recursal/Fanatic-Fandom huggingface dataset:
Cesare Perdisa

Cesare Perdisa was an Italian racing driver who took part in the F1R series from 1955-1957, racing for Maserati.

Perdisa came into the Maserati team, just after they had won the 1954 F1R World Championship with Hans Herrmann. It was immediately clear that the 250F was no longer able to compete against the newer entries introduced by Maserati's competition and attempts to speed the car up simply resulted in unreliability creeping in for the Italian manufacturer - however, as the youngest of the Maserati drivers it was clear that Perdisa was just happy to be involved in the series! That youthful exuberance ultimately led to him bringing home his Maserati in the points at the final race of the season, where he became the only Maserati driver all season long to score a single point!

That led to another season with Maserati, though he found himself playing 2nd fiddle to one Bob Gerard, as Maserati secured a coup in bringing the double Champion back from focusing on his family business to drive for them in 1956. That meant Perdisa (who was always in and around the points) never looked likely to be allowed to mount a Championship tilt, though this season did produce his 1st podium at the German GP and he certainly supported Gerard ably, with the Englishman comfortably claiming the title.

For 1957 it was a similar story, though it was clear by then that the 250F was a real handful and that cracks in the design were being papered over. Gerard may have managed another title, though it was nowhere near as comfortable as the previous season - and similarly Perdisa struggled to match what he achieved in 1956. He announced his retirement, despite still being at a young age, to focus on a senior role in a publishing organisation - though he saved his best until last with a podium at his favourite Italian GP to cap off a decent career in F1R.
Franco Rol

Franco Rol was an Italian racing driver who took part in the F1R series from 1950-1952.

Rol joined the F1R series with a reputation for being a talented driver, but potentially lacking the concentration across a full season to challenge - which was borne out by his 1950 stint at ERA (only competing in the 1st and last races of the season and going missing in-between - reportedly enjoying a string of parties across continential Europe!), with a 1951 drive for Equipe Gordini resulting in even less on-track action, besides a drive at the Italian GP where he barely registered. However, thanks to a personal tie-up with Adolfo Orsi (presumably with the two having met at a party!) he got given the chance to drive for Maserati in 1952.

In that team he drove against the impressive talents of Giuseppe Farina, Piero Taruffi and a young Peter Collins amongst others, but this time devoted himself to a season-long campaign that not only kept him in Championship contention until the final race of the season (a 2nd placed finish at the Italian GP that saw him finish 3rd in the Championship by just 3 points after Dropped Scores), but also made him the best Maserati driver that season! That impressed Maserati enough for them to offer him another season of racing. However, Rol had seen the writing on the wall - and though the '52 Maserati could just about compete with Ferrari, the '53 Maserati was way off the pace - and so the Italian elected to leave and go back to focusing on his party lifestyle. And true to form, in 1953 Maserati could only manage a handful of podium positions!
Paul Frère

Paul Frère was an Belgian racing driver who took part in the F1R series in 1955.

Frère always had a passion for motorsports and he worked hard to achieve his break in F1R by convincing the new Arzani-Volpini team to take a punt on him - however, the car was off the pace and due to money troubles the team frequently failed to get their cars to races. As such, 12th at the Dutch GP that year was his best result and one that showed a modicum of his talents to the F1R paddock. Ultimately, when Arzani-Volpini folded he too was left without the money to continue and so took a job in motorsport journalism.

He went on to cover F1R and other motorsporting series with distinction over the course of a long and happy life.
1959 Drivers Championship Standings

Brabham becomes the 1st ever non-European F1R Champion in fine style after claiming 3 victories in the final 5 races of the season…and with this victory moves up to 4th in the all-time standings for Most Victories EVER! Trintignant finishes the season in his best ever final standings position, which is an incredible achievement to finish ahead of two of the three Ferrari's, with one of them the defending champion!

Von Trips fails to defend his title here - though he gave it a valiant effort - though his finish to the season cost him in the end. Bonnier will be gutted not to have been able to keep his form streak going, as 6th place today ultimately costs him a finish in the Top 3 of the final standings. Gregory in 5th for BRM has his best ever season - though had a race to forget today.

D'Orey in 6th had an incredile final season of his career, while Bianchi finishes as top Cooper after his incredibly dramatic victory at the Italian GP. Flockhart and Gendebien both have decent seasons, with 2 podiums apiece ensuring their place within the Top 10 - and they are joined after the final race of the season by Gurney, who unceremoniously ousts Behra to leave the French veteran in 11th in his final ever season after an incredible career spanning 8 seasons.

Phil Hill and Testut (who bows out without contending the final race of the season) lose ground, while Graham Hill has a bitter-sweet day as he does pick up his 1st point of the season thanks to Fastest Lap today, though pays the price of an early retirement to get that! Finally, best results of the season for Brooks keeps him in 15th overall, de Filippis moves up to 21st overall after her final race of the season - though Naylor does hang on in 20th to make it 2 JBW's in the Top 20 in their debut season!

Shelby finishes as top Connaught in their final race of the season, while behind him de Beaufor's best finish of the season moves him up to 22nd overall.
Onofre Marimón

Onofre Marimón was an Argentine racing driver who took part in the F1R series in 1951 and from 1953-1954, racing for Talbot, Veritas and Maserati.

