1955 12 Hours of Sebring

Sports car endurance race August 2023 thumb|275px|Sebring International Raceway in 1952-1966 The 1955 Florida International Twelve Hour Grand Prix of Endurance took place on 13 March, on the Sebring International Raceway (Florida, United States). It was the second round of the F.I.A. World Sports Car Championship. For the fifth running of the event, the 5.2 mile course had been widened and smoothed with a new asphalt topping laid down. This was for safety and would allow the cars to achieve greater speed, especially in some of the corners. Report Entry A massive total of 124 racing cars were registered for this event, of which 101 arrived for practice, trying to get among the 80 qualifiers for the race. Despite the size of the entry, the event was not supported by the major European teams. In January, the Mercedes-Benz team with Fangio, Stirling Moss and two Germans had taken part in two of the three racing events in Argentina, Fangio winning the GP F1 race and the 1955 Buenos Aires Grand Prix Formula Libre race using the new 3.0 engine of the upcoming Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR, but the new sports car was not ready yet, neither for the 1955 1000 km Buenos Aires nor for Sebring. Moss, who had piloted an Osca to victory in 1954, was allowed to race for another brand, with fellow Englishman Lance Macklin in a factory entry from England, for Donald Healey Motor Co.. Two cars came from France for Regie Renault Co., who include Robert Manzon amongst their squad. With no factory Ferrari entry to defend the championship lead earned by private 1-2 win in Argentine, they were supported by the private entries of Allen Guiberson and Luigi Chinetti.http://www.wsrp.ic.cz/wsc1955.html World Sports Racing Prototypes - World Championship 1955 2015-01-21 https://web.archive.org/web/20150222005142/http://wsrp.ic.cz/wsc1955.html 2015-02-22 dead Briggs Cunningham returned after winning in 1954, with five cars from five different manufacturers. One of those cars was a factory-supported Jaguar D-Type for Phil Walters and Mike Hawthorn. Cunningham himself was entered in a new Offenhauser-powered Cunningham C-6R with John Gordon Bennett.June 2021 There were a dozen different countries represented in the field, including the teams from Mexico and Venezuela. The later had Chester "Chet" Flynn leading their effort, while the Mexicans had a two car team with Fred T. Van Beuren and Carlos Braniff leading their charge. The race saw its first Hollywood movie star, as Jackie Cooper was listed to pilot an Austin-Healey 100S.June 2021 Miss Isabelle Haskell was to become the first woman to compete, not only in the 12 Hours of Sebring – but in any American Automobile Association sanctioned race. Although the AAA did not allow ladies drivers, Haskell discovered that there was no such restriction placed on 'foreign races'. By race day, another woman had signed up to drive in the race, Greta Oakes was listed to take the wheel with her husband, Sydney Oakes.June 2021 Race The race was held over 12 hours on the 5.2 miles Sebring International Raceway. An estimated 20,000 spectators showed on a warm and sunny raceday. With the race starting promptly at 10am, 80 cars scrambled for positions. Meanwhile, six drivers who were unhappy at not being allowed to start, decided to go on the track at the start, they did one or two laps and then got off the track. Statistics show that the Hawthorn/Walter's Jaguar D-Type led all but one of the 182 completed laps, That single lap, a Ferrari 750 Monza of Piero Taruffi and Harry Schell were able take to the front for lap 32.http://www.mistermedia20.