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The1952 Formula One season was the sixth season ofFIAFormula One motor racing. It featured the 3rdWorld Championship of Drivers, which was contested over eight races between 18 May and 7 September 1952. The season also included several non-championship races and a separateEast German Championship.
TheFormula One championship rounds were run underFormula Two regulations out of fear for a small number of entrants.[1][2]
The World Drivers' Championship was won byAlberto Ascari driving forScuderia Ferrari.[3] TheItalian won six out of the seven races he entered.
NeitherBritish driver norBritish constructor won a championship round. This would not happen again until2023.[4]
The followingteams anddrivers competed in the 1952FIAWorld Championship of Drivers. The list does not include those that contested only theIndianapolis 500.
* Car entered only in the Indianapolis 500 race
For the second successive season, the championship's opening round was the Swiss Grand Prix, held at the Bremgarten Circuit in Bern. Ferrari's lead driver Ascari was absent due to his participation in the Indianapolis 500, so it was left to his teammates Nino Farina and Piero Taruffi to secure the first two places on the grid. Farina led from the start until he retired with magneto failure, leaving Taruffi to win his only championship Grand Prix and take the extra point for the fastest lap. Farina took over the car of his other teammate, Andre Simon, and was battling debutant Jean Behra for second place before both experienced mechanical trouble, Farina again unable to continue. It was, therefore, privateer Rudi Fischer who completed a Ferrari 1–2, with Jean Behra in third for Gordini. Ken Wharton finished fourth driving a Frazer-Nash, the manufacturer's only ever points finish.
As usual, the Indianapolis 500 had little bearing on the championship result, although regular Ferrari driver Alberto Ascari did compete, retiring after 40 laps. The race was dominated by Bill Vukovich, who led 150 laps before retiring. It was left to Troy Ruttman to win the race from Jim Rathmann and Sam Hanks.
Ascari returned to Ferrari for round 3 of the championship at Spa-Francorchamps, with Maserati still absent as they developed their A6GCM. The Ferrari cars dominated the weekend, with Ascari taking pole, the race win, and the fastest lap while leading every lap bar one. He was followed home by teammate Nino Farina, and Robert Manzon finished in third for Gordini. Jean Behra again impressed as he led the opening lap before falling behind the Ferrari juggernaut and eventually retiring after an incident with the third Ferrari of Piero Taruffi.
Scuderia Ferrari dominated once again at Rouen, taking all three podium places. Ascari led all the way from pole position to assume the championship lead and achieve his fourth career victory, drawing him level with his teammate Nino Farina who finished second. Piero Taruffi finished third after falling behind the Gordinis of Robert Manzon and Jean Behra at the start. Manzon was the highest Non-Ferrari finisher ahead of his teammate Maurice Trintignant, who drove an older model.
Although Ascari again dominated, it wasn't plain sailing for his teammates as Ferrari eventually dominated as they had done throughout the year. The Italian's third consecutive victory strengthened his eventually successful championship challenge as his main competitor, Nino Farina, failed to score despite taking pole position. The third Ferrari of Piero Taruffi dropped down to ninth at the start but eventually recovered to take second place, while a pitstop for new spark plugs meant Farina finished in the sixth position. It was a triumphant day for British cars and drivers, with Mike Hawthorn taking his first podium driving a Cooper-Bristol, while British cars and drivers occupied the other points-paying positions.
The belated arrival of the Maserati factory team failed to stop the dominance of Ferrari, with Ascari clinching his first World Title and equalling the injured Juan Manuel Fangio's win record. It was his fourth consecutive victory of the season, again leading every race lap from pole position. He briefly lost the race lead to Farina after pitting for oil, but this is not reflected in the lap charts as he caught and passed his teammate before they crossed the line at the end of the lap. Farina finished second, and privateer Ferrari driver Rudi Fischer finished third ahead of the works car of Taruffi to ensure a Ferrari 1-2-3-4. Jean Behra scored the final points for Gordini just ahead of another Ferrari car, this time driven by Roger Laurent.
