RICHIE GINTHER

1960 MONACO GP Started 9th | Result 6th

Like several Ferrari F1 drivers of the period, Ginther had already tasted sportscar success before getting his world championship debut. Despite Ferrari’s focus on front-engined cars, British constructors Cooper and Lotus had shown that a mid-engined approach was the way to go, and the Italian team did start to experiment. Ginther, who would become a respected test driver, was entrusted with Ferrari’s 246P for the 1960 Monaco GP.

The mid-engined machine was initially off the pace in practice, but things improved and what Autosport described as a “wonderful effort” got Ginther onto the 16-car grid in ninth, as eight cars failed to qualify. He was 2.3s off pole. If that sounds a lot, it should be pointed out that gaps were often bigger then – Stirling Moss’s Lotus was on pole by 1s – and Ginther was only 0.3s behind fastest Ferrari qualifier Wolfgang von Trips.

Ginther fell back early on, but kept plugging away, “going far better than had been anticipated”, according to Autosport’s Gregor Grant. Things were made even harder around the tight street circuit when rain arrived just before one-third distance. While others, including reigning world champion Jack Brabham, slid off in the tricky conditions, Ginther gradually climbed up the field.

When Graham Hill’s BRM crashed out at two-thirds distance, the American moved into fifth. Transmission failure finally put the Ferrari out with 30 of the 100 laps to go, but Ginther was still classified sixth, meaning his efforts were rewarded with a world championship point. “A really outstanding performance,” reckoned Autosport.

Ginther would reap the rewards of his development work with a seat in the pacesetting 156 Sharknose for 1961. Though never quite a top-liner, he finished second at the 1961 Monaco GP to one of Moss’s greatest drives on his way to fifth in the standings. His best championship finish was third for BRM in 1963, and Ginther finally took his first and only GP win for Honda in Mexico in 1965.