1926 GRAND PRIX SEASON -

GRAND PRIX DE PROVENCE

Circuit de Miramas - Marseille (F), 28 March 1926.
50 laps x 5.050 km (3.138 mi) = 252.5 km (156.9 mi)

No.	Driver	Entrant	Car	Type	Engine		Remarks

1	Edgar Markiewicz	E. Markiewicz	Salmson		1.1	S-4
2	Pierre Bac	P. Bac	Salmson		1.1	S-4
3	Jourdan	Jourdan	Salmson		1.1	S-4
4	Dufour	Dufour	Salmson		1.1	S-4
5	André Morel	SNA Amilcar	Amilcar	CO	1.1	S-6
6	Charles Martin	SNA Amilcar	Amilcar	CO	1.1	S-6
7	René Cozette	SNA Amilcar	Amilcar	C6	1.1	S-6
8	Fernand Michel	SNA Amilcar	Amilcar	C6	1.1	S-6
9	Henny de Joncy	H. de Joncy	BNC	527 Scap	1.1	S-4
10	F. Thélusson	F. Thélusson	BNC tank	527 Scap	1.1	S-4
11	Jacques Brosselin	J. Brosselin	BNC tank	527 Scap	1.1	S-4
12	Henri Matthieu	Henri Matthieu	Octo	Ruby	1.1	S-4	DNA - did not appear
13	Pourtal	Pourtal	Octo	Ruby	1.1	S-4
14	Coutras	Coutras	Octo	Ruby	1.1	S-4
15	Pierre de Cailleux	P. de Cailleux	Nemo		1.1	S-4

16	Raymond Savon	Raymond Savon	Bugatti	T37	1.5	S-4	DNA - did not appear
17	Marcel Magnier	Marcel Magnier	Bugatti	T22	1.5	S-4
18	Armand Girod	A. Girod	Bugatti	T37	1.5	S-4	DNA - did not appear
19	Henry Segrave	Automobiles Talbot	Talbot	s/c	1.5	S-4
20	Edmond Bourlier	Automobiles Talbot	Talbot	s/c	1.5	S-4
21	Jules Moriceau	Automobiles Talbot	Talbot	s/c	1.5	S-4
22	Muraour	Muraour	Jean Gras	CIME	1.5	S-4
23	de Brémond	de Brémond	Mathis		1.5	S-4	DNA - did not appear
24	Robert Savon	R. Savon	Bugatti	T37	1.5	S-4

25	François Eysermann	F. Eysermann	Bugatti	T35A	2.0	S-8
26	Marcel Vidal	Marcel Vidal	Bugatti	T35	2.0	S-8	DNA - did not appear
27	Marcel Lehoux	M. Lehoux	Bugatti	T35A	2.0	S-8
28	"Williams"	W. Williams	Bugatti	T35	2.0	S-8
29	Louis Chiron	Hoffmann	Bugatti	T35A	2.0	S-8
30	René Lamy	René Lamy	Bugatti	T30	2.0	S-8	DNS - did not start
31	E. Proal	E. Proal	Bugatti	T35A	2.0	S-8	DNA - did not appear

32	Maurice Rost	M. Rost	Georges-Irat		3.0	S-6
33	Antoine Massias	A. Massias	Alfa Romeo	RL SS	3.0	S-6
34	Charles Montier	C. Montier	Montier	Ford	2.9	S-4
35	Hector David	H. David	Turcat Méry		2.4	S-4
36	Louis Rigal	L. Rigal	Chenard Walcker	UU	2.6	S-4	DNA - did not appear

37	M. Giraud	M. Giraud	Voisin		3.5	S-6	DNA - did not appear
38	Gaétan Ducreux	G. Ducreux	Panhard Levassor		3.5	S-6	DNS - practice crash
39	Felix Castellan	F. Castellan	Panhard Levassor		3.5	S-6	DNS - fatal practice crash
40	Maurice Bécquet	M. Bécquet	Béquet Spéciale - Hispano Suiza		11.8	V-8	DNA - did not appear

