1957 German Grand Prix

1957 German Grand Prix
← Previous	1957 British Grand Prix
Round	6 of 1957
Next →	1957 Pescara Grand Prix
Nürburgring in 1957
Race details
Date	4 August, 1957
Race number	62
Official Name	XIX Großer Preis von Deutschland
Location	Nürburgring Nürburg, West Germany
Course	Permanent racing facility 22.81km (14.177mi)
Distance	22 laps, 501.82km (311.883 miles)
Pole Position
Driver	Juan Manuel Fangio Maserati
Time	9:25.6
Fastest Lap
Driver	Juan Manuel Fangio Maserati
Time	9:17.4 on lap 20
Podium
First	Juan Manuel Fangio Maserati
Second	Mike Hawthorn Lancia-Ferrari
Third	Peter Collins Lancia-Ferrari
Lap Leaders

The 1957 German Grand Prix (formally the XIX Großer Preis von Deutschland) was a Formula One World Championship race held on 4 August 1957 at the Nürburgring. Held over 22 laps of the 14-mile (23 km) long circuit, the race is considered to be host to one of the most impressive performances in F1 history as Juan Manuel Fangio fought from 48 seconds behind second to win the race. The race included Formula Two cars to increase the size of the field.

Fangio had taken pole position in his Maserati 250F, with Mike Hawthorn in the Ferrari 801 alongside. Jean Behra (Maserati) and Peter Collins (Ferrari) completed the four-car front row. Fangio's pole time of 9 minutes 25.6 seconds was 2.8 seconds ahead of Hawthorn.

Come the race, Ferrari planned to not pit while Fangio decided upon a one-stop strategy on softer tyres. This didn't stop Hawthorn getting off the grid in the lead, ahead of teammate Collins and Fangio. Fangio took the lead on lap three and pitted, as planned, on lap 12, with a 30-second lead. However, this pit stop was disastrous; the left rear wheel nut became lost underneath the car and once it was found, Hawthorn and Collins had long gone past. Fangio emerged in third place, nearly 50 seconds behind the Ferrari pair.

Fangio started by taking 15.5 seconds off Hawthorn on his first lap and 8.5 the next. Setting not just fastest laps quicker than his qualifying time, but nine lap records, seven in succession, Fangio virtually drove the wheels off his Maserati in his chase. He caught with, and overtook, Collins early in the 21st lap and took the lead of Hawthorn later the same lap. Hawthorn challenged, but Fangio held firm to win the race, and his fifth World Championship title.

After the race, Fangio commented 'I have never driven that quickly before in my life and I don't think I will ever be able to do it again.' It would turn out to be somewhat accurate statement, as it was his final World Championship victory, and he retired in 1958.

Background

Weather conditions
Friday practice	Sunny
Saturday practice	Sunny
Race	Sunny

The previous Championship race at Aintree saw reigning World Champion and current World Championship leader Juan Manuel Fangio retire, which in turn allowed the remainder of the of the field to cut his astonishing seventeen point lead in the title race, over Indianapolis 500 winner Sam Hanks, to just twelve, with Ferrari's Luigi Musso now second. Tony Brooks, who shared victory at the British GP with Stirling Moss, resided in third place, with ten points.

A non-Championship race was held between the British and German races; the Caen Grand Prix, which was won by Frenchman Jean Behra in a BRM.

The majority of entrants were invited manufacturers; private entries were not invited. Due to the reduced field this made up, Formula Two drivers were invited to race alongside. These F2 fought for separate honours and would not be awarded World Championship points were they to finish in the top five or set the fastest lap.

Maserati took five drivers, including Fangio, Jean Behra and Harry Schell in the 1957 cars, Giorgio Scarlatti in a works 1956 car and Paco Godia in his own 1956 car. Carlos Menditeguy was also entered into the race, but his car was unavailable. Scuderia Centro Sud also entered a pair of Maseratis, to be driven by Masten Gregory and Hans Herrmann.

Ferrari entered four drivers, three going into the race. Luigi Musso, Peter Collins and Mike Hawthorn were all to drive the Lancia-Ferrari 801. Maurice Trintignant was left without a drive, having been set to drive the new V6 F2 car, however, Enzo Ferrari felt no-one, let alone Trintignant, could do the car justice at the Nürburgring and thus the car did not arrive.

