| 1979 Brazilian Grand Prix | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 2 of 15 in the 1979 Formula One season | |||
 | |||
| Race details | |||
| Date | 4 February 1979 | ||
| Location |
Autódromo de Interlagos São Paulo, Brazil | ||
| Course | Permanent racing facility | ||
| Course length | 7.960 km (4.946[1] miles) | ||
| Distance | 40 laps, 318.400 km (197.840 miles) | ||
| Weather | Dry | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Ligier-Ford | ||
| Time | 2:23.07 | ||
| Fastest lap | |||
| Driver |
 Jacques Laffite | Ligier-Ford | |
| Time | 2:28.76 on lap 23 | ||
| Podium | |||
| First | Ligier-Ford | ||
| Second | Ligier-Ford | ||
| Third | Lotus-Ford | ||
|
Lap leaders | |||
The 1979 Brazilian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Interlagos on 4 February 1979. It was the second race of the 1979 World Championship of F1 Drivers and the 1979 International Cup for F1 Constructors.
The Ligier team dominated the race weekend with their superior ground-effect JS11. Frenchman Jacques Laffite dominated the race weekend and made the most of his superbly set-up Ligier by taking pole position, smashing Jean-Pierre Jarier's 1975 pole time by 7 seconds, setting fastest lap and leading every lap of the race up to the finish. Laffite's teammate Patrick Depailler started and finished 2nd. Laffite and the Ligier team completed their domination of the South American fortnight, Laffite also dominantly won in Argentina.
| Pos | No | Driver | Constructor | Tyre | Laps | Time/Retired | Grid | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 26 | Jacques Laffite
|
Ligier-Ford | G | 40 | 1:40:09.64 | 1 | 9 |
| 2 | 25 | Patrick Depailler
|
Ligier-Ford | G | 40 | + 5.28 | 2 | 6 |
| 3 | 2 |  Carlos Reutemann
|
Lotus-Ford | G | 40 | + 44.14 | 3 | 4 |
| 4 | 3 | Didier Pironi
|
Tyrrell-Ford | G | 40 | + 1:25.88 | 8 | 3 |
| 5 | 12 |  Gilles Villeneuve
|
Ferrari | M | 39 | + 1 Lap | 5 | 2 |
| 6 | 11 |  Jody Scheckter
|
Ferrari | M | 39 | + 1 Lap | 6 | 1 |
| 7 | 30 |  Jochen Mass
|
Arrows-Ford | G | 39 | + 1 Lap | 19 | |
| 8 | 7 |  John Watson
|
McLaren-Ford | G | 39 | + 1 Lap | 14 | |
| 9 | 29 |  Riccardo Patrese
|
Arrows-Ford | G | 39 | + 1 Lap | 16 | |
| 10 | 15 | Jean-Pierre Jabouille
|
Renault | M | 39 | + 1 Lap | 7 | |
| 11 | 14 |  Emerson Fittipaldi
|
Fittipaldi-Ford | G | 39 | + 1 Lap | 9 | |
| 12 | 18 | Elio de Angelis
|
Shadow-Ford | G | 39 | + 1 Lap | 20 | |
| 13 | 22 |  Derek Daly
|
Ensign-Ford | G | 39 | + 1 Lap | 23 | |
| 14 | 17 |  Jan Lammers
|
Shadow-Ford | G | 39 | + 1 Lap | 21 | |
| 15 | 28 |  Clay Regazzoni
|
Williams-Ford | G | 38 | + 2 Laps | 17 | |
| Ret | 27 |  Alan Jones
|
Williams-Ford | G | 33 | Fuel System | 13 | |
| Ret | 9 | Hans-Joachim Stuck
|
ATS-Ford | G | 31 | Steering | 24 | |
| Ret | 16 | René Arnoux
|
Renault | M | 28 | Spun Off | 11 | |
| Ret | 20 | James Hunt
|
Wolf-Ford | G | 7 | Steering | 10 | |
| Ret | 8 | Patrick Tambay
|
McLaren-Ford | G | 7 | Collision | 18 | |
| Ret | 5 |  Niki Lauda
|
Brabham-Alfa Romeo | G | 5 | Gearbox | 12 | |
| Ret | 6 | Nelson Piquet
|
Brabham-Alfa Romeo | G | 5 | Accident | 22 | |
| Ret | 1 |  Mario Andretti
|
Lotus-Ford | G | 2 | Fuel Leak | 4 | |
| Ret | 4 | Jean-Pierre Jarier
|
Tyrrell-Ford | G | 0 | Electrical | 15 | |
| DNQ | 31 |  Héctor Rebaque
|
Lotus-Ford | G | ||||
| DNQ | 24 | Arturo Merzario
|
Merzario-Ford | G | ||||
|
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