There has been plenty of chat about Formula One returning to SA of late. Few may know what we used have our very on F1 series that was hosted entirely on local soil. Regular F1 contributor Graham Duxbury takes a closer look at SA’s amazing Grand Prix era.
While the Formula One World Championship grew into a European-dominated global spectacle during the 1960s and early 1970s, a parallel motorsport universe was thriving in South Africa. Between 1960 and 1975, the country ran a national drivers’ championship to full international single-seater regulations.
This 16-year period is recognised as a golden era for South African racing. It was defined by world-class machinery, local heroes, dramatic rivalries, and races at iconic circuits like Kyalami, East London and Killarney.
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Real F1 Cars
The SA championship featured F1-level cars, often only one season removed from world championship competition. It also produced drivers who could – and often did – compete with the best in the world. The story of SA F1 championship series begins in earnest in 1960. Local motorsport authorities were looking for a formula for SA’s premier single seater championship and settled on then-new international 1,5-litre Formula 2 rules.
Sportingly, older specials and sportscars as well as Grand Prix machinery from SA’s previous Formula Libre (free formula) era were allowed to compete alongside the new cars. It was a move that would prove quite prophetic as international F1 rules for the following season – 1961 – became, in effect, the 1960 F2 rules.
SA F1 Series
For 1961, SA seamlessly adopted F1’s new technical regulations and for the first time its domestic series was fully aligned with the F1 World Championship. The South African summer overlapped with the European off-season. As a result international stars got to join local events.
Non-championship races like the Rand-, Natal-, and Cape GPs drew big names. Legends such as Stirling Moss, Jim Clark, Graham Hill, Jack Brabham, John Surtees, Lorenzo Bandini and other stars enhanced the series’ prestige.
At the heart of the SA F1 scene were its homegrown stars. Rhodesian-born John Love dominated the 1960s. He won six national titles between 1964 and 1969. His near-win at the 1967 SA GP, leading in a private Cooper before a late fuel stop handed victory to Pedro Rodriguez, remains a local legend.
Racing Abroad
Dave Charlton followed with six titles of his own (1970 – 1975). ‘Charlie’ often drove top-spec machinery such as the Lotus 72. In 1972, Charlton even contested three World Championship races in Europe. He took his own car and drums of South African Sasol fuel – to the amazement of the establishment.
Other standout locals included Neville Lederle, who scored a World Championship point in 1962; Ian Scheckter, who went on to race internationally with March and Williams; and Jackie Pretorius, a flamboyant racer who drove briefly for Frank Williams.
Top Names
Machines used in SA races often came from top constructors. Names included Brabham, Lotus, McLaren, and Surtees. SA also fostered homegrown innovation. Doug Serrurier’s LDS cars, inspired by then-state-of-the-art Cooper and Brabham designs, showcased impressive engineering. In the 1966 SA GP, Serrurier finished 10th against top international competition.
One of the most famous locally-built cars was the Alfa Special, created by Peter de Klerk. In the 1963 Rand GP at Kyalami, De Klerk’s car out-dragged the factory Ferraris at the start and went on to finish third. This prompted Lotus boss Colin Chapman to call it “the fastest four-cylinder F1 car in the world”.
Ahead of the Curve
South Africa was often ahead of the curve. When F1 announced a move from 1,5-litre to 3-litre engines for 1966, SA adopted the new formula a year early. The 1965 Rand GP was the first international event to run under the new rules and drew a strong field. Jack Brabham won that race ahead of De Klerk and Paul Hawkins.
Motorsport enjoyed immense popularity in South Africa at the time. Robust media coverage, live radio, and packed paddocks turned race weekends into major social events. But by the mid-1970s, the golden age was drawing to a close. Costs soared, international machinery became harder to acquire, and sponsors tightened their belts.
A Sad End
In 1976, SA’s amazing Grand Prix era was officially discontinued and replaced by the more cost-effective Formula Atlantic category that would capably carry SA single-seater racing through the late 1970s and ’80s, spawning a new breed of highly-acclaimed champions.
Though it no longer exists, the SA F1 Championship left a lasting legacy that is being rediscovered as SA once again seeks to return to the F1 calendar. The memory of its homegrown GP era still inspires – half a century on.
Special thank to the Wendy Monk Archive for the images used in this piece.