Marimón was perhaps better known for his Le Mans exploits initially, but he took a role at Talbot in 1951 and despite retiring 4 times in 7 races he developed an apreciation of the F1R series, which saw him return towards the end of the 1953 season for Veritas with a particularly impressive 8th place at the Swiss GP leading to a drive with Maserati for 1954, which produced 1 Pole and 3 Fastest Laps, though only a single podium position - as he earned himself a reputation as a driver that was blisteringly fast over a single lap but maybe struggled to sustain that over a full race distance…

He ultimately left F1R to focus on his Le Mans racing, which was where he brought his motor-racing career to a close.
Luigi Fagioli

Luigi Fagioli was an Italian racing driver, who competed for both Alfa Romeo and O.S.C.A in the 1950 & 1951 F1R series.

In his 1st season, he began as Privateer at the British Grand Prix - and was quickly signed by the works Alfa Romeo team, where he showed pace immediately, setting Fastest Lap at Monaco and finishing in 2nd position to drastically out-perform any of his team-mates. However, the relationship soon soured as Alfa Romeo concentrated on next season's car, which led Fagioli to leave at the end of the season for the exciting new O.S.C.A project.

That project looked to be finding its feet by the end of the 1951 season, which saw Fagioli score points in the German Grand Prix before a podium at his home race in Italy. That proved to be the high point before a lack of funding saw the O.S.C.A team miss out on the 1952 season and that was when Fagioli elected to retire after two seasons running towards the sharp end of the grid whenever he had the equipment to do so!
Roberto Mieres

Roberto Mieres was an Argentine racing driver who took part in the F1R series in 1955.

Mieres was known for his abilities across a range of different sports, with sailing and sportscar racing arguably what he was better suited to…as his brief time in F1R demonstrated. 2 races and 2 retirements in the Cooper led to him stepping back and concentrating on other sporting ventures instead.

Though he did go on to represent Argentina in the Olympics as part of his sailing career!
Raymond Sommer

Raymond Sommer was a French racing driver, who competed for Ferrari in the 1950 F1R series.

After qualifying 15th and finishing 10th in the inagural Test Race, he found life in the actual Championship races much tougher going. After competing in the opening 2 rounds of the 1950 season, he failed to qualify for both races despite being in arguably the best car on track…he left the series shortly afterwards to go for a more successful career in the Le Mans series.
1957 Drivers Earnings

## **1957 Financial Rewards**

**Championship:**

* 1st place – £5,000
* 2nd place – £4,000
* 3rd place – £3,500
* 4th place – £3,000
* 5th place – £2,500
* 6th place – £2,250
* 7th place – £2,000
* 8th place – £1,500
* 9th place – £1,250
* 10th place – £1,000
* 11th place – £900
* 12th place – £800
* 13th place - £700
* 14th place - £600
* 15th place - £500
* And so on until…
* 20th place – £50

**Race:**

* 1st place – £250
* 2nd place – £100
* 3rd place – £50

**Incidentals:**

* Pole Position – £50
* Fastest Lap – £50
* Per point (inc. dropped scores & FL) – £10 \* NOT given to Podium finishers any more
* Top performer in the team - £500
* Best improvement in a race - £100
* Most race finishes in a season - £100
* Per objective achieved over the season - £250

## **Top Earners**

For next season if you lost your driver you will still carry the same financial clout with the new driver, likewise if a new player takes over a previous driver they will take over any finances associated with them.

Also, driver multiplier does NOT go with you to a new driver - so if you are taking on a new driver they will start with a multiplier value of just 1.
Fritz d'Orey

Fritz d'Orey was a Brazilian racing driver who took part in the F1R series in 1959, racing for Ferrari.

With Gould's retirement and Salvadori's departure for a big money move with Aston Martin, the Ferrari team were left in the lurch for 1959 and desperately seeking a 3rd driver to accompany reigning Champion von Trips and the up-and-coming Brabham. That is where d'Orey came on their radar, as the Brazilian was one of very few drivers with reasonable experience (predominantly in sports cars) that was still available at that point in the season. The Brazilian was an experienced racer, who knew how to capitalise on an opportunity - and, after a couple of races to setlle in, he showed his real talent with a podium at the French GP, before scoring points in the UK and then an impressive victory at the German GP before Pole in the following Portuguese GP.

However, by the end of the season it was clear that d'Orey was struggling for motivation and despite his success he elected to move over for a returning Gould to re-claim his place. D'Orey himself moved to Portugal to focus his time and efforts on his family.
Mercedes

Mercedes was a German constructor that competed in the F1R series from 1954 to 1955.

The impressive Mercedes name joined F1R in 1954 under the auspices of Alfred Neubauer, with the technologically advanced W196 that started out with incredible pace that blew away the competition! Indeed, with an impressive driver line-up including Gerard, Volonterio, Kling and Whitehead they looked almost invincible when they took a 1-2-3-4 in the season opening Argentine GP!!! However, it soon became apparent that certain tracks really did not suit the W196 and though further victories ensued at the British and German GPs, a final race showdown that had both Gerard and Volonterio in the mix was ultimately won by Herrmann in the Maserati (neither Mercedes finish in the Top 10 that race in fact).

