1953 Formula One season

1953 FIA Formula One World Championship season
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Races by country • Races by season

As in 1952, the 1953 Formula One season consisted of a small number of Formula One races, following the FIA's decision to once again run all the World Drivers' Championship races to Formula Two regulations rather than Formula One.

The 4th FIA World Drivers' Championship, which commenced on January 18, 1953, and ended on September 13 after nine races, was won by Alberto Ascari, driving for Scuderia Ferrari.

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.

World Championship season summary

Ferrari again dominated the championship, taking seven of the eight grands prix, although Juan Manuel Fangio's challenge in his more fragile Maserati took him to second place in the championship and a win at Monza. Ascari stretched his unbeaten run to nine grand prix before his team-mate Mike Hawthorn broke the sequence in becoming the first ever British winner in the French Grand Prix at Reims after a thrilling battle with Fangio.

Points were given to top 5 finishers (8, 6, 4, 3, 2). 1 point was given for fastest lap. Only the best four of nine scores counted towards the world championship. Points for shared drives were divided equally between the drivers, regardless of who had driven more laps. In 1953, all World Championship events (except the Indianapolis 500) were run under Formula 2 regulations. The 1953 season was all the first truly global World Championship, with an event in Argentina. The race was marred by an accident involving Ferrari's Giuseppe Farina, who crashed into an unprotected crowd, killing nine spectators – the first deaths in Formula One.

World Championship season review

Rnd	Race	Circuit	Date	Pole position	Fastest lap	Winning driver	Constructor	Tyre	Report
1	Argentine Grand Prix	Buenos Aires	January 18	Alberto Ascari	Alberto Ascari	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari	P	Report
2	Indianapolis 500	Indianapolis	May 30	Bill Vukovich	Bill Vukovich	Bill Vukovich	Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser	F	Report
3	Dutch Grand Prix	Zandvoort	June 7	Alberto Ascari	Luigi Villoresi	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari	P	Report
4	Belgian Grand Prix	Spa-Francorchamps	June 21	Juan Manuel Fangio	José Froilán González	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari	P	Report
5	French Grand Prix	Reims	July 5	Alberto Ascari	Juan Manuel Fangio	Mike Hawthorn	Ferrari	P	Report
6	British Grand Prix	Silverstone	July 18	Alberto Ascari	Alberto Ascari José Froilán González	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari	P	Report
7	German Grand Prix	Nürburgring	August 2	Alberto Ascari	Alberto Ascari	Giuseppe Farina	Ferrari	P	Report
8	Swiss Grand Prix	Bremgarten	August 23	Juan Manuel Fangio	Alberto Ascari	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari	P	Report
9	Italian Grand Prix	Monza	September 13	Alberto Ascari	Juan Manuel Fangio	Juan Manuel Fangio	Maserati	P	Report

Teams and drivers

The following teams and drivers competed in the 1953 FIA World Championship.

