1959 Portuguese GP

## Track Facts

* Name – Monsanto
* Location – Portugal
* Corners – 9
* Laps – 62
* Base (Worst) Lap Time – 3:00.000
* Lap Record (Real Life) – 2:02.890 (Stirling Moss)
* Lap Record (F1R) – N/A
* Pit Lane Length – 20 seconds\*
* Fuel Consumption – Low
* Tyre Wear – Low

\*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 & Grid

Ferrari domination has returned as they take a 1-2-3…but the fascinating thing is the order, as last time's race winner d'Orey claims a 1st ever career pole ahead of last season's champion von Trips and the ever-present and consistent Brabham! The question is, just how much are they likely to squabble between each other this race after the kerfuffle between Brabham and d'Orey last time out…

BRM also look strong this time out as they take up 4th through 6th on the grid, with their main championship hope Gregory leading the way ahead of Phil and Graham Hill. Maserati and Cooper have their own private duel on the outskirts of the Top 10, with Bonnier 7th, Flockhart 8th, Behra 9th, McLaren 10th, Gurney 11th and Bianchi 12th.

Meanwhile Aston Martin, Vanwall and Porsche have their own midfield battle - with the Aston Martin outfit looking strongest right now, with Salvadori 13th, Brooks 14th and de Filippis 16th, with Fairman 15th, de Beaufort 18th and Ireland 21st for Vanwall - with Porsche the weakest of that trio, though Trintignant looks best of the bunch in 17th, followed by Testut 19th and Gendebien 20th overall.

Outside the Top 20 there is also a 3-way fight, as Connaught lead the way there with Allison 22nd, Moss 23rd and Shelby 24th - while JBW and Lotus contend for the final spots. Scarlatti is 25th, from Burgess 27th and Naylor 28th (though the latter had a crash that wrecked his session, so his pace might be better than we are yet to see) - while Lotus have 26th for Ward and 29th for Schell, who looks a whole new man this weekend, though unfortunately had limited running thanks to an early off in the session. No Herrmann for Lotus again, and questions will start to be asked about how long Team Principal Tom Byrne can let his absence slide…

## Race Commentary

*Lap 1* – The starter’s flag waves, and we are under-way in Portugal! D’Orey is not used to being on Pole Position and that shows, as he gets far too much wheelspin off the line – and he therefore graciously ensures he does not hold up von Trips or Brabham behind him. However, neither von Trips or Brabham seem confident to move past the young Brazilian quickly enough – and though they do pass him later in the lap, their hesitation costs them dear, as Phil Hill in the BRM starts incredibly quickly and makes his way into the race lead by the end of Lap 1!!!

Von Trips takes up 2nd position, with Graham Hill following his team-mate into 3rd, with Brabham 4th and Salvadori using all his guile and experience to launch himself up to an impressive 5th position (from 13th on the grid) at the end of the opening lap. D’Orey has dropped to 6th, with Flockhart up to 7th for Cooper, as he passes Bonnier at Lake Hairpin by sticking tight to the apex!

McLaren is up to 9th after a decent start for the Maserati, with Behra 10th and Gurney now in 11th position. Brooks benefits from his team-mate clearing the way ahead in 12th and then it is Bianchi in 13th and then – INCREDIBLY – it is Naylor in the JBW, who defies his lowly starting position to catapult his way past those who take the opening lap more cautiously! Shelby sees the JBW coming – and though he is powerless to prevent the overtake, he does slip into the Brit’s wheel-tracks and thus finishes the lap in 15th position.

Meanwhile there is a coming together at Riding School Corner, where both de Beaufort and Testut go for the same piece of track at the same time – and collide heavily! Both of them limp back to the pits and clearly emerge at the back of the pack as a result…

…that elevates Trintignant to 16th, from the slow-starting Gregory in 17th – as the American sees his strong grid position disappear in an instant after managing to stall on the opening lap! De Filippis is now 18th ahead of Scarlatti, who is up to 19th from Fairman 20th and then Schell now 21st for Lotus!!!

Burgess is right behind the American in 22nd from Gendebien 23rd, Moss 24th, Allison falling to 25th, Ireland down to 26th and Ward now in 27th position ahead of Testut 28th and de Beaufort 29th…

*Lap 2* – Some drivers are pushing incredibly hard right now – not least Phil Hill at the front of the pack, who sets the track on fire with a brilliant 2:03.9! Trying to emulate that but failing due to the sheer amount of traffic in front of them are Moss and Burgess further back, who both lose time as a result.

Hill’s lead at the front is now over 6 seconds already! Meanwhile von Trips and Graham Hill squabble over 2nd position, which sees them both miss their braking point at the long Lake Hairpin – and drop behind Brabham, who in turn finds himself overhauled by Salvadori, who is now up to 2nd place for Aston Martin. Meanwhile Flockhart is making strong progress behind, as he takes d’Orey at the Clover Leaf Hairpin before also taking advantage of the von Trips v Hill battle to pass them and also Brabham to move up to 3rd place.

