Circuits From the Österreichring to Adelaide

The Nordschleife ran for 22.8 kilometres through the Eifel; Caesars Palace was a hotel car park ringed with concrete. Between the two lay every kind of circuit a Grand Prix driver of his years could meet: airfields, parks, dunes, city streets and purpose-built autodromes.

He started World Championship races at 32 circuits, 33 if the old Nürburgring and the new one are counted apart, as they are here, and he won at 15 of them. Kyalami, Brands Hatch and Zandvoort gave him three wins each. He started most often at Kyalami and Monza, 12 times at each, and clinched his three titles at Monza, Watkins Glen and Estoril. Seven of the courses he raced on are gone; in 2026 eight still held a World Championship Grand Prix.

The table counts his starts; a race he did not start or failed to qualify for counts for nothing in it. Each circuit’s name leads to its entry below, in the order he first raced there.

The first visits, 1971–⁠1972

Österreichring, Zeltweg

Built in 1969 in the mountains above the old airfield circuit at Zeltweg, his home track had fast sweeps and the Bosch Kurve, a 180-degree bend with no run-off. His World Championship career began here on 15 August 1971, from 21st on the grid in a third works March; he retired. A broken wrist kept him out of the 1973 race. He took pole here in 1974, 1975 and 1977, was 6th in the rain-shortened race of 1975, which paid half points, and won at last in 1984, at his tenth start here, with fastest lap: to October 2026 the only Austrian to have won the Austrian Grand Prix. In 1985 he announced his retirement during the race weekend. The circuit lost its Grand Prix after 1987, was rebuilt as the A1-⁠Ring in 1996, and is now the Red Bull Ring.

Buenos Aires, Autódromo Municipal

Opened in 1952 and laid out over the years in a dozen ways, it gave him a 3.3-⁠kilometre circuit in 1972 and 1973 and a 6.0-⁠kilometre one from 1974. He never won here, but twice began well with a new team: 2nd on his debut for Scuderia Ferrari in 1974, behind Denny Hulme, and 2nd on his Brabham debut in 1978, behind Mario Andretti. The track is now the Autódromo Oscar y Juan Gálvez.

Kyalami

A long straight ran over the crest of a rise before Crowthorne corner. He started 12 Grands Prix here, as many as at Monza and more than anywhere else, and won three. In 1976 he held off James Hunt on a deflating tyre; in 1977 he won with debris from the accident that killed Tom Pryce and a marshal lodged in his radiator; in 1984 he won from 8th on the grid. His first pole came here, in 1974, and so did his return to racing, in January 1982, at the race of the drivers’ strike over the new super-licence. The circuit was rebuilt to a shorter layout for 1992 and bought by Porsche South Africa in 2014.

Jarama

John Hugenholtz’s circuit of 1967, slow corners and a long straight, saw the first race of the March 721X in 1972 and Lauda’s first Grand Prix win, on 28 April 1974: from pole, with fastest lap, leading Clay Regazzoni home in a Ferrari one-two. In 1977 a cracked rib made him withdraw after the warm-up. The circuit lost its Grand Prix after 1981, was extended, and still holds endurance races.

Monaco

In 1973 he ran 3rd in the BRM, ahead of Jacky Ickx’s Ferrari, until the gearbox broke; by his own account it was the drive that caught Enzo Ferrari’s eye. In 1975 he won here in the Ferrari 312T, coasting through the corners at the end as its oil pressure fell and Emerson Fittipaldi closed: Ferrari’s first win in Monaco since 1955. He won again in 1976. In 1983 he failed to qualify, and in 1984 he spun off in the rain at Casino Square. The round-the-houses circuit of 1929 still holds the Monaco Grand Prix.

Nivelles

Motor Sport called it safe but bland: a circuit of 1971 with long run-off areas. He was 12th there in the March 721X in 1972 and 2nd in 1974, 0.35 seconds behind Fittipaldi. The circuit went bankrupt and was sold in 1977, and the site is now an industrial estate.

Clermont-Ferrand (Charade)

The Circuit Louis Rosier wound for eight kilometres, over more than 50 corners and hardly a straight, round two extinct volcanoes. He raced there once, in 1972, at the first race of the March 721G, and retired after 4 laps with a broken driveshaft. The old circuit closed in 1988; a shortened course holds national events.

Brands Hatch

He set fastest lap here four times and won three British Grands Prix. In 1974 he led from pole until a puncture late in the race left him 5th. In 1976 he finished 2nd on the road to Hunt and was awarded the win when Hunt was disqualified on appeal in September. He won again in 1982, after Nelson Piquet retired, and in 1984, after Alain Prost’s gearbox failed. Outside the championship he raced four times in the Race of Champions, 2nd in the Ferrari in 1974. The British Grand Prix alternated between here and Silverstone; Formula One has not come back since 1986.

