Presentation of 1952 season

The 1951 season was marked by a grandiose struggle for the title between two Italian teams Alfa Romeo and Ferrari, the winner of which was the team from Milan. But despite this success, Alfa Romeo's management soberly assessed the situation and understood that the champion model 159 had reached the limit of development and the new season could not be won with it. Therefore, the chief designer of the team, Gioachino Colombo, began to develop a new model 160 at the end of 1951, but it was never destined to go to the start of the World Championship. The development and production of a new car required serious financial costs, and after weighing all the pros and cons, Alfa Romeo management decided to quit Formula 1, preferring to leave undefeated.

This decision thundered like a bolt from the blue for the whole Formula 1 world and put the International Automobile Federation in a difficult position. With the departure of Alfa Romeo, only two teams with full-fledged Formula 1 cars remained in the championship: Ferrari and BRM. At the same time, the English team was experiencing serious problems with the reliability of their car and did not plan to take part in all the races in 1952, so the new season threatened to turn into a theater of one actor in a red vestment. This arrangement clearly did not suit either the organizers of the races or the spectators, and could bury the newly formed World Championship, so the FIA made an unprecedented decision to conduct championship races according to the technical regulations of Formula 2. Cars with 2-liter naturally aspirated engines corresponded to this regulation, and competition in this class was quite high. The scoring system remained unchanged: 8-6-4-3-2, the results of the 4 best Grand Prix were counted, while the drivers of the same team had the right to change cars during the race, dividing the points among themselves. The championship calendar included the Grand Prix of Switzerland, Belgium, France, Great Britain, Germany, Netherlands and Italy.

Teams

Scuderia Ferrari

Last season was a turning point for Ferrari: the team won the long-awaited first victory in the World Championship at Silverstone and after two more victories in Germany and Italy seriously claimed the championship title. And despite the fact that the Maranello team did not manage to try on the championship crown, their progress was so impressive that Alfa Romeo could not stand the competition and left Formula 1, forcing the FIA to introduce Formula 2 technical regulations for the World Championship. However, Scuderia had previously achieved considerable success in this class, so it was considered the favorite of the upcoming championship, especially since the chief designer Aurelio Lampredi developed a new Ferrari 500 Formula 2 car for the new season. This car was equipped with an inline 4-cylinder 2-liter engine with a power of 185 hp, which was located behind the front axle to improve weight distribution. In addition, Nello Ugolini, with whom Enzo Ferrari worked back in the 1930s at Alfa Romeo, was appointed the new head of the racing team. There were also some changes in the line-up of the drivers: Jose-Froilan Gonzalez left Ferrari and joined Maserati, deciding to follow his mentor Fangio, and Enzo Ferrari invited the 1950 world champion Giuseppe Farina to take his place, who became the teammate of Alberto Ascari, Luigi Villoresi and Piero Taruffi.

Ferrari 500

34-year-old Italian, vice-champion in 1951, son of the famous 1920s racer Antonio Ascari, who tragically died in the Grand Prix races in 1925. Last season, Alberto won his first victories in World Championship and seriously fought with Fangio for the championship title, but eventually lost to the Argentine, taking 2nd place in the championship. This season Ferrari was clearly the favorite and Alberto had the best chance for the title, but he also got a new partner in the person of the 1950 world champion, Giuseppe Farina, who could challenge his leadership in the team.

Alberto Ascari

45-year-old Italian nicknamed "Nino", the first Formula 1 world champion. The last championship was extremely unsuccessful for Nino: he was constantly plagued by mechanical problems and he regularly lost to his partner Fangio, eventually taking only 4th place in the championship. After such an unsuccessful season, the Italian intended to change the team, and the departure of Alfa Romeo from Formula 1 only strengthened him in this decision. Ferrari seemed to be the most worthy option for the Italian, so he accepted Enzo Ferrari's offer, even though their previous collaboration in the post-war years ended in a quarrel. Anyway, this season Nino has a real opportunity to compete for the championship title again.