Von Trips recovers from his detour to reclaim 4th from Brabham at the Pits Hairpin – while Graham Hill is the big loser, as he struggles to get back onto the racing line at Lake Hairpin and thus falls down to 8th position. Meanwhile Bonnier moves over to let McLaren past at Clover Leaf Hairpin, but finds his Maserati team-mate overhauled by the far quicker Behra – who effectively passes both Maserati’s in the space of a single corner…though later in the lap the even faster Naylor manages to pass the whole group of them at either Lake Hairpin or the Pits Hairpin! That means the JBW is up to 6th (as he takes both d’Orey and Graham Hill too!), some way ahead of Behra 9th, McLaren 10th and Bonnier 11th.

Meanwhile Gurney struggles to defend this lap, which sees Brooks pass him to retain 12th, with Shelby also gaining ground to move into 13th from Gurney 14th and Bianchi 15th overall. Meanwhile making up some great ground is Fairman in the Vanwall, who climbs up to 17th from de Filippis 18th, Scarlatti 19th and Gregory down to 20th place for BRM.

Further back Ireland also makes up places as he goes up to 23rd, from Gendebien 24th, Allison 25th and Moss 26th as it stands.

*Lap 3* – It is all very civil at Ferrari thus far, as von Trips moves over to let Brabham past him into 4th. However, Naylor is alert to the move and capitalises to ease up to 5th place ahead of the German…though behind them there is a disaster for Ferrari and BRM, as Graham Hill tries to pass d’Orey at Clover Leaf Hairpin and they collide! That allows Behra into 7th from McLaren 8th and Trintignant into an impressive 9th place – as the Porsche takes advantage of Brooks (who is now into 11th position) slowing up an entire train of cars to dive up the inside at the Lake Hairpin!!!

Bonnier is now 10th, while Scarlatti gets the better of de Filippis for what is now 16th and then takes Fairman for 15th as well! Behind them a 4-way fight between Ireland, Gendebien, Allison and Moss breaks out – which sees Allison take what is now 21st, from Moss 22nd, Gendebien 23rd and Ireland into 24th. D’Orey emerges in 26th place ahead of Graham Hill 27th and then those that crashed on the opening lap bringing up the rear…

*Lap 4* – Naylor passes Brabham for 4th position at Clover Leaf Hairpin here, as the JBW looks to catch those ahead – while Trintignant’s progress continues with passes on Behra and McLaren to move into 7th position. Meanwhile Brooks makes an error at Lake Hairpin that sends him wide and allows Shelby, Gurney and Bianchi to move into 11th, 12th and 13th places. De Filippis passes Fairman for 16th position also on this lap.

*Lap 5* – Naylor challenges Flockhart at Gonzalez 1 – though the Cooper is wise to that move and retains the position. Shelby is blocked by Bonnier for 10th, while Gurney holds up Bianchi at the Lake Hairpin, thereby allowing Brooks to pounce and claim 13th from the Cooper. Gendebien meanwhile attempts to pass Moss – but is unable to find a way around the Connaught for 22nd place this lap.

*Lap 6* – Flockhart narrowly defends his podium position from Naylor, who is looking more and more insistent each lap! Phil Hill meanwhile has opened up an 8 second advantage over Salvadori in 2nd – and is continuing to pull away. Brabham meanwhile repays the favour to von Trips by pulling over to let him reclaim 5th, though the Australian is wise to the advances of Trintignant behind and pulls back onto the racing line to ensure he retains 6th place.

Behra blocks McLaren for 8th, while further back Bianchi takes 13th from Brooks and d’Orey and Graham Hill are again squabbling – though this time over 26th and without crashing!

*Lap 7* – Naylor finally passes Flockhart for 3rd position at the Pits Hairpin – and just in time, as the Ferrari duo behind are taking more of an interest in them. Meanwhile Shelby claims 10th from Bonnier at Clover Leaf Hairpin and at the back of the field Graham Hill gets the better of d’Orey for 26th – with a clean move this time around!

*Lap 8* – Brabham blocks Trintignant for 6th, as he plays rear-gunner for von Trips – while further back the man on the move is Burgess, who takes advantage of Gregory holding up Schell to overtake the pair of them for 18th position!

*Lap 9* – Phil Hill’s lead is over 10 seconds at the front, while Brabham continues to hold up Trintignant for 6th and Behra is similarly keeping McLaren and Shelby at bay over 8th position. Gurney is blocking Bianchi for 12th, while Gregory is keeping Schell behind him over 19th place – as the Lotus driver seems like a completely new man with a new sense of purpose here!

*Lap 10* – Trintignant finally gets the better of Brabham for 6th position, by diving up the inside at the Pits Hairpin. Bianchi passes Gurney for 12th position here, while Schell does manage to overtake Gregory – as the Lotus moves into 19th place at Lake Hairpin!

*Lap 11* – Shelby passes McLaren for 9th position, as the Connaught makes quick work of moving ahead of the Maserati group and will now have Behra and the Ferrari’s in his sights…

*Lap 12* – Burgess passes Fairman for 17th position in an otherwise quiet lap…

*Lap 13* – Shelby is forced to defend from McLaren over 9th position, as the Maserati looks to reclaim the place he recently was forced to give up. Meanwhile Ward runs wide at Gonzales 2 and before he can recover, he finds himself overtaken by both Graham Hill and Fritz d’Orey, both themselves recovering from earlier crashes!

*Lap 14* – The reason for Phil Hill’s pace becomes apparent, as he pulls into the pits dropping from 1st down to 16th position, which means Salvadori now leads from Naylor 2nd, Flockhart 3rd, von Trips 4th as he blocks Trintignant’s advance. Schell manages to pass Fairman for 18th on this lap, while further back Ireland vigorously defends from Graham Hill and d’Orey over 24th place.

