1955 Formula One season

The 1955 Formula One season was the ninth season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It featured the 1955 World Championship of Drivers,[1] which commenced on 16 January 1955 and ended on 11 September after seven races. Juan Manuel Fangio won his second consecutive World Championship title in a season curtailed by tragedies.

The season also included several non-championship Formula One races.

This was the last championship for Mercedes until 2014.

Teams and drivers

The following teams and drivers competed in the 1955 FIA World Championship.

Entrant Constructor Chassis Engine Tyre Driver Rounds
West Germany Daimler Benz AG Mercedes W196 Mercedes M196 2.5 L8 C Argentina Juan Manuel Fangio 1–2, 4–7
West Germany Karl Kling 1, 4–7
United Kingdom Stirling Moss 1–2, 4–7
West Germany Hans Herrmann 1–2
France André Simon 2
Italy Piero Taruffi 6–7
Italy Scuderia Ferrari Ferrari 625
555
Ferrari 555 2.5 L4 E Italy Umberto Maglioli 1, 7
Argentina José Froilán González 1
France Maurice Trintignant 1–2, 4–7
United States Harry Schell 2, 4
Italy Piero Taruffi 2, 4
Belgium Paul Frère 2, 4
United Kingdom Mike Hawthorn 5–7
Italy Eugenio Castellotti 5–7
Italy Giuseppe Farina 1–2, 4
Lancia D50 Lancia DS50 2.5 V8 7
Italy Officine Alfieri Maserati Maserati 250F Maserati 250F1 2.5 L6 P France Jean Behra 1–2, 4–7
Argentina Roberto Mieres 1–2, 4–7
Italy Sergio Mantovani 1
Italy Luigi Musso 1–2, 4–7
Argentina Carlos Menditeguy 1, 7
Argentina Clemar Bucci 1
United States Harry Schell 1
Italy Cesare Perdisa 2, 4
France André Simon 6
United Kingdom Peter Collins 7
United Kingdom Horace Gould 7
Uruguay Alberto Uria Maserati A6GCM Maserati 250F1 2.5 L6 P Uruguay Alberto Uria 1
Italy Scuderia Lancia Lancia D50 Lancia DS50 2.5 V8 P Italy Alberto Ascari 1–2
Italy Luigi Villoresi 1–2, 7
Italy Eugenio Castellotti 1–2, 4
Monaco Louis Chiron 2
France Equipe Gordini Gordini T16 Gordini 23 2.5 L6 E France Élie Bayol 1–2
Argentina Pablo Birger 1
Argentina Jesús Iglesias 1
France Robert Manzon 2, 5–6
France Jacques Pollet 2, 5, 7
Brazil Hermano da Silva Ramos 5–7
France Mike Sparken 6
France Jean Lucas 7
France Ecurie Rosier Maserati 250F Maserati 250F1 2.5 L6 P France Louis Rosier 2, 4–5
United Kingdom Vandervell Products Vanwall VW 55 Vanwall 254 2.5 L4 P United Kingdom Mike Hawthorn 2, 4
United Kingdom Ken Wharton 6–7
United States Harry Schell 6–7
United Kingdom Stirling Moss Ltd Maserati 250F Maserati 250F1 2.5 L6 D United Kingdom Lance Macklin 2, 6
Belgium Johnny Claes 4
United Kingdom Peter Walker 5
United States John Fitch 7
United Kingdom E.N. Whiteaway HWM-Alta 53 Alta GP 2.5 L4 D United Kingdom Ted Whiteaway 2
Belgium Equipe Nationale Belge Ferrari 625 Ferrari 625 2.5 L4 E Belgium Johnny Claes 5
United Kingdom Gould's Garage (Bristol) Maserati 250F Maserati 250F1 2.5 L6 D United Kingdom Horace Gould 5–6
United Kingdom Connaught Engineering Connaught-Alta B Alta GP 2.5 L4 D United Kingdom Kenneth McAlpine 6
United Kingdom Jack Fairman 6
United Kingdom R.R.C. Walker Racing Team Connaught-Alta B Alta GP 2.5 L4 D United Kingdom Tony Rolt 6
United Kingdom Peter Walker 6
United Kingdom Leslie Marr Connaught-Alta B Alta GP 2.5 L4 D United Kingdom Leslie Marr 6
United Kingdom Cooper Car Company Cooper-Bristol T40 Bristol BS1 2.0 L6 D Australia Jack Brabham 6
United Kingdom Owen Racing Organisation Maserati 250F Maserati 250F1 2.5 L6 D United Kingdom Peter Collins 6
United Kingdom Gilby Engineering Maserati 250F Maserati 250F1 2.5 L6 D United Kingdom Roy Salvadori 6
Italy Scuderia Volpini Arzani-Volpini-Maserati F1 Maserati 4CLT 2.5 L4 P Italy Luigi Piotti 7

