1956 Monaco Grand Prix: F1 Race, Qualifying & Winners

Stirling Moss led every lap of the 1956 Monaco Grand Prix, holding off Juan Manuel Fangio‘s late charge to take a memorable Maserati victory. Fangio recovered through a change of Ferrari, but Moss kept enough in hand despite damage late in the race.

Result	Driver / Time	Team
Pole position	Juan Manuel Fangio	Ferrari
Pole time	1:44.000
Fastest lap	Juan Manuel Fangio	Ferrari
Fastest-lap time	1:44.400 on lap 100
First	Stirling Moss	Maserati
Second	Peter Collins / Juan Manuel Fangio	Ferrari
Third	Jean Behra	Maserati

Weekend Schedule

Date	Session	Local Time
10 May 1956	Thursday timed practice	16:00–18:00
11 May 1956	Friday timed practice	05:45
12 May 1956	Saturday final qualifying	05:45–08:15
13 May 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 2 leading the 1956 F1 World Championship on 6 points, with Juan Manuel Fangio on 5.

Race entries

The organisers accepted eighteen entries for a maximum sixteen-car field. BRM brought Hawthorn and Brooks, but engine valve problems eventually forced both cars to withdraw. Ferrari and Maserati led the challenge, with Vanwall and Gordini also present. Chiron’s engine failures and Scarlatti’s lack of qualifying speed further reduced the starting field.

Thursday timed practice

A sharper harbour chicane slowed the cars compared with the previous year. Moss tried Maserati‘s fuel-injection car but preferred the carburettor version, while Vanwall and BRM found their gearing unsuitable for the hairpins. Ferrari‘s drivers shared two available cars. Fangio ended quickest, with Schell showing encouraging Vanwall pace and Moss unable to catch the Ferrari in a late attempt.

Friday timed practice

The early start drew a smaller field, with the works Maseratis absent. Collins set the best time of the morning, narrowly ahead of Trintignant. BRM‘s problems persisted, while Gordini shared its available cars among its drivers. Chiron’s Maserati suffered a serious engine failure, leaving his team facing substantial repairs before the final session.

Saturday final qualifying

Fangio overcame a loose bonnet to improve to 1:44.0 and secure pole. Moss remained quicker in the carburettor Maserati, while Schell had clutch trouble and Bayol damaged a Gordini at the chicane. Another engine failure ended Chiron’s hopes. BRM subsequently withdrew both cars, leaving fourteen starters despite the organisers’ intended sixteen-car limit.

Qualifying Classification

The best timed-practice lap established the grid, with a maximum sixteen starters. Withdrawals reduced the actual field to fourteen. Drivers could change cars during the race, but could score finishing points only from their highest-placed car.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Best Time
1	20	Juan Manuel Fangio	Ferrari	1:44.000
2	28	Stirling Moss	Maserati	1:44.6
3	22	Eugenio Castellotti	Ferrari	1:44.9
4	30	Jean Behra	Maserati	1:45.3
5	16	Harry Schell	Vanwall	1:45.6
6	14	Maurice Trintignant	Vanwall	1:45.6
7	32	Cesare Perdisa	Maserati	1:46.0
8	24	Luigi Musso	Ferrari	1:46.8
9	26	Peter Collins	Ferrari	1:47.0
10	10	Mike Hawthorn	BRM	1:49.3
11	4	Élie Bayol	Gordini	1:50.0
12	2	Robert Manzon	Gordini	1:50.3
13	12	Tony Brooks	BRM	1:50.4
14	6	Hermano da Silva Ramos	Gordini	1:50.6
15	8	Louis Rosier	Maserati	1:51.6
16	18	Horace Gould	Maserati	1:51.7
DNQ	36	Giorgio Scarlatti	Ferrari	2:09.1
WD	34	Louis Chiron	Maserati	No time

What happened in the 1956 Monaco Grand Prix?

Moss seized the lead at the first corner and never relinquished it. Fangio struck the straw bales early, with Schell and Musso retiring while trying to avoid him. A later brush with the harbour wall damaged Fangio’s Ferrari, which Castellotti took over after repairs.