41	Trouvé	Trouvé	Delfosse		1.5
42	Jourdan	Jourdan	Bugatti	T35	2.0	S-8	DNA - did not appear
43	Ignazio Zubiaga	I. Zubiaga	Austin	Seven	0.7	S-4	DNA - did not appear

Segrave wins the Provence Grand Prix and Hartford Cup for Talbot

by Hans Etzrodt

The 1926 Grand Prix de Provence attracted an entry of 43 cars which were divided into 5 categories, each with its own elimination race over 10 laps around the Miramas circuit. The first five in each heat were due to advance to the final over 50 laps, however only16 cars actually took part. The race was frantic and at times very eventful. The battle was between the 1500 works Talbots of Segrave, Bourlier and Moriceau and a group of independent 2000 Bugattis driven by Lehoux, Williams, Chiron and Foresti in Eysermann's car. In the 1100 category the works Amilcars of Morel and Martin battled the independent Salmsons of Jourdan and Bac. Segrave won ahead of Moriceau, Williams, Chiron, Foresti and Rost (3000 Georges-Irat). The stragglers Morel, Lehoux, Massias and Jourdan were flagged off when the track was invaded by the crowd. The remaining six cars retired. The official timekeepers made serious mistakes, which were reviewed by Charles Faroux at the end of this report in the 'In retrospect' section.
The AC de Marseille used the Miramas circuit as its venue. Situated north-west of the large seaport of Marseille, it was located just a few kilometers north of the town of Miramas. The race track had been built at great expense for the 1924 Provence Grand Prix. The flat 5.050 km oval track easily allowed speeds of up to 200 km/h, the wide corners were slightly banked but the rough concrete surface was hard on tires. The 1926 Grand Prix de Provence was the second running of the event. It comprised six races, consisting of five qualifying heats and a Final for the Hartford Cup. Racing began at 9:30 AM with the qualifying race for the over 3-liters category. At 10:15 the 3-liter category started, followed at 11 am by the 2-liter category, at 11:45 by the 1.5-liter category and at 12:30 PM by the 1.1-liter category. The heat races went over 10 laps of the 5.050 km circuit, totaling 50.500 km. The first 5 finishers of each heat qualified for the Final at 2:30 PM which brought together the fastest of each category for 50 laps or 252.500 km. The prize money awarded in each category of the elimination runs was 3,000 francs for first, 2,000 for second, 1,500 for third, 1,000 for fourth and 500 for fifth. In addition the following prizes would be awarded to the winners of the Final: first place received 10,000 francs and the Hartford Trophy, second 4,000 francs, third 3,000, fourth 2,000 and fifth 1,000 while the Coupe du Casino d'Aix-en Provence was a team prize. The trophy offered by the Hartford Company (the well-known manufacturer of friction shock absorbers) became the permanent property of the manufacturer which won it twice (whether consecutively or not). The trophy was entrusted during the year to the manufacturer which had last won it and had to be returned to the Society of the Autodrome in the first days of the following year. In the event that this trophy was won by an amateur, it was the builder of the car which would be the holder. The trophy was first won by the Talbot Company.
Entries: The AC de Marseille received a splendid list of 43 entries, shown at the beginning of this report. Race numbers were not published in any of our primary sources, but we utilized the ones shown in Paul Sheldon's black books Volume 2. However, a few of those numbers (from #25 to #30) were changed by us because photographs showed different numbers than those on Sheldon's list. The cars affected were: #25 François Eysermann (2000 Bugatti) was changed from #26 (Sheldon). #26 Marcel Vidal (2000 Bugatti), was changed by us from #25 (Sheldon) - was a DNA. #27 Marcel Lehoux (2000 Bugatti) was changed from #28 (Sheldon). #28 Williams (2000 Bugatti) was changed from #29 (Sheldon). #29 Chiron (2000 Bugatti) was changed from #30 (Sheldon). #30 René Lamy (2000 Bugatti) was changed by us from #27 (Sheldon) a DNA, changed to DNS. This #30 car was seen in a photograph of the Final starting grid, a mysterious car. The following race numbers were proven to be correct, matching those in photographs, #1, #2, #3 and #4 Salmsons; #5 and #6 Amilcars; #10 and #11, BNCs; #19 and #20 Talbots; #25, #27 and #28 Bugattis; # 32 Georges-Irat; #41 Delfosse. Amongst the doubtful entries with possibly wrong race numbers or incorrect names were the following, none of which appeared for the race. #18 (1500 Bugatti), driven by Armand Girod. #35 (3000 Turcat Méry) was driven by Hector David or Alfred Ducreux, Dureux. #43 Zubiaga (Austin) was listed only by L'Auto in the race previews. On Thursday, March 25, Alfred Ducreux and Gaétan Ducreux were practicing together in their Panhards, when they almost collided at the entrance of the loop. During heavy braking, the car of Gaétan Ducreux swerved, spun and struck the embankment on the slope. Gaétan Ducreux, and his mechanic, the young Felix Castellan of the Panhard-Levassor works, were thrown from the car. Ducreux escaped with heavy bruises, but the driverless car continued its trajectory, hit Castellan, lying on the track. Castellan was transported to hospital with a caved in chest, where he soon died. The sad accident happened by mistake and caused great dismay for the organizer and others. Felix Castellan from Marseille was to drive the second Panhard Levassor but the cars did not start.
The Races: 29 drivers started in the morning's elimination races. Another 14 did not appear but were listed by the Paris L'Auto. The exception was the #42 Bugatti (a DNA) from Paul Sheldon's listing, which appeared to be a duplicate entry for the #3 Salmson. Heat 1: The elimination race for the over 3000 cc category was due to start at 9:30 AM. Massias (Alfa Romeo), as the only starter, qualified for the final without having to drive the course. The question remains why the 3000 Alfa Romeo was allowed to start in the higher category over 3-liter? Its engine could have been re-bored to just over 3000 cc but that is not known. It is also possible that the organizer selected the Alfa Romeo to start in heat 1, in order to keep that heat alive since three of the entries had not appeared and one driver died in a practice crash.

