1950 Italian Grand Prix

The 1950 Italian Grand Prix was the seventh race of the Formula One World championship and the final race of the 1950 season, held on September 3rd 1950 at Monza. Giuseppe Farina won the race, his third of the season, winning the World Championship in the process. Louis Chiron came second, his and Maserati's last podium. Consalvo Sanesi came third, scoring his maiden podium. Giuseppe Farina won the first of his two titles at this race.

Background

Before the race weekend, four drivers were still in mathematical contention for the world championship. Dorino Serafini was leading on 21 points, Juan Manuel Fangio second on 20 points, Toulo de Graffenried third on 18 points, and Giuseppe Farina fourth with 16. Farina, however, held an advantage, as he would not have to drop any points.

For the race, the last of the season, the organizers had allowed 42 entrants to take part. The main 11 were of course the three main Italian manufacturers. Maserati and Ferrari had left their lineups unchanged, Maserati still failing to find a fourth driver after Jimmy Davies' disappointing performance and failure to get a license extension. However, Alfa Romeo found themselves in the fourth driver dilemma for the second time, as Myron Fohr's horrendous performance in Switzerland only allowed him one more race, which he did in France. They followed Scuderia Maremmana in hiring a pre-war German ace, Paul Pietsch, whose performance was an unknown, as he hadn't raced since the 1930s. It would be interesting to see how his weekend turned out.

Kurtis Kraft were undoubtedly the disappointment of the season. Their initial promise of results on the sole basis of their stateside success turned horribly wrong, and they were regularly struggling to qualify, let alone finish races. Their recent experiment of sticking a Ferrari powerplant in the blocky chassis was still in its early phases, but it wouldn't be a threat in the near future in the hands of experienced Italian Luigi Villoresi, the main cars of Von Stuck and Chitwood still the main cars for the American constructor.

EXTRAS were another case of undelivered promise. They definitely had the potential to come up with some good results, and David Hampshire had proven to be a decent driver, but the ERA was a very unreliable car, and the repair costs were digging into Harold Clive Berkinson's pockets. They'd need good results if they wanted to survive.

Scuderia Maremmana's season had been decent, considering their car's on-paper performance. A Ferrari-Jaguar hybrid was supposed to fail, but Biondetti and Holland's consistent driving had put the team as best of the non-point-scorers, with Roger Loyer's surprising drive at Monaco being a season high. The team's home race should have been a breather, a chance to score their first points, but Clemente Biondetti's horrific shunt at Reims cut their hopes short, and the team had to find a suitable replacement, which they found in the form of Francesco Godia, the first Spaniard to compete in Formula 1.

Scuderia Platé-Varzi's recent arrival in Formula 1 didn't exactly cause a great shock. What did, though, was Brian Shawe-Taylor's terrible performance on the long straights of Reims. The lack of prize money did not deter team boss Enrico Platé, who simply switched drivers and hired local driver Franco Comotti to drive the Maserati at Monza.

Motorsport Bleu were ususally seen as one of the three best private teams, along with CRD and ART, but since Bira' two podiums, the French team had been pretty anonymous. However, no one suspected their financial problems, which prevented them from developing their Talbot-Lagos, and damage done to one of the cars had forced the team to only enter the two regular drivers at Monza. Speaking of ART, their recent results at Reims for Cabantous and Sanesi, of whom nothing was expected, were encouraging, and the team were confident that they would score more points at Monza to permanently put them ahead of rivals Motorsport Bleu.

Ecurie Nationale Belge had had a bit of a rollercoaster season. Their constant change of manufacturer early on in the year put them quite far back from the start, and their settlement on the unproven Bugatti-Gordini proved to be a bad choice. Jacques Swaters' decision to put his own Ferraris in the mix paid off handsomely, and he only failed to score a top ten at Spa due to an unfortunate mistake under the rain. He consequently finished 12th at Reims before handing the Ferraris to Charles Van Acker and Bill Vukovich. Chaboud would soldier on in the Bugatti-Gordinis in order to further the car's development.

