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#86 1960 Monaco Grand Prix

2021-10-14 00:00

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#1960, Fulvio Conti, Translated by Carola Buzio, Martina Marastoni,

#86 1960 Monaco Grand Prix

The motor racing season is picking up steam. In one week, we will have two important races, more than 8.000 kilometres apart: the Grand Prix of Syracu

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The motor sports season is picking up the pace. In one week, there will be two important races, more than 8.000 kilometres apart: the Syracuse Grand Prix and the 12 Hours of Sebring on 26th and 27th March 1960. The Sicilian race is for Formula 2 cars, which use engines with a maximum displacement of 1500 cc, unlike the Formula 1 2500 engine. But this year the junior formula is particularly interesting in view of the changes in Formula 1, which from 1st January 1961 will reduce the displacement to one and a half liters. Now, in most cases, the current Formula 2 engines will be the basis of those of the future grand prixs, and therefore increase the interest that almost all the manufacturers show for the 1500 engine. The Syracuse Grand Prix, the first major Italian event of the season, has therefore attracted top-class entries. Jack Brabham will be driving the light car from Surbiton, just like Maurice Trlntignant, Harry Schell, Ron Flockhart, Olivier Gendebien and Belgian journalist-driver Paul Frère. On the other hand, Stirling Moss made some changes - but only for Formula 2 races - and signed a contract with Porsche. Therefore Moss, supported by Masten Gregory, will race with the German car, that among the 1500 engine cars shared the highest number of wins along with Cooper in the last season. The British colors will be defended by Innes Ireland, Alan Stacey and Mike Taylor driving Lotus. Against this coalition, there will be only one Ferrari driven by German Wolfgang von Trips. The company of Modena so far has shown little interest in Formula 2 racing, for this reason it has built only one car, powered by a very powerful 6-cylinder engine. However, during the winter, this vehicle was improved with a series of modifications that should allow it to face its British and German rivals. Finally, two new cars made in Italy with Alfa Romeo Giulietta engines increased to 1600 cubic centimeters arouse a certain curiosity, which should be the prototypes of the Formula Senior that has been advocated by many as a bridge between the Junior and the real Grand Prix. It should be noted, in this regard, that during the meeting held on Wednesday 16th March 1960, the Italian Automobile Sports Commission, at the moment, decided to postpone the examination of the technical regulations that should control exactly this aspect. However, a few mechanics have already started them up, and we will see a couple of them in Syracuse, driven by Branca and Pirocehl. 

 

The Sicilian track is semi-permanent; it’s 5500 meters long, fast and well protected. It’s on this circuit that on Saturday 19th March 1960 Trips, in a Ferrari, wins the 10th Syracuse Grand Prix for Formula 2 cars, covering the 306 kilometers in one hour and thirty-five minutes, at an average speed of 162.471 km/h. Ferrari achieved a resounding success with the only car they brought to the race. At the start, given at 3.30 p.m. by the Regional Governor, there are fifteen cars. Moss, with his Porsche, takes the lead since the very first lap followed by Trips and Ireland. Moss leads the race and on the 22nd lap sets the record in 1'58"8 at an average speed of 166.66 km/h. However, Trips, by forcing the pace, overtakes Moss at the stands during the 27th lap, and shortly after the British driver stopped at the pits and retired. Between Saturday 26th and Sunday 27th March 1960, the 12 Hours race, the second round of the International Sportscar Championship, was held in Sebring, Florida. It could have been a great race, centered on the confrontation between the Ferrari 3000 and the new Maserati 2900; instead, the Company from Maranello - followed by Porsche - renounced quit it, at the risk of compromising their chances of regaining the title, for a matter of principle from which they don’t intend to give up. And for a good reason. The organizers of the American race thought it appropriate - as a partial exception from international regulations - to impose the same brand of fuel, which sponsors the event, for all competitors. Now Ferrari is contractually linked to another fuel company and asked, at the very last moment, to make the fuel supplied anonymous (as for the 24 Hours of Le Mans, in accordance with the aforementioned international regulations). Enzo Ferrari received extensive assurances from the Sebring organizers, documented in the exchange of letters that Ferrari himself has made public. It’s a difficult situation, inevitable if you like - given the major economic and advertising interests - but the International Automobile Federation has shown a worrying lack of authority. The same position has been taken by the German manufacturer Porsche and the result is the technical, entertainment and sporting impoverishment of a race.

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On the other hand, there will be the 2890cc Maserati, which in the 1000 kilometers of Buenos Aires race and more recently in the successful Cuban Grand Prix, made such a favorable impression that it is considered the only car able to fight on equal terms with the recently ‘tested Ferrari. Furthermore, in Sebring and probably later on, the Maserati will be driven by Stirling Moss, paired with ex-Marine Dan Gurney. With the official team from Maranello being absent, the favorite driver will be found soon. However, a few Ferraris will be racing (grand touring cars will also participate): three have been entered by Luigi Chinetti, the American representative of the company from Modena, and will be driven by Chuck Daigh, Richie Ginter, Ed Hugus, Augie Pabst, Ricardo and Pedro Rodríguez. Other eight Ferraris will be driven by private racers, one of them (the 3-liter gran turismo) will be driven by the Turin-based duo of Carlo Mario Abate and Gianni Balzarini. The young Abate, Italian champion in the Gran Turismo class, had already attempted the adventure in a world championship race in January in Buenos Aires, together with another driver, Miro Toselli, from Turin. But with little luck. Now he's trying again with Balzarinl, his partner in the last successful Mille Miglia. About two-thirds of the Sebring track correspond to the runways of an air base and one-third is made of normal roads. As it’s known, last December the determining round of the Drivers’ World Championship was held here. Belgian Olivier Gendebien and German Hans Hermann, in Porsche, win the 12 Hours of Sebring. At the start the British champion Stirling Moss, taking turns driving the Maserati with the American Dan Gurney, immediately took the lead. Half an hour after the start, Jim Hughes, driving a Lotus Elite, went off track and was thrown out of the car, dying instantly. The car continued running out of control and while going back on track it crashed into a photographer, Thompson, seriously injuring him. The poor man died while he was being taken to the hospital. Jim Hughes, 29 years old, was a car dealer: he leaves his wife and his three children behind. He started racing in 1953, winning many races. The second victim was George Thompson; he worked for the Tribune newspaper in Tampa. He was 31 years old. This sad accident occurred less than 30 minutes after the start of the race, on one of the tightest turns on the difficult track. 