Entrant	Constructor	Chassis	Engine	Tyre	Driver	Rounds
Officine Alfieri Maserati	Maserati	A6GCM	Maserati A6 2.0 L6	P	Juan Manuel Fangio	1, 3–9
					José Froilán González	1, 3–6
					Felice Bonetto	1, 3, 5–9
					Oscar Gálvez	1
					Johnny Claes	4
					Onofre Marimón	4–9
					Hermann Lang	8
					Sergio Mantovani	9
					Luigi Musso	9
Scuderia Ferrari	Ferrari	500 553	Ferrari 500 2.0 L4 Ferrari 553 2.0 L4	P	Alberto Ascari	1, 3–9
					Nino Farina	1, 3–9
					Luigi Villoresi	1, 3–9
					Mike Hawthorn	1, 3–9
					Umberto Maglioli	9
					Piero Carini	9
Cooper Car Company	Cooper-Bristol Cooper-Alta	T20 T23 T21	Bristol BS1 2.0 L6 Alta GP 2.5 L4	D	Alan Brown	1
					John Barber	1
					Adolfo Schwelm Cruz	1
					Stirling Moss	5, 7, 9
Equipe Gordini	Gordini Simca-Gordini	Type 16 Type 15	Gordini 20 2.0 L6 Gordini 1500 1.5 L4	E	Robert Manzon	1
					Harry Schell	1, 3–7, 9
					Maurice Trintignant	1, 3–9
					Jean Behra	1, 4–8
					Carlos Menditeguy	1
					Pablo Birger	1
					Roberto Mieres	3, 5, 9
					Fred Wacker	4
Ecurie Rosier	Ferrari	500	Ferrari 500 2.0 L4	D	Louis Rosier	3–7, 9
				E		8
Enrico Platé	Maserati	A6GCM	Maserati A6 2.0 L6	P	Toulo de Graffenried	3
Connaught Engineering	Connaught-Lea-Francis	Type A	Lea-Francis 2.0 L4	D	Roy Salvadori	3, 5–7, 9
					Kenneth McAlpine	3, 6–7, 9
					Stirling Moss	3
					Prince Bira	5–7
					Jack Fairman	9
Ecurie Belge	Connaught-Lea-Francis	Type A	Lea-Francis 2.0 L4	E	Johnny Claes	3, 5, 7, 9
					André Pilette	4
Ken Wharton	Cooper-Bristol	T23	Bristol BS1 2.0 L6	D	Ken Wharton	3, 5–6, 8–9
HW Motors	HWM-Alta	53	Alta GP 2.5 L4	D	Peter Collins	3–6
					Lance Macklin	3–6, 8–9
					Paul Frère	4, 8
					Yves Giraud-Cabantous	5, 9
					Duncan Hamilton	6
					Jack Fairman	6
					Albert Scherrer	8
					John Fitch	9
Emmanuel de Graffenried	Maserati	A6GCM	Maserati A6 2.0 L6	P	Toulo de Graffenried	4–9
Georges Berger	Simca-Gordini	Type 15	Gordini 1500 1.5 L4	E	Georges Berger	4
Arthur Legat	Veritas	Meteor	Veritas 2.0 L6	E	Arthur Legat	4
