Racing & Motorsport
July in Racing History
The excitement and energy in the month of July in the world of motorsports and racing. These and other events formed motor racing history in the month of May from across the world.
The Top 50 Motorsport Moments In The Month of July
As July unfolds with its sizzling summer days, the world of motorsports has historically responded with an equal intensity on the track. It's a month where the heat not only radiates from the sun but also from the tire-on-asphalt action that has given fans countless memories to cherish. From breathtaking overtakes to strategic masterstrokes, July's legacy in racing is undeniable. Strap in as we journey through the top 50 motorsports and racing moments that have ignited July's history books with sheer passion and prowess.
Alfa Romeo 1-2-3 In France
Louis Chiron leads an Alfa Romeo 1-2-3 finish in the French Grand Prix at Montlhéry (1934).
Bobby Allison's First Win
Bobby Allison scores his first NASCAR Grand National victory at Oxford Plains, Maine (1966).
Varzi's Last Win
Achille Varzi drives an Alfa Romeo 158 to victory in the first Bari Grand Prix, in Bari Italy. Varzi’s last race win (1947).
Sauber Mercedes C9
Mauro Baldi and Kenny Achison drive a Sauber Mercedes C9 to victory in the 480 kilometer World Endurance Championship race at Brand Hatch, England (1989).
500th Stratos
Lancia claims the 500th Stratos is completed, thereby satisfying the FIA Group 4 homologation requirements. In reality, less the 500 will ever built (1974).
Ickx's First F1 Win
Jackie Ickx scores his first F1 win when he drives a Ferrari 312 to victory in the French Grand Prix at Rouen-les-Essarts (1968).
Barnard's Design Wins
Tom Reddy drives a Lola T250 Formula Super Vee, the first car wholly designed by John Barnard, to its first victory, at Road Atlanta in Braselton, Georgia (1971).
Penske PC7-Cosworth
Gordon Johncock, driving a Penske PC7-Cosworth, wins the first 126-mile CART race at Michigan International Speedway in Brooklyn, Michigan. Bobby Unser, also driving a Penske PC7-Cosworth wins the second 126-mile race (1979).
Williams Gets Lucky
Adrian Newey becomes Chief Designer at Williams Grand Prix Engineering (1990). Adrian went on to be one of the most important people in the world of F1 even till this very day.
Senna Gets A Taste
Ayrton Senna enters and wins his first go-kart race (1973). A gift of his father, built by his very hands using a lawnmower (with a horse power).
Two Firsts At British GP
Ferrari and Froilan Gonzalez score their first F1 wins in the British GP at Silverstone (1951). It is the start of big things for Ferrari and Formula 1.
Carbon Fiber for the Win
John Watson wins the British Grand Prix at Silverstone driving a McLaren MP4-Cosworth. First win for a carbon fiber chassis car (1981).
This Might Just Work
First wind tunnel tests are made of a 1:5 scale model of the Porsche 917 (1968).
Well, This Is Easy
In his Formula Junior debut, Jim Clark drives a Lotus 18-Ford to victory in the Stuttgart Grand Prix at Solitude in Germany (1960).
Strong Debut for W196R
Mercedes-Benz W196R makes its debut with a 1-2 finish in the French Grand Prix at Reims (1954).
Chinetti & Lucas On Top
Luigi Chinetti and Jean Lucas win the 24 Hours of Spa driving a Ferrari 166MM Barchetta (1949).
Ovals Are Easy... I Guess
At his first race on an oval, Parker Johnstone puts his Honda-powered Reynard Indycar on pole for the CART Michigan 500 (1995)
Welcome A New Jaguar
The TWR Jaguar XJR-6 is driven for the first time in a test session at Snetterton, England, by Martin Brundle (1985).
1st American to win a GP
Jimmy Murphy becomes the first American to win a Grand Prix race when he drives a Duesenberg to victory in the French GP at Le Mans (1921).
Last Can-Am Win for McLaren
Denny Hulme leads Peter Revson in a Team McLaren 1-2 finish Can-Am race at Watkins Glen. Final Can-Am victory for Team McLaren (1972).
Phil Hill's First Win
Phil Hill drives his supercharged MG TC to victory over a mixed field at Carrell Speedway in Gardena, California, USA. It was his very first race win (1949).
Chinetti's First Drive
Luigi Chinetti drives an Alfa Romeo 6C in his first auto race as a driver (1928).
A Historic Track: Day 1
The circuit at Monza, Italy, is driven on for the first time by Pietro Bordino and Felice Nazzaro in a Fiat 570 (1922).
Stirling Moss' First GP Win
Stirling Moss wins his first Grand Prix, the British, at Aintree, driving a Mercedes-Benz W196 (1955).
