F1's great comebacks: five times drivers won from the back of the grid

Today, 9 October, marks 20 years since Kimi Räikkönen stormed from 17th on the grid at the 2005 Japanese Grand Prix to take the best win of his career.

After progressing up the grid in his McLaren MP4-20, the ‘Ice Man’ hunted down Giancarlo Fisichella’s Renault to secure the victory in a move that was described as “grand prix racing at its finest” by commentator James Allen.

The race has since become a cult-classic, packed with action and incidents, and saw Räikkönen become the fourth driver to win from 17th or lower on the grid, with only Max Verstappen managing the achievement since.

Here are the other occasions of drivers who have won from 17th or lower in Formula 1.

2005 Japanese GP

Räikkönen’s remarkable recovery at Suzuka (P18)

After being affected by late rain during the one-lap qualifying format, Räikkönen’s already disappointing result was made worse by a 10-place grid drop for an engine penalty. He would start 17th, with newly-crowned world champion Fernando Alonso 16th for Renault and Räikkönen’s McLaren team-mate Juan Pablo Montoya behind him in 18th.

Alonso got an excellent start at the Suzuka circuit, gaining eight places on the opening lap. Meanwhile, Räikkönen jumped to 12th. Unfortunately for Montoya, a mistake when fighting Jacques Villeneuve resulted in a big crash at the final corner and demolished the car.

Räikkönen later caught up to Alonso, who found himself stuck behind the Ferrari of Michael Schumacher. What followed was an epic battle between the three greats, and included the famous move Alonso made on Schumacher around the outside of 130R, with Räikkönen also passing the seven-time champion shortly after.

As the race reached its final stages, Räikkönen was the last to pit, which brought the McLaren out just behind race leader Giancarlo Fisichella. It was clear we had a grandstand finish on our hands, with one very determined Räikkönen getting closer and closer.

With four laps to go, the gap was down to just three seconds with Räikkönen showing no signs of giving up. Another 1.3sec gained on Fisichella over a single lap, and soon Kimi was on his rear wing and ready to pounce. Despite the Renault drivers best defensive attempts, it felt almost inevitable that Räikkönen would pass and that he did, the two side-by-side on the start-finish straight before the Finn swooped past Fisichella to take the lead on the final lap of the race.

1983 United States GP West

Watson’s record-breaking race at Long Beach (P22)

There is one man who appears twice in this article, and that is the marvellous John Watson. Of his five grand prix victories, three of them came from 10th or lower on the grid. However, the one that secured him a record that might never be broken occurred at Long Beach, California.

Equipped with Michelin tyres, Watson and his McLaren team-mate Niki Lauda qualified down in 22nd and 23rd, respectively, at the US Grand Prix West. Paddock chatter on the Saturday night joked that you might as well not start the race if fitted with a set of Michelins, with even the Brabham of the previous race-winner Nelson Piquet qualifying down in 20th.

Goodyears were the clear favourites, but Michelin got the last laugh after a dramatic turn of events on race day.

Both McLarens had fairly anonymous starts, with all attention being at the front as pole sitter Patrick Tambay (Ferrari) fought off the Williams of Keke Rosberg. These two would later make contact with Tambay wiped out, followed by Rosberg, who got tangled up with Jean-Pierre Jarier‘s Ligier. Tambay’s Ferrari team-mate René Arnoux was struggling with a steering issue and soon it was the Williams of Jacques Laffite leading, followed by Riccardo Patrese for Braham.

While drama was unfolding ahead and Goodyear tyres started to struggle, both McLarens climbed up the order until they found themselves behind Laffite and Patrese. Watson had opted for a different type of Michelin tyre to Lauda, which showed itself to be the right choice when he earlier outbraked his team-mate for position.

Patrese then suffered a spin, with Laffite’s tyres shot, which allowed both McLarens through to first and second, where they remained until the chequered flag. The remarkable drive from 22nd to first is something we will likely never see again in Formula 1 — although Jaguar’s Mitch Evans did manage the same feat in Formula E last season.

2000 German GP

Barrichello’s bonkers but brilliant maiden win at Hockenheim (P18)

There’s no forgetting your first Formula 1 victory, especially for Rubens Barrichello, who navigated wet weather conditions, a rogue track invader and starting from 18th in his Ferrari to take his first of 11 race wins.

Things got off to a crazy start at the Hockenheimring, when Barrichello’s team-mate, Michael Schumacher, was sent spinning into the barriers on the opening lap of the race after contact with Fisichella. For Barrichello, who started 18th due to oil leak issues with his car before qualifying, the opening laps saw him soar up the pack and make up eight places early on.

Soon he was overtaking Eddie Irvine (Jaguar), Jos Verstappen (Arrows) and Johnny Herbert (Jaguar) lap after lap. It was clear that he was a man on a mission.

Mika Häkkinen led, but nobody could have predicted what happened next, as a strange man walked onto the track on lap 25. Later identified as a former Mercedes factory worker, the German Grand Prix was immediately put under safety car conditions, with Murray Walker crying out “that lunatic, whoever he is, has changed the complexion of this race”.