*Lap 15* – Von Trips holds up Trintignant for 4th place, while Behra holds up Shelby and Moss blocks Gendebien for 22nd position. Meanwhile Ireland is the latest man under pressure from the marauding Graham Hill and d’Orey, as he misses his braking point at Pits Hairpin to allow both of them into 24th and 25th positions, respectively. Behind them Testut passes Ward for 27th place as well.

*Lap 16* – Both Salvadori and Naylor come into the pits this time around, which means Flockhart now leads the way from Trintignant in 2nd as the Porsche overtakes von Trips with Brabham now 4th, Behra 5th, Shelby 6th, McLaren 7th, Bonnier 8th, Bianchi 9th and Gurney rounding out the Top 10. Brooks is up to 11th, from Scarlatti 12th, de Filippis 13th, Salvadori out in 14th narrowly ahead of Phil Hill in 15th (which is a net switch in positions), Burgess up to 16th, Schell 17th, Fairman 18th, Gregory 19th and Naylor out in 20th position.

*Lap 17* – Flockhart’s lead is 1.7 seconds with Trintignant gaining ground in 2nd place, while behind them Shelby is still blocking McLaren for 6th, while Bonnier JUST keeps Bianchi right behind him after a late dive at the Pits Hairpin doesn’t quite come off. Burgess passes Phil Hill for 15th on this lap – while behind them a huge fight erupts from Clover Leaf Hairpin up to Lake Hairpin between Moss, Gendebien, Graham Hill and d’Orey – and the man coming out ahead is…the Ferrari of d’Orey, who is now 22nd, from Graham Hill 23rd, Moss 24th and Gendebien 25th overall. Testut also passes Ireland for 26th position on this lap.

*Lap 18* – McLaren passes Shelby for 6th place, as he manages to finally put the Connaught in his place! It is not a perfect lap for Maserati though, as Bonnier falls behind Bianchi at Lake Hairpin to promote the Cooper into 8th place. Burgess attempts to pass Salvadori for 14th this lap but does not manage to make the move stick.

Meanwhile Schell passes Phil Hill for 16th position and d’Orey is blocking Graham Hill again – now for 22nd place…and they are both still gaining on those ahead of them!

*Lap 19* – Trintignant pits this lap to ease the pressure on Flockhart in the lead, with the Porsche emerging in 19th overall some 4 seconds behind Phil Hill up the road (though with a few cars in-between them at this point, and Salvadori even further ahead!). Ferrari now have von Trips in 2nd and Brabham in 3rd, while Behra is 4th and McLaren defends the final points-paying position from Shelby behind him.

Burgess passes Salvadori for what is now 13th at the Lake Hairpin here, while Phil loses more ground with his colder tyres and heavier fuel load, as he is passed by Fairman – though he manages to push the Vanwall wide enough to allow his team-mate Gregory to overtake them both, which means the American moves up to what is now 16th from Fairman 17th and Phil Hill in 18th position.

Behind them Allison is the latest driver to get caught up in d’Orey and Graham Hill’s recovery mission, as they both pass the Connaught – and the BRM manages to out-drag the Ferrari down to the Pits Hairpin, which means Hill is now 21st from d’Orey 22nd and Allison 23rd overall.

*Lap 20* – Flockhart pits to emerge in 14th place, slotting in between Gregory and Fairman by the skin of his teeth! Von Trips now leads from Brabham in 2nd, Behra 3rd and then it is Bianchi up to 4th and Bonnier 5th given that both McLaren and Shelby also both stop on this lap. Gurney is 6th, from Brooks 7th, Scarlatti 8th, de Filippis 9th, Burgess 10th and Salvadori 11th – the top driver to have stopped already. Schell is 12th from Gregory 13th and then it is Flockhart, Fairman, Phil Hill, Trintignant, Naylor, Graham Hill and then d’Orey up to 20th position with McLaren and Shelby out nose to tail in 21st and 22nd respectively.

Meanwhile Gendebien allows Testut to slipstream behind him, which catapults the Monegasque past his team-mate and also past Moss for 24th as well!

*Lap 21* – Another host of stops this lap, with von Trips, Bianchi, Gurney, Scarlatti, de Filippis, Schell, Graham Hill and Testut all coming in. That leaves Brabham in the net race lead, from Behra, Bonnier, Brooks and Burgess (all the B’s in the points right now!!!), while Salvadori is crucially in 6th with von Trips out behind him in 7th position.

Gregory is 8th, while Fairman claims 9th and ALMOST crashes with Flockhart in the process! Phil Hill is 11th, while d’Orey moves up to 12th and sets the Fastest Lap of the race in the process of overhauling the squabbling duo of Trintignant and Naylor (who also swap places on the run down to Lake Hairpin). Bianchi is out in 15th, from Gurney in 16th, Allison 17th, McLaren 18th after Shelby lets his team-mate through and sees him overtake the Maserati in the process, and then Scarlatti emerges in 20th place overall.

Moss is 21st from Gendebien 22nd, de Filippis out in 23rd, Ireland 24th, Ward 25th, Schell out in 26th, Graham Hill out in 27th, de Beaufort 28th and then Testut emerging in 29th and last position.

