Formula 1 historical archive

Jim Clark won the 1965 South African Grand Prix

Jim Clark won the 1965 South African Grand Prix for Team Lotus, ahead of John Surtees and Graham Hill at Prince George Circuit.

Browse the full classification, related season, driver, team, circuit, and championship history.

Race recap

Winner
Jim Clark
Team
Team Lotus
Top listed
Jim Clark, John Surtees, and Graham Hill
Race date
January 1, 1965
Pole
Jim Clark
Fastest lap
Jim Clark
Classified drivers
28
Circuit
Prince George Circuit

The decisive result

Jim Clark finished first for Team Lotus. John Surtees is listed 2 for Ferrari, with Graham Hill 3 for BRM.

Grid to finish

Jo Siffert from P14 to P7 (+7), Paul Hawkins from P16 to P9 (+7), and Peter de Klerk from P17 to P10 (+7) recorded the largest positive grid-to-finish changes in the classification. Jim Clark started from the listed P1 grid position.

Status and fastest lap

The classification lists 5 DNQ, 4 Finished, 3 DNPQ, 2 +2 laps, and 2 +4 laps. Jim Clark holds the fastest-lap entry at 1:27.600 on lap 80. It records the result without speculating about incidents or strategy.

This summary sticks to the classification and does not speculate about incidents, strategy, weather, or causes. Source: F1DB (CC BY 4.0) · updated Jul 26, 2026.

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Race classification
PosDriverConstructorTime / statusPoints
1Jim ClarkTeam Lotus2:06:46.0009
2John SurteesFerrari2:07:15.0006
3Graham HillBRM2:07:17.8004
4Mike SpenceTeam Lotus2:07:40.4003
5Bruce McLarenCooper+1 lap2
6Jackie StewartBRM+2 laps1
7Jo SiffertBrabham+2 laps0
8Jack BrabhamBrabham+4 laps0
9Paul HawkinsBrabham+4 laps0
10Peter de KlerkAlfa Special+6 laps0
11Tony MaggsTeam Lotus+8 laps0
12Frank GardnerBrabham+10 laps0
13Sam TingleLDS+12 laps0
14David ProphetBrabham+14 laps0
15Lorenzo BandiniFerrariIgnition0
NCBob AndersonBrabham+35 laps0
DNFJo BonnierBrabhamClutch0
DNFJochen RindtCooperElectrical0
DNFJohn LoveCooperHalfshaft0
DNFDan GurneyBrabhamIgnition0