1952 Australian Grand Prix

The 1952 Australian Grand Prix was the tenth and final race of the 1952 Formula One World Championship and was held in Leyburn on November 2nd 1952. The first Australian Grand Prix to count for the World Championship, it was also the race where the title was decided. Coming to the race, Giuseppe Farina had a 7.5-point lead over B. Bira, but the double champion retired early on while Bira won with the fastest lap, securing his first title. Consalvo Sanesi finished the race in second place for Gordini, ahead of Reg Parnell in the Ferrari.

Background

The season had ended up largely like 1951. Farina had led for most of the way, yet had failed to win a race thus far. Gordini and Talbot-Lago had both had good starts to the season, but had failed to keep their momentum, while the Ferrari drivers had dominated the second half of the season, with five wins, including the preceding four races. Despite this, Farina had managed to score four second places, and came to Leyburn with a 7.5 point lead over Bira, the only other mathematical challenger. Bira would have to win and hope that Farina did not finish in the top four. If Farina finished fourth, Bira would have to score the fastest lap to take the championship. Despite the long distance, 35 drivers were present at the remote airfield circuit, including eight locals.

The second Bleu Talbot-Lago would be driven by the young Lex Davison, who had finished third at the Australian Grand Prix at Bathurst in 1947.

After taking the season off championship racing to try his hand at non-championship races, Tony Gaze returned for his home race in his first drive for an actual team, that team being Scuderia Commesso instead of a private entry.

Ecurie Australie made their second appearance after the 1950 Indianapolis 500. The drivers were 1950 Australian Grand Prix winner Doug Whiteford, young rally driver David McKay and multi-midget champion Jack Brabham, who made his Formula One début.

After Maurice Trintignant's top ten finish at Sebring, Maserati returned with two cars for regular driver Paul Frère and Marcel Balsa, who had already driven for the team in the Netherlands.

Due to a lack of Australia-based drivers, Garage Francorchamps would not be present at this race. Budget issues were also rumoured to be involved.

Scuderia Maremmana returned for their final race under that name. Eric Brandon was the sole European driver this time, as the other two cars were handed to 1951 Australian Grand Prix winner Warwick Pratley and New Zealand GP winner John McMillan.

For their home race, Redman racing team would field a second Maserati for the up-and-coming Stan Jones, who also made his début.

Maria Teresa de Filippis had chosen not to make the costly trip from the USA to Australia.

Bentley reverted to a single car for Geoff Richardson, who had shown to be the better driver.

Jaguar - Aston Martin Racing would exceptionnally field a fourth car for the drive-less Maurice Trintignant, who had brought them their first podium the previous year.

Race weekend

Qualifying

Ferrari put all three cars in the top five, Bira was well placed to take advantage of an eventual retirement from Farina in fifth place, JAMR placed all four cars in the top twelve, and Stan Jones stunned the crowd by not only being the only local driver to make the grid, but also by being the quickest Maserati driver in the field. Fangio and Ruttman disappointed majorly, but still made the grid, while Marcel Balsa showed why he was not in a top car at the time (and never would be).

Pre-race

After the qualifying session, a number of attending supporters stormed the pit area and pillaged the Alfa Romeo pits, disgruntled at the thought of Giuseppe Farina winning yet another world championship. Various parts were destroyed and the cars dismantled. The governing body condemned the fans responsible, as did the rest of the teams, and the series would not return to Australia for a number of years following the incident. With most of Alfa Romeo's machinery being lost, doubt was cast over their participation in the race, but the mechanics managed to retrieve enough parts to rebuild a full car, which was naturally given to Farina. Already unhappy with the team's focus staying on Farina, Juan Manuel Fangio immediately left the circuit and returned home, vowing never to drive for Alfa Romeo again. Stirling Moss, sitting on the sidelines as well, also cast doubt on his future with the team, although he would eventually stay with Alfa Romeo for two more years.

Race

Farina got the better start and led off the line from Serafini and de Graffenried, but the championship leader's car was not well set-up. Due to the last-minute rebuild of the car, he didn't have the capability to fight for the win, and when Serafini came up behind him on the second lap, Farina made no effort to stop him. All he needed was for Bira not to win, and he saw that Serafini had the pace to prevent Bira from winning. However, Farina proved to be his own undoing. At the start of the third lap, a moment's lack of attention saw him brake too late for the first corner and squeeze Serafini off the track and out of the race. Farina was leading again, but knew he didn't have the car to help him win. Behind him, Bira was confident in his machinery, but was driving a tactical race, preferring to hold on until later in the race to push for the win. Parnell wouldn't be a contender, also suffering from issues early on, but Toulo de Graffenried was on the move and challenging Farina for the race lead. Further back, Gonzalez retired after eight miserable laps with a gearbox failure.

