1952 Swiss Grand Prix

Entrants

Ferrari arrive at the Bremgarten Circuit in Bern without their regular lead pairing. Alberto Ascari is absent — he is at Indianapolis preparing for the 500 — and Luigi Villoresi is sidelined after a road accident. The works team runs Nino Farina, Piero Taruffi and André Simon alongside private Ferrari entries from Ecurie Espadon (Rudi Fischer and Peter Hirt) and Louis Rosier.

Maserati had planned to enter defending champion Juan Manuel Fangio and fellow Argentinian José Froilán González, but neither car was available; both withdrew before practice. Gordini fields three cars: Robert Manzon, B. Bira and debutant Jean Behra, a motorcycle champion making his first Grand Prix start. HWM enters an all-British quartet — George Abecassis, Peter Collins, Lance Macklin and Stirling Moss. Ken Wharton represents Frazer-Nash and Hans Stuck enters an AFM.

The weekend’s supporting sports car race at Bremgarten adds a sombre note: Rudolf Caracciola, a pre-war Grand Prix great, crashes his Mercedes-Benz 300 SL when his brakes lock approaching a corner, strikes a tree and breaks his leg — an accident that effectively ends his racing career.

Qualifying

Nino Farina claimed pole position, with Taruffi and Manzon alongside on the front row. Simon and Fischer occupy the second row, ahead of Collins, Behra and Toulo de Graffenried in an Enrico Platé-entered Maserati.