1951 Italian Grand Prix
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The 1951 Italian Grand Prix was a
Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...
motor race Motorsport, motorsports or motor sport is a global term used to encompass the group of competitive sporting events which primarily involve the use of motorized vehicles. The terminology can also be used to describe forms of competition of two ...
held on 16 September 1951 at
Monza Monza (, ; lmo, label=Lombard language, Lombard, Monça, locally ; lat, Modoetia) is a city and ''comune'' on the River Lambro, a tributary of the Po River, Po in the Lombardy region of Italy, about north-northeast of Milan. It is the capit ...
. It was race 7 of 8 in the 1951 World Championship of Drivers.


Report

Toulo de Graffenried returned to
Alfa Romeo Alfa Romeo Automobiles S.p.A. () is an Italian luxury car manufacturer and a subsidiary of Stellantis. The company was founded on 24 June 1910, in Milan, Italy. "Alfa" is an acronym of its founding name, "Anonima Lombarda Fabbrica Automobili." ...
's four-car line up, in place of
Paul Pietsch Paul Pietsch (20 June 1911 – 31 May 2012) was a racing driver, journalist and publisher from Germany, who founded the magazine '' Das Auto''.Glückwunsch zum 100. Geburtstag - ADAC Motorwelt 6/2012 p12 He was the first German ever to take part in ...
, having raced for
Enrico Platé Enrico Platé (28 January 1909, Milan, Italy – 2 February 1954, Buenos Aires, Argentina) was a motor racing driver and team manager. Although born in Italy, Platé raced, and latterly ran his racing team Scuderia Enrico Platé, under Swiss natio ...
in
France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
and
Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
. He raced alongside the regular Alfa drivers, Fangio, Farina and Bonetto. The works
Ferrari Ferrari S.p.A. (; ) is an Italian luxury sports car manufacturer based in Maranello, Italy. Founded by Enzo Ferrari (1898–1988) in 1939 from the Alfa Romeo racing division as ''Auto Avio Costruzioni'', the company built its first car in ...
team retained the same four drivers from the race at the Nürburgring — Ascari, Villoresi, González and Taruffi — while Brazilian
Chico Landi Francisco Sacco Landi (July 14, 1907 – June 7, 1989), better known as Chico, was a racing driver from São Paulo, Brazil. He participated in six Formula One World Championship ''Grands Prix'', debuting on September 16, 1951. He scored a t ...
made his World Championship debut in a privately run Ferrari. The field was completed by works teams from
BRM British Racing Motors (BRM) was a British Formula One motor racing team. Founded in 1945 and based in the market town of Bourne in Lincolnshire, it participated from 1951 to 1977, competing in 197 grands prix and winning seventeen. BRM wo ...
,
Simca-Gordini Gordini () is a division of Renault Sport Technologies (Renault Sport). In the past, it was a sports car manufacturer and performance tuner, established in 1946 by Amédée Gordini (1899–1979), nicknamed "Le Sorcier" (The Sorcerer). Gordini be ...
and OSCA, as well as the usual
Talbot-Lago Talbot-Lago was a French automobile manufacturer based in Suresnes, Hauts de Seine, outside Paris. The company was owned and managed by Antonio Lago, an Italian engineer that acquired rights to the Talbot brand name after the demise of Darracq L ...
entries. The front row positions on the grid were shared equally between Alfa Romeo and Ferrari, with Fangio, Farina, Ascari and González posting the four fastest qualifying times. The second row consisted of the remaining works Ferraris of Villoresi and Taruffi, alongside Felice Bonetto. Reg Parnell, in a BRM, was also supposed to be on the second row, but was unable to start due to lubrication problems. Fangio was the initial race leader, having started from pole position, but he soon had to cede the position to Ascari. He retook the lead on lap eight before pitting for a tyre change, which dropped him to fifth. Early retirements for Farina and de Graffenried left José Froilán González in second, behind his teammate Ascari. Fangio attempted to bridge the gap to the Ferraris, but engine problems eliminated his chances. The sole remaining Alfa driver, Nino Farina, who had taken over Bonetto's car on lap 30, inherited third place as a result of Fangio's retirement. He was fast, but fuel leakages meant that he needed to make two further pitstops; he therefore had to settle for third. Alberto Ascari took his second, and Ferrari's third, consecutive Championship race victory, ahead of
British Grand Prix The British Grand Prix is a Grand Prix motor race organised in the United Kingdom by the Royal Automobile Club. First held in 1926, the British Grand Prix has been held annually since 1948 and has been a round of the FIA Formula One World C ...
winner González. The other works Ferraris of Villoresi and Taruffi completed the points positions in what was another successful race for the Scuderia. Ascari's victory took him to within two points of Championship leader Fangio, while González was a further four points behind in third.


Entries

: — Gianni Marzotto withdrew from the event prior to practice : — Ken Richardson qualified the #32 BRM, although he did not start the race.
Hans Stuck Hans Stuck (pronounced ''"shtook"''; sometimes called Hans Stuck von Villiez; 27 December 1900 – 9 February 1978) was a German motor racing driver. Both his son Hans-Joachim Stuck (born 1951) and his grandsons Johannes and Ferdinand Stuck b ...
was also entered in the same car, but he took no part in either qualifying or the race. : — Toulo de Graffenried qualified and drove the race in the #36 Alfa Romeo.
Consalvo Sanesi Consalvo Sanesi (28 March 1911, in Terranuova Bracciolini, Arezzo – 28 July 1998, in Milan) was best known as the Alfa Romeo works' test driver in the period following World War II, but he also competed in races with the Alfa Romeo Tipo 158/159 ...
was also entered in the car, but injury prevented his participation in the Grand Prix. : — Felice Bonetto qualified and drove 29 laps of the race in the #40 Alfa Romeo.
Nino Farina Emilio Giuseppe Farina, also known as Giuseppe Antonio "Nino" Farina, (; 30 October 1906 – 30 June 1966) was an Italian racing driver and first official Formula One World Champion. He gained the title in 1950. He was the Italian Champion in ...
, whose own vehicle had already retired, took over the car for a further 50 laps. : — Maurice Trintignant qualified the #50 Simca-Gordini but was secretly replaced for the race by
Jean Behra Jean Marie Behra (16 February 1921 – 1 August 1959) was a Formula One driver who raced for the Gordini, Maserati, BRM, Ferrari and Porsche teams. Appearance and personality Behra was small in stature, stocky, and weighed 178 pounds.''B ...
.


Classification


Qualifying


Race

;Notes * – Includes 1 point for fastest lap * – Behra secretly replaced the unwell Trintignant for the race. Team principal
Amédée Gordini Amedeo "Amédée" Gordini (23 June 1899 – 25 May 1979) was an Italian-born race car driver and sports car manufacturer in France. Biography Gordini was born in Bazzano, currently part of the Metropolitan City of Bologna in the Emilia-Romagn ...
did not inform the race organizers about the switch as it would have cut the team's starting fee. Behra even wore his compatriot's helmet to disguise the switch.


Shared drive

* Farina (50 laps) took over from Bonetto (29) after Farina's car retired. Points for 3rd position were shared between the drivers (Farina received 1 extra point for setting the fastest race lap).


Championship standings after the race

;Drivers' Championship standings * Note: Only the top five positions are listed. Only the best 4 results counted towards the Championship. Numbers without parentheses are Championship points; numbers in parentheses are total points scored.


References

{{F1GP 50-59
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...
Italian Grand Prix 1951 in Italian motorsport
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...