1953 Australian Grand Prix

The 1953 Australian Grand Prix was a Formula Libre[1] motor race held at Albert Park Street Circuit, Victoria, Australia on 21 November 1953. The race, which had 40 starters, was held over 64 laps of the five kilometre circuit for a total of 322 kilometres. It was organised by the Light Car Club of Australia and Army Southern Command.[2]

1953 Australian Grand Prix
Formula Libre race
Race details
Date 21 November 1953
Location Albert Park, Melbourne, Victoria
Course Temporary street circuit
Course length 5.03 km (3.125 miles)
Distance 64 laps, 321.92 km (250 miles)
Weather Sunny
Fastest lap
Driver Australia Stan Jones Maybach Special
Time 2'03
Podium
First
Talbot-Lago
Second
  • Australia Curley Brydon
 MG Special
Third
  • Australia Andy Brown
 MG
The start of the 1953 Australian Grand Prix. Davison (#3 HWM), Jones (#2 Maybach) and Whiteford (#1 Talbot-Lago)
Race winner Doug Whiteford (Talbot-Lago T26C) contesting the 1953 Australian Grand Prix
The 9th placed Wylie Javelin of Ken & Arthur Wylie, pictured during its first lap spin with Arthur driving
Alf Barrett and Julian Barrett placed 12th driving the BWA
Stan Jones (Maybach Special) set fastest lap of the race but did not finish

It was the eighteenth Australian Grand Prix. While much of the Grand Prix's history to this point had taken place on public road or street circuits, this was the first time it had been held on a circuit in a major population centre. The circuit was laid out on public roads surrounding the Albert Park Lake in inner Melbourne.

The race was won by Doug Whiteford, his third and final Australian Grand Prix victory, equalling the feat achieved by Bill Thompson in the 1930s. It was also the largest margin of victory in the race's history, Whiteford winning by six laps for a margin of 30 kilometres.

Classification

Results as follows.[3]

