The 1908 Grand Prix season was the third Grand Prix racing season. An international economic recession affected motor-racing with fewer races and smaller fields. However, in consequence, it also saw an increase in the number of smaller cars and voiturette racing. This gave close racing between the teams from Lion-Peugeot, Sizaire-Naudin and Delage. Both the major races in Europe, the Targa Florio and French Grand Prix, had precursor voiturette races, and along with the Coupe des Voiturettes, the honours were shared between those three manufacturers. This year’s Targa Florio had a small, but quality, field. Vincenzo Trucco won for Isotta-Fraschini with better mechanical reliability, after a close duel with the FIATs of Felice Nazzaro and Vincenzo Lancia.
At the end of 1907, at a meeting in Ostend, the AIACR (forerunner of the FIA) had set down new regulations for motor-racing. In barely 10 years, top speeds had dramatically increased fourfold. More power had usually come from bigger and bigger engines – now approaching 20 litres, on chassis getting dangerously light and flimsy. So, the AIACR derived an international racing formula based on a maximum cylinder bore: 155mm for 4-cylinder engines and 127mm for 6-cylinders. A minimum weight of 1100kg (not including tyres, tools and liquids) was also applied to enforce structural integrity. They also opened the voiturette class up to 4-cylinder engines to further encourage development of smaller cars.[7][8] For the voiturettes, the corresponding cylinder bore limitations were 65mm (4-cyl), 80mm (2-cyl) and 100mm (1-cyl) respectively.[9]
Season review
The Targa Florio opened the season with a small field of 9 entrants. In a close race across the rough Sicilian roads, the FIATs of Nazzaro and Lancia led initially, but when they had to stop at the pits it was Vincenzo Trucco close behind who took the lead. He held it to the finish to give Isotta-Fraschini its first major victory.[7][10]
The French Grand Prix was once again held on the 77km circuit on the northern French coast at Dieppe. Although this was only the third annual Grand Prix, the organising body, the ACF, numbered it the 11th French Grand Prix – by retroactively including the earlier inter-city races to add more faux-prestige.[11] The track was well-provided for. Teams had service places built in a divided trench, from whence, subsequently, came the term “pits”.[12] A big field of 48 cars arrived, of which half were French manufacturers. Challenging the established Renault, Richard-Brasier, Clément-Bayard and Mors were FIAT and Itala from Italy, and Benz, Mercedes and Opel from Germany. Otto Salzer, in his Mercedes, led the first lap. Then as he fell back with engine issues it was Nazzaro and Wagner (FIATs), Lautenschlager (Mercedes) and Hémery (Benz) who diced for the lead. The French cars dropped out with mechanical problems, as did the FIATs. Hémery was caught by a stone thrown up that smashed his goggles and put glass splinters in his eye. Despite the injury, he pressed on, closing in on the Mercedes. Even though Lautenschlager had to ease off to save his tyres he took the victory from Hémery, with René Hanriot third in another Benz. The partisan French crowd was left very disgruntled.[13][8][10]
The day before, a huge field of 64 mostly French cars had entered for the inaugural Grand Prix des Voiturettes. Albert Guyot had enough fuel in his Delage to run the near 6-hour race without stopping. So when the leading pair of Sizaire-Naudins had to pit he could carry on to a comfortable 16-minute victory. Naudin was second followed by the Lion-Peugeots of Jules Goux and Georges Boillot.[7][14] Later in the year, at the Coupe des Voiturettes run at Compiègne, the Sizaire-Naudins had bigger fuel-tanks so now they could also run non-stop. Naudin won ahead of his co-owner Sizaire, with Goux coming third.[14][9]
A major meeting was held in on a high speed circuit in Bologna consisting of two races over two days, around two months after the French Grand Prix. The first was the Coppa Florio over 10 laps, and was this year held for Grand Prix cars, with every car having appeared at the Grand Prix. Notable was the absence of the German entries. Ferdinando Minoia lead the first lap in a Lorraine-Dietrich but then ran into trouble on the second, giving the lead to Vincenzo Lancia in a FIAT, but he would lose time around the halfway mark, eventually finishing fifth, with fellow FIAT driver Nazzaro taking the lead and holding it to the end. On the following day was the Targa Bologna over 8 laps, for Targa Florio cars. It attracted mostly Italian drivers. Nino Franchini (in a Bianchi) lead the first few two laps but retired on his third, with second placed Enrico Maggioni (in a Zust) heavily delayed on his third lap, giving the lead to Jean Porporato in his Berliet who drove steadily to win. Both races had high attrition and many drivers experienced delays, mostly due to tyre trouble on the high speed circuit.[4]
