1954 Argentine GP

## Track Facts

* Name – Buenos Aires
* Location – Argentina
* Corners – 8
* Laps – 87
* Base (Worst) Lap Time – 2:30.000
* Lap Record (Real Life) – 1:44.800 (Nino Farina)
* Lap Record (F1R) – 1:46.357 (Roy Salvadori – Finn Shaw-McIver)
* Pit Lane Length – 15 seconds
* Fuel Consumption – Medium
* Tyre Wear – Medium

## Qualifying 1

Qualifying for the Buenos Aires GP got under-way with sunny conditions - the early pace is set by Salvadori, who pushes his Vanwall to the limit to take provisional pole for the 1st quarter of the session or so before the big boys come out to play!

First to emerge near the front are the Cooper drivers, led by Helfrich and Villoresi - with Harry Schell also there or thereabouts, with the Maserati drivers Lang and Farina also on the pace.

Until about the half-way mark that's about as much progress as is made - but the Mercedes cars soon make their own impression on the standings with Kling and Gerard renewing their on-track rivalry here and vying for 1st place in Argentina.

But with the two of them focusing on each other's moves it's Marimón who capitalises as he becomes the 1st man to go under the 95 second mark for Maserati - whilst the only Mercedes on track is Volonterio who can only manage to get ahead of a late-charging Georges Berger and cannot get close to pole-sitter Marimón! Given the weather for Q2 that should be sufficient for him to claim 1st place.

There are also some noteworthy performances from Eric Brandon in the Klenk, Lance Macklin in the Connaught and Jacques Pollet who manages to guide a Gordini into the top 20.

**Qualifying 1 Results**

## Qualifying 2

A wet Q2 saw the early runners pushing far too hard, and some big crashes were had by the likes of Gould, Parnell, Ascari, Manzon and Schell - as they were forced to limp back to the pits with whatever was left of their respective cars!

A much more positive start for the Maserati team though, as they packed the top spots with a 1-2-3-4 for a brief period of time, before the Mercedes drivers came out to spoil the party…first of all Volonterio, and then Gerard took provisional pole position, which despite the best efforts of Lang, Berger and Herrmann they could do nothing to stop a Mercedes 1-2 in this session.

Whitehead is a distant 6th, as he clearly knew there were no grid positions on offer here thanks to the conditions - likewise Moss, Marimon and Kling also take it relatively easy here. Some great performances further down the field, firstly from Brandon - who hauled his unresponsive Klenk into the top 10 for most of the session, before the late Mercedes charge demoted him.

One team really shone here, much like Cooper in Q1, the Gordini drivers Pollet and Gonzalez excelled in the wet conditions, with Pollet an admirable 8th place and Gonzalez a solid 14th. The Cooper drivers rather disappeared this session, with Villoresi the best of them in a lowly 19th position.

**Qualifying 2 Results**

## Overall Qualifying Results

So with Q2 being wet no drivers improved their times, and thus the Q1 results effectively form up the grid.

And so Marimón becomes the 1st pole-sitter of the season for Maserati - with Volonterio 2nd for Mercedes, Georges Berger 3rd for Maserati and the Mercedes duo of young-gun Kling and veteran Gerard in 4th and 5th, with the Cooper team next up after a brilliant Q1.

There are also some noteworthy performances from Eric Brandon in the Klenk, Lance Macklin in the Connaught and Jacques Pollet who manages to guide a Gordini into the top 20, albeit only just - and what on earth can we expect from those vastly changeable Lancias in the race?!? Hold on to your hats; this should be an exciting one!

## Race Commentary

*Lap 1* - And the flag waves to get the inaugural race of the season under-way; a brilliant start from 8th place sees Herrmann tear around the outside of the Cooper's, which did not get away from the line at all well. Fellow Maserati runners Berger and Marimon move out of the way to let the speeding Herrmann through, and with moves at both Mixtos and Ombu on Kling and Gerard respectively he clinches an incredible 1st lap performance with a dive up the inside of Volonterio (who got away best of the front row) at Horquilla to claim 1st place!

Despite losing a place to Volonterio at the start Marimon has a decent 1st lap to be 3rd at the end, ahead of the Mercedes trio of Kling, Whitehead and Gerard. The impressive thing here is just how many cars Whitehead had to pass to get on level terms; besides the slow-starting Coopers he also passed no fewer than 4 Maserati's, Salvadori's Vanwall and team-mate Gerard too!

Lang, Berger and Farina are 7th, 8th and 9th, with Villoresi in 10th place for Cooper - who really must look at the lack of traction their cars develop off the starting line. Villoresi only dropped 3 places, but Schell dropped 4 and Helfrich dropped a stunning 10 places in 1 lap as he simply bogged down on the line! Having said that, 1 Cooper did manage to make the most of the start as Manzon rises from the back of the grid to an impressive 15th position, even ahead of his team-mate Helfrich.

Salvadori is the top non-Cooper, non-Maserati and non-Mercedes driver in 12th, with Pollet 14th for Gordini - after a solid qualifying he now gains 6 places off the start, including the scalp of Brandon's Klenk who has the Lancia trio in hot pursuit now!

Further back mayhem ensues, caused initially by Sergio Mantovani's Ferrari - he backs the pack up after a heavy whack on Lance Macklin's Connaught, which drops the Brit right down the order. Mantovani is forced to retire a little further round Curva Uno - but behind him there is a further collision between Gonzalez, Ascari and Behra. Both Gordini drivers and the Vanwall are out on the spot with irreparable damage - and both Macklin and Flockhart look like they wont last long in the race either.