Nürburgring Nordschleife

Opened in 1927, with 176 corners by Motor Sport’s count: he knew the Nordschleife long before his first Grand Prix there, from touring-car races with Alpina, and in 1973 he won the Nürburgring 24 Hours there in an Alpina BMW with Hans-⁠Peter Joisten. His Grands Prix there went badly. In 1973 a crash at Kesselchen on lap 2 broke his wrist; in 1974 he went off on the opening lap from pole after touching Jody Scheckter; in 1975 he took pole with a lap of 6:58.6, led, and lost the lead to a puncture, finishing 3rd.

On 1 August 1976, on lap 2, he crashed near Bergwerk and the Ferrari caught fire; the chapter on the Nürburgring in 1976 tells the day. The CSI ruled the circuit unsafe for Formula One, and in 1977 the German Grand Prix went to Hockenheim. The Nordschleife is still raced, the 24 Hours among its events.

Monza

Opened in the royal park in 1922, a road course for slipstreaming whose old banking lay disused, Monza made him champion for the first time: he was 3rd here in 1975, and the title was Ferrari’s first for a driver since 1964. On 12 September 1976, 42 days after the Nürburgring, he came back here and finished 4th. He won in 1978, in the race that cost Ronnie Peterson his life, and again in 1984. Monza still holds the Italian Grand Prix.

Mosport

A sweeping drivers’ circuit with little run-off, where Canada held its first international race, in 1961. He was disqualified here in 1972 for a push start after a spin. In 1973, in the rain, he led a World Championship race for the first time, from lap 3 to lap 19 in the BRM. In 1974 he was leading when he ran over debris and crashed; in 1976 he was 8th. The Grand Prix moved to Montreal, and the circuit is now Canadian Tire Motorsport Park.

Watkins Glen

The hilltop circuit of 1956 held the United States Grand Prix from 1961 to 1980. He won here from pole in 1975, a month after Monza had made him champion, and two years later 4th place here made him champion again; it was his last race for Ferrari. NASCAR has raced here since 1986.

First visits in 1973

Interlagos, São Paulo

Opened in 1940, run anticlockwise and feared for its first corner, Interlagos was 7.96 kilometres long in his day. In 1976 he won the Brazilian Grand Prix here from 2nd on the grid, the first race in which he carried the champion’s No. 1, and in 1977 he was 3rd from 13th. The circuit was shortened for 1990 and still holds the Brazilian Grand Prix.

Montjuïc, Barcelona

An undulating circuit through a park in the city. In 1975 he took pole here and was out at the first corner, when Andretti’s Parnelli, hit by Vittorio Brambilla, was pushed into his Ferrari, which struck Regazzoni’s. Later in the same race Rolf Stommelen crashed and five onlookers were killed. Montjuïc was closed to racing after that year.

Zolder

Narrow, rough and hard on brakes, among pinewoods. His first World Championship points came here, 5th in the BRM in 1973. He won in 1975 and again in 1976, the second time from pole with fastest lap, leading every lap. In 1982 he finished 3rd on the road and was disqualified because his McLaren was under the weight limit. Zolder is still in use.

Anderstorp

Built on marshland, with a back straight that doubled as a runway. Both of his Swedish Grand Prix wins came here: in 1975 in the Ferrari 312T, when he passed Carlos Reutemann on lap 70, and in 1978 in the “fan car”, the Brabham BT46B, in the only championship race it ran. No Grand Prix has been held here since 1978.

Paul Ricard, Le Castellet

Flat and dusty, built in 1970 with Paul Ricard’s money, with the long Mistral straight. He won here in 1975, and in 1976 he led from the start, setting fastest lap, until his engine failed after 8 laps. The circuit became a test venue; its last French Grand Prix was in 2022.

Silverstone

A former RAF airfield and the home of the British Grand Prix. His six Grands Prix here brought one podium, 2nd to Hunt in 1977. In 1975 he changed early to wet tyres, a badly secured wheel came off in the pit lane, and he finished 8th. His win here came outside the championship, in the BRDC International Trophy of 1975, in the new 312T. The British Grand Prix is still run here.

Zandvoort

Hugenholtz’s circuit in the dunes, laid out on wartime roads, with the Tarzan corner at the end of the straight. It gave him six podiums from 10 starts and three wins: in 1974; in 1977, his last for Ferrari; and in 1985, his 25th and last, 0.232 seconds ahead of Prost. In 1979 he withdrew after 4 laps, his wrist injured in a Procar crash. Shortened in 1989 and lengthened in 1999, it was rebuilt with banking for its return in 2021; the Dutch Grand Prix of 2026 was its last for the foreseeable future.

