1958 French Grand Prix

  1958 French Grand Prix

Race details
Race 6 of 11 in the 1958 Formula One season
Reims-Gueux layout
Date	6 July 1958
Official name	XLIV Grand Prix de l'ACF
Location	Reims circuit, Reims, France
Course	Temporary road course
Course length	8.302 km (5.159 mi)
Distance	50 laps, 415.1 km (257.95 mi)
Pole position
Driver	Mike Hawthorn	Ferrari
Time	2:21.7
Fastest lap
Driver	Mike Hawthorn	Ferrari
Time	2:24.9
Podium
First	Mike Hawthorn	Ferrari
Second	Stirling Moss	Vanwall
Third	Wolfgang von Trips	Ferrari
Lap leaders

The 1958 French Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Reims on 6 July 1958. It was the sixth race of the 1958 Formula One season.

The race was won by Mike Hawthorn driving a Ferrari; it was his first Formula One victory since the 1954 Spanish Grand Prix and would prove to be his last. It was also the last Formula One race for five-time World Champion Juan Manuel Fangio. On the final lap, Hawthorn eased up to let Fangio, running fifth at the time, finish on the lead lap of his last race. This turned out to be a blessing, as Peter Collins crashed on the final lap, allowing Fangio to secure fourth.

The race was marred by Ferrari driver Luigi Musso's fatal accident at the Muzione hairpin. His car hurtled off course and crashed into a ditch. Musso was thrown out of the car, was critically injured and died later that day at a hospital near the track.

The race is a prime example of the danger of Formula One at the time. Of the 21 starters, five would die in racing cars within the next three years. Musso died in the race itself, while Peter Collins would die in that year's German Grand Prix, Lewis-Evans would die at the Moroccan Grand Prix, Jean Behra would die in a support race for the 1959 German Grand Prix, and Wolfgang von Trips and a dozen spectators would die at the 1961 Italian Grand Prix.

Classification

Pos	No	Driver	Constructor	Laps	Time/Retired	Grid	Points
1	4	Mike Hawthorn	Ferrari	50	2:03:21.3	1	9
2	8	Stirling Moss	Vanwall	50	+ 24.6	6	6
3	6	Wolfgang von Trips	Ferrari	50	+ 59.7	21	4
4	34	Juan Manuel Fangio	Maserati	50	+ 2:30.6	8	3
5	42	Peter Collins	Ferrari	50	+ 5:24.9	4	2
6	22	Jack Brabham	Cooper-Climax	49	+ 1 Lap	12
7	36	Phil Hill	Maserati	49	+ 1 Lap	13
8	38	Jo Bonnier	Maserati	48	+ 2 Laps	16
9	32	Gerino Gerini	Maserati	47	+ 3 Laps	15
10	30	Troy Ruttman	Maserati	45	+ 5 Laps	18
11	20	Roy Salvadori	Cooper-Climax	37	+ 13 Laps	14
Ret	16	Harry Schell	BRM	41	Overheating	3
Ret	14	Jean Behra	BRM	41	Fuel Pump	9
Ret	12	Stuart Lewis-Evans Tony Brooks	Vanwall	35	Engine	10
Ret	24	Graham Hill	Lotus-Climax	33	Overheating	19
Ret	40	Paco Godia	Maserati	28	Accident	11
Ret	18	Maurice Trintignant	BRM	23	Fuel Pump	7
Ret	10	Tony Brooks	Vanwall	16	Engine	5
Ret	2	Luigi Musso	Ferrari	9	Fatal Accident	2
Ret	28	Carroll Shelby	Maserati	9	Engine	17
Ret	26	Cliff Allison	Lotus-Climax	6	Engine	20
Source:[1]

Championship standings after the race

Drivers' Championship standings Pos Driver Points 1 Stirling Moss 23 2 Mike Hawthorn 23 3 Luigi Musso 12 4 Harry Schell 10 5 Maurice Trintignant 8

Constructors' Championship standings Pos Constructor Points 1 Ferrari 28 1 2 Vanwall 22 1 3 Cooper-Climax 19 4 BRM 10 1 5 Maserati 6

• Notes: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings.

References