1975 South African Grand Prix

The 1975 South African Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Kyalami on 26th January 1975. It was the second race in both the 1975 World Championship of Drivers and the 1975 International Cup for Formula One Manufacturers. It was the 21st South African Grand Prix since the first Grand Prix was held in 1934 and the ninth to be held at Kyalami just outside Johannesburg. 
== Race Summary ==
Following a disappointing result in the opening round of the season, Ferrari brought several upgrades to Kyalami with the hope of being able to challenge Lotus. Their new car was noticably lighter than the car they had started the season with and they set the fastest time in practice. Gunnar Olander grabbed pole position with his upgraded Ferrari, with Stefan Van Damme and Maria Parker lining up behind. 
Olander and Van Damme would battle through the first corners of the race for the lead but Olander managed to just stay ahead. The start was messier behind, as Maria Parker lost control of her McLaren and collected Nathan Meiri. Both cars sustained minimal damage but dropped to the back of the field as the rest of the grid flew past. 
Van Damme put Olander under intense pressure as the pair pulled away at the front of the pack, with Van Damme attempting to force the Ferrari driver into a mistake. The pair would swap positions several times during the race, but Van Damme eventually managed to find a way past on the penultimate lap and kept the lead until the end of the race. Mick Ashcroft finished with another podium, just ahead of the two McLaren's, with Vadim Pshenichnikov scoring his first Formula One points and Maria Parker recovering to finish 5th. 
The Brabham of Gregory Gray had a massive shunt into the barrier just before the Jukskei Sweep and his car almost went airborne as it rebounded across the track. He was killed instantly by the crash.
== Classification ==
Pos	Driver 	Constructor	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid	Points
1 	Stefan Van Damme 	Lotus 	16 	19:57.352 	2 	9
2 	Gunnar Olander 	Ferrari 	16 	1 	6 	
3 	Mick Ashcroft 	Williams 	16 	4 	4 	
4 	Vadim Pshenichnikov	McLaren 	16 	5 	3 	
5 	Maria Parker 	McLaren 	16 	3 	2 	
6 	Bastian Stuber 	Brabham 	16 	9 	1 	
7 	Strip Weathers 	Fittipaldi 	16 	8 	 	
8 	Nathan Meiri 	Lotus 	15 	7 	 	
9 	Mark Habets 	March 	15 	12 	 	
10 	Gregory Gray 	Hesketh 	10 	Fatal Crash 	6 	
11 	Max Westland 	Shadow 	8 	Crash 	10 	
12 	Waldemar Bauer 	Shadow 	7 	Crash 	11 	
Category:Races