In the United States, there had been a schism between the Automobile Association of America (AAA) and the Automobile Club of America (ACA). The former ran the Vanderbilt Cup races, but these had been plagued by poor crowd control, and the 1907 race had been cancelled accordingly. It was reinstated in 1908 to the AAA’s own rules. This upset the European teams, who boycotted the race, and so the ACA took the opportunity to launch their own race: the American Grand Prize run to the AIACR regulations and held on Thanksgiving Day, a month after the Vanderbilt Cup.[7]
American Grand Prize trophy
The race was held on a 25-mile course outside of Savannah, Georgia. The roads were in good condition and on race-day were lined with armed police and soldiers to maintain crowd control. The twenty entrants included the best European drivers. FIAT had Nazzaro and Wagner, with a third car for Italian-American Ralph DePalma. Hémery and Hanriot were sent by Benz, as was Ferenc Szisz (Renault), Arthur Duray (Lorraine-Dietrich) and Alessandro Cagno (Itala). DePalma thrilled the local crowd by taking the initial lead. The French and American cars lost ground leaving it to be a contest between FIAT and Benz. Hémery crossed the line first but it was Wagner who won by a minute on corrected time.[13][15]
After the American Grand Prize, Henry Ford (on the ACA committee) declared that American manufacturers could not compete with European cars unless they also started building specialist racing cars. However, he could not do so himself, as he had just started tooling up for mass-production of the Model T.[13]
Although French cars dominated voiturette racing, they did not win a single race in the larger grade this year. With the economic downturn and seeing the writing on the wall, Renault had decided to quit motor-racing. At the end of the year, a dozen other French and German manufacturers followed, in a letter pledging to abstain from motor-racing for the next three years because of the rising costs. It was enforced with a FF100,000 (equivalent to approximately €433,000 in 2022[16]) bond on each, forfeited for those that broke the agreement.[17] So, at the start of 1909, with only nine entrants the ACF was forced to cancel the Grand Prix.[13][15][18]
Other events
Following its sponsorship of the great race from Peking to Paris in 1907, this year French newspaper Le Matin organised an even longer one from New York to Paris – travelling across the United States to Alaska before getting a boat to Japan, and Vladivostok. Six cars started in Times Square on February 12. After much controversy, the American team in a Thomas Flyer was declared the winner.[19]
↑ TT Pioneers – Early Car Racing in the Isle of Man pp.103–104 Robert Kelly, Mercury Asset Management (1996) (1st Edition) The Manx Experience, The Alden Press ISBN No 1 873120 61 3
The 1906 Grand Prix de l'Automobile Club de France, commonly known as the 1906 French Grand Prix, was a motor race held on 26 and 27 June 1906, on closed public roads outside the city of Le Mans. The Grand Prix was organised by the Automobile Club de France (ACF) at the prompting of the French automobile industry as an alternative to the Gordon Bennett races, which limited each competing country's number of entries regardless of the size of its industry. France had the largest automobile industry in Europe at the time, and in an attempt to better reflect this the Grand Prix had no limit to the number of entries by any particular country. The ACF chose a 103.18-kilometre (64.11 mi) circuit, composed primarily of dust roads sealed with tar, which would be lapped six times on both days by each competitor, a combined race distance of 1,238.16 kilometres (769.36 mi). Lasting for more than 12 hours overall, the race was won by Ferenc Szisz driving for the Renault team. FIAT driver Felice Nazzaro finished second, and Albert Clément was third in a Clément-Bayard.