*Lap 2* - A terrible mistake for Volonterio drops the Mercedes driver well down the order to the outskirts of the top 10, leaving Marimon free to challenge Herrmann successfully for the lead! Meanwhile Lang takes both Gerard and Whitehead on this lap, but Kling keeps the flag flying for Mercedes in 3rd place.

Berger is affected by a recovering Volonterio, who he must swerve to avoid - thereby gifting 8th place to Villoresi's Cooper. Otherwise Salvadori takes Moss, Manzon passes Pollet, Brandon takes Helfrich in a mixed lap for Cooper; and Macklin clambers out of last place at the expense of team-mate Gould.

*Lap 3* - Herrmann fights back here as he passes Marimon, whilst Lang takes Kling to make it a Maserati 1-2-3 as it stands! Volonterio is on the come-back trail as he recovers to 5th place, taking Berger with him up to 6th. Gerard is down to 7th ahead of Whitehead in 8th place - Villoresi is now 9th after Berger's charge, with Farina in 10th.

*Lap 4* - Berger moves up to 5th place, as Volonterio's come-back is short lived. Villoresi has a great lap back up to 8th from Salvadori in 9th and Whitehead now 10th overall. Farina is the casualty from the top 10, with Moss 12th, Manzon now 13th as he takes team-mate Schell whilst the inter-team battle in Lancia heats up as Maglioli takes de Graffenried for 18th place.

*Lap 5* - Gerard nips in front of Volonterio for 6th place, with Salvadori up to 8th, Farina 9th and Whitehead still in 10th place despite losing a position - and that's down to Villoresi pitting, and making the decision to move onto Wet tyres!

Whether Cooper know something the other teams don't is unsure, given that the skies up above (whilst overcast) are still lacking any other signs of raining. He emerges in 16th, just in front of Helfrich - whilst Collins also passes de Graffenried, as the Swiss driver goes backwards here.

*Lap 6* - Herrmann's lead is now over 5 seconds from his team-mates, whilst Berger makes it 4 Maserati's in the top 4 by pulling a brilliant pass on Kling's Mercedes. Salvadori's rise continues as both he and Whitehead pass Volonterio and Farina.

Villoresi's return to action has not been a positive one, as his rain tyres are significantly slowing him down as he loses a place to Helfrich here. De Graffenried gets his own back on Collins with a great pass here - but attention is focused on Macklin, who appears to have a box full of neutrals as he comes to a halt at Ascari.

*Lap 7* - Farina is the man on the move on this lap, as he passes Whitehead, Volonterio and Salvadori here. Whitehead is the one that drops the most as he falls back to 10th just behind Volonterio, with Moss a few seconds down in 11th. And Collins takes de Graffenried - all their to-ing and fro-ing has allowed Maglioli to stretch away in front!

*Lap 8* - The biggest change on this lap is that Lang takes Marimon for 2nd place, as the Maserati's do not rest on their laurels but rather fight for every position. Meanwhile down in 15th place Brandon has an issue with his gearbox, which has made his car rather a handful on the track.

*Lap 9* - Tragedy strikes for Herrmann!!! He runs out of fuel at the start of Lap 9 - looks like the Maserati mechanics got this one wrong, and suddenly there appears to be a lot of worried faces around the Maserati garage!

That promotes Lang into the lead, Marimon into 2nd and Berger up to 3rd - so still a Maserati 1-2-3! Kling is now 4th, and into the points with real aplomb is Salvadori who takes both Farina and Gerard (who effectively hold station) on a stunning lap that sees him rise into 5th place. Moss is now into the top 10 thanks to Herrmann's retirement, with Manzon top Cooper in 11th.

Villoresi's wet tyre choice is still not paying dividends thanks to the as-yet dry track, which several of those at the back were clearly not anticipating as they actually started on wet tyres! On this lap Maglioli passes him to move up to 16th position.

*Lap 10* - It's all going wrong for Maserati, as Lang's brief stint in the lead comes to a rather premature end as he too pulls off the road at Curva Uno with no fuel left in the tank - those long faces in the Maserati garage show no sign of abating at this point…

And so it is now Marimon who leads again, from Berger in 2nd, Kling into 3rd place, Salvadori now in an astonishing 4th place for Vanwall, and Gerard making it 2 Mercedes in the points as he sits 5th overall. Volonterio is up to 6th as he passes Farina, Moss is now 9th and Manzon joins the top 10 after having started from last place on the grid!!!

*Lap 11* - What a lap!!! First of all Salvadori puts the moves on both Kling and Berger to move into 2nd place, and is followed through by Kling to ensure he keeps a Mercedes on the podium. Manzon needs to keep an eye on Schell, as the American is challenging for a top 10 place!

Collins takes Villoresi this turn, with de Graffenried lining up the Cooper driver who is suffering from being on the wrong tyres here. And Maserati can relax, with no other cars running out of fuel…yet!

*Lap 12* - Farina finally starts to make some progress, as he takes down both Berger and Gerard in 1 lap to claim 4th position ahead of team-mate Berger in 5th. Whitehead is 7th, with Volonterio now down to 8th position. Further back all the Lancia's have now passed the ailing Villoresi, who must be doing some kind of rain dance in his cockpit at this point - those wet tyres can't have much life left in them at this point!

*Lap 13* - Volonterio is the big winner this lap, as a collision between Farina and Taruffi causes mayhem behind! The Ferrari driver has had a quiet race, which ends in rather ignominious style, but Farina does at least manage to continue on in 4th. Whitehead has his wits about him, as he dives up the inside of Berger and Gerard who are both caught out by slowing to avoid the carnage in front of them!

