The 1965 German Grand Prix (formally the XXVII Großer Preis von Deutschland) was a Formula One motor race held at Nürburgring on August 1, 1965. It was race 7 of 10 in both the 1965 World Championship of Drivers and the 1965 International Cup for Formula One Manufacturers. The 15-lap race was won by Jim Clark, who in his Lotus-Climax, took pole position, the fastest lap of the race, and led every lap. The victory ensured that Clark won the World Championship of Drivers with three races left to go. It also meant that Lotus won the 1965 International Cup for Formula One Manufacturers at the same time. BRM driver, Graham Hill, finished the race in second position in front of Brabham-Climax driver, Dan Gurney, who completed the podium by finishing third. Clark's victory was his 3rd grand slam of the season and the final grand slam of his career.
| 1965 German Grand Prix | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
| Race details | |||
| Date | August 1, 1965 | ||
| Official name | XXVII Großer Preis von Deutschland | ||
| Location | Nürburgring, Nürburg, West Germany | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 22.810 km (14.168 miles) | ||
| Distance | 15 laps, 342.15 km (212.52 miles) | ||
| Weather | Overcast and dry | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Lotus-Climax | ||
| Time | 8:22.7 | ||
| Fastest lap | |||
| Driver |  Jim Clark | Lotus-Climax | |
| Time | 8:24.1 on lap 10 | ||
| Podium | |||
| First | Lotus-Climax | ||
| Second | BRM | ||
| Third | Brabham-Climax | ||
Lap leaders | |||
Race report
Graham Hill could still theoretically overhaul Clark for the championship. However Clark became Champion with a masterful performance, leading from pole to the flag and setting fastest lap, to gain maximum points with 3 Grand Prix still to be run. Behind him, the rest of the pack had all sorts of mechanical problems-Surtees had gear selection problems, Stewart bent a wishbone, Hulme punctured his fuel tank when his seat worked loose and Amon had transistor problems despite borrowing two transistor boxes. Clark was duly crowned as champion at the start of August, the earliest the championship had been won until 2002, when Michael Schumacher obtained his 5th title on July 21.
Classification
Qualifying
| Pos | No | Driver | Constructor | Time | Gap | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Jim Clark | Lotus-Climax | 8:22.7 | — | ||
| 2 | 10 | Jackie Stewart | BRM | 8:26.1 | +3.4 | ||
| 3 | 9 | Graham Hill | BRM | 8:26.8 | +4.1 | ||
| 4 | 7 | John Surtees | Ferrari | 8:27.0 | +4.3 | ||
| 5 | 5 |  Dan Gurney | Brabham-Climax | 8:29.0 | +6.3 | ||
| 6 | 2 | Mike Spence | Lotus-Climax | 8:33.4 | +10.7 | ||
| 7 | 8 |  Lorenzo Bandini | Ferrari | 8:33.8 | +11.1 | ||
| 8 | 12 |  Jochen Rindt | Cooper-Climax | 8:37.5 | +14.8 | ||
| 9 | 16 |  Jo Bonnier | Brabham-Climax | 8:37.9 | +15.2 | ||
| 10 | 11 |  Bruce McLaren | Cooper-Climax | 8:39.0 | +16.3 | ||
| 11 | 17 |  Jo Siffert | Brabham-BRM | 8:39.6 | +16.9 | ||
| 12 | 3 |  Gerhard Mitter | Lotus-Climax | 8:40.4 | +17.7 | ||
| 13 | 6 | Denny Hulme | Brabham-Climax | 8:42.3 | +19.6 | ||
| 14 | 4 |  Jack Brabham | Brabham-Climax | 8:44.9 | +22.2 | ||
| 15 | 18 | Bob Anderson | Brabham-Climax | 8:47.4 | +24.7 | ||
| 16 | 19 | Chris Amon | Lotus-BRM | 8:50.5 | +27.8 | ||
| 17 | 20 | Richard Attwood | Lotus-BRM | 8:57.7 | +35.0 | ||
| 18 | 21 | Frank Gardner | Brabham-BRM | 8:59.3 | +36.6 | ||
| 19 | 24 | Masten Gregory | BRM | 9:14.3 | +51.6 | ||
| 20 | 22 | Paul Hawkins | Lotus-Climax | 9:16.8 | +54.1 | ||
| 21 | 25 | Roberto Bussinello | BRM | 9:17.7 | +55.0 | ||
| 22 | 23 | Ian Raby | Brabham-BRM | 9:17.8 | +55.1 | ||
Source:[1] | |||||||
Race
| Pos | No | Driver | Constructor | Laps | Time/Retired | Grid | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Jim Clark | Lotus-Climax | 15 | 2:07:52.4 | 1 | 9 |
| 2 | 9 | Graham Hill | BRM | 15 | +15.9 secs | 3 | 6 |
| 3 | 5 | Dan Gurney | Brabham-Climax | 15 | +21.4 secs | 5 | 4 |
| 4 | 12 | Jochen Rindt | Cooper-Climax | 15 | +3:29.6 | 8 | 3 |
| 5 | 4 | Jack Brabham | Brabham-Climax | 15 | +4:41.2 | 14 | 2 |
| 6 | 8 | Lorenzo Bandini | Ferrari | 15 | +5:08.6 | 7 | 1 |
| 7 | 16 | Jo Bonnier | Brabham-Climax | 15 | +5:58.5 | 9 | |
| 8 | 24 | Masten Gregory | BRM | 14 | +1 Lap | 18 | |
| Ret | 7 | John Surtees | Ferrari | 11 | Gearbox | 4 | |
| Ret | 17 | Jo Siffert | Brabham-BRM | 9 | Engine | 11 | |
| Ret | 2 | Mike Spence | Lotus-Climax | 8 | Transmission | 6 | |
| Ret | 3 | Gerhard Mitter | Lotus-Climax | 8 | Water Leak | 12 | |
| Ret | 20 | Richard Attwood | Lotus-BRM | 8 | Water Leak | 16 | |
| Ret | 11 | Bruce McLaren | Cooper-Climax | 7 | Gearbox | 10 | |
| Ret | 6 | Denny Hulme | Brabham-Climax | 5 | Fuel Leak, Steering | 13 | |
| Ret | 19 | Chris Amon | Lotus-BRM | 3 | Electrical | 15 | |
| Ret | 22 | Paul Hawkins | Lotus-Climax | 3 | Oil Leak | 19 | |
| Ret | 10 | Jackie Stewart | BRM | 2 | Suspension | 2 | |
| Ret | 21 | Frank Gardner | Brabham-BRM | 0 | Gearbox | 17 | |
| DNS | 18 | Bob Anderson | Brabham-Climax | Accident in practice | |||
| DNQ | 25 | Roberto Bussinello | BRM | ||||
| DNQ | 23 | Ian Raby | Brabham-BRM | Accident in practice | |||
Source:[2] | |||||||
Championship standings after the race
- Constructors' Championship standings
| Pos | Constructor | Points | |
|---|---|---|---|
 | 1 | Lotus-Climax | 54 |
| | 2 | BRM | 39 (43) |
| | 3 | Ferrari | 21 |
| | 4 | Brabham-Climax | 15 |
| | 5 | Cooper-Climax | 11 |
| Source: [3] | |||
- Notes: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings. Only best 6 results counted toward the championship. Numbers without parentheses are championship points, numbers in parentheses are total points scored.