Results - over 3-liter category qualification

Pos.	No.	Driver	Entrant	Car	Type	Engine		Laps	Time/Status

1.	33	Antoine Massias	A. Massias	Alfa Romeo	RL SS	3.0	S-6

Heat 2:
The elimination race for the 3000 cc category started at 10:15 AM. There were four entries in this boring half an hour race where Rost took the lead and led from beginning to end. After David retired the Turcat Méry, only the first two cars qualified for the final.

Results - 3-liter category qualification

Pos.	No.	Driver	Entrant	Car	Type	Engine		Laps	Time/Status	Diff

1.	32	Maurice Rost	M. Rost	Georges Irat		3.0	S-6	10	26m12.4s
2.	34	Charles Montier	C. Montier	Montier	Ford	2.9	S-4	10	29m33.2s	+ 3m20.8s
DNF	35	Hector David	H. David	Turcat Méry		2.4	S-4

Fastest lap : N/A. Average speed of the winner: 115.6 km/h (71.8 mph) (Note 1)

Heat 3:
The elimination race for the 2000 cc category started at 11:00 AM with four similar looking Bugattis. On the second lap Lehoux took the lead and the finishing order did not change after that lap. All four cars qualified for the final. The number 30 car was in the race as seen in a photograph on the starting grid for the Final start. The circumstances connected with this car are unknown. Despite this we show it as non-starter.

