1952 Belgian Grand Prix

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Flag of Belgium svg.png 1952 Belgian Grand Prix
Race 3 of 10 in the 1952 Alternate Formula One season
Spa 1950.jpg
Date June 22, 1952
Official Name XIV Grand Prix de Belgique
Location Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps
Course Public road course
14.120 km (8.825 mi)
Distance 29 laps, 409.48 km (255.925 mi)
Weather Sunny
Pole Position
Driver Flag of Argentina svg.png Juan Manuel Fangio Alfa Romeo
Time 4:24.3
Fastest Lap
Driver Flag of France svg.png Robert Manzon
Flag of Italy svg.png Giuseppe Farina
Gordini
Alfa Romeo
Time 4:24.5
Podium
First Flag of Italy svg.png Dorino Serafini Ferrari
Second Flag of Italy svg.png Giuseppe Farina Alfa Romeo
Third Flag of France svg.png André Simon Talbot-Lago-Talbot


The 1952 Belgian Grand Prix was the third race of the 1952 Formula One World Championship and was held in Spa-Francorchamps on June 22nd 1952. Dorino Serafini won the race, his third race victory, ahead of Giuseppe Farina, who kept the championship lead, and Monaco Grand Prix winner André Simon.

Background

Despite not winning a single race yet, Giuseppe Farina led the world championship. Again. And he still didn't yet seem to have any decent competition that was consistent enough to outscore him. The Gordinis and Talbots were too inconsistent, his Alfa Romeo teammates couldn't touch him in the long run and the Ferrari drivers were too far back, due to bad luck regarding reliability. But 8 races still remained. Would the championship change hands that season?

Harry Schell made his first of five races at Motorsport Bleu. Ferrari America were reduced to a single car for Troy Ruttman.

Dries van der Lof appeared for the first time that season with Scuderia Commesso, for whom he had competed the previous year at Indy and Zandvoort, where he would also race later that season.

Following Toulo de Graffenried's neck injury at Donington, he was replaced by Reg Parnell at Ferrari.

Mike Hawthorn would attempt to make his first start (excluding Indianapolis) in the Bentley, the first of his planned three appearances in 1952.

David Hampshire returned to a single car for Belgium after John Riseley-Prichard's failure to make the grid. The Englishman's top-ten finish at Donington would no doubt be a boost in Spa.

Leader returned for the Belgian Grand Prix, the mysterious Chinese consortium obviously looking to get Luigi Villoresi on the grid for once.

Meanwhile, Birmingham Motorsport would not take part, preferring to stick to circuits closer to home.

The Fighting Mongooses made their first appearance in Formula 1, also the first appearance of both the Cooper chassis and the Bristol engine. Jean Behra hoped to be quick enough to scrape onto the grid.

Erne Racing Development also made their début, with rookie Roberto Mières. The Maserati would probably be quick, but would the driver live up to the car?

Group Ultimate had finally wheeled out their own car, but would the unproven Ultiamte-BMW combination work as planned in the hands of East German F2 ace Edgar Barth?

The works Maserati team was reduced to one car this weekend due to Paul Frère's agreement with ENB to compete with them for one race alongside Trintignant, Pilette and team boss Swaters.

Despite Eric Brandon's splendid podium finish in Donington, Scuderia Maremmana skipped the Belgian Grand Prix and were to come back only in Germany, leaving the promising British F3 champion out of a drive.

O.S.C.A. finally kicked off their first part-time season in Formula 1 in order to gather experience for a full-season tilt in 1953. Felice Bonetto hoped to qualify the car.

Maria Teresa de Filippis took part in her first race of the season, also hoping to impress by making the grid.

Rudi Fischer would also try to make the grid in the Maserati-Porsche after failing to do so in Monaco.

Race weekend

Qualifying

Due to the large size of the starting grid, plenty of small-time teams and drivers would finally get their shot at proving their worth over a race distance. And there were loads of them at Spa that weekend.