New circuits, 1974–⁠1979

Dijon-Prenois

Picturesque but short when it opened in 1972, and extended in 1976. In 1974, 2nd from pole took him to the head of the championship; in 1982 he was 3rd in the Swiss Grand Prix, held here in France; in 1984 he won from 9th on the grid, passing Patrick Tambay late in the race. That race was the circuit’s last in Formula One.

Long Beach

The street circuit of the United States Grand Prix West gave him four podiums from six starts. In 1977 he took pole and was 2nd to Andretti. In 1982 he won here in only his third race back, passing Andrea de Cesaris on lap 15. In 1983 he was 2nd from 23rd on the grid, behind John Watson, who had started 22nd. IndyCar has raced on the streets of Long Beach since 1984.

Fuji

One race under Mount Fuji: the Japanese Grand Prix of 24 October 1976, when he pulled in after 2 laps in torrential rain, and Hunt’s 3rd place won the title by 1 point. Monza and Fuji tells it. Owned by Toyota and rebuilt in 2005, the circuit held two more Grands Prix, in 2007 and 2008.

Hockenheim

Long straights through the forest, broken by chicanes, and the stadium of the Motodrom. In 1977, a year after the Nürburgring, he won the German Grand Prix here, with fastest lap. In 1982 a wrist injured in practice kept him out of the race; in 1983 he was excluded after reversing in the pit lane; in 1984 he was 2nd to Prost. The forest loop was bypassed in 2002, and the last German Grand Prix here was in 2019.

Jacarepaguá, Rio de Janeiro

Flat, on reclaimed marsh, and known for its heat and humidity. He was 3rd at the circuit’s first Grand Prix, in 1978, and 3rd again in 1983, when Keke Rosberg’s disqualification left 2nd place empty; in 1984 he was leading when an electrical failure stopped him. Its last Grand Prix was in 1989, and the circuit was closed in 2012 to make way for the Olympic Games of 2016.

Montreal, Île Notre-Dame

Built in record time on a man-made island for 1978. In Friday practice for the 1979 race, after about 10 laps in the new Brabham BT49, he stopped and gave up racing; Ricardo Zunino drove the car in the race, so it was never one of Lauda’s entries. Back with McLaren, he was 2nd to Piquet here in 1984. The circuit, now named after Gilles Villeneuve, still holds the Canadian Grand Prix; the retirements tell the story of 1979.

After the return, 1982–⁠1985

Detroit

A bumpy street course downtown, all right-angle corners. He raced here four times and retired four times: a collision with Rosberg in 1982, then suspension, electrics and brakes. Formula One left after 1988; a new downtown layout has been raced since 2023.

Caesars Palace, Las Vegas

A hotel car park bounded by concrete walls, used for two Grands Prix, in 1981 and 1982. He raced there once, in 1982, and his engine failed. The circuit is gone.

Imola

The circuit in the Castellaccio park held a non-⁠championship race in 1979, the Dino Ferrari Grand Prix, which he won in the Brabham BT48. In the San Marino Grand Prix, run there from 1981, his best was 4th in 1985, after Prost’s disqualification. Formula One returned in 2020 after an absence and last raced here in 2025.

Spa-Francorchamps

He knew the circuit from touring-car races, and raced its shortened version of 1979 in one Grand Prix, in 1983, retiring after 33 laps. In 1985 a crash in practice injured his wrist and kept him out of that race and the next. Spa still holds the Belgian Grand Prix.

Dallas (Fair Park)

A one-off street race on 8 July 1984, run in heat of 100 degrees Fahrenheit (38 °C) on a surface that broke up as the weekend went on. He set fastest lap, then hit the wall after 60 laps. A shortened layout was used once more, in 1988.

Nürburgring

The new circuit, built at the old start and finish, was opened with a race on 12 May 1984 for identical Mercedes-⁠Benz 190E saloons: he chased Ayrton Senna, by RM Sotheby’s account trading the lead with him several times, and finished 2nd. In the European Grand Prix that October he was 4th from 15th on the grid, and in the German Grand Prix of 1985 5th, with fastest lap, passing Nigel Mansell on the last lap. The circuit was extended in 2002 and last held a Formula One race in 2020.

Estoril

Opened in 1972, it had fallen into disrepair before it was revived for 1984. On 21 October that year he started 11th, knowing that 2nd place behind Prost would be enough, and drove through what he later called a turbocharger problem to finish 2nd to him, champion by half a point. Estoril last held a Grand Prix in 1996.

Adelaide

A street circuit through Victoria Park, and the scene of his last Grand Prix, on 3 November 1985. He led briefly; then his brakes failed and he went into the wall on lap 58. The circuit survives in shorter form, for historic and touring cars.