Formula 1

About the season

Behind champion Emerson Fittipaldi's Lotus 72, the team's look changed too: sponsor John Player Special's black-and-gold livery made its debut this year, becoming one of the most iconic paint schemes in Formula 1 history. Fittipaldi became champion at 25, a record for the youngest title winner that stood for 33 years, until Fernando Alonso broke it in 2005. Jackie Stewart's punishing schedule - Formula 1, Can-Am, touring cars, and American TV commentary - brought on a bout of gastritis that forced him to skip the Belgian Grand Prix, the first time exhaustion openly disrupted a title contender's season. Ferrari endured a disastrous year, managing only a single win all season, courtesy of Jacky Ickx at the German Grand Prix at the Nürburgring. Emerson Fittipaldi won the 1972 Drivers' Championship with 61 points (Team Lotus), 16 points ahead of the runner-up. Team Lotus won the Constructors' Championship with 61 points, 10 points ahead of the runner-up. Across 12 completed races this season, there were 139 retirements. 5 different drivers won a race this season. Emerson Fittipaldi took the most race wins, 5 in total. Stewart won the season-opening race, the Argentine Grand Prix. The season's biggest upset win came from Hulme at the South African Grand Prix, starting from grid position 5. The British Grand Prix saw the most retirements of the season, with 15 drivers failing to finish. The most dominant win of the season came at the German Grand Prix, with a margin of 48.3 seconds. The closest finish of the season came at the Austrian Grand Prix, with a gap of just 1.180 seconds. Peterson made the biggest gain of the season at the United States Grand Prix, from grid position 26 to finishing 4 (up 22 places). Stewart won the United States Grand Prix, the final race of the season.