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The next best to Watson is Laffite with the Ligier-Matra V12 with 1'22"06, and in third place is Hunt with 1'22"18. Naturally there are lots of excuses as to why everyone is not as fast as Watson, but we heard most of them before and many of them too often. Some drivers can only drive as well as their car is good, others can overcome the natural instincts of their car and make it do what they want to do. Some spend all their time fiddling with adjustments hoping to achieve some magic setting that will make up for their personal driving deficiency. Some, like Reutemann, have a legitimate excuse when his engine blows up, forcing him to use the spare Brabham-Alfa Romeo. Tom Pryce is as happy with the new Shadow as Mass is despondent with the new McLaren. The Welshman knows what he wants to do and is delighted to find the DN8 allows him to do it, while the German is expecting the M26 to improve his driving ability to that of his teammate, who is resting his Austrian GP car and using his other one. In the afternoon it is still warm and dry with the sun shining and the excitement continues. Hunt is getting into his stride and going through bunches of slower cars like a local among the tourists. Nilsson peters to a stop with electrical problems and while the Lotus Mechanics are working on the car by the side of the track Pesenti-Rossi spins his Tyrrell 007 and stops a few feet away. The Lotus lads push the blue and orange Tyrrell off the track and down into the sand-dunes and then get on with their work, while the Italian driver goes off to get help to extricate his car. After a slow start in the morning Ickx is now beginning to show good form and sits behind Regazzoni for a lap or two, while the Ferrari driver is very conscious of being all alone with everyone against him. The six-wheeled Tyrrells are not shining too well, showing a tendency to lock the middle wheels under heavy braking, the tiny tires making tiny puffs of blue smoke. Pryce stops with the new Shadow and a mechanic with an armful of exhaust pipes shows what the trouble is; a pipe has broken off at the manifold flange. Watson has gone quicker still, but Hunt has passed him, while Brambilla has joined the elite group who has lapped in under 1’22"0. There are plenty of people lapping between 1’22"0 and 1’23"0 and anything over that is hardly worth worrying about on the road to fame and fortune. The end of the Formula 1 World Championship is approaching, and as every year this is the period in which the drivers' market is on. So, in Zandvoort there are phone calls, meetings, more or less secret negotiations. It is a waltz that few escape and that sees in first line the Ferrari, the Brabham, the Tyrrell.
In the Maranello team the position of Regazzoni became delicate, in the British team Carlos Reuteman and Jody Scheckter were shaky. The Swiss is accused of some exits from the track and some careless statements, the Argentinean and the South African are tired of Bernie Ecclestone and Ken Tyrrell respectively. To this we have to add that also Vittorio Brambilla would have liked to leave the March, and Pryce the Shadow. The affair is a bit demeaning and it is hard to understand why Martini does not make a decisive intervention on Ecclestone to unblock the situation. This company prides itself on participating in the events of Formula 1 with a different spirit from that of the other sponsors and on believing in sport: is it ever possible that Reuteman cannot be validly helped? Finally, Scheckter: his probable destination is Brabham, even if someone asserts an interest of Ferrari. It's a strange thing because Jody is a guy who loves dollars, he has the reputation of the car breaker and he doesn't know how to test cars. Also Brambilla would not mind the English team, which uses Alfa Romeo engines and is financed by Martini and Rossi. An important innovation, seen on the Ferrari, is the automatic fire extinguisher activation system. Experimentation was accelerated after Lauda’s accident and now the system has been applied. It is a thermocouple contained in a copper tube, placed above the dashboard and obviously calibrated to certain temperatures. When the temperature exceeds fifty degrees, the thermocouple informs two electromagnetic switches that, by closing, set off the fire extinguishers, the front and the rear ones. At one hundred degrees, however, the control of the oxygen cylinder is turned on. On Saturday morning the Ecclestone-Mosley rule-book is revised by popular acclaim and the furious arrangement of one-and-a-half hours for full-tank and race-tyre testing is put off until the afternoon, so that everyone can carry on from Friday at the same time. Saturday, August 28, 1976 this means that from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. is the last chance for grid-positions to be established and though conditions are dry, there is a strong wind blowing and the skies look unsettled. Jocken Mass is still trying to come to grips with the new McLaren, the works Surtees of Jones has aluminum ducts alongside the cockpit to try and encourage more air to go to the engine, Peterson is in the newer of the two March cars earmarked for him, Pryce is really enjoying himself in the new Shadow and Reutemann is back in his original Brabham with a new Alfa Romeo engine installed.
