1952 Formula One Season

1952 Formula One season
Previous	1951
Next	1953
Alberto Ascari, who won his first of two World Drivers' titles in 1952.
Season data
Number of races	8
First race	Swiss Grand Prix May 18
Last race	Italian Grand Prix September 7
Engine suppliers	Küchen, Veritas, Gordini, Ferrari, Alta, Bristol, Maserati, Butterworth, Lea-Francis, BMW, OSCA, BPM
Tyre suppliers	D, P, E, F
Points system	Top-5 finishers: 8-6-4-3-2 Fastest lap: 1 point Best 4 results counted
Drivers' World Championship
Champion	Alberto Ascari 36 points
Runners-up	Giuseppe Farina 24 points
3rd	Piero Taruffi 22 points

The 1952 Formula One Season was the 3rd FIA World Drivers' Championship, which commenced on May 18, 1952, and ended on September 7 after eight races, was won by Alberto Ascari, driving for Scuderia Ferrari who scored the maximum 36 World Championship points for the season.

In comparison to previous seasons, the 1952 Formula One season consisted of a relatively small number of Formula One races, following the FIA's decision to run the World Drivers' Championship to Formula Two regulations rather than Formula One.

In addition to the Formula One races and the World Championship Formula Two races, numerous other Formula Two races, which did not count towards the Championship, were also held during the year.

Formula One saw the first fatality since its formation. Cameron Earl was killed after his car overturned while he was testing as an English Racing Automobiles team technical consultant.

World Championship season summary

Alfa Romeo, unable to fund a new car, withdrew from racing, leaving Ferrari as the only serious Formula 1 contender. This led organizers to run their races for Formula 2, for 2 litre unsupercharged engines, which meant larger fields and a greater variety of cars, even if the victories all went to Ferrari. Ascari won the six grand prix he entered, missing the Swiss because he was at Indianapolis qualifying. Maserati and Gordini offered little challenge, but Mike Hawthorn's drives in his Cooper would earn him a works Ferrari drive in 1953. Fangio, badly injured in an early season crash, took no part in the championship.

Points were given to top 5 finishers (8, 6, 4, 3, 2). 1 point was given for fastest lap. Only the best four of eight scores counted towards the world championship. Points for shared drives were divided equally between the drivers, regardless of who had driven more laps. In 1952, all World Championship events were run under Formula 2 regulations.

World Championship season review

Round	Event				Report
	Grid		Result

Teams and Drivers

The following teams and drivers competed in the 1952 FIA World Championship.