*Lap 22* – The leading quarter all come in, which means that Burgess now leads for JBW, from Salvadori 2nd, Brabham out in 3rd and then Gregory up to 4th, as he passes von Trips who is down to 6th place after he loses a spot to Fairman as well with his colder tyres. Flockhart is 7th, with d’Orey 8th after he passes Phil Hill and then Behra emerges in 10th position.

Naylor is up to 11th, while Bonnier is out in 12th from Trintignant 13th and Brooks out in 14th. Allison passes Gurney for 16th, with Shelby also taking McLaren for 18th in a good lap for Connaught and a less than ideal tour for Maserati! Ireland passes de Filippis for 23rd place as well here.

*Lap 23* – Brabham is struggling with colder tyres, which allows Gregory up to 3rd and Fairman into 4th position, respectively. D’Orey is the only man pitting this lap, which promotes Phil Hill to 8th and Naylor to 9th after he passes Behra on this lap as well! Bonnier also passes Behra to claim 10th, with Trintignant 12th, Brooks 13th, Bianchi 14th, Allison 15th, Gurney 16th, Shelby 17th, McLaren 18th and then it is Moss and Gendebien rounding out the Top 20, as they both pass Scarlatti on this lap.

D’Orey comes out in 25th position as his race is certainly not going to plan right now…

*Lap 24* – Flockhart blocks Phil Hill for 7th and behind them Trintignant is making ground, as he passes Bonnier and Behra to move into the Top 10. Allison is also making great progress, as he passes both Brooks and Bianchi to move up to 13th place and Moss passes McLaren for 18th position too. Finally, Ward takes de Filippis for 23rd place overall.

*Lap 25* – Burgess pits this lap and drops way back to 23rd position, which means Salvadori leads again from Gregory 2nd, Fairman 3rd, Brabham 4th and von Trips rounding out the points scorers as it stands. Naylor moves up to 6th, after he passes both Flockhart and Phil Hill – with the BRM coming out on top in that particular fight and taking 7th as a result.

Meanwhile Allison’s pace is irresistible, as he overtakes Behra for 11th at the Clover Leaf Hairpin before using that momentum to out-manoeuvre Bonnier for 10th at the Lake Hairpin too! Bianchi claims what is now 13th from Brooks, while Shelby not only fails to pass Gurney for 15th but also is obliged to let team-mate Moss past, who does go on to claim 15th from the Maserati at the Pits Hairpin! Gendebien also follows him through into 16th to drop Gurney to 17th, Shelby to 18th and McLaren to 19th overall with Scarlatti rounding out the Top 20.

On this lap de Beaufort finally has something to smile about, as he passes Graham Hill for 27th and moves right into the wheel-tracks of Schell in front…

*Lap 26* – An incredible lap for Naylor, as he overtakes not one but two Ferrari drivers in the space of one straight – as he takes von Trips at Clover Leaf Hairpin before passing Brabham at Lake Hairpin to move up to 4th place! Allison meanwhile claims 9th from Trintignant and Brooks defends heroically from both Moss and Gendebien this time around.

Shelby passes Gurney for 17th here, while further back Schell falls behind both de Beaufort (26th) and Graham Hill (27th) on this lap.

*Lap 27* – Brabham moves over to let von Trips into 5th place, given that the chasing pack are gaining on them quickly at this stage of the race. Brooks meanwhile cannot manage to keep those behind him in their places, as Moss takes 14th and Gendebien 15th on this lap.

*Lap 28* – Phil Hill is on the move again, as Brabham’s resistance ends in the space of 3 corners – with the BRM making ground on him on the run down to Riding School Corner. Bianchi meanwhile loses out easily to Moss, though makes Gendebien work a little harder for his pass – and maybe that is why Moss moves up to 12th with an overtake on Behra as well, while Gendebien is only up to 14th ahead of Bianchi in 15th place now. Meanwhile de Beaufort has finally found his rhythm here, as he passes d’Orey for 25th this time around…

*Lap 29* – Phil Hill takes 5th from von Trips, as he moves ahead of the Ferrari by a good distance already – such is the pace differential right now! Moss meanwhile is up to 11th with Gendebien back on his tail in 12th as they both pass Bonnier (now 13th), with Behra down to 14th position. Shelby gets the better of Brooks for 16th place, before Gurney moves over to let the more experienced McLaren past into 18th overall. Scarlatti defends from Ireland on this lap also.

*Lap 30* – Fairman pits as we near half distance (emerging in 22nd position), which means Naylor is now into an impressive 3rd for JBW, from Phil Hill 4th, von Trips 5th and then it is Allison in 6th as the Connaught bests both Brabham and Flockhart here (though is yet to stop). Ireland passes Scarlatti for what is now 19th place on this lap also.

*Lap 31* – Salvadori sets a new Fastest Lap, becoming the first man this race to break the 2:03.8 barrier. Also, on this lap, several of the 1-stoppers come in, with Gregory, Gendebien, Ward and de Beaufort all visiting the pits. That moves Naylor up to 2nd, Phil Hill to 3rd, Allison to 4th after a great pass on von Trips at the Lake Hairpin, while Flockhart passes Brabham for what is now 6th place also on this lap.

