1950 British Grand Prix

1950 British Grand Prix
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Silverstone Circuit in 1950–1951 configuration
Silverstone Circuit in 1950–1951 configuration
Race details
Date 13 May 1950
Official name The Royal Automobile Club Grand Prix d'Europe Incorporating The British Grand Prix
Location Silverstone Circuit
Silverstone, England
Course Permanent racing facility
Course length 4.649 km (2.889 mi)
Distance 70 laps, 325.430 km (202.213 mi)
Weather Sunny, mild, dry.
Attendance 100,000
Pole position
Driver Alfa Romeo
Time 1:50.8
Fastest lap
Driver Italy Nino Farina Alfa Romeo
Time 1:50.6 on lap 2
Podium
First Alfa Romeo
Second Alfa Romeo
Third Alfa Romeo
Lap leaders

The 1950 British Grand Prix, formally known as The Royal Automobile Club Grand Prix d'Europe Incorporating The British Grand Prix, was a Formula One motor race held on 13 May 1950 at the Silverstone Circuit in Silverstone, England. It was the first World Championship Formula One race, as well as the fifth British Grand Prix, and the third to be held at Silverstone after motor racing resumed after World War II. It was the first race of seven in the 1950 World Championship of Drivers.

The 70-lap race was won by Nino Farina for the Alfa Romeo team, after starting from pole position, with a race time of 2:13:23.6 and an average speed of 146.378 km/h. Luigi Fagioli finished second in another Alfa Romeo, and Reg Parnell third in a third Alfa Romeo.

The race followed the non-championship Pau Grand Prix and San Remo Grand Prix (both won by Juan Manuel Fangio), the Richmond Trophy (won by Reg Parnell), and the Paris Grand Prix (won by Georges Grignard).

Background

RAF Silverstone airport in 1945

The formation of Formula One was created in 1946 with the first race under the Formula rules being the 1946 Turin Grand Prix which was won by Achille Varzi in the Alfa Romeo 158. But it would not be until 1949 when the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile announced a series that would take place the following year, one year after the formation of the Grand Prix motorcycle racing.

The 1950 edition of the British Grand Prix was the fifth edition of the Grand Prix with it also being the third time that Silverstone Circuit held since the first race was held in 1948. It was also the designated European Grand Prix for the year, which was the 11th time that title had been held since the first one back in 1923. Before the first Grand Prix, four non-championship races were held all across Europe with Juan Manuel Fangio winning the races in Pau and San Remo with the other two races being won by Reg Parnell and Georges Grignard.

During the weekend, the race was also supported by an International 500cc race which was won by Stirling Moss driving a Cooper-JAP. There was also a demonstration run for the much-anticipated BRM P15, which was due to enter the sport later in the year. The race was attended by George VI, Queen Elizabeth, Princess Margaret, and the Earl & Countess Mountbatten of Burma.

Entries

Maserati 4CLT/48
Alfa Romeo Alfetta 158
Talbot-Lago T26C

24 drivers were entered for the first race with them competing in 22 different cars. The numbers 7 and 13 were not assigned. The biggest absence was the Scuderia Ferrari who would not compete in the opening race with Enzo Ferrari not sending any cars to Britain with the team debuting at the next round in Monaco, due to the small amount of appearance money the organisers were willing to pay him to participate. This meant that Alfa Romeo with four drivers Farina, Fangio, Fagioli, and British driver, Reg Parnell. Their main competition was the Maseratis, of Scuderia Ambrosiana and their drivers, David Hampshire and David Murray. Enrico Platé also entered two Maserati's with Prince Bira of Siam and Baron Toulo de Graffenried with the pair not being able to practice on Thursday. Felice Bonetto also entered a Maserati but would not arrive for the race.

Talbot-Lago sent over two factory cars in the traditional French pale blue colour to be driven by Yves Giraud-Cabantous and Eugène Martin. Other private Talbots were entered by Louis Rosier, Philippe Etancelin, and Belgian Johnny Claes, in a yellow car. The rest of the field was made up of local machinery, which included four E.R.A.s and two Altas, in British racing green.

