1956 Belgian Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Peter Collins claimed his first World Championship victory in the 1956 Belgian Grand Prix, leading Paul Frère home for a Ferrari one-two. Fangio’s retirement opened the way, while Moss recovered from losing a wheel to reach the podium in a second Maserati.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Juan Manuel Fangio	Ferrari
Pole time	4:09.800
Fastest lap	Stirling Moss	Maserati
Fastest-lap time	4:14.700 on lap 30
First	Peter Collins	Ferrari
Second	Paul Frère	Ferrari
Third	Cesare Perdisa / Stirling Moss	Maserati

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
31 May 1956	Thursday timed practice	Start time unconfirmed
1 June 1956	Friday timed practice	18:00–20:00
2 June 1956	Saturday final qualifying	15:00–17:00
3 June 1956	Race	Start time unconfirmed

All times are local. The race time is the scheduled start; weather delays and interruptions are described below.

Championship background

Jean Behra arrived at round 4 leading the 1956 F1 World Championship on 10 points, with Juan Manuel Fangio on 9.

Race entries

Musso was absent after his Nürburgring sports-car accident. Frère joined Ferrari at his home race, with Pilette in another Ferrari entered by the Belgian national team. Hawthorn appeared with Maserati following BRM‘s withdrawal, while Vanwall and a Connaught added British machinery to the field.

Thursday timed practice

Improved sections of road encouraged faster laps, and Moss raised the benchmark in ideal evening conditions. Fangio answered emphatically with 4:09.8, almost five seconds quicker. Ferrari had only two cars ready, and Castellotti’s half-shaft trouble limited the opportunity for Collins to run. The session established times that the changing weather would leave untouched.

Friday timed practice

Persistent rain transformed the circuit. Moss tried the fuel-injection Maserati, while Frère cautiously learnt the unfamiliar Ferrari. Vanwall struggled with mixture and high-speed misfiring, and several drivers concentrated on finding their way around in the wet. Fangio remained quickest, but the times were far slower than Thursday’s dry running.

Saturday final qualifying

The surface dried, but a strong wind prevented an attack on Fangio’s pole time. Vanwall improved despite oil-surge concerns, while Godia suffered an engine failure. Collins had completed relatively little running, yet a late effort put him third on the grid. Frère gained confidence in the dry as Ferrari prepared for a potentially changeable race.

Qualifying Classification

Three timed-practice sessions established the grid. Thursday’s favourable conditions decided the front of the order; the wet Friday and windy Saturday were not separate elimination rounds.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Best Time
1	2	Juan Manuel Fangio	Ferrari	4:09.800
2	30	Stirling Moss	Maserati	4:14.7
3	8	Peter Collins	Ferrari	4:15.3
4	32	Jean Behra	Maserati	4:16.7
5	4	Eugenio Castellotti	Ferrari	4:16.7
6	10	Harry Schell	Vanwall	4:19.0
7	12	Maurice Trintignant	Vanwall	4:22.8
8	6	Paul Frère	Ferrari	4:23.8
9	34	Cesare Perdisa	Maserati	4:35.7
10	24	Louis Rosier	Maserati	4:35.9
11	22	Luigi Villoresi	Maserati	4:37.7
12	28	Piero Scotti	Connaught	4:41.9
13	38	Mike Hawthorn	Maserati	4:48.9
14	36	Paco Godia	Maserati	4:49.8
15	26	Horace Gould	Maserati	4:50.4
16	20	André Pilette	Ferrari	4:51.9

What happened in the 1956 Belgian Grand Prix?

Moss led the wet opening laps as Fangio made a poor start, but the Ferrari driver quickly recovered and took the lead. On the drying circuit, Moss then lost a rear wheel after Eau Rouge. He stopped safely, returned to the pits and took over Perdisa’s Maserati, a lap behind.

Collins moved into second and inherited the lead when Fangio’s transmission failed. Behind him, Frère and Behra contested second until the Maserati developed engine trouble. Moss pressed on in the replacement car, moving past Schell and then benefiting from Behra’s difficulties.

Collins won ahead of Frère, with Moss and Perdisa sharing third. Schell finished fourth and Rosier fifth. Moss set fastest lap during his recovery, but the Ferraris were beyond reach. The result launched Collins into the championship fight and gave the home crowd a memorable runner-up finish to celebrate.

After the race, Peter Collins headed the drivers’ standings with 11 points, followed by Stirling Moss on 11.

