F1 History in Pics

Reliving the history of Formula 1, one post at a time.

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1951 British Grand Prix highlights!  Ferrari WINS!!!!  FORZA!!!!

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1951 British Grand Prix, Ferraris first win in Formula 1!!!

The 1951 British Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 14 July 1951 at the Silverstone Circuit in Northamptonshire, England. It was the fifth round of the 1951 World Drivers' Championship and was contested over 90 laps.

The race was the first victory for José Froilán González, and was also the first of many for the Scuderia Ferrari team. Both the team and driver also achieved their first ever pole position during the weekend.

José Froilán González was one second quicker than Juan Manuel Fangio in qualifying, achieving the first pole position of his career. It was also the first pole position for the Ferrari team, and the first in the World Championship (excluding the Indy 500 races) not scored by an Alfa Romeo. Nino Farina and Alberto Ascari qualified in third and fourth positions, completing the front row.

González and Fangio shot away almost parallel from the front row of the grid, closely followed by the other Alfa Romeos and Ferraris. Alfa Romeo driver Felice Bonetto, who started in seventh position, was the first man at the first corner, with the Ferrari of González in second position. González took the lead from Bonetto on the second lap with Fangio chasing.

Bonetto's Alfa Romeo team-mates of Fangio and reigning World Champion, Nino Farina, managed to overtake him to move into second and third places. On lap 6, Fangio began to close in on González; he passed him on the straight on lap 10, and slowly began to draw away. 

Farina pulled up at Abbey curve after 75 laps with a slipping clutch and his engine on fire. He had set the lap record on lap 38, with a time of 1 minute 44 seconds, an average speed of 99.99 mph, ensuring he still left the weekend with one point. González retook the lead on lap 39 with an overtake at Becketts corner. He kept his lead for the remainder of the race

González eventually took his own and Ferrari's first victory in a World Championship race by 51 seconds. It was the first World Championship race (excluding the Indy 500) that was not won by an Alfa Romeo. An Alfa Romeo was still in second place though, in the form of the year's eventual champion Fangio. Luigi Villoresi became the second Ferrari on the podium after he finished in third place, two laps behind. 

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1951 Grand Prix of France highlights, Fangio and Fagioli BOTH win!

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1951 French Grand Prix, a tie?

The 1951 French Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Reims-Gueux on 1 July 1951.

It was the fourth round of the 1951 World Drivers' Championship and was won by Juan Manuel Fangio and Luigi Fagioli driving an Alfa Romeo. It was the first of three occasions where two drivers would be credited with a Grand Prix win after sharing a car.

About 10 laps into the race, the engine in Fangio's car began misfiring, so he stopped at the pits to have the magneto changed, but only completed one further lap before stopping again. When Fagioli came in for his fuel stop, the team ordered the drivers to swap cars. Fuel stops and problems for the Ferraris enabled Fangio to make his way into the lead and win the race.

Fagioli, in Fangio's original car, finished 11th, 22 laps behind.

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1951 Grand Prix of Belgium highlights.  Farina wins his first GP as defending champion.

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1951 Belgian Grand Prix

The 1951 Belgian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 17 June 1951 at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps. It was the third round of the 1951 World Drivers' Championship.

Despite there being just 13 starters representing 3 makes of car, the race attracted a record crowd. There were a further 3 entries, including 2 Maseratis, which did not attend the event. Fangio had a new suspension with special wheels, which had to be concave to make room for the brake drums. These proved an expensive novelty.

At his first pit stop, they jammed and his stop lasted over 14 minutes. Farina's Alfa Romeo dominated, holding off the Ferraris of Ascari and Villoresi. A lightning stop of 39 seconds for wheel change and refuelling preserved his lead until the finish.

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1951 Indianapolis 500 Highlights, the Europeans are a no show....AGAIN!!

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1951 Grand Prix of The United States, Indianappolis

The 35th International 500-Mile Sweepstakes was held at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway on Wednesday, May 30, 1951. The event was part of the 1951 AAA National Championship Trail, and was included in the 1951 World Drivers Championship.

For the second year in a row, again no European Formula One-based teams enter the race.

Heavy attrition saw only eight cars running finish. Winner Lee Wallard's car lost its brakes, suffered a damaged exhaust pipe, and broke a shock absorber mounting.[1][2] In addition to the unbearably uncomfortable ride, Wallard had worn a fire retardant outfit, created by dipping his uniform in a mixture of borax crystals and water.