1955 saw Mercedes stick with the W196 initially, though without the services of Gerard, Volonterio or Whitehead (all of whom did not take part this season). Kling did his best, but the car initially was only the 3rd fastest on the grid and it was only mid-season when they finally scored points, which was too late to impact the Championship fight.

Having evaluated their options, Mercedes elected to leave F1R at the end of the season.

**Complete Championship Results**
Fred Gamble

Fred Gamble was an American racing driver who took part in the F1R series in 1960.

Gamble's involvement with the Lotus outfit in 1960 was tumultuous at best! The screen star (in films such as Chitty Chitty Bang Bang and Grand Prix) had 4 retirements out of 9 races, leading to heated discussions with the Lotus Team Principal Witney! He had some talent, as the 17th placed finish at the Italian GP proved, though Lotus elected to go in another direction for 1961 as both he and Witney departed the team at the end of the season.

Gamble retired to go back to his time on the big screen in his native USA.
Piero Carini

Piero Carini was an Italian racing driver who took part in the F1R series in 1953, racing for Veritas.

Carini only raced in F1R for 3 races at the end of the 1953 season, where he was one of several drivers recruited late in the season to bolster the amount of information the team had about track conditions etc. While that particular ploy proved unsuccessful (evidenced by Veritas' demise before the 1954 season began), it did introduce a rare talent to the F1R grid…Carini was quick immediately, with a respectable 13th placed finish at the German GP, before a spectacular drive in Switzerland saw him qualify 2nd overall and manage to hold onto a points position until the very end! Unfortunately he became injured in the season ending Italian GP and would never compete in F1R again - instead recovering to focus on other forms of motorsport, including sports cars and touring cars.
Karl Kling

Karl Kling was a German racing driver who took part in the F1R series from 1954-1955.

Kling was brought in as part of Mercedes entry into the F1R world, where both he and the team showed their pace from the get-go, as they achieved an incredible 1-2-3-4 at the season opening Argentine GP (with Kling in 2nd position ahead of both the legend Bob Gerard and Peter Whitehead in the same machinery on debut!). Unfortunately Kling was unable to maintain that high performance level consistently through the season, but showed flashes of pace in both the British GP (4th) and the Swiss GP (2nd) to end up 6th overall in the standings, with Whitehead behind him on countback of 2nd placed finishes.

Those flashes of pace (coupled with the fact that he was the only German driver on the Mercedes roster) led to his contract being extended for 1955 and - with Gerard and Whitehead both stepping away from the series - he became the de facto main Championship contender for Mercedes. Unfortunately for Kling, the ultimately shortened 1955 season was only 6 races long and a development mis-step for Mercedes early in the season meant they only had the pace to challenge for podiums from Race 4 onwards. As such, Kling's 2 podiums (3rd at the Dutch GP and 2nd at the season ending Italian GP) must be seen as a relative success for the driver once he had the machinery to be competitive.

Kling elected to hang up his racing boots after 1955 and embark upon a successful career as head of Mercedes' motorsport division, focusing on other racing formulae outside F1R…
Chico Landi

Chico Landi was a Brazilian racing driver who took part in the F1R series from 1952-1953 and in 1956, racing for BMW, Maserati and Connaught.

The 1st Brazilian to appear in F1R, Landi came from a modest middle-class family, and got into racing through owning a garage. In his 1st ever race he showed his impressive 1 lap pace by setting Fastest Lap at the Swiss GP in the otherwise unspectacular BMW, which proved to be less and less competitive as the season went on. Nevertheless, that spark of pace saw him approached by Maserati to drive for them in 1953. That season saw him in contention for the points on several occasions, though often lacking the long-run pace and stamina to finish there - indeed his only point of the year once again occured when he set Fastest Lap, this time at the French GP. That led to a time "in the wilderness" for Landi, who focused on racing in Formula 2 during that time with several decent results.

His single lap pace reputation and the way he had matured as a driver during his time in Formula 2 led to Connaught taking a punt on the Brazilian for 1956 - and what a punt that proved to be, as he delivered no fewer than 3 podium finishes for the British marque (these would prove to be Connaught's only ever podium finishes) and ended the season in 5th place in the Drivers' Championship. That would be the final season for Landi, who likely realised that the 1957 Connaught was way off the pace of its predecessor. As such, he retired from F1R to go back to his garage with his reputation (particularly for one lap pace) intact to this day.
Emeryson

Emeryson was a British constructor that competed in the F1R series in 1956 and from 1961 to 1962. The first Emeryson cars were created initially by George Emery from his Engineering workshop at New Malden Surrey, with his son Paul entering F1R itself (albeit struggling somewhat with the pace of the series).

