The Golden Age - 1907 to 1928
Italians Take the Lead
1907 was the year of the Italians. Taking to the field with cars from Fiat, Itala and Isotta-Fraschini they managed to win most of the major races and finally break the domination of the French. The second French Grand Prix, again organised by the ACF, was staged under a new set of rules based on fuel consumption. This effectively put a stop to the ongoing quest for ever larger engines that had seen the cars moving away from their road-going counterparts. Despite this move the race was still contested by huge beasts equipped with engines of between 12 and 17 litres!1907 saw Germany stage the first of the Kaiserpreis races. Racing cars were not permitted, only touring cars with engines of under eight litres. The competition generated great interest and the entry list grew to such an extent that the German Automobile Club (ADAC) had to run a series of elimination heats. The race eventually won by Felice Nazzaro in a Fiat. That year Nazzaro also won the French Grand Prix and the Targa Florio. Two new races were also born in 1907. The Coppa Florio, held near Brescia in Italy, was run along the lines of the Kaiserpreis and saw Ferdinando Minoia winning in a Isotta-Fraschini. The other major event was a race sponsored by the Paris newspaper Le Matin. Run from Peking to Paris this 15,000 kilometre event took cars through some of the worst terrain Asia and Europe could throw at them. The race was won by an Itala driven by Prince Scipone Borghese, journalist Luigi Barzini and Ettore Guizzardi, the mechanic. They finished the course in exactly two months. A further two months were to pass before the second placed car arrived back in Paris, thus making for the largest ever winning margin in a road race! |
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Racing Comes to Britain
Despite the success of British drivers in the early races the sport was still in its infancy across the Channel. Racing on public roads was still illegal in England and as a result British drivers were forced to race on the continent or in Ireland, as in the Gordon Bennett race of 1903. This had an adverse affect on the local motor industry and in attempt to kick-start it, Hugh Locke-King, aided by a group of wealthy friends proposed the construction of a purpose built circuit. The result was the impressive Brooklands track, a huge oval circuit with banked corners. Work was completed in 1907 and the world had its first purpose built race-track. Other nations would soon follow suit. |
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Long Distance Racing
The racing season of 1908 began on May 18th with the Targa Florio. Despite leading early on Nazzaro was pipped to the post by Trucco in an Isotta-Frachini in a little under 8 hours. At the same time an important first took place when motor sport arrived in Russia. A race was run between St Petersburg and Moscow, a distance of around 500 miles. Hémery won in a Benz.
For 1908 the ACF Grand Prix opted to remain in Dieppe but changed the rules yet again forcing a minimum weight of 1100kg and a maximum bore size on the engines. The race ended in victory for Christian Lautenschlager in a Mercedes. The Paris-Peking race of 1907 was superceded in distance with the ambitious New York-Paris race sponsored again by Le Matin. The route took the drivers from Times Square in New York to San Francisco and then up to Alaska. From there the cars were transported by ship to Japan, after crossing which, they re-embarked for the voyage to Vladivostok. From there it was onto Peking, St Petersburg and Berlin before the final home stretch returned them to Paris. Much controversy ensued as various competitors made claims that other teams had used rail travel for part of journey. In the end it was announced that the American crew of Schuster, Roberts and Williams, driving a Thomas, were the winners. This was also a period in which the 24 hour race became more and more common, especially in the US which staged no less than seven such races in 1907 alone.
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Economic Problems
From 1909 onwards there was a marked reduction in the number of races being staged. Economic depression seriously affected the European motor industry and several major manufacturers withdrew from racing. Most notable was Renault who did not rejoin the top line motor sport until 1977. The decision by the ACF to change the formula again resulted in most of the major manufacturers withdrawing. The cost of trying to stay ahead of the constant changes were too great for many of them. As a result the 1909 race was cancelled and in fact, did not run again until 1912.
The depression had less impact in the USA and racing entered a period of rapid expansion. American drivers had spent the first twenty years of racing being totally dominated by their European counterparts. Things started to change in 1909 with the opening of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. The spectators loved it from the start. Not only could they see the entire track at the same time, the design made for extremely competitive and exciting racing. The racing promoters agreed with them. Crowds could at last be controlled and charged an entry fee. Oval circuits sprung up all over the US and by 1917 the American Automobile Association was staging the national championship races exclusively on such circuits.
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The Advent of War
The ACF managed to stage another race in 1912 and in an attempt to attract more entrants they abandoned the idea of a fixed formula and virtually any car was permitted to enter. For the first time in several years victory went to a Frenchman; Georges Boillot in a Peugeot L76. This heralded something of a renaissance for France and Peugeot went from strength to strength. They scored wins in the 1913 Indianapolis 500 and the ACF Grand Prix, staged on the Amiens circuit.
By now it was common knowledge that Europe was slipping towards war and it is perhaps not surprising that several nations attempted to make political capital out of motor racing. The most blatant attempt came at the 1914 ACF Grand Prix which took place on July 5th on a circuit near to Lyon. A total of 37 cars were entered including five Mercedes and three Peugeots. One of the Mercedes was driven by Max Sailer, a Mercedes director. He had the task of heading off the French opposition and managed to lead for the first few laps. On lap six Boillot took over the lead when Sailer developed engine trouble. He led until lap seventeen when Lautenschlager took his Mercedes into the lead, by which time his countrymen Wagner and Salzer had moved into third and fourth place. On the very last lap Boillot's engine overheated and he was forced to retire. The race finished with a 1-2-3 for Mercedes and not a member of the crowd applauded.
The ACF race was the last major event before the war swept across Europe. The roar of engines fell away to be replaced with the sound of cannon fire. They did not return for almost seven years.
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Racing Returns
The war inflicted serious damage on the sport as shown in 1921 when at the French Grand Prix the Europeans were overwhelmed by the visiting Americans. However all was not lost, as during the war engineers had learned a lot and European cars were soon experiencing some incredible technological advances. Overhead camshafts and supercharged engines soon became the norm and the gulf between European and American style racing grew ever wider. The dominant forces were the Italian outfits of Fiat and Alfa Romeo, although Britain fought back on occasion with fine wins for the likes of Henry Seagrave in his Sunbeam.
The twenties saw a massive swing towards small purpose built circuits such as Monza which opened in 1922. The following year Spain opened the door to the racing world with the banked circuit of Sitges. Between 1921 and 1927 the number of Grands Prix increased steadily each year with races being run in France, Italy, Spain, Britain and Belgium. Rule changes were also introduced such as the banning of riding mechanics in 1925. That was also the year where the first attempt at a World Championship was made. Organisers nominated the Belgian, French and Italian Grands Prix as championship events along with the Indianapolis 500. This was a contest between manufacturers and Alfa Romeo were the first to take the laurels. In 1926 the title went to Bugatti whose stunning T39 model proved very hard to beat. The 1927 title went to Delahaye and then for 1928 the rules governing racing were relaxed and the sport entered the era of Formula Libre. |
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