1952 Formula One season

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources:  –  ·  ·  · scholar · JSTOR (December 2009) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

The 1952 Formula One season was the sixth season of FIA Formula One motor racing. In comparison to previous seasons, the 1952 season consisted of a relatively small number of Formula One races, following the decision to run all the Grand Prix events counting towards the World Championship of Drivers to Formula Two regulations rather than Formula One. The Indianapolis 500, which also counted towards the World Championship, was still run to AAA regulations as in previous seasons.

The 3rd FIA World Championship of Drivers, which began on 18 May and ended on 7 September after eight races, was won by Alberto Ascari, driving for Scuderia Ferrari.

In addition to the Formula One races and the World Championship Formula Two races, numerous other Formula Two races, which did not count towards the championship, were held during the year.

World Championship season summary[]

Alfa Romeo, unable to fund a new car, withdrew from racing, while BRM had been preparing two V16-powered cars for the season but withdrew them before an April race at Valentino Park, Turin, whilst attempting to enlist Juan Manuel Fangio as teammate to Stirling Moss, leaving Ferrari as the only serious Formula One contender. This led World Championship organizers to run their races for Formula Two,^[1] utilising 2-litre naturally aspirated engines, which meant larger fields and a greater variety of cars, even if the victories all went to Ferrari. Ascari won the six Grands Prix he entered, missing the Swiss race because he was at Indianapolis qualifying for the Indianapolis 500 – the first European to do so in the World Championship era. Maserati and Gordini offered little challenge, but Mike Hawthorn's drives in his Cooper would earn him a works Ferrari drive in 1953. Reigning champion Fangio, badly injured in an early season crash at Monza, took no part in the championship, but was to go on to drive for BRM.

Race 1: Switzerland[]

For the second successive season, the opening round of the championship was the Swiss Grand Prix, held at the Bremgarten Circuit in Bern. Ferrari's lead driver Ascari was absent due to his participation in the Indianapolis 500 so it was left to his teammates Nino Farina and Piero Taruffi to secure the first two places on the grid. Farina led from the start until he retired with magneto failure, leaving Taruffi to win his only championship Grand Prix and also to take the extra point for fastest lap. Farina took over the car of his other teammate, Andre Simon, and was battling debutant Jean Behra for second place before both hit mechanical trouble, Farina again unable to continue. It was therefore privateer Rudi Fischer who completed a Ferrari 1-2, with Jean Behra in third for Gordini. Ken Wharton finished fourth driving a Frazer-Nash, the manufacturer's only ever points finish.

Race 2: Indianapolis 500[]

As usual, the Indianapolis 500 had little bearing on the result of the championship, although regular Ferrari driver Albero Ascari did compete, retiring after 40 laps. The race was dominated by Bill Vukovich, who led 150 laps before retiring. It was left to Troy Ruttman to win the race from Jim Rathmann and Sam Hanks.

Race 3: Belgium[]

Ascari returned to Ferrari for round 3 of the championship at Spa-Francorchamps, with Maserati still absent as they developed their A6GCM. The Ferrari cars dominated the whole weekend, with Ascari taking pole, the race win and fastest lap while leading every lap bar one. He was followed home by teammate Nino Farina and Robert Manzon finished in third for Gordini. Jean Behra again impressed as he led the opening lap before falling behind the Ferrari juggernaut and eventually retiring after a incident with the third Ferrari of Piero Taruffi.

Race 4: France[]

Scuderia Ferrari dominated once again at Rouen, taking all three podium places. Ascari led all the way from pole position to assume the championship lead and achieve his fourth career victory, drawing him level to his teammate Nino Farina who finished second. Piero Taruffi finished third after falling behind the Gordinis of Robert Manzon and Jean Behra at the start. It was Manzon who was the highest Non-Ferrari finisher ahead of his teammate Maurice Trintignant who was driving an older model.

Race 5: Britain[]

Although Ascari again dominated, it wasn't plain sailing for his teammates as Ferrari eventually dominated as they had done throughout the year. It was the Italian's third consecutive victory that further strengthened his eventually successful championship challenge as his main competitor, Nino Farina failed to score despite taking pole position. The third Ferrari of Piero Taruffi dropped down to ninth at the start but eventually recovered to take second place while a pitstop for new spark plugs meant Farina finished in sixth position. It was a triumphant day for British cars and drivers, with Mike Hawthorn taking his first podium driving a Cooper-Bristol, while British cars and drivers occupied the other points paying positions.

