1964 F1 Season

The 1964 Formula One season, marking the 18th season of FIA Formula One motor racing, was a dramatic and pivotal chapter in the sport’s history. The season included the World Championship of Drivers and the International Cup for F1 Manufacturers, unfolding over ten races from 10 May to 25 October, along with eight non-championship races. John Surtees emerged as the World Champion of Drivers, clinching the title in a dramatic finale at the Mexican Grand Prix. Surtees’s victory came down to the final moments of the last race, where a collision involving Graham Hill and Lorenzo Bandini, and an oil leak on Jim Clark’s car, played pivotal roles. Surtees’s second place in the race, achieved with help from his teammate Bandini, led to him winning the championship by a single point over Hill. This victory was particularly notable as Ferrari, represented by the American team NART, competed in the last two races with cars painted in the national colours of the United States, a move reflecting a protest against the Italian motorsport body ACI. Ferrari also secured the International Cup for F1 Manufacturers. The season also marked the tragic death of Dutch driver Carel Godin de Beaufort during practice for the German Grand Prix and the retirement of Maurice Trintignant, who had competed since the first World Championship season in 1950.