A first win in the dunes

Niki Lauda (Ferrari 312T) was the clear favorite of the 1975 Dutch Grand Prix on the beautiful and selective track of Zandvoort. Leading the championship, the Austrian dominated qualifying leaving his team-mate Regazzoni and the rest of the field far behind.

The start of the race was delayed because of heavy rain fall, and the whole grid started on wet tyres. About half distance, the track started to dry, and Hunt (Hesketh 308B) was the first driver to dive into the pits and changed for slicks. He drove superbly in tricky conditions, and when the others pitted, he was leading the race. Lauda lost time passing back markers, but soon harassed the Englishman for the lead.

The last 20 laps where epic. Hunt (picture below) was defending hard but fair, and the Austrian, always the calculator was not taking all risks to pass him, knowing very well that the points for second place were allowing him to extend his championship lead.

It was Hunt’s first and Hesketh only Grand Prix victory, to the delight of the huge crowd present in the Holland dunes. A very popular victory indeed.