The 1960 season had been a frustrating one for Ferrari's Formula One program as they campaigned their obsolete Dino 246, a front-engined car as the rear-engined design established supremacy.

Because of this boycott by the British teams, none of the drivers who started the race had previously won a Formula One World Championship Grand Prix.

The pair with teammate Willy Mairesse raced on to a rare 1–2–3 team result for Scuderia Ferrari.

The boycott also allowed Scuderia Castellotti to score its only world championship points with Giulio Cabianca finishing fourth in his Cooper T51, two laps behind Hill and ahead of Scuderia Ferrari's fourth entry, Wolfgang von Trips in a 1.5 L-engined (conforming to F2 regulations) Ferrari 156 F2 car.

It was the last Formula One World Championship victory by a front-engined car, although the Ferguson P99 won the non-championship Gold Cup at Oulton Park in 1961.