Fangio confirmed his outright pace, but still needed to translate this into concrete results. Ascari and Simon continued to impress. Taruffi finally showed pace in the Aston-Jaguar. Both Ambrosianas were in the top twenty, with Rubirosa bewilderingly reaching 16th place. David Hampshire scored the best qualifying result for an Alta with 21st place. Mières started his first race from a promising 22nd. De Filippis became the first woman to start a race and left 12 macho men wondering how she could be faster than them.

Mike Hawthorn would start his first race in his third entry, getting the Bentley onto the grid. The Porsche engine made its first start, as did Dries van der Lof. Edgar Barth would make the grid on his, his car's and his engine's début. Joe Kelly finally started his first race after five unsuccessful attempts. O.S.C.A. scraped onto the grid to make their first start as well.

Of course, three drivers would have their names in red, and while Behra's failure was much expected due to the complete lack of experience from his team, chassis and engine, as was Villoresi's after a dismal and mistake-riddled lap, Marimon's absence from the grid was inexcusable, and a fourth consecutive failure to start the race would not do wonders for his job security.

Race

The race started out cleanly, with Serafini getting the edge over Fangio. Ascari had the best start, moving up to third place by the end of the first lap, and Rubirosa also had a surprisingly good start, moving up to fourteenth position. The overall loser on the first lap though was Reg Parnell, who, after a decent start, failed to show up, with the clutch letting go halfway around the track, leaving the Briton with a long walk back to the paddock. He was joined on the next lap by Piero Taruffi and David Hampshire, also struck down by car problems on the tough Belgian circuit.

With everyone settled down at the end of lap two, Serafini and Fangio were still going at it for the lead ahead of Farina and Bira, Ascari having dropped back to fifth place. Then, Simon, Ruttman, Pagani, with Chiron, Sanesi and Moss fighting for ninth position.

But with so much time for overtaking, positions were changing constantly. Only Fangio and Serafini escaped, each of them pulling the other further ahead by setting consecutive fastest laps. With five laps down, the two were miles ahead, with Farina, Bira, Ascari and Simon fighting for the remaining podium place. Then, the teamperature rose.

Louis Chiron was the first to fall victim of the intense heat, retiring from eleventh place. He was soon followed by the valiant Felice Bonetto, who was doing a decent job of keeping Joe Kelly behind. At that point, the front was getting more spread out. Fangio and Serafini were still in a league of their own, with the Italian marginally ahead, with Farina and Bira in a similar fight for third. Simon was in an isolated fifth position, while Sanesi, Moss, Ruttman, Pagani and Ascari were all in an intense battle for sixth position. De Filippis ended her maiden race early as well, driving in an anonymous 25th position.

Then, while Bira began to slow, Farina gained speed and soon caught up to Fangio and Serafini! At that moment, Ascari's Phoenix stopped by the side of the road, engine blown. He was fighting for seventh with Sanesi. He was joined in retirement by Paul Frère, who had been driving a decent race in 18th position in his Maserati.

At the halfway point, 26 cars were still in the race. Serafini had pulled away into a now large lead, with Fangio now having to defend from the defending double world champion and team mate Giuseppe Farina and André Simon, who had found a considerable amount of speed. Bira was keeping a lonely and stable fifth position. Pagani and Ruttman were fighting for sixth place. Then came Manzon, Sanesi, Whitehead, Gonzalez, Rubirosa (!!!), Moss and Pilette, all closely grouped. The field was rounded out by Schell, Claes, Bracco, Macklin, van der Lof, Fischer, Swaters, Trintignant, Mières, Hawthorn, Barth and Kelly.

The next to retire was Nello Pagani, who was in seventh place, immediately followed by Lance Macklin, who was in 18th place, and Joe Kelly, who was pretty much put out of his misery, since he was miles behind Edgar Barth and lapped multiple times. At this point, Simon was flying and now well past Fangio and Farina and in second place!

But the Talbot-Lago was still a slower car than the Alfa, and unlike in Monaco, the track was wide and fast. Simon was no match for Farina, who slipstreamed past on lap 22. But while doing so, he made a mistake and Simon managed to take second place again! Four laps later, however, Farina breezed past once more, never to be caught. The last retirement of the race occurred on the penultimate lap, when Sanesi, who was sportingly jockeying for seventh with Manzon, put two wheels on the grass at La Source and went spinning, stalling the car on the exit of the corner.