At this point, Bira was seventh, but moved up to third in a single lap by scoring what would remain the race's fastest lap, securing a much-needed point in the process. However, Ascari, Parnell, Manzon and Trintignant were right behind him and willing to fight for position, which they did. Suddenly, the race changed on lap 13, when Farina's makeshift engine eventually failed, Porfirio Rubirosa following him on the sidelines. As told in the famous post-race interview with all drivers, he spent the rest of the race in that spot following the events and hoping for a miracle. By then, de Graffenried was leading from Parnell, Ascari, Manzon, Trintignant and Bira, who then promptly passed the Aston-Jag to take fifth position (helped by the lapped Piero Taruffi spinning out of the race ahead of them), which was not enough. He needed to win. On top of that, Harry Schell had caught up and was starting to pass them.

Bira followed the American forward and past Manzon, and on lap 20, the Thai prince's championship hopes only rose as Toulo de Graffenried retired from the race lead, pushing his engine too hard, not aware that his lead was as large as it was. This left Ascari in the lead for Phoenix once more, followed by Schell and Bira, while Parnell dropped back after driving into an escape road to avoid the spinning Lex Davison. Some were quick to point out that Davison was Bira's teammate for the race... However, Parnell and Trintignant soon caught up, leaving Bira in fifth at the halfway point of the race. At the same time, Schell passed Ascari and too the race lead. He didn't keep it for very long, as Ascari regained it on lap 37, while Bira passed Schell on the next lap, catching up to Ascari. On lap 40, Bira was right behind Ascari, but Bettenhausen had a spin just in front of them, giving Ascari some breathing room. He was unable to use it, however, spinning on oil and losing out to Bira, Trintignant and Schell. He then passed them both, but Schell fought back, only to lazily spin out on oil left by Eric Brandon, whose gearbox had just failed. With ten laps remaining, Bira led from Ascari, Johnny Claes, Trintignant, Parnell, Manzon, Pagani, Sanesi, Bracco, Ruttman, Barth, Frère, Macklin, Richardson, Chiron and Jones.

Bira won the race, while the fight for second raged on from second place to eighth! Sanesi won out, ahead of Parnell, while the tiring Ascari won a five-wide slipstreaming fight for fourth place ahead of Manzon, Pagani, Claes and Trintignant. Bira's victory, his third of the season, secured his first world championship.

Classification

Entry list

No	Driver	Entrant	Chassis	Engine
1	B. Bira	Motorsport Bleu	Talbot-Lago T26C	Talbot 23CV 4.5 L6
2	Lex Davison		Talbot-Lago T26C	Talbot 23CV 4.5 L6
3	Louis Chiron	Scuderia Commesso	Maserati 4CLT/48	Ferrari 375 4.5 V12
4	Tony Gaze		Maserati 4CLT/48	Ferrari 375 4.5 V12
5	Toulo de Graffenried	Scuderia Ferrari	Ferrari 375B	Ferrari 375 4.5 V12
6	Dorino Serafini		Ferrari 375B	Ferrari 375 4.5 V12
7	Reg Parnell		Ferrari 375B	Ferrari 375 4.5 V12
8	Doug Whiteford	Ecurie Australie	Talbot-Lago T26C	Talbot 23CV 4.5 L6
9	Jack Brabham		HWM 52	Alta 1.5 L4s
10	David McKay		HWM 52	Alta 1.5 L4s
11	Robert Manzon	/ Alexander Racing Team	Gordini T16	Gordini 1.5 L4s
12	Consalvo Sanesi		Gordini T16	Gordini 1.5 L4s
14	Johnny Claes	Claes Racing Developments	Maserati 4CLT/48	Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s
15	Lance Macklin		Maserati 4CLT/48	Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s
16	Harry Schell	Ferrari America	Ferrari 375	Ferrari 375 4.5 V12
17	Troy Ruttman		Ferrari 375	Ferrari 375 4.5 V12
18	José Froilán González	Jaguar - Aston Martin Racing	Aston Martin AM-03	Jaguar XK 3.4 L6
19	Piero Taruffi		Aston Martin AM-03	Jaguar XK 3.4 L6
20	Edgar Barth	Team Ultimate	Ultimate 001	BMW 328 2.0 L6
21	Paul Frère	Officine Alfieri Maserati	Maserati A6GCM	Maserati A6 2.0 L6
22	Warwick Pratley	Scuderia Maremmana	Ferrari 166S	Jaguar XK 3.4 L6
23	John McMillan		Ferrari 166S	Jaguar XK 3.4 L6
24	Eric Brandon		Ferrari 166S	Jaguar XK 3.4 L6
25	Nello Pagani	Redman Racing Team	Maserati A6GCM	Maserati A6 2.0 L6
26	Stan Jones		Maserati 4CLT/48	Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s
27	Giovanni Bracco	Scuderia Ambrosiana	Ambrosiana A-001	Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s
28	Porfirio Rubirosa		Ambrosiana A-001	Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s
29	Giuseppe Farina	Alfa Romeo SpA	Alfa Romeo 159/52	Alfa Romeo 159 1.5 L8s
30	Juan Manuel Fangio		Alfa Romeo 159/52	Alfa Romeo 159 1.5 L8s
31	Stirling Moss		Alfa Romeo 159/52	Alfa Romeo 159 1.5 L8s
32	Alberto Ascari	Phoenix Racing Organisation	Phoenix P-03	Ferrari 375 4.5 V12
33	Geoff Richardson	British Bentley Racing Motors	Bentley Speed 2	Bentley 3.0 V16
34	Tony Bettenhausen	Jaguar - Aston Martin Racing	Aston Martin AM-03	Jaguar XK 3.4 L6
35	Marcel Balsa	Officine Alfieri Maserati	Maserati A6GCM	Maserati A6 2.0 L6
36	Maurice Trintignant	Jaguar - Aston Martin Racing	Aston Martin AM-03	Jaguar XK 3.4 L6

