1956 British Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Juan Manuel Fangio won the 1956 British Grand Prix after a demanding Silverstone race wore down the leading British challenge. Moss and BRM both had spells of promise, but Ferrari‘s champion survived to finish ahead of the car shared by de Portago and Collins.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Stirling Moss	Maserati
Pole time	1:41.000
Fastest lap	Stirling Moss	Maserati
Fastest-lap time	1:43.200 on lap 71
First	Juan Manuel Fangio	Ferrari
Second	Alfonso de Portago / Peter Collins	Ferrari
Third	Jean Behra	Maserati

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
12 July 1956	Thursday timed practice	Start time unconfirmed
13 July 1956	Friday morning qualifying	Start time unconfirmed
13 July 1956	Friday additional practice	Start time unconfirmed
14 July 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

Peter Collins arrived at round 6 leading the 1956 F1 World Championship on 19 points, with Jean Behra on 14.

Race entries

BRM returned with Hawthorn, Brooks and Flockhart, while Vanwall welcomed González alongside Schell and Trintignant. Connaught also fielded a substantial home challenge. Ferrari brought Fangio, Collins, Castellotti and de Portago, with Moss leading Maserati and Salvadori among the strongest private entrants.

Thursday timed practice

Cool, dry conditions favoured quick laps. Moss looked comfortable in the Maserati, while Fangio and Collins had to work hard with less settled Ferraris. Salvadori impressed in his private car, and González adapted to Vanwall‘s unfamiliar handling. Connaught suffered an engine failure when Fairman tried Titterington’s car. Official timing rounded laps to whole seconds, limiting meaningful comparisons between closely matched efforts.

Friday morning qualifying

Wet weather prevented the circuit from drying properly, leaving Thursday’s times decisive for the grid. Moss retained pole ahead of Fangio, with Hawthorn and Collins completing the front row. The conditions denied the teams a clean comparison with the previous evening, so the published times should not be read as a complete measure of their dry-weather potential.

Friday additional practice

An extra period was allowed at the end of Friday when time became available. Only a few drivers needed it, but Moss used the opportunity to check his Maserati after an engine change. This additional running is retained separately from the two originally scheduled sessions.

Qualifying Classification

Timed practice set the grid, with Thursday’s dry times surviving Friday’s wet conditions. The official results used whole-second timing. The race was extended to 101 laps to meet the period’s three-hour distance alternative.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Best Time
1	7	Stirling Moss	Maserati	1:41.000
2	1	Juan Manuel Fangio	Ferrari	1:41.0
3	23	Mike Hawthorn	BRM	1:43.0
4	2	Peter Collins	Ferrari	1:43.0
5	16	Harry Schell	Vanwall	1:44.0
6	18	José Froilán González	Vanwall	1:44.0
7	28	Roy Salvadori	Maserati	1:44.0
8	3	Eugenio Castellotti	Ferrari	1:44.0
9	24	Tony Brooks	BRM	1:45.0
10	19	Archie Scott Brown	Connaught	1:45.0
11	20	Desmond Titterington	Connaught	1:46.0
12	4	Alfonso de Portago	Ferrari	1:47.0
13	8	Jean Behra	Maserati	1:47.0
14	31	Horace Gould	Maserati	1:48.0
15	9	Cesare Perdisa	Maserati	1:49.0
16	17	Maurice Trintignant	Vanwall	1:49.0
17	25	Ron Flockhart	BRM	1:49.0
18	15	Robert Manzon	Gordini	1:49.0
19	11	Luigi Villoresi	Maserati	1:50.0
20	29	Bruce Halford	Maserati	1:51.0
21	21	Jack Fairman	Connaught	1:51.0
22	26	Bob Gerard	Cooper	1:53.0
23	32	Paul Emery	Emeryson	1:54.0
24	12	Umberto Maglioli	Maserati	1:54.0
25	10	Paco Godia	Maserati	1:55.0
26	14	Hermano da Silva Ramos	Gordini	1:56.0
27	27	Louis Rosier	Maserati	1:59.0
28	30	Jack Brabham	Maserati	2:01.0

What happened in the 1956 British Grand Prix?

Hawthorn and Brooks launched their BRMs into the lead, exciting the home crowd before Moss worked forward. Fangio lost time with a spin, while Salvadori also ran strongly. Reliability gradually dismantled the British challenge: Hawthorn retired, Brooks crashed after a mechanical failure, and the Vanwalls encountered trouble.

Moss led, but oil stops and declining performance brought Fangio back into contention. Salvadori’s excellent drive ended after tank and fuel-feed problems, while Collins retired his original Ferrari and took over de Portago’s. Fangio gained the lead as Moss’s difficulties worsened, and the Maserati eventually stopped with gearbox trouble.

Fangio won ahead of Collins and de Portago’s shared Ferrari. Behra took third, Fairman fourth for Connaught and Gould fifth in his private Maserati. Moss retained the fastest-lap point despite retiring. It was a costly afternoon for several fast starters, and a valuable championship recovery for Fangio.

After the race, Peter Collins headed the drivers’ standings with 22 points, followed by Juan Manuel Fangio on 21.