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=52:sebring-1955&catid=29:the-history&itemid=3 https://archive.today/20150121233536/http://www.mistermedia20.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=52:sebring-1955&catid=29:the-history&itemid=3 dead 2015-01-21 Sebring 1955 archive.vn January 21, 2015 June 12, 2020http://www.sebringraceway.com/track-info/sebring-urban-legends Sebring Urban Legends: Fact or Fiction? – Sebring Raceway As darkness fell on the former Hendricks Army Airfield, the race ended in confusion. At one point, the Ferrari of Phil Hill and Carroll Shelby were declared winners, then it was the D-Type. The Jag was called to the winner's circle, only to run out of fuel during the victory lap. The former Le Mans winner, Luigi Chinetti, the Ferrari representative from New York protested the result, which was counter-protected by the Jaguar owner, Briggs Cunningham. Cunningham insisted that the D-Type had passed the Ferrari. The owner of the Ferrari, Allen Guiberson demanded that the D-Type should be disqualified, as it passed the Ferrari under a yellow flag. Cunningham countered the Index of Performance Trophy should not have been handed to Hill/Shelby, when in fact it should have gone to the Osca driven by Bill Lloydhttps://www.racingsportscars.com/driver/Bill-Lloyd-USA.html Bill Lloyd (USA) - Racing Sports Cars Racingsportscars.com June 12, 2020 and George Huntoon.https://www.racingsportscars.com/driver/George-Huntoon-USA.html George Huntoon (USA) - Racing Sports Cars Racingsportscars.com June 12, 2020 The AAA contest board called a meeting on 21 March to make a final decision. They inspected the records of Cunningham and Guiberson, and that of race timekeeper, Joe Lane. The AAA declared the Jaguar had won by a margin of ten seconds. Although Cunningham had won the race, his protest was disallowed and Ferrari was ruled the handicap winners under the Index of Performance. This was due to an admission by Ferrari team chief, Nello Ugolini had forgotten to count a lap. As a result, Walters became the first driver to win the Grand Prix of Endurance twice – having co-driven a Cunningham-Chrysler C4-R to victory with John Fitch in the 1953 race. The winning D-Type covered 182 laps (946.4 miles), averaging a speed of 79.300 mph. The podium was complete by William Spear's Maserati 300S, which he co-drove with Sherwood Johnston albeit two laps adrift. Elsewhere, Cooper managed to finish the race in 41st, Haskell did not. She went out with an apparent engine problem. The Oakes' Austin-Healey also failed to finish, after being involved in an accident. Official Classification thumb|Sebring in 1955 Class Winners are in Bold text. Pos No ClassDriver Entrant Chassis Laps Reason Out 1st 19 S5.0 GBR Mike Hawthorn USA Phil Walters B. S. Cunningham Jaguar D-Type 12hr 00:00.0, 182 2nd 25 S3.0 USA Phil Hill USA Carroll Shelby Allen Guiberson Ferrari 750 Monza Spyder 182 3rd 35 S3.0 USA William Spear USA Sherwood Johnston William C. Spear Maserati 300S 180 4th 36 S3.0 Italy Gino Valenzano Italy Cesare Perdisa Maserati Co. & B. S. Cunningham Maserati 300S 178 5th 28 S3.0 Italy