And so, while Serafini and Farina were well settled in their positions, Fangio was catching up to Simon, and both entered the final lap locked in battle. After a lap full of slipstreaming, both entered La Source side by side. Simon purposefully exited the corner behind Fangio, but getting more exit speed to jump the Argentine on the line to score his second podium of the season. After a tough fight, Bira managed to hold off Troy Ruttman for the final points, but both will be happy, as this was the 22-year-old's best result so far.

There were some pleasant surprises, such as Ruttman's sixth place, confirming that the American had undeniable talent, but also Robert Manzon, Jacques Swaters and Peter Whitehead, each gaining ten places, Dries van der Lof gaining 13 and Trintignant gaining 16 to salvage 15th place, Porfirio Rubirosa scoring a top-ten depsite low attrition as well as Mières, Hawthorn, Fischer and Barth all making it to the end, gaining precious money and experience to develop the cars. The final point for fastest lap was shared between Giuseppe Farina and Manzon.

Serafini scored Ferrari's first points of the season in style with a crushing victory, Farina kept the championship lead despite scoring no wins thus far, André Simon was now the second driver to score multiple podiums that season, Fangio finally scored his first points from race position since France the previous year and Bira scored points again, perhaps crucially preventing Ruttman scoring points for Group Ultimate in the entrants' championship.