Aston Martin and Jaguar were unseparable when talking about that season. Both were British, both expected results from their experienced drivers, Sommer for Aston Martin, who was hired after Johnnie Parsons' failure to adapt to European racing, and Etancelin for Jaguar, who also hired Bob Gerard. Both recently hired proven-yet-unsafe prospects: Jean-Louis Rosier, 24h of Le Mans winner, who only drove for a couple of laps, and Wilbur Shaw, 3-time winner at Indianapolis who had never raced in Europe. Both ran the risk of watching the race from the grandstands every weekend, and that was why both would be eagerly waiting for next season.

Franco Rol burst onto the Formula 1 scene at Spa when he emerged from the pouring rain just outside the points, and staying in the top 10 until the end of the race. Rol himself was a known quantity, but his team was not. Virtually sod all was known about Simon Redman, owner and principal of Redman Racing Team. All we knew was, he was moderately successful at Spa, and would try to do the same at Monza.

Claes Racing Developments, it had to be said, had been disappointing since Chiron's outstanding victory at Silverstone, and they hadn't scored a point since then apart from Chiron's fastest lap at Monaco. The Monegasque had come close the previous two races, and Claes was inching closer and closer as time went by, but there was still a long way to go if they wanted to win again.

All American Racers had been very discreet that year. Harry Schell's early performances were somewhat decent, but unimpressive and ultimately inconsistent. His firing from the team coincided with the hiring of Troy Ruttman, whose performance at Reims was quite embarassing. His future in Formula 1 would depend on his driving at Monza.

Phoenix Racing Organisation had been nothing short of a failure that season. On paper, they should have at least scored regular top tens thank to their exceptional driver pairing. As it turned out, their chassis did not go well with the Maserati engine, but their attempt at making their own powerplant was even worse and they were left mired at the back of the field, sometimes struggling to qualify, altough they were sometimes able to pull out a surprise in qualifying, like Gonzalez lining up 14th in France, followed by 11th place in the race. Sadly, this would remain a high point, and they would be hoping for a better 1951 season.

Tazio Nuvolari's career had been sensational, and everyone knew it. However, his comeback at 57 years old had not lived up to old expectations. To be fair, the Lancia had not been quite as quick as the Flying Mantuan would have wanted, and it had prevented him from finishing inside the top 10. His bad results and worsening health had led him to announce his retirement after his final race at Monza. Finally, we should always mention the privateers: 1949 125cc Motorcycle World Champion Nello Pagani, that year's Indianapolis 500 winner Johnny Mauro and Scottish amateur David Murray, all driving Maseratis.

Race weekend

Qualifying

Louis Chiron once again showed the fire that made him so successful twenty years previously, scoring a brilliant pole position by almost two seconds. Piero Taruffi qualified second and Fagioli fourth, capping a good qualifying session for Maserati. Comparatively, Felice Bonetto would only start eleventh. Giuseppe Farina was the best championship contender, lining up third.

Tazio Nuvolari evidently wanted to make an impression in his final Grand Prix, starting fifth, while Giraud-Cabantous led the Gordini drivers, starting sixth ahead of Manzon (tenth) and Sanesi (twelfth). Ferrari were comparatively futrher back, with championship leader Dorino Serafini only seventh, ahead of Parnell eighth, Whitehead thirteenth and other contender Toulo de Graffenried nineteenth and pretty much out of contention.

De Graffenried was in the same situation as Fangio, who would start just ahead of him. He and Farina were split by their teammates, Paul Pietsch in ninth and Maurice Trintignant in fourteenth. The Talbot-Lagos were, once again, very disappointing, with Bira 15th and Rosier failing to make the grid, ending up 27th.

