1955 World Sportscar Championship


The 1955 World Sportscar Championship season was the third season of FIA World Sportscar Championship motor racing. It featured a series of six endurance races for sportscars, contested from 23 January to 16 October 1954.
The championship was won by Mercedes-Benz, the German manufacturer ending the dominance of Ferrari which had won both of the previous World Sportscar Championship titles.

Season summary

The 1955 World Sports Car Championship was contested over a six race series. With legendary races such as the Mille Miglia and the RAC Tourist Trophy now part of an international race calendar, they were accompanied by the 24 Hours of Le Mans and 12 Hours of Sebring. The championship started in January, with a trip to Argentina for the 1000 km Buenos Aires and ended with an event new to the championship, the legendary road race, the Targa Florio. As a result of the Le Mans disaster, both the 1000 km Nürburgring and the Carrera Panamericana were cancelled.
The Championship was open for manufacturers, with works teams such as Scuderia Ferrari, Officine Alfieri Maserati, Daimler-Benz and Jaguar Cars leading the way, but the majority of the fields were made up of amateur or gentlemen drivers, often up against professional racing drivers with experience in Formula One.
Classes were split between closed cars and open cars, with further divisions due to engine displacement. The 1955 season was a very bittersweet one for Daimler-Benz, with their Mercedes-Benz 300 SLRs. After missing the opening two, non-European rounds, which allowed Ferrari to gain a 14-point head start on Mercedes, the German team joined the championship. Aided by an English journalist, Denis Jenkinson, Stirling Moss would romp to victory in the Mille Miglia. However the elation achieved by this English pairing, would be quickly subdued at Le Mans a month later, when Pierre Levegh’s 300 SLR would be launched into the air and into the crowd, killing more than 80 spectators. Daimler-Benz would withdraw from the race, and motor sport altogether at the end of the season.
This difficult decision would be made a little easier when Moss, and John Fitch drove to victory at the Dundrod Circuit, winning the RAC Tourist Trophy. This race was marred by the deaths of three drivers. The victory put Mercedes back in the hunt for the championship. The last race of the season, the Targa Florio, would see Moss win again, this time aided by Peter Collins, ensuring the manufacturers title was won by the German marque.

Season results

Race results

DateRoundEventCircuit or LocationWinning driverWinning teamWinning carResults
23/01Rd. 1 1000km of Buenos AiresAutódromo Municipal-Avenida Paz Enrique Sáenz Valiente
José-Maria Ibanez		 Ferrari 375 PlusResults
13/03Rd. 2 12 Hours of SebringSebring International Raceway Mike Hawthorn
Phil Walters		 B. S. Cunningham Jaguar D-TypeResults
01/05Rd. 3 Mille MigliaBrescia-Rome Stirling Moss
Denis Jenkinson		 Daimler Benz AG Mercedes-Benz 300 SLRResults
11/06
12/06		Rd.4 24 Hours of Le MansCircuit de la Sarthe Mike Hawthorn
Ivor Bueb		 Jaguar Cars Ltd. Jaguar D-TypeResults
18/09Rd. 5 RAC Tourist TrophyDundrod Stirling Moss
John Fitch		 Daimler Benz AG Mercedes-Benz 300 SLRResults
16/10Rd. 6 Targa FlorioCircuito delle Madonie Piccolo Stirling Moss
Peter Collins		 Daimler Benz AG Mercedes-Benz 300 SLRResults

Championship standings

Note:
The following models contributed to the net championship point scores of their respective manufacturers.