Published evidence
Simba Grand Prix of South Africa 1979 · race
A historical profile with source-linked evidence. Further research is in progress.
THE HISTORICAL RECORD
Profile & context
- Name
- Simba Grand Prix of South Africa 1979 · race
PROVENANCE
Sources behind this page
F1DB
v2026.17.0 · session/316-race
Original reference ↗Historical source & scope
F1DB v2026.17.0 · CC BY 4.0. Normalisation, links and calculations by MotorPedia. Original source observations retained.
Source-reported facts are not independent historical confirmation. Missing times and points remain unknown; source-rounded points retain their published precision. Constructor, entrant and team identities are kept distinct.
Grand Prix context
Simba Grand Prix of South Africa 1979 · Kyalami Racing Circuit
Technical formula: Formula 1. World Championship membership is separate from technical regulations.
1979 Formula 1 World Championship · round 3
Race classification
| Position | Driver | Constructor | Recorded details | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Gilles Villeneuve | Ferrari | 1:41:49.960 · 78 laps · ferrari | 9 |
| 2 | Jody Scheckter | Ferrari | 1:41:53.380 · 78 laps · ferrari | 6 |
| 3 | Jean-Pierre Jarier | Tyrrell | 1:42:12.070 · 78 laps · ford | 4 |
| 4 | Mario Andretti | Lotus | 1:42:17.840 · 78 laps · ford | 3 |
| 5 | Carlos Reutemann | Lotus | 1:42:56.930 · 78 laps · ford | 2 |
| 6 | Niki Lauda | Brabham | Time not recorded · 77 laps · alfa-romeo | 1 |
| 7 | Nelson Piquet | Brabham | Time not recorded · 77 laps · alfa-romeo | Unknown / not applicable |
| 8 | James Hunt | Wolf | Time not recorded · 77 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| 9 | Clay Regazzoni | Williams | Time not recorded · 76 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| 10 | Patrick Tambay | McLaren | Time not recorded · 75 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| 11 | Riccardo Patrese | Arrows | Time not recorded · 75 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| 12 | Jochen Mass | Arrows | Time not recorded · 74 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| 13 | Emerson Fittipaldi | Fittipaldi | Time not recorded · 74 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| 14 | Héctor Rebaque | Lotus | Engine · Time not recorded · 71 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNF | René Arnoux | Renault | Tyre · Time not recorded · 67 laps · renault | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNF | Alan Jones | Williams | Suspension · Time not recorded · 63 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNF | John Watson | McLaren | Ignition · Time not recorded · 61 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNF | Hans-Joachim Stuck | ATS | Accident · Time not recorded · 57 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNF | Jean-Pierre Jabouille | Renault | Engine · Time not recorded · 47 laps · renault | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNF | Jacques Laffite | Ligier | Accident · Time not recorded · 45 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNF | Didier Pironi | Tyrrell | Throttle · Time not recorded · 25 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNF | Elio de Angelis | Shadow | Accident · Time not recorded · 16 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNF | Patrick Depailler | Ligier | Accident · Time not recorded · 4 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNF | Jan Lammers | Shadow | Accident · Time not recorded · 2 laps · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNQ | Derek Daly | Ensign | Time not recorded · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
| DNQ | Arturo Merzario | Merzario | Time not recorded · ford | Unknown / not applicable |
Qualifying
