1978 United States Grand Prix
| Race details | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race 15 of 16 in the 1978 Formula One season | |||
 |
|||
| Date | October 1, 1978 | ||
| Official name | XXI Toyota United States Grand Prix | ||
| Location |
Watkins Glen Grand Prix Race Course Watkins Glen, New York |
||
| Course | Permanent road course | ||
| Course length | 5.435 km (3.377 mi) | ||
| Distance | 59 laps, 320.67 km (199.24 mi) | ||
| Weather | Cloudy, dry | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver | Lotus-Ford | ||
| Time | 1:38.114 | ||
| Fastest lap | |||
| Driver |
 Jean-Pierre Jarier
|
Lotus-Ford | |
| Time | 1:39.557 on lap 55 | ||
| Podium | |||
| First | Ferrari | ||
| Second | Williams-Ford | ||
| Third | Wolf-Ford | ||
The 1978 United States Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on October 1, 1978, at the Watkins Glen Grand Prix Race Course in Watkins Glen, New York. This event was also referred to as the United States Grand Prix East in order to distinguish it from the United States Grand Prix West held on April 2, 1978, in Long Beach, California.
At the preceding Italian Grand Prix, Mario Andretti had secured the driver's championship. At Watkins Glen, Andretti put his Lotus 79 on the pole before a record crowd of over 150,000 fans, but Ferrari's Carlos Reutemann completed a sweep of the two United States races in 1978 by finishing 19 seconds ahead of Australian Alan Jones. Andretti developed brake problems early on and eventually retired with a blown engine.
Ronnie Peterson had been killed following a multiple car pile-up at the Italian Grand Prix. Following the race, the Grand Prix Drivers' Association (GPDA) had a meeting centering on Riccardo Patrese, who the GPDA blamed for the crash. The GPDA filed an injunction to bar Patrese from participating in the 1978 United States Grand Prix weekend, which was allowed. Patrese, who believed that he was not to blame for the fatal accident at Monza, was furious at this action taken, and he tried unsuccessfully to stop the race from taking place.
Friday was warm and sunny, and Andretti set a new track record of 1:39.82. He later lowered that to 1:38.92, ahead of the Ferraris of Reutemann and Canadian rookie Gilles Villeneuve, then the two Brabhams of Niki Lauda and John Watson. American Brett Lunger, about to drive in his last Formula One race, was at the wheel of an Ensign for the first time, after his McLaren was damaged in the opening lap crash at Monza that claimed the life of Peterson. Bobby Rahal had been enlisted from Formula Atlantic to partner Jody Scheckter, as Canadian Walter Wolf was running two cars for the first time.
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