The event featured a mixed grid consisting of 16 Formula One cars and 10 Formula Two cars equipped with 1600cc engines. The Formula One entry was reduced from 21 cars at the previous British Grand Prix, though it included a second Lola-BMW for Hubert Hahne. This entry utilized a Formula Two chassis powered by a 2-litre 16-valve BMW engine derived from the BMW 2000 TI touring car. The Formula Two field included future prominent drivers Jacky Ickx and Jo Schlesser driving Matras, as well as two wooden-chassis Protos entries. The race marked the Formula One World Championship debut for British constructor Protos and drivers Jackie Oliver, Brian Hart, and Brian Redman.
Jim Clark secured pole position for Team Lotus in the Cosworth DFV-powered Lotus 49, recording an average speed of 105.598 mph on the 14.189-mile circuit. Clark's time was nearly 10 seconds faster than Denny Hulme's Brabham-Repco BT24. Jacky Ickx produced the third-fastest overall time in his Formula Two Matra, outperforming the next fastest Formula Two entrant by 20 seconds. However, due to his Formula Two status, Ickx was required to start behind the main Formula One grid.
The four-car front row was consequently composed of Clark, Hulme, Jackie Stewart in a BRM P115, and Dan Gurney in an Eagle-Weslake T1G. The second row featured Bruce McLaren’s Eagle, John Surtees in a Honda RA273, and Jack Brabham.
At the start, Jim Clark maintained his lead while his teammate Graham Hill was forced onto the grass from 13th position, eventually restarting at the back of the field behind the Formula Two entrants. Clark led Hulme and Gurney for the first three laps before a buckled suspension forced his retirement on lap four. Hill also retired later due to mechanical issues after recovering to tenth place.
Following Clark's retirement, Gurney took the lead from Hulme. Bruce McLaren retired with a split oil pipe, allowing Jack Brabham into third. Jacky Ickx moved through the field to reach fourth place after Jackie Stewart, who had overtaken Brabham, retired with transmission problems. Chris Amon eventually overtook Ickx's Formula Two Matra for fourth. On lap 12, Ickx retired following a front suspension collapse. On the penultimate lap, race leader Dan Gurney retired when a universal joint on his driveshaft broke.
Denny Hulme inherited the lead to secure the victory. The final podium consisted of Hulme, Jack Brabham, and Chris Amon. This result marked the first Formula One Championship race since the 1962 French Grand Prix in which no driver from the United Kingdom finished on the podium.
The victory extended Denny Hulme's lead in the World Championship of Drivers, with Jack Brabham in second and Jim Clark in third. Despite track modifications intended to slow cars approaching the pit area, lap times remained largely unaffected due to the technical development of the vehicles over the preceding 12 months.
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