1950 British Grand Prix
Sunny, 18°C
Race Results
Podium Finishers
1
Giuseppe Farina
Alfa Romeo
2:13:23.6
2
Juan Manuel Fangio
Alfa Romeo
+2.6s
3
Reg Parnell
Alfa Romeo
+52.0s
Pole Position
Giuseppe Farina
Giuseppe Farina
Fastest Lap
Giuseppe Farina
Giuseppe Farina
Race Notes
- First ever F1 World Championship race in history
- King George VI and Queen Elizabeth attended the race
- Only 21 cars started the race
- Average speed was just 94.6 mph - my grandmother drives faster!
- Race distance was 70 laps, 202.3 miles
F1ABY Humor
The cars were so slow, spectators could actually count the spokes on the wheels!
Pit stops took 2 minutes - mainly because they had to wind up the car again!
Giuseppe Farina's victory celebration lasted longer than some modern F1 races!
The most advanced technology was probably the stopwatch used for timing!
Race Trivia
This was the very first F1 World Championship race
The race was held on the same day as the FA Cup Final
Alfa Romeo took the first 1-2-3 finish in F1 history
The grid was determined by practice times, not qualifying
Prize money for the winner was £500 (about £20,000 today)
F1ABY's Take
Well folks, here we are at the very first Formula 1 World Championship race! Giuseppe Farina took the win, probably wondering if this whole F1 thing would catch on. Little did he know he was starting something that would make people argue about tire strategies for the next 75 years! The cars were so slow by today's standards that spectators could actually read the driver's names on their helmets. Imagine that luxury today!