Qualifying

Pos	No	Driver	Constructor	Time	Gap
1	29	Giuseppe Farina	Alfa Romeo	2:45.1	-
2	6	Dorino Serafini	Ferrari	2:45.3	+ 0.2
3	7	Reg Parnell	Ferrari	2:46.7	+ 1.6
4	1	B. Bira	Talbot-Lago-Talbot	2:46.8	+ 1.7
5	5	Toulo de Graffenried	Ferrari	2:47.4	+ 2.3
6	18	José Froilán González	Aston Martin-Jaguar	2:47.6	+ 2.5
7	32	Alberto Ascari	Phoenix-Ferrari	2:48.3	+ 3.2
8	19	Piero Taruffi	Aston Martin-Jaguar	2:48.4	+ 3.3
9	28	Porfirio Rubirosa	Ambrosiana-Maserati	2:48.5	+ 3.4
10	36	Maurice Trintignant	Aston Martin-Jaguar	2:48.6	+ 3.5
11	12	Consalvo Sanesi	Gordini	2:48.7	+ 3.6
12	34	Tony Bettenhausen	Aston Martin-Jaguar	2:49.0	+ 3.9
13	16	Harry Schell	Ferrari	2:49.1	+ 4.0
14	14	Johnny Claes	Maserati	2:49.2	+ 4.1
15	11	Robert Manzon	Gordini	2:49.3	+ 4.2
16	24	Eric Brandon	Ferrari-Jaguar	2:49.4	+ 4.3
17	31	Stirling Moss	Alfa Romeo	2:49.6	+ 4.5
18	26	Stan Jones	Maserati	2:49.7	+ 4.6
19	25	Nello Pagani	Maserati	2:49.8	+ 4.7
20	20	Edgar Barth	Ultimate-BMW	2:49.9	+ 4.8
21	27	Giovanni Bracco	Ambrosiana-Maserati	2:50.0	+ 4.9
22	3	Louis Chiron	Maserati-Ferrari	2:50.1	+ 5.0
23	30	Juan Manuel Fangio	Alfa Romeo	2:50.2	+ 5.1
24	17	Troy Ruttman	Ferrari	2:50.3	+ 5.2
25	21	Paul Frère	Maserati	2:50.5	+ 5.4
26	15	Lance Macklin	Maserati	2:50.7	+ 5.6
27	2	Lex Davison	Talbot-Lago-Talbot	2:50.9	+ 5.8
28	33	Geoff Richardson	Bentley	2:51.2	+ 6.1
29	23	John McMillan	Ferrari-Jaguar	2:51.5	+ 6.4
30	10	David McKay	HWM-Alta	2:51.6	+ 6.5
31	4	Tony Gaze	Maserati-Ferrari	2:52.2	+ 7.1
32	22	Warwick Pratley	Ferrari-Jaguar	2:52.4	+ 7.3
33	9	Jack Brabham	HWM-Alta	2:52.5	+ 7.4
34	8	Doug Whiteford	Talbot-Lago-Talbot	2:53.2	+ 8.1
35	35	Marcel Balsa	Maserati	2:53.4	+ 8.3

