The Rob Walker Racing Lotus 18 which Stirling Moss drove to victory in the 1961 Monaco Grand Prix.

The 1961 Monaco Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on May 14, 1961 on the Circuit de Monaco in Monte Carlo, Monaco. It was the first round of the 1961 World Championship of Drivers, and the first World Championship race under the new 1.5 litre engine regulations.^[1]

Report

Qualifying

The erratic yearly variations in Monaco's qualifying regulations saw grid places guaranteed for works teams and past winners in 1961.^[2] Therefore the five works teams were awarded two places each on the grid, while Stirling Moss and Maurice Trintignant earned spots. This left nine drivers to fight over four remaining slots. A fifth opened up when Innes Ireland crashed during the final practice session, breaking his leg. Moss took pole position from Richie Ginther and Jim Clark, with Graham Hill and Phil Hill on the second row.

Race

Ginther led Clark and Moss into the first corner but Clark quickly ran into trouble with a faulty fuel pump. Ginther dropped to third on lap 14, when Moss and Bonnier passed him at almost the same time. At quarter distance, Moss had an impressive 10 second lead (in the underpowered Lotus 18-Climax)^[3] but the Ferraris of Hill and then Ginther found their way around Bonnier and began to close the gap. At half distance, Moss' lead was 8 seconds, and down to 3 seconds on lap 60. Ginther moved into second on lap 75 and tried to close the gap, but Moss proved able to match his lap times, despite the 156's horsepower advantage.^[4]

Classification

Notes

• Pole position: Stirling Moss - 1:39.1
• Fastest Lap: Richie Ginther and Stirling Moss 1:36.3
• Lap Leaders: Richie Ginther 13 laps (1-13); Stirling Moss 87 laps (14-100).
• Stirling Moss had removed the side panels of his near obsolete Lotus 18 to keep him cool

Championship standings after the race

Drivers' Championship standings

Constructors' Championship standings

• Notes: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings.

References

ca:Gran Premi de M naco del 1961 es:Anexo:Gran Premio de M naco de 1961 fr:Grand Prix automobile de Monaco 1961 gl:Gran Premio de M naco de 1961 it:Gran Premio di Monaco 1961 hu:1961-es Formula 1 monac i nagyd j nl:Grand Prix Formule 1 van Monaco 1961 pl:Formu a 1 - Grand Prix Monako 1961 pt:Grande Pr mio de M naco de 1961 (F rmula 1) ru: - 1961 sl:Velika nagrada Monaka 1961 fi:Monacon Grand Prix 1961 sv:Monacos Grand Prix 1961