Race of Two Worlds

The trophy awarded to Jimmy Bryan for winning the 1957 running of the Race of Two Worlds.

The Race of Two Worlds, also known as the 500 Miglia di Monza (500 Miles of Monza), was an automobile race held at the Autodromo Nazionale Monza, Italy in 1957 and again in 1958. It was intended as an exhibition event, allowing American teams from the United States Auto Club (USAC) National Championship to compete directly against teams from the Formula One World Championship based in Europe. The two types of cars competed on the banked oval at Monza which had been completed in 1955. Due to the similarity to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, where the USAC teams ran the Indianapolis 500, the event earned the nickname Monzanapolis.

American drivers and teams won the event in both the years in which it was run. Jimmy Bryan won the 1957 event, while Jim Rathmann swept the 1958 race. Although some Formula One teams did participate and even build special cars specifically for the event, several withdrew over safety concerns. Continued concern over the speeds on the track and the cost of the event led to the race being canceled after the 1958 running.

Initial concept

In 1954, redevelopment of the Autodromo Nazionale Monza circuit began for the first time since 1948, concentrating on rebuilding the oval portion of the track which had been abandoned during World War II. The 4.5 kilometres (2.8 mi) banked oval, which had last been used in 1933, was dismantled. The southern Sud Alta Velocita corner was relocated, moving it northward by several meters, shortening the lap distance length to 4.25 km (2.64 mi). Both banked corners were rebuilt on a curving gradient which reached 80 degrees, replacing the flat banking which had been previously used. The reconstruction was completed in August 1955, in time for the Formula One Italian Grand Prix, which combined the new oval with the Monza road course for a full 9.8 km (6.1 mi).^[1]

The Monza oval (highlighted), as situated over the rest of the road course circuit. Cars ran in an anticlockwise direction, opposite that used by Formula One.

The following year, Giuseppe Bacciagaluppi, then president of the Automobile Club of Milan and chairman of the Autodromo Nazionale Monza, invited Duane Carter, competition director of USAC, to attend the second running of the Italian Grand Prix on the new circuit.^[1] The two discussed the similarities between Monza's new oval and the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, which also held a round of the 1957 Formula One season, the Indianapolis 500. Although the 500 counted as part of the championship, only a few Europeans attempted to participate in the event since the formation of the World Championship. Ferrari's Alberto Ascari in 1952 was the only European competitor to actually qualify for the race. Bacciagaluppi and Carter believed that an oval race held in Europe instead of the United States could attract Formula One teams, and USAC and the Automobile Club of Italy began work on making such an event possible.

A race was scheduled for June 1957, running just the 4.25 km oval at Monza. Volunteering USAC teams were to be transported from the United States, while Formula One teams were also free to participate if those chose. In preparation, Firestone Tire and Rubber Company transported a USAC Kurtis Kraft–Chrysler to Monza in April 1957 in order to conduct tests on tyres made for the event. American driver Pat O'Connor completed 364 km (226 mi) on the oval, setting a best lap speed of 273 km/h (170 mph), nearly 48 km/h (30 mph) faster than lap speeds reached at Indianapolis.

Format

The rules for the race were based on those used by USAC in North America. Engines were limited to 4,200 cubic centimetres (260 cu in) in naturally aspirated form, 2,800 cm³ (170 cu in) for supercharged engines. An USAC rolling start was also used, instead of Formula One's usual standing start. The race was planned for a total distance of 500 miles (800 km), similar to the Indianapolis 500. However, unlike Indianapolis, the 500 miles would not be run continuously. Instead, three separate 63-lap heats were planned, with an hour break for repairs and rest between each heat, for a total of approximately 500 miles. The overall race winner would be determined by the driver which finished all three heats with the highest average speed. The circuit would be run in an anti-clockwise direction, the same used at Indianapolis, but opposite the direction used by Formula One at Monza.

1957

An Ecurie Ecosse Jaguar D-Type

The inaugural running of the Race of Two Worlds was scheduled for Sunday, June 23, shortly after the running of the Indianapolis 500, and a few weeks before the running of the French Grand Prix. USAC's entries in the event traveled from Indianapolis to New York City, whence they were shipped to Genoa. The drivers and personnel traveled separately from their cars, arriving by plane. The teams and equipment were then transported from Genoa to Monza, where teams began practice on Tuesday the 18th.

Entrants

A total of fifteen cars were entered for the event. Ten cars traveled across the Atlantic from USAC, while only two teams arrived with Formula One equipment. Mario Bornigia used a privateer Ferrari while Maserati entered their factory driver Jean Behra. The rest of the Formula One teams however chose to boycott the event. The Union des Pilotes Professionnels Internationaux (International Union of Professional Pilots), which had been formed only a few months prior,^[2] cited the dangers of the speeds able to be obtained on the Monza banking and the wear on tires posing threats to safety.^[3]^[4] A further three entries arrived from the World Sportscar Championship, thanks to the Scottish Ecurie Ecosse Jaguar team, who had just won the 24 Hours of Le Mans the weekend before.

