vehicles, and veering back onto the track. It then hit 14th-placed Jacques Laffite's Ligier, sending both Pryce and Laffite head-on into the catch fencing and a concrete wall. Jansen van Vuuren's injuries were so extensive that, initially, his body was identified only after the race director had summoned all of the race marshals the next day and he was not among them. Finish Lauda's Ferrari was barely able to finish the race after his car had picked up part of Pryce's roll bar in the underside of its monocoque, after the fatal accident. This damaged the car's water system and at the end of the race, the team found that only a third of the usual twelve litres of water remained in the system. Both the warnings for oil pressure and water temperature had been flashing at Lauda for the final 25 laps, in a car which he later described as 'completely finished'. Despite this, Lauda held on to win his first victory since his near-fatal crash at the 1976 German Grand Prix the previous year. South African Scheckter was second, and Patrick Depailler's six-wheeler took third from Hunt in the closing laps. At first Lauda announced it was the greatest victory of his career, but when told on the victory podium of Pryce's death, he said that "there was no joy after that". Aftermath The sport reacted with sorrow at the loss of two young men. Tyrrell mechanic Trevor Foster viewed the incident from a distance, later recalling David Tremayne, a veteran biographer and motor sports journalist, recalled the feelings of disbelief and horror following the aftermath of the incident; The event was included in the motor racing film The Quick and the Dead. Classification Qualifying classification Race Classification Championship standings after the race Drivers' Championship standings Constructors' Championship standings Note: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings. Notes References Sources South African Grand Prix South African Grand Prix Grand Prix March 1977 sports events in Africa