1962 New Zealand Grand Prix

All international entrants were driving Inter-Continental Formula cars - machines with a maximum capacity of 3 litres, as compared with the Formula One limit of 1.5 litres. The regular contingent of Moss, Surtees, McLaren and Jack Brabham had made the venture to New Zealand for the summer series races and the field boasted an array of local rising talent that included the likes of Chris Amon. However, Denny Hulme elected not to attend as he did not deem the venture financially viable. McLaren set the pace in practice and would capture pole position.

Weather heading into the weekend was horrendous with heavy rain plaguing track conditions and slowing the pace to a relative crawl. As a result, the race distance was shorted from the standard 150 miles to 100 for Saturday's race. Nevertheless, the venue boasted a 45,000-strong crowd for the event. Almost as soon as the flag fell to start the race, rain further intensified around the circuit. At the end of the first lap, Surtees led from McLaren, Brabham and Bib Stillwell. Moss, who had started from 21st on the grid, had worked his way up to fifth and, by the start of the third lap, had taken the lead from Surtees. Brabham meanwhile had opted for dry weather tyres for the start and greatly struggled to keep his car on track before a broken gear selector curtailed his race. College Corner proved a troublesome corner for the competitors with multiple drivers coming unstuck in the hay bales that lined it.

Aside from one spin on the pit straight after hitting a patch of standing water, it was a dominant performance from Moss. His fastest lap was 1.4 seconds faster than that of second-placed Surtees and over two seconds faster than the highly-favoured McLaren. Moss's drive was held to such acclaim that, during the prize-giving ceremony, Surtees remarked, "He's just not normal".