1958 Formula One season
From 1959 on, mid-engined cars, with their better road holding, increased driving comfort, lighter weight, and ease on tires and mechanical components (particularly brakes), would have the upper hand.
Because the new regulations around fuel were drawn up late, many of the British teams were not ready in time for the season opener, the Argentine Grand Prix, and the race had just ten entrants, the lowest ever: three from Scuderia Ferrari, six private Maseratis and Stirling Moss in a Cooper from Rob Walker Racing, 1958 being the team's first full season.
Five-time and reigning champion Juan Manuel Fangio qualified on pole position in one of the Maseratis he took over from the works team, ahead of the Ferraris of Mike Hawthorn and Peter Collins.
The canvas was showing on both wheels, but he held on to win, just ahead of the Ferrari duo of Luigi Musso and Mike Hawthorn.
The British teams were present and quick off the mark: Tony Brooks qualified on pole for Vanwall, ahead of Jean Behra for BRM and the Cooper duo of Jack Brabham and Roy Salvadori.
In the next phase, Stirling Moss, who was back at Vanwall, was fastest and briefly took the lead, before his engine started misfiring and he, too, retired.
Veteran racer Maurice Trintignant, who had taken Moss' place at Rob Walker Racing, had started fifth but took advantage of his rivals' misfortune, including, on lap 46, that of Hawthorn, whose Ferrari had shaken its fuel pump loose.
Moss took the lead at the start, ahead of Lewis-Evans, while seventh-starting Harry Schell in the BRM got up to third and then took second place on lap 12.
Pat O'Connor died in a spectacular first-lap pileup, while reigning USAC champion Jimmy Bryan won the race.
In the F1 Drivers' Championship, Stirling Moss (Vanwall) was leading with 17 points, ahead of Luigi Musso (Ferrari) and Maurice Trintignant (Cooper).
Dramatically, all three cars broke down coming out of the last corners, but managed to coast over the finish line, so would the race have been one lap longer, the result would have been very different.
[14] Like in Belgium, Ferrari's Hawthorn and Musso qualified on top for the French Grand Prix, ahead of Harry Schell (BRM), who managed to take the lead at the start but fell back to seventh on lap 2.
[5][6] Hawthorn won the race, ahead of championship rival Moss and teammate Von Trips.
[16] Championship leader Hawthorn started on pole position for the German Grand Prix, ahead of Brooks and Moss.
The Ferrari duo seemed free to fight for the win, until Brooks caught up and used his Vanwall's agility to take the lead through the twisty sections.
[7] Hawthorn retired with clutch issues on the next lap, handing Brooks the win, with a lead of several minutes over the Coopers of Salvadori and Trintignant.
The Portuguese Grand Prix was part of the championship for the first time and was run at the Circuito da Boavista, a street circuit in Porto.
Championship protagonists Stirling Moss and Mike Hawthorn were separated by just 0.05 seconds in qualifying, with the Vanwall placed on pole position and teammate Stuart Lewis-Evans completing the front row.
He subsequently managed to grow such a big lead that the spectators got bored and, just after half-distance, he lapped his teammate in fourth place.
Lewis-Evans had stayed in Moss's slipstream and when Behra moved out of the way for the leader, his teammate could handily snatch third off of the BRM.
Before he could jump back in and take the wheel, however, the car had rolled a couple of yards in the wrong direction of the circuit, so the officials disqualified him after all.
[18] The local Ferrari team were seen as favourites for the Italian Grand Prix, not just by the tifosi, but Moss and Brooks placed their Vanwalls on the top of the grid.
Von Trips hit the rear wheel of Harry Schell, flew into the air and was thrown out of the car before it struck a tree.
In the next ten laps, three drivers crashed, all slightly injured, and Lewis-Evans slid off the road when his engine exploded.
