[4][6][5][2]

A lap later, Moss would also retire following an engine failure.[4][6][5][2] This would mark his final appearance in the World Championship; an accident at the non-championship 1962 Glover Trophy saw him suffer serious injuries, and he elected to retire from Formula One when he felt he lacked the concentration he held previously.[8] Having finished runners-up four times and in third place three times, Moss is considered by many to be one of the greatest drivers never to win the Drivers' Championship.[8] Following Moss' retirement, Ireland led ahead of Hill.[6][4][5][2] Despite Hill providing pressure towards Ireland for the next 15 laps, the Lotus driver held strong, while Hill would be forced into the pits on lap 74 to fix a loose magneto cover.[4][6][5] Ireland's next rival was Cooper-Climax's Roy Salvadori, who was closing the gap after Ireland began experiencing fuel pressure issues.[6][4][5] With five laps remaining, Salvadori was five seconds behind Ireland, and seemed set to claim victory.[6][4][5] Ultimately, he retired with three laps remaining following an engine failure.[6][4][5][2]

Thus, Gurney moved up to second, but was unable to challenge Ireland.[4][6][5] Thus, the latter claimed victory, the first for the works Team Lotus, and eight points in the Drivers' Championship.[4][6][5][2] This proved to be Ireland's only World Championship victory, with him being dropped by the team less than a week later.[6] Gurney finished second, while BRM's Tony Brooks claimed third in his final race before retiring from Formula One.[6][4][5][2] McLaren was fourth, Hill recovered to finish fifth, while Porsche's Jo Bonnier finished two laps down in sixth.[6][4][2][5]

Availability

According to Issue 1,978 of Radio Times, the BBC televised highlights of the race as part of Sportsview on 11th October 1961.[9][10] Included in the 30-minute broadcast was a preview of the 1961 Ryder Cup, and a film of water skiing at the Princes Club. The broadcast has yet to resurface however, and no footage of the race is seemingly publicly available.

See Also

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Ultimate Car Page detailing the instances of the United States Grand Prix. Retrieved 1st Oct '22
  2. ↑ 2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 Racing-Reference detailing the qualifying and race results of the event. Retrieved 1st Oct '22
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Williams F1 detailing the history of the United States Grand Prix. Retrieved 1st Oct '22
  4. ↑ 4.00 4.01 4.02 4.03 4.04 4.05 4.06 4.07 4.08 4.09 4.10 4.11 4.12 4.13 4.14 4.15 4.16 4.17 4.18 4.19 4.20 4.21 4.22 4.23 4.24 A Second A Lap providing a race report. Retrieved 1st Oct '22
  5. ↑ 5.00 5.01 5.02 5.03 5.04 5.05 5.06 5.07 5.08 5.09 5.10 5.11 5.12 5.13 5.14 5.15 5.16 5.17 Grand Prix summarising the race. Retrieved 1st Oct '22
  6. ↑ 6.00 6.01 6.02 6.03 6.04 6.05 6.06 6.07 6.08 6.09 6.10 6.11 6.12 6.13 6.14 6.15 6.16 6.17 6.18 6.19 6.20 6.21 6.22 6.23 6.24 6.25 6.26 Autosport providing a race report, and detailing Howard Hughes' appearance at the event. Retrieved 1st Oct '22
  7. ↑ BBC detailing the life of Howard Hughes. Retrieved 1st Oct '22
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 BBC detailing Moss' career. Retrieved 1st Oct '22
  9. ↑ BBC Genome archive of Radio Times issues detailing the Sportsview broadcast. Retrieved 1st Oct '22
  10. ↑ List of Formula One television broadcasts noting the BBC provided highlights of the race. Retrieved 1st Oct '22
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