Mario Andretti vs Gunnar Nilsson

1976·

Mario Andretti edged Gunnar Nilsson 7–5 in the races and 9–3 in qualifying at Team Lotus in 1976. Mario Andretti scored 21 points to 11.

Mario AndrettiGunnar Nilsson

9Qualifying3

12 shared races

7Race day5

12 shared races

21Points11

in shared races, as awarded at the time

75Points (today’s rules)48

in shared races, rescored 25-18-15…

Wins: 1/0
Podiums: 3/2
Poles: 1/0
Retirements: 6/6
Best finish: P1/P3
Avg. grid: 7.5/13.1

Race by race

Round-by-round comparison of Mario Andretti and Gunnar Nilsson
R	Grand Prix	Grid	Mario Andretti	Gunnar Nilsson	Points
4	4Spanish Grand Prix	9/7	Gearbox	P3▲	0 / 4
5	5Belgian Grand Prix	11/22	Halfshaft	Accident	0 / 0
7	7Swedish Grand Prix	2/6	Engine	Accident	0 / 0
8	8French Grand Prix	7/12	P5	Gearbox	2 / 0
9	9British Grand Prix	3/14	Ignition	Engine	0 / 0
10	10German Grand Prix	12/16	P12▼	P5	0 / 2
11	11Austrian Grand Prix	9/4	P5	P3▲	2 / 4
12	12Dutch Grand Prix	6/13	P3	Accident	4 / 0
13	13Italian Grand Prix	14/12	Accident	P13▼	0 / 0
14	14Canadian Grand Prix	5/15	P3	P12▼	4 / 0
15	15United States Grand Prix	11/20	Suspension	Engine	0 / 0
16	16Japanese Grand Prix	1/16	P1	P6	9 / 1
	Average finish		P4.8	P7.0

How to read this table

The driver ahead in a round is shown in bold, the other in grey. Grid shows Mario Andretti / Gunnar Nilsson.
P1 a win,P3 a podium,DNF a retirement.
▲ a finish at least 4 places better than that driver’s own average finish this season (see the average row), ▼ at least 4places worse. Retirements are not counted in the average.

Mario Andretti and Gunnar Nilsson in other seasons

Other seasons in which Mario Andretti and Gunnar Nilsson were teammates
Season	Team	Matchup	Quali	Race	Points
1977	Team Lotus	Mario Andretti vs Gunnar Nilsson	15–1	9–7	45–20

Mario Andretti’s career Gunnar Nilsson’s career Team Lotus 1976 season All teammate battles

How these numbers are calculated

Only races both drivers started are counted. Entries that did not qualify, did not pre-qualify or were withdrawn are excluded, as are cars that never left the grid or the garage, and the Indianapolis 500 of 1950–1960.
Until the mid-1960s drivers could share a car during a race. Each driver is compared from the car they started (which sets their grid position), with the best result of any car they drove and the points from all of them, as officially credited.
Qualifying is compared on grid position rather than session times. Session-by-session qualifying data only exists from 1994, while grid position is recorded for over 99% of entries right back to 1950 — including every race of the 1950s, 60s and 70s.
On race day the driver classified ahead takes the round. If neither was classified, the one who completed more laps is credited; if both retired on the same lap it is scored as a tie and excluded from the tally.
Points are those awarded at the time and include sprint races from 2021. Where the season used an older system, a second points row rescores every round under the current system so seasons from different eras can be compared.
These are points scored in the races both drivers started, not their season totals: races either missed, or contested alongside a different teammate, are left out. Up to 1990 even full-season totals differ from the championship standings, because only a driver’s best results counted towards the title. In 1988 Alain Prost outscored Ayrton Senna 105 to 94 and still lost the championship. Theseason page has the final standings.