 

The testimonies of the people who witnessed the accident are conflicting, since they were located at a certain distance due to safety measures luckily taken by the authorities. Spectators were prevented from occupying seats close to the runway. It’s thanks to these safety measures that Hughes’ tragedy didn’t have frightening consequences. A first version states that the photographer, who was killed, moved about a meter from the edge of the track to film some competitors passing by. By doing so, he found himself in the trajectory of Hughes' Lotus, who was overtaking or at least gave the impression that the car would run him over: the driver swerved, attempting to brake. The car spun around and overturned, running over the photographer. According to this hypothesis, the photographer was responsible for the accident. A second version, which according to a more detailed investigation seems to be the most reliable, traces the cause of the accident to an involuntary swerve made by Hughes. The turn where the fatal disaster occurred is U-shaped and the drivers take it wide, tightening up after tackling it and swerving. According to this hypothesis, the Lotus driver tackled the final part of the turn with an excessive speed. The predicted skidding was thus accentuated and ended tragically with the car overturning and accident involving the photographer found on the edge of the track. However, the ongoing investigation will verify the causes of the accident. Meanwhile, Stirling Moss leads and increases his gap, while behind him the Porsche driven by Bonnier is in fourth position. The Maserati driven by Hangsen-Crawford punctured, swerved and went into the sand which surrounds the track. The two drivers, unharmed, tried to push the car on the track for an hour, but they had to quit. Shortly after, the American Jack Fith, winner of the 1953 race, couldn’t control his Corvette any longer at the Webster turn and went off track, overturning and sustaining minor injuries. The driver was taken to the hospital by ambulance. Fredd Spross' Austin Healey overturned as well and a few girls and the driver were slightly injured. The Ferrari of Daigh-Ginther, after being in second place for seven hours, was forced to retire. Then it's the turn of the Porsche of Bonnier-Graham Hill. Gendebien gains the second position: his gap from Stirling Moss is equal to thirty miles, but with four hours to go Moss is also forced to retire due to mechanical problems, so that Gendebien - for the second time in a row - won the Sebring race.

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As mentioned earlier, the Formula 2 cars of today will be the Formula 1 cars of 1961, the year in which the regulation of the cars for the Drivers’ World Championship will be changed. This is why the races of the current season reserved for 1500 engines are becoming increasingly important, especially for the manufacturers, who can gather valuable information for their future technical plans. The first big Formula 1 race of 1960 took place three weeks earlier in Syracuse, with the Ferrari-Cooper-Porsche-Lotus confrontation, which resolved in favor of the Italian car excellently driven by Wolfgang von Trips, the only driver to represent Scuderia Ferrari. There should have been a rematch in Brussels, but Ferrari decided not to participate, for the moment paying for the flattering result obtained by their redesigned cars. Thus, in Brussels, the British and German cars will be competing against each other, perhaps it’s unnecessary to add that Ferrari's absence is a serious blow to the appeal of the race. There are 22 cars, but only 18 of them will be admitted to the start: therefore, the official practice will count also as qualifying. Driving Porsche will be Stirling Moss, Bonnier, Gregory and the Belgian Goethals; in the Cooper, the World Champion Jack Brabham, Olivier Gendebien, Frère, Bianchi, Bristow, Schlesser, Lewis, Campbell, Marsh, Schell, Balisat, Seidel, Flockhart and Maurice Trintlgnant, the latter driving a Cooper with Maserati engine, owned by Scuderia Centro Sud. Then, driving Lotus, Innes Ireland, Stacey, Piper and Clark (a promising youngster from the tireless British Academy, who seems to have been hired by Aston Martin for Formula 1 races). Finally, the Argentine Alessandro De Tomaso will drive an Osca, with a Cooper chassis modified by the Bolognese company. The circuit in Brussels is a new track that partially uses the motorway to Antwerp. It’s 4552 meters long and alternates between a fast sector and a lively one. The Grand Prix will be run in two races of 35 laps each, equal to 159.320 kilometers. The starting grid will be based on the sum of the times. Average speeds of around 160 km/h are expected. Perhaps the real reason why Ferrari has given up on the Belgian Grand Prix is that on Saturday morning there will be a series of preliminary tests on the circuit in Le Mans for the 24 Hours race, which will not be held until 25th- 26th June 1960, but for which the organizers are planning these impromptu training sessions to facilitate the preparation of both the constructors and the drivers, and - in a strictly technical way - to contribute to the safety measures taken after the tragedy occurred in 1955. 

 

Therefore, on Saturday 9th April 1960, Ferrari tests on the Circuit de la Sarthe a new version of the 250 GT, more powerful and lighter than the previous car, and perhaps also the three-liter sports car. Among the drivers summoned by Ferrari for these training sessions are Trips - the most comfortable with Formula 2 cars - and Seidel. Seidel will also race in Brussels. Seidel's program is quite intense: first, he will take part in the Belgian race tests and immediately after he will leave - with a private plane - for Le Mans to train on Saturday morning with Ferrari. Finally, again in Brussels for the last Grand Prix practice. It doesn't seem the right way to be in the best shape. But for drivers, such tours de force seem to be part of the dangerous job they’ve chosen. On Sunday 10th April 1960, the World Champion Jack Brabham wins the Brussels Grand Prix driving a Cooper. The fight between Brabham and Moss (driving a Porsche) is exciting and ends with the success of the Australian driver. The drivers that took part to the race, as said before, were limited to eighteen but after twenty laps only twelve remained in the race; David Pipe retired his Lotus, Jo Schlesser, Lucien Bianchi, Seidel retired their Cooper, Clark and Stacey both in Lotus. The fight seemed to be narrowed down to Moss and Bonnier, but the latter was forced to retire on lap 29 as well. Then Brabham entered the scene and by pushing hard he managed to get closer to the British driver without ever overtaking him. The second part of the race was disturbed by a persistent and boring rain that didn't allow the drivers to push hard. In the last laps Brabham increased his pace and managed to cross the finishing line with a considerable advantage, while Moss, perhaps discouraged, was also overtaken by Trintignant. Jack Brabham's victory in Brussels reopened the debate about the advantages and disadvantages of the rear engine among car engineers. In Brussels, the confrontation was between Cooper, Porsche and Lotus, but Brabham’s and Stirling Moss’ cars, placed respectively first and second in the Belgian Grand Prix, are divided by two opposite techniques regarding the placement of the engine: one - which could be defined as traditional - followed the frontal propulsion scheme; the other considered it more convenient to place the drive unit in the rear of the car (this is the same antithesis that can be seen in the production of small touring cars, where manufacturers are oriented in the two opposite directions). Ferrari, Aston Martin and Vanwall belong to the first group; Cooper, Porsche (Formula 2), Lotus and B.R.M. belong to the second.