There is a lot of pressing on, even from those near the back and both Merzario and Perkins have spins leaving the Trazan hairpin, the Australian doing a beautiful text-book job of declutching at precisely the right moment, to avoid stalling the engine, keeping his sense of direction and driving off as soon as the nose swings the full 360 degrees and is pointing the right way up the course. Nilsson is making up for lost time and chops across the front of Mass in an audacious overtaking movement that leaves the German a bit breathless. Andretti has settled to use the earlier of the Lotus cars, 77/R1, as it feels better through the fast twitchy corners and Brambilla is out in his orange March with a new Cosworth engine installed. Watson is not as fast as he has been and a whole bunch of drivers get down into the 1’21"0 bracket, these being Regazzoni, Scheckter, Brambilla, Peterson, Hunt, Pryce, and Andretti, with Watson being in with them on his Friday times. There is a lot of hard charging going on and not very much wittering and by 11:00 a.m. a lot of people are very breathless and sweaty, which is always good to see. That Peterson is really back on form can be seen from his pole position time of 1’21"31 and the sweat that soaked through his driving overalls all down his back is a good old-fashioned sign of a driver who has been having a real go. Between the first part of the practice of the Dutch Grand Prix and the qualifications there is an interval of about an hour. Between the pits and the square where the big trucks of the Formula 1 teams are parked there is a continuous flow of people. People chat with a technician, chat with a mechanic, chat with a driver. In short, people are talking until suddenly the name Lauda comes up. I wonder if he left for Ibiza? The journalists ask each other and decide to call him on the phone. So far, Lauda has never had a conversation, even a phone call, with Italian journalists. It is therefore worth a try. Settled in an office of the timing tower in Zandvoort, where there is a device from which they can call live, without having to go through the usual procedure of the operators, the journalists dial the Austrian prefix, then the number - very short, three digits - of Lauda's home. The phone rings a few moments, then they answer.
"Moment".
The caller exclaims. A second later, Niki's voice comes on, slightly hoarse.
"What does Regazzoni do?"
Asks the Austrian, who then comments when the journalists finish telling him a summary of the day's events:
"Well, well".
Niki speaks in his curious Italian, and every now and then he stops and asks if they have understood, or adds a word in English to better explain a concept. With him, in the villa, are his wife Marlene, who with affectionate devotion has been assisting him since the terrible days of the Nürburgring, and Willy Dungl, the physiotherapist of the Austrian trampoline jumping team, who already played an important role in Spain, when the reigning World Champion took to the track with two fractured ribs.
"I will stop here for a week, then, if everything continues to go well, I will move for four or five days to Ibiza. I need to breathe sea air for my lungs. I won't be sunbathing or swimming, that's clear. I will just rest. During this time, I'm popping into the hospital in Salzburg every morning for a follow-up exam, and in the afternoon Dungl drenches my face with creams and ointments and massages me for two to three hours. When I get back from Ibiza, I have to do a three-week medical training, which is a cycle of exercises and training under the guidance of specialists to recover, first of all, my physical fitness. Right now, I'm a little down, I get tired easily and my reflexes are still slow. But I'm not worried, I'm following a program and I hope to be soon, as soon as possible, at Fiorano to do a first test behind the wheel of my Ferrari".
Have you driven a car before?
"Yes, I often take a few laps on the roads around my house in my Lancia Beta. For me it's a physical exercise, the first stage of a certain journey. You know, I work all day long to do it faster, to speed up my return to the racing world. Yes, I work like crazy".
Knowing Lauda, one is not surprised by such statements: Niki is a man with an iron tenacity and will, capable of concentrating entirely on reaching a specific goal. He made a miracle by participating in the Spanish Grand Prix with two broken ribs, he is making another miracle in this August in which he has passed from the condition of a dying man to that of a sick man who is angrily trying to go back to being like before. But the question on everyone's mind is: when will he be back in the Formula 1 Circus?
"I don't know yet. It depends on my physique, on the training. For sure not in Monza, I hope for Canada or the United States".
How will this long-distance battle between you and Hunt for the world title end?
"Difficult to answer now, I only know that in Holland and in Italy Hunt should not win. The ideal would be for Regazzoni to assert himself and for Hunt to retire, at least once. Ours is a very competitive car, and if there are no particular problems it can still beat everyone. I really hope that Clay will be able to help in some way. Tomorrow I'll be watching the Dutch Grand Prix on television and I'll be cheering for him".
Speaking of Regazzoni, there are rumors that in 1977 he will no longer be at Ferrari: what does Lauda think?
"Every decision is up to Enzo Ferrari. I am the driver, he is the boss. I can only say that I have worked very well with Clay in these years. I would like to be able to continue with him next year".