Privateers did fairly well, Franco Rol lining up 16th, ahead of David Murray, both in Maseratis. Alberto Ascari was, for once, the quicker of the Phoenix drivers, making it to 20th position while Gonzalez was relegated to a dismal 35th position. Troy Ruttman improved on his Reims performance with 21st place.

Unusually, at Scuderia Maremmana, it was the guest driver who did best, with Bruno Sterzi starting 22nd. Holland only made it to 30th place, with Godia even slower, in 33rd place. Charles Van Acker was the only ENB driver to make the start, predictably enough, seeing as he drove the Ferrari. Chaboud and Vukovich, in the ENB-Gordinis, only managed 34th and 40th. Nello Pagani barely scraped onto the grid with a do-or-die lap, while Philippe Etancelin salvaged a race start for Jaguar with Gerard only two places back, yet failing to make the cut, and Wilbur Shaw in a sadly expected 40th position.

Johnny Mauro failed to transfer his pace at Indianapolis to Monza, despite it being the most oval-like circuit on the calendar (much like Bill Vukovich). Yet he still outpaced the works Aston Martins, who ended up 31st and 32nd. Raymond Sommer would fail to qualify for his final entry (he died later that year in a Formula 3 accident). David Hampshire also failed to start, but he showed a promising driving style. The Kurtis Krafts also were a total failure, but this time, the Ferrari-powered car outpaced the Offenhauser engined machines of Stuck and Chitwood. Finally, Franco Comotti failed to show any signs of competence, and ended up second-last.

Race

Louis Chiron led the race from the start, but it was clear that Farina was much quicker, and the Italian took the race lead on lap 7. Farina held the dominant position throughout the race, but he was by no means unchallenged. Dorino Serafini quickly gained the places he lost in qualifying, and he was regularly close to Farina. A few other drivers joined that fight early on. Piero Taruffi was second before his gearbox let go, Felice Bonetto led the race before crashing out while lapping Murray, Fagioli led lap 3 and stayed at the front for a while, but eventually also retired.

Towards the end of the race, Farina, Serafini, Chiron and Manzon were all about to lap Maurice Trintignant and B. Bira. Trintignant started leaking oil, and both Bira and Manzon crashed out of the race, ending Manzon's brilliant performance. This wouldn't be the only accident in the race.

When Luigi Fagioli's transmission failed, the oil left behind caused Paul Pietsch and Philippe Etancelin. Felice Bonetto's accident debris caused Peter Whitehead to spin out of the race. Nello Pagani tapped Alberto Ascari out of a brilliant seventh place, and Franco Rol was also bumped out by Consalvo Sanesi towards the start.

Championship contenders de Graffenried and Fangio had dismal races, quickly dropping to the very back of the pack along with Johnny Claes. All three retired with mechanical issues after doing nothing of note and relinquishing their title hopes to Serafini and Farina, who were fighting for the race lead.

Indeed, the two Italians were well ahead of everyone else with ten laps remaining. Serafini, holding the fastest lap, simply had to keep his position to win the title. However, if he lost his fastest lap, he would lose on countback, or by one point if it was to Farina. Desperate to avoid such a situation, he decided to pull out a qualifying lap to secure that much-needed point. Unfortunately, while doing so, he lost control of the car on the entry to Curva Sud and span off. His effort to seal the title caused him to lose it.

And so, Giuseppe Farina won the race and the title, with all three other contenders ahead of him in the standings retiring from the race. Louis Chiron was left to pick up second place, while the Gordini managed to salvage a podium after Manzon's retirement. Indeed, Sanesi and Cabantous had been fighting for half the race, and tha attrition had meant that it became a fight for third place, which Sanesi won. Tazio Nuvolari came home an immensely popular fifth place, retiring on a high and securing the record for oldest Formula One points scorer at 57 years of age.