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The latter two converted to the new technical direction only this year; indeed, the rear-engine B.R.M. haven’t made their appearance in racing yet. The advantages of the rear-engine solution essentially lie in its greater lightness (because the drive shaft is removed and because the chassis itself - being subjected to less torsional stress - requires a less complex tubular structure compared to traditional cars), and in the possibility of achieving a better aerodynamics. In addition, the removal of the drive shaft favors mechanical efficiency with less dispersion of power through friction. This explains, at least in part, why the Coopers, with a considerably less powerful engine than Ferrari, were able to obtain a better performance last year and also defend themselves well on fast tracks. On the other hand, cars with a front engine and transmission to the rear wheels make it possible to distribute masses more easily and thus improve the grip. But this is a problem that has been overcome, even by manufacturers who favor the more modern and technical approach. However, the rear-engine in racing cars isn’t an innovation. The first car of this type raced in a Grand Prix already in 1925: the Benz designed by the late Ferdinand Porsche, the famous German technician who, less than a decade later, designed the famous Auto Union - a racing car which has been driven by Rosemeyer, Varzi and Nuvolari, and obtained countless victories between 1934 and 1939. Porsche was also the creator of Volkswagen, the first car with a rear engine; today, the factory named after him builds touring and sports cars based exclusively on the scheme of which Porsche is considered as the forerunner. The interesting technical comparison between the two technologies will probably include a new element.  For the next Formula 1 (which will come into force on 1st January 1961 and which imposes a maximum displacement of 1500 cc and a minimum weight of 500 kilos), Ferrari will in fact be planning to use both options, taking part in the very fast Grand Prixs (Reims, Monza, etc.) with a traditional car, and in the fast ones (Monte-Carlo, Zandvoort, Nurburgring) with a brand new rear-engine car, which is currently being designed in Maranello. Undoubtedly of great technical and financial commitment, it would solve totally the uncertainty over the superiority of one type or the other under all conditions. On Monday 18th April 1960, the Pau Grand Prix - the traditional race held on Easter Monday - suffered from the competition brought by the Goodwood meeting, scheduled over four races. 

 

The consequence is that the few available axes are divided between the French and the British event: these are the downsides of such a busy calendar that creates unwanted overlaps. In the end, it was Goodwood (55.000 spectators, confirming the ever-increasing passion of British people for motor sports) to offer the most interesting technical results in the two central races: Formula 1 and Formula 2. In both races Innes Ireland left his mark in the new rear- engine Lotus, a car that proved to be simply astonishing (and Ireland himself seemed to be on the right path to become a great British driver). Moss was beaten driving both Cooper (Formula 1) and Porsche (Formula 2). It wasn’t for nothing that the British champion decided to take part in the World Championship trials in a Lotus, which the Walker Racing Team- for whom Moss raced - rushed to order from Lotus and the designer Colin Chapman, a great chassis specialist. The importance of the chassis in racing cars is documented by the fact that both Lotus and Cooper use the same Coventry-Climax engine of 2500 cc on Formula 1 car and 1500 cc on those of Formula 2. As evidence, at Goodwood, Ireland achieved a new record average of 161.550 km/h, five kilometers faster than Hawthorn (Ferrari) and Moss (Cooper) in 1958. Therefore, we have to take note of the fact that this year Lotus will be among the great leaders of the World Championship, which will start again on the last Sunday of May in Monte Carlo, in which, besides Ferrari, Cooper, Lotus and B.R.M.s, Vanwalls and, maybe, Scarab will participate. In the British race, the new B.R.M. cars with rear-engine have also shown very good potential, while Vanwall's appearance has been insignificant, driven by Tony Brooks who went back to racing - as expected. But Anthony Vandervell was preparing the modified ’58 model, not the final one. The World Champion Jack Brabham won in Pau, after a long fight with the determined Trintignant. Both drivers, as most competitors, were driving Cooper-Climax. The Australian might be less brilliant than other drivers but, race after race, he proved to be an intelligent, prepared, and positive driver. And in the meantime, he’s collecting success and experience. It won't be easy to take the world title away from him. Ferrari, faithful to the program that the owner of the company from Modena explained at the traditional end-of-year meeting with the journalists, doesn’t participate in Pau nor in Goodwood. 

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Reduced activity across the board, said Enzo Ferrari on that occasion, with the only goal of trying to win again the Formula 1 and the Sports World Championships. In short, in Maranello they are focused on working, waiting for the most important months, which are approaching. However, this inactivity has some hidden dangers: the rival can use the precious experience of this period of preparation. Lotus, for example, in a few races overcame the delicate phase of setting up their new car; B.R.M. are doing the same thing. Just like athletes, the cars need gradual preparation, and above all through direct comparisons with the opponents. Formula 2 races are now almost on a par with Formula 1 races, which can be replaced very well without damaging the interest and the show. It’s obvious that this was possible thanks to the fact that many manufacturers own cars for both formulas and that the drivers are the same, and satisfy the audience, which is sensitive only to the attraction of important names. While waiting for the imminent restart of the World Championship, motor sports now offer interesting races every Sunday, with a growing number of participants and spectators. The crisis which has hit the world of motor racing since 1955 seems to be over, thanks to the reorganization of programs and directions issued at national and international level, and to the fresh energy and renewed enthusiasm of the world of motor sports. So it should come as no surprise that the list of participants of the 44th edition of the Targa Florio, which will take place on Sunday 8th May 1960, is growing day by day. While the organizers are waiting for the official Ferrari and Porsche teams to sign up, the news of the participation of Umberto Maglioli, the strong driver from Biella, two times winner of the Sicilian race, driving a Maserati 2900, a car that aims straight at winning the title, is very welcome. Among the latest entries, there are Carlo Mario Abate from Turin in a Cooper-Maserati 2000 (paired with Colin Davis) and Gino Munaron-De Leonibus in the new Alfa- Conrero 1150 sport (coming from the Giulietta). We hoped to see Munaron, who had started brilliantly the 1960 season, driving a Ferrari for Scuderia Castellotti, for which he’s competing this year; but it seems that the only car of the team from Lodi at the Targa Florio would be assigned to the duo Cabianca-Scarfiotti. The Targa Florio, founded in 1906 thanks to the sponsorship of Vincenzo Florio, is the oldest race in the world to still run today. 