Then Lauda pauses and reflects for a moment, before adding:
"I had a very bad month, which started in a way that I still ignore. But two things, above all, have helped me: the closeness of my wife Marlene and the behavior of Ferrari. Marlene has been wonderful, Ferrari fantastic. The engineer's decision to suspend the activity was in those Mannheim days a miraculous pill for me. When you're there, almost dead, it's important to know that the men you race for are by your side, supporting you, working for you. In Salzburg, Luca Montezemolo and Piero Lardi came to see me. We discussed many things for an afternoon. I am grateful to all of them. I have worked one hundred percent for Ferrari, but Ferrari has worked one hundred and ten percent with me".
One last question: does Niki think he can still be the driver he always was?
"Yes, I'm sure of it. I don't have nightmares, I don't have dramatic memories of the Nürburgring accident. It happened, but I had budgeted for the possibility of something like that. Niki is always Niki, you know? Of course, the experience was not easy, I thought and reflected. Now I feel I'm stronger and more mature than before, here, in the lead, understand?"
Alright, alright, we understand; bye Niki, best wishes and thanks. The journalists answer and shortly after they leave the timing tower and meet a German colleague. The German colleague takes the Italian journalists to see a film about Lauda's accident, shot by a filmmaker.
The images are dramatic: the Ferrari is seen cutting a corner, partially climbing the concrete curb, skidding, despite an attempt to recall by the driver, ending up against a slope and bouncing around in the center of the track while a wheel and other parts fly off. Suddenly a sea of flames is lit on one side of the car. Lauda has no helmet on his head. A single-seater avoids the Ferrari, then there is Guy Edwards' Surtees: an almost head-on collision, more spins, drivers arrive from all sides to save Niki, they fight against the fire. I wonder if I really talked to Lauda, if that voice coming from Salzburg was his. Better, much better that Niki doesn't remember anything. As far as the German track is concerned, the protest by the drivers after Lauda's accident has given its results. A special commission is being studied to modify, according to the drivers' directives, the circuit. The biggest problem is to create large spaces for the parking of cars because, it is the opinion of the organizers, it is not possible to sell tickets at 80 marks to the south stand without being able to give adequate parking to those who pay that amount. The projects currently under study are three and include several important modifications that cut the famous twenty-three kilometer circuit at different points, profoundly modifying the salient features of this famous track. The works will undoubtedly last for a long time and starting from the next one, the 1977 German Grand Prix and in the following two years until 1979 will be held in Hockenheim. The new Nürburgring will be ready, if all goes well, in 1980. It will be in fact in that date that - probably - the German Grand Prix will be held again at the Nürburgring. In the meantime, work has begun on the expansion of Hockenheim, where the maximum capacity is now 83.000 spectators, in order to increase it to 105.000. For now, however, for Niki Lauda's teammate, and for Ferrari, it's time to think about the Dutch Grand Prix, which ends quite well. The Swiss driver, in the only hour valid for the starting grid, manages to go down from the modest 1'23"59 of Friday (fifteenth time) to a comforting 1'21"85, obtaining the fifth absolute performance. Better than him are only Ronnie Peterson, who with the March takes away the pole position from Hunt and McLaren, Pryce at the wheel of the Shadow new model, and Watson on Penske. Regazzoni was in better shape and the rear end of his car was adjusted in order to balance more effectively the problems created by the tires. The Swiss driver was examined in a hospital near Zandvoort and the X-rays confirmed the existence of a scratch on a rib. A minor thing, but annoying, to the point that Clay got behind the wheel of the Ferrari after having a painkilling injection.
"The real problem is the tires, not my rib. At Zandvoort there's always the wind pushing sand from the dunes onto the track. If the tires don't warm up enough, grip becomes precarious and you can't accelerate hard coming out of corners. The English teams also have similar problems, but in a lesser form due to the different disposition of the weights on the cars: a McLaren or a March is much heavier than a Ferrari at the rear and this, obviously, gives them an advantage in this situation. Moreover, we have never been able to test these tires. However, testing is one thing and racing is another. For tomorrow I'm confident: I'm used to start in the second or third row and here it's not difficult to overtake".