Ecurie Francorchamps	Ferrari	500	Ferrari 500 2.0 L4	E	Jacques Swaters	4, 7–8
Tony Gaze	Ferrari	500	Ferrari 500 2.0 L4	E	Charles de Tornaco	4
Louis Chiron	OSCA	20	OSCA 2000 2.0 L6	P	Louis Chiron	5, 9
Élie Bayol	OSCA	20	OSCA 2000 2.0 L6	P	Élie Bayol	5
Bob Gerard	Cooper-Bristol	T23	Bristol BS1 2.0 L6	D	Bob Gerard	5–6
R.R.C. Walker Racing Team	Connaught-Lea-Francis	Type A	Lea-Francis 2.0 L4	D	Tony Rolt	6
Ecurie Ecosse	Connaught-Lea-Francis Cooper-Bristol	Type A T20	Lea-Francis 2.0 L4 Bristol BS1 2.0 L6	D	Ian Stewart	6
					Jimmy Stewart	6
R.J. Chase	Cooper-Bristol	T23	Bristol BS1 2.0 L6	D	Alan Brown	6
Atlantic Stable	Cooper-Alta	T24	Alta GP 2.5 L4	D	Peter Whitehead	6
Tony Crook	Cooper-Bristol	T20	Bristol BS1 2.0 L6	D	Tony Crook	6
Hans Stuck	AFM-Bristol	6	Bristol BS1 2.0 L6	D	Hans Stuck	7, 9
Wolfgang Seidel	Veritas	RS	Veritas 2.0 L6	D	Wolfgang Seidel	7
Willi Heeks	Veritas	Meteor	Veritas 2.0 L6	D	Willi Heeks	7
Theo Helfrich	Veritas	RS	Veritas 2.0 L6	D	Theo Helfrich	7
Oswald Karch	Veritas	RS	Veritas 2.0 L6	D	Oswald Karch	7
Helmut Niedermayr	AFM-BMW	U8	BMW 328 2.0 L6	D	Theo Fitzau	7
Ernst Loof	Veritas	Meteor	Veritas 2.0 L6	D	Ernst Loof	7
Hans Herrmann	Veritas	Meteor	Veritas 2.0 L6	D	Hans Herrmann	7
Erwin Bauer	Veritas	RS	Veritas 2.0 L6	D	Erwin Bauer	7
Ecurie Espadon	Ferrari	166 C 500	Ferrari 125 1.5 V12 Ferrari 500 2.0 L4	P	Kurt Adolff	7
					Peter Hirt	8
					Max de Terra	8
Rennkollektiv EMW	EMW	R2	EMW 6 2.0 L6	D	Edgar Barth	7
Dora Greifzu	Reif-BMW	Eigenbau	BMW 328 2.0 L6	D	Rudolf Krause	7
Ernst Klodwig	Heck-BMW	Eigenbau	BMW 328 2.0 L6	D	Ernst Klodwig	7
Equipe Anglaise	Cooper-Bristol	T23	Bristol BS1 2.0 L6	D	Alan Brown	7, 9
					Helmut Glöckler	7
Rodney Nuckey	Cooper-Bristol	T23	Bristol BS1 2.0 L6	D	Rodney Nuckey	7
Günther Bechem	AFM-BMW	50–5	BMW 328 2.0 L6	D	Günther Bechem	7
Escuderia Bandeirantes	Maserati	A6GCM	Maserati A6 2.0 L6	P	Chico Landi	8
OSCA Automobili	OSCA	20	OSCA 2000 2.0 L6	P	Élie Bayol	9
Scuderia Milano	Maserati	A6GCM	Maserati A6 2.0 L6	P	Chico Landi	9
					Prince Bira	9

