1950s Vintage Racing CarsThe 1950s vintage racing cars were beautifully constructed and driven by some of the bravest and exceptionally talented drivers in the history of motorsport. One of the most famous drivers of the decade, who was to achieve even greater things in Grand Prix/F1, was the Briton Stirling Moss. Moss, along with co-driver John Cooper, drove a Sunbeam-Talbot 90 into second place in the 1952 Monte Carlo Rally. Two years later, accompanied by the American driver Bill Lloyd, he won the 12 Hours of Sebring in a Cunningham. Moss was the first non-American ever to win that race.
In 1955 Moss, along with co-driver Juan Manuel Fangio and driving a Mercedes-Benz, was forced to pull out of the Le Mans in tragic circumstances. Fellow Mercedes team driver Pierre Levegh, who was leading at the time, was involved in a horrific smash which killed him as well as over 80 spectators in what became known as the 1955 Le Mans disaster. Once the wreckage was cleared the race was allowed to continue, but Mercedes withdrew their cars, including Moss’ from the rest of the event. That infamous 1955 Le Mans was eventually won Mike Hawthorn and co-driver Ivor Bueb driving a Jaguar D-Type. During the first half of the 1950s the Carrera Panamericana, one of the most gruelling road races in the world, was run annually. The race covered over 2,000 miles and lasted five days. The inaugural race was won by American duo Hershel McGriff and Ray Elliott driving an Oldsmobile. The final race was run in 1954 when the Italian Umberto Maglioli won driving a Ferrari. It was the second time that the Ferrari had been victorious in the series. The Italian motor giant had previously been successful in 1951 when Piero Taruffi and Luigi Chinetti drove to victory.
In 1950 Jaguar had their first ever success on the North American racing car circuit. Driving an XK120 Leslie Johnson gained Jaguar first place in the production class at the 1950 Palm Beach Shores in Florida. Four years later Jaguar made history when an XK120 FHC, crewed by Geordie Anderson, Bill Pitt and Chas Swinburne won Australia’s first ever 24-hour race – the Mount Druitt 24 hours Road Race. And that same year Al Keller drove a XK120 FHC to victory in a road race at Linden airport, New Jersey, the first time an imported car had won a NASCAR event. A revered American car racing driver of the 50s was Briggs Cunningham. Cunningham’s dream was to produce an American car capable of winning the Le Mans. His company produced the Cunningham CR-4. The best that was achieved was a fourth place finish in 1952. A year later a Cunningham CR-5R, driven by Phil Walters and John Fitch finished third in the event. Related Articles
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