Classification

Entry list

No Driver Entrant Chassis Engine
2 Flag of Ireland svg.png Joe Kelly Flag of Ireland svg.png All-Ireland Motorsport ERA G-Type Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s
4 Flag of Thailand svg.png B. Bira Flag of France svg.png Motorsport Bleu Talbot-Lago T26C Talbot 23CV 4.5 L6
6 Flag of the United States svg.png Harry Schell Talbot-Lago T26C Talbot 23CV 4.5 L6
8 Flag of France svg.png André Simon Talbot-Lago T26C Talbot 23CV 4.5 L6
10 Flag of Monaco svg.png Louis Chiron Flag of Italy svg.png Scuderia Commesso Maserati 4CLT/48 Ferrari 375 4.5 V12
12 Flag of the Netherlands svg.png Dries van der Lof Maserati 4CLT/48 Ferrari 375 4.5 V12
14 Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png Reg Parnell Flag of Italy svg.png Scuderia Ferrari Ferrari 375B Ferrari 375 4.5 V12
16 Flag of Italy svg.png Dorino Serafini Ferrari 375B Ferrari 375 4.5 V12
18 Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png Peter Whitehead Ferrari 375B Ferrari 375 4.5 V12
20 Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png Mike Hawthorn Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png Team Bentley Bentley Speed 2 Bentley 3.0 V16
22 Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png David Hampshire Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png Hampshire Racing Alliance Alta GP Alta 1.5 L4s
24 Flag of France svg.png Robert Manzon Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png/Flag of France svg.png Alexander Racing Team Gordini T16 Gordini 1.5 L4s
26 Flag of Italy svg.png Consalvo Sanesi Gordini T16 Gordini 1.5 L4s
28 Flag of Belgium svg.png Johnny Claes Flag of Belgium svg.png Claes Racing Developments Maserati 4CLT/48 Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s
30 Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png Lance Macklin Maserati 4CLT/48 Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s
32 Flag of the United States svg.png Troy Ruttman Flag of the United States svg.png Ferrari America Ferrari 375 Ferrari 375 4.5 V12
34 Flag of Italy svg.png Luigi Villoresi Flag of China svg.png Leader Leader LF152 Ferrari 375 4.5 V12
36 Flag of Argentina svg.png José Froilan Gonzalez Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png Jaguar - Aston Martin Racing Aston Martin AM-03 Jaguar XK 3.4 L6
38 Flag of Italy svg.png Piero Taruffi Aston Martin AM-03 Jaguar XK 3.4 L6
40 Flag of France svg.png Jean Behra Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png The Fighting Mongooses Cooper T20 Bristol BS1 2.0 L6
42 Flag of Argentina svg.png Roberto Mières Flag of Ireland svg.png Erne Racing Development Ferrari 375 Ferrari 375 4.5 V12
44 Flag of Germany svg.png Edgar Barth Flag of Germany svg.png Team Ultimate Ultimate 001 BMW 328 2.0 L6
46 Flag of Argentina svg.png Onofre Marimón Flag of Italy svg.png Officine Alfieri Maserati Maserati A6GCM Maserati A6 2.0 L6
48 Flag of France svg.png Maurice Trintignant Flag of France svg.png Bugatti Grand Prix Bugatti Type Alfa Bugatti 15C 1.5 L4s
50 Flag of Belgium svg.png André Pilette Bugatti Type Alfa Bugatti 15C 1.5 L4s
52 Flag of Belgium svg.png Paul Frère Flag of Belgium svg.png Ecurie Nationale Belge Maserati A6GCM Maserati A6 2.0 L6
54 Flag of Belgium svg.png Jacques Swaters Maserati A6GCM Maserati A6 2.0 L6
56 Flag of Italy svg.png Nello Pagani Flag of Australia svg.png Redman Racing Team Maserati A6GCM Maserati A6 2.0 L6
58 Flag of Italy svg.png Giovanni Bracco Flag of Italy svg.png Scuderia Ambrosiana Ambrosiana A-001 Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s
60 Flag of the Dominican Republic svg.png Porfirio Rubirosa Ambrosiana A-001 Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s
62 Flag of Italy svg.png Felice Bonetto Flag of Italy svg.png O.S.C.A. Automobili O.S.C.A. 4500G O.S.C.A. 4.5 V12
64 Flag of Italy svg.png Maria Teresa de Filippis Flag of Italy svg.png Maria Teresa de Filippis Maserati 4CLT/48 Maserati 4CLT 1.5 L4s
66 Flag of Italy svg.png Giuseppe Farina Flag of Italy svg.png Alfa Romeo SpA Alfa Romeo 159/52 Alfa Romeo 159 1.5 L8s
68 Flag of Argentina svg.png Juan Manuel Fangio Alfa Romeo 159/52 Alfa Romeo 159 1.5 L8s
70 Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png Stirling Moss Alfa Romeo 159/52 Alfa Romeo 159 1.5 L8s
72 Flag of Italy svg.png Alberto Ascari Flag of Spain svg.png Phoenix Racing Organisation Phoenix P-03 Ferrari 375 4.5 V12
74 Flag of Switzerland svg.png Rudi Fischer Flag of Australia svg.png International Racing Group Maserati 4CLT/48 Porsche 356 1.6 L4