1953 Drivers Championship final standings

Pos. Driver ARG 500‡ NED BEL FRA GBR GER SUI ITA Pts. 1 Alberto Ascari 1 1 (1) (4) 1 8† / (Ret)† 1 Ret 34.5 (46.5) 2 Juan Manuel Fangio Ret Ret Ret / Ret† 2 2 2 (4)† / Ret† 1 28 (29.5) 3 Nino Farina Ret 2 Ret (5) (3) 1 2 2 26 (32) 4 Mike Hawthorn 4 (4) 6 1 (5) 3 3 (4) 19 (27) 5 Luigi Villoresi 2 Ret 2 6 Ret 8† / Ret† 6 3 17 6 José Froilán González 3 3† (Ret) 3 4 13.5 (14.5) 7 Bill Vukovich 1 9 8 Toulo de Graffenried 5 4 7 Ret 5 Ret Ret 7 9 Felice Bonetto Ret 3† Ret 6 4 4† / Ret† Ret 6.5 10 Art Cross 2 6 11 Onofre Marimón 3 9 Ret Ret Ret Ret 4 12 Maurice Trintignant 7† 6 5 Ret Ret Ret Ret 5 4 13 Sam Hanks 3† 2 14 Duane Carter 3† 2 15 Óscar Alfredo Gálvez 5 2 16 Jack McGrath 5 2 17 Hermann Lang 5 2 18 Fred Agabashian 4† 1.5 19 Paul Russo 4† 1.5 — Stirling Moss 9 Ret 6 13 0 — Jean Behra 6 Ret 10 Ret Ret Ret 0 — Roberto Mieres NC Ret 6 0 — Jimmy Daywalt 6 0 — Harry Schell 7† Ret 7 Ret Ret Ret 9 0 — Louis Rosier 7 8 8 10 10 Ret 16 0 — Ken Wharton Ret Ret 8 7 NC 0 — Prince Bira Ret 7 Ret 11 0 — Jacques Swaters 7 Ret 0 — Jim Rathmann 7 0 — Sergio Mantovani 7† 0 — Luigi Musso 7† 0 — Peter Collins 8 Ret 13 Ret 0 — John Barber 8 0 — Ernie McCoy 8 0 — Max de Terra 8 0 — Umberto Maglioli 8 0 — Alan Brown 9 Ret Ret 12 0 — Tony Bettenhausen 9 0 — Fred Wacker 9 0 — Peter Whitehead 9 0 — Hans Herrmann 9 0 — Albert Scherrer 9 0 — Louis Chiron 15 10 0 — Paul Frère 10 Ret 0 — Jimmy Davies 10 0 — Duke Nalon 11 0 — André Pilette 11 0 — Bob Gerard 11 0 — Rodney Nuckey 11 0 — Johnny Claes NC Ret† 12 Ret Ret 0 — Carl Scarborough 12 0 — Theo Helfrich 12 0 — Kenneth McAlpine Ret Ret 13 NC 0 — Manny Ayulo 13 0 — Yves Giraud Cabantous 14 15 0 — Hans Stuck Ret 14 0 — Jimmy Bryan 14 0 — Rudolf Krause 14 0 — Bill Holland 15 0 — Ernst Klodwig 15 0 — Rodger Ward 16 0 — Wolfgang Seidel 16 0 — Walt Faulkner 17 0 — Jack Fairman Ret NC 0 — Lance Macklin Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret 0 — Roy Salvadori Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret 0 — Élie Bayol Ret Ret 0 — Chico Landi Ret Ret 0 — Robert Manzon Ret 0 — Carlos Menditeguy Ret 0 — Pablo Birger Ret 0 — Adolfo Schwelm Cruz Ret 0 — Marshall Teague Ret 0 — Spider Webb Ret 0 — Bob Sweikert Ret 0 — Mike Nazaruk Ret 0 — Pat Flaherty Ret 0 — Jerry Hoyt Ret 0 — Johnnie Parsons Ret 0 — Don Freeland Ret 0 — Gene Hartley Ret 0 — Chuck Stevenson Ret 0 — Cal Niday Ret 0 — Bob Scott Ret 0 — Andy Linden Ret 0 — Johnny Thomson Ret 0 — Georges Berger Ret 0 — Arthur Legat Ret 0 — Jimmy Stewart Ret 0 — Tony Rolt Ret 0 — Ian Stewart Ret 0 — Duncan Hamilton Ret 0 — Tony Crook Ret 0 — Edgar Barth Ret 0 — Oswald Karch Ret 0 — Willi Heeks Ret 0 — Theo Fitzau Ret 0 — Kurt Adolff Ret 0 — Günther Bechem Ret 0 — Ernst Loof Ret 0 — Erwin Bauer Ret 0 — Peter Hirt Ret 0 — Piero Carini Ret 0 — John Fitch Ret 0 Pos. Driver ARG 500‡ NED BEL FRA GBR GER SUI ITA Pts.

Key Colour Result Gold Winner Silver 2nd place Bronze 3rd place Green Points finish Blue Non-points finish Non-classified finish (NC) Purple Did not finish (Ret) Red Did not qualify (DNQ) Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ) Black Disqualified (DSQ) White Did not start (DNS) Race cancelled (C) Light blue Practiced only (PO) Friday test driver (TD) (from 2003 onwards) Blank Did not practice (DNP) Excluded (EX) Did not arrive (DNA)

• Italics indicate fastest lap (1 point awarded – point shared equally between drivers sharing fastest lap)
• Bold indicates pole position
• † Position shared between more drivers of the same car
• ‡ Several cars were shared in this race. See the race page for details.
• 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 races also held in 1953, which did not count towards the World Championship.

