Damon Hill clinched the 1996 Formula One Drivers' Championship at Suzuka, becoming the first son of a World Champion to also win the title.
Key Facts
- Race laps
- 52 laps
- Hill's wins in 1996
- 8 wins
- Race date
- 13 October 1996
- Championship round
- 16th and final race of 1996 season
- Winner's car
- Williams-Renault
- Martin Brundle F1 debut
- 1984
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Jacques Villeneuve, on pole position, needed to win the race while Damon Hill scored no points to take the Drivers' Championship. Instead, Villeneuve made a poor start and was later forced to retire when a wheel detached from his car, leaving Hill free to race for the title.
Damon Hill drove his Williams-Renault to victory in the 52-lap Japanese Grand Prix at Suzuka on 13 October 1996. Michael Schumacher finished second for Ferrari and Mika Häkkinen third for McLaren-Mercedes, completing the podium in what was the sixteenth and final round of the season.
Hill's victory secured him the 1996 Formula One Drivers' Championship, making him the first son of a World Champion to win the title. Ferrari's second-place finish allowed the team to take second in the Constructors' Championship ahead of Benetton. The race also marked the final F1 appearances of Martin Brundle, Pedro Lamy, Giovanni Lavaggi, and the Footwork and Ligier constructors.