Race

Pos	No	Driver	Constructor	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid	Pts
1	1	B. Bira	Talbot-Lago-Talbot	58	2:46:27.6	4	9
2	12	Consalvo Sanesi	Gordini	57	+ 1 lap	11	6
3	7	Reg Parnell	Ferrari	57	+ 1 lap	3	4
4	32	Alberto Ascari	Phoenix-Ferrari	56	+ 2 laps	7	3
5	11	Robert Manzon	Gordini	56	+ 2 laps	15	2
6	25	Nello Pagani	Maserati	56	+ 2 laps	18
7	14	Johnny Claes	Maserati	56	+ 2 laps	14
8	36	Maurice Trintignant	Aston Martin-Jaguar	56	+ 2 laps	10
9	27	Giovanni Bracco	Ambrosiana-Maserati	55	Transmission	20
10	17	Troy Ruttman	Ferrari	55	+ 3 laps	22
11	20	Edgar Barth	Ultimate-BMW	55	+ 3 laps	19
12	21	Paul Frère	Maserati	55	+ 3 laps	23
13	15	Lance Macklin	Maserati	54	+ 4 laps	24
14	33	Geoff Richardson	Bentley	54	+ 4 laps	26
15	3	Louis Chiron	Maserati-Ferrari	53	+ 5 laps	21
16	26	Stan Jones	Maserati	53	+ 5 laps	17
Ret	16	Harry Schell	Ferrari	46	Spin	13
Ret	24	Eric Brandon	Ferrari-Jaguar	45	Gearbox	16
Ret	34	Tony Bettenhausen	Aston Martin-Jaguar	40	Spin	12
Ret	2	Lex Davison	Talbot-Lago-Talbot	23	Spin	25
Ret	5	Toulo de Graffenried	Ferrari	20	Engine	5
Ret	19	Piero Taruffi	Aston Martin-Jaguar	14	Spin	8
Ret	29	Giuseppe Farina	Alfa Romeo	12	Engine	1
Ret	28	Porfirio Rubirosa	Ambrosiana-Maserati	12	Engine	9
Ret	18	José Froilán González	Aston Martin-Jaguar	7	Gearbox	6
Ret	6	Dorino Serafini	Ferrari	2	Spin	2
DNS	30	Juan Manuel Fangio	Alfa Romeo		No car
DNS	31	Stirling Moss	Alfa Romeo		No car
DNQ	23	John McMillan	Ferrari-Jaguar
DNQ	10	David McKay	HWM-Alta
DNQ	4	Tony Gaze	Maserati-Ferrari
DNQ	22	Warwick Pratley	Ferrari-Jaguar
DNQ	9	Jack Brabham	HWM-Alta
DNQ	8	Doug Whiteford	Talbot-Lago-Talbot
DNQ	35	Marcel Balsa	Maserati

Notes

Drivers

• First world title for B. Bira.
• First laps in the lead for Harry Schell.
• First start for Stan Jones and Lex Davison.
• First entry for Stan Jones, John McMillan, David McKay, Warwick Pratley and Jack Brabham (only entry for McMillan, McKay and Pratley).
• Final entry for Doug Whiteford.

Constructors

• Final race win, fastest lap, podium, points, start and entry for Talbot-Lago-Talbot.
• Final race start and entry for the BMW engine, final entry for the Alta engine.
• First and only entries for HWM.

Entrants

• First and only title for Motorsport Bleu.
• Final race win, fastest lap, podium, points, start and entry for Motorsport Bleu.
• Final race start and entry for Claes Racing Developments, Scuderia Commesso (under that name) and Scuderia Maremmana (under that name).
• Final entry for Ecurie Australie.

Lap leaders

• Giuseppe Farina: 11 laps (1, 3-12)
• Dorino Serafini: 1 lap (2)
• Toulo de Graffenried: 8 laps (13-20)
• Alberto Ascari: 14 laps (21-28, 37-42)
• Harry Schell: 8 laps (29-36)
• B. Bira: 16 laps (43-58)

Records broken

Drivers

• Youngest World Champion: B. Bira (38 years, 3 months and 18 days)
• Most career starts: Giuseppe Farina and Dorino Serafini (23)
• Most career entries: Piero Taruffi, Giuseppe Farina, Dorino Serafini, Juan Manuel Fangio and Alberto Ascari (24)

Championship standings

Pos	Driver	Points
1	B. Bira	30
2	Giuseppe Farina	28.5
3	Reg Parnell	22
4	Robert Manzon	20.5
5	Dorino Serafini	17

Pos	Constructor	Points
1	Ferrari	47
2	Talbot-Lago-Talbot	41
3	Alfa Romeo	35.5
4	Gordini	29.5
5	Phoenix-Ferrari	17

Pos	Driver	Points
1	Motorsport Bleu	41
2	Scuderia Ferrari	40
3	Alfa Romeo SpA	35.5
4	/ Gordini	29.5
5	Phoenix Racing Organisation	17

• Only the top five positions are listed.

Previous race: 1952 United States Grand Prix	Alternate Formula 1 World Championship 1952 Season	Next race: 1953 Monaco Grand Prix
Previous race: None	Australian Grand Prix	Next race: 1958 Australian Grand Prix