Débutants also made an impression, with Nello Pagani finishing seventh ahead of Charles Van Acker and Troy Ruttman. David Murray and Bruno Sterzi were the last finishers, quite some way back, Sterzi even finishing nine whole laps behind Farina. Quite understandbly, Sterzi never competed in another championship Grand Prix.

Classification

Entry list

No	Driver	Entrant	Chassis	Engine
2	Luigi Villoresi	Kurtis Kraft	Kurtis Kraft 01	Ferrari 375 4.5 V12
4	Joie Chitwood	Kurtis Kraft	Kurtis Kraft 01	Offenhauser 3.0 L4s
6	Hans Stuck	Kurtis Kraft	Kurtis Kraft 01	Offenhauser 3.0 L4s
8	David Hampshire	EXTRAS	ERA F-Type	ERA 1.5 L6s
10	Juan Manuel Fangio	Alfa Romeo SpA	Alfa Romeo 158/50	Alfa Romeo 158 1.5 L8s
12	Giuseppe Farina	Alfa Romeo SpA	Alfa Romeo 158/50	Alfa Romeo 158 1.5 L8s
14	Maurice Trintignant	Alfa Romeo SpA	Alfa Romeo 158/50	Alfa Romeo 158 1.5 L8s
16	Paul Pietsch	Alfa Romeo SpA	Alfa Romeo 158/50	Alfa Romeo 158 1.5 L8s
18	Bill Holland	Scuderia Maremmana	Ferrari 166S	Jaguar XK 3.4 L6
20	Bruno Sterzi	Scuderia Maremmana	Ferrari 166S	Jaguar XK 3.4 L6
22	Francesco Godia	Scuderia Maremmana	Ferrari 166S	Jaguar XK 3.4 L6
24	Franco Comotti	Scuderia Platé-Varzi	Maserati 4CL	Maserati 4CL 1.5 L4s
26	B. Bira	Motorsport Bleu	Talbot-Lago T26C	Talbot 23CV 4.5 L6
28	Louis Rosier	Motorsport Bleu	Talbot-Lago T26C	Talbot 23CV 4.5 L6
30	Robert Manzon	/ Alexander Racing Team	Gordini T15	Gordini 1.5 L4s
32	Yves Giraud-Cabantous	/ Alexander Racing Team	Gordini T15	Gordini 1.5 L4s
34	Consalvo Sanesi	/ Alexander Racing Team	Gordini T15	Gordini 1.5 L4s
36	Charles Van Acker	Ecurie Nationale Belge	Ferrari 375	Ferrari 375 4.5 V12
38	Bill Vukovich	Ecurie Nationale Belge	Ferrari 375	Ferrari 375 4.5 V12
40	Eugène Chaboud	Ecurie Nationale Belge	Bugatti T15	ENB-Gordini 15C 1.5 L4s
42	Nello Pagani	Nello Pagani	Maserati 4CLT/48	Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s
44	Raymond Sommer	Aston Martin Racing	Aston Martin AM-01	Aston Martin 4.5 V6
46	Jean-Louis Rosier	Aston Martin Racing	Aston Martin AM-01	Aston Martin 4.5 V6
48	Dorino Serafini	Scuderia Ferrari	Ferrari 375	Ferrari 375 4.5 V12
50	Toulo de Graffenried	Scuderia Ferrari	Ferrari 375	Ferrari 375 4.5 V12
52	Peter Whitehead	Scuderia Ferrari	Ferrari 375	Ferrari 375 4.5 V12
54	Reg Parnell	Scuderia Ferrari	Ferrari 375	Ferrari 375 4.5 V12
56	Bob Gerard	Jaguar Racing	Jaguar A-Type	Jaguar XK 3.4
58	Philippe Etancelin	Jaguar Racing	Jaguar A-Type	Jaguar XK 3.4
60	Wilbur Shaw	Jaguar Racing	Jaguar A-Type	Jaguar XK 3.4
62	Franco Rol	Redman Racing Team	Maserati 4CLT/48	Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s
64	Johnny Claes	Claes Racing Developments	Maserati 4CLT/48	Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s
66	Louis Chiron	Claes Racing Developments	Maserati 4CLT/48	Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s
68	Troy Ruttman	All American Racers	AAR T1G	Weslake 3.0 V12
70	Alberto Ascari	Phoenix Racing Organisation	Phoenix PRO1-1	Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s
72	José Froilan Gonzalez	Phoenix Racing Organisation	Phoenix PRO1-1	Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s
74	Luigi Fagioli	Officine Alfieri Maserati	Maserati 4CLT/48	Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s
76	Piero Taruffi	Officine Alfieri Maserati	Maserati 4CLT/48	Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s
78	Felice Bonetto	Officine Alfieri Maserati	Maserati 4CLT/48	Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s
80	Johnny Mauro	American Maserati	Maserati 4CLT/48	Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s
82	David Murray	David Murray	Maserati 4CLT/48	Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s
84	Tazio Nuvolari	Lancia	Lancia D40	Lancia 2.0 V8

