Formula 1

About the season

On the opening lap of the British Grand Prix at Silverstone, Jody Scheckter spun at Woodcote and triggered a nine-car pile-up that halted the race for nearly ninety minutes - the last world championship race held on the original, chicane-free Silverstone layout. At the Dutch Grand Prix in Zandvoort, Roger Williamson's car flipped and caught fire after a suspension or tyre failure; his friend and fellow driver David Purley abandoned his own race, ran to the burning wreck, and tried single-handedly, with the only fire extinguisher on hand, to save him while poorly trained marshals held back - Purley later received the George Medal, but Williamson could not be saved. On 6 October, François Cevert was killed during qualifying for the United States Grand Prix at Watkins Glen. Jackie Stewart, who had decided back in April to retire and had already clinched his third World Championship, never contested what would have been his 100th Grand Prix - out of respect for Cevert, his Tyrrell team withdrew from the race entirely. Jackie Stewart won the 1973 Drivers' Championship with 71 points (Tyrrell), 16 points ahead of the runner-up. Team Lotus won the Constructors' Championship with 91 points, 11 points ahead of the runner-up. Across 15 completed races this season, there were 170 retirements. 5 different drivers won a race this season. Jackie Stewart took the most race wins, 5 in total. Fittipaldi won the season-opening race, the Argentine Grand Prix. The season's biggest upset win came from Stewart at the South African Grand Prix, starting from grid position 16. The most dominant win of the season came at the Spanish Grand Prix, with a margin of 42.7 seconds. de Adamich made the biggest gain of the season at the Monaco Grand Prix, from grid position 25 to finishing 7 (up 18 places). The Monaco Grand Prix saw the most retirements of the season, with 16 drivers failing to finish. The closest finish of the season came at the United States Grand Prix, with a gap of just 0.668 seconds. Peterson won the United States Grand Prix, the final race of the season.