The 1972 Brazilian Grand Prix was the dress rehearsal for a full championship race in 1973. It was held on March 30, the Thursday before Good Friday, and was a work day in Brazil. Regardless, a crowd of more than 100,000 showed up to watch 11 cars take the green flag. The race was won by Carlos Reutemann, from nearby Argentina and driving a Brabham. He was followed by Ronnie Peterson in a March and one of the local favorites, Wilson Fittipaldi in another Brabham. Despite some organizational glitches, the race was approved to join the calendar for the following season.
Background[]
Entry list[]
The full entry list for the 1972 Brazilian Grand Prix is outlined below:
Practice Overview[]
Qualifying[]
Qualifying Results[]
The full qualifying results for the 1972 Brazilian Grand Prix are outlined below:
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Constructor | Time | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 |  Emerson Fittipaldi
|
Lotus-Ford Cosworth | 2:32.4 | — |
| 2 | 8 |  Carlos Reutemann
|
Brabham-Ford Cosworth | 2:34.4 | +2.0s |
| 3 | 10 |  Ronnie Peterson
|
March-Ford Cosworth | 2:34.6 | +2.2s |
| 4 | 9 | Wilson Fittipaldi
|
Brabham-Ford Cosworth | 2:36.3 | +3.9s |
| 5 | 2 |  Dave Walker
|
Lotus-Ford Cosworth | 2:37.7 | +5.3s |
| 6* | 14 |  Jean-Pierre Beltoise
|
BRM | 2:37.8 | +5.4s |
| 7 | 6 | Carlos Pace
|
March-Ford Cosworth | 2:39.4 | +7.0s |
| 8 | 5 | Henri Pescarolo
|
March-Ford Cosworth | 2:40.0 | +7.6s |
| 9 | 15 |  Peter Gethin
|
BRM | 2:41.0 | +8.6s |
| 10 | 11 | Luiz Bueno
|
March-Ford Cosworth | 2:41.6 | +9.2s |
| 11 | 17 |  Helmut Marko
|
BRM | 2:46.4 | +14.0s |
| 12 | 18 |  Alex Soler-Roig
|
BRM | 2:51.5 | +19.1s |
| WD | 3 |  Jacky Ickx
|
Ferrari | Withdrawn | |
| WD | 4 |  Clay Regazzoni
|
Ferrari | Withdrawn | |
| WD | 7 | Reine Wisell
|
Surtees-Ford Cosworth | Withdrawn | |
| WD | 12 |  Andrea de Adamich
|
Surtees-Ford Cosworth | Withdrawn | |
| WD | 16 |  Howden Ganley
|
BRM | Withdrawn | |
- * Beltoise could not start due to ignition failure.
Grid[]
| Pos. | Pos. | |
|---|---|---|
| Driver | Driver | |
| ______________ | ||
| Row 1 | ______________ | 1 |
| 2 | Emerson Fittipaldi | |
| Carlos Reutemann | ______________ | |
| Row 2 | ______________ | 3 |
| 4 | Ronnie Peterson | |
| Wilson Fittipaldi | ______________ | |
| Row 3 | ______________ | 5 |
| 6 | Dave Walker | |
| ______________ | ||
| Row 4 | ______________ | 7 |
| 8 | Carlos Pace | |
| Henri Pescarolo | ______________ | |
| Row 5 | ______________ | 9 |
| 10 | Peter Gethin | |
| Luiz Bueno | ______________ | |
| Row 6 | ______________ | 11 |
| 12 | Helmut Marko | |
| Alex Soler-Roig | ______________ | |
| Row 7 | ______________ | 13 |
| 14 | ||
| ______________ | ||
| Row 8 | ______________ | 15 |
| 16 | ||
| ______________ | ||
| Row 9 | ______________ | 17 |
| 18 | ||
| ______________ |
- * Beltoise could not start due to ignition failure.
Race[]
Results[]
The full results for the 1972 Brazilian Grand Prix are outlined below:
| Pos. | No. | Driver | Constructor | Laps | Time/Retired | Grid |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 8 | Carlos Reutemann
|
Brabham-Ford Cosworth | 37 | 1:37:16.248 | 2 |
| 2 | 10 | Ronnie Peterson
|
March-Ford Cosworth | 37 | +1:27.656s | 3 |
| 3 | 9 | Wilson Fittipaldi
|
Brabham-Ford Cosworth | 37 | +2:03.379s | 4 |
| 4 | 17 | Helmut Marko
|
BRM | 36 | +1 lap | 11 |
| 5 | 2 | Dave Walker
|
Lotus-Ford Cosworth | 36 | +1 lap | 5 |
| 6 | 11 | Luiz Bueno
|
March-Ford Cosworth | 35 | +2 laps | 10 |
| Ret | 1 | Emerson Fittipaldi
|
Lotus-Ford Cosworth | 32 | Suspension | 1 |
| Ret | 18 | Alex Soler-Roig
|
BRM | 11 | Electrics | 12 |
| Ret | 6 | Carlos Pace
|
March-Ford Cosworth | 0 | Throttle | 7 |
| Ret | 5 | Henri Pescarolo
|
March-Ford Cosworth | 0 | Throttle | 8 |
| Ret | 15 | Peter Gethin
|
BRM | 0 | Throttle | 9 |
| DNS | 14 | Jean-Pierre Beltoise
|
BRM | |||
| WD | 3 | Jacky Ickx
|
Ferrari | |||
| WD | 4 | Clay Regazzoni
|
Ferrari | |||
| WD | 7 | Reine Wisell
|
Surtees-Ford Cosworth | |||
| WD | 12 | Andrea de Adamich
|
Surtees-Ford Cosworth | |||
| WD | 16 | Howden Ganley
|
BRM | |||
Milestones[]
| V T E |  Brazilian Grand Prix
|
|
|---|---|---|
| Circuits | Interlagos (1972–1977, 1979–1980, 1990–2019), Jacarepaguá (1978, 1981–1989) |  |
| Races (Brazilian GP) | 1973 • 1974 • 1975 • 1976 • 1977 • 1978 • 1979 • 1980 • 1981 • 1982 • 1983 • 1984 • 1985 • 1986 • 1987 • 1988 • 1989 • 1990 • 1991 • 1992 • 1993 • 1994 • 1995 • 1996 • 1997 • 1998 • 1999 • 2000 • 2001 • 2002 • 2003 • 2004 • 2005 • 2006 • 2007 • 2008 • 2009 • 2010 • 2011 • 2012 • 2013 • 2014 • 2015 • 2016 • 2017 • 2018 • 2019 • | |
| Non-Championship Race | 1972 |
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