Qualifying

Pos	No	Driver	Constructor	Time	Gap
1	66	Louis Chiron	Maserati	1:57.9	-
2	76	Piero Taruffi	Maserati	1:59.7	+ 1.8
3	12	Giuseppe Farina	Alfa Romeo	1:59.9	+ 2.0
4	74	Luigi Fagioli	Maserati	1:59.9	+ 2.0
5	84	Tazio Nuvolari	Lancia	2:00.0	+ 2.1
6	32	Yves Giraud-Cabantous	Gordini	2:00.5	+ 2.6
7	48	Dorino Serafini	Ferrari	2:00.6	+ 2.7
8	54	Reg Parnell	Ferrari	2:00.8	+ 2.9
9	16	Paul Pietsch	Alfa Romeo	2:01.1	+ 3.2
10	30	Robert Manzon	Gordini	2:01.2	+ 3.3
11	78	Felice Bonetto	Maserati	2:01.3	+ 3.4
12	34	Consalvo Sanesi	Gordini	2:01.6	+ 3.7
13	52	Peter Whitehead	Ferrari	2:01.6	+ 3.7
14	14	Maurice Trintignant	Alfa Romeo	2:01.7	+ 3.8
15	26	B. Bira	Talbot-Lago-Talbot	2:01.8	+ 3.9
16	62	Franco Rol	Maserati	2:01.8	+ 3.9
17	82	David Murray	Maserati	2:01.8	+ 3.9
18	10	Juan Manuel Fangio	Alfa Romeo	2:01.9	+ 4.0
19	50	Toulo de Graffenried	Ferrari	2:01.9	+ 4.0
20	70	Alberto Ascari	Phoenix-Maserati	2:02.0	+ 4.1
21	68	Troy Ruttman	AAR-Weslake	2:02.1	+ 4.2
22	20	Bruno Sterzi	Ferrari-Jaguar	2:02.4	+ 4.5
23	36	Charles Van Acker	Ferrari	2:02.4	+ 4.5
24	64	Johnny Claes	Maserati	2:02.4	+ 4.5
25	42	Nello Pagani	Maserati	2:02.5	+ 4.6
26	58	Philippe Etancelin	Jaguar	2:02.5	+ 4.6
27	28	Louis Rosier	Talbot-Lago-Talbot	2:02.6	+ 4.7
28	56	Bob Gerard	Jaguar	2:02.7	+ 4.8
29	80	Johnny Mauro	Maserati	2:02.7	+ 4.8
30	18	Bill Holland	Ferrari-Jaguar	2:03.0	+ 5.1
31	44	Raymond Sommer	Aston Martin	2:03.1	+ 5.2
32	46	Jean-Louis Rosier	Aston Martin	2:03.8	+ 5.9
33	22	Francesco Godia	Ferrari-Jaguar	2:03.9	+ 6.0
34	40	Eugène Chaboud	Bugatti-Gordini	2:03.9	+ 6.0
35	72	José Froilan Gonzalez	Phoenix-Maserati	2:03.9	+ 6.0
36	8	David Hampshire	ERA	2:04.1	+ 6.2
37	2	Luigi Villoresi	Kurtis Kraft-Ferrari	2:04.3	+ 6.4
38	6	Hans Stuck	Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser	2:04.3	+ 6.4
39	38	Bill Vukovich	Ferrari	2:04.3	+ 6.4
40	60	Wilbur Shaw	Jaguar	2:04.3	+ 6.4
41	24	Franco Comotti	Maserati	2:04.9	+ 7.0
42	4	Joie Chitwood	Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser	2:05.9	+ 8.0