Results - 2-liter category qualification

Pos.	No.	Driver	Entrant	Car	Type	Engine		Laps	Time/Status	Diff

1.	27	Marcel Lehoux	M. Lehoux	Bugatti	T35A	2.0	S-8	10	23m24.6s
2.	29	Louis Chiron	Hoffmann	Bugatti	T35A	2.0	S-8	10	23m46.0s	+ 21.4s
3.	25	François Eysermann	F. Eysermann	Bugatti	T35A	2.0	S-8	10	24m36.4s	+ 1m11.8s
4.	28	"Williams"	W. Williams	Bugatti	T35	2.0	S-8	10	25m03.2s	+ 1m38.6s
DNS	30	René Lamy	R. Lamy	Bugatti	T30	2.0	S-8		did not start

Fastest lap: N/A. Average speed of the winner: 129.4 km/h (80.4 mph).

Heat 4:
The elimination race for the 1500 cc category started at 11:45 AM. From the seven entries in this boring race only four drivers advanced. The three Talbots were saving their cars for the final. Bourlier drove the fastest lap at 122.030 km/h. Muraour failed to complete the full distance in time and was flagged off while Savon and Magnier retired.

Results - 1.5-liter category qualification

Pos.	No.	Driver	Entrant	Car	Type	Engine		Laps	Time/Status	Diff

1.	20	Edmond Bourlier	Automobiles Talbot	Talbot	s/c	1.5	S-8	10	25m25.6s
2.	19	Henry Segrave	Automobiles Talbot	Talbot	s/c	1.5	S-8	10	25m25.8s	+ 0.2s
3.	21	Jules Moriceau	Automobiles Talbot	Talbot	s/c	1.5	S-8	10	25m33.8s	+ 8.2s
4.	41	Trouvé	Trouvé	Delfosse		1.5		10	27m07.4s	+ 1m41.8s
DNC	22	Muraour	Muraour	Jean Gras	CIME	1.5	S-4		flagged off
DNF	24	Robert Savon	R. Savon	Bugatti	T37	1.5	S-4
DNF	17	Marcel Magnier	M. Magnier	Bugatti	T22	1.5	S-4

Fastest lap: Edmond Boulier (Talbot) in 2m29s = 122.0 km/h 75.8 mph). Average speed of the winner: 119.2 km/h (74.0 mph.

Heat 5:
The elimination race for the 1100 cc category started at 12:30 PM. From the 14 car field the two latest works Amilcars and three Salmsons finished in the first five places and advanced to the Final. Morel was leading and was not worried about the Salmsons which were kept well behind Martin's Amilcar. Four other cars finished the heat but did not qualify and five more retired.

Results - 1.1-liter category qualification

Pos.	No.	Driver	Entrant	Car	Type	Engine		Laps	Time/Status	Diff

1.	5	André Morel	SNA Amilcar	Amilcar	CO	1.1	S-6	10	24m33.6s
2.	6	Charles Martin	SNA Amilcar	Amilcar	CO	1.1	S-6	10	26m07.4s	+ 1m33.8s
3.	2	Pierre Bac	P. Bac	Salmson		1.1	S-4	10	26m19.6s	+ 1m46.0s
4.	3	Jourdan	Jourdan	Salmson		1.1	S-4	10	26m56.6s	+ 2m23.0s
5.	4	Dufour	Dufour	Salmson		1.1	S-4	10	27m07.2s	+ 2m33.6s
DNQ	13	Pourtal	Pourtal	Octo	Ruby	1.1	S-4	10	29m16.2s	+ 4m42-6s
DNQ	8	Fernand Michel	SNA Amilcar	Amilcar	C6	1.1	S-6	10	32m03.4s	+ 7m29.8s
DNQ	15	Pierre de Cailleux	P. de Cailleux	Nemo		1.1	S-4	10	32m46.4s	+ 8m12.8s
DNQ	10	F. Thélusson	F. Thélusson	BNC tank	527 Scap	1.1	S-4	10	34m41.2s	+ 10m07.6s
DNF	1	Edgar Markiewicz	E. Markiewicz	Salmson		1.1	S-4
DNF	7	René Cozette	SNA Amilcar	Amilcar	C6	1.1	S-6
DNF	14	Coutras	Coutras	Octo	Ruby	1.1	S-4
DNF	9	Henny de Joncy	H. de Joncy	BNC	527 Scap	1.1	S-4
DNF	11	Jacques Brosselin	J. Brosselin	BNC tank	527 Scap	1.1	S-4

Fastest lap: N/A. Average speed of the winner: 123.4 km/h (76.7 mph).