Once the protester was carted off, racing resumed but rain was on the way. Barrichello was on Jarno Trulli‘s tail for second, but before the Brazilian had a chance to pass the Jordan, another safety car was deployed for a crash involving Jean Alesi (Prost).

Thunder crashed overhead and the rain started to fall heavily, with both Häkkinen and Trulli pitting for wet tyres but Barrichello braved the conditions to stay out. It was a huge gamble, but one that paid off massively as Barrichello expertly navigated the damp track. As the race came to a close, the crowds erupted with support and Schumacher watched from the pitwall, as Barrichello crossed the finish line to take his first-ever grand prix win with a 7.452sec gap to Häkkinen behind.

2024 Brazilian GP

Verstappen’s astonishing victory at the incredible Interlagos (P17)

Max Verstappen is no stranger to a comeback drive. The four-time champ won the Belgian Grand Prix in 2022, having started 14th, but reached another level during last year’s grand prix in São Paulo for Red Bull.

Starting 17th after only qualifying 12th during the rain-hit session on Sunday morning, Verstappen also had to serve a five-place penalty for exceeding his engine allocation. These places were quickly made up when the five lights went out, with Verstappen soon fighting Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) for 10th spot in the damp conditions.

As the rain got more intense, Verstappen seemed to thrive, soon passing the Alpine of Pierre Gasly for ninth and then Alonso’s Aston Martin for eighth. More places were gained as the rain got heavier, and soon other drivers started to make mistakes. Nico Hülkenberg‘s Haas got stuck which resulted in a short-lived virtual safety car, and caught out some of the front runners who pitted for fresher intermediates.

Esteban Ocon was leading for Alpine with Verstappen and Gasly behind, but all three were yet to pit. This decision proved invaluable, as on lap 32 the race was red-flagged for a crash involving Franco Colapinto, who was unharmed when his Williams whacked into the barriers.

Now free to change their tyres without stopping, and half of the race distance still to go, it was down to Ocon to fend off Verstappen for the win. Unsurprisingly, Verstappen found his way past the Alpine and would pull a gap of almost 20 seconds by the chequered flag, although both Ocon and Gasly held on to the other two podium places.

1982 Detroit GP

Watson’s McLaren masterclass in Michigan (P17)

As hinted at earlier, John Watson returns to this list having managed to bypass all the incidents that came with Detroit’s first grand prix event to win for McLaren from 17th on the grid. One of three US events that year, the Detroit race was an unusual one that saw plenty of rules twisted to make the event happen.

Alain Prost was on pole with Renault around the street circuit, and drove off into the distance once the race began. Behind him, Andrea de Cesaris fought off Rosberg in his Williams, but the battle was short-lived after the Alfa Romeo driver peeled into the pits with a driveshaft issue to retire. By the fourth lap, several cars had retired or sat awaiting repair in the pits, but Prost looked untouchable out front.

Watson was up to 14th by lap 7, but just ahead, Roberto Guerrero clashed with Elio de Angelis‘ Lotus to bend the Ensign’s suspension and leave him stranded at the side of the circuit. Jochen Mass and Watson avoided the car, but Patrese made contact and race organisers were now left with two damaged cars on the corner’s apex. The race was stopped as a result.

Once back underway, “Wattie” found his rhythm and in one lap overtook both Team Lotus cars before passing Mass the following loop. Trouble brewed for Prost, as the car’s fuel-injection system had problems and Rosberg eventually snatched the lead. Watson was still making moves, overtaking Arnoux, Laffite and Derek Daly (Williams) for seventh, with team-mate Lauda next up.

Then, in a single lap, Watson passed Lauda, Ligier‘s Eddie Cheever and Ferrari‘s Didier Pironi! It was masterful and magical, with Watson getting past each driver under braking at different points around the lap. Rosberg was his final target, and by lap 37 of the race he made it past, with man and machine working in perfect harmony. From there, he had smooth sailing to the finish line to deliver another remarkable comeback drive.

Honourable mentions

Of course, there are also some other excellent performances from far back to win in Formula 1.

The 1954 Indianapolis 500 was part of that year’s ‘World Championship of Drivers’ title, with Bill Vukovich coming from 19th to win the event for Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser.

Olivier Panis took his one and only victory at the 1996 Monaco Grand Prix with Ligier, starting from 14th place on the grid. As mentioned above, Verstappen also won from 14th place around Spa-Francorchamps with Red Bull in 2022.

There are also examples of where a driver has found themselves at the back of the pack at the beginning of the race and fought their way back.

Daniel Ricciardo finished in first place at the 2017 Azerbaijan Grand Prix, after pitting on lap 6 to remove debris from his brakes and coming out in 17th. Sergio Perez also managed an incredible feat when he took his maiden win at the 2020 Sakhir Grand Prix, recovering from a first-lap spin and tyre change to go from last to first.