North American F1 History - Mosport Park by Flood1

 

More than forty years ago, far from the sophistication and urban convenience of Montréal’s Ile Notre-Dame, the first Canadian Grand Prix was run on farmland located 70 miles northeast of Toronto.

Mosport Park is a clockwise, 10 turn, 2.46 mile (3.96km) road course that first opened in 1961. It was first conceived of in 1958 by members of the British Empire Motor Club. The turn 5 complex was named after Sterling Moss who influenced the design.

Mosport Park was home to the Canadian Grand Prix for 8 races over 10 seasons (Mont Tremblant hosted 1968 and 1970). The circuit has an interesting and diverse history. In 1967, Mosport Park hosted F1, Indy Cars, Can-Am, USAC stock cars, and the Canadian World Championship 500cc motorcycle grand prix. It was the first purpose built road racing course constructed in Canada.

The field of drivers in 1967 for the first championship race in Canada included Jack Brabham, Jackie Stewart, Jim Clark, Graham Hill, Denny Hulme, and Jochen Rindt. Between them, from 1959 to 1973, these men won 12 World Driving Championships.

55,000 race fans gathered under threatening clouds to watch these great stars bring the excitement of Formula 1 to Canada for the first time. Jim Clark started on pole after a difficult practice session, followed by Graham Hill in the second position, and Denny Hulme in third. All three started on the front row due to a 3, 2, 3, 2 start line configuration used at that time.

They were treated to a classic wet-dry-wet race where fortunes change on a dime. The rain came during the reconnaissance lap and continued for many laps after the start. It was immediately clear that the powerful Lotuses of Clark and Hill were at a disadvantage in wet conditions when compared to the Brabham-Repcos of Brabham and Hulme.

Hulme moved up to take the lead on lap 4, and drove a great wet stint that put 26 seconds between him and the second place pack. The pack included McLaren, Stewart, Clark, and Brabham, all very close together and racing hard.

When the rain stopped, Clark made his drive back to the front while setting fastest lap of the race. He took the lead from Hulme on lap 58, and with 32 laps remaining, Clark was set for a race victory.

And then the rain came back. Clark held the lead for several laps, but suffered an ignition problem from the wet conditions and retired on lap 69. Jack Brabham had come to the front through the usual mayhem that accompanies a heavy rain and would stay there for the checkered flag. He was followed to the podium by his teammate Denny Hulme, and by American Dan Gurney.

Jack Brabham had returned to F1 in 1966 after a 1 year absence to win his 3rd WDC. He was a contender in 1967 as well. But, his teammate and employee, Denny Hulme, who had placed second to him at the first Canadian Grand Prix, would reverse those positions in the final WDC standings.

Those who attended the event went home soaked but satisfied. They had witnessed some of F1’s greatest drivers competing in changing conditions that required great driving skills. Although MoSport park was eventually considered unsuitable for F1 racing, it still operates today and features ALMS as well as other North American racing series.

 

 

1967 Canadian GP Classification

Pos	No	Driver	Constructor	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid	Points
1	1	Jack Brabham	Brabham-Repco	90	2:40:40.0	7	9
2	2	Denny Hulme	Brabham-Repco	90	+ 1:01.9	3	6
3	10	Dan Gurney	Eagle-Weslake	89	+ 1 Lap	5	4
4	4	Graham Hill	Lotus-Ford	88	+ 2 Laps	2	3
5	16	Mike Spence	BRM	87	+ 3 Laps	10	2
6	20	Chris Amon	Ferrari	87	+ 3 Laps	4	1
7	19	Bruce McLaren	McLaren-BRM	86	+ 4 Laps	6
8	9	Jo Bonnier	Cooper-Maserati	85	+ 5 Laps	14
9	12	David Hobbs	BRM	85	+ 5 Laps	12
10	8	Richard Attwood	Cooper-Maserati	84	+ 6 Laps	13
11	6	Mike Fisher	Lotus-BRM	81	+ 9 Laps	17
Ret	3	Jim Clark	Lotus-Ford	69	Ignition	1
DSQ	5	Eppie Wietzes	Lotus-Ford	69	Disqualified	16
Ret	15	Jackie Stewart	BRM	65	Throttle	9
NC	11	Al Pease	Eagle-Climax	47	Not Classified	15
Ret	17	Chris Irwin	BRM	18	Spun Off	11
Ret	71	Jochen Rindt	Cooper-Maserati	4	Ignition	8
DNQ	41	Tom Jones	Cooper-Climax