1955 Formula One season

The 1955 Formula One season was the ninth season of FIA Formula One motor racing. It featured the sixth World Championship of Drivers, which was contested over seven races between 16 January and 11 September 1955. The season also included several non-championship races for Formula One cars.

Juan Manuel Fangio driving for Mercedes won his third Drivers' Championship.

Juan Manuel Fangio won his second consecutive World Championship title.[1] It was his third in total, a record that would not be beaten until Alain Prost in 1993. This was the last championship for a Mercedes driver until 2014.

The season was coloured by tragedy. Two drivers were killed during the 1955 Indianapolis 500: Manny Ayulo and Bill Vukovich, winner of the two previous editions.[2] Italian Mario Alborghetti died at the non-championship Pau Grand Prix. Alberto Ascari, World Champion of 1952 and 1953, was killed while testing a Ferrari 750 Monza at Monza.[3][4][5] And ex-Formula One driver Pierre Levegh was killed in the 1955 Le Mans disaster, along with 83 spectators. This would lead to the cancellation of four F1 Grands Prix.

Teams and drivers

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The following teams and drivers competed in the 1955 FIA World Championship. The list does not include those who only contested the Indianapolis 500.

Entrant Constructor Chassis Engine Tyre Driver Rounds
  Daimler Benz AG Mercedes W196 Mercedes M196 2.5 L8 C   Juan Manuel Fangio 1–2, 4–7
  Karl Kling 1, 4–7
  Stirling Moss 1–2, 4–7
  Hans Herrmann 1–2
  André Simon 2
  Piero Taruffi 6–7
  Scuderia Ferrari Ferrari 625
555
Ferrari 555 2.5 L4 E   Umberto Maglioli 1, 7
  José Froilán González 1
  Maurice Trintignant 1–2, 4–7
  Harry Schell 2, 4
  Piero Taruffi 2, 4
  Paul Frère 2, 4
  Mike Hawthorn 5–7
  Eugenio Castellotti 5–7
  Giuseppe Farina 1–2, 4
Lancia D50 Lancia DS50 2.5 V8 7
  Officine Alfieri Maserati Maserati 250F Maserati 250F1 2.5 L6 P   Jean Behra 1–2, 4–7
  Roberto Mieres 1–2, 4–7
  Sergio Mantovani 1
  Luigi Musso 1–2, 4–7
  Carlos Menditeguy 1, 7
  Clemar Bucci 1
  Harry Schell 1
  Cesare Perdisa 2, 4
  André Simon 6
  Peter Collins 7
  Horace Gould 7
  Alberto Uría Maserati A6GCM Maserati 250F1 2.5 L6 P   Alberto Uría 1
  Scuderia Lancia Lancia D50 Lancia DS50 2.5 V8 P   Alberto Ascari 1–2
  Luigi Villoresi 1–2, 7
  Eugenio Castellotti 1–2, 4
  Louis Chiron 2
  Equipe Gordini Gordini T16 Gordini 23 2.5 L6 E   Élie Bayol 1–2
  Pablo Birger 1
  Jesús Iglesias 1
  Robert Manzon 2, 5–6
  Jacques Pollet 2, 5, 7
  Hermano da Silva Ramos 5–7
  Mike Sparken 6
  Jean Lucas 7
  Ecurie Rosier Maserati 250F Maserati 250F1 2.5 L6 P   Louis Rosier 2, 4–5
  Vandervell Products Vanwall VW 55 Vanwall 254 2.5 L4 P   Mike Hawthorn 2, 4
  Ken Wharton 6–7
  Harry Schell 6–7
  Stirling Moss Ltd Maserati 250F Maserati 250F1 2.5 L6 D   Lance Macklin 2, 6
  Johnny Claes 4
  Peter Walker 5
  John Fitch 7
  E.N. Whiteaway HWM-Alta 53 Alta GP 2.5 L4 D   Ted Whiteaway 2
  Equipe Nationale Belge Ferrari 625 Ferrari 625 2.5 L4 E   Johnny Claes 5
  Gould's Garage (Bristol) Maserati 250F Maserati 250F1 2.5 L6 D   Horace Gould 5–6
  Connaught Engineering Connaught-Alta B Alta GP 2.5 L4 D   Kenneth McAlpine 6
  Jack Fairman 6
  R.R.C. Walker Racing Team Connaught-Alta B Alta GP 2.5 L4 D   Tony Rolt 6
  Peter Walker 6
  Leslie Marr Connaught-Alta B Alta GP 2.5 L4 D   Leslie Marr 6
  Cooper Car Company Cooper-Bristol T40 Bristol BS1 2.0 L6 D   Jack Brabham 6
  Owen Racing Organisation Maserati 250F Maserati 250F1 2.5 L6 D   Peter Collins 6
  Gilby Engineering Maserati 250F Maserati 250F1 2.5 L6 D   Roy Salvadori 6
  Scuderia Volpini Arzani-Volpini-Maserati F1 Maserati 4CLT 2.5 L4 P   Luigi Piotti 7