No Driver Entrant Constructor Chassis Engine Tyre
1 Argentina Juan Manuel Fangio Alfa Romeo SpA Alfa Romeo Alfa Romeo 158 Alfa Romeo 158 1.5 L8s P
2 Italy Nino Farina Alfa Romeo SpA Alfa Romeo Alfa Romeo 158 Alfa Romeo 158 1.5 L8s P
3 Italy Luigi Fagioli1 Alfa Romeo SpA Alfa Romeo Alfa Romeo 158 Alfa Romeo 158 1.5 L8s P
4 United Kingdom Reg Parnell Alfa Romeo SpA Alfa Romeo Alfa Romeo 158 Alfa Romeo 158 1.5 L8s P
5 United Kingdom David Murray Scuderia Ambrosiana Maserati Maserati 4CLT/48 Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s D
6 United Kingdom David Hampshire Scuderia Ambrosiana Maserati Maserati 4CLT/48 Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s D
8 United Kingdom Leslie Johnson T.A.S.O. Mathieson ERA ERA E ERA 1.5 L6s D
9 United Kingdom Peter Walker2 Peter Walker ERA ERA E ERA 1.5 L6s D
10 United Kingdom Joe Fry3 Joe Fry Maserati Maserati 4CL Maserati 4CL 1.5 L4s D
11 United Kingdom Cuth Harrison Cuth Harrison ERA ERA B ERA 1.5 L6s D
12 United Kingdom Bob Gerard Bob Gerard ERA ERA B ERA 1.5 L6s D
14 France Yves Giraud-Cabantous Automobiles Talbot-Darracq Talbot-Lago Talbot-Lago T26C-DA Talbot 23CV 4.5 L6 D
15 France Louis Rosier Automobiles Talbot-Darracq Talbot-Lago Talbot-Lago T26C Talbot 23CV 4.5 L6 D
16 France Philippe Étancelin Automobiles Talbot-Darracq Talbot-Lago Talbot-Lago T26C Talbot 23CV 4.5 L6 D
17 France Eugène Martin Automobiles Talbot-Darracq Talbot-Lago Talbot-Lago T26C-DA Talbot 23CV 4.5 L6 D
18 Belgium Johnny Claes Ecurie Belge Talbot-Lago Talbot-Lago T26C Talbot 23CV 4.5 L6 D
19 Monaco Louis Chiron Officine Alfieri Maserati Maserati Maserati 4CLT/48 Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s P
20 Switzerland Toulo de Graffenried Enrico Platé Maserati Maserati 4CLT/48 Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s P
21 Thailand B. Bira Enrico Platé Maserati Maserati 4CLT/48 Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s P
22 Italy Felice Bonetto Scuderia Milano Maserati Maserati 4CLT/50 Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s P
23 Republic of Ireland Joe Kelly Joe Kelly Alta Alta GP Alta 1.5 L4s D
24 United Kingdom Geoffrey Crossley Geoffrey Crossley Alta Alta GP Alta 1.5 L4s D
26 United Kingdom Raymond Mays4 Raymond Mays ERA ERA D ERA 1.5 L6s D
Sources:
^1 – Luigi Fagioli qualified and drove all 70 laps of the race in the #3 Alfa Romeo. Gianbattista Guidotti, named substitute driver for the car, was not used at the Grand Prix.
^2 – Peter Walker qualified and drove 2 laps of the race in the #9 ERA. Tony Rolt took over the car for 3 laps of the race.
^3 – Joe Fry qualified and drove 45 laps of the race in the #10 Maserati. Brian Shawe-Taylor took over the car for 19 laps of the race.
^4 – Entry cancelled prior to the event.

Qualifying

Qualifying took place on Friday and saw the Alfa Romeos end up on the front row of the grid as Farina claimed the first pole position in the history of Formula One with a time of 1:50.8. Fagioli and Fangio and Parnell would fill the remaining spots on the front row of the grid. Prince Bira was the fastest non-Alfa, 1.8 seconds back with the two Talbot's cars filling in the second row.

Qualifying classification

Pos No Driver Constructor Time Gap
1 2 Italy Nino Farina Alfa Romeo 1:50.8
2 3 Italy Luigi Fagioli Alfa Romeo 1:51.0 + 0.2
3 1 Argentina Juan Manuel Fangio Alfa Romeo 1:51.2 + 0.4
4 4 United Kingdom Reg Parnell Alfa Romeo 1:52.2 + 1.4
5 21 Thailand Prince Bira Maserati 1:52.6 + 1.8
6 14 France Yves Giraud-Cabantous Talbot-Lago-Talbot 1:53.4 + 2.6
7 17 France Eugène Martin Talbot-Lago-Talbot 1:55.4 + 4.6
8 20 Switzerland Toulo de Graffenried Maserati 1:55.8 + 5.0
9 15 France Louis Rosier Talbot-Lago-Talbot 1:56.0 + 5.2
10 9 United Kingdom Peter Walker ERA 1:56.6 + 5.8
11 19 Monaco Louis Chiron Maserati 1:56.6 + 5.8
12 8 United Kingdom Leslie Johnson ERA 1:57.4 + 6.6
13 12 United Kingdom Bob Gerard ERA 1:57.4 + 6.6
14 16 France Philippe Étancelin Talbot-Lago-Talbot 1:57.8 + 7.0
15 11 United Kingdom Cuth Harrison ERA 1:58.4 + 7.6
16 6 United Kingdom David Hampshire Maserati 2:01.0 + 10.2
17 24 United Kingdom Geoffrey Crossley Alta 2:02.6 + 11.8
18 5 United Kingdom David Murray Maserati 2:05.6 + 14.8
19 23 Republic of Ireland Joe Kelly Alta 2:06.2 + 15.4
20 10 United Kingdom Joe Fry Maserati 2:07.0 + 16.2
21 18 Belgium Johnny Claes Talbot-Lago-Talbot 2:08.8 + 18.0
DNA 22 Italy Felice Bonetto Maserati