1952 Driver line-ups

Entrant	Constructor	Chassis	Engine	Tyre	Driver
Scuderia Ferrari	Ferrari	Ferrari 500	Ferrari 2.0 L4	P	Giuseppe Farina
					Piero Taruffi
					André Simon
					Alberto Ascari
					Luigi Villoresi
Equipe Gordini	Gordini	Gordini 16	Gordini 2.0 L6	E	Robert Manzon
					Jean Behra
					B. Bira
					Maurice Trintignant
Hersham & Walton Motors	HWM	HWM 52	Alta 2.0 L4	D	Lance Macklin
					Peter Collins
					George Abecassis
					Stirling Moss
					Roger Laurent
					Yves Giraud-Cabantous
					Duncan Hamilton
					Johnny Claes
					Dries van der Lof
		HWM 51/52			Paul Frère
Escuderia Bandeirantes	Maserati	Maserati A6GCM	Maserati 2.0 L6	P	Philippe Étancelin
					Gino Bianco
					Eitel Cantoni
					Chico Landi
					Jan Flinterman
Ecurie Espadon	Ferrari	Ferrari 500	Ferrari 2.0 L4	P	Rudi Fischer
		Ferrari 212	Ferrari 2.0 V12
					Peter Hirt
					Rudolf Schoeller
Ecurie Richmond	Cooper	Cooper T20	Bristol 2.0 L6	D	Alan Brown
					Eric Brandon
Connaught Engineering	Connaught	Connaught Type A	Lea Francis 2.0 L4	D	Kenneth McAlpine
					Dennis Poore
					Ken Downing
					Eric Thompson
					Stirling Moss
Enrico Platé	Maserati	Maserati 4CLT/48 Platé	Maserati Platé 2.0 L4	P	Toulo de Graffenried
					Harry Schell
LD Hawthorn	Cooper	Cooper T20	Bristol 2.0 L6	D	Mike Hawthorn
Equipe Simca-Gordini	Simca-Gordini	Simca-Gordini 15	Gordini 1.5 L4	E	B. Bira
					Maurice Trintignant
		Simca-Gordini 16S	Gordini 2.0 L6		Johnny Claes
Ecurie Rosier	Ferrari	Ferrari 500	Ferrari 2.0 L4	D	Louis Rosier
Officine Alfieri Maserati	Maserati	Maserati A6GCM	Maserati 2.0 L6	P	Felice Bonetto
					Franco Rol
					José Froilán González
Peter Whitehead	Ferrari	Ferrari 125/F2	Ferrari 2.0 V12	D	Peter Whitehead
	Alta	Alta F2	Alta 2.0 L4
					Graham Whitehead
English Racing Automobiles	ERA	ERA G Type	Bristol 2.0 L6	D	Stirling Moss
Ecurie Belge	Simca-Gordini	Simca-Gordini 15	Gordini 1.5 L4	E	Johnny Claes
					Paul Frère
Scuderia Franera	Frazer-Nash	Frazer-Nash FN48	Bristol 2.0 L6	D	Ken Wharton
Ecurie Francorchamps	Ferrari	Ferrari 500	Ferrari 2.0 L4	E	Charles de Tornaco
					Roger Laurent
Tony Gaze	HWM	HWM 52	Alta 2.0 L4	D	Tony Gaze
Scuderia Marzotto	Ferrari	Ferrari 166/F2	Ferrari 2.0 V12	P	Piero Carini
					Franco Comotti
Toni Ulmen	Veritas	Veritas-Meteor	Veritas 2.0 L6	D	Toni Ulmen
Ecurie Ecosse	Cooper	Cooper T20	Bristol 2.0 L6	D	David Murray
					Ken Wharton
AHM Bryde	Cooper	Cooper T20	Bristol 2.0 L6	D	Mike Hawthorn
					Reg Parnell
WS Aston	Aston	Aston NB41	Butterworth 2.0 F4	D	Bill Aston
					Robin Montgomerie-Charrington
Alex von Falkenhausen Motorenbau	AFM	AFM	Kuchen 2.0 V8	E	Hans Stuck
G Caprara	Ferrari	Ferrari 500	Ferrari 2.0 L4	D	Roy Salvadori
Ken Downing	Connaught	Connaught Type A	Lea Francis 2.0 L4	D	Ken Downing
Tony Crook	Frazer-Nash	Frazer-Nash 421	BMW 2.0 L6	D	Tony Crook
Élie Bayol	OSCA	OSCA 20	OSCA 2.0 L6	P	Élie Bayol
Arthur Legat	Veritas	Veritas Meteor	Veritas 2.0 L6	E	Arthur Legat
Robert O' Brien	Simca-Gordini	Simca-Gordini 15	Gordini 1.5 L4	E	Robert O' Brien
Alfred Dattner	Simca-Gordini	Simca-Gordini 11	Gordini 1.5 L4	E	Max de Terra
Marcel Balsa	BMW	BMW Special	BMW 2.0 L6	?	Marcel Balsa
Fritz Riess	Veritas	Veritas RS	Veritas 2.0 L6	?	Fritz Riess
Theo Helfrich	Veritas	Veritas RS	Veritas 2.0 L6	?	Theo Helfrich
Willi Heeks	AFM	AFM 8	BMW 2.0 L6	?	Willi Heeks
Helmut Niedermayr	AFM	AFM 6	BMW 2.0 L6	?	Helmut Niedermayr
Adolf Brudes	Veritas	Veritas RS	Veritas 2.0 L6	?	Adolf Brudes
Motor-Presse-Verlag	Veritas	Veritas Meteor	Veritas 2.0 L6	?	Paul Pietsch
Hans Klenk	Veritas	Veritas RS	Veritas 2.0 L6	?	Hans Klenk
Josef Peters	Veritas	Veritas RS	Veritas 2.0 L6	?	Josef Peters
Günther Bechem	BMW	BMW Special	BMW 2.0 L6	?	Günther Bechem
Ernst Klodwig	Heck	Heck	BMW 2.0 L6	?	Ernst Klodwig
Rudolf Krause	Greifzu	Greifzu	BMW 2.0 L6	?	Rudolf Krause

