1958 French GP

## Track Facts

* Name – Reims
* Location – France
* Corners – 7
* Laps – 50
* Base (Worst) Lap Time – 4:00.000
* Lap Record (Real Life) – 2:20.400 (Juan Manuel Fangio)
* Lap Record (F1R) – 2:12.411 (Onofre Marimon – Harrison Whitworth)
* Pit Lane Length – 45 seconds\*
* Fuel Consumption – Low
* Tyre Wear – Medium

Note that this season pit-stops will last longer than in previous seasons; this number represents the time it takes to travel down the pit-lane NOT including the time you will spend stationary.

## Qualifying

Maserati triumph in qualfying - but it's not the predictable order one may have expected, as Gerard can only manage 3rd place…and the man who pushed him so close time is only in 2nd position, as Piotti is forced to cede Pole to Bonnier! The Swede picks up his 1st ever Pole Position, and with it becomes the 1st ever Swedish driver to secure a Pole - along with giving himself a great chance at a victory in Sunday's race!!!

Von Trips is narrowly behind the Maserati's in 4th place for Ferrari, with Herrmann an impressive 5th for Cooper in front of the Ferrari's of Gould (6th), Salvadori (7th) and Brabham (10th). He even has Cooper team-mate Behra for company in 8th, with Flockhart narrowly behind in 11th place to provide support come race day…

Collins is top Vanwall in a relatively disappointing session for the British marque, with their leading Brit 9th, Fairman 12th, Brooks 14th and de Beaufort leaving it late to qualify in 23rd overall! Meanwhile Chiron leads the OSCA charge in 13th, from Fangio 16th, and Hawthorn 20th - as a smattering of BRMs (Musso 17th and Gibson 18th) along with a handful of Lotus drivers (McLaren 16th and Scarlatti a season's best 19th) provide their main competition.

Godia has outdone himself with a season's best qualifying of 21st, from Schell 22nd (top Porsche), Moss 24th (top Connaught), Bridger 25th for Lotus, Trintignant a disappointed 26th for Porsche, Menditeguy an equally lowly 27th for Lotus, Gendebien 28th for Porsche and a crash for Marsh consigning him to 29th for Connaught. Both Emery and Hill do make the grid in 30th and 31st respectively, but without having put in a full qualifying session it is debatable how much they will be able to do in the upcoming race…!

## Grid

Maserati topped the time charts for the 2nd qualifying session in a row - though this time their usual Pole Sitter Bob Gerard could only manage 3rd place, which may in turn spice up the championship hunt a litle more - with both Bonnier and Piotti starting to look like potential contenders to the Ferrari's of von Trips (starting a solid 4th) and Brabham (with more work to do down in 10th).

Don't count out the other Ferrari's of Gould (6th) and Salvadori (7th), or indeed the Cooper of Herrmann, who has scored points in every race this season that he has managed to get past the 1st corner in!!! Behra in the Cooper, Collins in the Vanwall, Flockhart in the Cooper and Fairman in the Vanwall will also be looking to challenge for points this time around.

Chiron did an incredible effort for OSCA in qualifying to start 13th, and will be leading the charge to break the Top 10 followed by Brooks' Vanwall, the lead Lotus of McLaren (after an impressive qualifying session for him in 15th), Fangio's OSCA 16th, the BRM's of Musso and Gibson a little furhter back than normal in 17th and 18th (though not as far back as team-mate Hill who starts from 31st position!!!), with Scarlatti in a strong 19th and Hawthorn rounding out the Top 20 with OSCA looking a solid proposition for this race!

Elsewhere Godia qualifies better than normal in 21st, ahead of the leading Porsche of Schell, de Beaufort somewhat out of position in 23rd, Moss the top Connaught in 24th, Bridger and Menditeguy sandwiching the dissatisfied Trintignant in 26th with Gendebien 28th, Marsh 29th and Emery 30th as those towards the back will simply be hoping to break into the Top 20 where possible…

## Race Commentary

*Lap 1* – Bonnier bogs down slightly at the start, which is enough for both of his team-mates to take advantage – with Gerard using all his experience to dive up the inside of the Swede at Gueux, while Piotti goes around the outside to pass Bonnier, but that sees him lose out to the multiple champion for the lead.