Team and driver changes

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Stirling Moss joined Juan Manuel Fangio at Mercedes.
 
The three drivers of the Lancia team (left Luigi Villoresi, middle Alberto Ascari, right Eugenio Castellotti), with their engineer Vittorio Jano (far right).

Mid-season changes

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Calendar

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Round Grand Prix Circuit Date
1 Argentine Grand Prix   Autódromo Oscar Alfredo Gálvez, Buenos Aires 16 January
2 Monaco Grand Prix   Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo 22 May
3 Indianapolis 500   Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Speedway 30 May[a]
4 Belgian Grand Prix   Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot 5 June
5 Dutch Grand Prix   Circuit Zandvoort, Zandvoort 19 June
6 British Grand Prix   Aintree Motor Racing Circuit, Merseyside 16 July
7 Italian Grand Prix   Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza 11 September

Calendar changes

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Cancelled rounds

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In the aftermath of the 1955 Le Mans disaster, it was decided to reschedule the French Grand Prix from 3 July to 25 September.[12] It was later cancelled, along with the German, Swiss and Spanish rounds.[13][14]

Grand Prix Circuit Original date
  French Grand Prix Reims-Gueux, Gueux 3 July
  German Grand Prix Nürburgring, Nürburg 31 July
  Swiss Grand Prix Circuit Bremgarten, Bern 21 August
  Spanish Grand Prix Pedralbes Circuit, Barcelona 23 October

The circuits at Pedralbes and Bremgarten were never used again for racing. Motor racing was banned altogether in Switzerland until the 2018 Zürich ePrix.

Championship report

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Rounds 1 to 3

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Juan Manuel Fangio (left) and José Froilan González (right)

For the third year in a row, the championship opened with the Argentine Grand Prix. José Froilan González started on pole position. The Argentine had been a full-time Ferrari driver in 1954, but it would be his only race this year. Next to him on the front row started two double World Champions: Alberto Ascari in the Lancia and Juan Manuel Fangio in the Mercedes. Fangio took the lead at the start, but lost it to Ascari on lap 3. Teammate Stirling Moss went from eighth to third, while behind them, drivers and cars were beginning to succumb to the heat of 52 °C (126 °F). On lap 21, Ascari crashed out by himself, leaving González in the lead. However, he was still recovering from his accident in the 1954 RAC Tourist Trophy and got exhausted. Fearing he could not hold Fangio behind, he pitted to hand the car to teammate and 1950 World Champion Nino Farina. Fangio pitted as well, for new tyres and to cool off, while Moss retired due to a vapor lock in the fuel pump. This left another local driver, Roberto Mieres in the Maserati, in the lead after starting sixteenth. Sadly, his fuel pump faltered as well and he spent 10 minutes in the pits, coming home in fifth. Besides Mieres, Fangio would be the only classified driver not to have switched cars during the race, and went on to win. Two Ferraris completed the podium, but each had seen three different drivers behind the wheel, so Fangio had an immediate lead in the championship.[15][16]

