1975 Formula One Season

The **1975 Formula One season** was the 26th season of Formula One motor racing. The championship was contested concurrently over an eleven race series that commenced on 12th January and end on 5th October.

Jesse Masters and McLaren were the reigning Drivers' and Constructors' champions respectively. However Masters' contract was not renewed as he moved to join Tyrrell for the 1975 season.

Masters was unable to defend his championship, having only taken part in one race, and the title was ultimately won by Stefan Van Damme, with Lotus winning the Constructors' Championship. This was the Belgian driver's second championship.

## Season Report

### **Round 1: Argentina**

The drivers went to Argentina to start the season, and it was Stefan Van Damme in the Lotus who took pole position. The Williams of Mick Ashcroft and McLaren of Maria Parker started in second and third respectively.

The race started with immediate action as Ferrari's Jorge Fernandez was caught out by the slow starting Ashcroft. Fernandez attempted to evade the Williams but he span and hit Lotus' Nathan Meiri Shadow's Max Westland.

After the first lap the race carried on without any major incidents until the last few laps of the race. Bastian Stüber mistakenly thought the race ended when there was a lap left and slowed at the finish. The March of Erik Peters also suffered a steering rack failure in the middle of the sweeping right-hander of turn 3/4. Peters went into the barriers as the lower part failed, causing the driver to succumb from the injuries. Van Damme won, followed by Ashcroft and Parker.

### **Round 2: South Africa**

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.

### **Round 3: Spain**

Before the race, many drivers expressed concerns at the safety of the circuit and it's high speed layout. Gunnar Olander did not share these concerns, unlike most of the grid. Tyrrell attended their first race this season, but 1973 champion Alex Plunkett would start at the back of the grid due to missing qualifying.

Starting from the inside, Ashcroft had a better start than Van Damme and launched into the lead. There was a small incident at the first corner as Gunnar Olander was tapped from behind and fell to the back of the pack. As the race went on, Ashcroft found himself under pressure from Van Damme and the Fittipaldi driver Strip Weathers, who was taking part in only his second race. This order continued until Van Damme span at the exit of turn 6 and fell to third. Ashcroft and Weathers started the penultimate lap side by side, but Weathers locked up into turn one and ran wide, giving up second to Van Damme.

Ashcroft was leading the race on lap 13 when he suffered a gearbox problem at the final corner, losing several seconds as well as the lead to the Lotus driver. In a sign of sportsmanship, Van Damme returned the position to Ashcroft and ultimately the Australian driver would go on to win the race. Gunnar Olander would recover from last at the end of the first lap to finish on the final step of the podium.

This race also saw the death of Bastian Stuber, who lost control of his car and hit the pit wall on lap two.

### **Round 4: Belgium**

Mick Ashcroft started from pole position for the first time in his Formula One career, with Stefan Van Damme and Alex Robin Plunkett lining up behind. The Australian driver put in an impressive lap to qualify over seven tenths ahead of Van Damme.

The start of the race was initially clean, with Van Damme overtaking Ashcroft to take the lead. Ashcroft lit up his tyres at the exit of the corner and temporarily lost the position to his teammate Gunnar Olander. Heading onto the back straight, Alex Plunkett lost control of his car and span across the track. Nathan Meiri was unable to react in time and slammed into the side of Plunkett's car. Although Meiri was able to continue, the side impact to Plunkett was too much and he passed away shortly after the impact. The race continued to be filled with crashes, with Gunnar Olander spinning and hitting the pitwall at the end of the third lap. After repairs, he continued but would have another serious crash at turn six as another car returned to the circuit. Olander survived, but broke his feet and suffered a concussion.

Jorge Fernandez crashed at the final corner as his brakes failed on lap ten. His car smashed through the catch fencing, injuring one spectator and killing another. Fernandez was unhurt.

Van Damme controlled the race at the front, finishing just under ten seconds ahead of Mick Ashcroft. After just missing out on a podium in the previous round, Strip Weathers finished third. Ferrari were impressed by Weathers' speed and results and hired him on a temporary basis to replace the injured Gunnar Olander.

### **Round 5: Netherlands**

For the third race in a row, safety was the major talking point of the weekend. Despite the addition of a new chicane before the final corner, many drivers were hesitant to race around the fast and dangerous Zandvoort Circuit. Jorge Fernandez pulled out of the race weekend due to safety concerns.

