1. James Hunt wins title as Niki Lauda withdraws – 1976
The 1976 season has received plenty of media attention recently. If you’ve been to see Rush, you probably know all about this already.
The year culminated at Fuji with both James Hunt and Niki Lauda in contention for the title. However, the weather played a major part in deciding not just the race result, but the championship as well.
In sodden conditions, Niki Lauda conceded the title and withdrew from the race after just two laps. No-one begrudged such a move, given he was still baring the physical and mental scars from his life-threatening crash at the Nurburgring earlier in the year. It was a miracle he was still alive, let alone still in with a chance of winning the championship.
But, not long after his withdrawal, mother nature smiled on James Hunt and conditions started to improve. Niki Lauda could only watch from the side of the track in dismay as the rain became lighter, and track conditions improved significantly. Hunt just kept on circulating – but had his own scare. He was forced to make a late race pit stop after suffering a puncture, but in the remaining laps was still able to recover to third place, enough to take the title by a single point.
It was an incredible end to what had been a truly memorable season.
Image Credit: Getty Images
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Stay tuned for a countdown of the top ten moments from the location of this weekend’s Grand Prix, Suzuka.
