The 1923 Grand Prix season was part of a watershed year for motor racing that saw significant advances in motor-racing engineering, design and events. Fiat's chief designer, Guido Fornaca, developed the 805, the first supercharged car to win a Grand Prix. Benz appeared with the first mid-engined racer and, along with Bugatti and Voisin, produced some of the first efforts at aerodynamics on racing cars. With the United States also adopting the 2-litre formula, Harry Miller could use the smaller engine size to design the first single-seater race-car, ideally suited to American oval racing.
The inaugural Spanish Grand Prix for racing cars was held at a newly built oval at Sitges, near Barcelona. The first 24 Hours of Le Mans was held in June. The iconic race would influence the separation between grand prix and sports car racing and become a test-bed for production car development. The Belgian Automobile Club would promptly copy the format for its own 24-hour event at the new circuit at Spa-Francorchamps.
Alfa Romeo got a 1-2 result at the Targa Florio with Ugo Sivocci winning after Antonio Ascari's car stuttered almost within sight of the finish line. In the 500-mile race at Indianapolis, the new 2-litre Millers made up nearly half the field. Bugatti and Mercedes arrived from Europe, the latter being the first supercharged cars to race in the event. However, in a dominant display Howdy Wilcox and then Tommy Milton led most of the way in their HCS-Millers. Milton went on to become the first two-time winner of the event.
A strong line-up arrived for this year's French Grand Prix with most of the new models represented. Though extremely fast, the Fiats suffered on the stony roads of the Tours course and the superchargers ingested too much dust, wrecking the engines. This left Sunbeam, with a design closely resembling the previous year's Fiat, to take the victory. Henry Segrave became the first Briton, and Sunbeam the first British manufacturer, to win a Grand Prix.
The Italian Grand Prix at Autodromo Nazionale Monza was preceded by tragedy. Enrico Giaccone and Ugo Sivocci were both killed in separate practice accidents. Alfa Romeo withdrew its team. Fiat had fitted a new supercharger to their cars and on the paved Monza track would be unbeatable. Many of the teams thought that and therefore stayed away, however Benz and Miller did arrive. In the race Bordino set the early pace despite driving with a broken arm until he had to retire from exhaustion. Salamano took over the lead and held on to take a comfortable victory from teammate Nazzaro with Jimmy Murphy's Miller in third.
In voiturette racing, the undefeated Talbot 56 of 1922 was replaced by the Talbot 70 which was just as dominant. The Sunbeam-Talbot team drivers won every event they entered: Segrave won the first race at Boulogne, while Albert Divo won the Coupe des Voiturettes in France and at Penya Rhin. To close the year off, Dario Resta won at Sitges. The veteran Alessandro Cagno, winner of the first Targa Florio in 1906, won the Gran Premio della Vetturette at Monza in his last victory in a career spanning the history of motor-racing to date.Georgano 1971, p.183
Major races Sources:Rendall 1993, p.360
Date Name Circuit RaceRegulations RaceDistance Winner'sTime Winning driver Winningconstructor Report 15 Apr XIV Targa Florio Medio Madonie Targa Florio 430 km 7h 18m Ugo Sivocci Alfa Romeo RL TF Report 6 May I Circuito di Cremona Cremona Formula Libre 190 km 1h 24m Antonio Ascari Alfa Romeo RL TF Report 30 May XI International 500 Mile Sweepstakes Indianapolis AAA 500 miles 5h 30m Tommy Milton HCS-Miller Special Report 10 Jun IV Circuito di Mugello Mugello Formula Libre 390 km 5h 49m Gastone Brilli-Peri Steyr VI Klausen Report 17 Jun I Circuito di Savio Ravenna Formula Libre 270 km 5h 49m Enzo Ferrari Alfa Romeo RL TF Report 29 Jun III Gran Premio della Vetturette Montichiari Voiturette 520 km 4h 02m