1959 Formula One season
It featured the 10th World Championship of Drivers, the second International Cup for F1 Manufacturers and five non-championship Formula One races.
Jack Brabham driving for Cooper ran out of fuel but pushed his car over the line to win his first Drivers' Championship.
[3] After two teammates had already crashed, Behra's Porsche 718 RSK went over the top of the 43 degree banked turn and he incurred a skull fracture when he struck a flagpole with his head.
The lone works Porsche, driven by Wolfgang von Trips, spun on some oil on the second lap and was collected by three other drivers.
At half distance, only eight cars were left running, with Moss at a sizeable lead over Brabham and Tony Brooks, third in the championship last year.
For the Dutch Grand Prix, Jo Bonnier, driving for the BRM works team, clinched his first career pole, ahead of Brabham, who achieved the same lap time but at a later moment, and Moss, two tenths behind.
A mere three laps later, however, the Cooper's transmission failed, causing Moss to retire from the lead for the second time in a row.
Fifth-starting Moss, who had moved to the BRP team, passed three cars into the first corner, but was overtaken himself by seventh-starting Gregory.
While Trintignant stopped to cool off, Bonnier's engine had seized, but the Swede pushed his car a full kilometer back to the pits.
Tony Brooks borrowed a Vanwall from his old team boss to, at least theoretically, be able to challenge Jack Brabham for the lead in the championship.
Brabham took pole position in his Cooper, ahead of Roy Salvadori in the Aston Martin, who set the same time but at a later moment, and Harry Schell in the BRM.
[6] Instead of the traditional Nürburgring, the German Grand Prix was held at the AVUS circuit, which consisted of two Autobahn straights of 3.5 km (2.2 mi), linked together by a hairpin at one end and a 43 degre banked turn at the other.
In the supporting sports car race, it was the rain that caused peril: three of the leading Porsches crashed out, of which Jean Behra came off worst.
The remaining Coopers and Ferraris seemed equally strong and the lead switch hands multiple times, until the Climax engine broke and Gregory coasted to a standstill.
After a short break to change tyres and mend some damage, nine cars were left to start the second heat.
[3] The Portuguese Grand Prix was run on the much appraised Monsanto road course, and the twisty nature of the track gave the advantage to the lightweight Coopers: Moss qualified on pole, ahead of the two works drivers, Brabham and Gregory, and then came teammate Trintignant.
[13] Even at Monza, the track synonymous with speed, the Cooper team was giving home favourite Ferrari a run for their money.
Moss's plan worked, as Hill and Gurney had to change tyres on lap 33 and 34, so the only remaining fear was for his Cooper to let him down.
The first United States Grand Prix was held at Sebring International Raceway, combining two runways of the regional airport and a series of technical corners.
Moss took pole position, ahead of Brabham and Harry Schell, making it three Coopers on the front row.
Brooks had to pit after the first lap, because his teammate Von Trips had rear-ended him, giving him no more realistic chances for the title.
In five laps, Moss achieved a lead of ten seconds over Brabham, before his gearbox packed up and he coasted to a halt.
A mere mile from the finish, drama ensued as Brabham ran out of fuel and McLaren went by to take the win, half a second ahead of Trintignant.
