The 1969 German Grand Prix was a

Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...

motor race held at

Nürburgring The () is a 150,000-person capacity motorsports complex located in the town of Nürburg, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It features a Grand Prix motor racing, Grand Prix race track built in 1984, and a long configuration, built in the 1920s ...

on 3 August 1969. It was race 7 of 11 in both the 1969 World Championship of Drivers and the 1969 International Cup for Formula One Manufacturers. Twelve

Formula Two Formula Two (F2) is a type of Open-wheel car, open-wheel formula racing category first codified in 1948. It was replaced in 1985 by Formula 3000, but revived by the FIA from 2009 FIA Formula Two Championship season, 2009 to 2012 FIA Formula Two C ...

cars were also entered into the race, though they were not eligible to score points. The 14-lap race was won by Belgian driver Jacky Ickx, driving a works

Brabham Motor Racing Developments Ltd., commonly known as Brabham ( ), was a British race car, racing car manufacturer and Formula One racing team. It was founded in 1960 by the Australian driver Jack Brabham and the British-Australian designer Ron Ta ...

- Ford. Ickx took

pole position In a motorsports race, the pole position is usually the best and "statistically the most advantageous" starting position on the track. The pole position is usually earned by the driver with the best qualifying times in the trials before the ra ...

, led the final eight laps and set the fastest lap of the race. Scotland's

Jackie Stewart Sir John Young "Jackie" Stewart (born 11 June 1939) is a British former racing driver, sports broadcasting, broadcaster and motorsport executive from Scotland, who competed in Formula One from to . Nicknamed "the Flying Scottish people, Scot" ...

finished second in a

Matra Matra (an acronym for Mécanique Aviation Traction) was a major French industrial Conglomerate (company), conglomerate. Its business activities covered a wide range of industries, notably aerospace manufacturer, aerospace, defence industry, def ...

-Ford, with New Zealand's

Bruce McLaren Bruce Leslie McLaren (30 August 1937 – 2 June 1970) was a New Zealand racing driver, automotive designer, engineer and motorsport executive, who competed in Formula One from to . McLaren was runner-up in the Formula One World Drivers' Champ ...

third in a

McLaren McLaren Racing Limited ( ) is a British auto racing, motor racing team based at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, Surrey, England. The team is a subsidiary of the McLaren Group, which owns a majority of the team. McLaren is best known a ...

-Ford.

Report

Gerhard Mitter Gerhard Karl Mitter (30 August 1935 – 1 August 1969) was a German Formula One and sportscar driver. Early life and career Mitter was born in Schönlinde (Krásná Lípa) in Czechoslovakia, but his family was Expulsion of Germans after World W ...

was killed during a practice session for this race at Schwedenkreuz. He was practicing for

BMW Bayerische Motoren Werke AG, trading as BMW Group (commonly abbreviated to BMW (), sometimes anglicised as Bavarian Motor Works), is a German multinational manufacturer of vehicles and motorcycles headquartered in Munich, Bavaria, Germany. Th ...

's ''269'' F2 project. As a suspension or steering failure was suspected, the BMW team with Hubert Hahne and Dieter Quester withdrew from the race, as did Mitter's teammate at Porsche, Hans Herrmann.

Mario Andretti Mario Gabriele Andretti (born February 28, 1940) is an American former racing driver and businessman, who competed in Formula One from to , and American open-wheel racing, IndyCar from 1964 USAC Championship Car season, 1964 to 1994 IndyCar se ...

drove the 4WD Lotus 63 for very few laps in practice. The heavy fuel load for the race made the car ground out in lap 1 after a jump at Wippermann, causing a crash that also took out Vic Elford, whose car flipped upside down and landed in the trees. Elford broke his arm in 3 places. In the race, Jacky Ickx had a very poor start which dropped him down to 9th, but he eventually passed the entire field over 3 laps, and he and

battled for 4 laps until Ickx passed Stewart at the first corner, the Südkehre. Stewart held on but then gearbox problems began to slow him and he dropped away, leaving Ickx in a dominant position. Piers Courage had an accident at Breidscheid when he slipped on some oil and crashed into a ditch next to the Adenauer bridge. Luckily, he was unhurt. This was the last Formula One race at the Nürburgring before it was rebuilt and fitted with Armco barriers for the 1971 race.

Classification

Qualifying

Race

entrants are denoted by a pink background. They were not eligible for World Championship points.

Notes

* This was the Formula One World Championship debut for German driver Rolf Stommelen, Austrian driver Dieter Quester, French driver and future Grand Prix winner

François Cevert Albert François Cevert (; 25 February 1944 – 6 October 1973) was a French racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to . Cevert won the 1971 United States Grand Prix with Tyrrell Racing, Tyrrell. Cevert competed in Formula One for Tec ...

, Swiss driver Xavier Perrot and British driver Peter Westbury. * This race saw the first fastest lap and Grand Slam set by a Belgian driver. * This was the Formula One World Championship debut for Italian constructor Tecno. * This race saw the 10th fastest lap being set by a

. * This was the 10th podium finish by a

Championship standings after the race

;Drivers' Championship standings ;Constructors' Championship standings *

References

External links

* {{F1GP 60-69

German Grand Prix The German Grand Prix () was a motor race that took place most years since 1926, with 75 races having been held. The race has been held at only three venues throughout its history: the Nürburgring in Rhineland-Palatinate, Hockenheimring in B ...

German Grand Prix