Hello Monaco #09 Spring–Summer 2020 | Page 59

FORMULA 1
PAST AND FUTURE OF FORMULA 1
The very first driver to win the F1 was Giuseppe
«Nino» Farina in 1950; and the most
recent driver to score their first Grand Prix
win was Monaco’s very own Charles Leclerc,
who took his first win at the 2019 Belgian
Grand Prix.
F1’s 70th anniversary season had all the elements
lined up for a record-breaking 22 race
calendar, which was to begin with the Australian
Grand Prix in Melbourne in mid-March and
ending with the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix at the
Yas Marina Circuit on 29 November. Then the
Coronavirus pandemic surprised the world
and turned everything upside-down including
the most glamorous Grand Prix of the F1
Calendar, the F1 race in Monte-Carlo, whose
May 2020 date was one of the many casualties
of the pandemic. Ferrari were particularly wellpositioned
for Monaco 2020 with the line-up of
Sebastian Vettel (#5) and Charles Leclerc (#16)
who was chafing at the bit to add Monaco to
that historic win of his in Monza, Italy. Being
Monegasque to win Monaco and in a Ferrari
would be ... well there are no words!
At the moment as the pandemic reaches its
peak and hopefully soon recedes globally,
Formula 1 has decided to bring forward the
traditional break in the racing season in the
summer to the forced March/April «Coronavirus
break». So this leaves the summer open to
race if with good fortune the pandemic does
recede in the many host countries involved.
Formula 1 anticipates the season end date will
extend beyond the original end date of 27–
29th November, with the actual sequence and
schedule dates for races obviously differing
significantly from the original 2020 calendar.
«MR. MONACO» AND FUN FACTS
ABOUT THE VERY FIRST F1
The very first Monaco Grand Prix occurred
back in 1929, so it was already well-established
when it was included in the first F1
season (then called the World Championship
of Drivers) in 1950. Graham Hill was crowned
«Mr. Monaco» due to his five Monaco wins
in the 1960s. Ayrton Senna won the Monte-
Carlo race six times, more times than any
other driver, winning five races consecutively
between 1989 and 1993.
Nino Farina, the winner of the very first race in Silverstone in 1950 and the first
official F1 World Champion
THE MOST RECENT DRIVER
TO SCORE THEIR FIRST
GRAND PRIX WIN WAS
MONACO’S VERY OWN
CHARLES LECLERC, WHO
TOOK HIS FIRST WIN AT THE
2019 BELGIAN GRAND PRIX.
21 drivers took part in the big race, including
a Thai prince! Prince Birabongse Bhanudej
© http://parabolike.com/
Bhanubandh, better known as Prince Bira, a notable
racing driver, qualified his Maserati fifth at
Silverstone but retired in the race when he ran
out of fuel. Prince Bira went on to have quite
a successful racing career. In January 1955, he
won the New Zealand Grand Prix at Ardmore
and retired at the end of that season. Revving
his engine next to the prince, a well-known jazz
musician also took part in the inaugural world
championship: Johnny Claes. The Belgian driver
qualified his Talbot dead last at Silverstone, but
managed to finish in 11th place. And without
any doubt, one of the most famous persons
among the drivers was Louis Chiron, the great
Monégasque champion, one of the creators of
the Monaco Grand Prix. His performance driving
a Maserati in Silverstone was unsuccessful
but just a few days later in Monte-Carlo «The
Old Fox» Chiron won third place.
© pixabay.com
The first world championship race was
held at Silverstone, UK on 13 May. An estimated
120,000 spectators lined the track
on race day. King George VI met the drivers
before the big race and watched the
championship with Queen Elizabeth and
Princess Margaret. That fateful day remains
the only time a reigning monarch has ever
attended a British motor race.
Hello Monaco Spring–Summer 2020 / 57
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