The 1955 Formula One season was the sixth season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It featured the 1955 World Championship of Drivers,[1] which commenced on January 16, 1955 and ended on September 11 after seven races. Juan Manuel Fangio won his second consecutive World Championship title in a season that was curtailed by tragedies.
The season also included a number of non-championship Formula One races.
Season summary[]
Mercedes drivers again dominated the championship, with Fangio taking four races, and his new team mate Stirling Moss 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, was cancelled first. Then the German event at the Nürburgring, the Swiss round at Bremgarten and the Spanish round at Pedralbes followed suit. Pedralbes and Bremgarten were then abandoned and never used again for racing; motor racing was banned altogether in Switzerland and since then, the ban remains. These cancellations effectively handed the driver's title to Fangio after he finished 2nd to Moss at the British Grand Prix; although he wasn't actually 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.
1955 would be the final season 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.
Season review[]
Rnd | Race | Circuit | Date | Pole position | Fastest lap | Winning driver | Constructor | Tyre | Report |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Argentine Grand Prix | Oscar Gálvez | January 16 | José Froilán González | Juan Manuel Fangio | Juan Manuel Fangio | Mercedes | C | Report |
2 | Monaco Grand Prix | Monaco | May 22 | Juan Manuel Fangio | Juan Manuel Fangio | Maurice Trintignant | Ferrari | E | Report |
3 | Indianapolis 500 | Indianapolis | May 30 | Jerry Hoyt | Bill Vukovich | Bob Sweikert | Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser | F | Report |
4 | Belgian Grand Prix | Spa- Francorchamps |
June 5 | Eugenio Castellotti | Juan Manuel Fangio | Juan Manuel Fangio | Mercedes | C | Report |
5 | Dutch Grand Prix | Zandvoort | June 19 | Juan Manuel Fangio | Roberto Mieres | Juan Manuel Fangio | Mercedes | C | Report |
6 | British Grand Prix | Aintree | July 16 | Stirling Moss | Stirling Moss | Stirling Moss | Mercedes | C | Report |
7 | Italian Grand Prix | Monza | September 11 | Juan Manuel Fangio | Stirling Moss | Juan Manuel Fangio | Mercedes | C | Report |
Cancelled races[]
Race | Circuit | Date | Report |
---|---|---|---|
French Grand Prix | Reims | July 3 | Report |
German Grand Prix | Nürburgring | July 31 | Report |
Swiss Grand Prix | Circuit Bremgarten | August 21 | Report |
Spanish Grand Prix | Pedralbes | October 23 | Report |
Teams and drivers[]
The following teams and drivers competed in the 1955 FIA World Championship.
1955 Drivers Championship final standings[]
|
- Italics indicate fastest lap (1 point awarded – point shared equally between drivers sharing fastest lap)
- Bold indicates pole position
- † = Car driven by more than one driver
- 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 fastest race lap at each race.
- Only the best 5 results counted towards the Championship. Numbers without parentheses are Championship points; numbers in parentheses are total points scored.
Non-Championship race results[]
Other Formula One races also held in 1955, which did not count towards the World Championship.
Race Name | Circuit | Date | Winning driver | Constructor | Report |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Gran Premio Ciudad de Buenos Aires | Buenos Aires | January 30 | Juan Manuel Fangio | Mercedes | Report |
VII Gran Premio del Valentino | Valentino Park | March 27 | Alberto Ascari | Lancia | Report |
XVI Pau Grand Prix | Pau | April 11 | Jean Behra | Maserati | Report |
III Glover Trophy | Goodwood | April 11 | Roy Salvadori | Maserati | Report |
IV Grand Prix de Bordeaux | Bordeaux | April 25 | Jean Behra | Maserati | Report |
VII BRDC International Trophy | Silverstone | May 7 | Peter Collins | Maserati | Report |
VIII Gran Premio di Napoli | Posillipo | May 8 | Alberto Ascari | Lancia | Report |
XVII Grand Prix d'Albi | Albi | May 29 | André Simon | Maserati | Report |
III Curtis Trophy | Snetteron | May 29 | Roy Salvadori | Maserati | Report |
III Cornwall MRC Formula 1 Race | Davidstow | May 30 | Leslie Marr | Connaught-Alta | Report |
III London Trophy | Crystal Palace | July 30 | Mike Hawthorn | Maserati | Report |
III Daily Record Trophy | Charterhall | August 6 | Bob Gerard | Maserati | Report |
III RedeX Trophy | Snetterton | August 13 | Harry Schell | Vanwall | Report |
II Daily Telegraph Trophy | Aintree | September 3 | Roy Salvadori | Maserati | Report |
II International Gold Cup | Oulton Park | September 24 | Stirling Moss | Maserati | Report |
I Avon Trophy | Castle Combe | October 1 | Harry Schell | Vanwall | Report |
V Gran Premio di Siracusa | Syracuse | October 23 | Tony Brooks | Connaught-Alta | Report |
Notes[]
See Also[]
V T E | Formula One Seasons | |
---|---|---|
1950 • 1951 • 1952 • 1953 • 1954 • 1955 • 1956 • 1957 • 1958 • 1959 • 1960 • 1961 • 1962 • 1963 • 1964 • 1965 • 1966 • 1967 • 1968 • 1969 • 1970 • 1971 • 1972 • 1973 • 1974 • 1975 • 1976 • 1977 • 1978 • 1979 • 1980 • 1981 • 1982 • 1983 • 1984 • 1985 • 1986 • 1987 • 1988 • 1989 • 1990 • 1991 • 1992 • 1993 • 1994 • 1995 • 1996 • 1997 • 1998 • 1999 • 2000 • 2001 • 2002 • 2003 • 2004 • 2005 • 2006 • 2007 • 2008 • 2009 • 2010 • 2011 • 2012 • 2013 • 2014 • 2015 • 2016 • 2017 • 2018 • 2019 • 2020 • 2021 • 2022 • 2023 • 2024 • 2025 |
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- ↑ 1974 FIA Yearbook, Grey Section, Previous FIA Championship winners, page 118
- ↑ Lang, Mike (1981). Grand Prix! Vol 1. Haynes Publishing Group. p. 82. ISBN 0-85429-276-4.