In 1956, Emeryson entered F1R - intending initially to only have Emery race in the British GP - but ultimately, such was the excitement surrounding the car pre-season, they ended up fielding no fewer than 4 cars for the entirety of the season - and making some big moves in the driver market to bring in some impressive talent! Luigi Villoresi showed the potential of the car with an impressive 2nd place at the Monaco GP (with Umberto Maglioli 4th in the same race), though both Emery himself and Godia struggled with the car's handling - as it proved too difficult for them to score points all season long. Indeed such was the lack of cash-flow in the organisation that there was no money to develop the car and so Monaco proved their only points score that season...and said cash-flow issues led to Emeryson concentrating on F2 and Formula Junior for the next few years.

However, another F1R onslaught was around the corner and in 1961 it was Peter Emeryson (Paul's brother) who obtained the finances for them to be able to go racing, with Rachael Beagles at the helm. The driver line-up was initially Brooks, Baghetti, Marsh and - most excitingly - former F1R Champion Jack Brabham! However, the latter never really put the focus into the project and elected not to race on after the opening few races of the season. Brooks showed the car's potential from the outset, after claiming an incredible Pole Position and victory in the season opening Monaco GP, while he and Baghetti proved a constant nuisance to the more established order, picking up points in a few more races. Ultimately Marsh didn't have the pace to last the season and was replaced by Ginther, who managed points in just his 2nd race in the car! Brabham even showed up for the final race of the season, such was the lure of the Emeryson giant-killing apparatus, who finished the season an incredible 3rd in the Teams' Championship!!!

In 1962 the car was not quite as competitive (as 5th in the Teams' Championship that season attests) and with Brooks having retired, Emeryson were left with Baghetti holding the fort - with Ginther only making the one appearance that season. After a couple of points finishes, Emeryson were eventually able to attract the newcomer Collomb, who drove out of his skin to pick up a Podium and Fastest Lap for the team in the season finale!

With a well-established position as giant-killers, Emeryson's stock was at an all-time high and so, ultimately, Paul and Peter Emery elected to sell the team to Hugh Powell, who rebranded them as Sciroccos for 1963 onwards...

**Complete Championship Results**
Paul Pietsch

Paul Pietsch was a German racing driver who took part in the F1R series from 1950-1953, including winning the series twice during his time!

In the inaugural F1R season, Pietsch and the Ferrari were a potent combination - after winning the initial race at Silverstone he never finished lower than 4th in the entire season. That consistency, along with another win in Belgium and two 2nd places in France and Italy respectively were enough to edge the title by just 2 points from de Graffenried in the Scuderia Ambrosiana (Maserati). In 1951 the Alfa Romeo was the faster car and - though Pietsch was still the fastest Ferrari driver by some distance - it was a season where he could manage only 2 visits to the podium and 0 wins.

1952 saw a return to Ferrari domination, as three of the cars in the top four in the final season standings were Ferrari's. Meanwhile aside from a non-finish at the Belgian GP, Pietsch managed to win the season ending Italian GP and score points at every other round, which was enough to beat team-mate Whitehead to the title, despite the Brit taking 2 wins to Pietsch's 1. That made it two titles won at the final round for Pietsch, who could certainly hold his nerve when the stakes were high!

A similar story in 1953 saw Pietsch a regular contender, scoring points in every race bar one (where he finished 6th) - however in his final year, with his powers somewhat fading, he came up against Bob Gerard in his prime and Whitehead with a score to settle - and though his quality still shone through with his victorious drive at the British Grand Prix, it would prove to be his final race in the F1R series.

Pietsch retired to focus on a career in publishing and writing the magazine 'Das Auto'.
Mike Taylor

Mike Taylor was a English racing driver who took part in the F1R series in 1960.

Taylor joined the fledgling Scarab outfit in 1960, producing a solid season of performances with just one retirement and a best finish of 18th overall. Unfortunately, with Scarab leaving the series at the end of just 1 season in existence, Taylor himself also left after being an asset to the team throughout.

He went on to distinguish himself in the world of rallying, before retiring to focus on property speculation.
1956 Drivers Championship Standings

Gerard reaches 50 points (though 45 once dropped scores are taken into account) in a season of utter domination with no fewer than 5 Hat-tricks across the season! Collins had a solid run for Vanwall to 2nd in the championship, despite a lackluster end to the season. De Graffenried claims a deserved 3rd place overall, with von Trips moving to 4th for Ferrari thanks to his maiden victory here in front of the jubilant Tifosi!

Landi falls to 5th, and some may consider him quite lucky that he didn't also drop behind Perdisa as well. Villoresi and Fangio are 7th and 8th, with Menditeguy's strong end to the season ensuring he grabs a Top 10 place, along with Brabham who passes Salvadori by virtue of his 6th place today!

Moss almost moves inside the Top 20, whilst Hawthorn's consistent appearances also ensure he moves up a few positions as well and takes 24th on countback of most 20th placed finishes!!!
Maria Teresa de Filippis

Maria Teresa de Filippis was an Italian racing driver who took part in the F1R series in 1959.

The Aston Martin team were looking for drivers to take part in their first ever foray into the F1R series at the start of 1959. As a new team, they were eager to generate publicity and to bring on board the best possible drivers - and for that de Filippis was the perfect fit as the first ever female driver to take part in F1R and a very capable sportscar driver. Her results in F1R proved to mostly be steady as opposed to spectacular, but she left the series at the end of 1959 with 100% finishing record and a solid 8th placed finish at the season ending US GP as her best result.

