The French Grand Prix is on!

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In hot sunshine one of the world’s great motor races commences. At the fast circuit set in the rolling plain near Reims, the French champagne city, the starter has just let fall the flag and in a frenzy Schell’s B.R.M. snakes away in the lead, pursued by a trio comprising the ultimate winner. Hawthorn (Ferrari), Musso (Ferrari) and Brooks (Vanwall). Behind, Fangio’s Maserati has a slight lead over Trintignant (B.R.M.) and Moss (Vanwall), Brabham, who finished sixth in the 2.2-litre Cooper, can be seen pushing through half on the grass on the left of the road, while the man with his arms raised to the sky is von Trips, indicating that he has stalled his Ferrari—he thereafter drove splendidly, to finish third behind Hawthorn and Moss. Once you have seen the start of a Continental Grand Prix such as this, a lot of the motor-racing run elsewhere becomes comparatively tame!

TRYING HARD.–The normally immaculate Stirling Moss had to work so hard to hold Collins’ Ferrari that the Vanwall was frequently in a vicious slide. Particularly on the notorious Becketts (above) and Stowe corners.

IN THE LEAD.–Mike Hawthorn, by taking place and recording fastest lap in the British Grand Prix, now leads Stirling Moss by a margin of seven points in the World Drivers’ Championship.

CLOSE QUARTERS.–Harry Schell (B.R.M.) and Tony Brooks (Vanwall), who finished fifth and seventh respectively, keep company around Becketts corner during the early stages of the British Grand Prix.

LAST-LAP CHANGE.–A feature of the Grand Prix was the long battle between Roy Salvadori’s Cooper and Stewart Lewis-Evans’ Vanwall closed on the Cooper’s tail but Salvadori held on to cross the line first.

UNFAMILIAR ROLE.–The non-appearance of the Aston Martin works team enabled Stirling Moss to drive a works Lister-Jaguar and win the 75-lap sports-car race which opened the Silverstone programme.

SPECTATOR ATTRACTION.–Walter Hansgen, sports-car champion of America, drove John Coombs’ 3.4 Jaguar with incredible verve in the production-car race and scored an easy victory after Sopwith’s similar car shed a wheel.

JOURNEY NEARLY OVER.–Wolfgang von Trips in the third works Ferrari shortly before his retirement on his sixteenth lap, through bearing failure and, to quote him after the race, “nearly everything else”.

THE BATTLE COMMENCES.–The start of the 10-lap Scratch Race at the July B.A.R.C. Members’ Meeting. The two protagonists for the lead in the MOTOR SPORT Brooklands’ Memorial Trophy Contest, No. 2, M. Taylor (Lotus-Climax) and No. 1, K. A. Greene (Lotus-Climax) accelerates away level.

PRE-WAR STYLING–is evident on M. Delopena’s 3 1/2 litre-sports Delahaye, seen competing at Goodwood on July 12th. The car only came to England within the last five years.

LAP OF HONOUR.–This great field of Aston Martons appeared at the St. John Horsfall meeting at Silverstone on July 12th. Almost every model of pre-war Aston was represented , while, at the extreme rear, are some DB2s which are carrying on the great tradition of these fine cars.

STARTER’S ORDER.–The line-up before the start of the MOTOR SPORT race at the Aston Martin O.C. race meeting at Silverstone on July 12th, shows Mason’s Bentley on the extreme left and next to it McKensie’s Bentley. The ultimate winner of the heat was M. Ward in Aston Martin No. 125 in the background.

MOSS TAKES A CORNER FROM FANGIO.–The breath-taking French Grand Prix at Reims featured some intense duels, such as this one between the World Champion and would be world champion.

EXCELLENT RECOVERY–from a bad start was made at Reims by von Trips, seen here, whose Ferrari moved up from last to third place in a matter of 40 laps, and stayed in that position.

VICTORY WELL-DESERVED– A characteristic “shot” of Hawthorn on this way to an unchallenged victory at very high speed in the French Grand Prix. By breaking the lap record on this 45th circuit Mike brought his World Championship points level with those of Stirling Moss.

A FAST CORNER–on the famous road circuit at Reims with Behra’s B.R.M. being chased by Moss’ Vanwall during the tremendous battle in which these two British cars were engaged.

LOW DRAG.–Two of Collin Chapman’s latest Lotus-racing cars were finished just in time to run at Reims, one as a Formula II car. Here Graham Hill is seen in the 2.2-litre version which started in the Grand Prix. Note the low-drag body and general resemblance to the Vanwall.

FIRST TIME IN ACTION SINCE 1951.–The 1953 W163 Grand Prix Mercedes-Benz in the hands of Peter Collins, makes sounds and smells to thrill the big crowd at Oulton Park.

TOUGH STUFF.–A highlight of the V.S.C.C. Oulton Park meeting was the manner in which Peter Hull and Bill Moss handled their pre-war F.R.A. cars. Here Hull just leads Moss through the Casendes during the Seaman Trophies Race. These two indulged in a tough duel until Hull paused to replenish his sprint tank.

NEW AT REIMS.–The Formula II, centre-seat Porsche, Driven by Behra and a fine testimony for air-cooling, rear engines and swing-axle i.r.s.

A BIG ONE FOR BROOKS.–Tony Brooks getting the feel of the 1938 5.6-litre supercharged straight-eight Grand Prix Mercedes-Benz against the wooded background of the difficult Oulton Park course.

IT COULD BE 1939.–It might be Donington –only the driver’s crash hats–they wore cloth helmets before the war–indicate that this picture was taken this year of the Mercedes-Benz G.P. cars at Oulton Park.