Alright, so I decided to spend some time looking into the 1970 Formula 1 season. It wasn’t for any big project, just got curious, you know? Sometimes you just want to dive into a bit of history, see what things were like back then.
First thing I did was just some basic searching, trying to get a feel for the year. Straight away, the name Jochen Rindt pops up everywhere. You can’t look up 1970 F1 without seeing his name. Then you see the other big players, Ferrari trying to get back on top, Lotus doing their thing, Jackie Stewart was in there too. It seemed like a pretty busy season right from the start.
So I started digging a bit deeper. Pulled up some old race reports, looked at pictures of the cars.
What stood out?
- Lotus brought out this wild looking car, the Lotus 72. Wedge shape, radiators on the side. Looked futuristic compared to the others.
- Ferrari weren’t messing around either, they had the 312B car with a new flat-12 engine. Sounded pretty serious.
- And then there was this new team, March. They seemed to be everywhere! Running their own team plus selling cars to others, like Ken Tyrrell’s team for Stewart. Made things feel a bit… spread out? Lots of different combinations on the grid.
But honestly, the whole season really revolves around the story of Jochen Rindt. He was driving for Lotus, winning races, leading the championship. He was really on a roll. Then came that terrible weekend at Monza. It’s a heavy part of the story. I spent a good while just reading about that whole situation. The fact he became the champion posthumously, it’s just… well, it’s unique and incredibly sad. Makes you pause, really.
While looking into Rindt and Lotus, I saw other stories unfolding too. Jacky Ickx at Ferrari put up a huge fight for the title, especially after Monza. And you saw young guys starting to make waves. Emerson Fittipaldi, Rindt’s teammate, actually won a race near the end of the season, which was massive for him and helped Lotus clinch the constructors’ title. Clay Regazzoni also grabbed his first win for Ferrari that year. So, it wasn’t just one story, lots was happening.
Looking back at my notes and the stuff I read, the season felt really dramatic. The cars were getting seriously quick, maybe faster than the tracks or safety could handle sometimes. It felt raw. It wasn’t just about who crossed the line first; there was real risk, big team battles, new talents emerging. It wasn’t a straightforward season where one guy dominated from start to finish. Felt like a real rollercoaster.
So yeah, that was my little journey through the 1970 F1 season. Started just out of curiosity, ended up learning about a really pivotal, intense, and ultimately tragic year in racing. Definitely gave me a new appreciation for that era of the sport.