The Monaco Grand Prix returned to the calendar after three years and was given the honorary title of European Grand Prix. A new rule to qualifying had been added: only the times recorded in the first practice session on Thursday afternoon would count for the front row of the grid and, thus, for pole position. The rest of the starting places would be decided by the remaining sessions on Friday and Saturday morning. This was done to entice spectators to come and watch every session, but it was an unpopular idea with the drivers. Fangio set the fastest time, ahead of Ascari and Moss, so they could relax and use the remaining sessions to try out car set-ups for the race. At the start of the race, Fangio held on to the lead, but Ascari fell back. Moss took second place after a few laps and was slowly closing up to his teammate in front. After the two drivers behind Moss pitted, Ascari was left in a lonely third place until, at half-distance, Fangio stopped on track with a broken transmission and, on lap 81, Moss's engine blew up. Ascari took the unexpected lead of the race, but mere seconds later, crashed coming out of the harbour chicane and plunged into the water. He was lucky to escape with just a cut on the nose. Maurice Trintignant took the win for Ferrari, the first of his career, ahead of Eugenio Castellotti for Lancia and Cesare Perdisa in Jean Behra's Maserati.[17]

The Indianapolis 500 was included in the Formula One championship, but no F1 drivers attended. Bob Sweikert won the race.

In the Drivers' Championship, Maurice Trintignant (Ferrari) was leading with 11  points, ahead of Juan Manuel Fangio (Mercedes) with 10 and Bob Sweikert (Kurtis Kraft) with 8. Sweikert would not compete in any other rounds.

Rounds 4 to 6

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A statue in Milan to honour the memory of Alberto Ascari.

Four days after the Monaco Grand Prix, double World Champion Alberto Ascari was tragically killed in a test session at Monza. Further burdened by financial troubles, the Lancia team was left with two cars and just one driver. Soon, all assets would be merged into the Ferrari team, but this did not stop Eugenio Castellotti from scoring his first career pole position in the Belgian Grand Prix. The Mercedes cars of Juan Manuel Fangio and Stirling Moss started beside him on the front row. Championship leader Maurice Trintignant started down in eleventh out of thirteen. At the start, Fangio and Moss quickly took the lead and never looked back. Castellotti retired on lap 16, allowing 1950 World Champion Nino Farina to finish third for Ferrari.[18]

 
Fangio leading Stirling Moss in the 1955 Dutch Grand Prix

On 11 June, the 24 Hours of Le Mans took place and many F1 drivers participated. During the race, Pierre Levegh crashed into the spectator area, killing 83 people and injuring at least 120 others. This led the FIA to postpone the French Grand Prix.[12] However, the Dutch Grand Prix was next on the F1 championship and went on undisturbed. Mercedes managed to occupy the front row with Fangio, Moss and Karl Kling. At the start, Luigi Musso put his Maserati into second position, but was outbraved by Moss. Kling tried his best to keep up with the leading trio but, on lap 21, spun off and retired. Fangio and Moss scored another one-two finish, a minute ahead of Musso. This was the first race since the 1950 French Grand Prix that none of the cars on the podium were powered by a Ferrari engine.[19]

For the British Grand Prix, Stirling Moss scored his first career pole position in front of his home crowd. Fangio started second, Jean Behra third for Maserati. The second row was filled by two more Mercedes: Karl Kling and Piero Taruffi. Fangio had the best start, but Moss regained the lead on lap 3, his car set up with a lower top speed but better acceleration out of the corners. Behra retired on lap 10, handing the top four positions to Mercedes, with Fangio once again in front. A couple of laps later, Moss retook the lead, grew his advantage to ten seconds and set a new lap record. Unused to having the team leader behind him, Moss looked back on the last lap and hesitated. But Fangio hang back, two tenths behind, leaving the home hero to take the win.[20]

In the Drivers' Championship, Juan Manuel Fangio (Mercedes) led with 33 points, ahead of Stirling Moss (Mercedes) with 22 and Maurice Trintignant (Ferrari) with 11  points. After the British Grand Prix, the German, Swiss, French and Spanish Grand Prix were cancelled, in the aftermath of the 1955 Le Mans disaster. This left just one race in the championship and effectively handed the title to Fangio.