23 cars now remain, with Flockhart now edging towards the top 20 despite being SO far behind the others - some of these drivers really don't seem to trust the machinery underneath them!

*Lap 14* - Maserati are having a nightmare stint - as they lose their 3rd race leader in a row, and Marimon pulls over at Curva Uno with no fuel remaining. Despite potentially having the fastest car it looks like the Maserati team could have blown it this race by not fuelling heavily enough!

And INCREDIBLY our new race leader is none other than Roy Salvadori of Vanwall!!! Kling and Farina are both under 1 second behind, meaning Maserati still have a car on the podium as it stands, albeit only just! Volonterio now sits 4th as Mercedes wait in the wings to take the Maserati mantle. Gerard is 5th as he takes Berger on this lap, with Whitehead 7th, Moss 8th, Manzon 9th and Schell making it 2 Cooper's in the top 10 now.

Pollet is now the man just outside the top 10 for Gordini, but has about 15 seconds to make up if he wants to challenge - or has to wait for 2 more Maserati's, depending on how cynical you are!

*Lap 15* - Kling passes Salvadori for the lead, but again eyes are on the Maserati's - and this time it's Farina who pulls off AGAIN at Curva Uno, which seems to be becoming a form of Maserati graveyard as they lose their 4th car there. Only Berger and Moss now remain for them - in 5th and 6th respectively.

Volonterio joins the podium in 3rd, just a whisker ahead of defending champion Gerard. Meanwhile Whitehead pits on this lap, and emerges in 7th place with time to spare ahead of the Cooper drivers Manzon and Schell. Now inside the top 10 is Pollet for Gordini, whilst Villoresi pits for the 2nd time and comes out on dry tyres dangerously close to Hawthorn, who will likely not hold on to 16th place as a result.

*Lap 16* - Brandon in 11th still hasn't solved his gearbox issue, which is certainly impeding his progress here with Helfrich making inroads into his advantage again. As expected Villoresi takes Hawthorn, as he gets back onto the leaders pace immediately! He's got about 30 seconds in front of him to catch the Lancia trio though…

*Lap 17* - Salvadori lines up Kling, but the German defends strongly and shuts the door on that attempt. Volonterio pits from 3rd to elevate Gerard into 3rd place, with Berger pitting too Moss is now 4th and Whitehead 5th - though the latter is some 16 seconds behind.

Emerging in 6th is Volonterio, who had a somewhat lacklustre pit-stop, with Berger in 7th similarly tardy in the pits. Manzon remains 8th from Schell and Pollet, whilst Brandon continues to limp around in 11th place - and surely must come in soon to fix the issue with his gearbox!

*Lap 18* - Pit-stops galore here! Kling pits from the lead to allow Salvadori a real shot at running the race unhindered - though Gerard in 2nd place is only a second or so behind. Kling actually comes out in 3rd place, showing how superior the leading trio are right now!

Moss pits to move Whitehead into 4th place, and Berger puts a move on Volonterio to ensure at least 1 Maserati is in the points!!! Moss comes out in 7th position, with Manzon about 8 seconds down the road now.

Brandon and Helfrich both pit here - the former makes the decision to go out on wet tyres given the overcast skies above - but has he gone too early? At least his gearbox is finally fixed though! The latter opts for the safer dry tyre option and both come out with a 5 second gap over the Lancia trio. Villoresi is still gaining ground on them by some 5 seconds a lap now he has the right tyres on!

*Lap 19* - Berger continues his march forward, as he gets up the inside of Whitehead at Horquilla - forcing the Mercedes wide and allowing Volonterio to claim 5th as well! Pollet pits from 10th, and comes out where he was - in something of a no-man's land right now, though his choice of wet tyres could change that! Brandon's tyre choice has allowed Helfrich to gain a full 7 seconds on that lap, and he'll pass him next lap if he keeps that pace up!

*Lap 20* - Salvadori and Gerard both pit on this lap - and sensationally both come out ahead of Kling!!! Only just though, and the German is certainly on the warpath now! Volonterio passes Berger for 4th here, and is only 5 seconds behind Kling as it stands.

Manzon and Schell both come in on this lap, and emerge in 8th and 9th as their relatively quiet afternoon saunters on! Helfrich makes the pass on Brandon to claim 11th place, and now has a top 10 spot about 35 seconds up the road in the form of the wet-tyre clad Pollet.

Brandon is still 12th, with Collins now the aggressor there, though Villoresi has caught right up with the Lancia now! Pitting this lap are both Maglioli (who opts for wet tyres) and de Graffenried, with Hawthorn also coming in for Ferrari - a measure of how slow those behind him are, is that Hawthorn actually did a faster lap-time INCLUDING HIS PIT-STOP than anyone behind him!!!

*Lap 21* - Kling is right on the rear of Gerard for 2nd place, with Volonterio gaining ground on the leaders to bring the gap down to just 4.2 seconds. Villoresi finally makes the pass on Collins to move into 13th place, with Brandon only 6 seconds up the road! De Graffenried passes Maglioli comfortably, by virtue of his tyre choice whilst Hawthorn is pushing hard to close the gap to the Lancia's now.

*Lap 22* - The battle for the lead is RED HOT! Less than 1 second covers the top 3, with less than 10 seconds covering the top 6 as well!!! Villoresi passes Brandon this lap, with team-mate Helfrich his next target some 15 seconds up the road.

Hawthorn takes another huge chunk out of the gap to Maglioli on this lap too - he is really testing the edges of the track with the amount he's pushing out there!