Race 6: Germany[]

The belated arrival of the Maserati factory team failed to stop the dominance of Ferrari, with Ascari clinching his first World Title and equalling the injured Juan Manuel Fangio's win record. It was his fourth consecutive victory of the season, again leading every race lap from pole position. He did briefly lose the race lead to Farina after pitting for oil, but this is not reflected in the lap charts as he caught and passed his teammate before they crossed the line at the end of the lap. Farina finished second and privateer Ferrari driver Rudi Fischer finished third ahead of the works car of Taruffi to ensure a Ferrari 1-2-3-4. Jean Behra scored the final points for Gordini just ahead of another Ferrari car, this time driven by Roger Laurent.

Race 7: Netherlands[]

Ascari started from pole position and led from start to finish, taking the fastest lap as well, winning his fifth consecutive Grand Prix and earning his second consecutive Grand Slam, and the third his season and career. In addition, with his victory, Ascari overtook Fangio as the winningest Formula One Driver, although the Argentinian would eventually reclaim the record at the 1955 Argentine Grand Prix. Further down the order, Giuseppe Farina and Luigi Villoresi, also driving for Ferrari, completed the podium, resulting in an Italian 1-2-3, as well as a 1-2-3 for the Scuderia. As a result, Ascari extended his championship points total to 36, extending his lead to 12 points over second-placed Farina.

Race 8: Italy[]

World Championship season review[]

The 1952 World Championship of Drivers was contested over an eight race series.

Rnd	Race	Circuit	Date	Pole position	Fastest lap	Winning driver	Constructor	Tyre	Report
1	Swiss Grand Prix	Bremgarten	18 May	Giuseppe Farina	Piero Taruffi	Piero Taruffi	Ferrari	P	Report
2	Indianapolis 500	Indianapolis	30 May	Fred Agabashian	Bill Vukovich	Troy Ruttman	Kuzma-Offenhauser	F	Report
3	Belgian Grand Prix	Spa-Francorchamps	22 June	Alberto Ascari	Alberto Ascari	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari	P	Report
4	French Grand Prix	Rouen-Les-Essarts	6 July	Alberto Ascari	Alberto Ascari	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari	P	Report
5	British Grand Prix	Silverstone	19 July	Giuseppe Farina	Alberto Ascari	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari	P	Report
6	German Grand Prix	Nürburgring	3 August	Alberto Ascari	Alberto Ascari	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari	P	Report
7	Dutch Grand Prix	Zandvoort	17 August	Alberto Ascari	Alberto Ascari	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari	P	Report
8	Italian Grand Prix	Monza	7 September	Alberto Ascari	Alberto Ascari José Froilán González	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari	P	Report

All 1952 World Championship Grand Prix events were restricted to Formula Two cars and the Indianapolis 500-Mile Race, which also counted towards the 1952 AAA Championship, was contested by AAA National Championship cars. The Spanish Grand Prix was scheduled to be held on 26 October at the Pedralbes Circuit in Barcelona, but was cancelled.^[2]

Teams and drivers[]

Italian Alberto Ascari won the 1952 World Championship of Drivers

The following teams and drivers competed in the 1952 FIA World Championship of Drivers. The list does not include those that contested only the Indianapolis 500 event.