Round 7

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The Italian Grand Prix was run on the 10 km (6.2 mi) Monza layout including a new steep banking. Nino Farina crashed in practice when his rear tyre came apart under the load of the banked turn and the heat of the sun. He escaped unhurt but his Ferrari-run Lancia was written off, and although Sunday was substantially cooler, the other Lancia was withdrawn as a precaution. Like in Zandvoort, Mercedes-Benz in Formula One#Mercedes occupied the front row in the order of Fangio, Moss, Kling. Moss took the lead at the start, but gave way to his Argentinian team leader before the first lap was run. The fourth Mercedes of Taruffi went from ninth to fourth, the team repeating their procession run from last race. However, Moss pitted on lap 19 for a new windscreen and subsequently retired on lap 28 when his engine cut out. Kling's gearbox broke and he retired as well, leaving the German team worried, but Fangio and Taruffi finished the race untroubled, scoring another Mercedes 1-2, ahead of Eugenio Castellotti for Ferrari.[21]

Juan Manuel Fangio (Mercedes) had collected 40 points and won his third Drivers' Championship, his second in a row. Teammate Stirling Moss was second with 23 points and Eugenio Castellotti third with 12. Mercedes withdrew from F1 after this season, marking it the final race until the team's revival in 2010, their final win until the 2012 Chinese Grand Prix and final championship title until 2014.

Results and standings

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Grands Prix

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Round Grand Prix Pole position Fastest lap Winning driver Winning constructor Tyre Report
1   Argentine Grand Prix   José Froilán González   Juan Manuel Fangio   Juan Manuel Fangio   Mercedes C Report
2   Monaco Grand Prix   Juan Manuel Fangio   Juan Manuel Fangio   Maurice Trintignant   Ferrari E Report
3   Indianapolis 500   Jerry Hoyt   Bill Vukovich   Bob Sweikert   Kurtis Kraft-Offenhauser F Report
4   Belgian Grand Prix   Eugenio Castellotti   Juan Manuel Fangio   Juan Manuel Fangio   Mercedes C Report
5   Dutch Grand Prix   Juan Manuel Fangio   Roberto Mieres   Juan Manuel Fangio   Mercedes C Report
6   British Grand Prix   Stirling Moss   Stirling Moss   Stirling Moss   Mercedes C Report
7   Italian Grand Prix   Juan Manuel Fangio   Stirling Moss   Juan Manuel Fangio   Mercedes C Report

World Championship of Drivers standings

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Points were awarded to the top five classified finishers, with an additional point awarded for setting the fastest lap, regardless of finishing position or even classification. Only the best five results counted towards the championship. Shared drives result in shared points for each driver if they finished in a points-scoring position. If more than one driver set the same fastest lap time, the fastest lap point would be divided equally between the drivers. Numbers without parentheses are championship points; numbers in parentheses are total points scored. Points were awarded in the following system:

Position  1st   2nd   3rd   4th   5th  FL
Race 8 6 4 3 2 1
Source:[22]
Pos. Driver ARG
 