Von Trips, Herrmann and Gould are all a little slow off the line, which hands the initiative to Salvadori who moves up to 4th place after a brilliant get-away, with von Trips into 5th, Gould still 6th and Herrmann coming off worst of all as he slides back down to 7th overall.

Behra and Collins both look wary of the threat that Brabham poses and they defend to the inside at Muizon, which allows Flockhart to perform an audacious manoeuvre around the outside to pass the whole group of them and move into 8th from Behra 9th, Collins 10th and the Ferrari of Brabham now outside the Top 10!

Fairman gets away without issue in 12th, while Brooks gets off the line more quickly than Chiron to claim 13th – another fast starter meanwhile is Paco Godia in the Cooper, who finds himself on the back of Fangio’s OSCA at Brettelle Sud…but they touch!!! And both are eliminated on the spot, which makes the start made by Gibson look even better – as thanks to some strong early pace he passes team-mate Musso and the Lotus of McLaren to sit 14th after the 1st lap thanks to Chiron dropping even further down.

Musso is then 15th from Chiron 16th and de Beaufort up to 17th after a strong start that sees him gain 6 positions! Hawthorn is up to 18th, with McLaren down to 19th, Schell 20th, Scarlatti 21st after a tough opening lap for the Lotus and then it is Trintignant looking at breaking into the Top 20 after a good start for the Porsche, which is cheered to the hilt by the home fans!

Menditeguy has followed the home favourite through to 23rd now, with Moss holding 24th, Bridger 25th, Gendebien 26th, then Marsh, Emery and Hill bringing up the rear after a lack of running in qualifying has really impeded the BRM…

*Lap 2* – The Ferrari’s of von Trips and Salvadori are setting the pace right now in 4th and 5th, with von Trips marginally quicker due to Salvadori being held up behind Bonnier. Though to alleviate the pressure Piotti actually allows his team-mate to slip past him and up to 2nd place…for a short time at least!

Flockhart continues his strong start to the race, as Herrmann moves aside to let the Brit spearhead the Cooper charge in this race. Meanwhile the 3rd Cooper isn’t faring quite so well, as Behra loses places in front of his home fans to both Collins and Brabham (who is now back inside the Top 10).

Brooks passes Fairman for 12th, as the former moves aside for his team-mate – while Chiron is busy defending from another Vanwall in the shape of de Beaufort…but the OSCA holds firm for now! Further back Trintignant and Menditeguy are both on the move, as they fly past Scarlatti and Schell like their respective team-mates are standing still – meaning they are now 20th and 21st respectively!!!

Gendebien is another Porsche on the move, as he overtakes Bridger for 25th on this lap – with Emery and Marsh also switching positions to give Connaught the best chance at pursuing their rivals. Meanwhile the lack of qualifying time for Hill is starting to show, as he continues to bring up the rear…

*Lap 3* – Piotti is the man on the move, as he slipstreams past both Bonnier and Gerard to claim the race lead…but unbeknownst to him he is followed through each time by Salvadori, who now moves up to 2nd position ahead of Gerard 3rd and Bonnier in 4th place! Brabham is another Ferrari making up places, as he comfortably overhauls Collins at Thillois to move into 9th overall.

Gibson meanwhile is being held up by Fairman over 13th, while this time de Beaufort’s impatience costs him dear as he manages to slam into the side of Chiron’s OSCA at Muizon, which damages both cars! The Vanwall comes off worse though, and pits at the end of the lap to fix the damage – while the Monegasque bravely elects to continue with the cosmetic damage sustained in the incident…

One OSCA’s loss is another one’s gain, as Hawthorn is briefly promoted up a couple of places…that is before Trintignant’s storming passage through the field catches up to him at Garenne! That means the Porsche is now into 16th from Hawthorn 17th, Menditeguy still trying to follow through in 18th with Schell up to 19th and McLaren down to 20th after he is unable to match the pace of those around him.