Representing Britain were the Vanwall team, with Stirling Moss, Tony Brooks and Stuart Lewis-Evans looking to make it consecutive World Championship wins. BRM received invites, but with Ron Flockhart injured, it was decided not to attend with two inexperienced drivers. These entries were filled by Bruce Halford and Horace Gould in Maserati 250Fs.

In the F2 category, Porsche entered three cars, Umberto Maglioli and Edgar Barth were in full works cars with Carel Godin de Beaufort in an Ecurie Maarsbergen entry. Cooper had two works entries, Roy Salvadori and Jack Brabham, the latter in a Rob Walker-owned car. The four remaining starting cars were also Coopers, two Ridgeway Managements entries for Tony Marsh and Paul England; and private entries each for both Brian Naylor and Dick Gibson. The two non-starting F2 racers were Trintignant and Lotus's Dennis Taylor.

As for the Nürburgring itself, a large portion of the track had been resurfaced, but the layout remained unchanged. It was expected for the lap record, of 9 minutes 41.6 seconds, to fall during the race, due to both the resurfacing and the general improvement in F1 cars.

Championship permutations

It was possible for Juan Manuel Fangio to seal the World Championship crown at the German GP, with two races to spare, as long as he held at least an eighteen-point lead following the race, given that no-one could match his win total.

To win, Fangio needed to score six or more points than Luigi Musso and three or more points than Tony Brooks. Given that 27 points remained available going into the race and that Fangio had 25, the title was still technically available for any driver to win.

Entry List

The full entry list for the 1957 German Grand Prix is outlined below:

No.	Driver	Entrant	Constructor	Chassis	Engine	Model	Tyre
1	Juan Manuel Fangio	Officine Alfieri Maserati	Maserati	250F	Maserati	250F1 2.5 L6	P
2	Jean Behra	Officine Alfieri Maserati	Maserati	250F	Maserati	250F1 2.5 L6	P
3	Harry Schell	Officine Alfieri Maserati	Maserati	250F	Maserati	250F1 2.5 L6	P
4	Giorgio Scarlatti	Officine Alfieri Maserati	Maserati	250F	Maserati	250F1 2.5 L6	P
5	Carlos Reutemann	Officine Alfieri Maserati	Maserati	250F	Maserati	250F1 2.5 L6	P
6	Luigi Musso	Scuderia Ferrari	Lancia-Ferrari	801	Ferrari	DS50 2.5 V8	E
7	Peter Collins	Scuderia Ferrari	Lancia-Ferrari	801	Ferrari	DS50 2.5 V8	E
8	Mike Hawthorn	Scuderia Ferrari	Lancia-Ferrari	801	Ferrari	DS50 2.5 V8	E
9	Maurice Trintignant	Scuderia Ferrari	Lancia-Ferrari	801	Ferrari	DS50 2.5 V8	E
10	Stirling Moss	Vandervell Products	Vanwall	VW 5	Vanwall	254 2.5 L4	P
11	Tony Brooks	Vandervell Products	Vanwall	VW 5	Vanwall	254 2.5 L4	P
12	Stuart Lewis-Evans	Vandervell Products	Vanwall	VW 5	Vanwall	254 2.5 L4	P
14	Ron Flockhart	Owen Racing Organisation	BRM	P25	BRM	P25 2.5 L4	D
15	Bruce Halford	Privateer	Maserati	250F	Maserati	250F1 2.5 L6	D
16	Masten Gregory	Scuderia Centro Sud	Maserati	250F	Maserati	250F1 2.5 L6	P
17	Hans Herrmann	Scuderia Centro Sud	Maserati	250F	Maserati	250F1 2.5 L6	P
18	Francisco Godia-Sales	Privateer	Maserati	250F	Maserati	250F1 2.5 L6	P
19	Horace Gould	H.H. Gould	Maserati	250F	Maserati	250F1 2.5 L6	D
20	Umberto Maglioli	Dr Ing F. Porsche KG	Porsche	RS550	Porsche	547/3 1.5 F4	—
21	Edgar Barth	Dr Ing F. Porsche KG	Porsche	RS550	Porsche	547/3 1.5 F4	—
22	Maurice Trintignant	Scuderia Ferrari	Ferrari	D156	Ferrari	D156 1.5 V6	E
23	Roy Salvadori	Cooper Car Company	Cooper	T43	Climax	FPF 1.5 L4	D
24	Jack Brabham	R.R.C. Walker Racing Team	Cooper	T43	Climax	FPF 1.5 L4	D
25	Tony Marsh	Ridgeway Managements	Cooper	T43	Climax	FPF 1.5 L4	D
26	Paul England	Ridgeway Managements	Cooper	T41	Climax	FWB 1.5 L4	D
27	Carel Godin de Beaufort	Ecurie Maarsbergen	Porsche	RS550	Porsche	547/3 1.5 F4	D
28	Brian Naylor	J.B. Naylor	Cooper	T43	Climax	FPF 1.5 L4	D
29	Dick Gibson	Privateer	Cooper	T43	Climax	FPF 1.5 L4	D
30	Dennis Taylor	Privateer	Lotus	12	Climax	FPF 1.5 L4	D

