1950 British Grand Prix
| 1950 Formula One Season | |
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 1950 British Grand Prix
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| Date | May 13, 1950 |
| Round | 1 |
| Track | Silverstone |
| Laps | 70 |
| Weather | Hot & Sunny |
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This was the first ever race in the World Championship, but the fifth for Formula One cars that year. Reg Parnell and Juan Manuel Fangio were the favourties. Fangio had already won the San Remo Grand Prix and Pau Grand Prix, and Parnell had won the Paris Grand Prix.
This was also the designated European Grand Prix of 1950, and was attended by King George VI, Queen Elizabeth, Princess Margaret, and Earl & Lady Mountbatten.
The Alfa Romeo factory boasted strength, with Fangio and Parnell in their team as well as Giuseppe Farina and Luigi Fagioli. Maserati and Talbot-Lago also sent over cars, and the rest of the field was made up of local teams such as Alta and English Racing Automobiles.
The big story before the race was the absence of Ferrari, and as a result, illustrious names such as Alberto Ascari and Luigi Villoresi were absent from the race. This could make things very easy indeed for Alfa Romeo, who were arguably the strongest manufacturer anyway. But without Ferrari, they were heavy favourites.
The stars of Alfa Romeo were upstaged in Qualifying however, as the less known Farina took pole by two-tenth of a second, from Fagioli. Fangio came in third, and Parnell was fourth to complete a 1-2-3-4 in Qualifying for Alfa Romeo. All four were within 1.4 seconds of each other. Behind them Prince Bira was fifth for Maserati, and Yves Giraud Cabantous was sixth for Talbot-Lago-Talbot. The British constructors disappointed, the highest being Peter Walker in tenth place for English Racing Automobiles.
The race itself was a demonstration from Alfa Romeo. Farina lead at the start from Fagioli, but the two remained close together. Fagioli took the lead from Farina on Lap 10, but surrendored it jsut five laps later. From there on in, Farina stretched out a lead, and lead the rest of the way apart from Lap 38, at which point he was pitting, and Fangio inherited the lead.
Fangio suffered an oil leak on Lap 62, which caused him to retire. It was the only blotch on the day for Alfa Romeo. But now, Fangio, the favourite for the 1950 Championship was beaten comfortably by what was considered a junior team-mate.
Farina was being caught by Fagioli towards the end of the race, but in the end he was able to hang on to his lead. Fagioli settled for second, with Parnell a minute behind in third to round out the podium.
The three Alfa Romeo's were the only cars on the same lap, as Yves Giraud Cabantous was two laps behind in fourth. English Racing Automobiles were the leading British manufacturer in sixth, with Bob Gerard.
But the weekend belonged with Alfa Romeo, who had shown the world that they were the dominant team in Motor Racing, that the rest would have to go to catch. Everybody was looking forward to their battle with Ferrari in the next round at Monte Carlo.
Results
Bold type denotes bonus point for setting the fastest lap.
| Pole Position - Giuseppe Farina, Alfa Romeo, 1:50.8 |
| Fastest Lap - Giuseppe Farina, Alfa Romeo, 1:50.6 |
| Shared Drives |
| Joe Fry and Brian Shawe Taylor, Maserati - Joe Fry 45 laps - Brian Shawe Taylor 19 laps |
| Peter Walker and Tony Rolt, English Racing Automobiles - Peter Walker 2 laps - Tony Rolt 3 laps |
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| Tracks: Aintree • Brands Hatch • Silverstone |
