Race details | |||
---|---|---|---|
Race 8 of 8 in the 1956 Formula One season | |||
Autodromo Nazionale Monza layout
|
|||
Date | 2 September 1956 | ||
Official name | XXVII Gran Premio d'Italia | ||
Location | Autodromo Nazionale Monza, Monza, Italy | ||
Course | Permanent road course | ||
Course length | 10.000 km (6.214 mi) | ||
Distance | 50 laps, 500.023 km (310.700 mi) | ||
Weather | Warm, rain | ||
Pole position | |||
Driver | Ferrari | ||
Time | 2:42:6 | ||
Fastest lap | |||
Driver | Stirling Moss | Maserati | |
Time | 2:45.5 | ||
Podium | |||
First | Maserati | ||
Second | Ferrari | ||
Third | Connaught-Alta | ||
|
The 1956 Italian Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held on 2 September 1956 at Monza. It was the eighth and final round of the 1956 World Drivers' Championship.
Coming into the race, Juan Manuel Fangio had an eight-point lead over Ferrari team-mate Peter Collins and Jean Behra, driving for Maserati.
Fangio retired with a broken steering arm, while Behra also had to pull out. Luigi Musso, also driving for Ferrari, was told to hand his car over to Fangio to ensure the Argentine's third consecutive title but he refused. Brit Collins, with the opportunity for his first world championship, sportingly handed his car over to Fangio during a routine pit-stop. Fangio finished second, behind Stirling Moss, giving himself and Collins a share of the points for second place and ensuring his fourth title.
The race saw the World Championship debuts of Jo Bonnier, Les Leston and Wolfgang von Trips and the final World Championship appearances for Hermano da Silva Ramos, Toulo de Graffenried, Robert Manzon, Piero Taruffi and Luigi Villoresi. Ron Flockhart scored his first World Championship points (and podium finish) and it was the first World Championship race led by Luigi Musso.