Moss is now 21st, from Scarlatti 22nd, Gendebien 23rd and Chiron now dropping to 24th position. Bridger is 25th, from Emery, Marsh, Hill and the recovering de Beaufort predictably out in 29th and last on the road.

*Lap 4* – Piotti may not have realised Salvadori was behind him before, but he certainly does now – as the Ferrari roars past him through Gueux and into the race lead! Flockhart looks serious about being the one to lead the Cooper efforts this race, and to prove it he dives past Gould at Thillois to claim 6th position!

It’s not all good news for Cooper though, as Herrmann drops behind both Brabham and Collins on this lap with his straight-line speed not up to the likes of Ferrari and Vanwall at this point it seems. Gibson meanwhile overtakes Fairman with an uncharacteristically clean overtake in what has been a spotless race for the BRM, who now sits 13th overall!

Menditeguy does what Trintignant did last lap, as he passes Hawthorn for 17th place – while Chiron is still fighting with his damaged car and defending manfully from Bridger, who does get past the OSCA…but not before losing some momentum on the run down to the start/finish line and seeing the Connaught of Emery sail past into 24th position from Bridger 25th, Marsh now 26th and Chiron 27th overall.

*Lap 5* – Gerard reclaims the fastest lap with a slightly faster 2:24.0, but he is unable to impact the order ahead of him. Meanwhile a mistake on the exit of Thillois makes Brooks a sitting duck for first Gibson to claim 12th, and then the other Vanwall of Fairman to take 13th ahead of Brooks now in 14th position.

Hawthorn looks to be fed up with being overtaken, and smartly shuts the door in Schell’s face to keep the Porsche back in 19th place, while near the back Hill is now gaining on Chiron and should be with the OSCA in a handful of laps…

*Lap 6* – Salvadori staves off the threat from Piotti this lap, but he is unable to do anything about Gerard using the slipstream behind his team-mate through Garenne to reclaim the race lead and become the 1st man underneath a 2:24 second lap-time! The Ferrari is down to 2nd, but keeps Piotti behind him in 3rd in an otherwise uneventful lap…

*Lap 7* – Gerard is setting the track alight with his pace, as he claims a 2:23.8 to move 2 tenths ahead of Salvadori in 2nd place. Flockhart doggedly defends from Gould this lap, as he ensures that the points positions remain firmly in his sights!

Towards the back Emery continues to advance Connaught’s cause, as he passes Gendebien for 23rd and moves onto the back of Scarlatti in the process…

*Lap 8* – Trintignant’s pursuit of Musso becomes fruitful at last, with a well-timed move at Hovette, which moves the Porsche up to 15th place! Another Porsche is having a good time this lap as well, as Gendebien avenges Emery’s move from last lap initially, and then follows that up by braking later than Scarlatti into Thillois to claim 22nd…though the Connaught is not able to follow him through.

*Lap 9* – A 2:23.6 increases Gerard’s lead up to 6 tenths of a second, as Salvadori is more concerned with keeping Piotti at bay behind. Meanwhile Flockhart is driving out of his skin, as he makes von Trips look practically stationary with a dive up the inside at Muizon that the Ferrari is powerless to resist – meaning the Cooper is now into the points in 5th place!

Further back Hill is now less than a second behind the ailing Chiron, as he looks to consign the OSCA to last of those yet to pit.

*Lap 10* – Salvadori was right to be worried about Piotti, as the Italian scampers past on the run down to Muizon to re-take 2nd position and claw a tenth back on Gerard in the process too! Moss moves into the Top 20 with a well-executed pass on McLaren, while Hill does overtake Chiron for 27th place without much fight at all…

*Lap 11* – A slightly faster 2:23.6 for Gerard sees him extend his lead at the front to 0.7 seconds over Piotti and the on-rushing Salvadori in 3rd. Meanwhile further back Emery continues his move through the field with a well-timed pass on Scarlatti for 23rd at Muizon.