Ascari started from pole position and led from start to finish, taking the fastest lap as well, winning his fifth consecutive Grand Prix and earning his second consecutive Grand Slam, and the third his season and career. In addition, with his victory, Ascari overtook Fangio as the winningest Formula One Driver, although the Argentinian would eventually reclaim the record at the1955 Argentine Grand Prix. Further down the order, Giuseppe Farina and Luigi Villoresi, also driving for Ferrari, completed the podium, resulting in an Italian 1-2-3 and a 1-2-3 for the Scuderia. As a result, Ascari extended his championship points total to 36, extending his lead to 12 points over second-placed Farina.
The 80-lap race was won by Ferrari driver Alberto Ascari after he started from pole position. José Froilán González finished second for the Maserati team and Ascari's teammate Luigi Villoresi came in third.
Points were awarded to the top five classified finishers, with an additional point awarded for setting the fastest lap, regardless of finishing position or even classification. Only the best four results counted towards the championship. Shared drives result in half points for each driver if they finished in a points-scoring position. If more than one driver set the same fastest lap time, the fastest lap point would be divided equally between the drivers. Points were awarded in the following system:
| Position | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | FL |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Race | 8 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| Source:[14] | ||||||
Other Formula One/Formula Two races, which did not count towards the World Championship of Drivers, were also held in 1952.
| Race name | Circuit | Date | Formula | Winning driver | Constructor | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 XIGrande Prêmio Cidade do Rio de Janeiro | Gávea | 20 January | Formula Libre[16] |  José Froilán González |  Ferrari | Report |
| IIGran Premio di Siracusa | Syracuse | 16 March | Formula Two[17] | Alberto Ascari | Ferrari | Report |
| VIGran Premio del Valentino | Valentino Park | 6 April | Formula One[17] | Luigi Villoresi | Ferrari | Report |
 IVRichmond Trophy | Goodwood | 14 April | Formula One[18] | José Froilán González | Ferrari | Report |
| IVLavant Cup | Goodwood | 14 April | Formula Two[19] | Mike Hawthorn | Cooper-Bristol | Report |
 XIIIPau Grand Prix | Pau | 14 April | Formula Two[17] | Alberto Ascari | Ferrari | Report |
| IIbsley Grand Prix | Ibsley | 19 April | Formula Two[20] | Mike Hawthorn | Cooper-Bristol | Report |
| XGrand Prix de Marseille | Marseille | 27 April | Formula Two[17] | Alberto Ascari | Ferrari | Report |
| IAston Martin Owners Club Formula 2 Race | Snetterton | 3 May | Formula Two[21] | Dickie Stoop | Frazer Nash-Bristol[21] | Report |
| IVBRDC International Trophy | Silverstone | 10 May | Formula Two[17] | Lance Macklin | HWM-Alta | Report |
 XIVEläintarhanajot | Eläintarharata | 11 May | Formula One[22] |  Roger Laurent | Talbot-Lago | Report |
| VGran Premio di Napoli | Posillipo | 11 May | Formula Two[17] | Giuseppe Farina | Ferrari | Report |
 XVIInternationales ADAC Eifelrennen | Nürburgring | 25 May | Formula Two[17] |  Rudi Fischer | Ferrari | Report |
| VIGrand Prix de Paris | Montlhéry | 25 May | Formula Two[17] | Piero Taruffi | Ferrari | Report |
| XIVGrand Prix de l'Albigeois | Albi (Les Planques) | 1 June | Formula One[17] | Louis Rosier | Ferrari | Report |
| XXIIGrand Prix des Frontières | Chimay | 1 June | Formula Two[17] | Paul Frère | HWM-Alta | Report |