*Lap 23* - No changes at the front on this lap, though the battle is just as close with Volonterio cutting the gap down to 2.6 seconds with the leading trio squabbling as they are. But attention is on Hawthorn, who runs wide onto the grass at Mixtos and picks up some suspension damage - looks like he'll carry on to his next scheduled stop, but that car looks a real handful at the moment!

*Lap 24* - The top 2 are separated by mere hundredths of a second as they cross the line, with Kling only 0.6 behind and Volonterio now just 1.6 seconds behind him!!! 5.9 back to Berger is some breathing space, with Whitehead and Moss still desperately trying to claw their way back into the points.

Manzon needs to watch out for Schell, who has been gradually narrowing the gap over the last few laps, whilst Pollet's 10th place looks almost gone now as Helfrich and Villoresi cruise up to the back of him this lap.

Collins is also on the back of Brandon, with de Graffenried a little further back. And we also say goodbye on this lap to Horace Gould, who retires from his debut race with no more fuel left on board at Ascari.

*Lap 25* - The pressure had to tell eventually - Gerard slices up the inside of Salvadori at Curva Uno to demote the Vanwall driver into 2nd place. He will now have Kling to worry about…

Meanwhile Villoresi claims the 10th place, as Pollet can do nothing to defend from Helfrich - and then Helfrich finds himself helpless against his fast-charging team-mate. However a 1 minute 20 second gap is now what Villoresi would have to close to advance any further!

*Lap 26* - As expected Kling makes his way past Salvadori - one wonders if the Vanwall driver has the pace to prevent further overtaking manoeuvres, though he does at least have 2.8 seconds over Volonterio in 4th.

Moss takes Whitehead for 6th place - the Maserati's look a lot more confident since it's been several laps since one of them ran out of fuel, and they look to be pushing hard again! Collins passes Brandon for 13th, as having not pitted yet seems to be working for the Lancia driver.

*Lap 27* - You can't keep a good man down! And Salvadori is proving that today, he is last of the late brakers at Horquilla and reclaims 2nd place from Kling - who can't have been expecting that!!! Whitehead re-takes Moss for 6th place, over-confidence from the Maserati driver lets the Mercedes in, though Berger has now opened up a 5 second gap thanks to their squabbling.

De Graffenried is the big mover on this lap, not only does he pass the ailing Brandon - who must be regretting his tyre decision now, as we still have had no rain despite the clouds overhead - but he also makes a move on Collins that sticks, and gives the Swiss 13th place overall.

*Lap 28* - No change at the front, though strong laps from Salvadori, Kling and Whitehead help them to cut the gaps to those in front. Manzon now has Schell just 1.3 seconds behind him and gaining fast - and it's noticeable that since Villoresi moved into 10th place both have picked their pace up significantly!!!

Collins tyres look to have given up the ghost - and it looks like Brandon is coming back at him, despite being on wet tyres! Pilette pits on this lap, coming out still well over a minute ahead of Parnell who is 20th and last as it stands.

*Lap 29* - Salvador is right on the back of Gerard, as he refuses to let his shot at a race win slip him by! Volonterio is about as close to Kling as he's been yet, just 1.7 seconds down. Schell has the gap to Manzon down to 0.8 seconds, and Villoresi is about 1 minute 7 seconds behind them…and still cutting that gap down lap after lap!

Both Flockhart and Parnell make their 1st stops on this lap - the former has a great stop and has extended his lead over Pilette, whilst the latter's pit-crew takes a lot of time over the stop, clearly knowing that they've not got much to fight for today as it stands.

*Lap 30* - Salvadori passes Gerard!!! There's no keeping the Vanwall driver down, as he thunders around the outside at Curvon in an astonishing display of skill to hold the car around there! Kling now has Volonterio 0.3 seconds behind, and must now look to defend from his team-mate.

Whitehead pits on this lap, of course dropping behind Moss and coming out ahead of Manzon - who is more concerned with his team-mate Schell, who he has to shut the door on into Horquilla on this lap. Meanwhile at the back disaster for Flockhart who had just pitted, and emerges with new tyres that must have been lacking grip as he ploughs into the straw bales at Horquilla to end his race there. Delight for Pilette and Parnell as they will gain positions as a result.

*Lap 31* - Volonterio passes Kling! 3rd place belongs to the Swiss now, though at least Kling can expect to hang on to 4th for a while as Berger is still 6.8 seconds down. De Graffenried is within sight of Pollet now, though still has some work to do to make the pass there.

*Lap 32* - Volonterio's podium position is short-lived, as Kling takes him back the very next lap at Horquilla. De Graffenried makes the pass on Pollet, despite the Frenchman's best efforts to deny him, but at least for his sake Collins makes his 1st stop of the race on this lap to give the Gordini driver some breathing space.

Collins comes out behind Brandon, but some way ahead of his team-mate Maglioli, whose wet tyres are still seemingly the wrong choice with not a drop of rain falling as yet on the track.

*Lap 33* - Maserati cannot believe it - when it rains it pours for them, though ironically the track is still dry as Berger pulls up at Curva Uno to become the 5th Maserati driver to retire from a fuel miscalculation! The tiniest of silver linings is that Moss has now been promoted into 5th place behind Volonterio in 4th, with Whitehead now the only Mercedes outside the points in 6th.

Manzon is 7th, with Schell 1.7 seconds behind in 8th place. Villoresi has the gap down to under 1 minute in 9th from Helfrich in 10th place, de Graffenried is over a minute behind in 11th place. Pollet is not far behind in 12th from Brandon 13th, Collins has put on wet tyres and is 14th position. Maglioli sits 15th from the limping Hawthorn 16th for Ferrari, with Pilette and Parnell rounding the 18 runners at the moment.

