The Dutch Grand Prix, a date with battle
Introduced to the calendar in 1952, the Dutch Grand Prix has seen many memorable races. Niki Lauda won his last F1 race there. Alain Prost and Nelson Piquet were at the center of a controversial maneuver...
1979: the Ferrari tricycle
How to talk about Zandvoort without mentioning Gilles Villeneuve’s off-track excursion? In 1979, the Canadian offered one of the most astonishing and surprising spectacles in Formula 1 history.
During the battle with Alan Jones, the Ferrari driver was hit by a puncture, sending his car into a spin. He quickly resumed, not realizing that his left rear tire was completely flat. As a result, he ended up completing a lap on three wheels. The car, completely unbalanced, was bouncing back and forth.
The rim and the suspension were being dragged behind the red car. Incredible images that, once again, would not be visible or possible today.
1983: the Prost/Piquet clash
Four races remained on the calendar. And at the end of it, a world champion title to win. The opportunity to see Nelson Piquet, on Brabham, and Alain Prost, on Renault, fight for the crown.
They fought in the literal sense during this Grand Prix of the Netherlands, offering at the same time one of the strangest and most muscular scenes of the discipline. On the 42nd lap, here they are fighting, in the order Piquet-Prost.
Renault took inspiration from Brabham in the pit straight… Prost attempted a very late braking to outperform the Brazilian. But the Frenchman, by missing his maneuver, went straight into the Brazilian’s sidepods, who finished his race at the first turn. The Tricolor also has to throw in the towel a few turns later. “I thought I had the space to pass… I made exactly the mistake not to make…” confessed the Renault driver.
This clash has caused a lot of ink to flow, but this did not prevent Piquet from clinching the first of his three world titles. Despite being very harsh in his statements, the triple world champion was gentle with his rival. “In such conditions, I understand what goes through a driver’s mind… He made a mistake, that’s true, but I don’t hold it against him. It’s all part of the sport,” he said.
1985: Niki Lauda’s ultimate success
A long journey through the desert that finally comes to an end. Niki Lauda did not achieve any success in the 1985 season. Much more in difficulty with his McLaren than the previous year, the Austrian finally finds himself at the front in Zandvoort.
Although far ahead of his teammate, the three-time world champion still comes back to battle with Alain Prost. Always strong in race pace and strategy, Niki Lauda used it to try to finally find success.
Despite immense pressure from the Frenchman, the Austrian resisted and achieved his 25th and final victory in his last season in F1.
2023: the unexpected podium
Last year, Pierre Gasly managed to get on the podium thanks to the dreadful conditions in the Netherlands. Starting on dry tires, all the drivers chose the appropriate compounds. But before the end of the first lap, heavy rain appeared. Some of the drivers head to the pits to switch to rain tires, including Pierre Gasly.
The downpour is short-lived and the track dries quickly. With a perfect strategy, the Frenchman managed to keep his third place for part of the race before Fernando Alonso took the lead. The Alpine driver then reclaimed his place on the podium. But Sergio Perez overtook the number 10 driver. However, penalized, the Mexican does not appear on the podium. An unexpected opportunity for Pierre Gasly.