• A pink background represents as Formula Two drivers.

Practice Overview

Qualifying Results

The full qualifying results for the 1957 German Grand Prix are outlined below:

Pos.	No.	Driver	Constructor	Time	Gap	Ave. Speed
1	1	Juan Manuel Fangio	Maserati	9:25.6	—	145.184 km/h
2	8	Mike Hawthorn	Lancia-Ferrari	9:28.4	+2.8s	144.469 km/h
3	2	Jean Behra	Maserati	9:30.5	+4.9s	144.469 km/h
4	7	Peter Collins	Lancia-Ferrari	9:34.7	+9.1s	142.885 km/h
5	11	Tony Brooks	Vanwall	9:36.1	+10.5s	142.538 km/h
6	3	Harry Schell	Porsche	9:39.2	+13.6s	141.775 km/h
7	10	Stirling Moss	Vanwall	9:41.2	+15.6s	141.287 km/h
8	6	Luigi Musso	Lancia-Ferrari	9:43.1	+17.5s	140.827 km/h
9	12	Stuart Lewis-Evans	Vanwall	9:45.0	+19.4s	140.369 km/h
10	16	Masten Gregory	Maserati	9:51.5	+25.9s	138.827 km/h
11	17	Hans Herrmann	Maserati	10:00.0	+34.4s	136.860 km/h
12	21	Edgar Barth	Porsche	10:02.2	+36.6s	136.360 km/h
13	4	Giorgio Scarlatti	Maserati	10:04.9	+39.3s	135.751 km/h
14	23	Roy Salvadori	Cooper-Climax	10:06.0	+40.4s	135.505 km/h
15	20	Umberto Maglioli	Porsche	10:08.9	+43.3s	134.860 km/h
16	15	Bruce Halford	Maserati	10:14.5	+48.9s	133.631 km/h
17	28	Brian Naylor	Cooper-Climax	10:15.0	+49.4s	133.522 km/h
18	24	Jack Brabham	Cooper-Climax	10:18.8	+53.2s	132.702 km/h
19	19	Horace Gould	Maserati	10:20.8	+55.2s	132.274 km/h
20	27	Carel Godin de Beaufort	Porsche	10:25.9	+1:00.3	131.197 km/h
21	18	Francisco Godia-Sales	Maserati	10:32.3	+1:06.7	129.869 km/h
22	25	Tony Marsh	Cooper-Climax	10:48.2	+1:22.6	126.683 km/h
23	26	Paul England	Cooper-Climax	11:08.4	+1:42.8	122.855 km/h
24	29	Dick Gibson	Cooper-Climax	11:46.4	+2:20.8	116.246 km/h
WD	5	Carlos Reutemann	Maserati	Withdrawn
WD	9	Maurice Trintignant	Lancia-Ferrari	Withdrawn
WD	14	Ron Flockhart	BRM	Injury
WD	22	Maurice Trintignant	Ferrari	Withdrawn
WD	30	Dennis Taylor	Lotus-Climax	Withdrawn

Grid

Note: F2 drivers highlighted in pink.

Pos		Pos		Pos		Pos
Driver		Driver		Driver		Driver
						______________
				______________		1
		______________		2		Juan Manuel Fangio
______________		3		Mike Hawthorn
4		Jean Behra
Peter Collins
					______________
			______________		5
	______________		6		Tony Brooks
	7		Harry Schell
	Stirling Moss
						______________
				______________		8
		______________		9		Luigi Musso
______________		10		Stuart Lewis-Evans
11		Masten Gregory
Hans Herrmann
					______________
			______________		12
	______________		13		Edgar Barth
	14		Giorgio Scarlatti
	Roy Salvadori
						______________
				______________		15
		______________		16		Umberto Maglioli
______________		17		Bruce Halford
18		Brian Naylor
Jack Brabham
					______________
			______________		19
	______________		20		Horace Gould
	21		Carel Godin de Beaufort
	Paco Godia
						______________
				______________		22
		______________		23		Tony Marsh
______________		24		Paul England
25		Dick Gibson

