Date 23 August 1959 Course length 5.440 km (3.380 mi) | Course Public road | |
 | ||
Official name VIII Portuguese Grand Prix Location Circuito de Monsanto
Lisbon, Portugal Distance 62 laps, 337.28 km (209.56 mi) | ||
The 1959 Portuguese Grand Prix was a Formula One motor race held at Monsanto on 23 August 1959. It was the eighth Portuguese Grand Prix and the second to be held for the Formula One World Drivers' Championship. It was the third time the race was held at Monsanto and the first for Formula One. The race was held over 62 laps of the five kilometre circuit for a total race distance of 337 kilometres.
Contents
The race was won by British driver Stirling Moss, his eleventh Grand Prix victory, driving a Cooper T51 for privateer race team Rob Walker Racing Team. Moss finished a lap ahead of American racer Masten Gregory driving a similar Cooper T51 for the factory Cooper Car Company team. American Scuderia Ferrari driver Dan Gurney finished third in his Ferrari Dino 246.
Race report
Wins in France and Germany had given Tony Brooks a healthy second place in the championship behind Jack Brabham. Stirling Moss improved on his poor championship position with a dominating drive, lapping the entire field except for second-placed Masten Gregory and third-placed Dan Gurney. Phil Hill and Graham Hill crashed into each other on lap 6, whilst Brabham had an enormous somersaulting crash from which he emerged unscathed. Gurney was the only Ferrari in the top eight with Maurice Trintignant and Harry Schell rounding off the top five.
With Brabham failing to finish and Brooks finishing a distant five laps down in ninth and Moss closed the gap to just 9½ points behind Brabham and 5½ points behind Brooks in the championship race.