 

With the exception of two suspensions due to the world wars, the Sicilian race has been held regularly every year, and it continued also on the day its founder passed away, linked to the most beautiful events of motor sport and to the names of famous drivers. On Sunday there will be the 44th race, and even if it no longer has the resonance it had in the past, it’s still a respectable race, so much so that for some years it has been valid for the World Sport Championship. The Targa Florio, this year, takes place over ten laps, for a total of 720 kilometers. Both touring and sports cars take part in the race. The overall winner belongs to the second category and the predictions must be reduced to the Ferrari (3 liters or 2400 cubic centimeters) of the pairs Trips- Ginther, Phil Hill-Allison, Cabianca-Scarfiotti and Frère-Mairesse;  the Porsche 1600 and 1700 of Gendebien-Herrmann, Bonnier-Graham Hill and Barth-De Beaufort; and the Maserati 2900 of Maglioli-Vaccarella. The starts will begin on Sunday 8th May 1960 at 8:00 a.m., with the Fiat Abarth 850 of Garufi-Tagliavia. There will be a 20 second gap between each car. The big cars will start last. Out of the 73 entries, only ten don’t show up. Bonnier, paired with Graham Hill driving a powerful official Porsche, sets the fastest time during practice on Saturday morning: 44'25"0 at an average speed of 94 km/h. This average doesn’t beat or isn’t even close to the record set by Stirling Moss in the 1958 Targa Florio. An average that doesn’t beat or isn’t close to Stirling Moss' record, set by the British champion in the 1958 Targa Florio: 42'17"5 on the lap, at an average speed of 102.147 km/h. However, we must remember that Moss' record was set during the race, under excellent environmental conditions and in the middle of an exciting fight. Bonnier's time - as the times set by Maglioli-Vaccarella, Gendebien-Hermann, Allison- Phil Hill, Cabianca-Trips - can be improved during the great race on Sunday. On Saturday, at the end of practice, all the drivers complained about finding gravel in some parts of the track, clearly due to recent renovations, forcing them to slow down due to the fear of skidding, certainly dangerous on such a difficult track as Madonie. Therefore, we hope that this inconvenience will be solved before the start. The Cerda circuit is hard enough and requires great efforts from both the drivers and the cars, and the organizers are doing their best to present it in the best possible conditions.

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During the test laps, the rookie drivers who are debuting in the Targa Florio, are in distress. For example, the American driver Ginther, who is teaming up with Trips driving the brand-new Ferrari 2400, which, according to Trips, has some new features that Ferrari wants to test at the Targa Florio. And if you think about the importance that Enzo Ferrari gives to this classic Sicilian race in terms of the World Championship, it's easy to see what a treasure this new creation must be. Now, it seems that the technical director of Ferrari, who came to Sicily with the team, doesn’t want to risk any unpleasant surprises and will team up with Trips (an expert of the Targa Florio; he has done it four times already) with some of his best drivers: the 720 kilometers race, with its thirteen thousand turns, would frighten anyone. Porsche - the other brand officially involved in this 44th Targa Florio and competing for the World Championship - won last year's edition of the Sicilian race with Barth Seidel, and on Sunday it will certainly try to win it again: their drivers are well prepared and the duos are very accurate. In fact, Gendebien-Hermann, Bonnier-Graham Hill, Barth-Beaufort, Von Hanstein- Antonio Pucci will be driving these silver cars from Stuttgart. With their extensive experience in road racing, these are the teams that will probably lead the race. Excluding Von Hanstein-Pucci, who will race in a Carrera, the other pairs from the Stuttgart-based company will drive 1600 cubic centimeter HSK sports car. In fact, it was Bonnier-Hermann in a Porsche who won the 44th edition of the Targa Florio, ahead of Trips-Hill in a Ferrari, Hermann-Gendebien in a Porsche and Scarfiotti-Cabianca in a Ferrari. Along the 720 kilometers of the difficult and winding Madonie circuit, the cars from Stuttgart had no opponents, except the surprising experimental Maserati of Maglioli-Vaccarella. The Italian car settled into second place, with a gap that ranged from three to four minutes in the first four laps. When Bonnier pulled into the pits to swap with Hermann, Maglioli attacked and moved into first place. Then he gave the lead to Vaccarella. The driver from Palermo works hard and in the next two laps increases his gap. But during the eighth lap, four minutes ahead of Porsche, a stone punctures the tank of the Maserati. The only incident (luckily without any serious consequences) occurred near Collesano. 

 

A competitor, the British Smith (on Osca 1100) goes off the road. The driver was taken to the emergency room and received treatment, with fractures on his left leg and arm. The car - which belongs to the Arena team - suffers serious damage. On Saturday 14th May 1960, in Silverstone there was an interesting race for Formula 1 cars, the classic BRDC International Trophy, with the participation of Cooper, Lotus, B.R.M., Aston Martin, Ferrari and Vanwall. Ferrari’s presence is particularly important which, for the first time since the long gone Argentine Grand Prix, is racing against the British cars. The race wasn't valid for the world title, but since this year the British Grand Prix - which was naturally included among the championship races - will be run on 16th July 1960 in Silverstone instead of Aintree, the race on Saturday will be a general rehearsal for the highest motor racing event and, maybe even more, for the imminent Monaco Grand Prix that will end this busy month. Ferrari participated with only two cars, assigned to Cliff Allison and Phil Hill. The Silverstone Circuit, fast but with eight strong turns, was rarely congenial to the Formula 1 cars from Modena, while the British ones, almost all of them calibrated on the abandoned track of Northamptonshire aerodrome, were very well suited to it. The following day, Sunday 15th May 1960, there is the Napoli Grand Prix for sports cars of 1600 and 2000 cubic centimeters and for Junior category cars, while in Monthery the Grand Prix de Paris will see Formula 2 cars (all Cooper and Lotus) engaged with Trintignant, Schell and Lewis, in a short fifty-kilometer test. While the drivers and the mechanics were preparing for these new tests, the Targa Florio was still the center of attention of motor racing enthusiasts with all the results and comments that followed it. Bonnier-Herrmann's victory didn't surprise much; the Ferraris had to settle for a regular race, as if they were waiting the Porsches' endurance to collapse. To be honest, things might have turned out differently if Trips hadn't gone off the road after a few kilometers, losing a lot of time. Unfortunately, the race in Silverstone compromised the morale of the audience following the very serious accident in which Harry Schell lost his life. The American driver lost control of his car at the Abbey corner during practice for the BRDC International Trophy, driving at around 160km/h, after slipping in the mud on the side of the track.

