1973 Formula One season

The 1973 Formula One season was the 27th season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It featured the 1973 World Championship of Drivers and the 1973 International Cup for F1 Manufacturers, which were contested concurrently over a fifteen-race series that commenced on 28 January and ended on 7 October. The season also included two non-championship races which were open to both Formula One and Formula 5000 cars.

The World Championship of Drivers was won by Jackie Stewart, driving for Elf Team Tyrrell, for the third time. The International Cup for F1 Manufacturers was awarded to John Player Team Lotus. At the final race of the season, Stewart's teammate François Cevert crashed during Saturday practice and was killed instantly. The Tyrrell team withdrew from the race, handing the Manufacturers' title to Lotus. Subsequently, Stewart made public his decision to retire, but he had decided on this already earlier.

British driver Roger Williamson was also killed during the season, in a tragic crash at the Dutch Grand Prix where marshals arrived too late on the scene and fellow driver David Purley was unable to free Williamson from the burning wreck.

The following teams and drivers contested the 1973 World Championship.

There were relatively few changes in the top teams, but no less than usual further down the order:

The calendar was expanded from 12 to 15 races:

Other changes:

Like last year, the championship commenced in January in Argentina. Swiss driver Clay Regazzoni had left Ferrari after three years, having scored just one podium finish in 1972. He was attracted by the Marlboro-sponsored British Racing Motors team for "an astronomical fee" and delivered early success: he qualified on pole position, ahead of reigning champion Emerson Fittipaldi in the Lotus and last year's teammate Jacky Ickx. But on Sunday, it was sixth-starting François Cevert that took his rivals by surprise: he snatched the lead even before the first corner, before being passed by the pole sitter later in the lap. For the first quarter of the race, five drivers formed a tight leading pack: Regazzoni, Cevert, Fittipaldi, new Lotus driver Ronnie Peterson and 1971 champion Jackie Stewart. But then, with his Firestone tyres overheating, Regazzoni fell back to fifth, while Stewart's conservative start allowed him to get up to second place. Going into the tail end of the race, Fittipaldi overtook Stewart, much to the joy of the South American fans, and set a new lap record in his chase for Cevert. After 50 laps in the lead, the Frenchman had to surrender first position and eventually finished 5 seconds behind his Brazilian rival. Stewart came home in third.