*Lap 12* – Salvadori has an attempt on Piotti for 2nd thwarted by a late swipe across the track at Gueux by the Maserati, as Gerard increases his lead to 0.9 seconds as a result of setting another slightly faster 2:23.6 second lap-time!

In the all-Cooper contest for 10th place Herrmann’s day continues to worsen, as Behra now moves past him – though can’t quite slipstream past Collins for 9th despite his best efforts…

*Lap 13* – This time there is no stopping Salvadori, as the Ferrari continues his march forwards with a switchback manoeuvre at Thillois to claim 2nd position – but can he now go on to hunt down Gerard and his 1 second lead? Behra does try to use his momentum to take him past Collins, but the Vanwall is too experienced to fall for that and promptly slams the door closed to keep hold of 9th position.

*Lap 14* – The reason for Flockhart’s early pace becomes all too apparent, as he pulls in to refuel and try a different strategy to maximise his low-fuel running…he emerges in 28th position, though certainly does have some clear air to attack as a result. That coupled with von Trips making way now sees Gould up to 5th position from his team-mate, with Brabham 7th, Behra delighting the home crowd with a pass on Collins for 8th, which consigns the Vanwall to 9th and sees Herrmann back inside the Top 10!

Up front Salvadori is setting the track on fire, with a 2:23.4 to slice Gerard’s lead down to just 0.8 seconds!!!

*Lap 15* – And the Ferrari does it again, taking another 2 tenths to cut his arrears to 0.6 seconds only. Gould’s time in the points-paying positions is short-lived, as von Trips reclaims his place – he may well have just been looking for a slip-stream to gain momentum and challenge Bonnier for 4th – though with the Swede a full second ahead he has enough of a buffer to comfortably withstand the pressure.

Herrmann meanwhile is blocked by Collins for 9th, while Gibson elects to pit already from 11th – and he emerges in 28th just a few seconds ahead of de Beaufort…

*Lap 16* – Gould again uses the slipstream through Garenne to re-pass von Trips, with the German clearly not used to running so closely with one of his team-mates! Herrmann meanwhile times it perfectly at Muizon on this lap to pass Collins for 9th position.

Up front Piotti is fastest on this lap, with a new FL of a slightly faster 2:23.4 to move within a second of the leader and keep Salvadori honest as well…

*Lap 17* – Gerard gets back on the pace with the first 2:23.3 to increase the gap to Salvadori to 0.8 and Piotti to 1.2 seconds overall.

Meanwhile Collins challenges Herrmann back immediately but finds himself being forced wide by the Cooper and thus unable to claim the position back.

*Lap 18* – Not much action on track this lap…

*Lap 19* – Collins passes Herrmann for 9th place this lap, though can he keep hold of it this time around!?! Menditeguy pits this time around and shows the value of the over-cut as he comes out ahead of Gibson – although behind the advancing de Beaufort, who takes the BRM for 28th before rising to 27th thanks to the Argentine Lotus driver’s pit-stop. Emery also tries to pass Gendebien for what is now 19th, but his move is to no avail.

*Lap 20* – Salvadori sets a 2:23.2 to trim the lead to 0.7 seconds, though he is instantly bettered by Piotti with an even faster 2:23.2 that cuts his own deficit down to just 0.4 seconds! Meanwhile Emery makes good on his advances to pass Gendebien into Thillois due to being last of the late brakers into that corner!!!

*Lap 21* – Salvadori is definitely focusing more on Piotti’s attacks than gaining on Gerard right now…with a 1 second gap to the leader and just 0.1 seconds back to the next Maserati! Herrmann tries to reclaim 9th from Collins but is not able to force his way through despite his best efforts…

Gendebien meanwhile is piling the pressure on Emery – but he cannot seem to find a way past the Connaught, while Gibson and Menditeguy end up rubbing wheels as the BRM forces his way out of last place and into 28th position ahead of the Lotus.