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His Cooper overturned and, after crashing against a safety barrier, demolished a brick wall. Before his death, Schell had been extremely vocal in promoting roll cages on European racing cars, a safety measure required in the United States. The flag in memory of the unlucky driver overshadows the interest in the race, where for the first time this year there is an almost complete confrontation between the Formula 1 cars prepared for the imminent resumption of the world championship testing, that is the Ferrari (with Phil Hill and Cliff Allison), the Cooper (with the defending champion, Brabham, McLaren, etc.), the surprising new rear-engine Lotus (Ireland and Stacey), the B.R.M. (Bonnier, Gurney and Graham Hill), the Aston Martins (Salvadori, Trintignant and Clark), a Vanwall with John Surtees, the Cooper-Maserati (Gregory and Burgete), and finally Stirling Moss, who after demolishing his Cooper on Thursday during practices, will probably start in his brand new Lotus. However, the British driver Innes Ireland, in a Lotus 18, will be the winner. On Sunday 22nd May 1960, the 1000-kilometer race will be held on the extremely difficult circuit of Nurburgring, the fourth round of the World Sportscar Championship, whose ranking currently sees Porsche in the lead with 20 points, followed by Ferrari with 18 points and Maserati with 3 points. These three teams are likely to be the stars of the day in the German race as well, even if the British threat represented by the Aston Martin of Roy Salvadori-Jim Clark should not be underestimated. This time the predictions favor the Italian cars, both the Ferrari (with the duos Phil Hill-Allison, Trips-Seidel, Ginther-Mairesse and Scarfiotti-Scarlatti, the latter two participating with Scuderia Castellotti) and the Maserati 2890 of the America Camoradi, driven by two crews to be chosen between Stirling Moss, Gurney, Gregory and Gino Munaron, who comes to crown his dream of competing in this race, driving a car with great potential. Moss made up his mind at the very last moment, as a few days before he had declared that he didn't want to race at the Nurburgring where he had already won twice. As for Porsche, all of them with an engine capacity between 1500 and 1100 cc, very fearsome for their handling qualities and endurance, they will be driven by the Bonnier (who set the best lap time on the first day of practice), Gendebien, Barth, Herrmann, Trintignant and Graham Hill, as usual. 

 

The Nürburgring 1000 km is therefore very interesting, and the outcome is uncertain. Stirling Moss, paired with the American Dan Gurney, in the Maserati 2800 will win the fourth round of the world championship. The race is very difficult: there is a thick fog, the intermittent rain reduces the visibility for most of the day and the dangerous track, which has countless ups and downs, is very difficult for the competitors to tackle. Nevertheless, more than 200.000 spectators attended the race. Stirling Moss - at his fourth victory in Adenau - proved to be unbeatable: the British drove for 300 kilometers, then momentarily changed with his teammate, before going back to the Maserati and progressively distancing the chasers. On the finishing line behind him there were the Porsche 1700 driven by Bonnier-Gendebien, the Ferrari driven by Hill-Trips and the Porsche driven by Hermann-Trintignant. In fifth place was the Italian Gino Munaron who, with the American Gregory, drove the second Maserati. We have to highlight the behavior of the driver from Turin who, after obtaining brilliant results in Argentina and in other races, with the fifth place in Nürburgring, is now facing international races. In the middle of the race the fog is so thick that the drivers are forced to turn on their headlights: the visibility is reduced to no more than 20 meters. The German Barth, Porsche’s third driver, at the end of the 25th lap makes a mistake at a turn and ends up in a ravine. Luckily the driver survived with minor bruises, while his car was completely destroyed. Shortly before, Scarlatti-Seidel's Ferrari had stopped in the pits to refuel. The car caught fire and two cans of gas exploded with a huge roar. Some spectators, fearing a disaster, fled, while the flames spread through the Ferrari pit lane, rising ten meters into the air. The firefighters, who immediately rushed to the scene, managed to extinguish the flames after seven minutes by throwing foam on them. Scarlatti, who suffered burns on several parts of his body, was rushed to the hospital, where doctors treated him. According to their report, the Italian driver could recover in a very short time, but he was advised to stay in the hospital for a few days.

 

"The moment I braked I was hit by a huge flame, probably caused by a gas leak. Without wasting time, I jumped on the ground, where some mechanics threw a blanket over me to extinguish the flames that had spread on my racing suit".

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Ferrari, who had entered four cars, lost three during the race, while Aston Martin, the other favorite brand, had to retire two of their three cars due to mechanical problems. Thanks to this result, Porsche gained 26 points, leaving Ferrari with 22 points. But, as provided by the sporting regulations, the difference in results will be crucial in deciding the fate of the sporting championship ranking. Being the first important event of the season held in Europe, the expectations for Monaco Grand Prix are high, which will be on the city circuit of Monte Carlo. B.R.M. brought three cars with rear engine to the Principality, driven by Bonnier, Gurney and Graham Hill; Cooper relied on Brabham and McLaren to drive the new cars, which had a considerable updating, among them a five-speed gearbox and a rear coil spring suspension. The Cooper team will also have a '59 car at their disposal. The other two 1959 Coopers were sold, one to CT Atkins, now driven by Salvadori, and the other to Fred Tuck, driven by Halford. While Lotus participated with three rear-engine 1960 cars, with Ireland, Stacey and Surtees, and a fourth car, driven by Moss for the Walker Racing Team, identical to the other three except for its color (blue instead of green) and the diameter of the rear wheel spokes, which was larger than before. Scuderia Eugenio Castellotti, a private Italian company, assigns a new car called Cooper-Castellotti to Scarlatti, with a Cooper rear combined with a four-cylinder Ferrari Squalo engine and a Collotti five-speed gearbox. Scuderia Ferrari brings their full team of drivers, with Allison, Phil Hill and Trips driving the 1960 cars, as in Argentina, with the Dino 246 engine moved to the right rather than on the left, the entire gearbox layout redesigned with the input now on the right side of the seat, the fuel tanks assembled sideways and an independent rear double wishbone suspension and coil springs. A fourth rear-engine Ferrari, new and tested only once, is also entered by Ginther. The front suspension is similar to the Dino 246 powered cars, but with softer coil springs, while on the V6 powered Dino 246 they are assembled behind the driver and attached directly to the new differential gearbox unit. Scuderia Centro Sud participates with three Cooper-Maserati, with Maserati four-cylinder engines combined with Cooper gearboxes, containing gears and a Centro Sud lubrication system. 