Due to not wearing an undershirt, Wallard suffered serious chaffing, and required treatment at the infield hospital after the victory lane celebration.[2] It was estimated he lost 15 pounds during the race.

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1951 GRAND PRIX OF SWEDEN - BREMGARTEN

LET THE SEASON BEGIN!!!!!

The Swiss Grand Prix, the first event of the 1951 World Championship due to the absence of Monaco from the calendar, saw the Alfa Romeo team continue their dominance of the previous season. All four of their drivers occupied positions on the front two rows of the grid; the highest non-Alfa qualifier was Ferrari's Luigi Villoresi, who was alongside Fangio and Farina on the front row.   The race saw the Formula One debut of British driver Stirling Moss.

The race took place in the rain, with Fangio initially leading from Farina. Ferrari's Piero Taruffi also challenged for the lead, having started from sixth on the grid. Fangio pitted, handing Nino Farina the lead for the 24th lap of the race. However, Farina's decision not to make a pitstop did not pay off, as Fangio was able to retake the lead on lap 29. Fangio maintained the lead for the remainder of the race, eventually winning by nearly a minute from Taruffi, who had overtaken Farina on the penultimate lap.

This was Taruffi's first podium in just his second championship race. The remaining Alfa drivers—Consalvo Sanesi and Toulo de Graffenried—completed the points paying positions, ahead of Ferrari's Alberto Ascari, who competed despite suffering from burns from the previous weekend's Formula 2 race in Genoa.

British driver Stirling Moss, driving for HWM, was in seventh, but ran out of fuel on the final lap.  An unfitting end to what would be a legendary career in Formula 1.

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1951 Formula 1 World Championship

The 1951 Formula One season was the second season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It featured the 1951 World Championship of Drivers which commenced on 27 May 1951 and ended on 28 October after eight races. 

Ferrari's newer, unsupercharged 4.5 litre cars offered a real challenge to the Alfas, which were nearing the end of their development potential. The Ferraris were able to capitalize on the inefficiency of the Alfa's very thirsty engines, particularly at Silverstone.

Although Alfas won four races, with Fangio taking the championship, Ferrari's three victories spelled the end for the Alfas. BRM made their only championship appearance with the V16 at Silverstone, and the old, slow Talbots were increasingly outclassed.

1951 brought future legends Fangio and Ascari to the winner circle, starting their race into Formula 1 history!  The season lost Moncao, a year in which the world drivers' championship was run for less powerful Formula Two cars Moncao the race was run to sports car rules instead and did not form part of the World Championship, but gained Spain and Germany.  So the season is one race longer, LET THE SEASON BEGIN!!!!!

Swiss Grand Prix - Bremgarten Indianapolis 500 - Indianapolis Belgian Grand Prix - Spa-Francorchamps French Grand Prix - Reims-Gueux British Grand Prix - Silverstone German Grand Prix - Nürburgring Italian Grand Prix - Monza Spanish Grand Prix - Pedralbes

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1950 Formula 1 World Championship Recap

The inaugural World Championship of Drivers saw Alfa Romeo dominate with their supercharged 158, a well-developed pre-war design, which won all six European Grands Prix. Alfa Romeo drivers consequently dominated the championship with Giuseppe Farina securing the first ever World Championship edging out Juan Manuel Fangio by virtue of his fourth place in Belgium.

Fangio won each of the three races he finished, but Farina's three wins and a fourth place allowed him to take the title.

Nobody would have thought 52-year-old Luigi Fagioli would have earned five podium finishes in six races en route to finishing a remarkable third overall in the first ever FIA World Championship.

In the 1950 World Championship the car won every race in which it competed during that first season. It was incredible that a car which had originated in 1938 was so victorious, most likely because all the other constructors (as few as there were) had less money to build and develop their cars and the Alfa had so much development time.

Formula 1 was off to a great start with the 1950 season. With names like Fangio and Ascari making their presence known and Ferrari making a strong run, it was the beginning of something big this Formula 1 World Championship.

Funny looking back, how even in 1950, there was a desire to bring Formula 1 to the United States.  And just like it's been most of it's life, the USGP at Indy was never something looked forward to by the Formula 1 community.

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1950 Grand Prix of Italy at MONZA highlights!  Fangio tries, but Giuseppe Farina claims the first ever Formula 1 World Championship!

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1950 Grand Prix of Italy - Monza

The 1950 Italian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 3 September 1950 at Monza. It was the seventh and final event of the 1950 World Drivers' Championship.