Piero Taruffi USA Harry Schell Luigi Chinetti Ferrari 750 Monza 177 6th 44 S3.0 GBR Stirling Moss GBR Lance Macklin Donald Healey Motor Co. Austin-Healey 100S 176 7th 64 S1.5 USA Bill Lloyd USA George Huntoon B. S. Cunningham Osca MT4 1450 168 8th 68 S1.5 West Germany Huschke von Hanstein West Germany Herbert Linge Porsche Co. & B. S. Cunningham Porsche 550 Spyder 166 9th63 S1.5 Mexico Carlos Braniff Mexico Javier Velasquez Carlos Braniff CornejoOsca MT4 1500 166 10th 15 S5.0 USA Charles Wallace USA Dick Thompson Jack Pry Jaguar XK140 163 11th 61 S1.5 USA Bob Davis USA Candy Poole Robert H. Davis Porsche 550 Spyder 163 12th 14 S5.0 USA Russ Boss USA Jake Kaplan Jacob Kaplan Jaguar C-Type 162 13th 5 S8.0 USA Ray Crawford Ray Crawford Kurtis Kraft-Lincoln 500K 161 14th 70 S1.5 USA Ed Crawford USA John Urbas Fed Crawford Porsche 550 Spyder 161 15th 45 S3.0 USA William Brewster USA Bill Rutan Wm. Brewster Austin-Healey 100S 160 16th 40 S3.0 USA Bill Cook USA Steve Lansing Hobart A. H. Cook Austin-Healey 100S 156 17th 12 S5.0 USA Roger Wing USA Loyal Katskee Loyal Katskee Jaguar C-Type 156 18th 60 S2.0 USA John Panks USA Ernie Erickson S. H. Arnolt Arnolt Bolide Bristol 154 19th 4 S8.0 USA Bull Murphy USA Sam Hanks B. Murphy Kurtis Kraft-Buick 500K 153 20th 17 S5.0 USA M. R. J. Wyllie USA Leech Cracraft Dr. M. R. J. WyllieJaguar XK140 152 21st 31 S3.0 USA Harry Woodnorth USA Rees Makins Rees T. Makins & Herman Rutson Mercedes-Benz 300SL 152 22nd 38 S3.0 USA Joe Giubardo USA Fred Wolf Joseph Giubardo Austin-Healey 100M 152 23rd 81 S1.1 USA Paul O'Shea USA Fritz Koster Hoffmann Porsche Corp. Porsche 550 152 24th 39 S3.0 USA William Wonder USA William Wellenberg, Jr. Wm. Wellenberg, Jr. Austin-Healey 100M 151 25th 59 S2.0 USA S. H. Arnolt USA Bob Goldich S. H. Arnolt Arnolt Bolide Bristol 151 DISQ 79 S1.1 USA Frank Miller USA George Rabe Frank Miller Lotus-Climax Mark IX 150 pushed across the finish line 26th 18 S5.0 USA George Rice USA Bob Grossman Dr. Dolph Vilardi Jaguar XK140 149 27th 55 S2.0 USA Mike Rothschild USA Harold Kunz M. G. Rothschild Morgan-Triumph Plus 4 149 28th 48 S3.0 USA Jim Feld USA Bob Ballenger Brooks Stevens Excalibur J Willys 148 29th 58 S2.0 France René Dreyfus USA Robert Grier S. H. Arnolt Arnolt Bolide Bristol 148 30th 52 S2.0 USA John Weitz USA Gordon MacKenzie John Weitz Morgan-Triumph Plus 4 145 31st 84 S1.1 USA John Penn USA William Wierdon John S. Penn Siata-Fiat 300BC 145 32nd 43 S3.0 Canada 1921 James Fergusson Canada 1921 Rowland Keith Jas, F. Fergusson Austin-Healey 100S 143 33rd 57 S2.0 USA John Norwood USA Don Vitale John H. Horwood Arnolt Bolide Bristol 141 34th 69 S1.5 USA GuyAtkins USA Trevor McKenna Guy Atkins Porsche 356 1300 Coupe 141 35th 32 S3.0 Venezuela 1954 Chester Flynn Venezuela 1954 Ed Munoz Chester Fkynn Mercedes-Benz 300SL 139 36th 75 S1.5 USA Hubert BrundageUSA Al DuPree USA Howard Fowler H. L. Brundage Porsche 356 1300 Coupe 139 37th 9 S5.0 USA Fred Scherer USA Don Davis, Jr. Fred G. Scherer Ford Thunderbird 138 DISQ 80 S1.1 USA John Bentley USA Jim McGee John Bentley Abarth 207A Spyder 150 refuelling on track 38th 76 S1.5 USA David Ash USA Duncan Black David Ash MG TF 137 39th 77 S1.5 USA Jack Ryan USA Buel Kinne John E. Ryan MG 135 40th 8 S5.0 Mexico Fred van Beuren USA Eugene Towie Fred T. VanBeuren Van Bueren-Chrysler Special 131 41st 42 S3.0 USA Jackie Cooper USA Roy Jackson-Moore Jack Cooper