*Lap 34* - Volonterio pits here, dropping back to 5th position just 4 seconds ahead of Whitehead in 6th. Otherwise the race seems to have settled into a bit of a rhythm, with the main battle between Salvadori and Gerard for the lead with still less than 1 second between them.

*Lap 35* - Villoresi pits and comes out in 9th place still, though that will slow his charge towards his team-mates and puts the gap back over 1 minute or so. Only 0.6 seconds between Salvadori and Kling now up-front.

*Lap 36* - Salvadori puts in a strong lap to extend the gap to 1.9 seconds or so, Kling pits to elevate Moss into 3rd place and put the final remaining Maserati on the podium, albeit by less than 1 second over Kling. Helfrich also pits, but such is the gap he has to de Graffenried that he comes out nearly 45 seconds in front of him.

*Lap 37* - Moss pits on this lap, and his stop is somewhat slow as he drops back to 6th position nearly 10 seconds behind Whitehead in 5th. Manzon has done well to respond to Schell's pressure as he has now pulled out nearly 4 seconds over his Cooper team-mate.

Near the back Pilette is being lapped by the ailing Hawthorn, and given the lack of control he has he taps the HWM and causes some damage to his gearbox as a result, by the sounds of that car.

*Lap 38* - Whitehead takes Volonterio, but he has a 10 second disadvantage versus Kling, who is nearly 30 seconds down on the leading duo by virtue of having done 1 more stop as it stands. There is hope for the Cooper's now, as it seems that Moss has risked it on wet tyres! He has around 36 seconds over Manzon, but that advantage could be wiped out in a matter of laps!!!

*Lap 39* - Brandon pits and puts wet tyres on again, and thanks to Pilette's damage we finally see Parnell set a faster lap time than another car - though with more than a 2 minute gap he wont be catching the HWM any time soon.

*Lap 40* - Salvadori and Gerard both pit this lap, and the mechanics do a great job for the Mercedes with one the quickest stops of the race - the Vanwall mechanics are no slouch, but they can't quite match the pace of Gerard's mechanic and so they give up the lead. A silver lining is that they still have over 8 seconds versus Kling's Mercedes.

Meanwhile Manzon is less than 20 seconds behind Moss now, whilst de Graffenried pits here and puts on wet tyres, which will please Pollet who is around 30 seconds down and also on those wet tyres. Hawthorn also pits, and finally fixes his suspension, putting on dry tyres and we should see him narrow the gap to those in front which currently sits at around 1 minute 25 or so.

*Lap 41* - Both Gerard and Salvadori roll the dice and put on wet tyres - one wonders if they know something we don't, as it's still dry out on circuit at the moment. As such Kling now leads the race from Gerard, with Salvadori 1.2 seconds down - Whitehead is only 5 seconds down and will surely pass the pair as long as the rain holds off!

Manzon is now just 12 seconds behind Moss, with Schell a further 3.7 seconds down. And the gap to Villoresi is just over 1 minute now.

*Lap 42* - It's now a Mercedes 1-2-3-4, with Kling leading Whitehead and Volonterio on the podium from Gerard in 4th, as both he Salvadori lose ground thanks to the lack of rain. There is respite for Moss as both Manzon and Schell pit on this lap - meaning a 25 second gap for him. The Cooper duo may be thinking more about Villoresi, who is now only 43 seconds down on them!

*Lap 43* - Despite being on the wrong tyres, Salvadori is still not letting up the pushing as he sits right on Gerard's gearbox. Manzon is now just 16 seconds down on Moss, and Villoresi is 40 down on the Cooper duo. Further back Hawthorn has the gap to Maglioli down under 1 minute after a series of good laps.

*Lap 44* - Salvadori passes Gerard for 4th place! The Mercedes looks to be taking things relatively easy as he waits for the rain that he seems to be expecting imminently! Manzon is 6 seconds down on Moss, with Schell a further 5 seconds back, and 37 seconds gap back to Villoresi.

*Lap 45* - Whitehead pits from 2nd place to elevate Volonterio, and he comes out in 3rd place on dry tyres still with a 15 second gap back to…Gerard! This race-long scrap with Salvadori shows no signs of letting up - and they have around 1 minute over…Manzon!!! The Cooper finally makes the pass on Moss (who is on wet tyres), who has Schell also lining him up around 3 seconds behind.

Villoresi is 35 seconds behind, and Pollet looks relieved to have a 41 second gap on Brandon's Klenk as his tyres are really struggling and he's losing around 3 seconds per lap to his adversary. Hawthorn is now only 35 seconds down on Maglioli.

*Lap 46* - Salvadori re-takes Gerard, as they seem unable to go a lap without switching positions!!! Manzon is now less than 1 minute behind, with Schell also past Moss - who has Villoresi just 28 seconds behind him now.

Pollet is gaining on de Graffenried, despite his worn tyres as he is now 25 seconds down, with Brandon 36 seconds behind him. Hawthorn keeps the pressure up on Maglioli, who looks to be pushing hard on the wrong tyres, but still losing around 14 seconds per lap

*Lap 47* - Salvadori maintains 4th, as both he and Gerard must be conscious of the time they are losing to Manzon in 6th - who's just 45 seconds down now. Villoresi has only 15 seconds between him and Moss now for 8th place.

Hawthorn's pressure, the weather or just a miscalculation? We may never know, but either way it's the end of the line for Maglioli, who pulls to the side of the road - it appears Maserati are not the only team who have had difficulty in getting the fuel right here.