For 1960, Aston Martin had a chance to sign another experienced driver in the shape of Flockhart, which meant there was no further space for de Filippis in the team and - despite being linked to various other teams, she elected to return to her beloved sportscar racing and after retirement then went on to join the International Club of Former F1 Grand Prix Drivers, going onto become Vice President in her native Italy, where she lived for the remainder of her years.
Oliver Gendebien

Oliver Gendebien was a Belgian racing driver who took part in the F1R series from 1958-1960, racing for Porsche throughout.

Having proved himself an adept sportscar racer, Gendebien was given the opportunity to appear for Porsche in 1958 after a series of flops turned out for them in 1957. He showed immediate aptitude for improving race setups and although the 718 RSK was never a competitive car in the field, he did enough for Porsche to stick with him for the following season, where he repaid them in spades with 2 podium finishes at the Dutch and US GPs...and though he couldn't match the experience of Trintignant he took his opportunities when he could.

In 1960 those were few and far between though, with Gendebien losing his passion for F1R and instead returning to sportscars, where he earned himself the title of 'one of the greatest sportscar racers of all time', winning Le Mans on no fewer than 4 occasions! Independently wealthy, and an avid skier, tennis player, and equestrian rider, he devoted the rest of his life to running a variety of businesses.
Dick Gibson

Dick Gibson was an English racing driver who took part in the F1R series from 1957-1958.

Having spent a large amount of time racing as a privateer in South Africa, Gibson's talents were spotted by the BRM team that had struggle for pace in 1956. He managed a best finish of 14th at his home GP, as the 1957 BRM was not much better than the previous year. However, in 1958 the car was far more effective and he managed to take victory at the British GP in front of his home fans, then followed that up with a 5th place at the German GP to finish the season inside the Top 10.

At that point, BRM elected to go in a different direction with their drivers, as they brought in the American duo of Phil Hill and Masten Gregory and that left no space for Gibson. He retired to move to Spain initially and then later to Arizona.
F1 Revisited 1957 - Season 8

**Season Summary**

A season of domination for Gerard, as 1957 goes down in F1R history as "the dry season" both in terms of weather and entertainment for race wins - as the Brit takes his 4th F1R title winning all bar two of the available races! 2nd placed Collins and 3rd placed Hawthorn can't even claim to have been the drivers to take the other two victories, as they went to Fangio in the season opener and Behra at his home Grand Prix in France…though to underline his domination, Gerard was on the podium both times still!

* Season Rules
* Team Principal Rules
* Race Results
* Final Standings
* Driver Earnings
* Driver Statistics
Bugatti

Bugatti was a French constructor that competed in the F1R series in 1956.

After being incredibly successful in Grand Prix racing in the 1920s and 30s, the company attempted a comeback under Roland Bugatti in the mid-1950s with the mid-engined Type 251 race car. Unfortunately the car failed to live up to expectations and the project was shelved the season after, although not before Flockhart, Rosier and Trintignant between them managed a single Top 20 finish.

**Complete Championship Results**
John James

John James was an English racing driver, who competed for Gordini in the 1951 F1R series.

Better known for his expertise as an engineer, James elected to swap his mechanic's overalls for a set of driver's overalls in the 1951 season as part of the Gordini team - and after a mishap at the Swiss GP (that was not his fault) caused him not to qualify, the early signs were positive with him securing the Fastest Lap and a 4th placed finish - but that proved to be as good as it got, with James not only overpowered by the Alfa Romeo's and Ferrari's of the world but also by his team-mates Trintignant and eventually Stuck also (who joined for the final two rounds of the season).

He elected to leave the series at the end of the year, racing a few times in Formula Libre before calling quits on his driving career to move back to being part of the team in the garage again.
1952 Drivers Championship Standings

And so the man few predicted could win the title again pulls out a brilliant final round victory to become the 1952 F1R champion!!! He beats team-mate Whitehead by a mere 2 points, with Franco Rol in 3rd position after a great season for the Maserati newcomer.

Gerrard climbs up to 4th ahead of Bayol in the Gordini after his final race points haul…Farina is one of the most consistent drivers in the season, but can only manage 6th place overall. Fischer, Taruffi and de Graffenried finish in positions 7-9, as the Italian fails to improve on his championship position despite a run out for Maserati.

Peters claims an impressive 10th in the standings for Veritas, Behra moves up to 16th in the championship after his 8th places in both the last two races and Rosier's single race appearance earns him 22nd overall.

Congratulations to Paul Pietsch (T-O Wagner) on winning his 2nd title!!!
Gordini

Gordini (also known as Equipe Gordini) was a French constructor that competed in the F1R series from 1951 to 1956.

The team was founded by Amédée Gordini and specialised in producing single seater racing cars, making the F1R series a perfect showcase for their cars.

In 1951 they produced a competitive car that took a couple of Podium finishes for the likes of Stuck and Trintignant, but did have a tendency to have reliability issues when put under strain that caused a number of race retirements. In 1952 it was a similar story, although there were less reliability issues and as such Bayol managed to claim 5th in the standings and Gordini's 1st race victory at the British GP.

