Emerson Fittipaldi became the first Brazilian Formula 1 Grand Prix winner at the 1970 United States Grand Prix.
Fittipaldi won at Watkins Glen on 4 October 1970, driving a Lotus-Ford 72C. He inherited the lead after teammate Jochen Rindt’s fatal accident earlier in the season and then held off Ferrari’s Jackie Ickx. The victory was Fittipaldi’s first in Formula 1 and the first for a Brazilian driver.
The result also helped Lotus secure the 1970 constructors’ championship. Fittipaldi was only 23 years old, and his performance made him one of the sport’s most prominent young drivers. He became Brazil’s first Formula 1 world champion two years later, winning the 1972 title.
The achievement is sometimes mixed up with Carlos Pace, another Brazilian winner, or Ayrton Senna, who became Brazil’s most famous Formula 1 champion in the 1980s. Fittipaldi came first chronologically.