*Lap 48* - Kling has a 6 second lead over Volonterio, but the gap is slowly coming down. Whitehead is 22 seconds further back by virtue of his extra pit-stop, but his pace is on a par with that of the leaders. Gerard passes Salvadori again, with Manzon now only 38 seconds down.

Moss will surely lose his position to Villoresi, who is now only 6 seconds behind him. Brandon is eating into the gap to Pollet, as he's now only 24 seconds down. And Hawthorn's next target is Collins, but the Lancia is well over a minute up the road - so that will take some time to close up.

*Lap 49* - Villoresi makes it a Cooper 6-7-8 as he easily gets by the ailing Moss, who must be pleased to still be running in the Maserati at this stage! Meanwhile Brandon has the gap to Pollet under 20 seconds, with the Gordini driver under serious pressure at the moment.

*Lap 50* - Pollet pits on this lap, gifting 12th place to the Klenk of Brandon, he again puts on wet tyres - and by the looks of the clouds above he may be on to something, as they look rather dark and ominous! Meanwhile Hawthorn's dry tyres have brought him to almost within a minute of Collins' Lancia.

*Lap 51* - Volonterio pits, and comes out in 2nd place still with less than 1 second advantage over Whitehead in 3rd. Manzon is now within 15 seconds of the points paying positions, but both he and Schell have only 21 seconds back to Villoresi, who is gaining around 3 seconds per lap over his team-mates now that he knows a points paying position could be within reach!!!

*Lap 52* - Volonterio has also opted for wet tyres, and so is helpless to defend against Whitehead's dry tyres. Manzon is now just 7 seconds outside the points for Cooper, with Schell 6 seconds back and 18 seconds down to Villoresi now. Meanwhile Hawthorn is about 45 seconds behind Collins.

*Lap 53* - The first droplets of rain start to come down!!! Dry tyres still look quicker, but it's certainly looking likely to be the case that wet tyres will be a better choice soon enough! Looking down the field the following drivers are on wet tyres now; Volonterio in 3rd, Gerard in 4th, Salvadori in 5th, Moss in 9th, de Graffenried in 11th, Brandon in 12th, Pollet in 13th and Collins in 14th. Everyone else is on dry tyres as it stands…

*Lap 54* - Kling pits for wet tyres on this lap, as he makes a great call to come out in the lead again. Could that be decision that wins him this race?!? Whitehead is 2nd place some 12 seconds behind, but with only a 3.5 second advantage over Volonterio who will surely be gaining ground over the coming laps.

Helfrich also pits on this lap, taking on dry tyres again as he clearly expects the rain not to last long in this race.

*Lap 55* - It is now certainly raining - and those on dry tyres will be feeling the pain from now on! Gerard and Salvadori have at last stopped the rot and pegged the gap back to Manzon at 16 seconds, as the Cooper drivers begin to look somewhat nervous in these wet conditions.

Villoresi pits, coming out just 12 seconds ahead of Moss. Hawthorn also comes in, putting on dry tyres - is that really the best choice now the rain is really bucketing it down out there?!?

*Lap 56* - Some drivers are really taking it easy out there - especially if you're in a Cooper! Remember their lacklustre performance in Q2? It seems that they can't cope in the rain - though they aren't alone. Salvadori drops WAY back from Gerard, as he loses around half a minute as it seems the Brit is unable to drive well in these conditions! And to make matters worse he becomes the latest driver that Kling put a lap on.

Villoresi finally passes Schell, as the latter looks exceptionally slow out there…also Parnell is now gaining on the damaged Pilette by some 8 seconds a lap!

*Lap 57* - Whitehead's dry tyres lose him 2nd place to Volonterio, with the rain really coming down hard now! Gerard is within a minute of the podium, and has pulled out nearly a minute over Salvadori too! Manzon makes a mistake and tangles with a bump in the road that causes some minor damage to the leading Cooper.

He retains position though, as Moss comes into the pits and puts on wet tyres in a sensible choice - he comes out 9 seconds ahead of Villoresi, which is as close as the Cooper will get as he's still on dry tyres!

Helfrich is gaining hand over fist on Schell, who really can't cope with these conditions and is one of the slowest on track at the moment. Brandon pits on this lap to elevate Pollet into 12th for Gordini.

*Lap 58* - Moss passes the slowing Manzon on this lap - the Cooper driver must surely pit to mend that damage very soon indeed! Helfrich is within a minute of Schell now, and Parnell pits on this lap for the 2nd time - but selecting dry tyres again could cost him any hope he has of closing down Pilette.

*Lap 59* - Moss is back into the points! He's over 1 minute 40 down on Gerard in 4th, but Salvadori has at least been pushed down to put at least 1 Maserati in the points at the moment. Manzon has team-mate Villoresi inches behind him as he pits for dry tyres again, without any chance of the former defending his position - he's doing everything he can just to keep it on the black stuff!

Helfrich is only 6 seconds behind Schell now, and Pollet has the gap to de Graffenried under 20 seconds too.

*Lap 60* - Gerard is within 10 seconds of Whitehead who pits on this lap and comes out with wet tyres on, which will be a relief to his fans! Villoresi is up to 7th place as he moves past Manzon with ease. Helfrich is now 9th as he takes Schell, with Cooper's now 7-8-9-10.

De Graffenried pits and puts on dry tyres to move Pollet into 11th place, around 1 minute 35 seconds outside the top 10 - but gaining really quite quickly! Collins makes a bad mistake to clip the ailing Pilette and heavily damage his car - he will certainly have to pit to fix that!

*Lap 61* - Gerard has closed the gap to Whitehead down to just 8.4 seconds, whilst Villoresi is within 18.9 seconds of Salvadori for 6th position. Schell is now only 30 seconds or so ahead of Pollet in the battle for the top 10.

