1914 French Grand Prix
| 1914 French Grand Prix | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Race details | |||
| Date | July 4, 1914 | ||
| Official name | Grand Prix de l'Automobile Club de France | ||
| Location | Lyon, France | ||
| Course | Public roads | ||
| Course length | 37.629 km (23.380 miles) | ||
| Distance | 20 laps, 752.58 km (467.600 miles) | ||
| Fastest lap | |||
| Driver |
 Max Sailer | Mercedes GP | |
| Time | 20:06.0 | ||
| Podium | |||
| First | Mercedes GP | ||
| Second | Mercedes GP | ||
| Third | Mercedes GP | ||
The 1914 French Grand Prix took place at Lyon on 4th July 1914.
The Race
The restriction on Grand Prix cars for 1914 included an 1,100 kg (2,425 lb) maximum weight and a 4500cc maximum engine capacity[1][2].
Christian Lautenschlager won at an average speed of 65.665 mph (105.677 km/h). The fastest lap was set by Max Sailer, at an average speed of 69.780 mph (112.325 km/h).[3]
The Grand Prix was a contest between the the French Peugeots and the German Mercedes. This was the last Grand Prix before the First World War, and took place less than a week after the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. An estimated crowd of over 300,000[4] watched thirty-seven cars start in pairs with a thirty-second gap between each pair. Sailer led by 18 seconds at the end of the first lap, and by lap five had built a lead of almost three minutes[4]. Sailer retired with a blown engine on lap six[3]. Georges Boillot took over the lead and retained it for the next twelve laps. At one point he led by over four minutes.
The Mercedes drivers each made one stop during the race for new Continental tyres[2], regardless of the tyre wear. This contrasted with the poor wear[2] of the Dunlop tyres used by Peugeot[5] and Boillot's eight stops for tyres[4]. Boillot's many stops allowed Lautenschlager to pass Boillot on lap 18. By the end of that lap, Lautenschlager had opened up a lead of over 30 seconds. Boillot dropped out during the final lap[3][4].
Ferenc Szisz, the winner of the first French Grand Prix in 1906, had to retire from the race through injury. On the 11th lap Szisz was forced to stop to change a wheel. During the wheel change, he was hit by another car and suffered a broken arm. His mechanic was also injured[6].
Classification
| Pos | No | Driver | Car | Laps | Time/Retired |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 28 | Christian Lautenschlager
|
Mercedes GP | 20 | 7:08:18.4 |
| 2 | 40 |  Louis Wagner
|
Mercedes GP | +1:35.8 | |
| 3 | 39 | Otto Salzer
|
Mercedes GP | +4:57.4 | |
| 4 | 19 | Jules Goux
|
Peugeot EX5 | +9:28.8 | |
| 5 | 24 |  Dario Resta
|
Sunbeam | +19:59.0 | |
| 6 | 17 | Dragutin Esser
|
Nagant | +32:09.8 | |
| 7 | 32 | Victor Rigal
|
Peugeot EX5 | +36:09.8 | |
| 8 | 35 |  Arthur Duray
|
Delage S | +43:13.6 | |
| 9 | 6 | René Champoiseau
|
Th Schneider | +58:33.2 | |
| 10 | 2 | Carl Jörns
|
Opel | +1:08:51.2 | |
| 11 | 27 |  Antonio Fagnano
|
Fiat | +1:17:52.6 | |
| Ret | 5 | Georges Boillot
|
Peugeot EX5 | 19 | Engine |
| Ret | 11 | Tournier | Pic-Pic | 18 | |
| Ret | 22 | Jean Porporato
|
Nazzaro | 18 | Engine |
| Ret | 3 | Leon Elskamp | Nagant | 18 | |
| Ret | 23 | Albert Guyot
|
Delage S | 18 | Engine |
| Ret | 9 | Paul Bablot
|
Delage S | 16 | Engine |
| Ret | 16 | Emile Erndtmann
|
Opel | 12 | |
| Ret | 30 | Franz Breckheimer
|
Opel | 12 | |
| Ret | 10 | Jean Chassagne
|
Sunbeam | 12 | Big end |
| Ret | 1 |  Ferenc Szisz
|
Alda | 11 | Driver injury |
| Ret | 15 | Piero Pietro | Alda | 10 | |
| Ret | 13 | Alessandro Cagno
|
Fiat | 10 | Valve |
| Ret | 36 | Kenelm Lee Guinness
|
Sunbeam | 9 | Engine |
| Ret | 25 | Thomas Clarke | Pic-Pic | 8 | |
| Ret | 33 | Juvanon | Th Schneider | 8 | Engine |
| Ret | 34 | De Moraes ("Cenesio") | Nazzaro | 8 | Engine |
| Ret | 20 | Fernand Gabriel
|
Th Schneider | 8 | Engine |
| Ret | 18 |  Ralph DePalma
|
Vauxhall | 7 | Gearbox |
| Ret | 29 | Maurice Tabuteau
|
Alda | 7 | Crash |
| Ret | 38 | John Scales | Fiat | 7 | Valve gear |
| Ret | 14 | Max Sailer
|
Mercedes GP | 5 | Engine |
| Ret | 8 | Felice Nazzaro
|
Nazzaro | 3 | Engine |
| Ret | 41 | Theodore Pilette
|
Mercedes GP | 3 | Propellor shaft |
| Ret | 31 | W. Watson
|
Vauxhall | 2 | Carburettor |
| Ret | 26 | Bartolomeo "Meo" Costantini
|
Aquila Italiana | 1 | Engine |
| Ret | 4 | John Hancock | Vauxhall | 1 | Engine |
References
- ^ Higham, Peter (1995). The Guinness Guide to International Motor Racing. Guinness Publishing. pp. 194–196. ISBN 0-85112-642-1.
- ^ a b c Snellman, Leif. "8W, Remember it for the one who lost". Retrieved 2008-06-25.
- ^ a b c "1914 Grands Prix". Retrieved 2008-05-20.
- ^ a b c d Doyle, Gary D. "France, 1914 and the Artist Historians" (PDF). Retrieved 2008-06-25.
- ^ David, Dennis. "Peugeot 1914 Grand Prix". Retrieved 2008-06-25.
- ^ Sury, Geza. "8W, The first Grand Prix". Retrieved 2008-06-25.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|coauthors=ignored (|author=suggested) (help)