Between Ferrari and Goodyear's men there was a squabble that testifies the tension of the moment. Daniele Audetto wanted to mount on Regazzoni's car a set of tires used in the previous days on Ferrari's private track at Fiorano and different from those brought to Zandvoort by Goodyear. But while Tomaini took them from inside the truck, the manager of the American company objected, claiming that Ferrari had to use the tires of the other teams, and after deflating them he threatened to cut the tires in question with a knife. Big words flew and, in the end, after threatening to tear up the contract, Audetto won the battle. Regazzoni was able to run on these tires and it was with them that he obtained his best time. It seems, on the other hand, that the difference in performance between the two types of tires is rather modest, so much so that tomorrow Clay will use the one recommended by Goodyear. In this regard, it should be noted that the difference was further diminished when Regazzoni ran with a full tank of gasoline. For the weight, the tires almost immediately reached the optimum operating temperature and the Swiss driver ended the test with a time very close to that obtained with a few liters of fuel in the tanks. A time that helps to hope for the race. In any case, the disconcerting behaviour of the American technicians remains: after all, Ferrari had bought those tires and they were still a product of the American company. The situation remained tense and it is not surprising if the relationship between Maranello and Akron should break down at the end of the year.
Apart from the tires, the Dutch Grand Prix is uncertain and hard fought, with eight drivers within six tenths of a second of each other. Behind Regazzoni, in fact, there are Andretti and Brambilla with the same time of 1'21"88, and Scheckter who lapped in 1'21"91.
"I don't collect Goodyear shoes, but victories and possibly titles. I'm not interested in controversy, I race to win. The race will be tough, I'm more afraid of Watson who is behind me than Peterson who is by my side. I don't think I will repeat tomorrow a race as unsatisfactory as in Austria. And the fuel, believe me, has nothing to do with it. My McLaren goes better here, even if there are some slight grip problems caused by the sand on the track".
Declares James Hunt at the end of the tests, going on to say:
"So much for those who said it was a monotonous championship. One day there is the Ferrari, then the Lotus, the Tyrrell, fifteen days ago, when everything seemed easy, Penske and Watson did that extraordinary race. Today Peterson with the March also pops up...certainly not an easy championship. Ferrari today? I don't know, I didn't see it...".
While Ronnie Peterson simply said:
"The car went well, but between me and Hunt there are only eight hundredths of a second, what advantage is that? Seventy-five laps are long, and anything can happen".
Both Hunt and Peterson, however, complain about how the Goodyear tires don't come up to temperature, and that therefore the cars in the corners tend to drift too much, while Ferrari's sporting director, Daniele Audetto, states:
"The tires of compound 66 front and 82 rear, which Goodyear gave, harder than those we usually have, are suitable for the cars of the British teams that have the weight behind. Our Ferrari has very well distributed weights, so it needs more tires".
And indeed Clay, after using front 14 and rear 57 tires, admits:
"I did the time with the old tires we brought from Maranello, then when in the non timed practice I drove full throttle and the tires given by Goodyear to everyone, the car went better than before. For the race I will use everyone's tires, I've seen that there is no difference".
Everything and everyone has been wound up pretty tight during this hour, and now it is all finished and the grid situation is settled; everyone relaxes and becomes quite human. The testing hour-and-a-half in the afternoon is exactly that, the pressure is off and the tension is gone and people actually run full-tank tests and scrubbed tires. Those who have spare cars try them out, just to make sure everything is working correctly, Alan Jones tries the second works Surtees to see if there is anything wrong with it, and routine engine changes that are started as soon as the morning session finished are completed and the cars given a run. In the midst of all the afternoon activity Peterson is out in his spare March 761/3-3 and thinks he can outbreak and chop across the front of Perkins at the end of the main straight, but the Ensign driver doesn’t reckon on being bullied with the result that they collide and spin off the road. The Boro-Ensign is wheeled back to the pits more or less undamaged but the March has to be retrieved by a breakdown truck. Not long after this there is another flurry of tire smoke and sand and Jochen Mass goes off into the catch-fencing.
The outer universal joint on the right-hand drive-shaft has split open the fixed yoke, and the rear brakes being inboard, as is standard practice on Hewland gearboxes these days, means that Mass only had three tyres absorbing braking forces, and they aren’t enough. The damage is slight, but in the remaining minutes he goes out in Hunt’s spare car, his own being in the paddock. In the hour and a half of non timed practice that closed the day, Perkins, with the Penske, crashed into Peterson, who was driving the March forklift, and the two left the track at the end of the pit straight, fortunately without suffering the slightest damage. Also Mass, with the new McLaren, flies out of the road in the same point, ending up in the protection nets: him unhurt, the car is a bit battered. In this race weekend McLaren brings to the debut, but only in test, the new model M26, entrusted to Jochen Mass. Also the Shadow brings a new model, the DN8, used by Tom Pryce, also in the race. Surtees replaces Brett Lunger with Conny Andersson, at his debut in the world championship. With Andersson, who is fighting with Riccardo Patrese for the European Formula 3 title, the number of Swedish drivers in Formula 1 rises to three. The Belgian Jacky Ickx, after having raced in the first part of the season with Wolf-Williams, finds the steering wheel of Ensign, where he takes the place of Hans Binder. The Dutch race saw the return of the local company Boro, with a car driven by Larry Perkins, and the debut in the world championship of the local driver Boy Hayje on a Penske of F&S Properties. The RAMs were not seen: after the seizure of the cars made on the occasion of the German Grand Prix at the Nürburgring by Kessel, who claimed a credit from McDonald for not having let him race after having paid twice what had been agreed, the judge gave reason to Kessel, entrusting the three Brabham cars of last year to the latter. After the Austrian Grand Prix, the cars left to go to Holland, but when Remino, Kessel's trusted man, came to Zandvoort, the cars had not yet arrived. What had happened? First it was thought to be an accident, then a breakdown, but when Remino went to look for McDonald, he had disappeared, along with all the other teams. What had happened was simply that McDonald had given orders to his men not to go to Holland but to take the cars, despite the judge's injunction, to Great Britain. Mosley said that Kessel was unlikely to be able to claim, in such cases, the injunctions of other courts.