1956 Belgian Grand Prix race results

The 1956 Belgian Grand Prix was held on 3 June 1956.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	8	Peter Collins	Ferrari	36	2:40:00.3	8
2	6	Paul Frère	Ferrari	36	+1:51.3	6
3	34	Cesare Perdisa / Stirling Moss	Maserati	36	+3:16.6	2 / 3
4	10	Harry Schell	Vanwall	35	+1 Lap	3
5	22	Luigi Villoresi	Maserati	34	+2 Laps	2
6	20	André Pilette	Ferrari	33	+3 Laps	0
7	32	Jean Behra	Maserati	33	+3 Laps	0
8	24	Louis Rosier	Maserati	33	+3 Laps	0
Ret	2	Juan Manuel Fangio	Ferrari	23	Transmission	0
Ret	12	Maurice Trintignant	Vanwall	11	Fuel system	0
Ret	30	Stirling Moss	Maserati	10	Wheel	0
Ret	4	Eugenio Castellotti	Ferrari	10	Transmission	0
Ret	28	Piero Scotti	Connaught	10	Engine	0
Ret	26	Horace Gould	Maserati	2	Gearbox	0
Ret	36	Paco Godia	Maserati	0	Accident	0
DNS	38	Mike Hawthorn	Maserati	0		0

Includes 1 point for fastest lap

1956 Belgian Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time
1	34	Stirling Moss	Maserati	30	4:14.700

Only drivers with a recorded lap time appear. One championship point was awarded for fastest lap, divided equally when shared.

1956 Post-Race F1 Championship Standings

Championship standings after the 1956 Belgian Grand Prix.

1956 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Peter Collins	British	Ferrari	11
2	Stirling Moss	British	Maserati	11
3	Jean Behra	French	Maserati	10
4	Juan Manuel Fangio	Argentine	Ferrari	9
5	Pat Flaherty	American	Watson	8
6	Sam Hanks	American	Kurtis Kraft	6
7	Paul Frère	Belgian	Ferrari	6
8	Luigi Musso	Italian	Ferrari	4
9	Mike Hawthorn	British	Maserati / BRM	4
10	Don Freeland	American	Phillips	4
11	Harry Schell	American	Vanwall	3
12	Johnnie Parsons	American	Kurtis Kraft	3
13	Cesare Perdisa	Italian	Maserati	2
14	Olivier Gendebien	Belgian	Ferrari	2
15	Hermano da Silva Ramos	Brazilian	Gordini	2
16	Dick Rathmann	American	Kurtis Kraft	2
17	Luigi Villoresi	Italian	Maserati	2
18	Eugenio Castellotti	Italian	Ferrari	1.5
19	Gerino Gerini	Italian	Maserati	1.5
20	Chico Landi	Brazilian	Maserati	1.5
21	Paul Russo	American	Kurtis Kraft	1
—	André Pilette	Belgian	Gordini / Ferrari	0
—	Óscar González	Uruguayan	Maserati	0
—	Alberto Uria	Uruguayan	Maserati	0
—	Élie Bayol	French	Gordini	0
—	Bob Sweikert	American	Kuzma	0
—	Bob Veith	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Louis Rosier	French	Maserati	0
—	Horace Gould	British	Maserati	0
—	Rodger Ward	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Jimmy Reece	American	Lesovsky	0
—	Cliff Griffith	American	Stevens	0
—	Gene Hartley	American	Kuzma	0
—	Fred Agabashian	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Bob Christie	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Al Keller	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Eddie Johnson	American	Kuzma	0
—	Billy Garrett	American	Kuzma	0
—	Duke Dinsmore	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Pat O'Connor	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Jimmy Bryan	American	Kuzma	0
—	Luigi Piotti	Italian	Maserati	0
—	Robert Manzon	French	Gordini	0
—	Maurice Trintignant	French	Vanwall	0
—	Carlos Menditeguy	Argentine	Maserati	0
—	José Froilán González	Argentine	Maserati	0
—	Piero Scotti	Italian	Connaught	0
—	Paco Godia	Spanish	Maserati	0
—	Tony Brooks	British	BRM	0
—	Louis Chiron	Monegasque	Maserati	0
—	Jim Rathmann	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Johnnie Tolan	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Tony Bettenhausen	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Ed Elisian	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Eddie Russo	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Jimmy Daywalt	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Jack Turner	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Keith Andrews	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Andy Linden	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Al Herman	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Ray Crawford	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Johnny Boyd	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Troy Ruttman	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Johnny Thomson	American	Kuzma	0

There was no constructors’ championship in this season; the manufacturers’ competition began in 1958.

Drivers counted their best 5 results. The first five places earned 8–6–4–3–2 points, with one further point for fastest lap, shared equally when necessary. Points from shared drives were divided between the eligible drivers; individual allocations are shown in driver order.

1956 Formula 1 Race Calendar

Round	Grand Prix	Circuit	Date
1	1956 Argentine Grand Prix	Autódromo Oscar Alfredo Gálvez, Buenos Aires	22 January
2	1956 Monaco Grand Prix	Circuit de Monaco, Monte Carlo	13 May
3	1956 Indianapolis 500	Indianapolis Motor Speedway, Speedway, Indiana	30 May
4	1956 Belgian Grand Prix	Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot	3 June
5	1956 French Grand Prix	Reims-Gueux, Reims	1 July
6	1956 British Grand Prix	Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone	14 July
7	1956 German Grand Prix	Nürburgring, Nürburg	5 August
8	1956 Italian Grand Prix	Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, Monza	2 September