MON
 
500
 
BEL
 
NED
 
GBR
 
ITA
 
Pts.
1   Juan Manuel Fangio 1 (Ret) 1 1 2 1 40 (41)
2   Stirling Moss 4† / Ret 9 2 2 1 Ret 23
3   Eugenio Castellotti Ret† 2 Ret 5 6† / Ret 3 12
4   Maurice Trintignant 2† / 3† / Ret 1 6 Ret Ret 8 11 13
5   Nino Farina 2† / 3† 4 3 DNS 10 13
6   Piero Taruffi 8† DNS 4 2 9
7   Bob Sweikert 1 8
8   Roberto Mieres 5 Ret 5† 4 Ret 7 7
9   Jean Behra 6† / Ret† / Ret 3† / Ret† 5† / Ret 6 Ret 4 6
10   Luigi Musso 7† / Ret† Ret 7 3 5 Ret 6
11   Karl Kling 4† / Ret Ret Ret 3 Ret 5
12   Jimmy Davies 3 4
13   Tony Bettenhausen 2† 3
14   Paul Russo 2† 3
15   Paul Frère 8† 4 3
16   Johnny Thomson 4 3
17   José Froilán González 2 2
18   Cesare Perdisa 3† / Ret† 8 2
19   Luigi Villoresi Ret† / Ret 5 DNS 2
20   Carlos Menditeguy Ret† / Ret 5 2
21   Umberto Maglioli 3† 6 1 13
22   Hans Herrmann 4† DNQ 1
23   Walt Faulkner 5† 1
24   Bill Homeier 5† 1
25   Bill Vukovich Ret 1
  Mike Hawthorn Ret Ret 7 6† 10 0
  Harry Schell 6† / 7† / Ret† Ret DNS 9† / Ret Ret 0
  Louis Chiron 6 0
  Andy Linden 6 0
  Jacques Pollet 7 10 Ret 0
  Al Herman 7 0
  Mike Sparken 7 0
  Sergio Mantovani 7† / Ret† 0
  Hermano da Silva Ramos 8 Ret Ret 0
  Lance Macklin DNQ 8 0
  Pat O'Connor 8 0
  Louis Rosier Ret 9 9 0
  Ken Wharton 9† Ret 0
  Jimmy Daywalt 9 0
  John Fitch 9 0
  Pat Flaherty 10 0
  Duane Carter 11 0
  Johnny Claes DNS 11 0
  Chuck Weyant 12 0
  Eddie Johnson 13 0
  Jim Rathmann 14 0
  Robert Manzon Ret Ret Ret 0
  Horace Gould Ret Ret Ret 0
  Alberto Ascari Ret Ret 0
  Élie Bayol Ret Ret 0
  André Simon Ret Ret 0
  Peter Collins Ret Ret 0
  Peter Walker Ret Ret† 0
  Jesus Iglesias Ret 0
  Pablo Birger Ret 0
  Alberto Uría Ret 0
  Don Freeland Ret 0
  Cal Niday Ret 0
  Art Cross Ret 0
  Shorty Templeman Ret 0
  Sam Hanks Ret 0
  Keith Andrews Ret 0
  Johnnie Parsons Ret 0
  Eddie Russo Ret 0
  Ray Crawford Ret 0
  Jimmy Bryan Ret 0
  Jack McGrath Ret 0
  Al Keller Ret 0
  Johnny Boyd Ret 0
  Ed Elisian Ret 0
  Rodger Ward Ret 0
  Jerry Hoyt Ret 0
  Jimmy Reece Ret 0
  Fred Agabashian Ret 0
  Kenneth McAlpine Ret 0
  Jack Brabham Ret 0
  Roy Salvadori Ret 0
  Leslie Marr Ret 0
  Jean Lucas Ret 0
  Clemar Bucci Ret† 0
  Tony Rolt Ret† 0
  Ted Whiteaway DNQ 0
  Jack Fairman DNS 0
  Luigi Piotti DNS 0
Pos. Driver ARG
 
MON
 
500
 
BEL
 
NED
 
GBR
 
ITA
 
Pts.
Key
Colour Result
Gold Winner
Silver Second place
Bronze Third place
Green Other points position
Blue Other classified position
Not classified, finished (NC)
Purple Not classified, retired (Ret)
Red Did not qualify (DNQ)
Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ)
Black Disqualified (DSQ)
White Did not start (DNS)
Race cancelled (C)
Blank Did not practice (DNP)
Excluded (EX)
Did not arrive (DNA)
Withdrawn (WD)
Did not enter (cell empty)
Text formatting Meaning
Bold Pole position
Italics Fastest lap
  • Italics indicates the fastest lap (1 point awarded – point shared equally between drivers sharing fastest lap)
  • Bold indicates pole position
  • † = Car driven by more than one driver

Non-championship races

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Other Formula One races were also held in 1955, which did not count towards the World Championship.

Race name Circuit Date Winning driver Constructor Report
  VII Gran Premio del Valentino Valentino Park 27 March   Alberto Ascari   Lancia Report
  XVI Pau Grand Prix Pau 11 April   Jean Behra   Maserati Report
  III Glover Trophy Goodwood 11 April   Roy Salvadori   Maserati Report
  IV Grand Prix de Bordeaux Bordeaux 25 April   Jean Behra   Maserati Report
  VII BRDC International Trophy Silverstone 7 May   Peter Collins   Maserati Report
  VIII Gran Premio di Napoli Posillipo 8 May   Alberto Ascari   Lancia Report
  XVII Grand Prix d'Albi Albi (Les Planques) 29 May   André Simon   Maserati Report
  III Curtis Trophy Snetterton 29 May   Roy Salvadori   Maserati Report
  III Cornwall MRC Formula 1 Race Davidstow 30 May   Leslie Marr   Connaught-Alta Report
  III London Trophy Crystal Palace 30 July   Mike Hawthorn   Maserati Report
  III Daily Record Trophy Charterhall 6 August   Bob Gerard   Maserati Report
  III RedeX Trophy Snetterton 13 August   Harry Schell   Vanwall Report
  II Daily Telegraph Trophy Aintree 3 September   Roy Salvadori   Maserati Report
  II International Gold Cup Oulton Park 24 September   Stirling Moss   Maserati Report
  I Avon Trophy Castle Combe 1 October   Harry Schell   Vanwall Report
  V Gran Premio di Siracusa Syracuse 23 October   Tony Brooks   Connaught-Alta Report