Ickx Unstoppable In Germany
Jacky Ickx starts his Ferrari 312B on pole, sets fast lap, leads every lap and wins German Grand Prix at Nürburgring (1972).
Land Speed Record
Malcolm Campbell sets a Land Speed Record of 150.76 mph in a Sunbeam at Pendine, Wales (1925).
Fangio Fantastic In France
Juan Manuel Fangio drives an Alfa Romeo 159 to victory in the European Grand Prix at Reims, France (1951).
Maserati Goes 1-2-3-5
Maserati Tipo 60s finish 1-2-3-5 in the Trieste Hillclimb in Italy. Mennato Boffa pilots the winning car (1960).
Pruett'S First CART Win
Scott Pruett wins the Marlboro 500 at Brooklyn, Michigan, for his first CART win. It is also Firestone Tire’s first Indycar win after being away for over 20 years (1995).
Westwood Racing Circuit
George Keck drives a Ferrari Testa Rossa to victory in the first feature race held on the Westwood Racing Circuit near Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada (1959).
Novice Racing Fun
Larry Whiting, driving an MG TD, wins the first race through the streets of Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin. It is a race for novices in cars with engines smaller than 1500-cc (1950).
Watkins Glen 6-Hr
Jean-Pierre Beltoise and Jean-Pierre Jarier drive a Matra M670 to victory in the 6-hour endurance race at Watkins Glen, New York (1974).
Porsche's First F1 Win
Porsche scores its first F1 win when Dan Gurney drives the type 804 to victory in the French GP at Rouen (1962). It was race 4 of 9 in the World Championship of Drivers.
Matra's First Win
Jean-Pierre Beltoise gives the Matra M620-BRM its first victory with a win in a sports car race at Magny-Cours, France (1966).
Lauda Dominates British GP
Niki Lauda wins the British Grand Prix at Brands Hatch in a McLaren MP4/2- TAG (1984).
“Silver Arrows” In the U.S
In the German “Silver Arrows” only American appearance, Bernd Rosemeyer drives an Auto Union to victory in the Vanderbilt Cup race in New York (1937).
Donohue Wins
Mark Donohue, driving the Penske Sunoco McLaren M16, wins the inaugural USAC Schaefer 500 at Pocono Raceway, for Team Penske’s first Indy car win (1971).
Maserati Tipo 60
The Maserati Tipo 60 makes its race debut by winning the 2-liter sports car race at Rouen, France, in the hands of Stirling Moss (1959).
Prost Perfect In Britain
Alain Prost wins the British Grand Prix at Silverstone in a McLaren MP4/2B-TAG (1985).
Donohue In The Lola T70
Mark Donohue drives a Lola T70 to victory in the SCCA USRRC at Kent, Washington, for his first win in a Roger Penske-entered car (1966).
Fun Times At Watkins Glen
Denny Hulme wins the Watkins Glen Can-Am race in a McLaren M8D. Chaparral 2J “sucker car” debuts, but retires after 22 laps. Dan Gurney’s last Can-Am race (1970).
German “National Racing Car”
Hans Stuck drives an Auto Union “P-Wagen” to victory in the German Grand Prix on the Nürburgring. First Grand Prix win for a German “national racing car” (1934).
Final Race of the 5-liters
Watkins Glen 6 Hours for the World Championship of Makes, the final race of the 5-liter era, is won by a 3-liter Alfa Romeo T33/3 driven by Ronnie Peterson and Andrea de Adamich (1971).
Andretti's First Road Race
Mario Andretti enters his first road race. He wins the race at Lime Rock, Connecticut, driving a front-engined midget. Mark Donohue is 2nd in a rear-engined midget (1963).
Ferrari Is Back On Top
After a team record 58-race drought, Ferrari gets an F1 win, from polesitter Gerhard Berger, in the German GP (1994).
Lancia Wins His First Race
Nineteen-year-old Vincenzo Lancia, in his first race, drives a Fiat to victory in the 220-km Padua-Vicenza-Bassano-Treviso-Padua race (1900).
First Formula Ford
The first official Formula Ford race is held at Brands Hatch, England (1967).
2nd Vanderbilt Cup Race
Bernd Rosemeyer drives an Auto Union to victory in the second George Vanderbilt Cup race (1937).
Ascari Wins for Ferrari
Alberto Ascari drives a Ferrari 500 to victory in the British Grand Prix at Silverstone (1953).
First Formula Super Vee
John Zeitler, driving a Zeitler, wins the first ever Formula Super Vee race, held at Lime Rock, Connecticut (1970).
“Prancing Horse”
The “Prancing Horse” logo first appears on one of Enzo Ferrari’s cars (1932).
Winning $50k
Frank Verbeck wins $50,000 when he drives a Fiat to victory in the 444-mile Pan-Pacific Road Race from Los Angeles to Sacramento, the longest race on public roads in California history (1913).