Bonnier is now inside the Top 10, with Bianchi now 11th after Behra moves over to let his team-mate through. McLaren meanwhile gains some ground, with a pass on Brooks for 14th at the Pits Hairpin – while Gregory emerges in 19th from Fairman 20th, Burgess 21st, de Filippis 22nd, d’Orey 23rd, Graham Hill 24th, Gendebien out in 25th, Schell 26th, Testut 27th, Ward out in 28th and de Beaufort emerging in 29th overall.

*Lap 32* – 2nd stops for the 3-stoppers and the remainder of the 1-stoppers come in – which leaves Phil Hill in the race lead! Von Trips is 2nd with Flockhart in 3rd bearing down on him, from Brabham 4th, Trintignant 5th, Bonnier 6th, Bianchi 7th, Behra 8th, Shelby 9th and McLaren now inside the Top 10 from Brooks 11th, Gurney 12th and then Salvadori emerging in 13th overall.

Scarlatti is up to 14th, from Gregory 15th, Naylor out in 16th, while Fairman loses ground to Burgess (now 17th) and de Filippis (now 18th) to slip to 19th overall, while Allison emerges in 20th position. He will be being hunted down by the recovering d’Orey in 21st, with Moss coming out to block the recovery of Graham Hill, who is only 23rd from Gendebien 24th, Testut 25th after passing Schell (now 26th) and then Ireland comes out in 27th place on track.

*Lap 33* – Brabham has some kind of problem with his gearbox, which looks to be costing him a little time on track! That allows Trintignant to muscle past him into 4th position, much to the dismay of the Ferrari pit-wall…

Gurney meanwhile passes Brooks for 11th and d’Orey reclaims his Top 20 spot by going around the outside of Allison at the tricky Lake Hairpin! Graham Hill also passes a Connaught in the shape of the heavily laden Moss for 22nd and behind them Gendebien moves over to let his team-mate Testut past into 24th place.

*Lap 34* – Phil Hill is pulling away at the front by around 0.6 seconds per lap – though whether it will be enough to give him a shot against the ultra-talented von Trips in 2nd is somewhat debatable…meanwhile Bonnier blocks Bianchi in their fight over 6th place, while they might both need to watch out for Shelby, who is now up to 8th after a pass on Behra at the Clover Leaf Hairpin!

Naylor meanwhile passes Gregory for 15th on their ultra-contrasting strategies, with Graham Hill claiming 21st from Allison and Schell getting the better of Gendebien for 25th position also this time around.

*Lap 35* – Shelby is on the move again, as he makes moves on both Bonnier and Bianchi look easy to claim 6th on this lap. Scarlatti takes Salvadori for 13th at Lake Hairpin before Gregory succumbs to both Burgess and de Filippis at the same corner. Further back, d’Orey is clearly mindful of the threat that Graham Hill poses behind, as he desperately dives up the inside of Fairman at the Clover Leaf Hairpin.

However, Fairman also loses 20th place to Graham Hill later in the lap – meaning the BRM is zeroing in on his Ferrari-powered target…and further back Testut easily passes Moss for 23rd position too.

*Lap 36* – Bonnier defends manfully from Bianchi, who is desperate to pass the Maserati and set off after Shelby and those in the points right now! Further back Testut passes Allison for 22nd and Schell takes 24th from the struggling Moss, who (like the other 1-stoppers) has a very heavy fuel load to contend with right now!

*Lap 37* – Phil Hill’s lead is around 6 seconds now, while Flockhart has moved to within a second of von Trips in 2nd place. Meanwhile Bianchi selflessly allows Behra to slipstream behind him, which in turn allows the Frenchman to slingshot past Bonnier and into 7th on the run down to Riding School Corner!

Burgess meanwhile defends strongly from de Filippis and retains 16th place on track…

*Lap 38* – Phil Hill pits from the lead for what could be the final time, given how far he extended that 2nd stint! Von Trips takes over the race lead but only by a mere 0.4 seconds to Flockhart with Trintignant a couple of seconds back as well. Phil Hill emerges in 14th place, which means Brabham is now 4th and Shelby 5th from Behra, Bonnier, Bianchi, McLaren and Gurney now completing the Top 10.

Salvadori is now 13th position, though his pace is not quite at the level he needs to haul in the front runners on his 3-stop strategy. Further back d’Orey passes Gregory for 18th to continue putting cars between him and the advancing Graham Hill – though one would expect that the BRM’s would not hamper each other’s races!

Testut meanwhile overtakes Fairman for 21st position – though they do come ever so close to a collision! Schell passes Allison for 23rd on this same lap also.

*Lap 39* – Von Trips is forced to defend from Flockhart, who simply cannot find a way past the reigning World Champion! Trintignant pits to elevate the struggling Brabham to 3rd with Shelby now 4th and beginning to close in at a rate of knots!!! Meanwhile it is a 4-way fight for the final points position, with Behra, Bonnier, Bianchi and McLaren going 4-wide down the Start/Finish straight – and the man that comes out ahead exiting the Clover Leaf Hairpin is…Behra! He times his braking to perfection to take 5th ahead of Bianchi now 6th, McLaren 7th and Bonnier (who overshot the corner) down to 8th place.

Gurney is now 9th from Brooks 10th, Scarlatti 11th, Salvadori 12th, Phil Hill crucially 13th and then Trintignant out just 1 second behind the BRM!