Season summary

Juan Manuel Fangio in a Mercedes Benz W196, pictured at the Nurburgring in 1986. This was the car he used to win his 3rd Drivers' Championship

Mercedes drivers again dominated the championship, with Fangio taking four races and his new teammate Stirling Moss winning the British Grand Prix. Ferrari won at Monaco after all of the Mercedes cars broke down and Lancia driver Alberto Ascari crashed into the harbour. Although Ascari was apparently unscathed, the double World Champion crashed fatally at Monza while testing sportscars four days later.

The disaster at the 24 Hours of Le Mans on 11 June, which killed Pierre Levegh and over 80 spectators, led to the cancellations of the French, German, Spanish, and Swiss Grands Prix.[2] The French round, which was supposed to be held at Reims between the Dutch and British rounds, on 3 July, was first rescheduled to 25 September[3] and subsequently cancelled. Then the German event, scheduled for 31 July at the Nürburgring, the Swiss round at Bremgarten, planned to take place on 21 August, and the Spanish round on 23 October at Pedralbes, followed suit.[4] Pedralbes and Bremgarten were then abandoned and never used again for racing; motor racing was banned altogether in Switzerland, and no circuit race was held in Switzerland until the 2018 Zürich ePrix. These cancellations effectively handed the Drivers' title to Fangio after he finished 2nd to Moss at the British Grand Prix. However, he was not crowned champion until well after the British Grand Prix because the German, Swiss and Spanish rounds were cancelled after the British Grand Prix took place.

The 1955 season would be the final for Mercedes Benz as a constructor until the team's revival in 2010. It would also mark the final win for Mercedes until the 2012 Chinese Grand Prix.

Aside from Ascari's death this year, Italian Mario Alborghetti died at the non-championship Pau Grand Prix in France driving a Maserati and two drivers were killed in the Indy 500, Manny Ayulo in practice, and previous race winner Bill Vukovich during the race two weeks later.

Calendar

Round Grand Prix Circuit Date
1 Argentina Argentine Grand Prix Autódromo Oscar Alfredo Gálvez, Buenos Aires 16 January
2 Monaco Monaco Grand Prix Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo 22 May
3 United States Indianapolis 500 Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Speedway 30 May[lower-alpha 1]
4 Belgium Belgian Grand Prix Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot 5 June
5 Netherlands Dutch Grand Prix Circuit Zandvoort, Zandvoort 19 June
6 United Kingdom British Grand Prix Aintree Motor Racing Circuit, Merseyside 16 July
7 Italy Italian Grand Prix Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza 11 September

The following rounds were included on the provisional calendars published but were cancelled:

Grand Prix Circuit Original date
France French Grand Prix Reims-Gueux, Gueux 3 July
West Germany German Grand Prix Nürburgring, Nürburg 31 July
Switzerland Swiss Grand Prix Circuit Bremgarten, Bern 21 August
Spain Spanish Grand Prix Pedralbes Circuit, Barcelona 23 October

Calendar changes

The Monaco Grand Prix returned to the calendar after a five year absence.

The Dutch Grand Prix returned to the calendar after a year absence.

The British Grand Prix was moved from Silverstone Circuit to Aintree Motor Racing Circuit, in keeping with the event-sharing arrangement between the two circuits.

The French Grand Prix was supposed to have been held on July 3 but was cancelled.

The German Grand Prix was supposed to have been held on July 31 but was cancelled.

The Swiss Grand Prix was supposed to have been held on August 21 but was cancelled.

The Spanish Grand Prix was supposed to have been held on October 23 but was cancelled.