Austin-Healey 100S 131 42nd 67 S1.5 USA Evans Hunt USA Howard Hanna Howard Hanna Porsche 550 Spyder 130 DNF 54 S2.0 USA Tom Friedmann USA Karl Brocken T.A. Fredmann Maserati 300 AG 129 Gearbox 43rd 50 S2.0 GBR Tony Palmer-MorewoodUSA Masten Gregory USA Gleb Derujinsky Ecurie Yankee Ferrari 500 Mondial 124 44th 88 S750 USA E. C. Miller USA Curtis Attaway Int. Auto Sales Co. Renault 1063 124 DNF 87 S750 France Louis PonsFrance Jean Hébert France Robert Manzon Regie Renault Co. Renault 1063 121 Engine DNF 72 S1.5 USA Norman Christianson USA Don McKnought Norman Christianson Porsche 550 Spyder 119 Brakes DNF 82 S1.1 USA Austin Conley USA LeRoy Thorpe Austin L. Conley Siata-Fiat 300BC 112 unknown DNF S2.0 USA David Mott USA Don Skogmo John F. Ellwood Triumph TR2 111 Head gasket DNF S1.1 USA Norman Scott USA Robert W. Samuelson Bobbie Burns & Norman J. Scott, Jr. Lotus-Climax Mark IX 109 Accident 45th 3 S8.0 USA Walt Gray USA Paul Ceresole Walter Gray Allard-Chrysler J2X 104 DNF 24 S3.0 USA Ernie McAfee USA Howard Wheeler Wm. H. Doheny Ferrari 750 Monza 99 unknown DNF 100 S2.0 USA Jim Pauley USA David Michaels James E. PauleySiata 208 CS Balbo 96 Transmission DNF 29 S3.0 USA Sterling Edwards USA Chuck Daigh Manfredo Lippmann Ferrari 750 Monza 88 Engine DNF 73 S1.5 USA Otto Linton USA Hal Stetson Speedcraft Enterprises Osca MT4 1450 83 Unknown 46th 16 S5.0 USA Fred Dagavar USA Al Garz Fred Dagavar Jaguar XK120 73 DNF 83 S1.1 USA Dick Irish USA Isabelle Haskell Isabelle Haskell Bandini Fiat 67 Engine DNF 71 S1.5 USA Richard Toland USA Stan Hoffstein Richard H. R. Toland Denzel-Volkswagen 1300 Super 61 Unknown DNF 41 S3.0 USA William Milliken, Jr. USA Lester Smalley Bill Milliken Austin-Healey 100 60 Engine DNF 74 S1.5 USA Walt Hansgen USA William Eager George E. Tilp Osca MT4 1350 58 Rear Axle DNF 37 S3.0 USA Briggs Cunningham USA John Gordon Bennett B. S. Cunningham Cunningham C-6R 54 Gearbox DNF 26 S3.0 Spain 1945 Alfonso de Portago Italy Umberto Maglioli Marquis de Portago Ferrari 750 Monza 53 Gearbox DNF 47 S3.0 USA Hal Ullrich USA Robert Grey Brooks Stevens Excalibur J Willys 50 Engine DNF 46 S3.0 USA Gus Ehrman USA Fred Allen Fred F. Allen Austin-Healey 100S 47 Oil leak DNF 49 S3.0 Bahamas 1953 Sydney Oakes Bahamas 1953 Greta Oakes Sir Sydney Oakes Austin-Healey 100M 44 Accident DNF 89 S750 USA Sandy MacArthur USA Paul Gougelman Sandy MacArthur Bandini-Mercury Outboard 34 Engine DNF 66 S1.5 USA Phil Stewart USA Ted Boynton Philip B. Stewart Osca MT4 1500 33 Accident damage DNF 65 S1.5 USA Harry Chapman USA William Ball Harry A. Chapman Osca MT4 1500 18 Unknown DNF 7 S5.0 USA Jim Kimberly USA Ed Lunken James Kimberly Ferrari 375 Plus 18 Rear axle DNF 33 S3.0 Venezuela 1954 Julio Pola Venezuela 1954 Pancho Croquer Pancho P. Croquer Mercedes-Benz 300SL 17 Out of fuel DNF 53 S2.0 Dominican Republic Porfirio Rubirosa USA Cal Niday Porfirio Rubirosa Ferrari 500 Mondial 14 Accident DNF 2 S8.0 USA Andy Rosenberger USA Charles Cowdin A. Rosenberger Nash-Healey Le Mans 14 Gearbox DNF 85 S1.1 USA Bret Hannaway USA Raymond Osborne Dr. Raymond Osborne Kieft-Fiat Sport 10 Engine DNF 11 S5.0 USA Jack McAfee USA Bob Drake Tony Parravano Ferrari 375 MM 5 Fuel fire DNF 1 S8.0 USA Jack Ensley USA Jim Rathmann Jack Ensley Kurits Kraft-Cadillac 500 3 Engine DNF 27 S3.0 USA Bob Said USA Masten Gregory Ecurie Yankee Ferrari 750 Monza 3 Collision with ambulance DNF 