1948 Swiss Grand Prix

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1948 Swiss Grand Prix
Circuit Bremgarten.svg
Race details
Date4 July 1948
Official name Grand Prix d'Europe
Location Bern
Course Circuit Bremgarten
Course length 7.262 km (4.512 miles)
Distance 40 laps, 290.48 km (180.50 miles)
Pole position
Driver Alfa Romeo
Time 2:54.2
Fastest lap
Driver Flag of France.svg Jean-Pierre Wimille Alfa Romeo
Time 2:51.0
Podium
First Alfa Romeo
Second Alfa Romeo
Third Maserati

The 1948 Swiss Grand Prix was a Grand Prix motor race held at Circuit Bremgarten, near Bern, on 4 July 1948. [1] [2] Despite racing for nearly two hours, at the finishing line Frenchman Jean-Pierre Wimille was only 0.2 seconds behind the race winner, the Italian driver Carlo Felice Trossi. [3] Trossi's compatriot Luigi Villoresi finished over two and a half minutes behind the pair, in third place.

This race proved to be one of the darkest post-WWII Grands Prix ever run. Pre-World War II star driver Achille Varzi was killed when he crashed during practice. [4] Five hours after Varzi's crash, reigning 500cc European motorcycle champion Omobono Tenni died after hitting a tree during practice for a support motorcycle race. [5] Wealthy Swiss privateer Christian Kautz died in an accident during the race. [6] Maurice Trintignant also had a serious accident during a support race in which he was ejected from his car and thrown in the air, landing in the middle of the race track. He was pronounced dead at the hospital, but he survived, woke up after a week-long coma, and returned to racing in 1949. [7]

Classification

Pos.No.DriverCarLapsTime/RetiredGrid
126 Flag of Italy.svg Carlo Felice Trossi Alfa Romeo 158 401:59:17.34
230 Flag of France.svg Jean-Pierre Wimille Alfa Romeo 158 40+ 0.2 s1
334 Flag of Italy.svg Luigi Villoresi Maserati 4CLT/48 40+ 2:37.33
456 Flag of Italy.svg Consalvo Sanesi Alfa Romeo 158 39+ 1 lap6
532 Flag of Italy.svg Alberto Ascari Maserati 4CLT/48 39+ 1 lap5
64 Flag of Monaco.svg Louis Chiron Talbot-Lago T26 38+ 2 laps8
78 Flag of France.svg Charles Pozzi Talbot-Lago T26SS 37+ 3 laps10
854 Flag of France.svg Yves Giraud-Cabantous Talbot-Lago T150C 36+ 4 laps20
942 Flag of France.svg Igor Troubetzkoy Ferrari 166SC 35+ 5 laps18
Ret40 Flag of Italy.svg Clemente Biondetti Ferrari 166C 31Overheating15
Ret46 Flag of Italy.svg Luigi Fagioli Maserati 4CL 28Engine17
Ret38 Flag of Italy.svg Giuseppe Farina Maserati 4CLT 28Engine2
Ret24 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Raymond Mays ERA B-Type 23Drive shaft9
Ret52 Flag of Thailand.svg B. Bira Maserati 4CL 10Gearbox16
Ret18 Flag of France.svg Louis Rosier Talbot-Lago T26C 10Oil leak14
Ret48 Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg Emmanuel de Graffenried Maserati 4CL 10Collision13
Ret36 Flag of Italy.svg Gianfranco Comotti Talbot-Lago T26C 7Oil leak19
Ret10 Flag of France.svg Raymond Sommer Gordini T15 5Engine7
Ret20 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg George Abecassis Alta GP 4Accident12
Ret50 Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg Christian Kautz Maserati 4CL 2Fatal accident11
DNQ44 Flag of Argentina.svg Clemar Bucci Maserati 4CL
DNQ22 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg Bob Gerard ERA B-Type
DNS28 Flag of Italy.svg Achille Varzi Alfa Romeo 158 Fatal accident

References

  1. "1948 Grands Prix". GEL Motorsport Information. Retrieved 2010-08-02.
  2. "04-07-1948 • Grosser Preis der Schweiz • Bern". F1-Images.de. Retrieved 2010-08-02.(German)
  3. "VIII Grand Prix de Suisse • STATS F1".
  4. "Motorsport Memorial -". www.motorsportmemorial.org. Retrieved 2023-12-16.
  5. "Motorsport Memorial -". www.motorsportmemorial.org. Retrieved 2023-12-16.
  6. "Motorsport Memorial -". www.motorsportmemorial.org. Retrieved 2023-12-16.
  7. "Motorsport Memorial -". www.motorsportmemorial.org. Retrieved 2023-12-16.
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