Entrant	Constructor	Chassis	Engine	Tyre	Driver	Rounds
AFM	AFM-	AFM	2.0 V8	E	Hans Stuck	1
Toni Ulmen	Veritas		Veritas 2.0 L6	D	Toni Ulmen	1, 6
Equipe Gordini	Gordini		Gordini 20 2.0 L6 Gordini 1500 1.5 L4	E	Jean Behra	1, 3–4, 6–8
					Robert Manzon	1, 3–8
					Birabongse Bhanudej	1, 3–5
					Johnny Claes	3
					Maurice Trintignant	4–8
Ecurie Rosier	Ferrari	500	Ferrari 500 2.0 L4 Ferrari 166 2.0 V12	D P	Louis Rosier	1, 3–4, 8
					Maurice Trintignant	1
HW Motors	HWM-Alta		Alta F2 2.0 L4	D	George Abecassis	1
					Peter Collins	1, 3–6, 8
					Lance Macklin	1, 3–5, 7–8
					Stirling Moss	1
					Paul Frère	3, 6
					Roger Laurent	3
					Yves Giraud-Cabantous	4
					Duncan Hamilton	5, 7
					Johnny Claes	6
					Dries van der Lof	7
Scuderia Franera	Frazer-Nash-Bristol		Bristol BS1 2.0 L6	D	Ken Wharton	1, 3, 7–8
Ecurie Richmond	Cooper-Bristol	T20	Bristol BS1 2.0 L6	D	Eric Brandon	1, 3, 5, 8
					Alan Brown	1, 3, 5, 8
Scuderia Ferrari	Ferrari	500 375S*	Ferrari 500 2.0 L4 Ferrari 375 4.5 V12*	P F	Giuseppe Farina	1, 3–8
					Piero Taruffi	1, 3–6, 8
					Andre Simon	1, 8
					Alberto Ascari	2–8
					Luigi Villoresi	7–8
Enrico Platé	Maserati-Platé	4CLT/48	Platé 2.0 L4	P	Toulo de Graffenried	1, 4–5, 8
					Harry Schell	1, 4–5
					Alberto Crespo	8
Ecurie Espadon	Ferrari	500 212	Ferrari 500 2.0 L4 Ferrari 166 2.0 V12	P	Rudi Fischer	1, 4–6, 8
					Peter Hirt	1, 4–5
					Rudolf Schoeller	6
					Hans Stuck	8
Alfred Dattner	Simca-Gordini		Gordini 1500 1.5 L4	E	Max de Terra	1
Leslie D. Hawthorn	Cooper-Bristol	T20	Bristol BS1 2.0 L6	D	Mike Hawthorn	3, 5, 7–8
English Racing Automobiles Ltd	ERA-Bristol		Bristol BS1 2.0 L6	D	Stirling Moss	3, 5, 7
Ecurie Francorchamps	Ferrari	500	Ferrari 500 2.0 L4	E	Charles de Tornaco	3, 7–8
					Roger Laurent	6
Arthur Legat	Veritas		Veritas 2.0 L6	E	Arthur Legat	3
Robin Montgomerie-Charrington	Aston-Butterworth		Butterworth 2.0 F4	D	Robin Montgomerie-Charrington	3
Tony Gaze	HWM-Alta		Alta F2 2.0 L4	D	Tony Gaze	3, 5–6, 8
Robert O' Brien	Simca-Gordini		Gordini 1500 1.5 L4	E	Robert O' Brien	3
Peter Whitehead	Alta Ferrari	F2	Alta F2 2.0 L4 Ferrari 166 2.0 V12	D	Peter Whitehead	4–5, 8
