1977 Japanese Grand Prix
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| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 17 of 17 in the 1977 Formula One season | |||
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| Date | October 23, 1977 | ||
| Location | Fuji Speedway, Oyama, Shizuoka | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 4.359 km (2.709 mi) | ||
| Distance | 73 laps, 318.207 km (197.757 mi) | ||
| Weather | Dry | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Lotus-Ford | ||
| Time | 1:12.23 | ||
| Fastest lap | |||
| Driver |  Jody Scheckter |
Wolf-Ford | |
| Time | 1:14.30 on lap 71 | ||
| Podium | |||
| First | McLaren-Ford | ||
| Second | Ferrari | ||
| Third | Tyrrell-Ford | ||
The 1977 Japanese Grand Prix was a Formula One race held on 23 October 1977 at Fuji. This was (at the time) the last Japanese Grand Prix due to traveling and financial issues, and safety concerns with the Fuji circuit. The race would return in 1987, held at the better spectated and safer Suzuka Circuit.[1]
Report
Mario Andretti and James Hunt continued their late-season battle, with the American pipping Hunt to the pole, with John Watson heading the second row. Hunt took the lead at the start, and Jody Scheckter and Jochen Mass jumped up to second and third, whereas Andretti had a terrible start and was at the tail of the top ten. On the second lap, Andretti was involved in a collision while trying to gain places, putting him out. With Andretti out, Hunt had no challengers left and he built a large gap, with teammate Mass second and Watson passing Scheckter for third. However, both Mass and Watson had to retire within one lap of each other with engine and gearbox failures, and with Scheckter dropping back, Carlos Reutemann was second until he was passed by Jacques Laffite. Hunt went on and capped off the season with a comfortable win, whereas Laffite ran of fuel on the last lap, handing over second to Reutemann and allowing Patrick Depailler to complete the podium.
After the race concluded, both Hunt and Reutemann left the circuit immediately to catch a flight home, leaving Depailler and his engineer on the podium. Rules changed shortly thereafter making the podium celebration mandatory.
Classification
| Pos | No | Driver | Constructor | Laps | Time/Retired | Grid | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 |  James Hunt |
McLaren-Ford | 73 | 1:31:51.68 | 2 | 9 |
| 2 | 12 |  Carlos Reutemann |
Ferrari | 73 | +1:02.45 | 7 | 6 |
| 3 | 4 |  Patrick Depailler |
Tyrrell-Ford | 73 | +1:06.39 | 15 | 4 |
| 4 | 17 |  Alan Jones |
Shadow-Ford | 73 | +1:06.61 | 12 | 3 |
| 5 | 26 | Jacques Laffite |
Ligier-Matra | 72 | Out of Fuel | 5 | 2 |
| 6 | 16 |  Riccardo Patrese |
Shadow-Ford | 72 | +1 Lap | 13 | 1 |
| 7 | 8 |  Hans Joachim Stuck |
Brabham-Alfa Romeo | 72 | +1 Lap | 4 | |
| 8 | 19 | Vittorio Brambilla |
Surtees-Ford | 71 | +2 Laps | 9 | |
| 9 | 50 |  Kunimitsu Takahashi |
Tyrrell-Ford | 71 | +2 Laps | 22 | |
| 10 | 20 | Jody Scheckter |
Wolf-Ford | 71 | +2 Laps | 6 | |
| 11 | 52 | Kazuyoshi Hoshino |
Kojima-Ford | 71 | +2 Laps | 11 | |
| 12 | 9 |  Alex Ribeiro |
March-Ford | 69 | +4 Laps | 23 | |
| Ret | 6 |  Gunnar Nilsson |
Lotus-Ford | 63 | Gearbox | 14 | |
| Ret | 22 |  Clay Regazzoni |
Ensign-Ford | 43 | Engine | 10 | |
| Ret | 7 | John Watson |
Brabham-Alfa Romeo | 29 | Gearbox | 3 | |
| Ret | 2 | Jochen Mass |
McLaren-Ford | 28 | Engine | 8 | |
| Ret | 23 | Patrick Tambay |
Ensign-Ford | 14 | Engine | 16 | |
| Ret | 3 | Ronnie Peterson |
Tyrrell-Ford | 5 | Accident | 18 | |
| Ret | 11 |  Gilles Villeneuve |
Ferrari | 5 | Accident | 20 | |
| Ret | 27 | Jean-Pierre Jarier |
Ligier-Matra | 3 | Engine | 17 | |
| Ret | 5 |  Mario Andretti |
Lotus-Ford | 1 | Collision | 1 | |
| Ret | 51 | Noritake Takahara |
Kojima-Ford | 1 | Collision | 19 | |
| Ret | 18 |  Hans Binder |
Surtees-Ford | 1 | Collision | 21 | |
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Source:[2]
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Notes
- Lap Leaders: James Hunt 73 laps (1-73).
- This race was the tenth and final win for James Hunt
- A marshal and photographer were killed by debris following a collision involving Gilles Villeneuve's Ferrari and Ronnie Peterson's Tyrrell P34 on lap five. They had both been standing in a prohibited area of the track when the accident occurred.[3]
- This race was the final race of Gunnar Nilsson's career, before his death from cancer in 1978.
- First point for Riccardo Patrese.
- This race was the last occasion when a car (Kunimitsu Takahashi's Tyrrell) used Dunlop tyres in a Formula 1 World Championship Race.[4]
Championship standings after the race
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- Note: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings. Only the best 8 results from the first 9 races and the best 7 results from the remaining 8 races were retained. Numbers without parentheses are retained points; numbers in parentheses are total points scored.
References
| Previous race: 1977 Canadian Grand Prix |
FIA Formula One World Championship 1977 season |
Next race: 1978 Argentine Grand Prix |
| Previous race: 1976 Japanese Grand Prix |
Japanese Grand Prix | Next race: 1987 Japanese Grand Prix |
