1951 French Grand Prix

Championship standings

Farina won at Spa to close on championship leader Fangio. Both Alfa Romeo drivers head to Reims as the chief title contenders.

Previous race

At Spa, Farina dominated from the front, holding off the Ferraris of Ascari and Villoresi. Fangio suffered an expensive novelty: the concave wheels on his new suspension jammed at his first pit stop, costing him over 14 minutes. He recovered to score the fastest lap point but finished ninth, four laps down — the only time in his career, barring retirements, that he finished outside the top four.

Entrants

Luigi Fagioli makes a one-off return to Alfa Romeo for this race, his only championship appearance of 1951. He had not competed at Bern or Spa. Gordini make their World Championship debut at Reims; André Simon and Onofre Marimón also make their first championship starts.

The French Grand Prix carries the honorary designation of European Grand Prix this year. At 77 laps of the 4.856-mile Reims-Gueux circuit, it is the longest Formula One Grand Prix by total distance ever run.