The 12 Hours of Casablanca was a sports car endurance race organised on the route of the future Ain-Diab Circuit in Morocco. Only two editions were held in 1952 and 1953, before the race was replaced by the Moroccan Grand Prix in Agadir for the 1954 season. [1]
The race was held on a road circuit, partially on the main road from Casablanca, that was initially 4.2 kilometers long in 1952. By 1953, the route was changed to 3.26 kilometers. The competition was intended for sports racing cars and for passenger cars as well. The starting grid was of a 'Le Mans start'-type. [2] [1]
In December 1952, the first edition of the 12 Hours of Casablanca race was held. [3] 24 entrants had started the race, but only 14 of them finished and were classified. [4] [1] [5]
Pos. | No. | Drivers | Car | Laps |
---|---|---|---|---|
1st | 22 | ![]() ![]() | Talbot-Lago T26GS | 264 |
2nd | 25 | ![]() ![]() | Ferrari 225 S berlinetta [6] | 263 |
3rd | 16 | ![]() ![]() | Delahaye 135S | 250 |
The second edition of the endurance race was held in 1953. This time 17 cars finished the race. Casimiro de Oliveira and Alberto Ascari had crashed during practice in their Ferrari 375 MM and had to change teams and cars. [7] Luckily for Ascari, he joined Luigi Villoresi in the Ferrari 500 Mondial and arrived second at the finish line in the actual race. [8] The 500 Mondial that won its class, was based on a Ferrari 625 TF berlinetta chassis that was destroyed in a fire, rebodied by Scaglietti and equipped with a 2.0-litre engine. [9] Charles Pozzi, who won the first edition with his Talbot-Lago T26GS, failed to arrive for the race. [10] [1] [11]
Pos. | Pos. | Class | No. | Drivers | Car |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1st | 1st | S+2.0 | 2 | ![]() ![]() | Ferrari 375 MM spyder [12] |
2nd | 1st | S2.0 | 20 | ![]() ![]() | Ferrari 500 Mondial spyder |
3rd | 2nd | S+2.0 | 6 | ![]() ![]() | Talbot-Lago T26GS |
4th | 3rd | S+2.0 | 8 | ![]() ![]() | Aston Martin DB3 coupé |
5th | 4th | S+2.0 | 7 | ![]() ![]() | Aston Martin DB3 |
6th | 2nd | S2.0 | 25 | ![]() ![]() | Osca MT4 1100 coupé |
Class | No. | Drivers | Car | DNF reason |
---|---|---|---|---|
S+2.0 | 3 | ![]() ![]() | Ferrari 250 MM | Transmission |
S+2.0 | 5 | ![]() ![]() | Talbot-Lago T26GS | Out of fuel |
S+2.0 | 9 | ![]() ![]() | Gordini T15S | Holed fuel tank |
S+2.0 | 10 | ![]() ![]() | Jaguar C-Type | Fuel feed |
Between 1954 and 1956, no motor racing was organized on this dangerous road circuit and the racing was moved to the Agadir area. Ain-Diab was more suited for the bicycle races. In 1957, the race route was refitted and increased to 7.618 kilometers thanks to the Royal Automobile Club of Morocco. The new track was named Ain-Diab Circuit and hosted the first official Moroccan Grand Prix in 1957. [13]
The Moroccan Grand Prix was a Grand Prix first organised in 1925 in Casablanca, Morocco with the official denomination of "Casablanca Grand Prix".
The Ferrari Lampredi engine was a naturally aspirated all aluminum 60° V12 engine produced between 1950 and 1959. Inline-4 and Inline-6 variants for racing were derived from it.
Carrozzeria Scaglietti was an Italian automobile design and coachbuilding company active in the 1950s. It was founded by Sergio Scaglietti in 1951 as an automobile repair concern, but was located across the road from Ferrari in Maranello outside Modena, Italy.
The Ferrari 166 S was a sports racing car built by Ferrari between 1948 and 1953, an evolution of its Colombo V12-powered 125 S racer. It was adapted into a sports car for the street in the form of the 166 Inter.
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The Ain-Diab Circuit was a Formula One road circuit built in 1957, southwest of Ain-Diab in Morocco, using the existing coast road and the main road from Casablanca to Azemmour that ran through the Sidi Abderhaman forest. Prior to 1957, the Anfa Circuit and the Agadir circuit were used for the Moroccan Grand Prix.
After finding only modest success with the supercharged 125 F1 car in Formula One, Ferrari decided to switch for 1950 to the naturally aspirated 4.5-litre formula for the series. Calling in Aurelio Lampredi to replace Gioacchino Colombo as technical director, Enzo Ferrari directed that the company work in stages to grow and develop an entirely new large-displacement V12 engine for racing.
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The Ferrari 225 S was a sports racing car produced by Ferrari in 1952. It was an evolution over the preceding Ferrari 212 Export with important engine upgrades that greatly improved power output. The model was extensively used in competition, winning many international races. The most important include 1952 Monaco Grand Prix for sports cars, Portuguese Grand Prix, Coppa d'Oro di Sicilia, Coppa della Toscana, Coppa d'Oro delle Dolomiti and many others. It was the final Colombo V12 engine iteration before the 250-family stretched it to 3.0-litres capacity.
The Ferrari Monza is one of a series of cars built by Ferrari. In the early 1950s, Ferrari shifted from using the compact Gioacchino Colombo-designed V12 engine in its smallest class of sports racers to a line of four-cylinder engines designed by Aurelio Lampredi. Inspired by the success of the light and reliable 2.5 L 553 F1 car, the four-cylinder sports racers competed successfully through the late 1950s, culminating with the famed 500 Mondial and 750 Monza.
The Ferrari 212 Export was a sports racing car produced by Ferrari in 1951–1952. The 212 Exports won Tour de France automobile, Giro di Sicilia, Coppa della Toscana, 10 Hours of Messina and other motor races throughout its career. It was meant to be a sports car available for oversea markets.
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The Ferrari 275 S was a sports racing car produced by Ferrari in 1950. It was the first Ferrari powered by a new Aurelio Lampredi-designed V12 engine, created as a large displacement alternative to the initial 1,5 L Colombo V12, used in supercharged form in Ferrari 125 F1. Formula One regulations allowed for up to 4.5 L in naturally aspirated form.
The Ferrari 250 MM was a sports racing car produced by Ferrari in 1953. After the initial racing successes of the 3.0-litre Colombo V12 engine, introduced in the 250 S one-off, Ferrari produced a serial racing model. It is best recognisable for the distinctive closed berlinetta bodywork by Pinin Farina. The "MM" in its name stood for the Mille Miglia race.
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