| Position | Driver | Constructor | Recorded details | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jean-Pierre Jabouille | Renault | 1:11.800 · renault | |
| 2 | Jody Scheckter | Ferrari | 1:12.040 · ferrari | |
| 3 | Gilles Villeneuve | Ferrari | 1:12.070 · ferrari | |
| 4 | Niki Lauda | Brabham | 1:12.120 · alfa-romeo | |
| 5 | Patrick Depailler | Ligier | 1:12.150 · ford | |
| 6 | Jacques Laffite | Ligier | 1:12.260 · ford | |
| 7 | Didier Pironi | Tyrrell | 1:12.330 · ford | |
| 8 | Mario Andretti | Lotus | 1:12.360 · ford | |
| 9 | Jean-Pierre Jarier | Tyrrell | 1:12.550 · ford | |
| 10 | René Arnoux | Renault | 1:12.690 · renault | |
| 11 | Carlos Reutemann | Lotus | 1:12.750 · ford | |
| 12 | Nelson Piquet | Brabham | 1:13.070 · alfa-romeo | |
| 13 | James Hunt | Wolf | 1:14.210 · ford | |
| 14 | John Watson | McLaren | 1:14.440 · ford | |
| 15 | Elio de Angelis | Shadow | 1:14.440 · ford | |
| 16 | Riccardo Patrese | Arrows | 1:14.540 · ford | |
| 17 | Patrick Tambay | McLaren | 1:14.580 · ford | |
| 18 | Emerson Fittipaldi | Fittipaldi | 1:14.610 · ford | |
| 19 | Alan Jones | Williams | 1:14.640 · ford | |
| 20 | Jochen Mass | Arrows | 1:15.000 · ford | |
| 21 | Jan Lammers | Shadow | 1:15.350 · ford | |
| 22 | Clay Regazzoni | Williams | 1:15.680 · ford | |
| 23 | Héctor Rebaque | Lotus | 1:16.150 · ford | |
| 24 | Hans-Joachim Stuck | ATS | 1:16.310 · ford | |
| 25 | Derek Daly | Ensign | 1:16.640 · ford | |
| 26 | Arturo Merzario | Merzario | 1:18.140 · ford |
Starting grid
| Position | Driver | Constructor | Recorded details | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jean-Pierre Jabouille | Renault | 1:11.800 · renault | |
| 2 | Jody Scheckter | Ferrari | 1:12.040 · ferrari | |
| 3 | Gilles Villeneuve | Ferrari | 1:12.070 · ferrari | |
| 4 | Niki Lauda | Brabham | 1:12.120 · alfa-romeo | |
| 5 | Patrick Depailler | Ligier | 1:12.150 · ford | |
| 6 | Jacques Laffite | Ligier | 1:12.260 · ford | |
| 7 | Didier Pironi | Tyrrell | 1:12.330 · ford | |
| 8 | Mario Andretti | Lotus | 1:12.360 · ford | |
| 9 | Jean-Pierre Jarier | Tyrrell | 1:12.550 · ford | |
| 10 | René Arnoux | Renault | 1:12.690 · renault | |
| 11 | Carlos Reutemann | Lotus | 1:12.750 · ford | |
| 12 | Nelson Piquet | Brabham | 1:13.070 · alfa-romeo | |
| 13 | James Hunt | Wolf | 1:14.210 · ford | |
| 14 | John Watson | McLaren | 1:14.440 · ford | |
| 15 | Elio de Angelis | Shadow | 1:14.440 · ford | |
| 16 | Riccardo Patrese | Arrows | 1:14.540 · ford | |
| 17 | Patrick Tambay | McLaren | 1:14.580 · ford | |
| 18 | Emerson Fittipaldi | Fittipaldi | 1:14.610 · ford | |
| 19 | Alan Jones | Williams | 1:14.640 · ford | |
| 20 | Jochen Mass | Arrows | 1:15.000 · ford | |
| 21 | Jan Lammers | Shadow | 1:15.350 · ford | |
| 22 | Clay Regazzoni | Williams | 1:15.680 · ford | |
| 23 | Héctor Rebaque | Lotus | 1:16.150 · ford | |
| 24 | Hans-Joachim Stuck | ATS | 1:16.310 · ford |
Championship progression
| Position | Driver | Constructor | Recorded details | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jacques Laffite | Not applicable / not recorded | Time not recorded | 18 |
| 2 | Carlos Reutemann | Not applicable / not recorded | Time not recorded | 12 |
| 3 | Gilles Villeneuve | Not applicable / not recorded | Time not recorded | 11 |
| 4 | Patrick Depailler | Not applicable / not recorded | Time not recorded | 9 |
| 5 | Jody Scheckter | Not applicable / not recorded | Time not recorded | 7 |
| 6 | Mario Andretti | Not applicable / not recorded | Time not recorded | 5 |
| 7 | John Watson | Not applicable / not recorded | Time not recorded | 4 |
| 7 | Jean-Pierre Jarier | Not applicable / not recorded | Time not recorded | 4 |
| 9 | Didier Pironi | Not applicable / not recorded | Time not recorded | 3 |
| 10 | Emerson Fittipaldi | Not applicable / not recorded | Time not recorded | 1 |
| 10 | Niki Lauda | Not applicable / not recorded | Time not recorded | 1 |