Pos No. Driver Car / Engine Entrant[2] Laps[4] Time
1 1 Australia Doug Whiteford Talbot-Lago T26C / Talbot-Lago 4.5L D. Whiteford 64 2h 24m 50s
2 26 Australia Curley Brydon MG TC Special / MG s/c 1.3L H. Brydon 58
3 22 Australia Andy Brown MG K3 / MG 1.1L A.G. Brown 57
4 23 Australia Les Murphy MG Q / MG 0.7L L.P. Murphy 57
5 30 Australia Lou Molina MM Special / Holden 2.3L L. Molina 56
6 32 Australia Jim Leach Austin-Healey 100 / Austin-Healey 2.7L C.R. Dickason 56
7 7 Australia Frank Kleinig Kleinig-Hudson 8 Special / Hudson 4.4L F. Kleinig 56
8 38 Australia Stuart Charge Austin-Healey 100 / Austin-Healey 2.7L L.J. Gray 55
9 19 Australia Ken Wylie
Australia Arthur Wylie		 Wylie Javelin / Jowett s/c 1.5L A.J. Wylie 55
10 16 Australia Reg Hunt Allard J2 / Cadillac 4.4L R.H. Hunt 55
11 33 Australia Bib Stillwell Austin-Healey 100 / Austin-Healey 2.7L B.S. Stillwell 54
12 17 Australia Alf Barrett[5]
Australia Julian Barrett[5]		 BWA Special / Frazer Nash 1.5L J. Barrett 53
13 40 Australia Neil Charge MG TC Special / MG 1.3L N. and S. Charge 52
14 35 Australia Frank Lobb Jaguar XK120 / Jaguar 3.4L F. Lobb 51
15 9 Australia Ted McKinnon Maserati 6C / Maserati 1.5L E.D. McKinnon 50
16 42 Australia John Nind MG TB Special / MG 1.3L J.P. Nind 45
17 60 Australia Bill Patterson Cooper Mk.V / JAP 0.5L Ecurie Australie 43
18 31 Australia Syd Negus Plymouth Special / Plymouth 3.1L S.A. Negus 39
Ret 2 Australia Stan Jones Maybach Special Mk.1 / Maybach 4.3L Ecurie Australie 58
Ret 34 Australia John Calvert Jaguar XK120 / Jaguar 3.4L J. Calvert 52
Ret 28 Australia Les O'Donaghue Ballot / Oldsmobile 3.9L L.F. O'Donoghue 48
Ret 6 Australia Peter Vennermark
Australia Cec Warren[6]		 Maserati 4CL / Maserati 1.5L C. Warren 41
Ret 65 Australia Harry Thompson
Australia Wal Gillespie[7]		 HRG Special H. Thompson 39
Ret 15 Australia Bill Wilcox Ford V8 Special / Ford 4.3L W. Wilcox 37
Ret 55[2] Australia Ron Phillips Allard K2 / Ford 4.4L J.H. Phillips 34
Ret 57[2] Australia Haig Hurst Allard K2 / Ford 4.4L H.W. Hurst 29
Ret 25 Australia Phillip Catlin Bugatti T51A / Bugatti 1.5L P.C. Catlin 23
Ret 27 Australia Phil Harrison Dodge Special / Dodge 4.0L P.G. Harrison 22
Ret 64 Australia Silvio Masolla[8] HRG Special / HRG 1.5L S. Massola 19
Ret 10 Australia W.H. Hayes Ford V8 Special / Ford 4.4L W.H. Hayes 17
Ret 11 Australia Ted Gray Alta / Ford 4.3L E. Gray 13
Ret 18 Australia Don McDonald Austin A40 Special / Austin 1.3L Weir and Male Motors 13
Ret 24 Australia Reg Nutt Talbot-Darracq / Talbot 1.5L R.J. Nutt 11
Ret 37 Australia Peter McKenna BMW 328 / BMW 2.0L P. McKenna 11
Ret 39 Australia Jack O'Dea MG Special / MG 1.3L J.H. O'Dea 8
Ret[9] 45 Australia Gordon Greig Cooper Mk.IV / JAP G. Greig 8
Ret 56[2] Australia Vin Maloney MG TC Special / MG 1.3L V. Moloney 5
Ret 20 Australia Jim Gullan MG K3 / MG 1.1L J. Gullan 3
Ret 12 Australia Arthur Chick Bugatti T37 / Bugatti 2.0L A.E. Chick 3
Ret 3 Australia Lex Davison HWM F2 / Jaguar 3.4L Ecurie Australie 1
DNS[10] 5 Australia Jack Brabham Cooper / Bristol 2.0L J.A. Brabham -

Notes

References
  1. Racing into history, A look back at the 1953 Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park, Australian Grand Prix Corporation, 2013, page 6
  2. Official Souvenir Programme, XVIIIth Australian Grand Prix
  3. Howard, Graham (1986). "1953". In Howard, Graham (ed.). The Official 50-race history of the Australian Grand Prix. Gordon, NSW: R & T Publishing. pp. 182–191. ISBN 0-9588464-0-5.
  4. Australian Grand Prix 1953 - Laps Completed, The official history of the Australian Grand Prix - 80 Races
  5. Alf Barrett: ‘The Maestro’: Alfa Romeo 8C2300 Monza, primotipo.com Retrieved 21 November 2015
  6. The Official 50-race history of the Australian Grand Prix page 189 states that Peter Vennermark drove Warren's car at the start and page 190 states that Vennermark handed over to Warren during the race.
  7. The Official 50-race history of the Australian Grand Prix page 189 states that Thompson and Gillespie both drove car 65.
  8. The Official 50-race history of the Australian Grand Prix uses both Messola and Massolla. The Official Programme uses Massola.
  9. Gordon Greig is listed as a DNS in the Entry List on page 191 of in The Official 50-race history of the Australian Grand Prix, but is also listed under Retirements on the same page. Greig is shown on the Laps Completed chart in The official history of the Australian Grand Prix - 80 Races
  10. Brabham is mentioned as a non-starter (due to mechanical problems in practice) on page 186 of The Official 50-race history of the Australian Grand Prix.
  11. Official Programme, Sandown, 9 February 1964, page 23
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