 

The drivers are Trintignant, Gregory and Burgess, the latter replaces Menditéguy, who was unable to leave Argentina. Finally, two Scarab, built and financed by Lance Reventlow and driven by himself and Daigh. These cars, artfully built and meticulously designed, with a car mold from Indianapolis, have simple rectangular frames with small- diameter tubes with a four-cylinder engine on the side with the crankshaft on the bottom left. There is a lot of interest in the entry list, with three models ready to debut: the rear-engine Ferrari, the Scarab and the Cooper-Castellotti; the new Cooper, the new Lotus, the Ferrari IRS and the new B.R.M. are ready for their European debut. Moss will drive the rear-engine Lotus for the first time. As for the other drivers, Gurney, Bristow, Naylor, Stacey, Surtees, Ginther, Burgess, Daigh and Revendow are ready for their first race on the spectacular and exciting street circuit of Monte Carlo, with its tunnels and ups and downs. Ferrari's hopes for the Monaco Grand Prix are slim. Ferrari's task to be ahead of the British cars seems tremendously difficult. Which aree the predictions? It should be an all-British race, but you have to give Ferrari at least some confidence. Monte Carlo has almost always been a surprising race: the important thing is to bring the cars to the finish line; the Italian team, which already lost the unlucky Allison, will have to stick to a waiting tactic: attacking the very strong British opponents doesn't seem possible. The race will be broadcasted in Europe at 2:30 p.m. The Grand Prix trials are organized for Thursday afternoon, in the early morning of Friday and Saturday afternoon, while the race will take place in the afternoon of Sunday 29th May 1960. As last year, the number of starters is limited to sixteen, but twenty-four entries were accepted. Therefore, the fastest practice laps will count not only for the position on the starting grid, as usual, but will also decide whether the drivers will take part in the race. Consequently, as soon as the track opens for practice a chaotic activity vegins, and during Thursday afternoon all the cars - except those from Scuderia Centro Sud and Scuderia Castellotti - try to qualify. The official record is held by Brabham (Cooper), with 1'40"4 set during the race held in 1959, while during the practice Moss (Cooper) set a time of 1'39"6. 

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Therefore, the maximum this year is at least 1'40"0. However, bearing in mind that since the last race in Monaco the Coventry-Climax engine had a new cylinder head design and another 20 horsepower, as well as an improved torque curve, and that Dunlop fitted every car with a new  tire which improved lap times by 2 seconds, and also remembering that Moss is now driving a Lotus against last year's Cooper, it is reasonable to assume that he will be at least 3 seconds slower than his best lap time he set last year. In addition, there are many other combinations of cars, drivers and technical progresses that seem to be able to go faster, such as Bonnier in the rear-engined B.R.M., Brabham in the 1960 Cooper, and Brooks in a fast Cooper for the first time in Monaco. Everyone is working hard in the early afternoon: the clocks are ticking and the speakers are talking. Everything seems to be going smoothly until Salvadori, in one of last year's Coopers, is praised for the time he set, which well under 1'40"0, then Brooks sets a time of 1'34"4. But when Moss sets a time of 1'32"3 the alarm goes off. Finally, it turned out that the official timekeeper's watch had a progressive error, starting at 3 seconds reaching almost 6 seconds as the afternoon goes on. The result is that the entire practice session is declared null and void, but some approximate times are published, to be considered purely as an indication. Obviously, drivers and mechanics return to their hotels desperate. Only a few people have a good reason to be happy, especially Bonnier, whose B.R.M. broke down as soon as the practice began; Stacey, whose Lotus had done the same, and Ginther, who failed to stand out in his rear-engined Ferrari because of a poorly set gearbox selection. None of them were therefore able to set a time worth of consideration. On the other hand, the technical improvements on the cars brought to Monte Carlo can be analyzed. The new rear-engined B.R.M.'s have poorly finished cockpits, as the drivers - during testing - will be forced to put pieces of rubber inside them to make them more comfortable. The B.R.M.'s use the rack-and-pinion steering system of 1959 cars, which had offset steering columns to bypass the front engines, so that the engine is no longer in the way, and the result leads to slanted steering wheels. But this doesn't seem to worry the drivers. 

 

Fuel is carried in two aero-type rubber tanks, one on each side of the cockpit, filled through an inverted Y-shaped tube from a nozzle just in front of the windscreen. Rubber belts with exposed internal teeth drive the two magnets, one on each side of the engine; these magnets are very small and light, like those used on the four-cylinder MV racing bikes. The new five-speed Cooper gearbox has a reverse gear, and the entire selection and locking mechanism is held in a large housing on the right-hand side. The gearbox has a one-gallon sump and the oil circulates through a pump at the back of the box. The main shaft is internal, and each pair of gears also receives a jet of oil from a cast gallery tube. With all the gears free from oil coming from the sump, the latter can be described as a dry-sump system, thus reducing resistance. The rear suspension has double wishbones with separate coil springs surrounding telescopic shock absorbers, while an anti-roll bar runs through an FND rear frame tube is paired to the wishbones by short arms and links. The Lotus owned by Walker is identical to the factory cars, except that the rear spoke rods have been increased in diameter as the original plan is to fit the car with a five-speed Collotti gearbox; this would have meant assembling the rear disc brake outboard on the hub carriers, where the arrangement already exists in the original design. However, it turned out that the Collotti gearbox was too high, and would have to be tilted by a few degrees. But time constraints didn’t allow this redesign to be made, so the Lotus five-speed gearbox was left in place. The four-cylinder Ferrari engine in the Cooper-Castellotti is so cramped that there is no room for the usual horizontal twin-body Weber carburetor; so a pair of twin-body intake carburetors are fitted, using a right-angle cast aluminum manifolds in the inlet ports. The rear-engined Ferrari, on the other hand, has a new gearbox asssembled behind the final drive. The shaft from the engine passes right through the box to a clutch on the open, cantilevered end of the gearbox; the transmission then returns to the box and to the sprocket and pinion. The clutch is operated by a hydraulic piston, exposed and assembled on the rear cross of the chassis, which presses on the center of the clutch in the open air, under the tail of the car. Therefore, the clutch housing has a toothed starter ring, and the gearbox casting has a housing on top to start the engine, while a bracket on a nearby chassis tube features a starter button, indicating that Ferrari was already looking at the regulations for 1961.