*Lap 22* – Gerard sets a 2:23 dead to move 1.2 seconds ahead of Salvadori, who does manage to pull a little way away from Piotti this time around.

Gendebien continues to pressure Emery for 19th place but finds the door rudely slammed in his face at Thillois, as this battle goes on to another lap at least…

*Lap 23* – Salvadori hasn’t given up his chances of battling the Maserati’s…as he is faster than both Gerard and Piotti this time around. Herrmann does finally get past Collins to claim 9th position after a strong move at Muizon that the Vanwall is powerless to prevent…while further back Trintignant comes in for his stop to emerge in 26th place just a couple of seconds ahead of de Beaufort in the Vanwall.

*Lap 24* – Collins immediately regains 9th place from Herrmann, with a carbon copy of the move at Muizon that he fell victim to the lap beforehand!

*Lap 25* – Salvadori sets a new Fastest Lap of 2:23.0 this time around – while Gould, Musso, Hawthorn, Emery and de Beaufort (for the 2nd time) all pit on this lap, which means von Trips is now 5th, Brabham 6th, Behra 7th, Collins 8th, Herrmann 9th and Fairman now inside the Top 10 for Vanwall. Brooks is now 11th with Schell 12th, Moss 13th, McLaren 14th, Gendebien 15th, Scarlatti 16th, Bridger 17th, Marsh 18th, Hill 19th and Gould now out in 20th position that has seen him leap-frog Flockhart thanks to running longer!

Chiron is now 21st, with Flockhart back up to 22nd, Musso is out in 23rd now ahead of Trintignant in 24th, Hawthorn is out in 25th and Gibson is up to 26th while showing some decent pace – albeit he has certainly lost a whole host of places due to pitting so much earlier. Menditeguy is up to 27th, with Emery out in 28th and de Beaufort out in 29th position.

*Lap 26* – Gerard is the 1st man to break the 2:23 barrier this time around – but attention is on the extra stops on this lap, with Salvadori, Bonnier, Brooks, Schell and Gendebien from Porsche all coming in, which is a disaster for the Belgian as he gets queued behind his team-mate for quite some time! Marsh also comes in for Connaught…and all of that means Piotti is now up to 2nd, from von Trips, Brabham, Behra, Collins, Herrmann, Fairman, Moss and McLaren now rounding out the Top 10.

Scarlatti and Bridger are 11th and 12th, with Salvadori emerging from the pits marginally ahead of Hill, who is in 14th. Bonnier is out in 15th about equidistant between Salvadori & Hill ahead and Gould behind in 16th, with Chiron losing 17th to Flockhart this time around after the Cooper makes an easy pass on the ailing OSCA down the back straight.

Brooks emerges in 19th, with Musso up to 20th, Trintignant 21st, Hawthorn 22nd and Schell out in 23rd only a second ahead of Gibson in the BRM – and these two have history together after their collision in Monaco! Menditeguy is 25th now (having dropped back after pitting too early), from Emery in 26th, Marsh out in 27th and Gendebien out in 28th after spending around 20 seconds queued up behind his team-mate in the pits.

*Lap 27* – Piotti, von Trips, Moss, McLaren and Chiron all pit this time around, which moves Brabham up to 2nd, Behra into 3rd and Herrmann up to 4th after another pass on Collins! Fairman is up to 6th from Scarlatti 7th and Bridger 8th. Piotti comes out of the pits…and can see Salvadori bearing down on him, but a deft flick to the inside at Brettelle Sud holds the place and ensures the Maserati completes the overtake for what is likely to be a net 2nd place!

Hill is up to 11th though yet to stop, with Bonnier up to 12th, von Trips out in 13th just 1 second behind the Maserati with Gould in 14th ultimately losing a position due to not running his 1st stint for long enough! Flockhart is back up to 15th from Brooks, Musso, Trintignant and Hawthorn, while Schell rounds out the Top 20 narrowly ahead of Gibson, Menditeguy and the emerging due of Moss and McLaren.

