Date August 10, 1980 | Course length 6.789 km (4.218 mi) | |
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Official name XLII Großer Preis von Deutschland Location Hockenheimring, Hockenheim, West Germany Course Permanent racing facility Distance 45 laps, 305.505 km (189.81 mi) | ||
The 1980 German Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at the Hockenheimring on 10 August 1980. It was the ninth round of the 1980 Formula One season. The race was the 42nd German Grand Prix and the fifth to be held at Hockenheim. The race was held over 45 laps of the 6.823-kilometre circuit for a total race distance of 307 kilometres.
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The race was won by Jacques Laffite driving a Ligier JS11/15. The win was Laffite's fourth Formula One Grand Prix victory and his first in over a year having previously won the 1979 Brazilian Grand Prix. Laffite won by three seconds over Carlos Reutemann driving a Williams FW07B. Third was Reutemann's Williams Grand Prix Engineering teammate Alan Jones.
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The lead up to the race was saddened by the death of Alfa Romeo driver Patrick Depailler. The two-time Grand Prix winner was killed when his Alfa Romeo 179 crashed at the Hockenheim in pre-event testing.
In qualifying, Jones managed to beat Renault RE20 driver Jean-Pierre Jabouille to the pole by four-hundredths of a second. Both drivers averaged 231 km/h (143.5 mph) around the circuit. They were followed by René Arnoux in the other Renault, Jones's Argentine teammate Carlos Reutemann, French driver Jacques Laffite, Brazilian Nelson Piquet (Brabham BT49), Frenchman Didier Pironi (Ligier JS11/15), and Finn Keke Rosberg in a Fittipaldi F8.
The very high speed Hockenheimring favored more powerful turbocharged engines, and was expected to be a Renault circuit. Jean-Pierre Jabouille led early with Arnoux third behind Jones. Both engines in the Renault RE20s failed within a lap of each other leaving Jones to lead until he stopped after he punctured a tyre after the second chicane, dropping behind Laffite and Reutemann.
Nelson Piquet finished fourth in his Brabham BT49 ahead of the only Alfa Romeo entered, that of Bruno Giacomelli. Canadian Gilles Villeneuve collected just his fourth point for the year in the blighted Ferrari 312T5. In his 100th race start, West German driver Jochen Mass finished eighth in his Arrows A3, behind Mario Andretti (Lotus 81).
Jones expanded his points lead over Piquet to seven. Reutemann was up to third, 15 points behind and Laffite was up to fourth, 16 points down on Jones. The Renault drivers had faded and Ferrari drivers were completely out of the picture. Williams' lead over Ligier in the Constructors' Championship was now 19 points, with the rest over 30 points behind.