Gordini's car in 1953 was a huge design mis-step - and with only Behra staying on there was little in the way of consistency, despite Trintignant returning to the fold. Ultimately not a single Top 10 finish resulted from that miserable season, with many feeling this was the beginning of the end for Gordini...although in 1954 the season started strongly with a 5th place for new driver Pollet! Although the pace of development during the season was not one that Gordini could keep up with, and as such that was their only points finish of the season.

In 1955, funds started to become an issue and Gordini's appearance with multiple cars at races started to become somewhat sporadic - again, without a single Top 10 finish scored...and when 1956 brought more of the same, the Gordini team elected to withdraw from the series, leaving behind a legacy of 'what might have been'!

**Complete Championship Results**
Peter Whitehead

Peter Whitehead was an English racing driver who took part in the F1R series from 1950-1954.

Whitehead showed his pace from the very first race of his F1R career, taking 2nd place at the 1950 British GP. While this was particularly impressive considering he was driving a drastically under-powered Talbot (the only points any driver scored all season long in that car) it unfortunately set up a long career of having to settle for 2nd position…though before that a lack of finances would impede him from entering another race until the latter half of the 1951 season, when Ferrari signed him to bolster their ranks with a stable but faster driver than Ascari. A 4th place, including Fastest Lap, at the Italian GP (one of only 3 starts for him that season) was enough for Enzo Ferrari to extend the Englishman a contract for the next 2 seasons.

In 1952 Whitehead looked like the man to beat going into the final race of the season, where he had just won back to back victories at the German and Dutch GP (including a Hat-Trick at the latter) to top the standings. However, despite taking Pole he could only manage 5th in the race while title rival and team-mate Paul Pietsch won the race to drop Whitehead to 2nd in the Championship. In 1953 he dropped out of contention before the final race of the season thanks to Gerard this time around remaining ahead when Dropped Scores were factored in. It was still a strong season for Whitehead, who was one of several Ferrari team-members to realise that next season's car was nowhere near as fast.

As such, Whitehead wangled a move to the highly rated new Mercedes outfit - however, he had the misfortune to move at the same time as Gerard - and the pressure of competing with someone who had just defeated him, along with having to figure out entirely new machinery, proved to be too much for him, as he finished 7th in the overall standings (including 4th and last of the Mercedes team). That was enough for Whitehead to call it a day and focus instead on the Le Mans series, which he went on to take victory in a couple of years later.
F1 Revisited 1962 - Season 13

**Season Summary**

Graham Hill takes his 1st ever F1R Championship, in only the 5th non-Ferrari powered car to win the Driver's Title! It's a Gilby 1-2 this season, with Vaccarella bowing out of F1R after pushing Hill all the way to the final race of the season. Gurney does well to finish 3rd while, speaking of bowing out, von Trips time in F1R comes to an end after a season of consistency - if not one of ultimately that much success.

Meanwhile in the Teams Championship, Gilby reign supreme, managing to tie up the Teams title before the final race of the season. Ferrari just edge Lotus for 2nd place, with Cooper a solid 4th. Emeryson depart the series with a Top 5 position, which they earned in the final race of the season to pip Brabham and the others - with both BRM and Porsche having somewhat underwhelming seasons. The new teams (Brabham, LDS and Lola) all represented themselves strongly though, as the competition increases in F1R...

* Game Rules
* Team Principal Rules
* Race Results
* Final Driver Standings
* Final Teams Standings
* Driver Earnings
* Driver Statistics
* Teams Statistics
Jack Fairman

Jack Fairman was an English racing driver who took part in the F1R series from 1955-1961, racing for Cooper, Vanwall and Ferrari in a fascinating career.

Fairman got his big break with Cooper, after a tricky 1954 season led them to clean house and only keep one of their former five drivers on payroll! He took a few races to get up to speed, but contributed heavily to the car setup and helped them to become competitive late in the season. Although Villoresi managed more points than him, he had clearly shown his worth and that led Cooper to take him on for 1956, where - with Villoresi moving on - he was the top performer for the British marque that season.

However, frustrated with the lack of competitiveness of the car that season (he scored 0 points despite some strong drives later in the year) he opted to move to Vanwall, who had a far more competitive proposition...but it was very much a team built around the brilliance of Peter Collins, which led to difficulties for Fairman in gaining results. 1958 saw the Vanwall fall off the pace, with even Collins only managing a solitary point that year, with a similar story in 1959.

1960 saw a return to form for Vanwall, but by now Fairman was clearly just going through the motions and a series of poor performances would likely have seen him replaced anyway - but Vanwall's time in F1R ended that season anyway. And that led to a real turning point at the twilight of Fairman's career, as Horace Gould stepped away from the F1R paddock and freed up a coveted Ferrari seat, which Fairman was able to grab...and he really showed some impressive pace to finish his F1R career on a high! He may never have managed to win a race, but a string of 2nd place finishes saw him retire from F1R with an impressive 3rd in the Drivers' Championship after really showing what he was made of.

