1955 New Zealand Grand Prix
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (October 2015) |
| 1955 New Zealand Grand Prix | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 3rd New Zealand Grand Prix | |||
 | |||
| Race details | |||
| Date | 8 January 1955 | ||
| Location | Ardmore Circuit, Auckland, New Zealand | ||
| Course | Temporary racing facility | ||
| Course length | 3.2 km (2.0 miles) | ||
| Distance | 100 laps, 300 km (186 miles) | ||
| Weather | Sunny | ||
| Pole position | |||
| Driver |
| ||
| Fastest lap | |||
| Driver |  Prince Bira | Maserati 250F | |
| Time | 1:33.0 | ||
| Podium | |||
| First | Maserati 250F | ||
| Second | Ferrari 500/625 | ||
| Third | Ferrari 500/625 | ||
The 1955 New Zealand Grand Prix was a motor race held at the Ardmore Circuit on 8 January 1955. It was the third iteration of the New Zealand Grand Prix and was won by Thailand's Prince Bira. Bira won in relatively dominant fashion, lapping all but two drivers – Peter Whitehead and Tony Gaze. The need for pitstops potentially cost the Ferrari pairing of Whitehead and Gaze a shot at victory. They did however complete the podium, on the lead lap.
Having both set a time of 1:33.0, Bira and Whitehead had shared the fastest lap of the race.
Classification
[edit]| Pos | No. | Driver | Car | Laps | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Prince Bira | Maserati 250F / Maserati 2497cc 6cyl | 100 | 2hr 40min 12sec |
| 2 |  Peter Whitehead | Ferrari 500/625 / Ferrari 2968cc 4cyl | 100 | + 33.0 s | |
| 3 | 4 |  Tony Gaze | Ferrari 500/625 / Ferrari 2968cc 4cyl | 100 | + 1.26.0 s |
| 4 | Jack Brabham | Cooper T23 / Bristol 1971cc 6cyl | 98 | + 2 Laps | |
| 5 | 3 | Reg Hunt | Maserati A6GCM / Maserati 2497cc 6cyl | 97 | + 3 Laps |
| 6 |  Syd Jensen | Cooper Mk. VII / Norton 498cc 1cyl | 91 | + 9 Laps | |
| 7 | 12 | Fred Zambucka | Maserati 8CM / Maserati 2992cc 8cyl s/c | 89 | + 11 Laps |
| 8 | George Palmer | Jackson-Mercury / Mercury 4118cc V8 | 88 | + 12 Laps | |
| 9 | Ross Jensen | Triumph TR2 / Triumph 1991cc 4cyl | 86 | + 14 Laps | |
| 10 | Dick Cobden | Ferrari 125 / Ferrari 1995cc V12 s/c | 86 | + 14 Laps | |
| 11 | Arnold Stafford | Cooper Mk. VII / Norton 498cc 1cyl | 85 | + 15 Laps | |
| 12 | Phil Neill | Austin-Healey 100 / Austin 2660cc 4cyl | 83 | + 17 Laps | |
| 13 | Peter McInally | Austin-Healey 100 / Austin 2660cc 4cyl | 80 | + 20 Laps | |
| 14 | Des McDonagh | Thomas-Mercury / Mercury 4100cc V8 | 75 | + 25 Laps | |
| 15 | John Horton | HWM F1 / Alta 1960cc 4cyl s/c | 55 | + 45 Laps | |
| Ret | Ron Frost | Cooper Mk. VIII / Norton 498cc 1cyl | 89 | Gearbox | |
| Ret | Lex Davison | HWM F2 / Jaguar 3442cc 6cyl | 88 | Transmission | |
| Ret | Ron Roycroft | Alfa Romeo Tipo B / Alfa Romeo 2905cc 8cyl s/c | 58 | Valve | |
| Ret | Jon McMillan | Alfa Romeo Tipo B / Alfa Romeo 2905cc 8cyl s/c | 33 | Retired | |
| Ret | Bill Lee | Cooper Mk. VI / Norton 498cc 1cyl | 30 | Retired | |
| Ret | Les McLaren | Austin-Healey 100 / Austin 2660cc 4cyl | 30 | Retired | |
| Ret | Bill Culver | DeSoto Special / DeSoto 3368cc 6cyl | 19 | Engine | |
| Ret | 26 | Reg McCutcheon | Normac Special / Chevrolet 3870cc 6cyl | 17 | Frost Plug |
| Ret | Stan Coffey | Cooper T20 / Bristol 1971cc 6cyl | 16 | Oil Pressure | |
| Ret | Gordon Brown | GBS / Ford 1172cc 4cyl | 9 | Engine | |
| DNS | George Smith | GCS / Chrysler 5600cc V8 | Did Not Start | ||
| DNS | Wally Bern | Triumph TR2 / Triumph 1991cc 4cyl | Did Not Start | ||
| DNS | Tony Shelly | Morgan +4 / Standard 2088cc 4cyl | Did Not Start | ||
| DNS | Johnny Mansel | Mansel Special / Mercury 3950cc V8 | Did Not Start | ||
| Source: [1] | |||||
References
[edit]- ^ "Second New Zealand International Grand Prix 1955". sergent.com.au. Retrieved 18 October 2015.