Giuseppe Farina

43-year-old Italian, nicknamed "Gi-Gi", friend and mentor of Alberto Ascari, one of the best racers of the post-war period. The past season was more or less successful for Luigi: the Italian finished on the podium three times, taking 5th place in the overall standings, won the non-championship Grand Prix of Pau and Syracuse, and also managed to finish first in the Mille Miglia race. But it was also obvious that Luigi was inferior in speed to his young teammates Ascari and Gonzalez and was no longer the leading Ferrari driver. Nevertheless, the Commendatore was satisfied with the Italian's performances and extended his contract for the next season, but at the beginning of 1952, Gi-Gi got into a road accident and received several fractures, which called into question his participation in the coming championship.

Luigi Villoresi

45-year-old Italian, a very successful motorcycle racer of the pre-war period, who later became an equally successful racing driver. Piero started last season with a great 2nd place in the rain race in Switzerland, but in the rest of the races the Italian did not shine and took only 6th place in the championship. Staying at Ferrari, Taruffi got the best car of the championship at his disposal, so he had every chance to win his first victory in World Championship.

Pierro Taruffi

Officine Alfieri Maserati

The Italian team, which left Formula 1 at the end of 1950 after a frankly weak season, decided to return to the World Championship, seeing in the new technical regulations a good opportunity to rehabilitate itself. At the same time, the technical staff of the team was strengthened by the Italian designer Gioacchino Colombo, who was left without a job after Alfa Romeo's unexpected departure from Formula 1. The Italian was appointed to refine the existing Formula 2 A6GCM car, developed in 1951 by the technical director of the team, Alberto Massimino. This car was equipped with an inline 6-cylinder 2-liter engine, the power of which Colombo managed to raise from 160 to 180 hp. But by the beginning of the season, the upgraded car was not ready yet, so the team planned to skip the first races of the championship. The team's drivers became Argentines Juan-Manuel Fangio and Jose-Froilan Gonzalez.

Maserati A6GCM

41-year-old Argentine, 1951 Formula-1 world champion. Last season, Juan Manuel became the strongest driver of the championship, winning three Grands Prix and bringing Alfa Romeo the second championship title. The departure of the Milan team from Formula 1 was a complete surprise for Juan Manuel, since the Argentine expected to continue cooperation with Alfa Romeo and did not consider other options. Therefore, when BRM offered the world champion a contract to compete in Formula 1 in 1952, the Argentine agreed and joined the English team. But since BRM did not have its own Formula 2 car, the Argentine also accepted Maserati's invitation to be able to compete in the World Championship. Given that the Italian team planned to skip the first races of the season, Juan Manuel could hardly expect a repeat of last year's success.

Juan-Manuel Fangio

29-year-old Argentine, nicknamed the "Bull of Pampas" for his obesity, the bronze prizewinner of the 1951 championship, Jose-Froilan became the main discovery of the past season, unexpectedly getting a place in Ferrari during the illness of Piero Taruffi. The Argentine not only brought the team from Maranello the first victory in Formula 1, but managed to finish on the podium in all races of the season and naturally took 3rd place in the championship, behind Fangio and Ascari. And despite the fact that Enzo Ferrari wanted to extend the Argentine's contract, Jose-Froilan could not refuse his friend and mentor Fangio and followed him to the team from Modena.

Jose-Froilan Gonzalez

Equipe Gordini

Last season was not very successful for Amadeus Gordini's team. Despite the pretty good speed, the Simca-Gordini cars went down too often due to engine failures, and as a result, the team finished the season without points, and its best place at the finish was 6th place in Italy. In addition, at the end of the year Equipe Gordini lost the support of Simca, and the name of the French concern disappeared from the name of the team's cars. But at the beginning of 1952 fate presented the team with an unexpected gift – the transition of the World Championship to the technical regulations of Formula 2, in which Equipe Gordini had traditionally been strong. Seeing this as a great chance to make himself known, Amadeus Gordini has prepared a new Formula 2 car Gordini T16 for the new season. This car was a development of the previous T15 model, but was equipped with a new inline 6-cylinder 2-liter engine with a power of 155 hp. Maurice Trintignant and Robert Manzon became the drivers of the team again, and in place of Andre Simon, who left for Ferrari, Amadeus Gordini took Jean Behra, a Frenchman who successfully competed for his team in Formula 2, as well as the Siamese Prince Bira.