Fairman retired to focus on running a garage in his hometown, where he now has a pub named after him!
1960 Drivers Championship Standings

Gregory is confirmed as the 1960 F1 Revisited Champion - it is his 1st F1R Championship and the 1st for a driver not in an Italian car (therefore also the 1st for a BRM driver)! It is also the 1st title for an American driver and the 1st time the winning driver hasn't also driven for the winning constructor (but more on that in a moment…). Finally, Gregory breaks the record for winning the title with fewest race victories (his 0 takes the record away from Pietsch's 1 victory in 1952).

Von Trips must settle for 2nd place (though that is 1 place better than last season), while Bonnier finishes the season incredibly strong with both 3 Poles and 3 Wins in a row to come home 3rd overall and missing out on the title by just 3 points in the end! Naylor's efforts meanwhile see him finish the season a strong 4th place, though a lack of a race win cost him in the end…

Brabham relinquishes his title without much of a fight in the end, after showing flashes of the brilliance that took him to the top spot last season - but not doing it consistently enough to end up higher than 5th overall. Ireland's solid showing today moves him up to 6th overall, with Surtees and Phil Hill dropping to 7th and 8th as a result.

Gould's Fastest Lap was inconsequential in the end, as he finishes the season 9th and is the highest ranking driver to retire this season. Gurney is 10th overall, with Graham Hill, Salvadori and the incredible Barth next up - while McLaren's points finish today moves him up to 14th overall.

The podium for Mairesse moves him into 15th in the standings, ahead of Bianchi, Trintignant and Flockhart, who bows out of F1R with another Top 20 finish under his belt. Brooks and Gendebien round out the Top 20, as Scarlatti's performance earns him 21st overall in the standings.

We also say goodbye to Gamble, Taylor, Menditeguy, Creus, González and Cabianca - along with past drivers Piper, Schell, Halford and Herrmann (ex-Champion of course), who did not have contracts this sign and have also confirmed their respective retirements from F1 Revisited…
Cliff Allison

Cliff Allison was an English racing driver who took part in the F1R series from 1959-1961, racing for Connaught and Lotus.

Allison was perhaps better known as a sports car racer, though he was a popular character and that led to him gaining a drive with Connaught based on his friend Moss's recommendation. After his 1st season where he actually finished ahead of Moss in the standings, he then joined Moss in moving to the struggling Lotus outfit - but this time he found the car tricky to handle and in 1960 could only manage two Top 20 finishes in races (both of them in 20th position).

In 1961 Lotus produced a far more competitive machine, which meant Allison was able to record a 10th placed finish at the Italian GP, but with Moss electing to bow out of F1R it was fitting that Allison should do the same. He went on to manage the garage his father started, though was always a regular in the F1R paddock for many more years to come...
Felice Bonetto

Felice Bonetto was an Italian racing driver who took part in the F1R series in 1951 and 1953, racing for Maserati and BMW.

Bonetto was better known as a sportscar driver and spent most of his time competing at Le Mans and in other endurance events. His one planned entry for Maserati in 1951 was compromised by an injury at a sportscar race just before, while in 1953 he did manage to make the grid on a couple of occasions, with a best finish of 20th at the Belgian GP. However, he was clearly more suited to the sportscar environment and eventually went back to competing in those races and finished his racing career in the endurance discipline.
Ferrari

Ferrari are an Italian constructor that have competed in the F1R series since its inception in 1950. The team is also known by the nickname "**The Prancing Horse**", in reference to their logo.

This article covers the history of Ferrari in F1R during the 1950s, with an update to come once we reach 1970.

The team was founded by Enzo Ferrari, with Team Principal Tim Wagner the first person to take the reins ever since the Teams' Championship came into play in 1958. In the '50s Ferrari was the team to be in, as they managed to win almost every Drivers' Championship and every single Teams' Championship during that time period. Pietsch was their 1st Champion in 1950 and 1952, though in 1951 they were unable to compete with the incredible Alfa Romeo team and the might of Bob Gerard.

Ferrari used their considerable resources to bring Gerard on board in '52, where he learned the ropes from Pietsch and went on to surpass him in '53 to take the title. Although Ferrari looked in control, Gerard clearly didn't like the way they worked and so he left before the '54 season to join Mercedes. At the same time, Ferarri lost plenty of key personnel (including Pietsch to retirement, Whitehead to Mercedes alongside Gerard, Salvadori to Vanwall and, crucially, some key Design heads), which meant their 1954 effort was lacklustre at best with a finish of 8th place the best they could manage.

After realising their woeful lack of pace early in the '54 season, instead of panicking they simply turned their attention to 1955 - and that paid major dividends with Farina and Moss spearheading their efforts and taking the title home for an Italian in an Italian car for the 1st time! 1956 and 1957 saw Maserati and Gerard dominate, which meant that newcomer Wolfgang von Trips was able to focus on learning the ropes from the likes of de Graffenried, Hawthorn and Fangio...and that led to a major upset when the all-conquering Gerard was bested by von Trips in an end of season showdown to give Ferrari their 1st title since Farina in '55.