Race Name	Circuit	Date	Winning driver	Constructor	Report
III Gran Premio di Siracusa	Syracuse	March 22	Toulo de Graffenried	Maserati	Report
XIV Pau Grand Prix	Pau	April 6	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari	Report
V Lavant Cup	Goodwood	April 6	Toulo de Graffenried	Maserati	Report
II Aston Martin Owners Club F2 Race	Snetterton	April 18	Eric Thompson	Connaught-Lea Francis	Report
III Grand Prix de Bordeaux	Bordeaux	May 3	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari	Report
I Strassen-Rennen Karl-Marx-Stadt	Karl-Marx-Stadt	May 3	Rudolf Krause	BMW-Reif	Report
V BRDC International Trophy	Silverstone	May 9	Mike Hawthorn	Ferrari	Report
XV Eläintarhanajot	Eläintarharata	May 10	Rodney Nuckey	Cooper-Bristol	Report
VI Gran Premio di Napoli	Posillipo	May 10	Giuseppe Farina	Ferrari	Report
VII Ulster Trophy	Dundrod	May 16	Mike Hawthorn	Ferrari	Report
I Winfield JC Formula 2 Race	Charterhall	May 23	Ken Wharton	Cooper-Climax	Report
III Coronation Trophy	Crystal Palace	May 23	Tony Rolt	Connaught-Lea Francis	Report
XXIII Grand Prix des Frontières	Chimay	May 24	Maurice Trintignant	Gordini	Report
I Snetterton Coronation Trophy	Snetterton	May 30	Tony Rolt	Connaught-Lea Francis	Report
XVII Internationales ADAC Eifelrennen	Nürburgring	May 31	Toulo de Graffenried	Maserati	Report
XV Grand Prix de l'Albigeois	Albi	May 31	Louis Rosier	Ferrari	Report
I Coupe de Printemps	Montlhéry	May 31	Marcel Balsa	BMW	Report
I Paul Greifzu Gedachtnisrennen	Dessau	June 7	Edgar Barth	EMW	Report
II West Essex CC Race	Snetterton	June 27	Kenneth McAlpine	Connaught-Lea Francis	Report
I Midlands MECC Race	Silverstone	June 27	Tony Crook	Cooper-Alta	Report
III Grand Prix de Rouen-les-Essarts	Rouen-les-Essarts	June 28	Giuseppe Farina	Ferrari	Report
IV Strassen-rennen Halle-Saale-Schleife	Halle-Saale-Schleife	July 5	Edgar Barth	EMW	Report
I Crystal Palace Trophy	Crystal Palace	July 11	Tony Rolt	Connaught-Lea Francis	Report
IX Internationales Avusrennen	AVUS	July 12	Jacques Swaters	Ferrari	Report
II United States Air Force Trophy	Snetterton	July 25	Tony Rolt	Connaught-Lea Francis	Report
V Circuit du Lac	Aix-les-Bains	July 26	Élie Bayol	OSCA	Report
I Dresden Autobahnspinne	Dresden-Hellerau	July 26	Edgar Barth	EMW	Report
I Bristol MC & LCC Race	Thruxton	August 3	Tony Rolt	Connaught-Lea Francis	Report
I Mid-Cheshire MC Race	Oulton Park	August 8	Tony Rolt	Connaught-Lea Francis	Report
III Grand Prix de Sables d'Olonne	Les Sables-d'Olonne	August 9	Louis Rosier	Ferrari	Report
II Newcastle Journal Trophy	Charterhall	August 15	Ken Wharton	Cooper-Bristol	Report
V Circuit de Cadours	Cadours	August 30	Maurice Trintignant	Gordini	Report
V Sachsenringrennen	Sachsenring	September 6	Edgar Barth	EMW-BMW	Report
I RedeX Trophy	Snetterton	September 12	Eric Thompson	Connaught-Lea Francis	Report
III Skarpnäcksloppet	Skarpnäck	September 13	Erik Lundgren	Ford	Report
I London Trophy	Crystal Palace	September 19	Stirling Moss	Cooper-Alta	Report
IV Gran Premio di Modena	Modena	September 20	Juan Manuel Fangio	Maserati	Report
VI Madgwick Cup	Goodwood	September 26	Roy Salvadori	Connaught-Lea Francis	Report
II Bernau Autobahnschleife	Bernau	September 27	Artur Rosenhammer	EMW	Report
II Joe Fry Memorial Trophy	Castle Combe	October 3	Bob Gerard	Cooper-Bristol	Report
I Curtis Trophy	Snetterton	October 17	Bob Gerard	Cooper-Bristol	Report