Number	Driver	Entrant	Chassis	Engine	Tyre
1	Jimmy Bryan	Dean Van Lines	Kuzma	Offenhauser	F
2	John Lawrence	Ecurie Ecosse	Jaguar D-Type	Jaguar	D
4	Jack Fairman	Ecurie Ecosse	Jaguar D-Type	Jaguar	D
6	Ninian Sanderson	Ecurie Ecosse	Jaguar D-Type	Jaguar	D
7	Bob Veith	Bob Estes	Phillips	Offenhauser	F
8	Jean Behra	Maserati	Maserati 250F	Maserati	F
8	Jean Behra	Maserati	Maserati 450S¹	Maserati	F
12	Pat O'Connor	Sumar	Kurtis Kraft 500G	Offenhauser	F
16	Mario Bornigia	Scuderia Cottione	Ferrari	Ferrari	?
27	Tony Bettenhausen	Novi Auto Air Conditioning	Kurtis Kraft 500F	Novi (s/c)	F
35	Eddie Sachs	Jim Robbins	Kurtis Kraft 500G	Offenhauser	F
49	Ray Crawford	Meguiar Mirror Glaze	Kurtis Kraft 500G	Offenhauser	F
52	Troy Ruttman	John Zink	Watson	Offenhauser	F
52	Jim Rathmann²	John Zink	Watson	Offenhauser	F
54	Paul Russo	Novi Auto Air Conditioning	Kurtis Kraft 500F	Novi (s/c)	F
73	Andy Linden	McNamara Veedol	Kurtis Kraft 500G	Offenhauser	F
98	Johnnie Parsons	Agajanian	Kuzma	Offenhauser	F

Key
Colour	Car Type
Gray	USAC
Red	Formula One
Blue	Sportscar

Practice and qualifying

An example of a Maserati 250F as was used in Formula One. The 250F was unable to handle the Monza banking when equipped with larger Firestone tyres.

Although several American teams ran laps on Tuesday, official practice did not begin until Wednesday. All drivers were required to meet speed requirements to qualify: three laps at 185 km/h (115 mph), three laps at 200 km/h (120 mph), and another three laps at 225 km/h (140 mph). All drivers in attendance passed, and began to set their cars for top speed. Eddie Sachs led the first day's practice with a lap time of 56.4 seconds, one of few drivers to lap under a minute. On Thursday, Maserati arrived to enter Jean Behra in the event, but the two cars which Behra practiced with suffered handling problems when they were fitted with larger diameter Firestone tyres, recording a best lap time of 1:03.2 in the team's Formula One car. Maserati chose to not return the following day, joining the already withdrawn Ferrari, and leaving the race without any Formula One machinery.

Qualification was held on Friday, and the USAC teams continued to lower their lap times. Tony Bettenhausen, in the Novi Special, took pole position with a lap time of 53.7 seconds, averaging a speed of 284.927 km/h (177.045 mph), over 50 km/h faster than the pole speed at that year's Indianapolis 500.^[1] Eight other USAC cars also qualified, with Paul Russo in the other Novi Special suffering a terminal flywheel failure during its qualification attempt and withdrawing. The three Ecurie Ecosse Jaguars also qualified, but all slower than the USAC entries, due in part to being limited to their Dunlop road racing tyres, which were smaller than the Firestones. The best Ecurie Ecosse time was earned by Jack Fairman, lapping in 59.8 seconds.

Race

Heat one

The first heat started on Sunday, with temperatures at the circuit reaching 40 °C (104 °F).^[4] Bettenhausen slowly led the field to the starting line where an official waved the Italian flag to begin the race. The trio of Jaguars, although starting at the back, managed to jump to an early lead due to their use of a four-speed gearbox, allowing them to out-accelerate the USAC roadsters with two-speed gearboxes. Fairman led the first of 63 laps before the roadsters were able to build enough speed to catch and eventually pass the Jaguars. Bettenhausen returned to the front of the field, but was forced to relinquish the lead during the fourth lap with a broken throttle linkage. Pat O'Connor and Jimmy Bryan moved to the front and traded off the lead for half of the heat.

Jimmy Bryan's Kuzma–Offenhauser, known as the Dean Van Lines Special

Bryan eventually took command of the lead, pulling away from O'Connor and followers Eddie Sachs and Andy Linden. By the end of the 63 laps, Bryan was leading O'Connor by three seconds, with Linden the only other driver finishing on the lead lap. Bettenhausen, having rejoined the race after repairing the throttle linkage, was the only retirement after a sway bar broke on Lap 45. The USAC entries dominated, earning the first seven positions. Only Bob Veith's Phillips-Offy was unable to finish ahead of the trio of Jaguars.