Senna's First F1 Drive
Ayrton Senna has his first drive in an F1 car when he tests a Williams-Ford FW08C for Frank Williams (1983).
Donohue Loses A Race
George Follmer wins the second Can-Am race of the season, at Road Atlanta, Georgia, in a Porsche 917/10. Mark Donohue finishes 2nd in a Porsche 917/30. It is the second and last Can-Am race that Donohue will not win this year (1973).
Matra MS670 Clinches Title
Gerrard Larrouse and Henri Pescarolo drive a Matra MS670 to victory in a 6-hour endurance race at Watkins Glen, New York. Matra clinches the World Championship of Makes title. The final sports car race to see a works Ferrari entered (1973).
First Auto Competition
First auto competition. The Peugeot of Lemaitre and the Panhard-Lavosser of Lavosser shared the win in the Paris-to-Rouen event. Awarded to the vehicle that covered the 80 km “without danger” and “an ease of handling and economy” (1894).
Hill Finishes on Top
Phil Hill, in his last race as a professional driver, and Mike Spence drive the Chaparral 2F to victory in the BOAC 500 sports car race at Brands Hatch, England (1967).
Jackie StewartPhoto: Hal Crocker
July Motorsport Birthdays
Indy car and Can-Am racer Tom Klausler is born in St. Paul, Minnesota (1945).
Delano Wood, of NASCAR’s Wood Brothers, born (1932).
Three-time F1 World Champion Jackie Stewart is born in Scotland (1939).
Nine-time Le Mans winner Tom Kristensen is born in Hobro, Denmark (1967).
Kazuyoshi Hoshino, who participated in two F1 races in the 1970s, born in Japan (1947).
Luigi Chinetti, three-time Le Mans winner is born in Jerago con Orago, Italy (1901).
Michael Kranefuss, NASCAR team owner and one-time head of racing at Ford, born (1938).
Mike Costin, one of the co-founders of Cosworth Engineering, is born (1929).
Chaparral founder and team owner Jim Hall is born in Abilene, Texas, (1935).
Swiss sports car and F1 racer Jo Siffert is born in Freiburg (1936).
Patsy Burt, first woman to win RAC National Sprint Championship, born in England (1928).
John Cooper, builder of first mid-engined Formula One and Indianapolis racers, born (1923)
Rudolf Uhlenhaut, Technical Director of Mercedes-Benz Racing Dept born in England (1906).
French fighter pilot, politician and sports racer constructor Andre Moynet born (1921).
Sir Henry “Tim” Birkin, one of the “Bentley Boys,” is born (1896).
Two-time F1 World Champion Fernando Alonso is born in Oviedo, Spain (1981).
Giulio Alfieri, engineer responsible for Maserati 250F and Tipo 60/61, born in Italy (1924).
F1 racer Rene Arnoux is born (1948).
F1 racer Jean-Pierre Jarier is born (1946).
F1 and sportscar racer Chris Amon is born (1943).
Sportscar racer Chris Cord is born (1940).
Indy car and Midget racer Sam Hanks is born (1914).
Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company, is born (1863).
July Motorsport Deaths
Swede Savage dies from injuries suffered in a wreck 33 days earlier during Indy 500 (1973).
Pedro Rodriguez dies when he crashes while leading the Interseries race in Germany (1971).
Pre-WWI American racing great Eddie Rickenbacker dies (1973).
Roger Williamson dies in a crash during the Dutch Grand Prix (1973).
Achille Varzi dies in a low-speed accident while practicing in rain for Swiss Grand Prix (1948).
Lance Reventlow, racer and builder of the Scarab racecars, dies in a plane crash (1972).
Antonio Ascari dies after crashing his Alfa Romeo P2 during French Grand Prix (1925).
Carl Fisher, driving force behind creation of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, dies (1939).
Moises Solana dies when his McLaren M6B crashes during a hillclimb in Mexico (1969).
Five-time Grand Prix driving champion Juan Manuel Fangio dies of pneumonia (1995).
Rich Vogler dies in an accident on the final lap of a sprint car race at Salem Speedway (1990).
Willian F. “Bill” Milliken, engineer, author, racer dies at age 101 (2012).
Meo Costantini, aviator, auto racer and Bugatti team manager, dies in Milan, Italy (1941).
Formula and sports car racer Peter de Klerk dies in South Africa, at the age of 80 (2015).
Briggs Cunningham, racer, constructor and America’s Cup winner, dies at age 96 (2003).
French rally driver Jean-Luc Thérier dies at age 73 (2019).
Don Carlton dies of head injuries after crashing his Dodge Colt Pro Stock drag racer during testing at Milan Drag Way in Milan, Michigan (1977).
Achille Varzi