Notes

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  1. ^ The Indianapolis 500 also counted towards the 1955 AAA Championship Car season, and was run for AAA Championship cars, but was not run to Formula One regulations.

References

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  1. ^ "1955 Driver Standings". Formula1.com. Retrieved 5 June 2024.
  2. ^ Goldstein, Richard (July 7, 2004) Rodger Ward, 83, Two-Time Indianapolis 500 Winner (obituary). New York Times. Retrieved May 26, 2018.
  3. ^ "Alberto Ascari – Biography". Grand Prix History. 10 August 2008. Retrieved 6 April 2016.
  4. ^ "Formula 1's greatest drivers. Number 11: Alberto Ascari". BBC Sport. 17 July 2012. Retrieved 6 April 2016.
  5. ^ "Alberto Ascari | Formula 1®". Formula 1. 2018. Retrieved 17 February 2024.
  6. ^ Small, Steve (1994). The Guinness Complete Grand Prix Who's Who. Guinness. p. 243. ISBN 0851127029.
  7. ^ "Italian GP, 1955 Race Report – GP Encyclopedia – F1 History on". Grandprix.com. Retrieved 1 August 2016.
  8. ^ "Peter Collins | | F1 Driver Profile | ESPN.co.uk". En.espn.co.uk. Archived from the original on 23 December 2015. Retrieved 1 August 2016.
  9. ^ "Formula One timeline". atlasf1.autosport.com. Retrieved 27 June 2007.
  10. ^ "Lancia D50". ddavid.com. Archived from the original on 2 July 2007. Retrieved 27 June 2007.
  11. ^ Spurring, Quentin (2011). Le Mans: The Official History of the World's Greatest Motor Race 1949-59. Sparkford: Haynes Publishing. p. 225. ISBN 9781844255375.
  12. ^ a b "Matters of Moment | Motor Sport Magazine Archive". Motor Sport Magazine. 7 July 2014. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  13. ^ "The Autocar". The Autocar. 22 April 1955. Retrieved 3 July 2019.
  14. ^ Lang, Mike (1981). Grand Prix! Vol 1. Haynes Publishing Group. p. 82. ISBN 0-85429-276-4.
  15. ^ "Argentine GP, 1955". GrandPrix.com. 16 January 1955. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
  16. ^ "1955 Formula 1 Argentine Grand Prix AI-Upscaled". Andrea Colombo. 25 April 2020. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
  17. ^ Denis Jenkinson (22 May 1955). "1955 Monaco Grand Prix race report: Trintignant triumphs where others fail". Motorsport Magazine. Archived from the original on 1 April 2023. Retrieved 2 June 2024.
  18. ^ Denis Jenkinson (7 July 2014). "1955 Belgian Grand Prix race report: Silver Arrows dominate". Motorsport Magazine. Archived from the original on 29 March 2023. Retrieved 3 June 2024.
  19. ^ Motor Sport (19 June 1955). "1955 Dutch Grand Prix race report: Mercedes march on". Motorsport Magazine. Archived from the original on 3 June 2023. Retrieved 3 June 2024.
  20. ^ Paul Fearnley (3 July 2018). "Stirling Moss' victory at the 1955 British Grand Prix". Motorsport Magazine. Archived from the original on 2 December 2021. Retrieved 3 June 2024.
  21. ^ Denis Jenkinson (11 September 1955). "1955 Italian Grand Prix race report: Fangio crowned F1 champion for third time". Motorsport Magazine. Archived from the original on 19 April 2023. Retrieved 3 June 2024.
  22. ^ "World Championship points systems". 8W. Forix. 18 January 2019. Archived from the original on 24 September 2019. Retrieved 21 December 2020.