Results and standings

Grands Prix

Round Grand Prix Pole position Fastest lap Winning driver Winning constructor Tyre Report
1 Argentina Argentine Grand Prix Argentina José Froilán González Argentina Juan Manuel Fangio Argentina Juan Manuel Fangio West Germany Mercedes C Report
2 Monaco Monaco Grand Prix Argentina Juan Manuel Fangio Argentina Juan Manuel Fangio France Maurice Trintignant Italy Ferrari E Report
3 United States Indianapolis 500 United States Jerry Hoyt United States Bill Vukovich United States Bob Sweikert United States Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser F Report
4 Belgium Belgian Grand Prix Italy Eugenio Castellotti Argentina Juan Manuel Fangio Argentina Juan Manuel Fangio West Germany Mercedes C Report
5 Netherlands Dutch Grand Prix Argentina Juan Manuel Fangio Argentina Roberto Mieres Argentina Juan Manuel Fangio West Germany Mercedes C Report
6 United Kingdom British Grand Prix United Kingdom Stirling Moss United Kingdom Stirling Moss United Kingdom Stirling Moss West Germany Mercedes C Report
7 Italy Italian Grand Prix Argentina Juan Manuel Fangio United Kingdom Stirling Moss Argentina Juan Manuel Fangio West Germany Mercedes C Report

World Championship of Drivers standings

Championship points were awarded on an 8–6–4–3–2 basis for the first five places at each race. One point was awarded for the fastest race lap at each race. Only the best five results counted towards the championship. Numbers without parentheses are Championship points; numbers in parentheses are total points scored.

Pos. Driver ARG
Argentina
MON
Monaco
500
United States
BEL
Belgium
NED
Netherlands
GBR
United Kingdom
ITA
Italy
Pts.
1 Argentina Juan Manuel Fangio 1 (Ret) 1 1 2 1 40 (41)
2 United Kingdom Stirling Moss 4† / Ret 9 2 2 1 Ret 23
3 Italy Eugenio Castellotti Ret† 2 Ret 5 6† / Ret 3 12
4 France Maurice Trintignant 2† / 3† / Ret 1 6 Ret Ret 8 11 13
5 Italy Nino Farina 2† / 3† 4 3 DNS 10 13
6 Italy Piero Taruffi 8† DNS 4 2 9
7 United States Bob Sweikert 1 8
8 Argentina Roberto Mieres 5 Ret 5† 4 Ret 7 7
9 France Jean Behra 6† / Ret† / Ret 3† / Ret† 5† / Ret 6 Ret 4 6
10 Italy Luigi Musso 7† / Ret† Ret 7 3 5 Ret 6
11 West Germany Karl Kling 4† / Ret Ret Ret 3 Ret 5
12 United States Jimmy Davies 3 4
13 United States Tony Bettenhausen 2† 3
14 United States Paul Russo 2† 3
15 Belgium Paul Frère 8† 4 3
16 United States Johnny Thomson 4 3
17 Argentina José Froilán González 2 2
18 Italy Cesare Perdisa 3† / Ret† 8 2
19 Italy Luigi Villoresi Ret† / Ret 5 DNS 2
20 Argentina Carlos Menditeguy Ret† / Ret 5 2
21 Italy Umberto Maglioli 3† 6 1 13
22 West Germany Hans Herrmann 4† DNQ 1
23 United States Walt Faulkner 5† 1
24 United States Bill Homeier 5† 1
25 United States Bill Vukovich Ret 1
United Kingdom Mike Hawthorn Ret Ret 7 6† 10 0
United States Harry Schell 6† / 7† / Ret† Ret DNS 9† / Ret Ret 0
Monaco Louis Chiron 6 0
United States Andy Linden 6 0
France Jacques Pollet 7 10 Ret 0
United States Al Herman 7 0
France Mike Sparken 7 0
Italy Sergio Mantovani 7† / Ret† 0
Brazil Hermano da Silva Ramos 8 Ret Ret 0
United Kingdom Lance Macklin DNQ 8 0
United States Pat O'Connor 8 0
France Louis Rosier Ret 9 9 0
United Kingdom Ken Wharton 9† Ret 0
United States Jimmy Daywalt 9 0
United States John Fitch 9 0
United States Pat Flaherty 10 0
United States Duane Carter 11 0
Belgium Johnny Claes DNS 11 0
United States Chuck Weyant 12 0
United States Eddie Johnson 13 0
United States Jim Rathmann 14 0
France Robert Manzon Ret Ret Ret 0
United Kingdom Horace Gould Ret Ret Ret 0
Italy Alberto Ascari Ret Ret 0
France Élie Bayol Ret Ret 0
France André Simon Ret Ret 0
United Kingdom Peter Collins Ret Ret 0
United Kingdom Peter Walker Ret Ret† 0
Argentina Jesus Iglesias Ret 0
Argentina Pablo Birger Ret 0
Uruguay Alberto Uria Ret 0
United States Don Freeland Ret 0
United States Cal Niday Ret 0
United States Art Cross Ret 0
United States Shorty Templeman Ret 0
United States Sam Hanks Ret 0
United States Keith Andrews Ret 0
United States Johnnie Parsons Ret 0
United States Eddie Russo Ret 0
United States Ray Crawford Ret 0
United States Jimmy Bryan Ret 0
United States Jack McGrath Ret 0
United States Al Keller Ret 0
United States Johnny Boyd Ret 0
United States Ed Elisian Ret 0
United States Rodger Ward Ret 0
United States Jerry Hoyt Ret 0
United States Jimmy Reece Ret 0
United States Fred Agabashian Ret 0
United Kingdom Kenneth McAlpine Ret 0
Australia Jack Brabham Ret 0
United Kingdom Roy Salvadori Ret 0
United Kingdom Leslie Marr Ret 0
France Jean Lucas Ret 0
Argentina Clemar Bucci Ret† 0
United Kingdom Tony Rolt Ret† 0
United Kingdom Ted Whiteaway DNQ 0
United Kingdom Jack Fairman DNS 0
Italy Luigi Piotti DNS 0
Pos. Driver ARG
Argentina
MON
Monaco
500
United States
BEL
Belgium
NED
Netherlands
GBR
United Kingdom
ITA
Italy
Pts.
Key
Colour Result
GoldWinner
SilverSecond place
BronzeThird place
GreenOther points position
Blue Other classified position
Not classified, finished (NC)
PurpleNot classified, retired (Ret)
Red Did not qualify (DNQ)
Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ)
BlackDisqualified (DSQ)
White Did not start (DNS)
Race cancelled (C)
Blank Did not practice (DNP)
Excluded (EX)
Did not arrive (DNA)
Withdrawn (WD)
Did not enter (cell empty)
Text formatting Meaning
Bold Pole position
Italics Fastest lap
  • Italics indicates the fastest lap (1 point awarded – point shared equally between drivers sharing fastest lap)
  • Bold indicates pole position
  • † = Car driven by more than one driver

