In the 1960's the Spa-Francorchamps circuit consisted of 8.77 miles of public road, with long fast straights, open curves, hairpins, kinks and bumps. It ran through the villages and pine forests of the Ardennes Mountains, flanked by ditches and houses at the edge of the racing surface. Dan Gurney qualified his Eagle second fastest to split the Lotuses of Jim Clark and Graham Hill on the 3-car-wide front row of the grid. June 18, 1967 dawned overcast and humid, but by the time the GP started it had become partly sunny. Gurney had a starting difficulty, and at the end of the first of 28 laps Clark, Jackie Stewart (BRM), Mike Parkes (Ferrari), Chris Amon (Ferrari) and Jochen Rindt (Cooper-Maserati) were in front of him. The next time around, Gurney had passed all but Clark and Stewart. On Lap 12, Clark suddenly pitted with spark plug problems, leaving Stewart alone in the lead. Gurney also pitted with low fuel pressure, but quickly returned to the race when informed that he was running second. The engine ran to the finish despite variations in fuel pressure. On Lap 19 Gurney set the fastest lap of the race at 3:31.9 (148.85 mph). Two laps later Gurney passed Stewart, but the Weslake engine had a misfire. Gurney backed off enough enabling Stewart to go by, then decided to go for broke and re-passed Stewart for good. Gurney won ahead of Stewart, Amon, and Rindt. Gurney's average speed for the 245.28 mile race distance, including a pit stop, was a record 145.99 mph. At the time, this was the fastest Grand Prix ever run at any track. Dan Gurney became the second American driver in history to win a Grand Prix in an American racing car (Jimmy Murphy won the 1921 French GP in a Duesenberg), but he remains the only American citizen ever to do it in a car of his own construction.