Whitehead who was born into a wealthy business family raced in World Championship races in the early 1950's.
A podium finisher in the 1950 French Grand Prix when he started from the back, his most note worthy motor racing success was achieved at the 1951 Le Mans 24 Hour where he achieved outright victory driving a Jaguar.
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Before Formula 1 World Championship[edit | edit source]
Whitehead was able to fund his racing from family wealth and in 1936 he brought an ERA. Whilst on touring business Whitehead won the 1938 Australian Grand Prix.
Whitehead was the first person Enzo Ferrari ever sold a Grand Prix car to which he used in championship and non-championship races like the BRDC Trophy at Silverstone and the San Remo Grand Prix.
Whitehead lines up next to Farina at the BRDC Trophy
Formula One Career[edit | edit source]
1950[edit | edit source]
Whitehead was the only Ferrari at Reims
Whitehead, using his privateer Ferrari 125 was listed as an entry but did not start the Monaco GP when his car suffered an oil leak before the race but would start at the French Grand Prix and really shone.
With the Ferrari team pulling out of the race, Whitehead's privateer Ferrari was the only Ferrari on track. Starting from the back of the grid after missing practice, he wowed the crowd with his progress through the field. Whitehead made it past all the Talbot-Lago's, all the Maserati's and Robert Manzon in his Simca-Gordini. Whitehead ended the race on the podium, third behind Juan Manuel Fangio and Luigi Fagioli.
Whitehead also took part at Monza but finished the Italian GP a disappointing 7th, the last classified finisher but his impressive drive in France had earned him 9th in the Championship.
Whitehead continued to use his Ferrari 125 into 1951.
Whitehead was killed during the 1958 Tour de France car rally, when his car crashed into a ravine.
Formula One Statistical Overview[edit | edit source]
Formula One Record[edit | edit source]
| Year | Entrant | Team | WDC Points | WDC Pos. | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pre-Championship | |||||
| 1937 | ERA Ltd | ERA | No Grand Prix Championship | ||
| 1938 | ERA Ltd | ERA | No Grand Prix Championship | ||
| 1939–1948: Did Not Compete | |||||
| 1949 | Scuderia Ambrosiana | Ferrari | No Formula One Championship | ||
| Scuderia Ferrari | |||||
| Formula One World Championship | |||||
| 1950 | Peter Whitehead | Ferrari | 4 | 9th | Report |
| 1951 | Peter Whitehead | Ferrari | 0 | NC | Report |
| GA Vandervell | |||||
| 1952 | Peter Whitehead | Alta | 0 | NC | Report |
| Ferrari | |||||
| 1953 | Atlantic Stable | Cooper-Alta | 0 | NC | Report |
| 1954 | Peter Whitehead | Cooper-Alta | 0 | NC | Report |
Career Statistics[edit | edit source]
| Entries | 14 |
| Starts | 10 |
| Pole Positions | 0 |
| Front Row Starts | 0 |
| Race Wins | 0 |
| Podiums | 1 |
| Fastest laps | 0 |
| Points | 4 |
| Laps Raced | 444 |
| Distance Raced | 2948 km (1832 mi) |
| Races Led | 0 |
| Laps Led | 0 |
| Distance Led | 0 km (0 mi) |
Race Wins[edit | edit source]
| Win Number | Grand Prix |
|---|---|
| Non-championship | |
| 1 | 1949 Czechoslovakian Grand Prix |
| 2 | 1950 J.C.C. Jersey Road Race |
| 3 | 1950 Ulster Trophy |
Career Results[edit | edit source]
| Complete Formula One results | ||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | Pts | Pos | |||||||||||
| 1950 | 
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4 | 9th | |||||||||||||
| DNS | 3rd | 7th | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 1951 |
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0 | NC | ||||||||||||
| 13th | Ret | 9th | Ret | DNA | ||||||||||||||||||
| 1952 |
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0 | NC | ||||||||||||
| Ret | 10th | DNQ | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 1953 | 
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0 | NC | |||||||||||
| 9th | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1954 |
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0 | NC | |||||||||||
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| Key | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Symbol | Meaning | Symbol | Meaning | ||
| 1st | Winner | Ret | Retired | ||
| 2nd | Podium finish | DSQ | Disqualified | ||
| 3rd | DNQ | Did not qualify | |||
| 5th | Points finish | DNPQ | Did not pre-qualify | ||
| 14th | Non-points finish | TD | Test driver | ||
| NC | Non-classified finish (<90% race distance) | DNS | Did not start | ||
| Italics | Scored point(s) for Fastest Lap | [+] More Symbols | |||
Notes[edit | edit source]
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