Sunday 18th July 1976

James Hunt was involved in a first corner crash at the British Grand Prix, at Brands Hatch, that brought out the red flags. Hunt drove his damaged car back to the pits, but did not complete a full lap of the track to do so, instead driving through an access road on the Cooper Straight. The officials declared that, since he had not been on the circuit when the red flag was waved, Hunt would not be allowed to take part in the restart. This news led to much angry feeling amongst the British crowd, who chanted Hunt’s name until the stewards, fearing crowd trouble, announced that Hunt would be allowed to take the restart. Hunt duly won the restarted race. Immediately after the race, the Ferrari, Tyrrell and Fittipaldi teams protested the inclusion of Hunt’s car. In September, two months after the event, a decision was reached and Hunt was disqualified, giving Niki Lauda the race win.