In practice, that of McDonald was a shrewd move because it seems that he had already changed the name of the team and that Kessel was at this point... screwed. On Sunday, August 29, 1976, local bye-laws forbid noise and disturbances so as the 65.000 spectators fill the stands and cover the sand-dunes, they are entertained by mild forms of entertainment that cause very little upset. At 1:00 p.m. all hell breaks loose as the 26 starters roar away on a 15-minute test-session. Peterson’s March does not sound too healthy but a change of ignition unit seems to cure the misfire and everyone seems fit and ready, the Brabham-Alfa Romeo chaps-squeezing every last drop of petrol into the tanks as they are dubious about their fuel consumption. The 75 lap race is due to start at 2:00 p.m. and from the pits everyone drives round the circuit to the starting-grid and then with all the ceremony and count-down of a proper start the whole field goes off on another lap, this time in formation. They arrive back at the start all set to go and as soon as everyone is in position (no dummy-grid line-up!), the starting light flashes on and they are away. All except Stuck get away splendidly and in the rush to the first corner Pryce gets elbowed back by all and sundry. Peterson leads from Watson and Hunt, followed by Andretti, but Pryce has recovered himself and is in fifth place. Stuck is wheeled into the pits with an inoperative clutch and as the race ends the opening lap there is a March in the lead, another in midfield (Brambilla) and one in the pits driving off with a jack hooked up under the back of the gearbox. If nothing else March provides entertainment. For four laps Peterson leads Watson, Hunt and Andretti, but the beardless Ulsterman is not going to play a waiting game. As they finish lap 5 the Penske is really pushing the March, and at the end of lap 7 Watson outbreaks Peterson at the end of the straight and gets the lead but is going too fast to take the normal line round the Tarzan hairpin. In a superb piece of knife-edge balancing Watson holds the Penske all the way round the outside edge of the track, where lesser men would have spun off. This lets Hunt through on the inside and when Watson is gathered together again he is third. After only two laps Regazzoni takes fifth place from Pryce and virtually unnoticed Mezario has slid harmlessly off the track on lap 6. At 10 laps Anderson’s Cosworth engine in the second works Surtecs blows up and next time around Nilsson gets on the spilt oil and goes off into the sand, everyone else managing to see the oil.
Reutemann comes in the pits to retire his Brabham-Alfa Romeo next time round, the reason being an hydraulic leak from the clutch operating mechanism. With little fuss Regazzoni has passed Andretti on lap 8 so that at lap 11 the order is Peterson (March), Hunt (McLaren), Watson (Penske), Regazzoni (Ferrari), Andretti (Lotus), Pryce (Shadow), Scheckter (Tyrrell), Pace (Brabham), Brambilla (March), Depailler (Tyrrell), Mass (McLaren), Ickx (Ensign), Perkins (Ensign) and Laffite (Ligier) with the rest straggling along. The Ligier has had a slight collision with Depailler’s Tyrrell and the French car has suffered slightly bent steering, but there is nothing Laffite could do about it. By lap 12 Peterson’s race in the lead is over. Something technical is affecting the March like the front tires are overheating, the brakes are fading or the handling is deteriorating, or possibly it is just that Peterson is getting out of breath. Hunt goes by into the lead with ease and Watson is all lined up to take second place, which he does next time round. Hayje stops to change a front tire on the Hexagon Penske PC3 after 13 laps and on the next lap Scheckter is all set to elbow Pryce and the new Shadow back in yet another place. Stuck drops out when his Cosworth engine fails and to 20 laps all seems settled.
"I knew James was fighting for the world title, but I had to think about winning my battle".