Non-championship races

Other Formula One races were also held in 1955, which did not count towards the World Championship.

Race name Circuit Date Winning driver Constructor Report
Italy VII Gran Premio del Valentino Valentino Park 27 March Italy Alberto Ascari Italy Lancia Report
France XVI Pau Grand Prix Pau 11 April France Jean Behra Italy Maserati Report
United Kingdom III Glover Trophy Goodwood 11 April United Kingdom Roy Salvadori Italy Maserati Report
France IV Grand Prix de Bordeaux Bordeaux 25 April France Jean Behra Italy Maserati Report
United Kingdom VII BRDC International Trophy Silverstone 7 May United Kingdom Peter Collins Italy Maserati Report
Italy VIII Gran Premio di Napoli Posillipo 8 May Italy Alberto Ascari Italy Lancia Report
France XVII Grand Prix d'Albi Albi (Les Planques) 29 May France André Simon Italy Maserati Report
United Kingdom III Curtis Trophy Snetterton 29 May United Kingdom Roy Salvadori Italy Maserati Report
United Kingdom III Cornwall MRC Formula 1 Race Davidstow 30 May United Kingdom Leslie Marr United Kingdom Connaught-Alta Report
United Kingdom III London Trophy Crystal Palace 30 July United Kingdom Mike Hawthorn Italy Maserati Report
United Kingdom III Daily Record Trophy Charterhall 6 August United Kingdom Bob Gerard Italy Maserati Report
United Kingdom III RedeX Trophy Snetterton 13 August United States Harry Schell United Kingdom Vanwall Report
United Kingdom II Daily Telegraph Trophy Aintree 3 September United Kingdom Roy Salvadori Italy Maserati Report
United Kingdom II International Gold Cup Oulton Park 24 September United Kingdom Stirling Moss Italy Maserati Report
United Kingdom I Avon Trophy Castle Combe 1 October United States Harry Schell United Kingdom Vanwall Report
Italy V Gran Premio di Siracusa Syracuse 23 October United Kingdom Tony Brooks United Kingdom Connaught-Alta Report

Notes

  1. The Indianapolis 500 also counted towards the 1955 AAA Championship Car season, and was run for AAA Championship cars, but was not run to Formula One regulations.

References

  1. 1974 FIA Yearbook, Grey Section, Previous FIA Championship winners, page 118
  2. Lang, Mike (1981). Grand Prix! Vol 1. Haynes Publishing Group. p. 82. ISBN 0-85429-276-4.
  3. "Matters of Moment | Motor Sport Magazine Archive". Motor Sport Magazine. 2014-07-07. Retrieved 2019-07-03.
  4. "The Autocar". The Autocar. 1955-04-22. Retrieved 2019-07-03.
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