Collins handed his second Ferrari to Fangio, who resumed behind Behra and fought through to second. Moss still held a substantial lead, but contact with Perdisa while lapping him loosened the Maserati‘s bonnet. Fangio began closing rapidly, turning a comfortable afternoon into a tense finish.

Moss held on by six seconds. Collins and Fangio shared second, Behra finished third, and Castellotti brought the other shared Ferrari home fourth. Fangio earned points from second place and fastest lap, but no additional share of fourth. Hermano da Silva Ramos completed the points positions for Gordini.

After the race, Jean Behra headed the drivers’ standings with 10 points, followed by Juan Manuel Fangio on 9.

1956 Monaco Grand Prix race results

The 1956 Monaco Grand Prix was held on 13 May 1956.

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Laps	Time / Retired	Pts.
1	28	Stirling Moss	Maserati	100	3:00:32.9	8
2	26	Peter Collins / Juan Manuel Fangio	Ferrari	100	+6.1 sec	3 / 4
3	30	Jean Behra	Maserati	99	+1 Lap	4
4	20	Juan Manuel Fangio / Eugenio Castellotti	Ferrari	94	+6 Laps	0 / 1.5
5	6	Hermano da Silva Ramos	Gordini	93	+7 Laps	2
6	4	Élie Bayol / André Pilette	Gordini	88	+12 Laps	0
7	32	Cesare Perdisa	Maserati	86	+14 Laps	0
8	18	Horace Gould	Maserati	85	+15 Laps	0
Ret	2	Robert Manzon	Gordini	90	Accident	0
Ret	8	Louis Rosier	Maserati	72	Engine	0
Ret	22	Eugenio Castellotti	Ferrari	14	Clutch	0
Ret	14	Maurice Trintignant	Vanwall	13	Overheating	0
Ret	16	Harry Schell	Vanwall	2	Accident	0
Ret	24	Luigi Musso	Ferrari	2	Accident	0
DNQ	36	Giorgio Scarlatti	Ferrari			0
WD	10	Mike Hawthorn	BRM		Engine Valve	0
WD	12	Tony Brooks	BRM		Engine Valve	0
WD	34	Louis Chiron	Maserati		Blown Engine	0

Includes 1 point for fastest lap

Fangio scored no points for fourth place as he had already scored points for finishing second

1956 Monaco Grand Prix Fastest Laps

Pos.	No.	Driver	Team	Lap	Time
1	26	Juan Manuel Fangio	Ferrari	100	1:44.400

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 Monaco Grand Prix.

1956 Post-Race F1 Drivers' Championship Standings

POS	Driver	Nationality	Car	PTS
1	Jean Behra	French	Maserati	10
2	Juan Manuel Fangio	Argentine	Ferrari	9
3	Stirling Moss	British	Maserati	8
4	Luigi Musso	Italian	Ferrari	4
5	Mike Hawthorn	British	Maserati / BRM	4
6	Peter Collins	British	Ferrari	3
7	Olivier Gendebien	Belgian	Ferrari	2
8	Hermano da Silva Ramos	Brazilian	Gordini	2
9	Eugenio Castellotti	Italian	Ferrari	1.5
10	Gerino Gerini	Italian	Maserati	1.5
11	Chico Landi	Brazilian	Maserati	1.5
—	Óscar González	Uruguayan	Maserati	0
—	Alberto Uria	Uruguayan	Maserati	0
—	Élie Bayol	French	Gordini	0
—	André Pilette	Belgian	Gordini	0
—	Cesare Perdisa	Italian	Maserati	0
—	Horace Gould	British	Maserati	0
—	Luigi Piotti	Italian	Maserati	0
—	Robert Manzon	French	Gordini	0
—	Carlos Menditeguy	Argentine	Maserati	0
—	Louis Rosier	French	Maserati	0
—	José Froilán González	Argentine	Maserati	0
—	Maurice Trintignant	French	Vanwall	0
—	Harry Schell	American	Vanwall	0
—	Tony Brooks	British	BRM	0
—	Louis Chiron	Monegasque	Maserati	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