1952 Drivers Championship final standings

Pos. Driver SUI 500 BEL FRA GBR GER NED ITA Pts. 1 Alberto Ascari Ret 1* 1* 1* 1* 1* 1** 36 (53.5) 2 Nino Farina Ret / Ret† 2 2 6 2 2 4 24 (27) 3 Piero Taruffi 1* Ret 3 2 4 7 22 4 Rudi Fischer 2 11† 13 3 Ret 10 5 Mike Hawthorn 4 Ret 3 4 Ret 10 6 Robert Manzon Ret 3 4 Ret Ret 5 14 9 7 Troy Ruttman 1 8 8 Luigi Villoresi 3 3 8 9 José Froilán González 2** 6.5 10 Jim Rathmann 2 6 11 Jean Behra 3 Ret 7 5 Ret Ret 6 12 Sam Hanks 3 4 13 Ken Wharton 4 Ret Ret 9 3 14 Dennis Poore 4 12 3 15 Duane Carter 4 3 16 Alan Brown 5 6 22 15 2 17 Maurice Trintignant 5 Ret Ret 6 Ret 2 18 Paul Frère 5 Ret Ret 2 19 Felice Bonetto Ret 5 2 20 Art Cross 5 2 21 Eric Thompson 5 2 22 Bill Vukovich 17* 1 23 Roger Laurent 12 6 0 24 Toulo de Graffenried 6 Ret† 19 DNQ 0 25 Peter Collins Ret Ret 6 Ret DNQ 0 26 André Simon Ret† 6 0 27 Jimmy Bryan 6 0 28 Peter Hirt 7 11† 0 29 Charles de Tornaco 7 Ret DNQ 0 30 Duncan Hamilton Ret 7 0 31 Jimmy Reece 7 0 32 Reg Parnell 7 0 33 Fritz Riess 7 0 34 Lance Macklin WD 11 9 15 8 DNQ 0 35 Eric Brandon 8 9 20 13 0 36 Chico Landi 9† 8 0 37 Johnny Claes 8 Ret 14 10 DNQ 0 38 Toni Ulmen Ret 8 0 39 George Connor 8 0 40 Philippe Étancelin 8 0 41 Roy Salvadori 8 0 42 Ken Downing 9 Ret 0 43 Cliff Griffith 9 0 44 Helmut Niedermayr 9 0 45 Jan Flinterman 9† 0 46 Prince Bira Ret 10 Ret 11 0 47 Louis Rosier Ret Ret Ret 10 0 48 Peter Whitehead Ret 10 DNQ 0 49 Johnnie Parsons 10 0 50 Yves Giraud Cabantous 10 0 51 Eitel Cantoni Ret Ret 11 0 52 Jack McGrath 11 0 53 Hans Klenk 11 0 54 Jim Rigsby 12 0 55 Franco Comotti 12 0 56 Graham Whitehead 12 0 57 Ernst Klodwig 12 0 58 Joe James 13 0 59 Bill Schindler 14 0 60 Robert O'Brien 14 0 61 Tony Gaze 15 Ret Ret DNQ 0 62 George Fonder 15 0 63 Kenneth McAlpine 16 Ret 0 64 Eddie Johnson 16 0 65 Harry Schell Ret Ret† 17 0 66 Gino Bianco 18 Ret Ret Ret 0 67 Chuck Stevenson 18 0 68 Henry Banks 19 0 69 Manny Ayulo 20 0 70 Johnny McDowell 21 0 71 Tony Crook 21 0 — Stirling Moss WD Ret Ret Ret Ret 0 — Piero Carini Ret Ret 0 — Bill Aston DNS Ret DNQ 0 — Hans Stuck Ret DNQ 0 — George Abecassis Ret 0 — Max de Terra Ret 0 — Spider Webb Ret 0 — Rodger Ward Ret 0 — Tony Bettenhausen Ret 0 — Duke Nalon Ret 0 — Fred Agabashian Ret 0 — Bob Sweikert Ret 0 — Gene Hartley Ret 0 — Bob Scott Ret 0 — Chet Miller Ret 0 — Bobby Ball Ret 0 — Andy Linden Ret 0 — Robin Montgomerie-Charrington Ret 0 — David Murray Ret 0 — Willi Heeks Ret 0 — Adolf Brudes Ret 0 — Marcel Balsa Ret 0 — Günther Bechem Ret 0 — Rudolf Krause Ret 0 — Rudolf Schoeller Ret 0 — Paul Pietsch Ret 0 — Theo Helfrich Ret 0 — Josef Peters Ret 0 — Dries van der Lof Ret 0 — Franco Rol Ret 0 — Élie Bayol Ret 0 — Alberto Crespo DNQ 0 — Piero Dusio DNQ 0 Pos. Driver SUI 500 BEL FRA GBR GER NED ITA Pts.