					Graham Whitehead	5
Escuderia Bandeirantes	Maserati	A6GCM	Maserati A6 2.0 L6	P	Philippe Étancelin	4
					Gino Bianco	5–8
					Eitel Cantoni	5–6, 8
					Chico Landi	7–8
					Jan Flinterman	7
Ecurie Belge	Simca-Gordini		Gordini 1500 1.5 L4	E	Johnny Claes	4–5
					Paul Frère	7
Scuderia Marzotto	Ferrari		Ferrari 166 2.0 V12	P	Franco Comotti	4
					Piero Carini	4, 6
Archie Bryde AHM Bryde	Cooper-Bristol	T20	Bristol BS1 2.0 L6	D	Mike Hawthorn	4
					Reg Parnell	5
W.S. Aston	Aston-Butterworth		Butterworth 2.0 F4	D	Bill Aston	5–6, 8
Connaught Engineering	Connaught-Lea Francis		Lea Francis 2.0 L4	D	Kenneth McAlpine	5, 8
					Ken Downing	5
					Eric Thompson	5
					Dennis Poore	5, 8
					Stirling Moss	8
Ecurie Ecosse	Cooper-Bristol	T20	Bristol BS1 2.0 L6	D	David Murray	5
G. Caprara	Ferrari	500	Ferrari 500 2.0 L4	D	Roy Salvadori	5
Tony Crook	Frazer-Nash-BMW		BMW 328 2.0 L6	D	Tony Crook	5
Marcel Balsa	Balsa-BMW	Spécial	BMW 328 2.0 L6	E	Marcel Balsa	6
Fritz Riess	Veritas		Veritas 2.0 L6	?	Fritz Riess	6
Theo Helfrich	Veritas		Veritas 2.0 L6	?	Theo Helfrich	6
Willi Heeks	AFM-BMW	8	BMW 328 2.0 L6	?	Willi Heeks	6
Helmut Niedermayr	AFM-BMW	6	BMW 328 2.0 L6	?	Helmut Niedermayr	6
Adolf Brudes	Veritas		Veritas 2.0 L6	?	Adolf Brudes	6
Motor Presse Verlag	Veritas		Veritas 2.0 L6	?	Paul Pietsch	6
Hans Klenk	Veritas		Veritas 2.0 L6	?	Hans Klenk	6
Josef Peters	Veritas		Veritas 2.0 L6	?	Josef Peters	6
Bernhard Nacke	Nacke-BMW	Eigenbau	BMW 328 2.0 L6	?	Günther Bechem	6
Ludwig Fischer	AFM-BMW	8	BMW 328 2.0 L6	?	Ludwig Fischer	6
Willi Krakau	AFM-BMW	6	BMW 328 2.0 L6	?	Willi Krakau	6
	Krakau-BMW	Eigenbau			Harry Merkel	6
Ernst Klodwig	Heck-BMW	Eigenbau	BMW 328 2.0 L6	?	Ernst Klodwig	6
Rudolf Krause	Reif-BMW	Eigenbau	BMW 328 2.0 L6	?	Rudolf Krause	6
Ken Downing	Connaught-Lea Francis		Lea Francis 2.0 L4	D	Ken Downing	7
Officine Alfieri Maserati	Maserati	A6GCM	Maserati A6 2.0 L6	P	Felice Bonetto	6, 8
					Franco Rol	8
					José Froilán González	8
Élie Bayol	OSCA		OSCA 2000 2.0 L6	P	Élie Bayol	8
Piero Dusio	Cisitalia-	D46	2.0 L4	P	Piero Dusio	8
Vicomtesse de Walckiers	Simca-Gordini		Gordini 1500 1.5 L4	E	Johnny Claes	8

