Racing & Motorsport
April in Racing History
The excitement and energy in the month of April in the world of motorsports and racing. These and other events formed motor racing history in the month of April from across the world.
The Top 50 Motorsport Moments In The Month of April
As flowers bloom and the world rejuvenates, the racetracks come alive with roaring engines and exhilarating spectacles. April, intertwined with the spirit of renewal, has been a stage for motorsport legends to carve their names and for narratives to take unexpected turns. With every twist, turn, and throttle, this month has witnessed moments that are nothing short of epic. Gear up as we navigate the high-speed lanes of history, revisiting the top 50 motorsports and racing events that have set April apart in the annals of time. Get ready for a rollercoaster ride through racing's rich tapestry!
CART Long Beach GP
Mario Andretti, driving a Newman Haas Lola-Ford, wins the first CART Long Beach Grand Prix (1984).
Durant Special
Tommy Milton drives the Durant Special to victory in a race at Beverly Hills, California (1922).
March 722 Victory
Ronnie Peterson drives a March 722 to victory in the European F2 Championship race at Thruxton, England (1972).
Porsche 935 Wins In Italy
Jochen Mass and Jackie Ickx drive a Porsche 935 to victory in the Six Hours of Vallelunga in Italy (1976).
“Spirit of Elkdom”
Ray Keech, driving the White Triplex “Spirit of Elkdom,” sets a new one-mile Land Speed Record of 207.552 mph (1928).
Prost Wins In Brazil
Alain Prost wins the Brazilian Grand Prix at the wheel of a McLaren MP4/2B-Tag/Porsche (1985).
Porsche-powered Lotus 23
George Follmer wins the USRRC race in Pensacola, Florida, driving a Porsche-powered Lotus 23 (1965).
Osella PA9-BMW
Lella Lombardi and Giorgio Franca drive an Osella PA9-BMW to victory in the Mugello Six Hour race (1981).
Lancia Rally Champ
The European Rally Championship Saarland Rally is won by Walter Röhrl and Geistdörfer Christian in a Lancia Stratos (1978).
Debut Win for Ferrari
The Ferrari 333SP scores its debut 1-2 finish in the IMSA WSC race at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Georgia. (1994).
First Local to Win Monaco
Louis Chiron, driving a Bugatti Type 51, becomes the first Monégasque to win the Monaco Grand Prix (1931).
Mercedes Monaco Win
Luigi Fagioli wins the Monaco Grand Prix at the wheel of a Mercedes-Benz (1935).
Ford Cosworth DFV F1
The first Ford Cosworth DFV F1 engine is delivered to Lotus (1967).
200mph Barrier Smashed
Warren Johnson becomes the first NHRA Pro Stock driver to break the 200mph barrier at the end of the ¼-mile (1996).
Mercedes First Win
Christian Werner wins the Targa Florio. First win for a supercharged Mercedes (1924).
Ferrari Tipo 340 Vignale
Luigi Villoresi, driving a Ferrari Tipo 340 Vignale, wins the Mille Miglia in Italy (1951).
CART Rio 200
The CART Rio 200 is won by Adrian Fernandez driving a Patrick Racing Reynard 2KI-Ford/Cosworth (2000).
MB Goes Rallying
The Mercedes 450 SLC is homologated into Group 4 for rallying (1979).
Penske Racing (1977)
Tom Sneva wins the USAC Texas 200 Indy car race at Texas World Speedway in College Station, Texas, driving a McLaren M24-Cosworth for Penske Racing (1977).
Lola T92/00-Chevrolet
Bobby Rahal drives a Team Rahal Lola T92/00-Chevrolet to victory in the CART Indy Car Phoenix 200 on the Phoenix International Raceway oval in Avondale, Arizona (1992).
Brawner/Hawk-Ford (1969)
Mario Andretti, driving for STP/Granatelli Racing, wins the USAC California 200, at Hanford Motor Speedway in Hanford, California, driving a Brawner/Hawk-Ford (1969).
Porsche 962C (1985)
Jochen Mass and Jackie Ickx win the 1000 KM of Mugello driving a Porsche 962C (1985).
Moffat Wins at Sandown
Allan Moffat wins the Australian Touring Car Championship race at Sandown, Australia (1977).
Porsche 962 LM GT-1
Porsche 962 LM GT-1 presented to ACO for approval to race Le Mans. “Not in the spirit” of the regs, but is approved (1994).
de Cadenet Lola LM
Alain de Cadenet and Desiré Wilson win the Monza 6 Hour/1000km race in Italy driving a de Cadenet Lola LM (1980).
Porsche 962C Wins In Monza
Surer and Winkelhock drive a C1 Kremer Porsche 962C to victory in the Monza 1000 KM World Endurance Championship race (1985).
