The 7th Modena Grand Prix was a

motor race Motorsport, motorsports or motor sport is a global term used to encompass the group of competitive sporting events which primarily involve the use of motorized vehicles. The terminology can also be used to describe forms of competition of two ...

, run for cars complying with

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

rules, held on 3 September 1961 at

Modena Autodrome Autodromo di Modena (or Aerautodromo di Modena) was a race track on the edge of Modena in Italy. The track had a length of . It was opened in 1950 and the circuit was crossed by an airstrip of about in length which was used by the local flying cl ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

. The race was run over 100 laps of the circuit, and was dominated by British driver

Stirling Moss Sir Stirling Craufurd Moss (17 September 1929 – 12 April 2020) was a British Formula One racing driver. An inductee into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame, he won 212 of the 529 races he entered across several categories of comp ...

in a Lotus 18/21. The qualifying system for this event was very unusual in that despite over 30 entrants, the starting grid was restricted to only 14 cars. Furthermore, the fastest three Italian drivers in practice would be guaranteed to start the race, regardless of how many other drivers were faster. This resulted in

Innes Ireland Lieutenant Robert McGregor Innes Ireland (12 June 1930 – 22 October 1993), was a British military officer, engineer, and motor racing driver, with 1 Championship and 8 non-Championship Formula 1 race victories, and several sports car wins inclu ...

failing to qualify despite being 13th fastest, and faster than

Giorgio Scarlatti Giorgio Scarlatti (2 October 1921 – 26 July 1990) was a racing driver from Italy. He participated in 15 Formula One World Championship Grands Prix, debuting on 13 May 1956. Scarlatti's best season in Formula One was as a works Maserati driver ...

who did qualify."The Formula One Record Book", John Thompson, 1974, pp.48-49 Moss took pole position, fastest lap and the win, finishing a few seconds ahead of the

Porsche Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG, usually shortened to Porsche (; see #Pronunciation, below), is a German automobile manufacturer specializing in high-performance sports cars, SUVs and sedans, headquartered in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany ...

pairing of

Jo Bonnier Joakim Bonnier (31 January 1930 – 11 June 1972) was a Swedish sportscar racing and Formula One driver who raced for various teams. He was the first Swede to both enter and win a Formula One Grand Prix. Early life Jo Bonnier was born in Stockh ...

and

Dan Gurney Daniel Sexton Gurney (April 13, 1931 – January 14, 2018) was an American racing driver, race car constructor, and team owner who reached racing's highest levels starting in 1958. Gurney won races in the Formula One, Indy Car, NASCAR, Can-Am, ...

. Gurney led at the start, but Moss passed him on lap 11 and stayed in front.

Qualifying

Results

*Scarlatti and Starrabba used the same car. *Scuderia Centro Sud entered a Cooper-Maserati, given #6, but withdrew the entry.

References

Bibliography

* "The Grand Prix Who's Who", Steve Small, 1995. * "The Formula One Record Book", John Thompson, 1974.

External links

* {{F1 NC race report , Name_of_race = Modena Grand Prix , Year_of_race = 1961 , Previous_race_in_season =

1961 Danish Grand Prix The II Grote Prijs van Danske (or 2nd Danish Grand Prix) was held on 26–27 August 1961, at the Roskilde Ring circuit, Roskilde, Denmark. The race was a non-Championship event run for cars complying with Formula One rules. The race was run ov ...

, Next_race_in_season =

1961 Flugplatzrennen The Flugplatzrennen (known alternately as either 3rd Flugplatzrennen or 5th Flugplatzrennen) was a motor race, run for cars complying with Formula One rules, held on 17 September 1961 at Zeltweg Airfield, Austria. The race was run over 80 laps of ...

, Previous_year's_race = 1960 Modena Grand Prix , Next_year's_race = — Modena Grand Prix Modena Grand Prix Modena Grand Prix

Qualifying

Results

References

Bibliography

See also

External links