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On Saturday afternoon, after taking part in a Formula Junior race, the drivers returned to the track to decide which sixteen drivers would take part in the Monaco Grand Prix. But while some participants, such as Moss, Brabham, Bonnier, Brooks and Bristow, don't put much effort to set the best lap times, knowing their limits and sure of a place on the starting grid, the rest of the drivers are involved in a difficult battle. Moss didn’t improve his previous best time of 1'36"3, nor Brabham did with his 1'37"3 and Brooks and Bristow with their 1'37"7, but Bonnier equaled them in this last session. In the meantime, the Cooper-Castellotti - with its old four-cylinder Ferrari engine - finally arrived in Monte Carlo; it will be driven in practice by Scarlatti and Munaron. However, despite the arrival of the Castellotti team, the list of qualified drivers is reduced by two participants, as Allison and Burgess won’t officially take part in the race. In the last practice session Ginther proved to be very competitive driving his Ferrari with rear engine, while Gurney was unhappy with his B.R.M. with rear engine, the drivers of Scarab team improved their times, modifying springs and shock absorbers, and fitting Dunlop tires. But the times they set weren’t good enough to give them a chance to participate to the race. In the meantime, to encourage the British driver Alan Stacey to go faster, Jim Clark is allowed to get into Ireland's car, run a few laps, while he tests the Walker Lotus to see how it performs compared to the official cars. Two exceptional times were set by Salvadori and Halford, both driving 1959 Coopers among these new cars, as their times were 1'38"7 and 1'39"6 respectively. The two drivers will manage to stay among the top sixteen until the end of the afternoon. However, just before time ran out, Ireland and Trintignant managed to set a better time than the Cooper-Climax drivers. That's why the curiosity rises to see if among those who managed to qualify there will be someone capable of maintaining the same speed in the race or if the result obtained is the result of a lucky lap. As a matter of fact, apart from the first ones in the ranking, during practice it's easy to notice that Ginther, Gurney and Surtees could have run all day long keeping their respective speeds, while some doubt arises among the last ones qualified. 

 

In the afternoon of Sunday 29th May 1960, the sixteen fastest drivers during the qualifying session line up on the starting grid in front of the harbor, under a warm sun but certainly not a cloudless sky; unsurprisingly, as usual in Monaco, the weather forecast doesn’t lead to a regular sunny day. When the starter lowered the flag, the three cars on the first row advanced aggressively. Bonnier, who started from the second row, was made a superb start that allowed him to lead the race at the first hairpin turn, followed by fifteen cars that were pushing each other, among which the car driven by Graham Hill was stuck inside the turn, not allowing the British driver to have enough space to turn his front wheels. At the end of the first lap the B.R.M. driven by Bonnier was leading the race, preceding the Cooper driven by Brabham and the Lotus driven by Moss, in third position. On the second lap Trips was forced to stop along the circuit to put out a small fire, as the short exhaust pipes under the Ferrari's tail ignited due to an oil leakage dripping from the engine onto the sub-frame. This episode forced Trips to drop from the eighth to the fourteenth place, while Trintignant tried to recover after starting from the last place on the grid; the French driver was now in fifth place. In the meantime, Bonnier set the pace, with Brabham chasing him; on lap four the Australian tried to overtake his rival at the Hairpin but he didn't succeed, and on the other hand, on lap five he lost the second place to Stirling Moss. Being very close to Bonnier, Moss was momentarily happy to stay in second position. Meanwhile Brabham dropped back, allowing Brooks and Phil Hill to catch up. Ireland dropped behind Graham Hill and Bristow, and later on behind McLaren. Then there was a considerable gap between Surtees and Salvadori, who in his turn preceded Trips and Gurney, with Stacey and Ginther to close the group of the Grand Prix participants, as in the meantime Trintignant had to retire during the fourth lap with a broken gearbox. After ten laps Bonnier began to wish that Moss could take the lead and waved him off, but Moss stayed behind, saying with gestures:

 

"No, you've taken the lead, you can set the pace".

 

However, the two leading drivers will have to be careful, as behind them McLaren was battling with Bristow and the two were pushing each other, to the extent that they both quickly managed to catch up with Phil Hill and Brooks, who were pushing each other to go faster, and they got closer to Brabham. On lap sixteen the group from third to eighth began to threaten the two leaders and, although Bonnier continued to move and saying to Moss to go through, the Lotus driver continued to gesticulate saying:

 

"No, you go ahead".

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Bonnier is not too happy because the brake pedal of the B.R.M. has to be pumped before braking and he continues to be chased by Moss, who’s just a few centimeters away. On lap 17 the threat represented by the chasing group is becoming important, so Moss decides to overtake Bonnier's B.R.M., and in two laps he manages to create a five second gap. In the meantime, Bristow is forced to leave the group, as his gearbox breaks down. The British driver is forced to stop in the pits, leaving Bonnier, Brabham, Brooks, Phil Hill, Graham Hill and McLaren all within a few meters away from each other.  Surtees also stops in the pits, during the seventeenth lap, as he is unable to select correctly the gears on his Lotus: this is because the bolt head cut the crown, which slipped into the gearbox drive unit selector mechanism. By lap 25, Moss had managed to extend his lead to six seconds, and he continued the race by driving the Lotus gently, while behind him the battle for the second place continues. Bonnier is ahead of Brabham, while Brooks is trying to get closer to the Australian and Graham, Phil Hill and McLaren, continue to put pressure on the leaders. However, there was a huge gap between McLaren and Ireland, who went on with a car not running perfectly, and an even bigger one between the latter and the group made by Salvadori, Trips and Gurney, with Ginther in the rear-engined Ferrari to follow in the last position because Stacey retired during lap 23; during the first laps, the engine supports on his Lotus broke and the latter had leaned forward, blocking the accelerator in a partially open position. As a result, the British driver hit the kerb, ruining another expensive alloy wheel. The fight for the second place was so exciting that nobody noticed that in the meantime the sun had disappeared and threatening clouds had risen, until on lap 28 it started raining. Taking advantage of the wet track Brabham got ahead of Bonnier, while Brooks spun off at Sainte Devote, just before going up the hill towards the Casino, and Salvadori spun off and stalled at the Gazométre. In the meantime, Trips is pulling away from Gurney, and overtaking Ireland. Although Salvadori restarted, shortly afterwards he pitted and retired, because the engine of his Cooper had overheated. The whole track is now completely wet, therefore Moss slows down to what he considers a safe pace, but Brabham has a better rhythm and on lap 34 he takes the lead, while Bonnier also catches up with Moss but does not overtake him. It rains heavily and all competitors are forced to drive carefully. Phil Hill made a mistake at the Gazométre but kept the engine running, while Brabham continued to lead the race, followed by Moss, Bonnier, McLaren, Graham Hill and Phil Hill; farther away followed Trips, Brooks, then Ireland, Gurney and Ginther. On lap 38 the sun reappeared, but it continued to rain and the conditions remained very dangerous. 

