Silverstone Circuit is a motor racing circuit in England, near the Northamptonshire villages of Towcester, Silverstone and Whittlebury. It is the home of the British Grand Prix, which it first hosted as the 1948 British Grand Prix. The 1950 British Grand Prix at Silverstone was the first race in the newly created World Championship of Drivers. The race rotated between Silverstone, Aintree and Brands Hatch from 1955 to 1986, but settled permanently at the Silverstone track in 1987. The circuit also hosts the British round of the MotoGP series.
The 1950 British Grand Prix, formally known as The Royal Automobile Club Grand Prix d'Europe Incorporating The British Grand Prix, was a Formula One motor race held on 13 May 1950 at the Silverstone Circuit in Silverstone, England. It was the first World Championship Formula One race, as well as the fifth British Grand Prix, and the third to be held at Silverstone after motor racing resumed after World War II. It was the first race of seven in the 1950 World Championship of Drivers.
Luigi Villoresi was an Italian Grand Prix motor racing driver who continued racing on the Formula One circuit at the time of its inception.
Frederick Roberts Gerard was a racing driver and businessman from England. He participated in numerous top-level motor racing events on either side of World War II, including eight World Championship Formula One Grands Prix, scoring no championship points.
David Alan Hampshire was a British racing driver from England. He was born in Mickleover, Derbyshire and died in Newton Solney, in South Derbyshire.
JBW Cars was a British racing car manufacturer in the late 1950s, who were a Formula One constructor from 1959 to 1961.
Leslie George Johnson was a British racing driver who competed in rallies, hill climbs, sports car races and Grand Prix races.
English Racing Automobiles (ERA) was a British racing car manufacturer active from 1933 to 1954.
Reginald Parnell was a racing driver and team manager from Derby, England. He participated in seven Formula One World Championship Grands Prix, achieving one podium, and scoring a total of nine championship points.
Peter Douglas Conyers Walker was an English racing driver. He was born in Huby, Yorkshire and died in Newtown, Worcestershire. He proved a strong driver in most disciplines, but was most adept in sports cars, winning the 1951 24 Hours of Le Mans race, and the Goodwood Nine-Hours in 1955. He effectively retired after a crash in 1956 left him with serious injuries.
The Maserati 4CL and its derived sister model the Maserati 4CLT are single-seat open-wheel Grand Prix racing cars that were designed and built by Maserati. The 4CL was introduced at the beginning of the 1939 season, as a rival to the Alfa Romeo 158 and various ERA models in the voiturette class of international Grand Prix motor racing. Although racing ceased during World War II, the 4CL was one of the front running models at the resumption of racing in the late 1940s. Experiments with two-stage supercharging and tubular chassis construction eventually led to the introduction of the revised 4CLT model in 1948. The 4CLT was steadily upgraded and updated over the following two years, resulting in the ultimate 4CLT/50 model, introduced for the inaugural year of the Formula One World Championship in 1950. In the immediate post-war period, and the first two years of the Formula One category, the 4CLT was the car of choice for many privateer entrants, leading to numerous examples being involved in most races during this period.
The 1950 British Empire Trophy was a non-Championship Formula One motor race held on 15 June 1950 at the Douglas Circuit, in Douglas, Isle of Man. It was the ninth race of the 1950 Formula One season.
The 1947 French Grand Prix was a Grand Prix motor race held at Lyon-Parilly on 21 September 1947 and was won by Louis Chiron driving a Talbot-Lago. The race was marred by an accident involving Pierre Levegh crashing into and killing 2 spectators.
Henry Leslie Brooke, was a British racing driver from England. He competed in various classes of racing, including non-championship Formula One, the Le Mans 24-hour race and the Monte Carlo Rally, in the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s.
The 3rd London Trophy was a motor race, run to Formula One rules, held on 30 July 1955 at Crystal Palace Circuit, London. The race was run over two heats of 10 laps and a final of 15 laps, and was won by British driver Mike Hawthorn in a Maserati 250F. Hawthorn started from pole position in Heat 1 and set fastest lap in the heat, and also in the final. Vanwall driver Harry Schell started from pole position in Heat 2 and set fastest lap in that heat. Schell was second in the final and Roy Salvadori in a Maserati 250F was third.
The 2nd Curtis Trophy was a motor race, run to Formula One rules, held on 5 June 1954 at Snetterton Circuit, Norfolk. The race was run over 10 laps of the circuit, and was won by British driver Roy Salvadori in a Maserati 250F, who also set fastest lap. Bill Whitehouse in a Connaught Type A-Lea Francis and Jimmy Somervail in a Cooper T20-Bristol were second and third.
The JBW-Maserati, also known as the JBW Type 1, is a race car, designed, developed, and built by British manufacturer and constructor, JBW, in 1958. It raced in both open-wheel and closed-wheel guises. It competed in both Formula Libre events, as well as 4 Formula One World Championship Grand Prix races, between 1959 and 1961; debuting at the 1959 British Grand Prix, but unfortunately scored no points over that period of time. It was initially powered by a naturally-aspirated 2.5 L (150 cu in) Maserati 4-cylinder engine four-cylinder engine, which droves the rear wheels through a 5-speed manual transmission. It unfortunately scored no World Championship points during its time in Formula One racing.
The 11th British Empire Trophy was a Formula One motor race held on 26 May 1950 at the Douglas Circuit, in Douglas, Isle of Man. The 36-lap race was won by ERA driver Bob Gerard. John Horsfall finished second in another ERA, and Fred Ashmore was third in a Maserati.
The 2nd Jersey Road Race was a Formula One motor race held on 29 April 1948 at the St. Helier Circuit, in Saint Helier, Jersey. The 55-lap race was won by Bob Gerard in an ERA B-Type, setting fastest lap in the process. George Abecassis finished second in a Maserati 6CM, and Reg Parnell was third in a Maserati 4CL. B. Bira started from pole position in another Maserati 4CL but finished fourth following a succession of pit stops for tyres, oil and fuel.
The 10th British Empire Trophy was a Formula One motor race held on 25 May 1948 at the Douglas Circuit, in Douglas, Isle of Man. The 36-lap race was won by ERA driver Geoffrey Ansell. David Hampshire finished second in a Delage, and Leslie Brooke was third in an ERA. Bob Gerard started from pole position in his ERA but retired with brake problems. Reg Parnell (Maserati) and Leslie Johnson (ERA) set joint fastest lap.
Bob Gerard 