Race

Results

Note: F2 drivers highlighted in pink.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Constructor	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid	Points
1	1	Juan Manuel Fangio	Maserati	22	3 h 30 m 38.3 s	1	9
2	8	Mike Hawthorn	Ferrari	22	+ 3.6 s	2	6
3	7	Peter Collins	Ferrari	22	+ 35.6 s	4	4
4	6	Luigi Musso	Ferrari	22	+ 3 m 37.6 s	8	3
5	10	Stirling Moss	Vanwall	22	+ 4 m 37.2 s	7	2
6	2	Jean Behra	Maserati	22	+ 4 m 38.5 s	3
7	3	Harry Schell	Maserati	22	+ 6 m 47.5 s	6
8	16	Masten Gregory	Maserati	21	+ 1 lap	10
9	11	Tony Brooks	Vanwall	21	+ 1 lap	5
10	4	Giorgio Scarlatti	Maserati	21	+ 1 lap	13
11	15	Bruce Halford	Maserati	21	+ 1 lap	16
12	21	Edgar Barth	Porsche	21	+ 1 lap	12
13	28	Brian Naylor	Cooper-Climax	20	+ 2 laps	17
14	27	Carel Godin de Beaufort	Porsche	20	+ 2 laps	20
NC	25	Tony Marsh	Cooper-Climax	17	+ 5 laps	22
Ret	17	Hans Herrmann	Maserati	14	Chassis	11
Ret	20	Umberto Maglioli	Porsche	13	Engine	15
Ret	23	Roy Salvadori	Cooper-Climax	11	Suspension	14
Ret	18	Paco Godia	Maserati	11	Steering	21
Ret	12	Stuart Lewis-Evans	Vanwall	10	Gearbox	9
Ret	24	Jack Brabham	Cooper-Climax	6	Transmission	18
Ret	26	Paul England	Cooper-Climax	4	Distributor	23
Ret	29	Paul Gibson	Cooper-Climax	3	Steering	24
Ret	19	Horace Gould	Maserati	1	Axle	19
DNA	5	Carlos Menditeguy	Maserati		Car unavailable
DNA	9/22	Maurice Trintignant	Ferrari		Car unavailable
DNA	14	Ron Flockhart	BRM		Driver injured
DNA	30	Dennis Taylor	Lotus-Climax		Driver elsewhere

Fastest laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Constructor	Lap	Time	Gap	Avg Speed	Race
1	1	Juan Manuel Fangio	Maserati	20	9:17.4		147.32 km/h	1
2	23	Roy Salvadori	Cooper-Climax	9	10:03.8	+ 46.4 s	136.00 km/h	Ret

Milestones

• Juan Manuel Fangio's 24th and final victory.
• Fangio secured his fifth and final World Championship title.
• The last win for a Maserati car and Maserati engine.
• World Championship débuts for Brian Naylor, Carel Godin de Beaufort, Dick Gibson, Paul England and Tony Marsh, though all were racing F2 cars. Additionally, the first F1 race with a Porsche car, but again in the F2 category.

Standings after race

World Championship for Drivers
Pos.	Driver	Pts	+/-
1	Juan Manuel Fangio	34	—
2	Luigi Musso	16	—
3	Mike Hawthorn	13	▲3
4	Tony Brooks	10	▼1
5	Stirling Moss	8	▲2
6	Sam Hanks	8	▼2
7	Peter Collins	8	▲4
8	Jim Rathmann	7	▼3
9	Jean Behra	6	▼1
10	Harry Schell	5	▼1
11	Maurice Trintignant	5	▼1
12	Masten Gregory	4	▲1
13	Carlos Menditeguy	4	▼1
14	Jimmy Bryan	4	—
15	Stuart Lewis-Evans	3	—
16	Paul Russo	3	—
17	Roy Salvadori	2	—
18	Andy Linden	2	—
19	Alfonso de Portago	1	—
20	José Froilán González	1	—

External links

• Wikipedia article
• STATS F1
• Grand Prix Encyclopedia article
• Silhouet page
• Motor Sport Magazine contemporary race report: first page • second page • third page
• Video highlights on YouTube

v·d·e

Nominate this page for Featured Article