The 1931 Grand Prix season was a watershed year, with the advent of the AIACR European Championship. After several years of Grand Prix racing in the doldrums with little technical development, 1931 saw new models come from all three main manufacturers: Bugatti, Maserati and Alfa Romeo.
The 1906 Grand Prix season is regarded as the first Grand Prix racing season. It marked the advent of two iconic races: The French Grand Prix and the Targa Florio.
The 1925 Grand Prix season was a watershed year in motor racing. It was the first year for the new AIACR World Manufacturers' Championship season. The championship was won by Alfa Romeo, with its P2 model.
The 1927 Grand Prix season was the third AIACR World Manufacturers' Championship season and the second run to a 1.5-litre engine limit. In a dominant display, the championship was won by Delage, with team driver Robert Benoist winning four of the five Grand Prix.
The 1907 Grand Prix season was the second Grand Prix racing season. It saw a blossoming of circuit events, with the shift from the inter-city races. The popularity of the inaugural French Grand Prix and Targa Florio saw those events held again. The new Kaiserpreis was the first major motor-race held in Germany. This year also saw a number of voiturette races as the number of specialist small-engine cars grew which gave close, exciting racing very popular with spectators.
The 1910 Grand Prix season was the fifth Grand Prix racing season. Because of the ongoing international economic recession, there were no Grandes Épreuves held. The American Grand Prize was held in Savannah.
The 1911 Grand Prix season consisted of Grand Prix races in the United States and Europe. It was a significant year as European racing gradually came out of the doldrums. A Grand Prix was held in France again. The first Indianapolis 500 was held at Indianapolis Motor Speedway, joining the American Grand Prize as a leading race.
The 1912 Grand Prix season saw Grand Prix motor racing in Europe and the United States. The growing economic confidence and interest from car manufacturers saw bigger fields and more races in the season. The French Grand Prix was held for the first time since 1908 and staged at Dieppe. The American Grand Prize was held in Milwaukee, moving from its previous home in Savannah.
The 1913 Grand Prix season consisted of Grand Prix races in Europe and the United States. Once again, the Peugeot works cars were the team to beat, continuing their success. This year the French Grand Prix was held in Amiens. The ACF introduced a fuel-economy formula for the race to discourage bigger-engined cars. Peugeot drivers Georges Boillot and Jules Goux claimed a 1-2 victory for the company after Zuccarelli had been killed in practice.
The 1914 Grand Prix season consisted of Grand Prix races across Europe and the United States until abbreviated by the outbreak of World War I.
The 1921 Grand Prix season saw motor racing in Europe blossom again. The French Grand Prix was held for the first time since 1914, at La Sarthe, Le Mans. and the inaugural Italian Grand Prix was held in Montichiari, near Brescia. The 3-litre formula of the AIACR, already in use at Indianapolis, was adopted by those Grand Prix meaning manufacturers could design on a common formula.
The 1922 Grand Prix season had several notable events during the year. The AIACR governing body brought in a 2-litre formula for Grand Prix. French companies brought out straight-8 engines for their cars but it was FIAT's 6-cylinder engine that took the trophies. Veteran Felice Nazzaro won the French Grand Prix, held near Strasbourg. It was a tainted victory though, as Nazzaro's nephew was killed when his FIAT's suspension broke in the latter stages of the race. An almost identical accident also happened to team-mate Pietro Bordino, though he was only slightly injured. Pierre de Vizcaya's Bugatti finished second, nearly an hour behind.
The 1923 Grand Prix season was part of a watershed year for motor racing that saw significant advances in motor-racing engineering, design and events. Fiat's chief designer, Guido Fornaca, developed the 805, the first supercharged car to win a Grand Prix. Benz appeared with the first mid-engined racer and, along with Bugatti and Voisin, produced some of the first efforts at aerodynamics on racing cars. With the United States also adopting the 2-litre formula, Harry Miller could use the smaller engine size to design the first single-seater race-car, ideally suited to American oval racing.