| VIUlster Trophy | Dundrod | 7 June | Formula One[17] | Piero Taruffi | Ferrari | Report |
| VGran Premio dell'Autodromo di Monza | Monza | 8 June | Formula Two[17] | Giuseppe Farina | Ferrari | Report |
| IVAix les Bains Circuit du Lac | Aix-les-Bains | 8 June | Formula Two[17] | Jean Behra | Gordini | Report |
| IWest Essex CC Race | Boreham | 21 June | Formula Two[23] | Reg Parnell | Cooper-Bristol | Report |
| XVIGrand Prix de la Marne | Reims | 29 June | Formula Two[24] | Jean Behra | Gordini | Report |
| IIGrand Prix de Sables d'Olonne | Sables | 13 July | Formula Two[17] | Luigi Villoresi | Ferrari | Report |
| IGrand Prix de Caen | Caen | 27 July | Formula Two[25] | Maurice Trintignant | Gordini | Report |
| IIDaily Mail Trophy | Boreham | 2 August | Formula Two[17] | Luigi Villoresi | Ferrari | Report |
| XVIGrand Prix de Comminges | Comminges | 10 August | Formula Two[17] | André SimonAlberto Ascari | Ferrari | Report |
| INational Trophy | Turnberry | 23 August | Formula Two[26] | Mike Hawthorn | Connaught | Report |
| XIGrand Prix de la Baule | La Baule | 24 August | Formula Two[17] | Alberto Ascari | Ferrari | Report |
| IIIGran Premio di Modena | Modena | 14 September | Formula Two[17] | Luigi Villoresi | Ferrari | Report |
| IVCircuit de Cadours | Cadours | 14 September | Formula Two[17] | Louis Rosier | Ferrari | Report |
 IISkarpnäcksloppet | Skarpnäck | 14 September | Formula One[22] | Gunnar Carlsson |  Mercury | Report |
| VMadgwick Cup | Goodwood | 27 September | Formula Two[27] | Ken Downing | Connaught | Report |
| VIIIInternationales Avusrennen | AVUS | 28 September | Formula Two[17] | Rudi Fischer | Ferrari | Report |
| IJoe Fry Memorial Trophy | Castle Combe | 4 October | Formula Two[28] | Roy Salvadori | Ferrari | Report |
| INewcastle Journal Trophy | Charterhall | 11 October | Formula Two[29] | Dennis Poore | Connaught | Report |
| XIIGrande Prêmio Cidade do Rio de Janeiro | Gávea | 14 December | Formula Libre[16] | Henrique Casini | Ferrari | Report |
Note - a blue background denotes a round of the East German Championship.
| Race name | Circuit | Date | Winning driver | Constructor | Report |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IRostock Osthafenkurs | Rostock | 20 April | Paul Greifzu | BMW-Eigenbau | Report |
| IBernau Autobahnschleife | Bernau | 4 May | Rudolf Krause | BMW-Reif | Report |
| IDessau Autobahnspinne | Dessau | 11 May | Fritz Riess | Veritas-Meteor | Report |
| IIILeipzig Stadtparkrennen | Leipzig | 2 June | Edgar Barth | IFA-Kollektiv | Report |
| IIIStrassen-Rennen Halle-Saale-Schleife | Halle-Saale-Schleife | 8 June | Edgar Barth | IFA-Kollektiv | Report |
| IStrassen-rennen Leipzig | Leipzig | 17 August | Hans Stuck | AFM-BMW | Report |
| VDMV Grenzlandringrennen | Grenzlandring | 31 August | Toni Ulmen | Veritas | Report |
| IVSachsenringrennen | Sachsenring | 7 September | Edgar Barth | EMW-BMW | Report |
The table below shows the points awarded for each race. Only East German drivers were eligible for points.
| Place | Driver | Entrant | Car | ROS | LEI | HAL | SAC | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Edgar Barth | IFA Rennkollektiv | DAMW-BMW 328 | 3 | 6 | 6 | 6 | 21 |
| 2 | Ernst Klodwig | BSG Motor | Heck-BMW 328 | 2 | 4 | 4 | 10 | |
| 3 | Jürgen Perdus | IFA Renkollektiv | DAMW-BMW 328 | 4 | 3 | 7 | ||
| 4 | Paul Greifzu | BSG Motor | Reif-BMW 328 | 6 | 6 | |||
| 5 | Rudolf Krause | SV Wismut | Reif-BMW 328 | 4 | 4 | |||
| 6 | Heinz Melkus | ARO-Veritas-Alfa Romeo | 2 | 2 | ||||
| 8 | Werner Jäger | EMW 340-BMW 328 | 1 | 1 |
