There were several highlights on this busy and varied day in Formula 1 over the years starting with Ferrari driver Maurice Trintignant came from ninth on the grid to beat Eugenio Castellotti’s Lancia and Jean Behra’s Maserati in a dramatic 1955 Monaco Grand Prix.
It was a disastrous race for Mercedes as both Juan Manuel Fangio and Stirling Moss retired while leading dominantly, leaving Alberto Ascari ahead, but he crashed his Lancia into the harbour…
Wolfgang von Trips dominated a remarkable 1961 Dutch Grand Prix from Ferrari 156 teammate Phil Hill and Jim Clark’s Lotus 25 Climax. Not only was it one of only nine grands prix where every car finished, but not one car visited the pits through the race…
It was a somewhat different scenario when Jackie Stewart’s BRM P261 won his second Grand Prix at Monaco in 1966 from Lorenzo Bandini’s Ferrari 312, Stewart’s BRM teammate Graham Hill and BRM privateer Bob Bondurant. They were the only four drivers to finish F1’s debut race with its doubled-up new 3-litre engines…
Eleven years on from the arrival of those engine rules that spawned the 3-litre DFV, Jody Scheckter’s Wolf scored the Cosworth V8’s 100th Grand Prix victory when he held off Ferrari teammates Niki and Carlos Reutemann at Monaco 1977. Alain Prost’s Renault won the Belgian Grand Prix on its 1983 return to the shortened Spa Francorchamps from Patrick Tambay‘s Ferrari and Renault teammate Eddie Cheever.
A dominant Kimi Räikkönen gambled to stay out on old tyres and pit later to win the 2005 Monaco Grand Prix for McLaren Mercedes from BMW Williams duo Nick Heidfeld and Mark Webber, while Sebastian Vettel won the 2011 Spanish Grand Prix from McLaren Mercedes duo Jenson Button and Lewis Hamilton.
Going all the way back to 1899, Emilio Laporte won the 80 km Bologna road race aboard an Orio & Marchand, while Eugenio Silvani’s Bugatti-Diatto won the 1921 Circuito del Garda. Manfred von Brauchitsch won the 1932 Berlin Avusrennen in a Mercedes-Benz SSKL, the same day Marcel Lehoux and his Bugatti T54 won the GP de Casablanca in Morocco.
Luigi Fagioli drove a Mercedes-Benz W25 to a flag to flag 1935 Monaco Grand Prix win and Juan Manuel Fangio won the 1949 Marseille Grand Prix in a Simca-Gordini. in Non- championship F1, Froilan Gonzalez’ Ferrari 625 won the ’54 Bari Grand Prix, David Piper’s Lotus Climax Snetterton ‘60 and Roy Salvadori took the ‘61 Crystal Palace London Trophy in a Cooper T53 Climax, the same day that Tim Parnell’s Lotus Climax won at Mallory Park.
In sportscar racing, Dan Gurney and Stirling Moss’ Maserati Tipo 62 won at the Nurburgring 1960 and Mike Parkes and Ludovico Scarfiotti’s Ferrari 330P3 took ’66 Spa 1000 honours. Butch Leitzinger and James Weaver’s Lola AER won the 2005 ALMS Mid-Ohio and David Brabham, Marino Franchitti and Simon Pagenaud’s HPD ARX the 2010 ALMS Monterey
Off the track, Kris Meeke won World Rally Portugal in a Citroen DS3, while over at Indianapolis, Janet Guthrie became the first woman to qualify for the 500 in 1977.