The 1924 Grand Prix season saw Grand Prix motor racing spread further across Europe and North America. In Italy a number of new open-road events were held. In France two new circuits were opened – at Montlhéry near Paris and Miramas near Marseille.
The 1929 Grand Prix season was another interim year, where most races were run to Formula Libre rules due to a lack of regulations from the AIACR that would be popular for race organisers and manufacturers. This blurred the line between racing cars and sports cars with both competing in the same races. Bugatti won the major international races, with their drivers Louis Chiron and "W Williams". The Italian Championship proved very competitive, attracting many top drivers. There it was Alfa Romeo, using their 4-year old P2 model that claimed more victories, than their main competition coming from Bugatti and Maserati.
The 1919 Grand Prix season was the first season following the armistice that ended World War I in November 1918. European economies were struggling, and many automotive firms had to recover and retool from military production. So, there was very little racing activity as it took time for the companies and populations to recover. As the world rebuilt there were only two major races held in the year – the Indianapolis 500 and the Targa Florio.
The 1920 Grand Prix season saw further activity in motor-racing gradually increase. Europe was still recovering from the end of the war and the terrible pandemic that swept the continent. Automotive companies were gradually re-establishing themselves after re-tooling from a wartime footing and getting production lines rolling again.
The 1909 Grand Prix season was the fourth Grand Prix racing season. There were no Grandes Épreuves that year, as the economic recession of the previous year continued on. Renault had withdrawn from motor-racing and a number of French manufacturers, falling behind the success of their German and Italian rivals, followed suit. The French Grand Prix was cancelled, leaving the Targa Florio in Italy and Vanderbilt Cup in the United States as the only major races this season. With so little competition and financial incentive, technological advances ground to a halt. Emphasis shifted from racing to setting speed and endurance records. Benz & Cie built a new 12.4-litre racing-engine, and its 200 bhp derivative was put into the Blitzen Benz. This 21.5-litre monster held the Land speed record from 1909 to 1922, with various drivers starting with Victor Hémery in November, 1909 at Brooklands.
References
Cimarosti, Adriano (1997) The Complete History of Grand Prix Motor Racing London: Aurum Press Ltd ISBN1-85410-500-0
Georgano, Nick (1971) The Encyclopaedia of Motor Sport London: Ebury Press Ltd ISBN0-7181-0955-4
Higham, Peter (1995) The Guinness Guide to International Motor Racing London: Guinness Publishing ISBN0-85112-642-1
Hough, Richard (1957) Tourist Trophy - The History of Britain's Greatest Motor Race London: Hutchinson & Co Ltd
Legate, Trevor (2006) 100 years of Grand Prix Kent: Touchstone Books Ltd ISBN0-9551-0201-4
Ludwigsen, Karl (2008) Racing Colours - Italian Racing Red Surrey: Ian Allan Publishing Ltd ISBN0-7110-3331-5
Ludwigsen, Karl (2009) Racing Colours - German Racing Silver Surrey: Ian Allan Publishing Ltd ISBN0-7110-3368-4
Monkhouse, George (1953) Grand Prix Racing Facts and Figures London: G.T. Foulis & Co Ltd
Rendall, Ivan (1991) The Power and The Glory – A Century of Motor Racing London: BBC Books ISBN0-563-36093-3
Rendall, Ivan (1993) The Chequered Flag – 100 years of Motor Racing London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson Ltd ISBN0-297-83220-4
Sheldon, Paul (1987) A Record of Grand Prix and Voiturette Racing Volume 1 Shipley, West Yorkshire: St Leonard's Press ISBN0951243306
Venables, David (2009) Racing Colours - French Racing Blue Surrey: Ian Allan Publishing Ltd ISBN978-0-7110-3369-6
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