* Car entered only in the Indianapolis 500 race

World Championship of Drivers standings[]

Alberto Ascari won the championship driving a Ferrari 500

Points were awarded to top five finishers in each race on an 8–6–4–3–2 basis. One point was awarded for fastest lap. Points for shared drives were divided equally between the drivers, regardless of who had driven more laps. Only the best four of eight scores counted towards the World Championship.

Pos. Driver SUI 500 BEL FRA GBR GER NED ITA Pts. 1 Alberto Ascari Ret 1 1 1 1 (1) (1) 36 (53.5) 2 Giuseppe Farina Ret† 2 2 6 2 2 (4) 24 (27) 3 Piero Taruffi 1 Ret 3 2 4 7 22 4 Rudi Fischer 2 11† 13 3 Ret 10 = Mike Hawthorn 4 Ret 3 4 NC 10 6 [3] Robert Manzon Ret 3 4 Ret Ret 5 14 9 7 Troy Ruttman 1 8 = Luigi Villoresi 3 3 8 9 José Froilán González 2 6.5 10 Jim Rathmann 2 6 = Jean Behra 3 Ret 7 5 Ret Ret 6 12 Sam Hanks 3 4 13 Ken Wharton 4 Ret Ret 9 3 = Dennis Poore 4 12 3 = Duane Carter 4 3 16 Alan Brown 5 6 22 15 2 = Maurice Trintignant DNS 5 Ret Ret 6 Ret 2 = Paul Frère 5 Ret Ret 2 = Felice Bonetto DSQ 5 2 = Art Cross 5 2 = Eric Thompson 5 2 22 Bill Vukovich 17 1 — Roger Laurent 12 6 0 — Toulo de Graffenried 6 Ret† 19 DNQ 0 — Peter Collins Ret Ret 6 Ret DNS DNQ 0 — André Simon Ret† 6 0 — Jimmy Bryan 6 0 — Peter Hirt 7 11† Ret 0 — Charles de Tornaco 7 Ret DNQ 0 — Duncan Hamilton Ret 7 0 — Jimmy Reece 7 0 — Reg Parnell 7 0 — Fritz Riess 7 0 — Lance Macklin Ret 11 9 15 8 DNQ 0 — Eric Brandon 8 9 20 13 0 — Chico Landi 9† 8 0 — Johnny Claes 8 Ret 14 10 DNQ 0 — Toni Ulmen Ret 8 0 — George Connor 8 0 — Philippe Étancelin 8 0 — Roy Salvadori 8 0 — Ken Downing 9 Ret 0 — Cliff Griffith 9 0 — Helmut Niedermayr 9 0 — Jan Flinterman 9† 0 — Birabongse Bhanudej Ret 10 Ret 11 0 — Louis Rosier Ret Ret Ret 10 0 — Peter Whitehead Ret 10 DNQ 0 — Johnnie Parsons 10 0 — Yves Giraud-Cabantous 10 0 — Eitel Cantoni Ret Ret 11 0 — Jack McGrath 11 0 — Hans Klenk 11 0 — Jim Rigsby 12 0 — Franco Comotti 12 0 — Graham Whitehead 12 0 — Ernst Klodwig 12 0 — Joe James 13 0 — Arthur Legat 13 0 — Bill Schindler 14 0 — Robert O'Brien 14 0 — Tony Gaze 15 Ret Ret DNQ 0 — George Fonder 15 0 — Kenneth McAlpine 16 Ret 0 — Eddie Johnson 16 0 — Harry Schell Ret Ret† 17 0 — Gino Bianco 18 Ret Ret Ret 0 — Chuck Stevenson 18 0 — Henry Banks 19 0 — Manny Ayulo 20 0 — Johnny McDowell 21 0 — Tony Crook 21 0 — Dries van der Lof NC 0 — Stirling Moss Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret 0 — Piero Carini Ret Ret 0 — Bill Aston DNS Ret DNQ 0 — Hans Stuck Ret DNQ 0 — George Abecassis Ret 0 — Max de Terra Ret 0 — Spider Webb Ret 0 — Rodger Ward Ret 0 — Tony Bettenhausen Ret 0 — Duke Nalon Ret 0 — Fred Agabashian Ret 0 — Bob Sweikert Ret 0 — Gene Hartley Ret 0 — Bob Scott Ret 0 — Chet Miller Ret 0 — Bobby Ball Ret 0 — Andy Linden Ret 0 — Robin Montgomerie-Charrington Ret 0 — David Murray Ret 0 — Willi Heeks Ret 0 — Adolf Brudes Ret 0 — Marcel Balsa Ret 0 — Günther Bechem Ret 0 — Rudolf Krause Ret 0 — Rudolf Schoeller Ret 0 — Paul Pietsch Ret 0 — Theo Helfrich Ret 0 — Josef Peters Ret 0 — Franco Rol Ret 0 — Élie Bayol Ret 0 — Willi Krakau DNS 0 — Ludwig Fischer DNS 0 — Harry Merkel DNS 0 — Alberto Crespo DNQ 0 — Piero Dusio DNQ 0 Pos. Driver SUI 500 BEL FRA GBR GER NED ITA Pts.

Key Colour Result Gold Winner Silver 2nd place Bronze 3rd place Green Other points position Blue Other classified position Not classified, finished (NC) Purple Not classified, retired (Ret) Red Did not qualify (DNQ) Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ) Black Disqualified (DSQ) White Did not start (DNS) Race cancelled (C) Blank Did not practice (DNP) Excluded (EX) Did not arrive (DNA) Withdrawn (WD) Did not enter (cell empty) Text formatting Meaning Bold Pole position Italics Fastest lap

• Italics indicate fastest lap (one point awarded – point shared equally between drivers sharing fastest lap)
• Bold indicates pole position
• † Position shared between more drivers of the same car
• Only the best four results counted towards the championship. Numbers without parentheses are championship points; numbers in parentheses are total points scored.

Non-championship races[]

Other Formula One/Formula Two races, which did not count towards the World Championship of Drivers, were also held in 1952.