Golden Era of Rallying
The Subaru Impreza 555 is homologated for Group A rallying (1993).
Carbon-fiber Chassis in F1
The McLaren MP4, the first carbon fiber chassis F1 car, makes its race debut in the Argentine Grand Prix. John Watson and the car DNF with transmission problems (1981).
Osella PA9 BMW
Henri Pescarolo and Georgio Francia drive an Osella PA9 BMW to victory in the Mugello 6 Hour race in Italy (1981).
BMW 3.0 CSL
Hans Stuck and Jackie Ickx drive a BMW 3.0 CSL to victory in the Austria-Trophäe touring car race on the Salzburgring (1973).
Lauda Wins In Cali
Niki Lauda drives a McLaren-Cosworth to victory in the USGP West at Long Beach, California (1982).
Andretti Wins In Cali
Mario Andretti drives an Ilmor/Chevy-powered Lola to victory in the CART Long Beach Grand Prix.
Sauber Mercedes C9
The 480km World Endurance Championship race at Suzuka, Japan, is won by Mauro Baldi and Jean-Louis Schlesser in a C1 class Sauber Mercedes C9 (1989).
Siffert Succeeds in Italy
Jo Siffert drives a Filipinetti Lotus 24-BRM to victory in the Grand Prix di Siracusa in Sicily, Italy (1963).
The Last Surtees F1 Car
The Surtees TS20, the last Surtees F1 car, is launched at the team’s factory in Edenbridge, Kent, England (1978).
Senna's First GP Win
Ayrton Senna, driving a Renualt-powered Lotus 97T, scores his first Grand Prix win, at Estoril, Portugal (1985).
Mercedes W154 Wins in France
Hermann Lang drives a Mercedes W154 to victory in the Grand Prix in Pau, France (1939).
Lancia 037 On Debut
The Lancia 037 rally car makes its competition debut at the Rally Costa Smerelda in Sardinia. Both cars will retire (1982).
First Monaco GP
William Grover-Williams drives a Bugatti Type 35B to victory in the first Monaco Grand Prix (1929).
Super Mercedes
Christian Werner wins the Targa Florio, scoring the first victory for a supercharged Mercedes (1924).
First Post-WWII GP
Gigi Villoresi drives a Maseratti 4CL to victory in the first post-WWII Grand Prix, in Nice, France (1946).
White Triplex
Ray Keech, driving the White Triplex “Spirit of Elkdom,” sets a new one-mile Land Speed Record of 207.552 mph (1928).
Dakar 6 Hours
Pierre Noblet and Jean Guichet win the Dakar 6 Hours race in Senegal driving a Ferrari 250 GTO (1963).
Gordon Wins His First
Robbie Gordon wins the Slick-50 200 at Phoenix, Arizona, for his first NASCAR Winston Cup victory (1995).
Porsche Parties
Porsche throws party for factory workers to celebrate completion of 25 917s needed for Group 4 homologation (1969).
Long Tail Porsche 908 Winner
A long tail Porsche 908 driven by Jo Siffert and Brian Redman wins the 1000-kilometer sports car race at Monza, Italy. Hans Herman and Kurt Ahrens are 2nd in another 908 (1969).
Well, That Was Quick!
Bill Elliott, driving a Ford Thunderbird, drives the fastest lap ever in a NASCAR stock car, when he goes 212.809 mph in qualifying at Talladega, Alabama (1987).
Call That Fast. This is Fast.
Larry Dixon sets an NHRA Top Fuel quarter-mile elapsed time record of 4.486 seconds at Houston Raceway Park in Baytown, Texas (1999).
1-2 Finish on Debut
The Ferrari 333SP scores its debut 1-2 finish in the IMSA WSC race at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Georgia. Jay Cochran wins over Gianpiero Moretti and Eliseo Salazar (1994).
Small But Mighty
At Virginia International Raceway, Peter Gregg and Hurley Haywood win their first IMSA race in a Porsche 914/6 GT (1971).
First F1 Win for March
Jackie Stewart, driving a Cosworth-powered March 701, wins the Spanish Grand Prix at Jarama. First F1 win for March (1970).
The racing driver and Formula 1 pilot died on January 14, 2018 at the age of 86. Porsche owes its only success as a vehicle manufacturer in the Formula 1 World Championship to Gurney, who won the 1962 French Grand Prix in Rouen in an eight-cylinder Porsche 804.
Jochen Rindt (right) and Lotus boss Colin Chapman celebrate the Austrian’s 1970 British Grand Prix victory. Photo: Maureen MageeApril Motorsport Birthdays
Gordon Spice, racer and constructor (Spice Engineering), is born in London, England (1940).
Pilot and racer Hugh Dibley is born in Hong Kong (1937).