*Lap 40* – Flockhart and Shelby both pit to create a Ferrari 1-2 – though Brabham will soon have the Cooper and Maserati drivers for company. Though Behra makes a crucial error to let Bianchi through into 5th at Lake Hairpin – but does not make it back to the racing line in time, which allows McLaren into 6th and Bonnier into 7th places!

Flockhart emerges in 11th position and will now look to haul in as much time as possible – though his cold tyres will make that a challenge. Shelby meanwhile comes out in 19th place between the BRM’s of Graham Hill and Masten Gregory.

Trintignant is another driver who fails to stick to the racing line at the tricky Lake Hairpin, which costs him dearly as he loses 13th to Naylor (who then goes on to pass Phil Hill in the BRM later in the lap too!), 14th to Burgess and 15th to de Filippis in the space of just a single corner!!!

*Lap 41* – Von Trips sets a fastest lap of a 2:03.6 as he looks to claim an additional point…but he sees it snatched away by Bianchi in the Cooper, who does a slightly faster 2:03.6! Could that be the point for Fastest Lap secured?!? Behind them McLaren pits this time around, which moves Behra up to 4th as he brakes later than Bonnier at the Pits Hairpin. Gurney is up to 6th from Brooks 7th, Scarlatti 8th, Salvadori 9th, Flockhart 10th, Naylor 11th and then it all erupts behind, with Phil Hill, Burgess and de Filippis contending for what is now 12th position!

That fight goes all the way from the Clover Leaf Hairpin down to the Pits Hairpin before…de Filippis comes out of it in 12th from Burgess 13th and Phil Hill 14th. Trintignant is now 15th from d’Orey and Graham Hill separated by just 1 tenth of a second in the fight for what is now 16th, while McLaren emerges in 18th place overall.

Testut passes Gregory for a Top 20 spot, before Schell overhauls Fairman for 22nd place behind them…

*Lap 42* – The fastest lap contenders (von Trips and Bianchi) both pit this time, while Gurney, Scarlatti, de Filippis, Graham Hill, Testut and Schell all come in as well. That changes the order at the front drastically, as the ailing Brabham now leads (despite his damage – he has continued at a decent pace!) from Behra 2nd, Bonnier 3rd, Brooks 4th and Salvadori 5th, though all of them have almost certainly got a stop left to make.

As such, von Trips emerging in 6th place could be enough for the win here – with Naylor now 7th and Burgess (both needing to stop again), as Flockhart drops to 9th on his colder tyres some 12 seconds down on the reigning Champion. Meanwhile d’Orey is now up to 10th as he passes both Phil Hill and Trintignant in the space of a single lap (they are now 11th and 12th respectively), with Bianchi out in 13th, Gurney out in 14th, McLaren up to 15th, Shelby 16th, Gregory 17th, Scarlatti emerging in 18th, Fairman up to 19th, Allison 20th, de Filippis out in 21st, Graham Hill out in 22nd, Moss 23rd, Gendebien 24th, Ireland 25th and then it is Testut, who comes out in 26th ahead of the emerging Schell in 27th position. Ward and de Beaufort continue to bring up the rear as before…

*Lap 43* – The gap at the front is around half a second covering the leading trio, as Brabham will surely be delighted to make his next stop and have his mechanics fix this technical issue!

*Lap 44* – The leading quartet all come in for their final stops, which hands Salvadori the race lead (though he is yet to stop) ahead of von Trips 2nd, Naylor 3rd, Burgess 4th and d’Orey 5th as he passes Flockhart at the Lake Hairpin (though the JBW’s and the Ferrari of d’Orey have another stop to make still). Brabham meanwhile has fixed his issue and emerges in 7th place ahead of Bonnier in 8th (who passes Behra in the pits), as the Cooper comes out in 9th JUST ahead of Phil Hill in 10th position.

Trintignant is 11th and Brooks emerges in 12th place overall in what looks to be a moderately successful day for Aston Martin thus far…

*Lap 45* – Salvadori is really putting the hammer down at the front, with an 18 second lead over von Trips and gaining by about 3 seconds per lap…though maybe a more realistic gap to monitor is his 30+ second advantage over Brabham and those following him…

Burgess and d’Orey both pit this lap, which means it is likely that only Salvadori and Naylor will need to stop again to reach the race finish. That means Flockhart is now 4th from Brabham 5th, Bonnier 6th, then Phil Hill with what could be a crucial pass on Behra for 7th, as the Cooper must settle for 8th place over the line. Trintignant is 9th and Brooks 10th with Bianchi back up to 11th (though looking great for the Fastest Lap point today), Gurney 12th, McLaren 13th, Shelby 14th, Gregory 15th, Scarlatti 16th, Burgess out in 17th, Fairman 18th and d’Orey out in 19th place.

Further back Graham Hill passes de Filippis for 21st and is certainly one to watch for the remainder of this race, while Schell lets his higher ranked team-mate Ward through into 27th and must now be wary of the advancing de Beaufort behind him.

*Lap 46* – ANOTHER CRASH!!! A HUGE CRASH!!! What could this mean for both today’s race and the Championship?!? Naylor is about to pit and whether you blame the innocence of youth or his tyres degrading it is no excuse for steaming into the back of reigning champion and de facto race leader Wolfgang von Trips at the Pits Hairpin! With victory seemingly assured that crash sees both cars damaged – though it looks like they will both carry on for this lap at least…certainly Naylor has the worst of the damage though, but von Trips looks to have some handling issues at very least!!!