The Final
was scheduled at 2:30 PM over 50 laps or 250.500 km, with the following 16 drivers who had qualified:
Over 3-Liter - Massias (Alfa Romeo);
3-Liter - Rost (Georges Irat), Montier (Montier);
2-Liter - Lehoux (Bugatti), Chiron (Bugatti), Foresti (Bugatti), Williams (Bugatti);
1.5-Liter - Bourlier (Talbot), Segrave (Talbot), Moriceau (Talbot), Trouvé (Delfosse);
1.1-Liter - Morel (Amilcar), Martin (Amilcar), Bac (Salmson), Jourdan (Salmson), Dufour (Salmson).
There was one change of drivers when Giulio Foresti replaced Eysermann (Bugatti) in the 2-liter class.
The sun, which finally decided to shine, invited the undecided to come to Miramas and the spectators were now even more numerous than the morning. The cars were placed on the grid in the order of their average speed finished in the heat races. The intention of this arrangement was to give no cause for complaints regarding injustice.

Grid not available

The start was given by François Repusseau, the major contributor of the Hartford Trophy, and Morel stormed away in the lead but at the end of the first lap it was Bourlier in front with a time of 2m16s. He was followed by Segrave, Williams, Morel, Lehoux, Foresti, Chiron, Moriceau, Martin, Bac, Rost, Jourdan and Trouvé, in this order. At the end of the first lap, near the exit of the loop, the Salmson of Dufour overturned, but he was not injured. He stopped at the pits where he retired with a transmission problem, which supposedly was the cause of the incident but other sources reported a broken magneto drive.
On the second lap Segrave took the lead ahead of Bourlier, Lehoux, Morel and Chiron, having made the fastest lap in 3m13s at 135.340 km/h. Rost advanced two places ahead of Bac and Jourdan. On the third lap Chiron passed Morel for fourth place with Morel now fifth followed closely by Moriceau. On lap five Williams had to stop at the pits and resumed immediately but had dropped to tenth place. The race continued and it was interesting to see Williams making up places every lap. Moriceau who earlier had passed Morel, passed Chiron on lap seven for fourth place.
On the 10th lap, Segrave was still in the lead, followed by Bourlier, who was threatened by Lehoux 40 meters behind. Moriceau, Chiron and Williams followed next. The first three were separated by only three seconds. The struggle was exciting to watch. There were still 15 cars on the track, after 50.5 km Segrave led the field in the following order after ten laps:

1.	Segrave (Talbot)	23m13s
2.	Bourlier (Talbot)	23m14s
3.	Lehoux (Bugatti)	23m16s
4.	Moriceau (Talbot)	23m26s
5.	Chiron (Bugatti)	23m39s
6.	Williams (Bugatti)	24m45s
7.	Foresti (Bugatti)	25m05s
8.	Martin (Amilcar)	25m19s
9.	Morel (Amilcar)	25m29s
10.	Bac (Salmson)	26m04s
11.	Rost (Georges Irat)	26m04s
12.	Trouvé (Delfosse)	27m37s
13.	Montier (Montier)	29m10s
14.	Massias (Alfa Romeo)	2 laps behind
15.	Jourdan (Salmson)

On lap 11, Lehoux fell from third to sixth place. The three Talbots were now in front ahead of Chiron and Williams. On lap 12 Morel had to stop for new tires and Foresti stopped on the following lap. Williams recovered superbly. He made up time in every turn. After 101 km, the field was further reduced when Montier retired. Jourdan's Salmson, Massias and Trouvé had fallen so far behind that they were no longer shown with a time. Chiron had been 13 seconds behind Moriceau, but had now reduced the gap to only 3 seconds. The field was down to 14 cars in the following order after 20 laps:

