1955 Belgian Grand Prix
The 1955 Belgian Grand Prix was the third race of the 1955 Formula One World Championship and was held in Spa-Francorchamps on June 5th 1955. Jack Brabham won the race, his first for Alfa Romeo, which launched his ultimately successful bid for the world championship. Tony Brooks and Desmond Titterington completed the podium, each scoring their first podiums as a result.
Contents
Background
The Formula One paddock reaches Spa-Francorchamps without a leader. Alberto Ascari is dead following a testing accident in Monza. The world of motor racing mourns his loss and that of Bill Vukovich in the Indianapolis 500 just a few days ago. But the show must go on. This weekend, up to 55 drivers were entered for the Belgian Grand Prix, but ultimately, the list was reduced to a slightly more manageable 49.
- Following de Filippis' injury at Reims, Ottorino Volonterio has been hired to take her place in Spa.
- A major shift happened between Renzo and Ecclestone, as Ramos was fired by the British privateer and promptly hired by the Italian mobst- I mean car dealer. As a result, Toulo de Graffenried was sent to Voeckler and Louis Chiron left out of a drive, while Stuart Lewis-Evans and Ecclestone himself will share driving duties in the Mercedes.
- Following the debacle in Reims that saw Paco Godia fired from the team and Consalvo Sanesi's car destroyed, Alexander Racing Team decided to resort to three cars for the foreseeable future, for Manzon, Sanesi and Rubirosa.
- After another failure to prequalify in Reims, Anglo Racing Engineering finally pulled the plug on their operation. At the end of the year, they will be merged with Alexander Racing Team.
- Rennkollektiv EMW finally make their first entry of the season, with Karl Kling in the car.
- Guidobaldi do not return to the paddock for this race, waiting until further along in the season to come back.
- Reg Armstrong will not be taking part in this race, leaving Titterington as the only driver representing IRA.
- After Macklin wrecked yet another car in Reims, Reatherson carry on to Spa with their sole remaining working car, taking a gamble on letting Lance drive it again.
- The works Maserati team have chosen not to make the trip, sticking to the more Southern races this season in an effort to cut costs.
- Following Jones' engine failure, Balkan Leader were unable to repair the engine on time, but will be back for Zandvoort.
- Ecurie Nationale Belge, on the brink of bankruptcy, have sold most of their equipment to Hernandez, but have been allowed to keep it for their home race, where a now sickly Johnny Claes and André Pilette will be driving. Due to health issues, this is likely Claes' final Grand Prix entry.
- Ambrosiana were unable to fix Luigi Musso's damaged chassis in time, leaving Alberto Uria as the sole driver representing the team in Spa.
- Luigi Villoresi will be the first man to drive Assasti Millanti's Ultimate-Mercedes combination.
- Following the tragic death of Alberto Ascari in testing, Wolfgang von Trips will have big shoes to fill on his Grand Prix début.
Race weekend
Prequalifying
Volonterio is surprisingly quick, both Loyers and the only Porsche make it through, as do Perdisa, Uria and Claes. The main surprise is Karl Kling making the cut for EMW instead of the likes of Lewis-Evans or von Trips, both making their débuts for established teams.
Qualifying
Giuseppe Farina takes his ninth career pole position and the first for the new Alfa Romeo, with Brabham taking second. B.C.M.A. prove that they have the speed to match their budget, with Collins and Brooks both in the top ten and Maglioli not far behind. JAMR also put all four cars in the top ten, while all Renzos and Voecklers make the start, as do both Loyers. Guelfi will have to wait for his first start, as will EMW. In his final entry, Claes barely fails to make the cut, but as André Pilette did manage to scrape onto the grid, he will take over his car and start the race. David Hampshire also fails to qualify for the race, despite having finished second just two weeks ago.
Race
Farina got the best start, but made a slight mistake at Masta on the first lap and dropped to third, while Peter Collins took the race lead at la Source. On lap 2, Farina retook the lead, while Ramos' gearbox expired out of 11th position. Two laps later, Peter Whitehead's race was ended by a blown engine. Farina was still leading, with Peter Collins right on his tail, followed closely by Jack Brabham and Tony Brooks, who was losing a lot of time behind the Australian. He only made it through on lap 7, by which time Farina and Collins were quite far ahead. The lap before, Gonzalez and Macklin had retired from an oil leak and puncture respectively.
On lap 9, Dries van der Lof has a spin at la Source and stalled the car, retiring on the spot. Peter Collins then retired from second place with an engine failure, while Bira span out on his oil on lap 12. This left Farina in the lead, with Tony Brooks close behind and catching him. On lap 13, Brooks calmly passed Farina on the inside at Stavelot to take the lead for the first time in only his second start! At the halfway mark, Brooks led from Farina, Brabham, Tony Bettenhausen, Titterington and Gaze, followed by Sanesi, Trintignant, Serafini, Moss, Stillwell, Marzotto, Schell, Maglioli, Rubirosa, Swaters, Manzon, Poore, de Graffenried, Hawthorn, Volonterio, Perdisa, Loyer, Uria, Claes, Simon and de Portago.
On lap 17th, Bettenhausen retired due to a suspension failure. On the next lap, Serafini's engine expired, as did Perdisa's clutch, ending the day for Renzo and leaving 24 cars in the race, then 23 when Marzotto pulled out with brake issues. At the front, Titterington obviously had the pace to challenge for the win, but he was being expertly held up by Jack Brabham, who was holding on to third place. Further back, Alberto Uria span out at Stavelot after an anonymous race. With five laps left, Brabham and Titterington were catching up to Brooks and Farina. Schell retired from twelfth with a gearbox failure around this time.
