The 1997 FIA Formula One World Championship was the 51st season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It featured the 1997 Formula One World Championship for Drivers and the 1997 Formula One World Championship for Constructors, which were contested concurrently over a seventeen-race series that commenced on 9 March and ended on 26 October.
The Drivers' Championship was won by Jacques Villeneuve under controversial circumstances: championship leader Michael Schumacher deliberately rammed him whilst trying to defend his race lead in the final race.[1] Schumacher came to a halt in the gravel, Villeneuve finished third. Schumacher was deemed at fault for the accident by the FIA. He kept his five race wins, but was stripped of his second place in the championship, making Villeneuve Drivers' champion with a big lead over teammate Heinz-Harald Frentzen.
The Constructors' Championship was awarded to Williams-Renault.
As of 2024, this is the last championship for a non-European driver, the last Constructors' and Drivers' championships for Williams, and the last championship won on Goodyear tyres. It was also the last championship for a Renault-powered driver, until Fernando Alonso's championship in 2005.