Collins does pit on this lap to mend the damage, but he does have a significant advantage over Hawthorn, who is really slow on his dry tyres in these torrential conditions. Pilette also pits, and is now just 1 minute 40 or so ahead of Parnell.

*Lap 62* - It looked a foregone conclusion, but Kling slides wide at Horquilla and clips the stricken Flockhart to cause some minor damage to his gearbox, which hands the initiative to Volonterio in 2nd place. Gerard pits on this lap to relax the pressure on Whitehead - Moss in 5th is some 1 minute 26 seconds down and so not really in contention for anything better than 5th place.

Villoresi is just 10 seconds behind Salvadori, who is really struggling in these conditions. Brandon is under 1 minute behind Schell, who is dropping like a stone at the moment!

*Lap 63* - Volonterio has the gap at the front down to 14.8 seconds, whilst Salvadori's pit moves Villoresi up to 6th and Manzon up to 7th too. Brandon is within 5 seconds of Schell, who looks lucky to even be on the track at the moment!

*Lap 64* - 13 seconds is the gap from Kling to Volonterio, whilst Pollet is just 47 seconds behind Helfrich now as the Gordini doesn't look content to settle for 10th position! Brandon of course passes Schell here, whilst Parnell is now 1 minute 26 behind Pilette.

And disaster strikes here for the only Ferrari on track, as Hawthorn makes a huge error at Horquilla to end his race completely beached - but thankfully unhurt for the most part.

*Lap 65* - Disaster for Schell - he finally puts his foot down, and goes straight off at Horquilla after a collision with Villoresi, which causes the American to drop out of the race and gives his Italian team-mate some serious damage to contend with.

Kling meanwhile pegs the gap back to Volonterio, who may be taking things easy as it seems inevitable that he will get a crack at the German before the race is over.

*Lap 66* - Volonterio gets the gap down to 11.4 seconds, whilst Manzon pits to gift Salvadori 7th place. Pollet is now just 6 seconds behind Helfrich, as he looks to bring the battle to the Cooper drivers ahead! Also Parnell is 1 minute 20 down on Pilette and still gaining lap after lap after lap!!!

*Lap 67* - The gap at the front is 10.3 seconds, whilst Pollet moves past Helfrich into 9th position - with de Graffenried's Lancia the next person to challenge the Cooper, with 10th place up for grabs there.

*Lap 68* - Volonterio takes another big chunk out of Kling's lead - and is now just 7.9 seconds behind! Villoresi pits here, and comes out in front of Salvadori still - though the Brit is more bothered about Manzon 7.8 seconds behind and gaining quickly.

21 seconds is the gap from de Graffenried up to Helfrich, and we could see an overtake there in the next few laps if they keep up their respective paces. It will take longer for Parnell to close up to Pilette, but the gap is down to 1 minute 10 at least.

*Lap 69* - Kling slips again, with the gap now 6.6 seconds, and surely he must pit soon to avoid losing his lead entirely! Manzon is under 5 seconds behind Salvadori for 7th place, with Pollet now under 30 seconds down on them in 9th position for Gordini.

De Graffenried is just 6 seconds behind Helfrich with that 10th place on the line, but further back we see Parnell's race come to an end - after all that pressure he pushes too hard at Ascari and ends his race lodged in a ditch there!

*Lap 70* - 4 seconds now!!! Volonterio has the bit between his teeth, he clearly wants the victory here. Meanwhile Whitehead in 3rd makes an error and does some damage to his gearbox, which will mean he likely will need to pit and could present Gerard with an easy podium opportunity!

Manzon passes the ailing Salvadori here, but the Cooper driver will soon have to contend with Pollet's Gordini who is only 2.4 seconds behind Salvadori about 2.5 down on Manzon!!! And de Graffenried takes Helfrich's 10th position away and there are - at last - some smiles around the Lancia garage.

*Lap 71* - Kling finally pits to mend his damage - and comes out in 2nd place some 13 seconds down on Volonterio. Whitehead pits to mend his damage and is 5.6 seconds down on Gerard in the battle for 3rd place.

Pollet is really impressing out there for Gordini, as he is on the leaders pace and up to 7th place as he takes both Manzon and Salvadori with moves at Curva Uno and Ascari respectively. Next in his sights will be Villoresi for 6th position, and "best of the rest".

It gets worse for Salvadori as an incident at Ascari causes some damage to the underneath of the car as he travels over some very rough ground that has definitely caused more than just superficial damage to the car.

*Lap 72* - Gordini could not possibly have believed they'd be doing so well - as Pollet slices past Villoresi to move into 6th position, though he's some 5 minutes 45 seconds behind Moss at least he can be proud to be ahead of some teams that were perceived to be much faster.

Salvadori's issues means that de Graffenried is now just 14.2 seconds down, and looking likely to improve his position very soon indeed! Helfrich pits on this lap, coming out around 1.5 minutes in front of Brandon's Klenk.

*Lap 73* - De Graffenried passes Salvadori for 9th place, as he demotes the former leader down to 10th place - the only consolation for the struggling Vanwall is that he has nearly a minute's advantage over Helfrich in 11th place.

Brandon pits from 12th, and comes out around 1.5 minutes ahead of Collins in 13th place. 14th is now on the cards for Pilette if he can just continue on for a few more laps!

*Lap 74* - Volonterio looks comfortable in the lead, which is now 13 seconds over Kling. Whitehead is tracking Gerard for the final podium spot, with a 6 second deficit to make up. De Graffenried becomes the latest driver to get ahead of a Cooper in the rain, as he pushes Manzon down to 9th place.