On lap 22, Brabham caught Farina, who let his teammate through into second place, while expertly blocking Titterington. Loyer and Manzon had a clutch failure and span out respectively, while Brabham was destroying the gap between him and Brooks. With two laps left, he was raining down on Brooks, and slipstreamed through just before Blanchimont, setting the fastest lap of the race in the process. Brooks attempted to fight back, but couldn't find the pace. While Maglioli had an oil leak and de Graffenried's suspension failed, Brabham pulled away to a stunning victory, with Brooks easing up and settling for second place. Titterington finally passed Farina for third place on the final lap to score his first podium finish.
Classification
Entry list
_svg.png){kind=small}
Prequalifying
| Pos | No | Driver | Constructor | Time | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 |  Ottorino Volonterio
|
O.S.C.A. | 4:26.53 | - |
| 2 | 18 |  Cesare Perdisa
|
Ambrosiana-Ferrari | 4:29.41 | + 2.88 |
| 3 | 26 |  Roger Loyer
|
Loyer-Porsche | 4:29.86 | + 3.33 |
| 4 | 92 |  Alberto Uria
|
Ambrosiana-Alfa Romeo | 4:31.03 | + 4.50 |
| 5 | 24 |  Alfonso de Portago
|
Loyer-Porsche | 4:31.25 | + 4.72 |
| 6 | 28 | Eugenio Castellotti
|
Porsche | 4:32.39 | + 5.86 |
| 7 | 90 |  Johnny Claes
|
Cooper-Jaguar | 4:33.17 | + 6.64 |
| 8 | 38 |  Karl Kling
|
Aston Martin-Jaguar | 4:34.23 | + 7.70 |
| 9 | 12 |  Roy Salvadori
|
Bentley | 4:35.30 | + 8.77 |
| 10 | 94 | Luigi Villoresi
|
Ultimate-Mercedes | 4:35.75 | + 9.22 |
| 11 | 88 | Kenneth McAlpine
|
Bentley | 4:35.76 | + 9.23 |
| 12 | 6 | Stuart Lewis-Evans
|
Mercedes-Bentley | 4:35.99 | + 9.46 |
| 13 | 96 | Wolfgang von Trips
|
Phoenix-O.S.C.A. | 4:36.26 | + 9.73 |
| 14 | 56 |  Lex Davison
|
Cooper-Jaguar | 4:36.60 | + 10.07 |
| 15 | 2 | Helmut Niedermayr
|
Von Hoff-O.S.C.A. | 4:38.52 | + 11.99 |
Qualifying
Race
Notes
Drivers
- Final pole position for Giuseppe Farina.
- First points and podium for Tony Brooks and Desmond Titterington.
- First start for Ottorino Volonterio, Alberto Uria, Cesare Perdisa and Alfonso de Portago.
- Final entry and start for Johnny Claes.
- First entry for Stuart Lewis-Evans and Wolfgang von Trips.
- Final entry for Helmut Niedermayr.
Constructors
- Final fastest lap for Alfa Romeo.
- First points and podium for B.C.M.A..
- First podium for Lancia.
- Final entry for Ultimate.
Entrants
- Final fastest lap for Alfa Romeo SpA.
- First points and podium for B.C.M.A. and Irish Racing Cars.
- First start for Écurie Voeckler.
- Final entry and start for Écurie Nationale Belge.
- Final entry for Assasti Millanti.
Lap leaders
- Peter Collins: 1 lap (1)
- Giuseppe Farina: 11 laps (2-12)
- Tony Brooks: 11 laps (13-23)
- Jack Brabham: 2 laps (24-25)
Records broken
Drivers
- Most career laps led: Giuseppe Farina (449)
- Most career starts: B. Bira (43)
- Most career entries: Maurice Trintignant (44)
Constructors
- Most total laps led: Alfa Romeo (788)
- Most total starts: Ferrari (224)
- Most races started: Alfa Romeo (46)
- Most races entered: Ferrari, Alfa Romeo (46)
Championship standings
| Pos | Driver | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alberto Ascari
|
13 |
| 2= |  Dries van der Lof
|
9 |
| 2= | Jack Brabham
|
9 |
| 4 | Consalvo Sanesi
|
8 |
| 5 | Tony Brooks
|
6 |
| Pos | Constructor | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alfa Romeo
|
13 |
| 2 |  Phoenix-O.S.C.A.
|
13 |
| 3 | Gordini
|
10 |
| 4 | Aston Martin-Jaguar
|
9 |
| 5 | B.C.M.A.
|
6 |
| Pos | Driver | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Phoenix Racing Organisation
|
13 |
| 2 | / Alexander Racing Team-Gordini
|
10 |
| 3 | Alfa Romeo SpA
|
9 |
| 4 | Jaguar-Aston Martin Racing
|
9 |
| 5 | British Commonwealth Motorsport Association
|
6 |
- Only the top five positions are listed.
| Previous race: 1955 French Grand Prix |
Alternate Formula 1 World Championship 1955 Season |
Next race: 1955 British Grand Prix |
| Previous race: 1954 Belgian Grand Prix |
Belgian Grand Prix | Next race: 1956 Belgian Grand Prix |