1.	Segrave (Talbot)	46m42s
2.	Bourlier (Talbot)	46m43s
3.	Moriceau (Talbot)	46m54s
4.	Chiron (Bugatti)	46m57s
5.	Williams (Bugatti)	47m38s
6.	Lehoux (Bugatti)	50m27s
7.	Foresti (Bugatti)	51m30s
8.	Rost (Georges Irat)	52m06s
9.	Bac (Salmson)	52m50s
10.	Morel (Amilcar)	52m56s
11.	Martin (Amilcar)	1h05m22s
12.	Trouvé (Delfosse)
13.	Massias (Alfa Romeo)
14.	Jourdan (Salmson)

The positions remained unchanged for a few laps. On lap 25 Lehoux stopped at the pits. Williams had constantly pushed forward, passing Chiron and catching up with the leading Talbots on the 26th lap. He moved ahead of Moriceau, who had dropped to fifth place. It was a fierce fight between Bugatti and Talbot since the first six consisted of three Talbots and three Bugattis. After 151.5 km the field had shrunk to 11 cars after Bac (Salmson), Trouvé (Delfosse) and Martin (Amilcar) retired. The field was in the following order after 30 laps, but due to the timekeepers mistakes the intermediate times might not be accurate, but they are official:

1.	Segrave (Talbot)	1h10m13s
2.	Bourlier (Talbot)	1h10m13s
3.	Williams (Bugatti)	1h10m14s
4.	Chiron (Bugatti)	1h10m32s
5.	Moriceau (Talbot)	1h12m59s
6.	Foresti (Bugatti)	1h14m32s
7.	Lehoux (Bugatti)	1h15m10s
8.	Morel (Amilcar)	1h16m12s
9.	Rost (Georges Irat)	1h18m02s
10.	Massias (Alfa Romeo)
11.	Jourdan (Salmson)

The fight was always very close amongst the first three as evidenced by the time differences. On lap 32 Bourlier stopped briefly at the pits for service and left shortly afterwards, allowing Williams to advance to second place. Rost had moved from ninth to seventh place. Lehoux who had been sixth ten laps before found himself near the end of the field. During the 10 laps leading up to lap 40, Williams had dropped 54 seconds behind Segrave, if we believe the official times. That is a time loss of 5.4 seconds per lap and surprisingly this was not mentioned in any of the many reports. After 202 km the field was in the following order after 40 laps, but due to the timekeepers mistakes, reported by Charles Faroux, the times might not be accurate:

1.	Segrave (Talbot)	1h32m33s
2.	Williams (Bugatti)	1h32m55s
3.	Bourlier (Talbot)	1h34m07s
4.	Chiron (Bugatti)	1h35m17s
5.	Moriceau (Talbot)	1h35m31s
6.	Foresti (Bugatti)	1h40m06s
7.	Rost (Georges Irat)	1h43m57s
8.	Morel (Amilcar)	1h44m07s
9.	Lehoux (Bugatti)	1h45m30s
10.	Massias (Alfa Romeo)
11.	Jourdan (Salmson)