Race name	Circuit	Date	Formula	Winning driver	Constructor	Report
XI	Gávea	20 January	Formula Libre[4]	José Froilán González	Ferrari
II Gran Premio di Siracusa	Syracuse	16 March	Formula Two[5]	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari
VI	Valentino Park	6 April	Formula One[5]	Luigi Villoresi	Ferrari
IV Richmond Trophy	Goodwood	14 April	Formula One[6]	José Froilán González	Ferrari
IV	Goodwood	14 April	Formula Two[7]	Mike Hawthorn	Cooper-Bristol
XIII Pau Grand Prix	Pau	14 April	Formula Two[5]	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari	Report
I	Ringwood	19 April	Formula Two[8]	Mike Hawthorn	Cooper-Bristol
X	Marseille	27 April	Formula Two[5]	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari
I	Snetterton	3 May	Formula Two[9]		Frazer Nash-Bristol[9]
IV BRDC International Trophy	Silverstone	10 May	Formula Two[5]	Lance Macklin	HWM-Alta
XIV Eläintarhanajot	Eläintarharata	11 May	Formula One[10]	Roger Laurent	Talbot-Lago
V Gran Premio di Napoli	Posillipo	11 May	Formula Two[5]	Giuseppe Farina	Ferrari
XVI Internationales ADAC Eifelrennen	Nürburgring	25 May	Formula Two[5]	Rudi Fischer	Ferrari
VI	Montlhéry	25 May	Formula Two[5]	Piero Taruffi	Ferrari
XIV	Albi	1 June	Formula One[5]	Louis Rosier	Ferrari
XXII Grand Prix des Frontières	Chimay	1 June	Formula Two[5]	Paul Frère	HWM-Alta
VI	Dundrod	7 June	Formula One[5]	Piero Taruffi	Ferrari
V Gran Premio dell'Autodromo di Monza	Monza	8 June	Formula Two[5]	Giuseppe Farina	Ferrari
IV Aix les Bains Circuit du Lac	Aix-les-Bains	8 June	Formula Two[5]	Jean Behra	Gordini
I	Boreham	21 June	Formula Two[11]	Reg Parnell	Cooper-Bristol
XVI Grand Prix de la Marne	Reims	29 June	Formula Two[12]	Jean Behra	Gordini
II	Sables	13 July	Formula Two[5]	Luigi Villoresi	Ferrari
I Grand Prix de Caen	Caen	27 July	Formula Two[13]	Maurice Trintignant	Gordini
II	Boreham	2 August	Formula Two[5]	Luigi Villoresi	Ferrari
XVI Grand Prix de Comminges	Comminges	10 August	Formula Two[5]	André Simon Alberto Ascari	Ferrari
I	Turnberry	23 August	Formula Two[14]	Mike Hawthorn	Connaught
XI	La Baule	24 August	Formula Two[5]	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari
III Gran Premio di Modena	Modena	14 September	Formula Two[5]	Luigi Villoresi	Ferrari
IV Circuit de Cadours	Cadours	14 September	Formula Two[5]	Louis Rosier	Ferrari
II	Skarpnäck	14 September	Formula One[10]		Mercury
V	Goodwood	27 September	Formula Two[15]	Ken Downing	Connaught
VIII Internationales Avusrennen	AVUS	28 September	Formula Two[5]	Rudi Fischer	Ferrari
I	Castle Combe	4 October	Formula Two[16]	Roy Salvadori	Ferrari
I		11 October	Formula Two[17]	Dennis Poore	Connaught
XII	Gávea	14 December	Formula Libre[4]		Ferrari

East German Championship[]

Race name	Circuit	Date	Winning driver	Constructor	Report
I	Rostock	20 April	Paul Greifzu	BMW-
I	Bernau	4 May	Rudolf Krause	BMW-
I	Dessau	11 May	Fritz Riess	Veritas-Meteor
III	Leipzig	2 June	Edgar Barth	IFA-
III		8 June	Edgar Barth	IFA-
I	Leipzig	17 August	Hans Stuck	AFM-BMW
V	Grenzlandring	31 August	Toni Ulmen	Veritas
IV	Sachsenring	7 September	Edgar Barth	EMW-BMW

References[]