The 1974 German Grand Prix was a

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, ...

motor race held at the Nürburgring on 4 August 1974. It was race 11 of 15 in both the 1974 World Championship of Drivers and the 1974 International Cup for Formula One Manufacturers. It was the 36th

German Grand Prix The German Grand Prix (german: Großer Preis von Deutschland) 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 Rh ...

and the 33rd to be held at the Nürburgring complex of circuits. The race was won by Swiss driver

Clay Regazzoni Gianclaudio Giuseppe "Clay" Regazzoni (5 September 1939 – 15 December 2006) was a Swiss racing driver. He competed in Formula One races from 1970 to 1980, winning five Grands Prix. His first win was the Italian Grand Prix at Monza in his debu ...

driving a

Ferrari 312B3 The Ferrari 312B is a Formula One racing car designed and built by Scuderia Ferrari. It was the successor to the Ferrari 312 and was used from 1970 until early 1975. The original 312B was developed into the 312B2 and 312B3. History The early 197 ...

. Regazzoni led every lap on the way to his second Grand Prix victory, some four years after his debut victory at the 1970 Italian Grand Prix. South African driver

Jody Scheckter Jody David Scheckter (born 29 January 1950) is a South African business proprietor and former motor racing driver. He competed in Formula One from 1972 to 1980, winning the Drivers' Championship in with Ferrari. Scheckter remains the only Afri ...

was second driving a Tyrrell 007 ahead of Argentine driver

Carlos Reutemann Carlos Alberto "Lole" Reutemann (12 April 1942 – 7 July 2021) was an Argentine racing driver who raced in Formula One from to , and later became a politician in his native province of Santa Fe, for the Justicialist Party, and governor o ...

(

Brabham BT44 The Brabham BT44 was a Formula One racing car designed by Gordon Murray, Brabham's chief designer. Design An update of the partially successful BT42 of 1973, the BT44 was a simple design with a standard Ford DFV/Hewland gearbox combination, ...

). Since the 1973 event the main straight had been widened and resurfaced. In response to new FIA regulations stating that all FIA-mandated races must have safety walls, the organizers replaced the bushes lining the straight with Armco and placed sandy surface where grass could grow on both sides of the straight. Regazzoni's win, coupled with Niki Lauda's first lap crash, put the Swiss Ferrari driver back into the lead of the championship he had previous held earlier in the year. Lauda crashed his Ferrari 312B3 attempting to pass Scheckter. Emerson Fittipaldi also was an early retirement after making a very slow start in his

McLaren M23 The McLaren M23 was a Formula One racing car designed by Gordon Coppuck, with input from John Barnard, and built by the McLaren team. It was a development of the McLaren M16 Indianapolis 500 car. A Ford Cosworth DFV engine was used, which wa ...

and was struck by his teammate

Denny Hulme Denis Clive Hulme (18 June 1936 – 4 October 1992), commonly known as Denny Hulme, was a New Zealand racing driver who won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship for the Brabham team. Between his debut at Monaco in 1965 and his f ...

putting out both cars within a lap. Hulme attempted to restart the race in a spare car and was disqualified for doing so.

Mike Hailwood Stanley Michael Bailey Hailwood, (2 April 1940 – 23 March 1981) was a British professional motorcycle racer and racing driver. He is regarded by many as one of the greatest racers of all time. He competed in the Grand Prix motorcycl ...

was another to crash, having a large accident on the second last lap at Pflanzgarten in his McLaren M23. The former motorcyclist received a badly broken leg in the accident which became a career-ending injury. Occasional showers fell during the race, contributing to the accident toll which also claimed

Patrick Depailler Patrick André Eugène Joseph Depailler (; 9 August 1944 – 1 August 1980) was a racing driver from France. He participated in 95 World Championship Formula One Grands Prix, debuting on 2 July 1972. He also participated in several non-champi ...

(Tyrrell 007), Jacques Laffite ( Williams FW02) and John Watson (Brabham BT44). Just 14 cars finished the race, although Hailwood would also be classified as a finisher, out of the 26 starters. There was six cars who failed to qualify including

Chris Amon Christopher Arthur Amon (20 July 1943 – 3 August 2016) was a New Zealand motor racing driver. He was active in Formula One racing in the 1960s and 1970s, and is widely regarded as one of the best F1 drivers never to win a championship Grand ...

( Amon AF101) who pulled out due to illness.

Howden Ganley James Howden Ganley (born 24 December 1941 in Hamilton) is a former racing driver from New Zealand. From 1971 to 1974 he participated in 41 World Championship Formula One Grands Prix. He placed 4th twice and scored points 5 times for a total of ...

also suffered a serious accident during Friday's practice. The rear suspension failed on the

Maki Maki may refer to: People *Mäki, a Finnish surname (includes a list of people with the name) *Maki (name), a Japanese given name and surname (includes a list of people with the name) Places *Maki, Ravar, Kerman Province, Iran *Maki, Rigan, Ke ...

at Hatzenbach and he swerved right into the Armco barrier, ripping off the nose section of the car. Ganley's legs were dangling out the front of the car. He got out by himself but he collapsed when he got to the fence, his ankles seriously injured. This led to Ganley's retirement from Formula 1. Regazzoni moved into a three-point lead in the championship over Scheckter. Former points leader Lauda dropped to third, six points behind his Ferrari teammate and just one ahead of Fittipaldi. Ferrari moved eight points clear of McLaren in the constructor's standings.

Classification

Qualifying

*Positions with a pink background indicate drivers that failed to qualify. Ashley failed to qualify, but started at the back of the grid.

Race

Championship standings after the race

;Drivers' Championship standings ;Constructors' Championship standings *Note: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings. Only the best 7 results from the first 8 races and the best 6 results from the last 7 races counted towards the Championship. Numbers without parentheses are Championship points; numbers in parentheses are total points scored.

References

{{F1GP 70-79

German Grand Prix European Grand Prix

Sport in Rhineland-Palatinate