Emery is 25th, from Marsh 26th, the luckless Gendebien in 27th and Chiron in 28th after finally coming in to fix his own damage…though despite all of this action and the drivers now a lap behind, Gerard is going faster than ever with a 2:22.8 this time around to cement his 1st place!

*Lap 28* – Herrmann, Fairman and Flockhart all pit on this lap, which means only Gerard in the lead, Brabham in 2nd, Behra in 3rd, Collins in 4th, Scarlatti in 5th, Bridger in 6th and Hill a little further back are yet to stop!

Piotti is 7th but Salvadori is 8th and starting to gain ground, while Bonnier is now up to 9th after overtaking Hill at Thillois this time around. Von Trips is up to 11th, with Gould 12th, Herrmann out in 13th and Fairman out in 14th positions. Flockhart pits from 15th to come out in 27th overall with one hell of a comeback drive ahead of him given his 2-stop strategy!

*Lap 29* – Behra and Collins are the latest duo to pit, leaving just Gerard, Brabham, Scarlatti, Bridger (aka the Top 4) and Hill yet to come in. Piotti is now back up to 5th, with Salvadori 6th, Bonnier some 3 seconds behind in 7th, von Trips up to 8th place after a solid overtake on Hill in 9th and then Gould in 10th right behind the BRM. Behra comes out of the pits in 11th, with Herrmann in 12th and Collins out in 13th overall.

*Lap 30* – Gerard and Scarlatti both pit this time around, which hands the lead to Brabham and Bridger (both of whom are yet to pit). Gerard emerges in 3rd place some 5 seconds ahead of Piotti, who has Salvadori still within a second of him and pushing to close the gap right down! Bonnier is 6th, from von Trips, Gould (who is the latest man to overtake Hill) and then comes Behra up to 10th place.

Scarlatti meanwhile emerges in 23rd, which means Gibson’s overtake on Schell (without incident – incredibly enough!) moves the BRM up to 18th – while there IS an incident when McLaren tries to overtake Moss and gets it all wrong, which means both are forced to pit to fix the damage and drop significantly down the order as a result – and that promotes Scarlatti to 21st, Emery to 22nd, Marsh to 23rd, Gendebien to 24th, Flockhart to 25th, Chiron to 26th, de Beaufort to 27th, McLaren out in 28th and Moss now out in 29th overall.

*Lap 31* – Brabham pits on this lap, which ASTONISHINGLY puts Bridger’s Lotus into the race lead!!! Although he is still yet to pit, there must be some up-front worrying about when he will actually be coming in…

Brabham emerges in 8th place behind von Trips and Gould, with 3 of the 4 Ferrari drivers outside of the points as it stands!

*Lap 32* – Not much happening on this lap, other than Bridger still leading the race…!

*Lap 33* – Bridger finally surrenders the lead, which means Gerard is back into 1st, ahead of Piotti, Salvadori less than a second behind in 3rd, Bonnier in 4th, von Trips close behind in 5th, Gould 6th with Brabham less than a second behind in 7th place.

Behra is up to 8th after passing Hill at Muizon, with the BRM the last man still to pit in 9th, ahead of Herrmann 10th, who is under serious pressure from Collins as it stands! Fairman is 12th, from Brooks, Musso, Trintignant, Hawthorn, Gibson, Schell, Menditeguy and Scarlatti rounding out the Top 20. Bridger is out in 21st place, marginally ahead of Emery in the Connaught…

*Lap 34* – Brabham is making real ground on Gould and is now within half a second of him. Meanwhile Herrmann is the latest man to overtake Hill, but as he goes around the outside Collins dives up the inside at Hovette, which moves the Vanwall up to 9th with Herrmann 10th and Hill now down to 11th overall.

*Lap 35* – Fairman passes Hill for 11th, whose tyres are really starting to let go now!

*Lap 36* – Brabham passes Gould for 6th, as the Ferrari moves over to let his team-mate past – leaving the Australian just 2 seconds to gain on his title rival von Trips for the final points on offer! Meanwhile Herrmann catches Collins napping, as he re-passes him for 9th position while Brooks makes a comfortable pass on Hill for 12th position – both of which happen at the Thillois corner.

