Robert Jean Joseph Manzon (12 April 1917 – 19 January 2015) was a French racing driver, who competed in Formula One from to .
Manzon participated in 29 Grands Prix, debuting at the 1950 Monaco Grand Prix. He achieved two podiums, and scored a total of 16 championship points, driving for Gordini, Rosier, and Ferrari. At the time of his death, Manzon was the last surviving driver to have taken part in the first Formula One World Championship in 1950.
Career
Robert Jean Joseph Manzon was born on 12 April 1917 in Marseille, France. Manzon began his career as a mechanic and after World War II he started racing, initially with a Cisitalia D46. Earning a contract with the Gordini team for 1948, Manzon won some minor races although his machinery was not always reliable.
Manzon continued with Gordini into the new Formula One era, scoring points at the 1950 French Grand Prix, and finishing sixth in the World Drivers' Championship in 1952, taking third place in the 1952 Belgian Grand Prix. He left Gordini in 1953 and joined Louis Rosier's team, which was campaigning Ferraris. He subsequently achieved his second podium at the 1954 French Grand Prix at the wheel of a Ferrari 625. Manzon died at his home in the south of France on 19 January 2015 aged 97. He was the last surviving entrant of the 1950 Formula One season.
Complete Formula One World Championship results
(key)
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:90%"
! Year
! Entrant
! Chassis
! Engine
! 1
! 2
! 3
! 4
! 5
! 6
! 7
! 8
! 9
! WDC
! Points
|-
| 1950
! Equipe Simca Gordini
! Simca Gordini Type 15
! Gordini Straight-4
| GBR
|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| MON<br>
| 500
| SUI
| BEL
|style="background:#DFFFDF;"| FRA<br>
|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| ITA<br />
|
|
! 14th
! 3
|-
| 1951
! Equipe Simca Gordini
! Simca Gordini Type 15
! Gordini Straight-4
| SUI
| 500
| BEL
|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| FRA<br>
| GBR
|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| GER<br />
|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| ITA<br />
|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| ESP<br>
|
! NC
! 0
|-
| 1952
! Equipe Gordini
! Gordini Type 16
! Gordini Straight-6
|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| SUI<br />
| 500
|style="background:#FFDF9F;"| BEL<br>
|style="background:#DFFFDF;"| FRA<br>
|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| GBR<br>
|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| GER<br />
|style="background:#DFFFDF;"| NED<br>
|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| ITA<br />
|
! 6th
! 9
|-
| 1953
! Equipe Gordini
! Gordini Type 16
! Gordini Straight-6
|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| ARG<br />
| 500
| NED
| BEL
| FRA
| GBR
| GER
| SUI
| ITA
! NC
! 0
|-
|rowspan=2| 1954
! Equipe Rosier
! Ferrari 625
!rowspan=2| Ferrari Straight-4
| ARG
| 500
| BEL
|style="background:#FFDF9F;"| FRA<br>
|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| GBR<br>
|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| GER<br />
|
|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| ITA<br />
|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| ESP<br>
!rowspan=2| 15th
!rowspan=2| 4
|-
! Scuderia Ferrari
! Ferrari 553
|
|
|
|
|
|
|style="background:#ffffff;"| SUI<br />
|
|
|-
| 1955
! Equipe Gordini
! Gordini Type 16
! Gordini Straight-6
| ARG
|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| MON<br>
| 500
| BEL
|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| NED<br>
|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| GBR<br>
| ITA
|
|
! NC
! 0
|-
|rowspan=2| 1956
!rowspan=2| Equipe Gordini
! Gordini Type 16
! Gordini Straight-6
| ARG<br /><small>DNA</small>
|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| MON<br>
| 500
| BEL
|
|
|
|
|
!rowspan=2| NC
!rowspan=2| 0
|-
! Gordini Type 32
! Gordini Straight-8
|
|
|
|
|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| FRA<br>
|style="background:#CFCFFF;"| GBR<br>
|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| GER<br>
|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| ITA<br />
|
|}
References
Sources
- Profile at www.grandprix.com
- Robert Manzon's obituary