The introduction of the Teams' Championship in 1958 saw Tim Wagner come in and oversee a period of impressive performance for the Prancing Horse, with Brabham taking the title in '59 in an easy season for Ferrari to round off a decade of domination!

**1950s**
1957 Drivers Championship Standings

Gerard's title was confirmed last race, but given the pressure he had from Musso this race it looks doubtful he will repeat his domination of this season next time around…Collins, Hawthorn, Behra and Fangio may not have scored points this race but it's a solid end to the season for the drivers in 2nd through to 5th overall.

Von Trips points today are enough to move him up to 6th in the standings, but it is certainly not the season the Ferrari would have hoped for after he won the final race in 1956. Maglioli finishes his F1R career with a decent 7th place in the final standings, while BRM's strong finish to the season see Musso up to 8th overall.

Salvadori drops to 9th in the standings after a tough end to the season, while Perdisa finishes his F1R career with Top 10 in the standings thanks to an impressive final couple of races! That drops Trintignant to 11th, Gould to 12th and Gonzalez to 13th - though the Argentine hasn't ruled out a return in a future season for Connaught.

Fairman was so close to points this season, but must settle for 14th, with Piotti's strong final race moving him up to 15th in the final reckoning. Brabham, the retiring Castellotti, Menditeguy, Flockhart and Bonnier round out the Top 20 overall.

There are no changes below 20th, as we bid farewell to Simon, Leston and non-runners England and Volonterio after this race.
Klenk

Klenk was a German constructor that competed in the F1R series in 1954.

Klenk was a car that was entered by Hans Klenk for one season of racing, which was essentially modelled on the Veritas Meteor that was no longer involved in F1R. Hans Klenk himself intended to race the car, but after suffering injuries in an accident while testing for Mercedes, he instead allowed two pay-drivers to take his place, with Eric Brandon and Fred Wacker both stepping up to try and continue the performance shown by Veritas at the end of 1953.

However, the development race had ultimately left them behind and so 12th place in the season opening Argentine GP was the best they could manage - and by the end of the season it was clear that Klenk would not be returning in 1955.

**Complete Championship Results**
Johnny Claes

Johnny Claes was a Belgian racing driver who took part in the F1R series from 1951-1953 and 1955, racing for Talbot and Connaught.

Known for his bright yellow livery on his cars, Claes was a real character in the F1R paddock - one of a number of "gentlemen drivers" that joined F1R in its early days. His 1st ever raced showed some real talent though, as he managed to record a podium in his Talbot-Lago (his only points of the season - and the only podium for Talbot all season). Three further Top 10 finishes in the season attracted the attention of Connaught, who brought Claes on board to spearhead their hopes of a respectable result…

In 1952 a 6th placed finish at the Belgian GP was their best finish of the season, while in 1953 he could only manage 12th as the Connaught car that year was an absolute catastrophe! Such was his demotivation after the 1953 season that he took a year out to refocus his attention on racing with several rallying appearances, before returning in 1955 to support Connaught's bid to move up the grid - but combining a best finish of 20th that season with the fact that he was only the 5th best Connaught driver of 6 meant that the writing was always on the wall for Claes, who retired after that to focus more on endurance races - including several Le Mans entries in the years to come.
Alan Stacey

Alan Stacey was an English racing driver who took part in the F1R series in 1958.

After building his own race car to enter into junior races and some promising sportscar races, he was able to gain an entry with Porsche into the F1R series. However, after two failed attempts to qualify, Porsche ended their association with him. Stacey went back to sportscar racing, where he was far more successful than in F1R.
Aston Martin

Aston Martin was a British constructor that competed in the F1R series from 1959 to 1960.

Joining the series under the leadership of David Brown, the team found their 1st season tough work with Brooks and Salvadori both managing a few Top 10 finishes, but unable to score a single point. They did have the distinction of employing the 1st female F1R driver in Maria Teresa de Filippis, though she was only able to manage a single Top 10 finish at the season ending US GP.

They finished 6th in 1959 and so tried to build on that in 1960, but despite 3/4 drivers scoring points in the season opening Argentine GP (including a Podium for Salvadori), there would be only a single points finish more (6th and a single point for Salvadori at the Portuguese GP) all season long...and that led to another 6th place in the Team's Standings and the team withdrawing due to the lack of success they hoped for.

**Complete Championship Results**
1961 Drivers Championship Standings

Naylor and Fairman depart the series with a Podium finish in the standings this time, as by virtue of his victory at the Belgian GP it is Naylor that claims 2nd in the standings. Bonnier is denied by the Dropped Scores rule - though he can at least lay claim to having finished in the points most times this season!

Rodríguez's victory takes him to 5th in the standings in his debut season, as he passes both Gurney and Brooks in the final race, with Baghetti 8th overall. Meanwhile, despite a last lap rise into the points, there is nothing Scarlatti can do to deny Mairesse 9th in the standings - but the JBW driver does at least make it 3 JBWs in the Top 10 by hanging onto that 10th place.

Ireland manages to gain a couple of places in the standings by virtue of his comeback drive today, with Moss and de Beaufort the casualties of that rise - and finally a season's best performance by Brabham moves him off the foot of the table and even ahead of last season's Champion Gregory!