*Lap 37* – Gould moves back past Brabham using a comfortable slipstream to reclaim 6th and ensure he isn’t just seen as fodder for the more experienced members of the team! Collins meanwhile crosses the finish line just milliseconds behind Herrmann as they continue to dual over 9th position!!!

Meanwhile Hill’s plight is only getting worse, as he pulls over to let team-mate Musso claim 13th, with Trintignant also taking advantage to move into 14th ahead of the BRM.

*Lap 38* – Brabham again takes Gould for 6th place, though the in-fighting between the Ferrari’s is doing very little to help them gain ground on those ahead! Collins now moves ahead of Herrmann again for 9th position, which is another move at Thillois that comes good.

Hawthorn and Gibson both pass Hill on this lap, while the BRM is now just marginally ahead of Schell at this stage.

*Lap 39* – Von Trips is less than a second behind Bonnier, as he gradually hauls the Maserati in – but only by a small margin each lap. All the while Hill’s tyres are screaming “enough!” as he falls behind Schell (now 17th), Menditeguy (now 18th), Scarlatti (now 19th) and Bridger now 20th – with Emery in 22nd the latest man to need to make his away around the BRM…

*Lap 40* – Gerard’s lead is just under 6 seconds – which could still be caught if those behind can find an extra turn of pace…while Salvadori is now just 0.8 seconds behind Piotti, with Bonnier starting to fall behind the Ferrari – and still just under 1 second ahead of von Trips in 5th.

Emery is now 21st with Marsh 22nd, as Hill’s demise is almost complete now!!!

*Lap 41* – Collins continues to defend valiantly from Herrmann over 9th, while further back Hill at last pits to promote Gendebien to 23rd, Flockhart to 24th, Chiron to 25th, de Beaufort to 26th, McLaren to 27th and Moss to 28th – leaving the BRM last of all as it stands…

*Lap 42* – Gerard has a 6 second lead at the front and looks comfortable, if not secure, considering Salvadori in 3rd if fastest man on track this time – and has the gap to Piotti down to 0.9 seconds, as they continue to see-saw back and forwards with their lap times! Further back Flockhart is now breathing down Gendebien’s neck for 23rd place in the closest battle on track behind the leaders…

*Lap 43* – Flockhart tries a move on Gendebien, but the Porsche obstinately moves across to block the Cooper – but this will be a tough fight for the Belgian to win…

*Lap 44* – …and so it proves, as Flockhart roars past on the inside at Gueux to claim 23rd position – but the 12 second gap to 22nd place Marsh may prove one step too many! Collins blocks Herrmann again this lap, as the German simply will not give up on that 9th position!!!

*Lap 45* – In an otherwise quiet lap the main gaps worth watching are Salvadori v Piotti for 2nd place (1 second), Musso v Trintignant for 13th (0.7 seconds) and Gibson v everyone behind him (as his tyres are starting to show some serious signs of wear now!).

*Lap 46* – McLaren runs out of fuel with just a few laps of the race remaining! He drops to 29th to give some much-needed cheer to the Connaught of Moss and the BRM of Hill behind him…

*Lap 47* – Schell attempts a pass on Gibson but despite his worn-out tyres the BRM is having none of it!!!

*Lap 48* – Salvadori has the gap to Piotti under a second, but it may be too little too late for the Ferrari to compete here! Trintignant meanwhile has the gap to Musso down to 0.5 seconds, and Gibon’s tyres have fallen off the cliff – and he loses 16th to an easy overtake at Thillois by Schell in the Porsche.

*Lap 49* – Salvadori has the gap down to 0.7 seconds – but it’s looking like too little too late for the Ferrari at this stage. Meanwhile Gibson continues to lose places hand over fist, as he falls behind both Menditeguy and Scarlatti – with the latter posed to pounce on his more experienced team-mate too!