The rookie Sterling Eldridge-Moffat surprised the entire grid by taking pole position in his first Formula One weekend. Eldridge-Moffat lead the pack into the first corner, with Van Damme staying in second ahead of Ashcroft. Later on the first lap, Mark Habets lost control of his March car on cold tyres and hit the wall, ending his race. Many Dutch fans immediately left the circuit in disappointment.

Approaching Tunnel Oost on the third lap, Eldridge-Moffat hit the inside kerb which threw his car into the outside wall. Van Damme was just able to avoid collecting Eldridge-Moffat's car as it careered across the circuit. The Hesketh driver had heavy damage but was able to limp into the pitlane for repairs. Van Damme held the lead of the race until the end, with Ashcroft finishing just one second behind. Nathan Meiri picked up his first podium despite an incident-filled race.

With this race, Van Damme extended his lead in the Drivers' Championship ahead of Ashcroft. Lotus maintained their lead of the Manufacturer's Championship over Ferrari by nine points.

### **Round 6: France**

The championship was heating up as the season reached it's halfway point. Stefan Van Damme put his Lotus on pole for the first time since the Spanish Grand Prix, qualifying two tenths ahead of his championship rival Mick Ashcroft.

Van Damme and Ashcroft had similar launches off the start, but Van Damme locked up at the first corner which allowed the Ferrari driver to take the lead. There was a small pile-up further back on the grid as Nathan Meiri collided with Max Westland's Shadow car, causing Meiri to collect Maria Parker before hitting the wall. Both drivers retired from the race, but were unhurt in the crash.

Van Damme put pressure on Ashcroft at the front but a brake problem on lap 5 caused the Lotus driver to go wide at the first corner. Eldridge-Moffat inherited second before a mistake from Ashcroft gave Eldridge-Moffat the lead of the race. He would finish there, despite mounting pressure from Ashcroft in the closing laps. This was Eldridge-Moffat's first Formula One race win. Van Damme finished in third and Jorge Fernandez scored his first points this season, having replaced the injured Strip Weathers at Ferrari.

### **Round 7: Great Britain**

Stefan Van Damme took his 4th pole position of the season, with Mick Ashcroft and Nathan Meiri lining up behind.

The race start was clean, with Van Damme losing two positions by the first corner. Ashcroft took the lead, followed by Nathan Meiri. However, Meiri would allow Van Damme to pass before Club, promoting the Belgian driver into second. Meiri later had a tangle with Eder Fabre at Stowe but both cars survived.

The front two cars of Ashcroft and Van Damme pulled away at the head of the race but on lap nine Ashcroft's car snapped and went off at Stowe. He hit the enbankment and lost the lead and second to Van Damme and Eldridge-Moffat. Ashcroft struggled in the closing laps and would go on to finish 5th.

Van Damme's pace dropped in the final three laps which allowed Eldridge-Moffat to close the gap quickly. He challenged Van Damme for the lead of the race on the final lap but was unable to complete the move, with the Belgian driver just managing to hold on to win the race.

### **Round 8: Austria**

Lotus came into the weekend as favourites and their pace was apparent during practice. The fast sweeping corners and straights of the Österreichring suited the Lotus 72E. Meanwhile, McLaren were struggling to gather any momentum in the season and stopped development of the McLaren M23 to focus on the 1976 Formula One season.

Stefan Van Damme took his fifth pole position in qualifying, beating teammate Nathan Meiri by just under a tenth. Brabham driver Matthjis Bouwknegt was due to take part but fell ill on the morning of the race and withdrew. Eldridge-Moffat had an engine issue during qualifying and decided to start from the back of the grid.

Meiri to took the lead at the race start. Maria Parker and rookie Dale Ballweg came into contact and both retired from the race due to damage. Meiri let Van Damme pass him at the end of the first lap due to the latter's pace and the championship.

There was a notable battle between Mick Ashcroft, Giuseppe Ferrari, and Sterling Eldridge-Moffat for much of the race. Ferrari made an aggressive move on lap two against Ashcroft, making contact with the Australian driver but taking third in the process. Ashcroft went wide and lost another two positions to his teammate and Eldridge-Moffat due to the incident.