86 S750 France Jean Rédélé France Louis Pons Regie Renault Co. Renault 1063 2 Accident DNF 86 S750 USA John Shakespeare Guatemala Manfredo Lippmann J. W. Shakespeare Ferrari 375 MM 0 Electrics DNS 6 S5.0 USA Walter F. Huggler USA John B. Mull John B. Mull Jaguar XK120 Reserve DNS 12A S5.0 Venezuela 1954 Reina Morales Venezuela 1954 Ed Munoz Chester J. Flynn Ferrari 340 America Accident in practice DNS 21P S1.5 USA Art Bunker Art Bunker Porsche 500 Spyder DNS 29T S3.0 USA Sterling Edwards Venezuela 1954 Chester Flynn Manfredo Lippmann Ferrari 250 Monza Engine DNS 41 S3.0 USA Sandy McPhersonUSA Harley Watts USA Robert Fergus Robt. H. Fergus Austin-Healey 100S Accident in practice DNS 62 S1.5 USA Ed Crawford USA John Urbas Ed. W. Crawford Porsche 550 Spyder DISQ S2.0 USA James Carson USA Dan Hastings Howard Hanna Swallow Doretti-Triumph started illegally – flagged off DISQ S1.1 USA Warren Smith USA Joe Sheppard Joe Sheppard Lotus-Climax Mark IX started illegally – flagged off DISQ S3.0 USA Billy Dantone USA Phil M. Seeberg Billy J. Dantone Austin-Healey 100 started illegally – flagged off DISQ S3.0 USA Phil Stiles USA Red Bryon Phil Stiles Austin-Healey 100 started illegally – flagged off DISQ S3.0 USA Emil Bulck USA William Bulck Emil Bulck Austin-Healey 100 started illegally – flagged off DISQ S2.0 USA Fred Losee USA William Kichloe Fred L. Losee Veritas Comet RS started illegally – flagged off http://www.teamdan.com/archive/wsc/1955/55seb.html 1955 Sebring 12 HRS 2015-01-21 https://web.archive.org/web/20160303215125/http://www.teamdan.com/archive/wsc/1955/55seb.html 2016-03-03 dead http://wsrp.ic.cz/wsc1955.html World Sports Racing Prototypes - World Championship 1955 2015-01-21 https://web.archive.org/web/20150222005142/http://wsrp.ic.cz/wsc1955.html#2 2015-02-22 dead http://www.racingsportscars.com/results/Sebring-1955-03-13.html Sebring 12 Hours 1955 - Race Results - Racing Sports Cars Fastest Lap: Sherwood Johnston, 3:38.8secs (85.558 mph) Class Winners Class Winners Class B - Sports 8000 5 Kurtis Kraft-Lincoln 500K Crawford Class C - Sports 5000 19 Jaguar D-type Hawthorn / Walters Class D - Sports 3000 25 Ferrari 750 Monza Spyder Hill / Shelby Class E- Sports 2000 60 Arnolt Bolide Bristol Panks / Erickson Class F - Sports 1500 64 Osca MT4 1450 Lloyd / Huntoon Class G - Sports 1100 81 Porsche 550 Spyder O'Shea / Koster Class H - Sports 750 88 Renault 1063 Miller / Attaway http://www.racingsportscars.com/race/Sebring-1955-03-13.html Sebring 12 Hours 1955 - Racing Sports Cars Standings after the race Pos Championship Points 1 Italy Ferrari 14 2= GBR Jaguar 8 2= Italy Maserati 8 4 West Germany Porsche 3 5 France Gordini 2 Note: Only the top five positions are included in this set of standings. Championship points were awarded for the first six places in each race in the order of 8-6-4-3-2-1. Manufacturers were only awarded points for their highest finishing car with no points awarded for positions filled by additional cars. Only the best 4 results out of the 6 races could be retained by each manufacturer. Points earned but not counted towards the championship totals are listed within brackets in the above table. References 30em Further reading Alec Ulmann. The Sebring Story. Chilton Book Company. ASIN B0006CUAP2. 1955 World Sportscar Championship 1000 km Buenos Aires Mille Miglia Category:12 Hours of Sebring Sebring Sebring Sebring Sebring