• * Fastest lap (1 point awarded)
• ** Multiple drivers set equal fastest lap times, thus sharing the 1 point.
• † Position shared between more drivers of the same car
• Only the best 4 results counted towards the Championship. Numbers without parentheses are Championship points; numbers in parentheses are total points scored.

Non-Championship race results

Formula One/Two Grand Prix races, which did not count towards the World Championship, also held in 1952.

Race Name	Circuit	Date	Winning driver	Constructor	Report
XI Grande Prémio da Cidade de Rio de Janeiro	Gávea	January 20	José Froilán González	Ferrari	Report
II Gran Premio di Siracusa	Syracuse	March 16	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari	Report
VI Gran Premio del Valentino	Valentino Park	April 6	Luigi Villoresi	Ferrari	Report
IV Richmond Trophy	Goodwood	April 14	José Froilán González	Ferrari	Report
IV Lavant Cup	Goodwood	April 14	Mike Hawthorn	Cooper-Bristol	Report
XIII Grand Prix de Pau	Pau	April 14	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari	Report
I Ibsley Grand Prix	Ringwood	April 19	Mike Hawthorn	Cooper-Bristol	Report
X Grand Prix de Marseille	Marseille	April 27	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari	Report
IV BRDC International Trophy	Silverstone	May 10	Lance Macklin	HWM-Alta	Report
XIV Eläintarhanajot	Eläintarharata	May 11	Roger Laurent	Talbot-Lago	Report
V Gran Premio di Napoli	Posillipo	May 11	Giuseppe Farina	Ferrari	Report
XVI Internationales ADAC Eifelrennen	Nürburgring	May 25	Rudi Fischer	Ferrari	Report
VI Grand Prix de Paris	Montlhéry	May 25	Piero Taruffi	Ferrari	Report
XIV Grand Prix de l'Albigeois	Albi	June 1	Louis Rosier	Ferrari	Report
XXII Grand Prix des Frontières	Chimay	June 1	Paul Frère	HWM-Alta	Report
VI Ulster Trophy	Dundrod	June 7	Piero Taruffi	Ferrari	Report
V Gran Premio dell'Autodromo di Monza	Monza	June 8	Giuseppe Farina	Ferrari	Report
IV Aix les Bains Circuit du Lac	Aix-les-Bains	June 8	Jean Behra	Gordini	Report
I West Essex CC Race	Boreham	June 21	Reg Parnell	Cooper-Bristol	Report
XX Grand Prix de la Marne	Reims	June 29	Jean Behra	Gordini	Report
II Grand Prix de Sables d'Olonne	Sables	July 13	Luigi Villoresi	Ferrari	Report
I Grand Prix de Caen	Caen	July 27	Maurice Trintignant	Gordini	Report
II Daily Mail Trophy	Boreham	August 2	Luigi Villoresi	Ferrari	Report
XVI Grand Prix de Comminges	Comminges	August 10	André Simon	Ferrari	Report
I National Trophy	Turnberry	August 23	Mike Hawthorn	Connaught	Report
XI Grand Prix de la Baule	La Baule	August 24	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari	Report
III Gran Premio di Modena	Modena	September 14	Luigi Villoresi	Ferrari	Report
IV Circuit de Cadours	Cadours	September 14	Louis Rosier	Ferrari	Report
V Madgwick Cup	Goodwood	September 27	Ken Downing	Connaught	Report
VIII Internationales Avusrennen	AVUS	September 28	Rudi Fischer	Ferrari	Report
Joe Fry Memorial Trophy	Castle Combe	October 4	Roy Salvadori	Ferrari	Report
I Newcastle Journal Trophy	Charterhall	October 11	Dennis Poore	Connaught	Report
XII Grande Prémio da Cidade de Rio de Janeiro	Gávea	December 14	Henrique Casini	Ferrari	Report

See Also

• List of fatal accidents

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