On lap three, Eldidge-Moffat passed Strip Weathers for third, with the Ferrari driver not feeling fully confident in his car. There was yet another collision between Ferrari and Ashcroft a few laps later and Ashscroft span but sustained no damage. Later on lap nine, Ferrari went wide on the entry to the Raiffeisenhügel straight and crashed with Ashcroft. Ferrari hit an arm-co barrier and sustained injuries that would keep him from racing for several weeks. Ashcroft's car was damaged in the incident but the Australian limped through to the end of the race, eventually finishing just behind his teammate. Van Damme won the race by over ten seconds over Nathan Meiri, with Eldridge-Moffat finishing third.

### **Round 9: Italy**

With the championship almost at an end, the pressure was on Mick Ashcroft to deliver a good result in Ferrari's home race, especially with the championship leader Stefan Van Damme being absent. The Belgian driver was taking part in the Talladega 500 race as a wildcard entry and was given permission by Lotus to miss the Italian Grand Prix for it.

Weathers had the best launch from second in the three-wide front row, but collided with pole-sitter Mick Ashcroft moments after the race start. Due to the incident the two Brabham cars stormed into the lead before the first corner. However, Barlazzi had understeer at Curva Grande on cold tyres and slid along the armco barrier lining the circuit. The rookie mistake meant that his Formula One race debut had only lasted a few hundred meters before coming to an end.

Bouwknegt led the race up until Parabolica, where he was caught out by a patch of oil that was dropped on the circuit from a support race. Several others, including Maria Parker, Gunnar Olander, and Sterling Eldridge-Moffat also ran off the circuit. This left Vadim Pshenichnikov leading the race. Pshenichnikov battled with Ashcroft for the leadinto the Lesmo's, which allowed Meiri to close up and forcefully pass Ashcroft for second, with Ashcroft also losing another position to his teammate in the process.

Gunnar Olander was exiting Parabolica, ready to make a move on Pshenichnikov for the race lead, when his engine suddenly exploded. Luckily, he was near the pitlane when this happened and managed to coast into the pits before jumping into the spare car and returning to the race. The damage had been done however, and Olander dropped to last in his comeback to the sport.

The front three of Pshenichnikov, Ashcroft, and Meiri continued to battle for the lead of the race, before contact at Ascari between Pschenichnikov and Ashcroft allowed Meiri to sweep around the outside of the corner to take the lead.

Maria Parker had a collision with her teammate Vadim Pshenichnikov at the start of lap five, with the Russian driver coming off worse from the incident. Meiri continued to lead the race, just ahead of Ferrari's Ashcroft. With just a few laps until the end of the race, Meiri's pace dropped, with Ashcroft passing him before Parabolica, much to the delight of the cheering Tifosi. Ashcroft went on to win the race. Meiri finished in second, just over two seconds behind Ashcroft, with Eldridge-Moffat completing the podium.

### **Round 10: Canada**

Stefan Van Damme started from pole position for the sixth time this season, having missed the previous race at Monza. He was followed by Gunnar Olander and Nathan Meiri, with his championship rival Mick Ashcroft starting from fourth.

There was an incident moments before the race start as Matthjis Bouwknegt's Brabham car lurched forward on the grid, hitting his teammate as well as the Ferrari's of Ashcroft and Olander ahead. The Dutch driver's foot had accidentally slipped off the clutch, causing his car to move forward from its grid spot. Both Ferrari cars started the race with heavy suspension damage due to the crash and Ashcroft was given a penalty, much to the bemusement of his team and the fans watching. This was unfortunate for Ashcroft, as Van Damme just needed a podium finish to clinch the championship.

Following the pre-race incident, the race start was clean and the front of the field maintained their positions for much of the first lap. Nathan Meiri slipstreamed his way past Olander's Ferrari on the main straight and the two drivers briefly went side-by-side through turn 8 before Olander's car slid off the circuit due to low track grip and cold tyres. He escaped without damage but returned to the track in sixth behind Amor's Tyrrell.

Olander caught up to Meiri by lap 11 but was unable to pass due to the Lotus' superior straight line speed. Approaching turn nine, the suspension on Olander's Ferrari partly failed and he span, hitting the wall. Although he continued driving, his car had even more damage and his pace dropped considerably.

Stefan Van Damme was leading by around ten seconds from his teammate Nathan Meiri when he started slowing up on the penultimate lap. He had promised to repay Meiri after being let through to win both the Austrian and British Grand Prix. Meiri passed Van Damme as they started the final lap and the two Lotus drivers cruised through to get their second one-two finish of the season.