Alessandro Cagno Fiat 803 Report 2 Jul XVII French Grand Prix Tours AIACR 800 km 6h 35m Henry Segrave Sunbeam Report 27 Jul I Gran Premio de San SebastiánLasarte AIACR 450 km 4h 45m Albert Guyot Rolland-Pilain A22 Report 28 Jul Gran Premio de San Sebastián 2000cc Voiturette 590 km 6h 54m ? Jean de l'Espée Bugatti Type 22 Report 26 Aug III Coppa Montenero Montenero Formula Libre 180 km 2h 42m Mario Razzauti Ansaldo 2000 Report 1 Sep III Grand Prix de Boulogne Boulogne-sur-Mer VoituretteCyclecar 450 km 4h 09m Henry Segrave Talbot-Darracq 70 Report 9 Sep III Italian Grand Prix I European Grand Prix Monza AIACR 800 km 5h 28m Carlo Salamano Fiat 805/405 Report 23 Sep XI Coupe des Voiturettes Le Mans Voiturette 415 km 3h 36m Albert Divo Talbot-Darracq 70 Report 13 Oct III Junior Car Club 200 Brooklands Voiturette 200 miles 2h 09m Maj Maurice Harvey Alvis 12/50 Report 21 Oct III Gran Premi Penya Rhin Villafranca Voiturette 520 km 4h 46m Albert Divo Talbot-Darracq 70 Report 28 Oct I Gran Premio de España Sitges AIACR 400 km 2h 34m Albert Divo Sunbeam Report 4 Nov I Gran Premio de España para Voiturettes Voiturette 600 km 4h 22m Dario Resta Talbot-Darracq 70 Report 25 Nov III Circuito del Garda Salò Formula Libre 250 km 3h 21m Guido Meregalli Diatto Tipo 20 S Report
Regulations and technical The regulations set up by the AIACR (forerunner of the FIA) in 1922 for Grand Prix races remained. The maximum engine limit was 2.0-litres and the minimum weight 650 kg. The cars were 2-seaters and the weight of the driver and mechanic had to be at least 120 kg. The pre-war ban on forced induction had not been re-applied when racing resumed and several manufacturers were now working on the loophole for more power.Ludvigsen 2008, p.36 Not for the last time in Grand Prix racing would technical innovation outmanoeuvre technical regulation.
In the United States Carl G. Fisher, the driving force behind the Indianapolis 500, announced his intention to retire. Before he left, however, he pressured the American Automobile Association (AAA) to change their regulations to align with the European formula. The 183 cu in (3-litre) engine limit was therefore reduced to 122 cu in (2-litre) with a view of attracting European competition to keep the 500 race's future secure and to stop forestall a technology gap.Rendall 1993, p.100 In recognition of this, the Indianapolis 500 was also designated a Grand Épreuve by the AIACR. The AAA also removed the requirement to carry a riding mechanic while racing.
Forced to develop new engines, the leading companies took different strategies. The Frontenac name disappeared: Louis Chevrolet was already under financial pressure and was soon driven under. Fred Duesenberg designed his first double-overhead cam engine. Harry Miller saw an opportunity with the smaller engine and passenger restrictions lifted to build a lightweight single-seater that was a pencil-thin racer tailor-made for the high-speed boardwalk ovals.
In contrast, the Targa Florio regulations remained open to any-sized cars. However the distinction between Production and Racing cars was removed with just the six classes based on engine-capacity.
Following the success to Fiat the previous year, both Alfa Romeo and Sunbeam developed 6-cylinder engines. The non-competitiveness of the last Sunbeam was the end of an illustrious career for designer Ernest Henry. He was replaced by Vincenzo Bertarione from Fiat. His first design bore a strong resemblance to the 1922 Fiat and the contemporary press named it the “English Fiat”.Cimarosti 1997, p.62Rendall 1993, p.102
Fiat, however, had already moved on. The design team of Guido Fornaca introduced the new 805 model. Now with an 8-cylinder 2-litre engine augmented by a Wittig supercharger that gave it 130 bhp, capable of up to 220 km/h – easily 30–40 km/h faster than the competition. Unlike the Mercedes version, the Fiat supercharger ran continually.
