F1's New Year's Day Races: A Look Back at the 1960s

Yes, Formula 1 has held a Grand Prix on New Year's Day—twice, in fact. Both were the South African Grand Prix, first in 1965 and again in 1968, a relic of a bygone era when the F1 season occasionally bridged the holiday season before the sport adopted its modern calendar structure.

Why it matters:

This historical quirk highlights the dramatic evolution of Formula 1's structure and global strategy. The shift from a flexible, holiday-adjacent calendar to the rigid, globally synchronized March-to-December season we know today underscores the sport's massive commercial growth, the increasing logistical complexity of a world championship, and its move away from a Euro-centric schedule.

The details:

• The First New Year's Day Race (1965): The South African GP on January 1, 1965, was the season opener. Originally the 1964 finale, it was moved forward, with Jim Clark taking an all-British podium victory ahead of John Surtees and Graham Hill.
• The Second and Final New Year's Day Race (1968): Clark triumphed again on January 1, 1968. This victory proved to be his last before his fatal accident at Hockenheimring later that year. He finished ahead of Graham Hill and Jochen Rindt.
• A Brief Holiday Trend: These weren't the only races near the holiday. The South African GP also ran on December 29, 1962; December 28, 1963; and January 2, 1967.
• The End of an Era: From the 1970s, F1 standardized its calendar to the March-to-December format to avoid the holiday period and better accommodate teams, broadcasters, and the sport's expanding global footprint.

The big picture:

The idea of an F1 car taking to the track on January 1st is a stark reminder of how much the sport has grown. What was once a flexible, logistically simpler championship has transformed into a billion-dollar global enterprise with a meticulously planned schedule, making the New Year's Day races a fascinating and permanent footnote in F1's history.