Gordini T16

35-year-old Frenchman, a very successful driver of the post-war period. Alfa Romeo and Ferrari were invincible last season, so Robert failed to score points, and his best finish was 7th place in Germany. Nevertheless, the Frenchman hoped that the new Formula 2 car would be more competitive and allow him to fight with the leaders on equal terms.

Robert Manzon

34-year-old Frenchman, also a very successful driver of the post-war period. Last season was for Maurice a repeat of the first season in Formula 1: he did not reach the finish line in any race for technical reasons, and in non-championship races he shone, winning the Grand Prix of Albi and Cadur. However, the failures in the main races of the World Championship did not discourage the Frenchman, and he continued to cooperate with Gordini, hoping that the new Formula 2 car would be more reliable.

Maurice Trintignant

31-year-old Frenchman, debutant of the World Championship. Starting his racing career with two wheels, Jean quickly achieved success and became a three-time French motorcycle racing champion. In 1949 Jean changed two wheels to four and after several races he came to the attention of Amadeus Gordini, who invited him to compete in 1951 for his team in Formula 2. Having managed to get on the podium twice, Jean did not disappoint the "Sorcerer" and, having extended his contract with the team, in 1952 he got the opportunity to make his debut in the World Championship.

Jean Behra

Prince Bira

38-year-old grandson of the King of Siam, who took 6th place in the 1950 World Championship. The last season turned out to be a failure for the Siamese prince. Having signed a contract with BRM in early 1951, prince did not wait for the team's debut and left the British project, never going to the start of the World Championship Grand Prix behind the wheel of an English car. Not having much choice, prince decided to join the OSCA team, but even there he preferred to give up performances because the Italian car turned out to be too slow. Therefore, in the 1951 season prince has held only one Grand Prix, having competed in the last race in Spain at the wheel of a private Maserati with an OSCA engine. Having shown the penultimate place in qualifying, Bira came off due to an engine failure at the very beginning of the race, and thus his season was over. Having received an offer from Amadeus Gordini, the prince hoped that the transition to the French team would stop a series of failures and allow him to perform at a high level again.

HW Motors

A small British team founded by drivers George Abecassis and John Heath, in 1950 took part in Formula 2 races for the first time and, despite an extremely limited budget, looked very worthy. In 1951, Abecassis ventured to exhibit his cars at the Swiss Formula 1 Grand Prix, and Stirling Moss managed to surprise everyone by finishing 8th ahead of many rivals in more powerful cars. Nevertheless, the team did not participate in the rest of the season's races, as Abecassis and Heath decided not to disperse and focus on Formula 2 races, where they again achieved success. In 1952 the transition of the World Championship to the technical regulations of Formula 2 took place, which prompted the team to fully participate in the championship. For this purpose, John Heath developed a new car HWM 52, which was equipped with an Alta engine and developed a power of 150 hp. The team's drivers were Stirling Moss, Peter Collins and Lance Macklin.

HWM 52

22-year-old Englishman, a rising star of British motorsport. Having started racing in 1947 at the age of 18, Stirling achieved his first success in 1950, winning the Tourist Trophy race. Last season, the Englishman very successfully competed for HWM in Formula 2 races, and also made his debut in the World Championship at the Swiss Grand Prix, where he showed his class, demonstrating a great drive and taking 8th place at the finish. This year Stirling continued to cooperate with HWM, having the opportunity to host the first full season of the World Championship.

Stirling Moss

20-year-old Englishman, debutant of the World Championship. Having started his racing career in 1948, Peter quickly showed his talent and already in 1951 won two races of the British Formula 3 championship. These successes did not go unnoticed, and in 1952 the chiefs of HWM offered Peter a place in their Formula 2 team, giving the young Englishman the opportunity to make his debut in the World Championship.