The Bugatti Type 32 was a remarkable design departure from the previous Bugatti cars. Its distinctive aerodynamic shape was modelled on an aeroplane wing, earning it the nickname le tank de tours. The car's very short wheelbase and long 8-cylinder engine meant a regular gearbox could not be fitted so Bugatti used a 3-speed unit. An innovative front brake system left the driver with no brake pedal and had to use an on-board lever. Finally, with no firewall between the engine and the crew, meant it was very cramped, hot and exhausting with the drivers complaining of poor visibility.
Gabriel Voisin drew upon his previous experience in aircraft design for his Grand Prix car. Like the Bugatti, it also featured harsh enclosed aluminium bodywork on a semi-monocoque timber chassis. However, the car was stymied by the underpowered sleeve-valve engine.Cimarosti 1997, p.61Venables 2009, p.39 Delage went down a completely different track with a standard chassis but fitted with a twin-cam V12 engine designed by Charles Planchon.Rendall 1993, p.101
The Benz-Tropfenwagen was ground-breaking in another way: as well as a teardrop-shaped body, the engine was mounted just ahead of the rear-axle. This mid-engine car foreshadowed the GP cars seen over 30 years later. It also employed independent suspension on all four wheels which was another first for a Grand Prix car.
Manufacturer ModelCimarosti 1997, p.71 Engine PowerOutput Max. Speed (km/h) Dry Weight (kg) Fiat 805-405 FIAT 1979cc S6 supercharged 130 bhp 220 680 Alfa Romeo GPR (P1) Alfa Romeo 1990cc S6 95 bhp 180 850 Diatto Tipo 20 S Diatto 1997cc S4 75 bhp 155 700 Bugatti Type 32 Bugatti 1991cc S8 100 bhp 190 660 Voisin C6 Laboratoire Voisin 1978cc S6 90 bhp 175 710 Sunbeam Sunbeam 1988cc S6 108 bhp 180 675 Mercedes M7294 Mercedes 1990cc S4 supercharged 120 bhp 180 750 Benz RH Tropfenwagen Benz 1998cc S6 95 bhp 185 745 Miller 122 Miller 1978cc S8 120 bhp 186 850
Season review As usual, the first major race of the season was the Targa Florio across northern Sicily. The winner of the last two times, the Conte Giulio Masetti was invited to join the official Alfa Corse works team. The company made a big effort with five entries. Masetti, Antonio Ascari and the veteran Giuseppe Campari had the 2.9-litre of the RL model. Ugo Sivocci had the 3.2-litre version while Enzo Ferrari ran an ES model. There was not as much international interest this year. Aside from Alfieri Maserati's 2-car Diatto team, a three-car team came from Steyr (including Italian drivers Ferdinando Minoia and Conte Gastone Brilli-Peri). André Boillot bought a Peugeot 174 Sports, and privateers filled out the field of seventeen.Fondi 2006, p.341-2
The Alfa Romeos controlled the race. Although Campari and Ferrari retired, Ascari had the fastest lap and would have won. However, on the last lap his engine broke at Cerda within sight of the line. With push-starts not allowed, by the time his mechanic was able to get it going again, team-mate Sivocci had made up the time and won by three minutes. Minoia brought home his Steyr in third, just ahead of Masetti.Fondi 2006, p.76-7Ludvigsen 2008, p.41 From the great publicity across Italy, and in celebration of the 1–2 victory, Alfa Romeo named the car the “RL Targa Florio”. It also encouraged Nicola Romeo to look at building a Grand Prix car.Ludvigsen 2008, p.42
Jimmy Murphy's victory the previous year in the Indianapolis 500 had attracted a lot of interest in Harry Miller's engines. The entry list for this year's event included 11 of the new Miller 122 (in its various guises) in the 24 starters. Cliff Durant had a number made up and eight were entered as Durant Specials. The drivers included Murphy, Eddie Hearne, Harry Hartz and Cliff Durant himself. Harry C. Stutz had another two entered as HCS Specials for Tommy Milton and Howdy Wilcox. Packard returned for the second and last time. Its drivers were the veterans Ralph DePalma, Dario Resta and Joe Boyer. Fred Duesenberg was a late arrival, with just the single car ready for rookie Wade Morton.