Posthumous 1970 F1 World Champion Jochen Rindt born (1942).
Ian Scott-Watson provide Jim Clark with cars to race in club level is born (1930).
Australian Touring Car legend Dick Johnson is born in Brisbane, Australia (1947).
Actor, sports car team owner, and off-road racer James Garner is born in Oklahoma (1928).
Kurt Ahrens, 3-time German Formula Junior is born in Braunschweig, Germany (1940).
Pablo Barilla, Italian racer and heir to the Barilla pasta company, is born (1961).
Drag racer Don “The Snake” Prudhomme is born (1941).
American open-wheel racer Mark Smith is born in Portland, Oregon (1967).
F1 and CART racer Maurício Gugelmin is born in Joinville, Brazil (1963).
NASCAR Winston Cup racer Michael Waltrip born (1963).
Mike Hailwood, multi-motorcycle world champion and F2 champion born in England (1940).
MG founder Cecil Kimber is born in London, England (1888).
German racing driver and sports car constructor Heinze Melkus is born in Dresden (1928)
Greg Weld, sprint, Indy car racer and founder of Weld Wheel Industries, is born (1944).
Walter Hayes, the man responsible for Ford’s assault on Le Mans, the Cosworth Ford DFV F1 engine, and the creation of Formula Ford, born in Harrow, England (1924).
Three-time USAC National Silver Crown champion Chuck Gurney is born (1949).
Engineer Vittorio Jano is born in San Giorgio Canavese, Italy (1891).
CART and F1 Champion Jacques Villeneuve, son of Gilles, is born in Quebec, Canada (1971).
Rallyist Paddy Hopkirk born in Belfast, Northern Ireland (1933).
Peter Bryant, designer of Ti22, Shadow MkII and Shadow MkIII Can-Am cars, born (1937).
Sir Frank Williams, founder and principal of the Williams Formula One team, is born (1942).
1961 F1 World Champion Philip Toll “Phil” Hill is born in Miami, Florida (1927).
Multiple USAC Midget champion and Indycar racer Mel Kenyon born (1933).
Rally co-driver Juha Piironen is born (1951).
Len Wood, of NASCAR’s Wood Brothers Racing Team, is born (1956).
1981 World Rally Champion Ari Vatanen born in Tuupovaara, Finland (1952).
NASCAR stockcar racing great Curtis Turner born (1924).
Dan Gurney, multi-discipline racer and team owner, born in Port Jefferson, New York (1931).
Three-time Formula One World Champion Jack Brabham is born (1926).
World Champion rally driver Carlos Sainz is born in Madrid, Spain (1962).
Two-time winner of the Indianapolis 500, Al Unser Jr., is born in New Mexico (1962).
F1 racer Ricardo Patrese is born in Padua, Italy (1954).
Richard Attwood, who would give Porsche their first overall victory at Le Mans, born (1940).
Four-time Motorcycle World Champion Mike “The Bike” Hailwood born (1940).
Le Mans winner Duncan Hamilton is born in Cork, Ireland (1920).
April Motorsport Deaths
Whitney Straight dies in London, England, at the age of 66 (1970).
Jim Clark dies in an accident during an F2 race at Hockenheim, Germany (1968).
Ronnie Bucknum dies of complications from diabetes (1992).
Willie Haupt, American Grand Prix, hill climb and Indy racer before WWI, dies (1966).
Walt Hansgen dies from injuries suffered five days earlier in testing at Le Mans (1966).
Donald E. Stewart, co-founder of Competition Press magazine, dies at the age of 69 (1999).
F1 and sports car racer Ron Flockhart dies in the crash of a P-51 Mustang airplane (1962).
Jules de Dion, auto builder and one of the founders of the Auto Club de France, dies (1897).
Henry Ford, the founder of the Ford Motor Company, dies (1947).
Rolf Stommelen dies in an accident during an IMSA race at Riverside, California (1983).
Lloyd “Lucky” Casner, dies from injuries from crash during practice for Le Mans (1965).
Garrie Cooper, founder of Elfin Sports Cars, dies from a ruptured aorta (1982).
Battista “Pinin” Farina, auto racer and coach builder, dies (1966).
Zora Arkus-Duntov, father of the Corvette, dies (1996).
Emile Lavassor, racer and one of the founders of Panhard et Lavasor, dies (1897).
Giorgio Pianta, 2-time Giro d’Italia winner and boss of Alfa DTM, dies at age 78 (2014).
German touring car champion and F2 racer Hubert Hahne dies at age 84 (2019).
John Horsman, Technical Director and Manager at John Wyer Automotive dies (2020).
Racing great Sir Stirling Moss dies after a long illness (2020).
Jim Clark