 

On lap 41 Brabham discovered how risky the conditions could be, as his car lost grip at Sainte Devote and hit the wall, bending the Cooper's chassis. So, Moss is back in the lead and continues his race with great care. When the rain began to stop, Moss pulled away from Bonnier, and when he finally stopped on lap 46, the British driver's Lotus had a gap of fourteen seconds. In the meantime, Phil Hill tried to gain ground, after the mistake that condemned him to a difficult comeback, and managed to get closer to Graham Hill and McLaren, while Gurney returned to the pits and retired during the 44th lap, as a rear suspension strut and the hub-carrier broke. Halfway through the race, Moss was still ahead of Bonnier with a fourteen second gap, while McLaren followed at forty-six seconds and the two Hills at eighty-two seconds. Trips, who did a solitary race in sixth place, preceded the group made by Brooks, Ginther and Ireland, who were one lap behind the leader. The circuit continued to dry quickly, while the public's interest was focused on Phil Hill, who caught up and overtook McLaren, taking the third place thanks to a very delicate drive on the wet track. Ireland's failing engine eventually gave out completely on lap 56, as he was tackling the hill towards the Casino. The British driver began to push his car back to the pits. His mechanics discovered only after the car had returned to the pits that the cause of the retirement was simply due to the magnet ground wire rubbing on the tachometer drive. On lap 60 Moss's Lotus suddenly started running on three cylinders, therefore the British driver decided to stop, while Bonnier took the lead. The problem on the Lotus simply is a detached spark plug cable, so Moss is soon able to go back racing. For a few laps Trips also had some problems in changing gears; but during the 61st lap the clutch broke, reducing the participants of this Monaco Grand Prix to only seven cars. In the meantime, Moss was quietly catching up with Bonnier; the Swedish driver didn't know whether to try and stay ahead or succumb to the inevitable and wait for Moss to catch up with him. With thirty-five laps still to go, the mechanics of the Walker team communicated to Moss the distance from the first driver, but while they were doing so the number three slipped out of the scoreboard, therefore the British driver thought he had only five laps to reach and overtake Bonnier. Consequently Moss, still twelve seconds behind the leading driver, tried to push hard for two laps, until a new scoreboard communicated the real race distance. On lap 67 Moss was close to Bonnier's B.R.M., while McLaren regained the third place. However, the New Zealander, having reached the Gazométre, steered too soon and spun off. Realizing that he couldn’t correct the car's behavior, McLaren pushed the accelerator and the Cooper spun to the right. 

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Exactly at this moment Phil Hill's Ferrari passes on the outside and Graham Hill's B.R.M. prepares to pass on the inside.  Seeing McLaren still not completely in control of the situation, Graham Hill accelerates to take advantage of the situation, but he does it at the wrong moment and goes off track, colliding with the steps of a radio shack and breaking the front and the radiator of his B.R.M.; Hill stops covered in pieces of wood. With this retirement, the number of cars still in the race drops to six. And before the debris could be picked up from the ground, Moss retook the lead. Meanwhile, Ginther pits with a strange noise coming from the Ferrari's sprocket and pinion, bringing the number of cars still in the race to five. Provided that nothing broke, Moss couldn’t fail to win, nor Bonnier could lose the second place, but the fight for the third position was still open, because Phil Hill was third, but McLaren didn't give up and reduced the gap from his rival. A few more laps and Hill lets McLaren pass and conquers the third place. Nevertheless, the American driver didn't give up, preferring to follow the New Zealander waiting for the latter to make another mistake. During the seventy-eighth lap Bonnier stopped at the pit with a rear suspension split on the right, as it happened on Gurney's car. And so, apart from Moss, McLaren and Hill, the only other car left in the race was Brooks' in his Yeoman Credit Cooper. Moss managed the remaining laps very carefully. In the meantime, with a few laps to go Brabham suddenly stopped at the pits, after restarting the damaged Cooper, and tried to get back into the race, as there were only four competitors on the track. In the meantime Ireland, completely exhausted, arrived to the pits pushing his Lotus, while other drivers who had retired rushed to start their cars, imitating Brabham's behavior. Bonnier restarted slowly and Gurney started another lap with a rear wheel moving dangerously, while Ginther recovered the rear-engined Ferrari and pushed it towards the finish line. All this is great fun, but it shouldn’t have been allowed by the organizers because the fight between McLaren and Hill wasn’t over yet, and the Ferrari driver could have made a desperate attempt on the last lap to obtain the second place. At the end of the one hundred laps, Stirling Moss crossed the finishing line first, followed by McLaren and Phil Hill, while Brooks obtained an unexpected fourth place, one lap behind the leader. Bonnier, Brabham and Gurney drove their cars across the finish line, while Ireland and Ginther pushed their cars. However, neither Brabham nor Gurney will classify, since they didn’t complete at least fifty laps; their efforts are vain. Moreover, the Australian driver gets disqualified. With the victory in the Monaco Grand Prix, Stirling Moss moved up to the second place in the 1960 World Championship standings, behind the New Zealander McLaren. 

 

Certainly, there was no need for this umpteenth self-affirmation of the British champion to confirm the absolute superiority of a driver who has been waiting for years to be able to formally celebrate, with the greatest motor racing title, the clear class gap that divides him from all the other drivers in this very difficult sport. But Moss needed points for the world title and a car that could support his strength without betraying him. Perhaps, in Monaco, the British found these characteristics in the slim, light and fast Lotus, the new British Formula 1 car that with its ultra-modern features is now at the forefront of construction technology. The crowd sensed the drama, which had so far prevented Stirling Moss from winning the world championship and followed his performances everywhere with sympathy and warmth. In Monaco, where the audience surround the circuit like river banks, everybody cheered for Moss (perhaps also Prince Ranieri and Princess Grace, always very concentrated on every detail of the race), cheering him on with an enthusiastic applause, and when the driver stopped at the pits for a quick repair, a murmur of disappointment went through the stands. It seemed impossible that the strongest driver still had to be hit by bad luck. When the Briton restarted and chased Bonnier, and in half a dozen laps caught up with him, Moss seemed to be caried away by the enthusiasm of the audience. Together with the great British champion, other stars of this very interesting Monaco Grand Prix deserve to be mentioned. First of all, the Swede Joakim Bonnier, whose characteristic black goatee made him look very spontaneous in this rather huge environment of motor racing. Bonnier made Moss struggle a lot, by boldly leading the race at the beginning, then doing his utmost not to lose the gap from his great rival. At the end luck betrayed him, but there was a feeling that the Swede was among the strongest drivers of the moment. And Brabham, unfortunately betrayed by his audacity on this slippery track, Bruce McLaren, with his easy and reliable driving style (today the New Zealander is the leader of the world ranking, with six points lead over Moss); the generous Phil Hill, number one of Ferrari drivers; the returning Tony Brooks, very brilliant until a spin advised him to be more cautious. For Ferrari, beaten in Monaco and looking for a technical direction that would allow them to fight again on equal terms with the British constructors, the season looked anything but easy. But the new model with the rear engine is promising, and in any case on fast tracks such as Reims or Monza, even the current cars, which are very powerful, will be respected by the rivals. The Monaco Grand Prix was just an episode: there will be a revenge before the World Championship comes to an end.


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