Grand Prix d'Albi

Circuit d'Albi, 10 Jul 1949

All cars are 1.5-litre s/c F1 or 4.5-litre F1^† unless noted.

Notes on the cars:

1. Maserati 4CLT-48 [1599] (Juan Manuel Fangio): Built in 1949 for Automovil Club Argentina and under the ACA's "Scuderia Achille Varzi" banner raced by Fangio and others. Raced occasionally in Europe 1950 by Fangio then to South America 1950-52 for various ACA drivers. A car with this number discovered in Argentina in 2002. Owned by Daniel Sielecki (Argentina) 2002.
2. Maserati 4CLT-48 [1598] ("B Bira"): Maserati records show this car going to 'B. Bira' 23 Sep 1948. Bira raced 1948 British GP, 1949 Argentine Temporada and 1949 European season. Retained 1950 being used as Platé team car from Pescara. Raced by Harry Schell for Enrico Platé in 1951 then becoming one of two cars extensively rebuilt as Platé-Maseratis for 1952. Probably raced by Giovanni de Riu in F2 in 1953. Then sold via de Graffenried to 20th Century Fox for film work and then acquired by Tom Carstens (Tacoma, WA). Subsequent history unknown.
3. Talbot T26C [110 001] (Louis Rosier): Talbot-Lago T26C chassis '110 001' was raced by Louis Rosier from 1948 to 1950 and then under the Ecurie Rosier banner by Pozzi in 1950; by Henri Louveau and Louis Chiron in 1951; and by Giraud-Cabantous, Chaboud and Mairesse in 1952. It was acquired by the Musée Henri Malatre at Rochetaillé, France, in 1956 and was still on display in 1990.
4. Maserati 4CLT-48 [1601] (Emmanuel de Graffenried): To Enrico Platé for 1949 (dated 7 Mar 1949 in Maserati records) and driven by Emmanuel de Graffenried. Continued as de Graffenried's well-used car through 1950 and 1951. Probably one of two cars extensively rebuilt as Plate-Maseratis for 1952. Probably raced by Ottorino Volonterio in F2 in 1953. Sold with the sister car (probably 1598) by de Graffenried to 20th Century Fox for film work then sold again via Tom Carstens (Tacoma, WA). Subsequent history unknown.
5. Talbot T26C [110 002] (Guy Mairesse): Talbot-Lago T26C chassis '110 002' was raced by 'Raph' and Eugene Chaboud in 1948 and Paul Vallee and Guy Mairesse in 1950. Owned by Mairesse 1950-51; also raced by Giraud-Cabantous 1950; by Jean Blanc and Levegh 1952; and by Etancelin in 1953. In late 1953, Vallee sold the car to Doug Whiteford in Australia to replace his existing chassis '110 007'. Whiteford was surprised to discover that he'd bought an earlier model and it was 1955 before the car raced in Australia. It was sold to Ralph Snodgrass in 1956 but crashed badly at Mt Druitt in 1957. Snodgrass retained the car until 1980 when it was sold to Reg Hunt who restored it for historic events. Retained by Hunt until sold to Ron Towney in 2006.
6. Talbot T26C [110 009] (Raymond Sommer): Talbot-Lago T26C chassis '110 009' was Raymond Sommer's 1949 car and then passed to Yves Giraud-Cabantous for 1950. Driven by Giraud-Cabantous and Pierre Meyrat 1951 and next seen with Louis Girardot 1953-56 and then possibly via Serge Pozzoli to Fritz Schlumpf 1957. In Musée de l'Automobile in Mulhouse 2001, possibly numbered 110002.
7. Maserati 4CLT-48 [1595] (Leslie Brooke): Maserati records show this car going to Leslie Brooke 29 Aug 1948. Raced by Brooke through 1948, 1949 and 1950 and by Claes, still under Brooke's ownership, at Goodwood Sept 1951. Then George Weaver in the US in 1952. In the 1980s the car passed from Virginia Weaver via UK and German owners to 1998. Owned by Wolfgang Wegner-Bscher (Germany) from 1998.
8. Maserati 4CL [1569] (David Murray): Delivered on 29 May 1939 to Johnny Wakefield who campaigned it successfully up to the outbreak of war. After Wakefield's death in 1942, purchased by Reg Parnell. Raced by extensively Parnell between 1946 and 1948, after which it was raced by David Murray in 1948/49. Fitted by Parnell with twin-stage supercharged engine, then Ambrosiana team spare during 1950 before passing via John Green to Bobby Baird in 1951. To George Weaver in USA, then via British, Swiss and German owners to Georg Kaufmann (Switzerland). Retained 2005
9. Maserati 4CLT-48 [1602] (Giuseppe Farina): Maserati records show this car going to Nino Farina on 15 Jun 1949. Raced by Farina in 1949 and used as a spare car in 1950 Argentine Temporada series. Note that the 1602 chassis plate appears to have been used on 1609.
10. Maserati 4CLT-48 [1600] (Benedicto Campos): Built in 1949 for Automovil Club Argentina and raced by under the ACA's "Scuderia Achille Varzi" banner Malusardi and Benedicto Campos. Raced in 1950 by Jose Froilan Gonzalez and then 1950-52 by other ACA drivers in South America. Reportedly to Venezuela then via US, Japanese and further US owners to 1996. Owned by Jean-Louis Duret from 1996. Retained 2000.
