F1 Program covers – 1964

1964 was the year in which John Surtees would become World Champion, fending off Graham Hill by a single point to claim the ultimate title. F1 Program Covers make for terrific story books, so let’s take a look back at a few landmark races, with the help of their promotional merchandise.

The 1964 season kicked off in Monaco, with a dominating performance by Graham Hill seeing him take first place by a little over a lap. American Richie Ginther claimed second place, making Monaco 1964 a 1-2 for BRM. Third place was Peter Arundell, the first or two times he’d stand on the podium during his career. Where was eventual World Champion John Surtees? Back in the pits with a broken gearbox, after just 15 laps.

A handful of races later the 1964 season was in Rouen for the French Grand Prix, and a betting man would have scoffed at the idea that Surtees was to win the Championship. He’d placed second in the Netherlands, but in France his engine broke shortly after the race commenced. This was a misfortune made more painful considering he’d also had to retire from the round prior at Spa with similar gremlins. The race was won by Dan Gurney, with Graham Hill and Jack Brabham in tow.

The 1964 British Grand Prix was the first Formula One World Championship race to be held at Brands Hatch. It was also designated to be the European Grand Prix of the year, and it all went down on the 11th of July. Jim Clark, Graham Hill and John Surtees made up first, second and third respectively. Take a look at the flier above, talk about an awesome looking F1 Program!

Germany. The Nurburgring. It was the 2nd of August and it was the first race of the year in which Surtees would place first. Hill wasn’t far behind.

The 1964 Italian Grand Prix, Monza. Surtees placed first for the second and final time of the 1964 season, however it would turn out to be just enough. Bruce McLaren took second, and Lorenzo Bandini came in second, riding the high of winning his first ever Formula One World Championship Grand Prix in the round earlier. The F1 Program that went along with the event is decidedly minimalistic and art-inspired.

The 1964 United States Grand Prix was the second last round of the year, and at this point Graham Hill was still in the lead for the overall points championship. He’d take first place in the race ahead of Surtees, and looked to be the lead contender for the 1964 Championship…

…Until the 1964 Mexican Grand Prix rolled into town. It was the final round of the World Championship, and before the start of the race the points championship was theoretically up for grabs between Hill, Surtees and Clark. Dan Gurney would win the actual race, however it would be a disastrous 11th place finish for Hill and a solid second place for Surtees which would become the championship decider. Hill, who had suffered damage to the exhaust of his BRM earlier in the race was battling with crippled power output as a result. How frustrating that must have been!

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