Race

On 13 May, 21 drivers from 9 countries were represented at the old Silverstone airport, 4 from France, 2 from Italy, 1 each from Belgium, Ireland, Monaco, Argentina, Thailand and Switzerland. The UK was represented by 9 drivers. The race drew 200,000 spectators. At the start of the race, Farina took the lead with Fagioli and Fangio in pursuit, while Cabantous got a poor start and lost 4 positions. In the early laps, they switched around between themselves several times to keep everyone amused. Fangio retired with engine troubles caused by a broken oil pipe and so Farina led Fagioli home by 2.5 seconds with Parnell a distant third despite hitting a hare during the race. The nearest challenger was Giraud-Cabantous two laps down, Bira having retired with a fuel problem. Crossley and Murray duelled at the back before retiring, de Graffenried had done so on lap 34, while Chiron was demoted to the role of the viewer 10 laps earlier. Nino Farina led for 63 laps (1–9, 16–37 and 39–70). Luigi Fagioli led for 6 laps (10–15). Juan Manuel Fangio led for 1 lap (38). Joe Fry drove car #10 for the first 45 laps, then Brian Shawe-Taylor took over for 19 laps for a total of 64 laps, a distance of 297.536 km. Peter Walker drove car #9 for 2 laps, then Tony Rolt drove for an additional 3 laps, totaling 5 laps, a distance of 23.245 km. Nino Farina achieved the fastest lap of the race, with a 1:50.6 on Lap 2.

Race classification

Pos No Driver Constructor Laps Time/Retired Grid Points
1 2 Italy Nino Farina Alfa Romeo 70 2:13:23.6 1 91
2 3 Italy Luigi Fagioli Alfa Romeo 70 + 2.6 2 6
3 4 United Kingdom Reg Parnell Alfa Romeo 70 + 52.0 4 4
4 14 France Yves Giraud-Cabantous Talbot-Lago-Talbot 68 + 2 Laps 6 3
5 15 France Louis Rosier Talbot-Lago-Talbot 68 + 2 Laps 9 2
6 12 United Kingdom Bob Gerard ERA 67 + 3 Laps 13  
7 11 United Kingdom Cuth Harrison ERA 67 + 3 Laps 15  
8 16 France Philippe Étancelin Talbot-Lago-Talbot 65 + 5 Laps 14  
9 6 United Kingdom David Hampshire Maserati 64 + 6 Laps 16  
10 10 United Kingdom Joe Fry
United Kingdom Brian Shawe-Taylor
Maserati 64 + 6 Laps 20  
11 18 Belgium Johnny Claes Talbot-Lago-Talbot 64 + 6 Laps 21  
Ret 1 Argentina Juan Manuel Fangio Alfa Romeo 62 Oil pipe 3  
NC 23 Republic of Ireland Joe Kelly Alta 57 Not Classified 19  
Ret 21 Thailand Prince Bira Maserati 49 Out of fuel 5  
Ret 5 United Kingdom David Murray Maserati 44 Engine 18  
Ret 24 United Kingdom Geoffrey Crossley Alta 43 Transmission 17  
Ret 20 Switzerland Toulo de Graffenried Maserati 36 Engine 8  
Ret 19 Monaco Louis Chiron Maserati 24 Clutch 11  
Ret 17 France Eugène Martin Talbot-Lago-Talbot 8 Oil pressure 7  
Ret 9 United Kingdom Peter Walker
United Kingdom Tony Rolt
ERA 5 Gearbox 10  
Ret 8 United Kingdom Leslie Johnson ERA 2 Compressor 12  
Source:
Notes
  • ^1 – Includes 1 point for fastest lap

Championship standings after the race

Drivers' Championship standings
Pos Driver Points
1 Italy Nino Farina 9
2 Italy Luigi Fagioli 6
3 United Kingdom Reg Parnell 4
4 France Yves Giraud-Cabantous 3
5 France Louis Rosier 2
Source:
  • Note: Only the top five positions are listed. Only the best 4 results counted towards the Championship.

This page was last updated at 2024-03-18 03:37 UTC. Update now. View original page.

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