11. Maserati 4CLT-48 [1593] (Fred Ashmore): Shown in Maserati records as Alberto Ascari's early 1948 car. To Reg Parnell 1949 for Fred Ashmore then raced in 1950 by David Hampshire and others as part of Scuderia Ambrosiana. Then David Murray's car for 1951. Crashed in practice at the Nürburgring for the 1951 German GP and not seen again.
12. ERA B Type [R12B] (David Hampshire): Built by White Mouse Stable in 1939 on a new factory B-Type chassis and using the mechanical parts from R12C. Raced by Bira 1946-47 as 'Hanuman II' then to David Hampshire and David Murray for 1949 and 1950. Through a chain of mainly Scottish owners and then to Sam Tingle in Rhodesia in 1957. Then via Allan Gillespie back to Britain for Bill Morris in 1962. Campaigned by Morris up to 1998 then to David Wenman in 1999. Retained 2007.
13. Maserati 4CLT-48 [1596] (Reg Parnell): Maserati records list this as Reg Parnell's car dated 14 Sep 1948. Raced by Parnell from 1949 to 1951, under the Scuderia Ambrosiana banner in 1950 and 1951, also by Hampshire in 1951. Sold or leased to Bobby Baird mid-1951 and then sometime after 1952 sold to Count Johnny Lurani. Lurani sold it in 1955 to Pat Hoare in New Zealand where it raced until the mid-1960s and then spent many years in the Queenstown Motor Museum. It was sold in 1982 and returned to Europe in 1989. Sold at auction a number of times in the late 1980s and 1990s. Owned by Max Lustenberger (Switzerland) from 1999. Retained 2004.
14. Talbot T26C [110 011] (Johnny Claes): Talbot-Lago T26C chassis '110 011' was Johnny Claes car in 1948-50 and then sold to Duncan Hamilton (and Fotheringham-Parker) and raced 1951-53. Stored in France until 1955 when Hamilton sold it to Allan Freeman in New Zealand who raced it through to 1961. It was bought by Joe Hepworth in 1963 and returned to England; then via other UK and French owners until sold to Bernie Ecclestone 1996. Retained 2002.
15. Talbot T26C [110 008] (Philippe Étancelin): Talbot-Lago T26C chassis '110 008' was Philippe Etancelin's car in 1948 and then passed to Jean Achard November 1950. Achard moved to Brazil, taking the car, and sold it there to Pinheiro Pires who raced it in Brazil from 1951 to 1954. Remains to UK via Colin Crabbe in the 1980s and then via other UK owners to Tony Bianchi c1999. Has been raced in historics up to 2005.
16. Talbot T26C [110 007] (Louis Chiron): Talbot-Lago T26C chassis '110 007' was Paul Vallee's Ecurie France car driven by Chiron 1948-49 and Apezteguia in 1950. To Tom Hawkes in Australia in 1951. From him it passed to Doug Whiteford, Rex Taylor and then a string of Australian, UK (including a loan period in the Donington Collection), Swiss, US and French owners to Bernie Ecclestone's collection in 1997. Retained 2002.
17. Talbot T26C [110 006] (Georges Grignard): Talbot-Lago T26C chassis '110 006' was raced by Georges Grignard in 1948, by Giraud-Cabantous in 1949, Pozzi and Levegh in 1950 and by Jean Blanc in one 1951 hillclimb. Then to Ecurie Belgique in 1951 and retained to 1952. Reappeared in US ownership in 1964 and then via two further US owners to Dean Butler in 1998. Retained 2003. This car was on display at the 2006 Brussels Retro Festival honouring Ecurie Francorchamps.

Formula 1 events 1948-1953

The results published here were compiled by David McKinney and Adam Ferrington from a range of sources including Autocourse, Motor Sport and Autosport, as well as the F1 Register's A Record of Grand Prix and Voiturette Racing Volume 5 covering 1950 and 1951. Individual car identities were then meticulously checked against their enormous libraries of books and photographs, notably Talbot-Lago de Course by Pierre Abeillon, Les Gordini by Robert Jarraud, Gordini – Un Sorcier, Une Equipe by Christian Huet and The History of English Racing Automobiles by David Weguelin.

David has also contributed extensively from his notes on car identities compiled over 40 years of research, Michael Müller has contributed immaculately researched histories of all the 1948-1950 Ferrari 125s, and Doug Nye, both through his books and his personal assistance on HWM, has also been of great help.

Please note that since David's sad death in 2014, Adam and Allen have agreed that these pages will remain unaltered from now on, as a lasting testimony to David's expertise.