While it may have been settled in spectators minds it certainly is not settled in the mind of John Watson in second place. He is steadily whittling away the gap to the McLaren, the two cars pulling out a gap on Regazzoni’s Ferrari. At the end of 26 laps Watson comes down the straight so close to the McLaren’s rear that it looks like an 8-wheeled car. He pulls out as they reach the braking area and side-by-side they stand on everything from maximum speed. Watson is on the outside and he sits it out with Hunt all round the long 180-degree turn in brilliant fashion, but cannot make a yard on the McLaren and has to drop in behind again as they finish the corner. There are two laps respite and then he is at it again, but Hunt refuses to give an inch. It is like two boxers trading blow-for-blow. Another lap for a breather and then he is at it again, but still Hunt’s judgement is faultless. He only has to overbrake a fraction or run slightly wide and Watson would have been by, for he is really forcing the pace and trying all he knows to worry Hunt into an infinitesimal error, but it never comes. When they start lapping slower cars he tries other tactics but Hunt is master of the whole scene, and wastes no time getting by slower cars. Back in mid-field Ickx is really getting into the swing of things with the red Ensign and he passes Mass, then Depailler, then Pace, and finally Brambilla, which takes him up to seventh place, and all this between laps 17 and 45. Actions have always spoken louder than words, and Jacky Ickx is indulging in some action. It takes the leaders a whole lap to get by Jarier, when they come up behind the Shadow, but they finally manage it and with a clear track ahead of them they are at it again, trading blow for blow.
As they end lap 40 we have the 8-wheeler act again and the side-by-side cornering again, and a repeat on the next lap, but it is still an absolute dead-lock. Hunt is not going to be flustered and every time he makes quite sure that Watson has to get alongside on the left, thus putting himself on the outside of the corner. No doubt the Ulsterman would love to get alongside on the right of the McLaren, but short of going down the pit lane there is never any room, Hunt sees to that very effectively. A couple of laps respite and then Watson has another go. Surely Hunt must weaken from the continual attacks, but no. Ending lap 46 they are side-by-side again, and equally close at the end of lap 47 and then it is all over. Instead of pulling out alongside the McLaren, the Penske slows dramatically and pulls off on the right of the track, the Hewland gearbox has failed and one of the best dices we have seen for a long time came to an end. A very relieved Hunt continues on alone, while the unhappy Watson walks back to the pits, his only consolation being the fastest lap. He is everyone’s hero for motor racing and can do with some more people with fire in their belly like John Watson. Unnoticed in all the excitement Fittipaldi has retired his brother’s car with an electrical fault, and Perkins has spun off into the catch fences in a cloud of sand due to a moment’s inattention on the fast right-hand bend leading onto the main straight. Hunt now has a fairly comfortable lead over Regazzoni and can relax slightly for the first time. Peterson is still ahead of Andretti, now holding third place and it doesn’t look as if the USAC driver is going to cause any trouble.
Pryce has repassed Scheckter, and the rest are a long way behind. Pace’s Alfa Romeo engine is losing oil and Peterson’s Cosworth is about to blow up. At the end of 52 laps the Swede coasts into the pits and out of the race with no oil pressure and one lap later Pace does likewise, while on the same lap the Matra V12 engine in the Ligier expires. The whole affair seems to have fallen apart and in comparison with what has gone before it seems monotonous to watch Hunt reel off the laps. With 10 laps to go Andretti begins pressing Regazzoni, who in turn begins to close on Hunt. The McLaren has never had an overwhelming lead, but it has seemed secure, but now it is a mere 4 seconds and seems to be dwindling. While this last minute surprise is being enacted Ickx’s splendid run ends abruptly with a total electrical failure on the Ensign and he forfeits a secure sixth place. With five laps to go Regazzoni is closing fast on the McLaren and Hunt is having to weave through back-markers, which is worrying. As they start the last lap Hunt nips by Alan Jones, who side-steps out of the way, and then comes back right in front of the Ferrari. Regazzoni is held up, shaking his fist angrily, but it is all too late and Hunt scuttles across the line with the furious Ferrari driver a mere two-tenths of a second behind. It is one race that Hunt is very relieved to see finish. Andretti finishes a strong third and Pryce pleases the Shadow management with his fourth place with the new car. A despondent Jochen Mass with the new McLaren finishes ninth, having dropped a place when he had an inadvertent spin. A bitter end for the Swiss driver and for Ferrari, who, however, have nothing to blame on themselves.