Heat One Results^[5]
Pos.	No.	Driver	Chassis-Engine	Laps	Notes
1	1	Jimmy Bryan	Kuzma–Offy	63
2	12	Pat O'Connor	Kurtis Kraft–Offy	63
3	73	Andy Linden	Kurtis Kraft–Offy	63
4	35	Eddie Sachs	Kurtis Kraft–Offy	62
5	52	Troy Ruttman	Watson–Offy	61
6	98	Johnnie Parsons	Kuzma–Offy	59
7	49	Ray Crawford	Kurtis Kraft–Offy	58
8	4	Jack Fairman	Jaguar	58
9	2	John Lawrence	Jaguar	57
10	6	Ninian Sanderson	Jaguar	53
11	7	Bob Veith	Phillips–Offy	51
DNF	27	Tony Bettenhausen	Kurtis Kraft–Novi	45	Broken sway bar

Heat two

Following an hour of repairs, the field began a rolling start for the second heat. In preparation for the Jaguar's ability to accelerate at the start, the lead USAC entries attempted to block the front stretch by running alongside one another. Troy Ruttman took the early lead, followed closely by O'Connor, Sachs, Bryan, and the Jaguar of Fairman. O'Connor soon retired with a broken fuel tank, followed several laps later by Sachs with broke cam house bolts. Ruttman was eventually caught and passed by Bryan, and the two finished in first and second at the end of the 63 laps. Only seven cars were still running at the end of the race, including the three Jaguars running in fifth, sixth, and seventh places.

Heat Two Results^[6]
Pos.	No.	Driver	Chassis-Engine	Laps	Notes
1	1	Jimmy Bryan	Kuzma–Offy	63
2	52	Troy Ruttman	Watson–Offy	63
3	98	Johnnie Parsons	Kuzma–Offy	61
4	49	Ray Crawford	Kurtis Kraft–Offy	59
5	4	Jack Fairman	Jaguar	59
6	2	John Lawrence	Jaguar	57
7	6	Ninian Sanderson	Jaguar	53
DNF	35	Eddie Sachs	Kurtis Kraft–Offy	45	Broken cam house bolts
DNF	73	Andy Linden	Kurtis Kraft–Offy	27	Cracked frame
DNF	12	Pat O'Connor	Kurtis Kraft–Offy	16	Split fuel tank
DNF	7	Bob Veith	Phillips–Offy	1	Steering problems

Heat three

Another hour for repairs allowed for O'Connor to repair his fuel tank, bringing the entry to eight cars for the final heat. Only seven managed to begin the rolling start, as Ray Crawford remained in his pits to finish repairs. Bryan and Ruttman took the early lead once again as O'Connor was once again forced to retire, his repairs to the fuel tank not holding up to the bumps of the Monza banking. Jack Fairman's Jaguar managed to lead Johnnie Parsons' Kuzma-Offy early, but eventually the three remaining USAC cars led the three Jaguars to the finish line. Ruttman finished ahead of Bryan, while Fairman once more led the Jaguar trio.

Heat Three Results^[7]
Pos.	No.	Driver	Chassis-Engine	Laps	Notes
1	52	Troy Ruttman	Watson–Offy	63
2	1	Jimmy Bryan	Kuzma–Offy	63
3	98	Johnnie Parsons	Kuzma–Offy	62
4	4	Jack Fairman	Jaguar	60
5	2	John Lawrence	Jaguar	57
6	6	Ninian Sanderson	Jaguar	55
DNF	12	Pat O'Connor	Kurtis Kraft–Offy	9	Split fuel tank
DNF	49	Ray Crawford	Kurtis Kraft–Offy	1	Retired

Final result

With two heat wins, and being the only driver to complete all 189 laps, Jimmy Bryan was declared the winner in front of a crowd of 20,000.^[1] For his victory, he won US$35,000 in prize money,^[3] as well as a unique trophy created for the event. Bryan averaged 257 km/h (160 mph) over the full race distance, making it the fastest race in history,^[8] while Tony Bettenhausen also earned a world record by recording a lap speed of 284.561 km/h (176.818 mph) breaking a closed circuit speed record.^[3]

1958

Following a successful running of the first Race of Two Worlds, the Automobile Club of Italy and USAC announced a second running in 1958, to be held on Sunday, June 29. Several Formula One teams, impressed by the speeds achieved by the USAC teams but also enticed by the large prize sum, promised to attend the event. Ferrari, initially reluctant, entered their own team after the Automobile Club of Italy announced that the Race of Two Worlds was a required event for teams vying for club's cash award for most successful Italian constructor.

Once again, USAC teams were transported from New York City on ships shortly after the Indianapolis 500. Alfa Romeo provided trucks for transport of the teams once they arrived in Genoa.