*Lap 50* – It may not be the hat-trick this time, but it certainly confirms that Gerard is back – and a force to be reckoned with! This win moves him top of the % wins charts – and puts him right into title contention, along with giving him his 20th ever Fastest Lap too!!! Team-mate Piotti could not quite match his more experienced counterpart’s pace towards the end, but a 2nd consecutive podium finish certainly brings him into the championship picture too.

Salvadori ran a strong race in 3rd to finish just 0.6 seconds behind Piotti – and this podium moves him into the Top 10 for Most Podiums of all time in his 40th ever race!!! Ferrari’s blushes are therefore somewhat spared, as they at least finished ahead of one of the Maserati trio – though consecutive points finishes for Bonnier are nothing to sneer at.

Likewise, von Trips recording a 6th consecutive points finish is quite an achievement and that sees him secure his place in the Top 10 for Most Consecutive Points Finishes ever! Brabham and Gould both finish within about 3.5 seconds of the German, but those two miss out on points – and that means Brabham will almost certainly lose his championship lead too.

Behra crosses the line in a creditable 8th at his home GP, with Collins holding off Herrmann for 9th, followed by Fairman in 11th, Brooks in 12th…and then Trintignant in 13th (!) to the delight of the home fans, as the BRM of Musso runs out of fuel in the finishing straight and is forced to simply coast over the line and allow the Porsche to overtake!

Hawthorn finishes a respectable 15th for OSCA, with Schell 16th, Menditeguy moving over at the last minute to let team-mate Scarlatti finish as top Lotus in 17th, while there is even better news for Lotus with Bridger overhauling the struggling Gibson on the last lap to take 19th position…a feat that Emery also repeats to move into the Top 20 at the last possible moment!!! That means Gibson finishes 21, with Marsh 22nd, Flockhart 23rd (thanks to his far from ideal strategy), Gendebien 24th (after his mishap being queued in the pits) and then come Chiron 25th and de Beaufort 26th after their altercation, as the final drivers on the lead lap.

*1 LAP DOWN* – Moss and Hill both come over the line unscathed, albeit a lap down, which is more than can be said for McLaren, Fangio or Godia!!!

Watch this space for the next race, which will be the Belgian Grand Prix at Spa…

## Milestones

* 40th race entry for Roy Salvadori, as he also moves up to 6th in most entries ever, at the expense of José Froilán González
* 10th race start for Tony Brooks
* Godia up to 4th in Most Races without Points, at the expense of both Eugenio Castellotti and André Simon
* Another win for Gerard moves him top of Most % Wins at the expense of Ken Wharton, as well as being the 7th time he has recorded consecutive victories in his career
* Gerard won again here, to match his achievement at the French GPs in both 1951 and 1953, while Jean Behra won last season and Collins won the season before here. Salvadori is also a past winner here in 1954 (from the lowest ever starting point on the grid – 19th!); other past winners are de Graffenried (’50 - retired) and Farina (’52 - retired).
* Von Trips up to 9th in Most Races Finished in the Points at the expense of Herrmann
* Points finish for von Trips is his 6th points finish in a row
* There are consecutive points finishes for Gerard, Piotti and Bonnier too
* FL for Gerard is his 20th Fastest Lap ever!
* FL for Gerard is the 5th time he has managed Consecutive Fastest Laps, something that only 6 drivers have ever achieved!
* Gerard has set FL in France in 1950, ‘51 and ’57 – and manages this again in ‘58, while Collins managed the FL here in 1956; other past winners are Onofre Marimón (’54 – retired), Chico Landi (’53 – retired) and Taruffi (’52 – retired)
* Bonnier secures his maiden Pole Position here (and the 1st ever by a Swede). Gerard has achieved Pole in France in 1951, ’52 and ’57; past Pole Sitters were Yves-Girard Cabantous (’50 – retired), Umberto Maglioli (’53 – retired), Herrmann Lang (’54 – retired) and Toulo de Graffenried (’56 – retired)
* Podium for Salvadori moves him into the Top 10 for Most Podiums ever at the expense of Élie Bayol
* Podium for Gerard and Piotti makes it consecutive podium finishes