Regazzoni drove a wonderful race, first waiting intelligently for Peterson, Watson and Hunt to finish their uncertain battle, then unleashing an attack that did not have a happy outcome only because of Jones. At the base, of course, there is the problem of the tires: Regazzoni, as he himself declared, with a less unstable Ferrari he would have overtaken Hunt without problems. In the meantime Jacky Ickx, at the wheel of the Ensign, was unjustly blocked by a banal electrical failure during the 66th lap. Andretti, struggling in the final with fuel problems, had to be satisfied with third place. Tom Pryce closes in fourth place, while Brambilla, whose stubbornness is unfortunately due to the engine turning off every now and then, ends in sixth place. Scheckter (fifth) and Depailler (seventh) made a modest test with their almost unrideable six-wheel Tyrrell. Negative - once again - the test of the Brabham-Alfa Romeo, with Reuteman stopped by the breakage of the clutch pump and Pace by that of the engine. Emerson Fittipaldi was very unlucky. This time his Coopersucar seemed at least in line with the performance of the rivals, but after holding an honorable position Fittipaldi had to stop because of the breakage of the ignition switch. Nilsson with his Lotus, and Perkins with the Ensign, went off the track and their cars had a fire start, quickly tamed by the circuit services, finally efficient. Hunt, at the end of the Grand Prix, expresses kind words towards the Austrian, that the dramatic accident of the Nürburgring has momentarily removed from contention.
"The challenge for the title just starts now, I only hope that Niki can get back on track as soon as possible. I know he won't be there for Monza, but I hope he'll be back in Canada. What a duel we could have together".
The Englishman had to work hard to win and - as he confessed - there were moments during the Grand Prix when he really didn't hope for it. At the beginning for the attacks made on him by Ronnie Peterson and John Watson, at the end for Regazzoni's wonderful comeback that honored his name and that of Ferrari. Sunday evening James Hunt celebrates his birthday and victory in a typical restaurant in Zandvoort. The British driver is in the company of a beautiful lady: his mother. The blond driver who races for England and is always surrounded by beautiful women, behaved for once like a loving son. The success conquered in the Dutch Grand Prix, after all, is a particular success: first of all because it was obtained after a really hard fight; and secondly because it could prove decisive in the challenge for the world title with Niki Lauda, who could only follow the race on television from Salzburg. Shortly after the arrival at the finish line, the organizers of the Grand Prix bring Hunt a cake made in the shape of a circuit to celebrate his birthday with his mother and his brother David, who have watched the race from the grandstand. The mother, who was very nervous while waiting for the start of the race, gives way to happiness. The lady had already attended the races run at Brands Hatch and Silverstone and would be invited along with her husband by Marlboro to attend Monza.
"It's the best birthday of my life. I really didn't hope to win, first with Watson trailing me then with Regazzoni who didn't give me a moment's rest. I had a bad start, I was dazed. Then I overtook Peterson under braking and I resisted Watson by appealing to my experience. The McLaren was understeering horribly and the fiberglass brake air intake also came off, which contributed to the car's imbalance. Ten laps before the end I thought I had to give the victory to Regazzoni: he was faster than me and I could not push my car more. In the last lap I said a mental thank you to Jones. Good guy. Too bad he didn't block Clay earlier. I would have suffered less. Now I have to win at Monza: in this way I will go to Canada with seven points of advantage on Lauda".
A victory that also redeemed the opaque performance of Hunt and the McLaren two weeks earlier in Austria. Let's say immediately that, to avoid any misunderstanding, the technical commissioners of the Dutch race have taken petrol samples from the tanks of the first six cars in the ranking. The analysis will follow in the next days. Now Hunt is just two points behind Lauda: the Austrian has 58 points, the Englishman 56. And since Niki should be back in the race in the Canadian Grand Prix, on October 3, 1976, James still has a chance to run, so to speak, against a shadow, a chance that is called the Italian Grand Prix. If Hunt also asserts himself at Monza on September 12, he puts a really serious claim on the championship, as he goes on to lead by seven points over Lauda.
"I gave Watson's engine a macumba because it made me stand for two-thirds of the race with a heartbeat. Then I breathed a little bit".
Jokingly exclaims Teddy Mayer, who then adds:
"Regazzoni came through in that impressive way. Of course, if the Ferrari driver had attacked earlier instead of deciding when he had Andretti behind him, it could have been worse".
Once again it was Clay Regazzoni's turn, and perhaps Carlos Reutemann's turn, now free from Brabham Alfa Romeo, to block Hunt's way in favor of Lauda and Ferrari. The feat was only grazed, because the Swiss driver arrived second, a placement that in other circumstances would have been appreciated and that, now instead, leaves a bitter taste in the mouth. Unfortunately, in the decisive moment, that is in the last lap of the race, when he was reaching Hunt, Regazzoni found himself closed by Alan Jones' Surtees.