Further behind, Olander's pace dropped even more as his tyres started wearing more. On the final lap, with Weathers and Ashcroft not far behind, he once again span at turn 9 but managed to not hit the wall. His car rejoined the circuit backwards and into the path of Max Westland, who slowed but was unable to avoid crashing into Olander. Although the crash damaged the Ferrari car even more, Olander was able to just get to the finish line to be classified fifth. Westland was able to finish the race with damage just ahead of Barlazzili and Amor. Olander was given a medical checkup after the race and was deemed unfit to race at the final race of the season in Watkins Glen.

Van Damme's second place finish meant that Ashcroft could no longer catch him in the championship and therefore Van Damme was crowned the 1975 Champion.

### **Round 11: United States**

Several drivers were absent from this race, with Mick Ashcroft spending time at home due to his wife's pregnancy and imminent birth of their son. Gunnar Olander was still recovering in hospital from injuries sustained in a crash at Mosport and Vadim Pshenichnikov's location was still unknown.

Stefan Van Damme had reported engine problems during practice and had several components replaced before qualifying. Despite the new parts, his car's engine failed in the closing stages of qualifying as he was completing his lap and having not completed a representative laptime, the Belgian driver decided to start from the back of the field. Rookie driver William Worchestershire-Smythe was the sole Ferrari driver present this weekend and surprised almost everyone in the paddock by grabbing pole position.

Poddel Noyeimya had a great start from seventh and immediately took the lead of the race, with W-S and Scott Amor in 2nd and 3rd. Amor was able to pass Worchestershire-Smythe and then catch up to the back of race leader Noyeimya before passing him at the beginning of lap three. Noyeimya started to struggle as his brakes slowly got worse over the course of the race and he lost several positions before hitting a wall at the penultimate corner on lap five and retiring from the race.

Having started at the back of the grid, Stefan Van Damme had moved up to 7th by the end of lap three. Nathan Meiri and Assing had a collision at the exit of turn five which sent Assing heavily into the outside wall, destroying his car in the process. Van Damme and his teammate Meiri battled for several laps before the world champion eventually found his way past and caught up to W-S and Amor.

Giuseppe Ferrari was attempting to recover after the start incident and had made up a couple of positions by lap nine. Pushing the track limits of the final corner, his car lost grip on the outside kerb and he span into the pitlane wall. Spectators watched as the Italian driver sat motionless in his Brabham car. By the time the marshals reached him, he was already pronounced dead. He would be the fifth and final driver to lose his life in the 1975 Formula One Season.

W-S was on course to win his first Formula One race as he started the final lap, with Van Damme and Amor trailing just a second behind. He had started on soft tyres, contrary to most other drivers, but these tyres were falling off by the end of the race. As he was exiting turn five, his Ferrari car oversteered and suddenly snapped, causing W-S to slam into the outside wall. Van Damme took the lead of the race, but with a spluttering and overheating engine was forced to lift and coast for the final moments of the race. This allowed Amor to pull alongside as they reached the penultimate corner and Van Damme placed his car in the middle of the circuit, doing all he could to defend the race lead. Pulling out of the final corner, Van Damme's Lotus let out a plume of smoke and Amor pulled alongside but was just unable to snatch the race win. The final gap between Van Damme and Amor was just 42 thousandths, one of the closest race finishes in Formula One history.

## Results and Standings

### **Grands Prix**

\* The Brazilian Grand Prix was due to be held as the second round of the championship but race organisers cancelled the race due to political unrest.

### **Constructors' Championship - Final Standings**

   **Bold:** Pole position.

*Italics:* Fastest lap.

Points were awarded to the top six finishers: **9, 6, 4, 3, 2, 1.**

The best four results from the first five races and the best five results from the remaining six races were retained. Only the best placed car from each manufacturer was eligible to score points in the Constructors' Championship

## Controversies

#### **Vadim Pshenichnikov and false identities**

Ahead of the Argentinian Grand Prix, the FIA discovered that Vadim Pshenichnikov had entered under a false name of Viktor Pearce and was subsequently banned from participating in the first race of the season. After some heated discussions with the FIA and the Soviet government, he was finally allowed to race under the USSR flag and resumed using his Russian name.

#### **Claims of performance enhancing drug usage**

After a dominant win at the opening round of the 1975 season, Van Damme came under scrutiny for his pace and many drivers, including his ex-teammate Gunnar Olander and Ferrari driver Jorge Fernandez, accused him of using performance-enhancing drugs. Van Damme has strongly denied these rumours.