Suddenly Brabham and Bonnier’s pursuit of Flockhart for 4th takes on a whole new meaning as – depending on von Trips’ damage – this could be the fight for the race victory! Behra meanwhile defends from Trintignant over 8th place.

*Lap 47* – Naylor pits, passing the fuming Tim Wagner (Ferrari Team Principal) in the pits, who looks to be remonstrating with the JBW Team Principal Eduardo Fernandes right now! Salvadori meanwhile is streaking away at the front, now some 29 seconds ahead of von Trips and 38 seconds ahead of Flockhart et al…

Speaking of Flockhart, he is now up to 3rd place thanks to Naylor’s stop from Brabham 4th (less than a second behind), Bonnier 5th, then Phil Hill 6th, Trintignant 7th and Brooks 8th after Behra slides wide at the Lake Hairpin to drop to 9th this time around. Bianchi is back inside the Top 10, with Gurney 11th, McLaren 12th, Shelby 13th, Gregory 14th, Scarlatti 15th, Burgess 16th, Fairman 17th, d’Orey 18th and Naylor out in 19th place, looking somewhat chagrined right now!

Finally, at the back de Beaufort manages to overhaul Schell for 28th position and will now turn his sights to the other Lotus of Ward as he looks to salvage something from a challenging day for the Vanwall.

*Lap 48* – The final expected stop of the race takes place, with Salvadori into the pits. Von Trips does reclaim the race lead, though is now less than 11 seconds ahead of the faster Flockhart, who in turn has Brabham less than 1 second behind…

Bonnier is 4th from Phil Hill 5th, while Brooks makes a potentially vital pass on Trintignant to move up to 6th from the Porsche in 7th and then it’s Behra 8th ahead of the emerging Salvadori in 9th – what can the Aston Martin manage in his final stint???

*Lap 49* – Von Trips still has an advantage of more than 10 seconds at the front, while Salvadori challenges Behra for 8th but fails to make it past the Cooper. Gregory meanwhile gets the best of Shelby for 13th position and d’Orey has a great lap, as he manages to pass the squabbling duo of Burgess and Fairman to move up to 16th place at the Lake Hairpin!

Moss passes de Filippis for 22nd, while behind them Gendebien holds up Ireland over 24th position.

*Lap 50* – Von Trips has a 9.2 second lead – but Flockhart is more concerned with the attention from Brabham right now, as the Ferrari looks to the outside at the Pits Hairpin…but then dives to the inside at the last second and claims 2nd position, which could turn into a race victory if he can haul in von Trips!

Meanwhile Behra, Salvadori and Bianchi are heavily contending for 8th position – with the result that Behra endeavours to block the Aston Martin at the Lake Hairpin and, though that is ultimately unsuccessful, it does put the Brit off enough to allow Bianchi to jump past the pair and move into 8th from Salvadori 9th and Behra now 10th overall.

Fairman passes Burgess for 17th as the Vanwall driver looks to try and get something out of today’s race – and in a good lap for Vanwall, Ireland gets the better of Gendebien for 24th position.

*Lap 51* – 8 seconds is von Trips’ advantage, with Flockhart just 0.2 seconds behind Brabham. Further back de Beaufort passes Ward for 27th, in an otherwise quiet lap. Meanwhile Phil Hill, Brooks and Bianchi are making the best progress at this stage in their pursuit of the leaders…

*Lap 52* – 7 seconds is now the lead for von Trips, with Flockhart 0.4 seconds further back and then Bonnier 1.8 seconds behind and Phil Hill 2.2 seconds back again, with Brooks less a second further behind and not more than 3 seconds between every driver down to Shelby in 14th position.

Meanwhile Graham Hill is blocked by Allison over the final spot inside the Top 20…

*Lap 53* – 5.5 seconds is the leading gap with Flockhart now 1.1 seconds behind, while Brooks is now just 0.2 seconds down on Phil Hill and Gurney is also making inroads on catching Behra on the outskirts of the Top 10. Gregory is likewise catching McLaren for 12th place and Graham Hill passes Allison for 20th at last.

*Lap 54* – 3.8 seconds is von Trips’ lead, with 10 seconds now separating the top 6. Gurney is now just 0.2 seconds behind Behra for 10th place, while Gregory is now pressuring McLaren for 12th overall.

*Lap 55* – Von Trips is gamely trying to hang onto the race lead, which makes it a 3 second advantage now. Meanwhile Brooks and Phil Hill fight over 5th place – though they may be wiser to postpone that, with von Trips now just 8 seconds ahead of the pair of them!

Gurney passes Behra for 10th position, while Gregory gets the better of McLaren for 12th place at the Clover Leaf Hairpin. Ireland takes 23rd from de Filippis with a great dive up the inside at the Pits Hairpin!

*Lap 56* – 1.7 seconds is von Trips’ lead over Brabham, with just 6 laps remaining – with a question of whether the German will elect to fight with his team-mate or to simply let him by when the catch is made! Brooks passes Phil Hill for 5th place, which moves the Aston Martin into the points paying positions.

Meanwhile d’Orey passes Scarlatti for 15th place – but may now find the 17 second gap to Shelby too much to bridge in the remaining laps…

*Lap 57* – 0.2 seconds is the main gap, while it is only 6.8 seconds from von Trips in the lead back to Phil Hill in 6th. Behra meanwhile is struggling to stick with the pace, as he loses 11th to Gregory and 12th to McLaren in the space of a single lap – meaning he now takes up 13th position.