Peter Collins

32-year-old Englishman, debutant of the World Championship. In 1950, Lance joined the HWM team to participate in junior Formulas and quickly established himself, climbing the podium several times. In 1951, the Englishman continued to cooperate with the team, and also managed to finish 3rd in the "24 Hours of Le Mans" race, driving an Aston Martin. In 1952, continuing his collaboration with HWM, Lance got the opportunity to make his debut in the World Championship.

Lance Macklin

Enrico Plate

Swiss private team created by former mechanic and driver Enrico Plate. The past season was unsuccessful for Enrico Plate, and the team did not score a single point, which is not surprising, since Maserati 4CLT/48 cars were used in the Grand Prix, which were quite outdated. In addition, the leading Enrico Plate drivers took part in only a few Grands Prix: Louis Chiron left the team after the first race, and Tulo de Graffenried competed for Alfa Romeo at the same time and preferred the Milan team. For the new season, due to the transition of the technical regulations to Formula 2, Enrico Plate modified the old car by putting an inline 4-cylinder 2-liter engine on it. The team's drivers were again Tulo de Graffenried and Harry Schell.

38-year-old Swiss aristocrat from an ancient family, a very successful racer of the post-war period. Last season was more or less successful for Tulo, as Baron got a place as a reserve driver in Alfa Romeo and managed to earn his first two points in Formula 1, finishing 5th in his native Switzerland. On the other hand, the Swiss spent only two races for his main team Enrico Plate, and both to no avail. This season Tulo continued to cooperate with the team, hoping that the Formula 2 car will be more competitive than its predecessor.

Baron Emmanuel Tulo de Graffenried

30-year-old American who became a professional racing driver after the war. In 1950, Harry made his debut in Formula 1, having spent two races driving his own Cooper and Talbot-Lago cars and managed to finish 8th in Switzerland. Last season, Harry joined Enrico Plate, but took part in only two Grands Prix and did not show himself in any way. Nevertheless, Enrico believed in the American's talent and entrusted him with the place of the second driver in the new season.

Harry Schell

Private drivers

46-year-old Frenchman, who took 4th place in the 1950 World Championship. Last season, Alfa Romeo and Ferrari were completely superior to all rivals, and Louis on his Talbot-Lago had only to fight for places behind the two Italian teams. Nevertheless, the Frenchman managed to score points once, finishing 4th in Belgium. After changing the technical regulations, Louis had to put his Talbot-Lago in the garage, however, by purchasing a new Ferrari 500, he could count on a successful season again.

Louis Rosier

40-year-old Swiss, an amateur racer who competed for his own Ecurie Espadon team. Last season, Rudi bought a Ferrari 212 sports car and took part in two World Championship Grands Prix, managing to take 6th place in Germany. In non-championship races, the Swiss achieved even greater success, climbing the podium several times, and also won several Formula 2 races. To participate in the 1952 World Championship, Rudy purchased a new Ferrari 500, which gave him a good chance to perform successfully in the new season.

Rudi Fischer

23-year-old Englishman, debutant of the World Championship. Having started his racing career in 1950 with sports car racing, Mike achieved his first success a year later, winning competitions at Goodwood. Among the other drivers, he always stood out by the fact that he went to the start of each race as a holiday, in a snow-white shirt and bow tie. This year Mike decided to try himself driving a single-seater car and with the help of a family friend, he purchased a Cooper T20, the first Formula 2 car designed by Charles Cooper. In this car, Mike will make his debut in the World Championship and prove his talent in a fight with the best drivers in Europe.

Mike Hawthorn

Cooper T20

32-year-old Englishman, debutant of the World Championship, known for his performances in 500 cc car races. In 1951, Alan, driving a Formula 3 Cooper, was able to win the Luxembourg Grand Prix, and this season he decided, together with his friend Eric Brandon, to make his debut in the World Championship driving a new Cooper T20.

Alan Brown

32-year-old Englishman, a friend of Alan Brown, who also successfully competed in 500 cc car races. In 1952, Eric, using his connections with John Cooper, acquired a new Cooper T20 and, together with Alan Brown, created the Ecurie Richmond team to participate in the World Championship together.

Eric Brandon