Qualifying

Pos No Driver Constructor Time Gap
1 68 Flag of Argentina svg.png Juan Manuel Fangio Alfa Romeo 4:24.3 -
2 16 Flag of Italy svg.png Dorino Serafini Ferrari 4:26.9 + 2.6
3 66 Flag of Italy svg.png Giuseppe Farina Alfa Romeo 4:27.2 + 2.9
4 4 Flag of Thailand svg.png B. Bira Talbot-Lago-Talbot 4:27.5 + 3.2
5 72 Flag of Italy svg.png Alberto Ascari Phoenix-Ferrari 4:27.7 + 3.4
6 8 Flag of France svg.png André Simon Talbot-Lago-Talbot 4:28.3 + 4.0
7 32 Flag of the United States svg.png Troy Ruttman Ferrari 4:28.5 + 4.2
8 38 Flag of Italy svg.png Piero Taruffi Aston Martin-Jaguar 4:28.6 + 4.3
9 56 Flag of Italy svg.png Nello Pagani Maserati 4:28.8 + 4.5
10 70 Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png Stirling Moss Alfa Romeo 4:29.0 + 4.7
11 10 Flag of Monaco svg.png Louis Chiron Maserati-Ferrari 4:29.1 + 4.8
12 26 Flag of Italy svg.png Consalvo Sanesi Gordini 4:29.3 + 5.0
13 50 Flag of Belgium svg.png André Pilette Bugatti 4:29.8 + 5.5
14 6 Flag of the United States svg.png Harry Schell Talbot-Lago-Talbot 4:29.9 + 5.6
15 36 Flag of Argentina svg.png José Froilán González Aston Martin-Jaguar 4:30.1 + 5.8
16 60 Flag of the Dominican Republic svg.png Porfirio Rubirosa Ambrosiana-Maserati 4:30.6 + 6.3
17 24 Flag of France svg.png Robert Manzon Gordini 4:30.9 + 6.6
18 18 Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png Peter Whitehead Ferrari 4:31.2 + 6.9
19 58 Flag of Italy svg.png Giovanni Bracco Ambrosiana-Maserati 4:31.3 + 7.0
20 28 Flag of Belgium svg.png Johnny Claes Maserati 4:31.4 + 7.1
21 22 Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png David Hampshire Alta 4:31.5 + 7.2
22 42 Flag of Argentina svg.png Roberto Mières Ferrari 4:31.7 + 7.4
23 14 Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png Reg Parnell Ferrari 4:31.9 + 7.6
24 40 Flag of Belgium svg.png Paul Frère Maserati 4:32.0 + 7.7
25 64 Flag of Italy svg.png Maria Teresa de Filippis Maserati 4:32.2 + 7.9
26 54 Flag of Belgium svg.png Jacques Swaters Maserati 4:33.3 + 9.0
27 28 Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png Lance Macklin Maserati 4:33.3 + 9.0
28 20 Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png Mike Hawthorn Bentley 4:33.6 + 9.3
29 74 Flag of Switzerland svg.png Rudi Fischer Maserati-Porsche 4:33.6 + 9.3
30 12 Flag of the Netherlands svg.png Dries van der Lof Maserati-Ferrari 4:33.8 + 9.5
31 48 Flag of France svg.png Maurice Trintignant Bugatti 4:33.8 + 9.5
32 44 Flag of Germany svg.png Edgar Barth Ultimate-BMW 4:34.3 + 10.0
33 2 Flag of Ireland svg.png Joe Kelly ERA-Maserati 4:34.6 + 10.3
34 62 Flag of Italy svg.png Felice Bonetto O.S.C.A. 4:35.9 + 11.6
35 40 Flag of France svg.png Jean Behra Cooper-Bristol 4:36.4 + 12.1
36 46 Flag of Argentina svg.png Onofre Marimón Maserati 4:36.5 + 12.2
37 34 Flag of Italy svg.png Luigi Villoresi Leader-Ferrari 4:37.5 + 13.2