*Lap 58* – Brabham catches von Trips at the Lake Hairpin and the reigning Champion…pulls out of the way to let the Australian through into the race lead! However, that manoeuvre may have worked out well for Brabham – but that means Flockhart is just 0.6 seconds behind the ailing von Trips, with Bonnier 1.5 back, Brooks 2.8 seconds behind (and fastest man on track right now), Phil Hill 4.5 away and Trintignant 9.4 away – though the latter may be too far back to take advantage!

Bianchi is now just 0.7 seconds behind Trintignant for 7th, while Gregory is gaining heavily on both Salvadori and Gurney ahead of him on the outskirts of the Top 10. Gendebien also passes de Filippis here for 24th position overall…

*Lap 59* – Brabham now looks odds on favourite to win this race, with von Trips succumbing to both Flockhart and Bonnier this lap to drop down to 4th place, as the Cooper will now look to hold off the Maserati for 2nd position!

*Lap 60* – Von Trips is really struggling for pace now, as he loses 4th to Brooks and 5th to Phil Hill this lap, with now a 6 second gap back to Trintignant in the fight for 6th position. Behra blocks Shelby for 13th place overall.

*Lap 61* – Disaster strikes for Aston Martin, as Brooks grinds to a halt seemingly with no fuel left on board. That moves Phil Hill up to 4th and makes Trintignant’s pursuit of von Trips now worth a couple of points – with Bianchi now just 1 tenth behind Trintignant as well! Salvadori is now 8th, from Gurney 9th and Gregory now inside the Top 10 for BRM. McLaren is up to 11th from Shelby 12th as he takes Behra this time around, with d’Orey 14th, Scarlatti 15th and then Naylor up to 16th overall thanks to a collision between Fairman and Burgess at the Lake Hairpin! Fairman is still 17th, while Graham Hill is now 18th from Burgess 19th and Allison into 20th position.

Moss blocks Ireland for what is now 21st place – but could turn into a Top 20 position with both Fairman and Burgess carrying damage! Gendebien is now 23rd from de Filippis 24th, Testut 25th and de Beaufort 26th.

*Lap 62* – Brabham takes the victory, while Flockhart claims 2nd position after crossing the line less than a tenth ahead of Bonnier in 3rd. Phil Hill’s brilliant strategy ensures he finishes in 4th position, while in 5th it is…VON TRIPS! The reigning champion comes home in 5th ahead of Trintignant 6th, Bianchi 7th (less than a tenth behind – but with Fastest Lap at least!), Salvadori 8th, Gurney 9th and Gregory in 10th overall.

McLaren comes home 11th, from Shelby 12th, Behra 13th, d’Orey 14th, Scarlatti 15th, Naylor 16th and then it is Graham Hill home in 17th, while Allison manages to rise up to 18th position. Fairman finishes 19th after his collision, with Burgess coming across the line inside the Top 20.

Ireland passes Moss for 21st place, while Gendebien comes home in 23rd, from de Filippis 24th, Testut 25th and de Beaufort 26th overall.

*1 LAP DOWN* – Ward finishes 27th from Schell 28th – with Lotus Team Principal Tom Byrne looking like a man under pressure right now. Brooks does not finish the race in a real shame for Aston Martin, who came within 2 laps of scoring Aston Martin’s first EVER points – their Team Principal Josh Anderson looks crestfallen, as does Brooks when he makes his way back to the paddock…

Watch this space for the next race of the season, which will be the Italian Grand Prix at Monza…

## Milestones

* 50th race entry for Moss
* 30th race entry for Bonnier and von Trips
* Salvadori moves up to 2nd for Most Starts ever, at the expense of Peter Collins
* Fairman moves into the Top 10 for Most Starts ever, at the expense of Umberto Maglioli
* Flockhart’s 30th ever race start
* von Trips’ 30th ever race start
* Flockhart is up to 5th for Most Races without a Win, at the expense of Carlos Menditeguy
* Fairman moves up to 7th for Most Races without a Win, at the expense of Umberto Maglioli
* Brooks is up to 3rd for Most Races without Points, at the expense of Louis Rosier
* Scarlatti is up to 6th for Most Races without Points, at the expense of André Simon
* McLaren is into the Top 10 for Most Races without Points, at the expense of Robert Manzon
* Brabham ‘s win moves him ahead of Ken Wharton to 7th for all-time victories
* Only 1 Portuguese GP before (at Boavista in 1958); winner was Hans Herrmann, Fastest Lap was Bob Gerard (retired) and Pole was Bob Gerard (retired) also
* 5th place for von Trips moves him up to 3rd in Most Points Ever, at the expense of Peter Whitehead
* Von Trips finishes in the points and thus moves up to 4th for Most Races Finished in the Points, at the expense of Peter Whitehead
* Brabham finishes in the points and thus moves into the Top 10 for Most Races Finished in the Points, at the expense of Moss
* Points finish for Brabham is his 3rd points finish in a row
* Points finish for Bonnier is his 2nd points finish in a row
* 1st ever FL for Lucien Bianchi
* 1st ever Pole for Fritz d’Orey
* Podium for Brabham moves him up to 10th for Most Podiums of all time, at the expense of Moss