1952 Belgian Grand Prix: Full Weekend Report & Highlights

The 1952 Belgian Grand Prix was the third round of the eight-race World Championship, with all races that season being run under Formula Two regulations instead of the usual Formula One rules.

Season: 1952 F1 World Championship
Race date: 18 May 1952
Circuit: Bremgarten, Bern, Switzerland
Laps: 62
Circuit length: 7.28 km (4.524 miles)

Alberto Ascari secured victory for Ferrari, also setting the fastest lap of the race. His win, combined with teammate Piero Taruffi’s retirement, resulted in both drivers sharing the lead of the championship with nine points each.

Meanwhile, in the Indianapolis 500, the previous round winner, Troy Ruttman, sat in third place in the standings, while Nino Farina’s second-place finish at Spa moved him up to fourth and secured another Ferrari 1-2 finish of the season, just three points behind the joint championship leaders.

Robert Manzon finished third for Gordini.

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Qualifying

POS.	NO.	DRIVER	TEAM	TIME
1	4	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari	4:37.000
2	2	Nino Farina	Ferrari	4:40.000
3	6	Piero Taruffi	Ferrari	4:46.000
4	14	Robert Manzon	Gordini	4:52.000
5	16	Jean Behra	Gordini	4:56.000
6	8	Mike Hawthorn	Cooper Bristol	4:58.000
7	36	Ken Wharton	Cooper Bristol	5:01.000
8	28	Paul Frere	HWM Alta	5:05.000
9	10	Alan Brown	Cooper Bristol	5:07.000
10	32	Stirling Moss	ERA Bristol	5:08.000
11	26	Peter Collins	HWM Alta	5:10.000
12	12	Eric Brandon	Cooper Bristol	5:12.000
13	34	Charles de Tornaco	Ferrari	5:13.000
14	24	Lance Macklin	HWM Alta	5:15.000
15	40	Robin Montgomerie-Charrington	Aston Butterworth	5:17.000
16	42	Tony Gaze	HWM Alta	5:20.000
17	22	Louis Rosier	Ferrari	5:23.000
18	20	Prince Bira	Gordini	5:29.000
19	18	Johnny Claes	Simca-Gordini	5:33.000
20	30	Roger Laurent	HWM Alta	5:35.000
21	38	Arthur Legat	Veritas	5:37.000
22	44	Robert O’Brien	Simca-Gordini	6:00.000

1952 Belgian Grand Starting Grid

POS.	NO.	DRIVER	TEAM	TIME
1	4	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari	4:37.000
2	2	Nino Farina	Ferrari	4:40.000
3	6	Piero Taruffi	Ferrari	4:46.000
4	14	Robert Manzon	Gordini	4:52.000
5	16	Jean Behra	Gordini	4:56.000
6	8	Mike Hawthorn	Cooper Bristol	4:58.000
7	36	Ken Wharton	Cooper Bristol	5:01.000
8	28	Paul Frere	HWM Alta	5:05.000
9	10	Alan Brown	Cooper Bristol	5:07.000
10	32	Stirling Moss	ERA Bristol	5:08.000
11	26	Peter Collins	HWM Alta	5:10.000
12	12	Eric Brandon	Cooper Bristol	5:12.000
13	34	Charles de Tornaco	Ferrari	5:13.000
14	24	Lance Macklin	HWM Alta	5:15.000
15	40	Robin Montgomerie-Charrington	Aston Butterworth	5:17.000
16	42	Tony Gaze	HWM Alta	5:20.000
17	22	Louis Rosier	Ferrari	5:23.000
18	20	Prince Bira	Gordini	5:29.000
19	18	Johnny Claes	Simca-Gordini	5:33.000
20	30	Roger Laurent	HWM Alta	5:35.000
21	38	Arthur Legat	Veritas	5:37.000
22	44	Robert O’Brien	Simca-Gordini	6:00.000

1952 Belgian Grand Race Results

Pos	No	Driver	Car	Laps	Time/retired	Pts
1	4	Alberto Ascari	Ferrari	36	3:03:46.300	9
2	2	Nino Farina	Ferrari	36	+115.200s	6
3	14	Robert Manzon	Gordini	36	+268.400s	4
4	8	Mike Hawthorn	Cooper Bristol	35	+1 lap	3
5	28	Paul Frere	HWM Alta	34	+2 laps	2
6	10	Alan Brown	Cooper Bristol	34	+2 laps	0
7	34	Charles de Tornaco	Ferrari	33	+3 laps	0
8	18	Johnny Claes	Gordini	33	+3 laps	0
9	12	Eric Brandon	Cooper Bristol	33	+3 laps	0
10	20	Prince Bira	Gordini	32	+4 laps	0
11	24	Lance Macklin	HWM Alta	32	+4 laps	0
12	30	Roger Laurent	HWM Alta	32	+4 laps	0
13	38	Arthur Legat	Veritas	31	+5 laps	0
14	44	Robert O’Brien	Simca-Gordini	30	+6 laps	0
15	42	Tony Gaze	HWM Alta	30	+6 laps	0
NC	40	Robin Montgomerie-Charrington	Aston Butterworth	17	DNF	0
NC	16	Jean Behra	Gordini	13	DNF	0
NC	6	Piero Taruffi	Ferrari	13	DNF	0
NC	36	Ken Wharton	Frazer Nash	10	DNF	0
NC	22	Louis Rosier	Ferrari	6	DNF	0
NC	26	Peter Collins	HWM Alta	3	DNF	0
NC	32	Stirling Moss	ERA Bristol	0	DNF	0

1952 Post-Race F1 Drivers’ Championship Standings

Pos	Driver	Points
1	Piero Taruffi	9
2	Alberto Ascari	9
3	Troy Ruttman	8
4	Nino Farina	6
5	Rudi Fischer	6

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Ben is a staff writer specialising in F1 from the 1990s to the modern era. Ben has been following Formula 1 since 1986 and is an avid researcher who loves understanding the technology that makes it one of the most exciting motorsport on the planet. He listens to podcasts about F1 on a daily basis, and enjoys reading books from the inspirational Adrian Newey to former F1 drivers.