*Lap 75* - Villoresi pits on this lap, meaning de Graffenried is just 10 seconds behind - and with Villoresi choosing dry tyres again it shouldn't be too long before the Cooper is passed by the Lancia. Helfrich is now just 3 seconds behind Salvadori, as he pushes to regain a top 10 spot.

*Lap 76* - As predicted de Graffenried takes Villoresi's 7th place away, whilst Helfrich claims 10th from Salvadori - who has at least fixed his car since his pit-stop last lap. Though are we starting to see the rain on track lighten up a little?

*Lap 77* - Volonterio's lead is up to nearly 20 seconds, with the laps starting to run out for anyone to prevent the Swiss taking the victory here. Brandon in 12th place is the latest driver to spin at Horquilla, damaging his car and leaving himself open to being caught by Collins - though with a 1.5 minute lead one wonders if there will be enough time remaining!

*Lap 78* - Helfrich makes a mistake at Ascari, which drops him right down the lap-time charts - and Salvadori could make the most of this, especially given that the rain is definitely starting to abate out on track!

*Lap 79* - With the rain letting up the lap-times are starting to come down - and a close eye is being kept on those whose progress was slowed by the rain; namely the Coopers, Salvadori's Vanwall and Moss's Maserati.

*Lap 80* - Salvadori regains 10th from Helfrich, who cannot match the Vanwall's superior pace. However it's likely too little too late for him, as 9th place is some 1 minute 26 seconds up the road in the shape of the now-recovered Manzon.

And now that the rain has definitely stopped, will anyone risk switching to dries? Right now the only people poised to take advantage are Villoresi, Manzon and Collins - plus Brandon and Helfrich, though both are currently carrying damage and thus wont be able to take full advantage.

*Lap 81* - Villoresi is gaining hand over fist on de Graffenried, his dry tyres affording him grip and pace that the others on track simply don't seem to have access to! He still has 35 seconds to make up though, so this is by no means a clear cut thing.

*Lap 82* - MASERATI CANNOT BELIEVE IT!!! After getting so far through the race Moss pulls up at Curva Uno - OUT OF FUEL! He must have been expecting the rain to last until the end of the race; the question now is whether Pollet can gain enough ground in the next 5 laps…though the question is whether any other drivers have also made the same assumption in their fuel calculations?

*Lap 83* - Villoresi is only 10 seconds behind de Graffenried now, whilst Pollet is about 4 laps down on Moss - with about 4 laps remaining; a lot rides on whether he can avoid losing another lap out on track! Collins is gaining a lot of ground on Brandon, but it will be too little too late as he has over 1 minute to catch up on him.

*Lap 84* - And Villoresi claims 7th from de Graffenried - and with over 2 minutes to Pollet in 6th it's unlikely to be enough to catch him, though he has a very outside shot at catching Moss if he can somehow unlap himself from the leaders in the next few laps!

At the front everything looks settled with Kling 16 seconds down on Volonterio and Whitehead 10 seconds behind Gerard. 5th place is now what everyone is focusing on!

*Lap 85* - Pollet is pushing as hard as possible to catch the gap to Moss up, and he is taking every risk in the book to try and eat up the ground whilst hoping against hope that the leaders don't end the race too soon!

De Graffenried is losing time to Manzon behind, but it shouldn't make a difference, as he has a 47 seconds advantage at this point.

*Lap 86* - Just when you thought the game was up for Maserati, Pollet pulls over at Ascari - and it seems he is OUT OF FUEL!!! Gordini go from elation to dispair, as he passes the stricken Maserati at Curva Uno to make it into 5th, but they now look gutted to have a points scoring chance potentially snatched away from him - and now all eyes are on Villoresi, who has an unbelievable shot at taking a point here if he can really push the boundaries of pace in these final laps!

*Lap 87* - And so Volonterio crosses the line in 1st place, taking a debut victory for the Swiss and the 1st for Mercedes ever! Kling takes 2nd place after a solid drive, and Gerard rounds out the podium as the final man on the lead lap - and with Whitehead in 4th place Mercedes take an incredible, and also rather unlikely, 1-2-3-4 here in Buenos Aires!

Pollet claims an INCREDIBLE 5th place for Gordini, which will break Maserati hearts as they have lost out by a matter of metres today. Villoresi's hopes died with Volonterio crossing the finishing line, as he was within 2 corners of unlapping himself and claiming the points position.

Moss will take 6th in a race that Maserati proved their pace, if not their reliability or ability to put together a championship challenge! Villoresi's 7th was a good result in the end, but it could have been so much more. De Graffenried must be content with 8th in a Lancia car that doesn't yet look the finished article, whilst Manzon's 9th place is a decent finish for him after a steady race.

Salvadori will be looking at what might have been, as he finishes the race in 10th place which is more than he could have hoped for when the race began! Helfrich misses out on the top 10 for Cooper in 11th, with Brandon 12th for Klenk, Collins 13th for Lancia and Pilette rounding out the finishers in 14th place for HWM.

Schell's 15th was the last of the rain retirements, which also claimed Hawthorn, the valiant Parnell and Maglioli. Berger of course retired with the fuel issue, whilst Flockhart rounded out the top 20. Gould's 21st position is made all the better by the amount of strong contenders he finishes ahead of, including Farina, Marimon, Lang and Herrmann for Maserati - with Taruffi sandwiched in between after an awful race for Ferrari!

Macklin's 27th for Connaught ahead of those who dropped out on the 1st lap (a long time ago!), which were Mantovani, home favourite Gonzalez, Ascari and Behra.