Race

Pos	No	Driver	Constructor	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid	Pts
1	12	Giuseppe Farina	Alfa Romeo	80	2:51:17.4	3	8
2	66	Louis Chiron	Maserati	80	+ 10.3	1	6
3	34	Consalvo Sanesi	Gordini	78	+ 2 laps	12	4
4	32	Yves Giraud-Cabantous	Gordini	78	+ 2 laps	6	3
5	84	Tazio Nuvolari	Lancia	77	+ 3 laps	5	2
6	48	Dorino Serafini	Ferrari	76	Spin	7	1
7	42	Nello Pagani	Maserati	76	+ 4 laps	25
8	36	Charles Van Acker	Ferrari	75	+ 5 laps	23
9	68	Troy Ruttman	AAR-Weslake	74	+ 6 laps	21
10	82	David Murray	Maserati	74	+ 6 laps	17
11	20	Bruno Sterzi	Ferrari-Jaguar	71	+ 9 laps	22
Ret	70	Alberto Ascari	Phoenix-Maserati	70	Spin	20
Ret	30	Robert Manzon	Gordini	68	Accident	10
Ret	14	Maurice Trintignant	Alfa Romeo	67	Oil leak	14
Ret	26	B. Bira	Talbot-Lago-Talbot	64	Accident	15
Ret	16	Paul Pietsch	Alfa Romeo	37	Spin	9
Ret	58	Philippe Etancelin	Jaguar	36	Accident	26
Ret	74	Luigi Fagioli	Maserati	36	Transmission	4
Ret	10	Juan Manuel Fangio	Alfa Romeo	25	Engine	18
Ret	50	Toulo de Graffenried	Ferrari	19	Oil line	19
Ret	64	Johnny Claes	Maserati	15	Steering	24
Ret	54	Reg Parnell	Ferrari	15	Engine	8
Ret	78	Felice Bonetto	Maserati	14	Accident	11
Ret	52	Peter Whitehead	Ferrari	14	Spin	13
Ret	76	Piero Taruffi	Maserati	12	Gearbox	2
Ret	62	Franco Rol	Maserati	6	Accident	16
DNQ	28	Louis Rosier	Talbot-Lago-Talbot
DNQ	56	Bob Gerard	Jaguar
DNQ	80	Johnny Mauro	Maserati
DNQ	18	Bill Holland	Ferrari-Jaguar
DNQ	44	Raymond Sommer	Aston Martin
DNQ	46	Jean-Louis Rosier	Aston Martin
DNQ	22	Francesco Godia	Ferrari-Jaguar
DNQ	40	Eugène Chaboud	Bugatti-Gordini
DNQ	72	José Froilan Gonzalez	Phoenix-Maserati
DNQ	8	David Hampshire	ERA
DNQ	2	Luigi Villoresi	Kurtis Kraft-Ferrari
DNQ	6	Hans Stuck	Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser
DNQ	38	Bill Vukovich	Ferrari
DNQ	60	Wilbur Shaw	Jaguar
DNQ	24	Franco Comotti	Maserati
DNQ	4	Joie Chitwood	Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser

Notes

Records broken

Races

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