"I certainly did not purposely hinder Regazzoni and I am very sorry for what happened. I saw very well that Hunt and Clay were coming and I moved over. James passed, he didn't. After the curve I tried to go wide again, but going off the line I ended up on a stretch of track dirty with oil and sand and I was afraid of flying off the road. I didn't trust myself to repeat the maneuver".
The Australian, unintentionally, hindered the Ferrari driver while giving Hunt the green light. Hunt did not waste the good opportunity, he regained a small advantage over Regazzoni and crossed the finish line first (just 92 hundredths of a second), avoiding the risk of a wheel-to-wheel sprint with his rival. If Hunt, forced to perform acrobatic driving stunts due to the excessive understeer of his McLaren, has made a beautiful race, Regazzoni has not been less than him. After having let Peterson, Watson and Hunt himself go wild at the beginning of the Dutch Grand Prix, having retired Peterson and Watson, the Swiss driver began a splendid comeback, reducing lap after lap his disadvantage. He was not lucky but his merits are equally remarkable. Regazzoni also had to work hard to tame his Ferrari, which was unstable because of the tires that were forced on it. The car was oversteering and forced Clay to continuously concentrate. Without this basic problem, Regazzoni probably would have won the Dutch Grand Prix. At this point, it was clear that Ferrari would have to try everything at Monza.
"Ah, what a shame. Without Jones I might have won the Grand Prix. Hunt was now there, within reach, and since he was slower than me in the curve leading to the straight, I could have beaten him in the sprint. Unfortunately, because of the tires, I drove a car with too much oversteer today. It was a difficult and challenging task. The car was leaning in the corners, then suddenly this support was missing and you had to do stunts to control it. A bit like the Nürburgring. I'm sorry for Ferrari, for Niki, for me. I would have been happy to beat Hunt".
Regazzoni is joined by another driver, Reutemann, who should be in Maranello on Tuesday, August 31, 1976 for a courtesy visit to Enzo Ferrari. On Wednesday and Thursday Ferrari will be engaged on the Lombardy track for a series of tests on the track of the Italian Grand Prix. Reutemann might as well start his preparation right away. In such a situation, one anxiously awaits the discussion of the appeal filed by Ferrari against the decisions of the English court regarding the events in England and Hunt's success. The appeal judges of the FIA will meet on September 8th in Paris. If justice is done, Hunt will be stripped of the nine points of his success and Lauda will be able to be more relaxed. The situation - it is useless to hide it - has become precarious for the Lauda-Ferrari duo. Even though Niki will take the wheel of his Ferrari again in Canada, and then participate in the last two races of the championship in the United States and Japan, he will certainly not be one hundred percent fit. He will fight as only he knows how to do, but against a highly charged rival in perfect psycho-physical shape. What to do? Lauda has the right to be helped to the end by Ferrari, especially if the commissioners of the International Automobile Federation decide to overturn certain verdicts. But there has already been a postponement of the session of the Court of Appeal to after Monza, probably to take time in the hope that the results on the field will define in a decisive way the Lauda-Hunt duel. Among other things, between Ferrari and Goodyear, after the tire war on Saturday, relations are tense and on the horizon of Maranello seems to appear Michelin, that in 1977 will enter in Formula 1 supplying its tires to Renault.
The manufacturers' association is also involved in the affair and would like to protest against Ferrari for having used different tires from those brought to Zandvoort by the American company. There would be a tacit pact whereby each team can only use the type of tyre prepared by the American specialists, say the British team managers, but in reality Ferrari has not accepted any such pact and has repeatedly communicated this to the association. Moreover, the contract between Goodyear and Ferrari explicitly states that the two companies develop the Formula 1 tire program together and that Ferrari can use them at its own discretion. There is another fact that weighs heavily in the relationship between Maranello and Akron: Goodyear in Germany, Austria and Holland brought a single type of tire and not the two or three of the previous races. This type of tire favored the British single-seaters because of its characteristics; furthermore, the tires used at the Nürburgring, even though they had the same identification markings as some of the sets tested at Fiorano, gave very different performances. It ends up excessively conditioning the performance of the cars. In conclusion, with regard to Reutemann, it is worth adding that the Argentinean driver managed to free himself from the heavy constraint of Bernie Ecclestone especially thanks to the support of Martini. The penalty was reduced from $100.000 to $30.000. Carlos, however, will have to give back to Ecclestone the $40.000 he has received so far for the 1976 season. For Reutemann a heavy sacrifice to finance it, but what wouldn't one do to run with that Ferrari that has once again confirmed to be at the top of Formula 1?