Race B

Grand Prix cars with front engines (1947-1960)

Among the entered cars belonging to this category much interest has been aroused by the CTA Arsenal car built between 1946 and 1947 under Eng. Albert Lory's project. This car ran only the 1947 GP of France driven by Raymond Sommer: to state precisely it's necessary to make it clear that the car was lined-up on the starting grid of that Grand Prix, but it couldn't even manage to overcome the starting line and that's why there's no evidence of any official entering, so that it was necessary for FIA to make a special dispensation to the regulations to allow the car to appear at the start of Monaco's Historic Grand Prix.

During the first two testing sessions, the fastest driver was Folch-Rusinol in Lotus 16, followed by Smith in a fantastic Ferrari 246 Dino, while Dayton, the favoured driver on the eve of the race, was obliged to be content with the third position because of the time recorded during the first session, before his Lotus left him along the circuit obliging him to skip the qualifying test in the afternoon. On the start Folch-Rusinol made a bit of mess, both Smith and Dayton threaded their way through, while behind them Pearson, in a BRM P 25 yielded a position to Koster in his Maserati 250F, recovering it with an incisive attack on Fairmont hairpin bend. In the lead, Smith met some trouble and was overtaken in the tunnel both by Dayton and Folch-Rusinol, then he also gave up the third place just to the BRM at the Piscine 2, while the first two drivers were starting to fight, leaving the rivals behind. The race seemed to live on that fight but on the third passage the Spanish's engine lost power, allowing the two drivers who ran after to catch him after a few bends, Pearson overtook him by accelerating coming out of the chicane while Smith had to wait for the final straight in order to launch his attack, with the Lotus's driver who put up valiant resistance but ended by colliding with the Ferrari making his car spin right round on St Devote. When the unlucky Spanish driver made his exit, the race had no more interest only offering spectators a fine struggle between Koster and Nuthall in Alta F2 for the fourth position: they finished by the same order.

Marco Zanello
Photos by Fabio Carrera
Technical advice by Joni Stefani

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