After Juan Manuel Fangio's win at the French Grand Prix, Fangio had obtained 26 points, two ahead of team mate Luigi Fagioli and four ahead of another team mate, Giuseppe Farina. Having already finished four times in the points (all second places), Fagioli would only be able to drop six points or not gain at all, while Fangio and Farina had only finished three times. All three of Fangio's finishes were wins.

To win the championship,

For Fangio:

Win or come 2nd to guarantee the title.

Come 3rd, 4th or 5th with Farina 2nd or lower.

With the fastest lap only, Farina 3rd or lower.

Scoring no points, Farina would have to finish 3rd or lower without the fastest lap, 4th with; and Fagioli not to win with the fastest lap.

For Fagioli:

Win the race with the fastest lap, with Farina 3rd or lower, and Fangio not to score any points.

For Farina:

Win with the fastest lap, and Fangio 3rd or lower.

3rd with fastest lap, and Fangio not to score.

Ferrari pulled out all the stops to impress at their home circuit, producing a new unsupercharged 4½ litre engine to try to end the Alfa Romeo monopoly. Alberto Ascari used it to achieve second place on the grid to Juan Manuel Fangio's Alfa Romeo 158 and then in the race behind the fast starting Nino Farina (Alfa Romeo 158) before briefly leading. Sadly, the pace was too punishing for the new car and a porous block broke on lap 20 and the battle returned as usual to the Alfas.

Fangio retired twice; once in his own Alfa Romeo 158 and a second time after taking over Piero Taruffi's. Farina led to the finish from Ascari who was now in team-mate Dorino Serafini's Ferrari 375 with Luigi Fagioli finishing third in his Alfa Romeo 158. Louis Rosier finish fourth in his Talbot-Lago T26C with Philippe Étancelin fifth in his Lago-Talbot. Étancelin would become the oldest driver to ever score a world championship point with that finish.

Only seven cars finished out of the 26 starters and with Farina's win and Fangio's failure to score and Fagioli's third place points removed as his worst scoring finish, Farina became the first recipient of the World Driver's Championship crown and the only driver to win the title in his home country..

(Source WikiPedia)

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1950 French Grand Prix Highlights Fangio and Alfa dominate again!!

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1950 Grand Prix of France - Reims-Gueux

A total of 22 cars entered the event, four of which did not start the race. Gianfranco Comotti did not attend the event, Eugène Chaboud did not start in his own car, instead sharingPhilippe Étancelin's Talbot-Lago, and the two Scuderia Ferrari entries of Luigi Villoresi and Alberto Ascari withdrew in practice.

Fangio put in a stunning display with a 116 mph practice lap. With Ferrari not starting their 3-litre cars, the main opposition was to come from the Talbots, complete with dual ignition engines with 12 spark plugs. But they suffered from radiator problems and overheated to allow Fangio and Fagioli to lead home another Alfa demonstration run, whilst Farina succumbed to fuel pump trouble. Peter Whitehead took a deserved podium with 3rd place despite a fractured head gasket in the last two laps.

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1950 Belgian Grand Prix Highlights, FANGIO wins again as Alfa dominates!

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1950 Belgian Grand Prix - Spa-Francorchamps

By the time of the Belgian Grand Prix, the pace of the season was beginning to tell, with only 14 cars arriving at the Spa circuit. These included the dominant Alfa Romeos of Nino Farina, Juan Manuel Fangio and Luigi Fagioli. Ferrari was down to two 125s for Luigi Villoresi and Alberto Ascari, although Ascari had a new V12 engine to try out. The factoryTalbot-Lago team had three cars for Louis Rosier, Yves Giraud-Cabantous and Philippe Étancelin (standing in for the injured Eugène Martin).

Farina and Fangio were fastest as usual in qualifying with Fagioli unable to match them. Sommer split the Ferraris in his old Talbot-Lago. The race would be a similar story. The Alfas went off on their own and Sommer battled with the two Ferraris. When the Alfa stopped for fuel, Sommer found himself in the unlikely position of being race leader. Unfortunately his engine blew up.

Ascari took the lead but he had to stop for fuel and that meant that the Alfas went ahead again with Fangio leading Farina and Fagioli. Farina suffered transmission trouble in the closing laps and dropped to fourth behind the best of the surviving Talbot-Lagos being driven by Rosier. Ascari finished fifth.