Race

Pos No Driver Constructor Laps Time/Retired Grid Pts
1 16 Flag of Italy svg.png Dorino Serafini Ferrari 29 2:50:11.7 2 8
2 66 Flag of Italy svg.png Giuseppe Farina Alfa Romeo 28 + 2:50.5 3 6.5
3 8 Flag of France svg.png André Simon Talbot-Lago-Talbot 29 + 3:13.7 6 4
4 68 Flag of Argentina svg.png Juan Manuel Fangio Alfa Romeo 29 + 3:13.8 1 3
5 4 Flag of Thailand svg.png B. Bira Talbot-Lago-Talbot 28 + 1 lap 4 2
6 32 Flag of the United States svg.png Troy Ruttman Ferrari 28 + 1 lap 7
7 24 Flag of France svg.png Robert Manzon Gordini 28 + 1 lap 17 0.5
8 18 Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png Peter Whitehead Ferrari 28 + 1 lap 18
9 50 Flag of Belgium svg.png André Pilette Bugatti 28 + 1 lap 13
10 60 Flag of the Dominican Republic svg.png Porfirio Rubirosa Ambrosiana-Maserati 28 + 1 lap 16
11 36 Flag of Argentina svg.png José Froilán González Aston Martin-Jaguar 28 +1 lap 15
12 70 Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png Stirling Moss Alfa Romeo 27 +2 laps 10
13 6 Flag of the United States svg.png Harry Schell Talbot-Lago-Talbot 27 +2 laps 14
14 28 Flag of Belgium svg.png Johnny Claes Maserati 27 +2 laps 20
15 48 Flag of France svg.png Maurice Trintignant Bugatti 27 +2 laps 31
16 54 Flag of Belgium svg.png Jacques Swaters Maserati 27 +2 laps 26
17 12 Flag of the Netherlands svg.png Dries van der Lof Maserati-Ferrari 27 +2 laps 30
18 26 Flag of Italy svg.png Consalvo Sanesi Gordini 26 Spin 12
19 58 Flag of Italy svg.png Giovanni Bracco Ambrosiana-Maserati 26 +3 laps 19
20 42 Flag of Argentina svg.png Roberto Mières Ferrari 26 +3 laps 22
21 74 Flag of Switzerland svg.png Rudi Fischer Maserati-Porsche 26 +3 laps 29
22 20 Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png Mike Hawthorn Bentley 26 +3 laps 28
23 44 Flag of Germany svg.png Edgar Barth Ultimate-BMW 26 +3 laps 32
Ret 2 Flag of Ireland svg.png Joe Kelly ERA-Maserati 18 Overheating 33
Ret 28 Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png Lance Macklin Maserati 17 Transmission 27
Ret 56 Flag of Italy svg.png Nello Pagani Maserati 16 Steering 9
Ret 40 Flag of Belgium svg.png Paul Frère Maserati 12 Engine 24
Ret 72 Flag of Italy svg.png Alberto Ascari Phoenix-Ferrari 11 Engine 5
Ret 64 Flag of Italy svg.png Maria Teresa de Filippis Maserati 8 Gearbox 25
Ret 62 Flag of Italy svg.png Felice Bonetto O.S.C.A. 6 Engine 34
Ret 10 Flag of Monaco svg.png Louis Chiron Maserati-Ferrari 5 Exhaustion 11
Ret 38 Flag of Italy svg.png Piero Taruffi Aston Martin-Jaguar 1 Gearbox 8
Ret 22 Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png David Hampshire Alta 1 Transmission 21
Ret 14 Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png Reg Parnell Ferrari 0 Clutch 23
DNQ 40 Flag of France svg.png Jean Behra Cooper-Bristol
DNQ 46 Flag of Argentina svg.png Onofre Marimón Maserati
DNQ 34 Flag of Italy svg.png Luigi Villoresi Leader-Ferrari

Notes

Drivers

Constructors

Entrants

Lap leaders

Records broken

Drivers

Constructors

Races

  • Most finishers (23)

Championship standings

Pos Driver Points
1 Flag of Italy svg.png Giuseppe Farina 18.5
2 Flag of France svg.png André Simon 12
3 Flag of France svg.png Robert Manzon 11.5
4 Flag of Italy svg.png Dorino Serafini 8
=5 Flag of Italy svg.png Alberto Ascari 4
=5 Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png Eric Brandon 4
Pos Constructor Points
1 Flag of Italy svg.png Alfa Romeo 18.5
2 Flag of France svg.png Talbot-Lago-Talbot 12
3 Flag of France svg.png Gordini 11.5
4 Flag of Italy svg.png Ferrari 9
=5 Flag of Italy svg.png Ferrari-Jaguar 4
=5 Flag of Spain svg.png Phoenix-Ferrari 4
Pos Driver Points
1 Flag of Italy svg.png Alfa Romeo SpA 18.5
2 Flag of France svg.png Motorsport Bleu 12
3 Flag of France svg.png/Flag of the United Kingdom svg.png Alexander Racing Team 11.5
4 Flag of Italy svg.png Scuderia Ferrari 9
=5 Flag of Italy svg.png Scuderia Maremmana 4
=5 Flag of Spain svg.png Phoenix Racing Organisation 4
  • Only the top five positions are listed.
Previous race:
1952 English Grand Prix
Alternate Formula 1 World Championship
1952 Season
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1952 French Grand Prix
Previous race:
1951 Belgian Grand Prix
Belgian Grand Prix Next race:
1953 Belgian Grand Prix