1953 Australian Grand Prix
| 1953 Australian Grand Prix | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Formula Libre race | |||
 | |||
| Race details | |||
| Date | 21 November 1953 | ||
| Location | Albert Park, Melbourne, Victoria | ||
| Course | Temporary street circuit | ||
| Course length | 5.03 km (3.125 miles) | ||
| Distance | 64 laps, 321.92 km (250 miles) | ||
| Weather | Sunny | ||
| Fastest lap | |||
| Driver |
 Stan Jones | Maybach Special | |
| Time | 2'03 | ||
| Podium | |||
| First | Talbot-Lago | ||
| Second |
| MG Special | |
| Third |
| MG | |
The 1953 Australian Grand Prix was a Formula Libre [1] motor race held at Albert Park Street Circuit, Victoria on 21 November 1953. The race, which had 40 starters, was held over 64 laps of the five kilometre circuit for a total of 322 kilometres.
It was the eighteenth Australian Grand Prix. While much of the Grand Prix's history to this point had taken place on public road or street circuits, this was the first time it had been held on a circuit in a major population centre. The circuit was laid out on public roads surrounding the Albert Park Lake in inner Melbourne.
The race was won by Doug Whiteford, his third and final Australian Grand Prix victory, equalling the feat achieved by Bill Thompson in the 1930s. It was also the largest margin of victory in the race's history, Whiteford winning by five laps for a margin of 25 kilometres.
Classification
Results as follows.[2]
| Pos | No. | Driver | Car | Laps | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Doug Whiteford
|
Talbot-Lago T26C / Talbot-Lago 4.5L | 64 | 2h 24m 50s |
| 2 | 26 | Curley Brydon
|
MG TC Special / MG s/c 1.3L | 59 | |
| 3 | 22 | Andy Brown
|
MG K3 / MG 1.1L | ||
| 4 | 23 | Les Murphy
|
MG Q / MG 0.7L | ||
| 5 | 30 | Lou Molina
|
MM Special / Holden 2.3L | ||
| 6 | 32 | Jim Leach
|
Austin-Healey 100 / Austin-Healey 2.7L | ||
| 7 | 7 | Frank Kleinig
|
Kleinig-Hudson 8 Special / Hudson 4.4L | ||
| 8 | 38 | Stuart Charge
|
Austin-Healey 100 / Austin-Healey 2.7L | ||
| 9 | 19 | Ken & Arthur Wylie
|
Wylie Javelin / Jowett s/c 1.5L | ||
| 10 | 16 | Reg Hunt
|
Allard J2 / Cadillac 4.4L | ||
| 11 | 33 | Bib Stillwell
|
Austin-Healey 100 / Austin-Healey 2.7L | ||
| 12 | 17 | Alf Barrett [3] & Julian Barrett [3]
|
BWA Special / Frazer Nash 1.5L | ||
| 13 | 40 | Neil Charge
|
MG TC Special / MG 1.3L | ||
| 14 | 35 | Frank Lobb
|
Jaguar XK120 / Jaguar 3.4L | ||
| 15 | 9 | Ted McKinnon
|
Maserati 6C / Maserati 1.5L | ||
| 16 | 42 | John Nind
|
MG TB Special / MG 1.3L | ||
| 17 | 60 | Bill Patterson
|
Cooper Mk.V / JAP 0.5L | ||
| 18 | 31 | Syd Negus
|
Plymouth Special / Plymouth 3.1L | ||
| Ret | 2 | Stan Jones
|
Maybach Special Mk.1 / Maybach 4.3L | 56 | |
| Ret | 34 | John Calvert
|
Jaguar XK120 / Jaguar 3.4L | ||
| Ret | 6 | Cec Warren
|
Maserati 4CL / Maserati 1.5L | 51 | |
| Ret | Wal Gillespie
|
HRG Special | |||
| Ret | Haig Hurst
|
Allard K2 / Ford 4.4L | |||
| Ret | 25 | Phillip Catlin
|
Bugatti T51A / Bugatti 1.5L | ||
| Ret | 37 | Peter McKenna
|
BMW 328 / BMW 2.0L | ||
| Ret | 24 | Reg Nutt
|
Talbot-Darracq / Talbot 1.5L | 14 | |
| Ret | 18 | Don McDonald
|
Austin A40 Special / Austin 1.3L | ||
| Ret | 12 | Arthur Chick
|
Bugatti T37 / Bugatti 2.0L | ||
| Ret | 3 | Lex Davison
|
HWM F2 / Jaguar 3.4L | 3 | |
| Ret | 10 | W.H. Hayes
|
Ford V8 Special / Ford 4.4L | ||
| Ret | 11 | Ted Gray
|
Alta / Ford 4.3L | ||
| Ret | 16 | Bill Willcox
|
Ford V8 Special / Ford 4.3L | ||
| Ret | 20 | Jim Gullan
|
MG K3 / MG 1.1L | ||
| Ret | 27 | Phil Harrison
|
Dodge Special / Dodge 4.0L | ||
| Ret | 28 | Les O'Donaghue
|
Ballot / Oldsmobile 3.9L | ||
| Ret | 39 | Jack O'Dea
|
MG Special / MG 1.3L | ||
| Ret | Ron Phillips
|
Allard K2 / Ford 4.4L | |||
| Ret | Vin Maloney
|
MG TC Special / MG 1.3L | |||
| Ret | 65 | Silvio Massolla
|
HRG Special / HRG 1.5L |
Notes
- Fastest lap: Stan Jones – 2'03
References
- ^ Racing into history, A look back at the 1953 Australian Grand Prix at Albert Park, Australian Grand Prix Corporation, 2013, page 6
- ^ Howard, Graham (1986). "1953". In Howard, Graham (ed.). The Official 50-race history of the Australian Grand Prix. Gordon, NSW: R & T Publishing. pp. 182–191. ISBN 0-9588464-0-5.
- ^ a b Alf Barrett: ‘The Maestro’: Alfa Romeo 8C2300 Monza, primotipo.com Retrieved 21 November 2015