1956 British Grand Prix race results

The 1956 British Grand Prix was held on 14 July 1956.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	1	Juan Manuel Fangio	Ferrari	101	2:59:47.0	8
2	4	Alfonso de Portago / Peter Collins	Ferrari	100	+1 Lap	3 / 3
3	8	Jean Behra	Maserati	99	+2 Laps	4
4	21	Jack Fairman	Connaught	98	+3 Laps	3
5	31	Horace Gould	Maserati	97	+4 Laps	2
6	11	Luigi Villoresi	Maserati	96	+5 Laps	0
7	9	Cesare Perdisa	Maserati	95	+6 Laps	0
8	10	Paco Godia	Maserati	94	+7 Laps	0
9	15	Robert Manzon	Gordini	94	+7 Laps	0
10	3	Eugenio Castellotti / Alfonso de Portago	Ferrari	92	+9 Laps	0
11	26	Bob Gerard	Cooper	88	+13 Laps	0
Ret	7	Stirling Moss	Maserati	94	Axle	1
Ret	16	Harry Schell	Vanwall	87	Fuel System	0
Ret	20	Desmond Titterington	Connaught	74	Engine	0
Ret	17	Maurice Trintignant	Vanwall	74	Fuel System	0
Ret	14	Hermano da Silva Ramos	Gordini	71	Axle	0
Ret	2	Peter Collins	Ferrari	64	Oil Pressure	0
Ret	28	Roy Salvadori	Maserati	59	Fuel System	0
Ret	24	Tony Brooks	BRM	39	Accident	0
Ret	23	Mike Hawthorn	BRM	24	Transmission	0
Ret	27	Louis Rosier	Maserati	23	Electrical	0
Ret	29	Bruce Halford	Maserati	22	Engine	0
Ret	12	Umberto Maglioli	Maserati	21	Gearbox	0
Ret	19	Archie Scott Brown	Connaught	16	Transmission	0
Ret	32	Paul Emery	Emeryson	12	Ignition	0
Ret	30	Jack Brabham	Maserati	3	Engine	0
Ret	25	Ron Flockhart	BRM	2	Engine	0
Ret	18	José Froilán González	Vanwall	0	Transmission	0

1 point for fastest lap

1956 British Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time
1	7	Stirling Moss	Maserati	71	1:43.200

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 British Grand Prix.

1956 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Peter Collins	British	Ferrari	22
2	Juan Manuel Fangio	Argentine	Ferrari	21
3	Jean Behra	French	Maserati	18
4	Stirling Moss	British	Maserati	13
5	Pat Flaherty	American	Watson	8
6	Eugenio Castellotti	Italian	Ferrari	7.5
7	Sam Hanks	American	Kurtis Kraft	6
8	Paul Frère	Belgian	Ferrari	6
9	Luigi Musso	Italian	Ferrari	4
10	Mike Hawthorn	British	Maserati / BRM / Vanwall	4
11	Don Freeland	American	Phillips	4
12	Alfonso de Portago	Spanish	Ferrari	3
13	Cesare Perdisa	Italian	Maserati	3
14	Harry Schell	American	Vanwall	3
15	Johnnie Parsons	American	Kurtis Kraft	3
16	Jack Fairman	British	Connaught	3
17	Luigi Villoresi	Italian	Maserati	2
18	Horace Gould	British	Maserati	2
19	Hermano da Silva Ramos	Brazilian	Gordini / Maserati	2
20	Olivier Gendebien	Belgian	Ferrari	2
21	Dick Rathmann	American	Kurtis Kraft	2
22	Gerino Gerini	Italian	Maserati	1.5
23	Chico Landi	Brazilian	Maserati	1.5
24	Paul Russo	American	Kurtis Kraft	1
—	André Pilette	Belgian	Gordini / Ferrari	0
—	Louis Rosier	French	Maserati	0
—	Óscar González	Uruguayan	Maserati	0
—	Alberto Uria	Uruguayan	Maserati	0
—	Élie Bayol	French	Gordini	0
—	Bob Sweikert	American	Kuzma	0
—	Paco Godia	Spanish	Maserati	0
—	Bob Veith	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Rodger Ward	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Robert Manzon	French	Gordini	0
—	Jimmy Reece	American	Lesovsky	0
—	Cliff Griffith	American	Stevens	0
—	Gene Hartley	American	Kuzma	0
—	Bob Gerard	British	Cooper	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
—	Maurice Trintignant	French	Vanwall / Bugatti	0
—	Carlos Menditeguy	Argentine	Maserati	0
—	José Froilán González	Argentine	Maserati / Vanwall	0
—	André Simon	French	Maserati	0
—	Piero Scotti	Italian	Connaught	0
—	Desmond Titterington	British	Connaught	0
—	Tony Brooks	British	BRM	0
—	Louis Chiron	Monegasque	Maserati	0
—	Roy Salvadori	British	Maserati	0
—	Jim Rathmann	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Colin Chapman	British	Vanwall	0
—	Johnnie Tolan	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Tony Bettenhausen	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Bruce Halford	British	Maserati	0
—	Ed Elisian	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Eddie Russo	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Umberto Maglioli	Italian	Maserati	0
—	Jimmy Daywalt	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Archie Scott Brown	British	Connaught	0
—	Jack Turner	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Paul Emery	British	Emeryson	0
—	Keith Andrews	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Jack Brabham	Australian	Maserati	0
—	Andy Linden	American	Kurtis Kraft	0
—	Ron Flockhart	British	BRM	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