Williams left Bourlier behind and attacked Segrave. It became exciting. On the forty-third lap, it was learned with surprise that Williams' Bugatti was 12 seconds behind the lead driver. Segrave nearly lost the race because of a mistake by the lap counters announcement. Because of false lap information, he believed he had a full lap advantage but in reality it was just 8 seconds. At first, it was believed that the timekeepers had made a mistake, but Williams had indeed executed a lap so formidable that three laps before the end he was only 8 seconds behind his rival. Segrave who was warned of the danger, increased his advantage on lap 47 when Williams burst a tire and was forced to change the wheel in the pits, losing his second place, an incident which went unnoticed by the most spectators. The race was run, both Talbots, like the year before, would win. During the last ten laps Bourlier lost his third place when he retired the Talbot with an accelerator problem. At the end of the 50th lap Mr. Zafiropulo moved to the edge of the track, waving the yellow flag, signaling Segrave to stop. He crossed the finish line in 1h55m3.6s at an average speed of 131.650 km/h, winning for the second time the Grand Prix de Provence and, definitely, the Hartford Trophy. But the Hartford Trophy was awarded to the Talbot Company and the Coupe du Casino d'Aix-en Provence (a team prize) went to the Bugatti Company.
There was some hesitation among the arrival at the finish line. The officials, lacking in foresight, let themselves be surprised by the always enthusiastic crowd overflowing on to the circuit. Inexperienced and insufficient officials were unable to clear the track of spectators who had invaded it, hindering the drivers, controlling the race and creating the risk of serious accidents. It was necessary for the officials to stop the race after the arrival of the sixth finisher. The marshals flagged down Morel in the Amilcar when he completed 47 laps in 2h06m57s which the timekeepers confirmed after the race. The same happened to Lehoux in his Bugatti who also completed 47 laps with the same time. They also clarified that when Jourdan and Massias were stopped, they had covered 42 laps in 2h08m20s. In the end 10 cars finished. But the results showed only six finishers completing the full distance while four drivers which were flagged down, did not cover the distance in regulation time.
We cannot trust the timekeeping data for the Final race upon which this report is based, either the number of laps, the lap times or the absolute times. Some are probably correct and some are undoubtedly incorrect, but there is no way of knowing which is which. As a result, some of our written report, which is based in part on the timekeepers' data, is correct and other parts may be incorrect, but we can't sort the facts from the fiction.

Results - Final

Pos.	No.	Driver	Entrant	Car	Type	Engine		Laps	Time/Status	Diff

1.	19	Henry Segrave	Automobiles Talbot	Talbot	s/c	1.5	S-4	50	1h55m03.6s
2.	21	Jules Moriceau	Automobiles Talbot	Talbot	s/c	1.5	S-4	50	1h57m47.0s	+ 2m43.4s
3.	28	"Williams"	W. Williams	Bugatti	T35	2.0	S-8	50	1h58m04.0s	+ 3m00.4s
4.	29	Louis Chiron	Hoffmann	Bugatti	T35A	2.0	S-8	50	1h58m47.0s	+ 3m43.4s
5.	25	Giulio Foresti	Eysermann	Bugatti	T35	2.0	S-8	50	2h05m21.0s	+ 10m17.4s
6.	32	Maurice Rost	M. Rost	Georges Irat		3.0	S-6	50	2h09m41.0s	+ 14m37.4s
DNC	5	André Morel	SNA Amilcar	Amilcar	CO	1.1	S-6	47	2h06m57s, flagged
DNC	27	Marcel Lehoux	M. Lehoux	Bugatti	T35A	2.0	S-8	47	2h06m57s, flagged
DNC	33	Antoine Massias	A. Massias	Alfa Romeo	RL SS	3.0	S-6	42	2h08m20s, flagged
DNC	3	Jourdan	Jourdan	Salmson		1.1	S-4	42	2h08m20s, flagged
DNF	20	Edmond Bourlier	Automobiles Talbot	Talbot	s/c	1.5	S-4	40+	broken accelerator
DNF	6	Charles Martin	SNA Amilcar	Amilcar	CO	1.1	S-6	20+	fuel supply problem
DNF	41	Trouvé	Trouvé	Delfosse	Cime	1.1		20+
DNF	2	Pierre Bac	P. Bac	Salmson		1.1	S-4	20+
DNF	34	Charles Montier	C. Montier	Montier	Ford	2.9	S-4	10+
DNF	4	Dufour	Dufour	Salmson		1.1	S-4	1	transmission

Fastest lap: Henry Segrave (Talbot) in 2m13s (2m14.3s?) = 135.34 km/h (84.1 mph). Average speed of the winner: 131.7 km/h (81.8 mph). Weather: cloudy but no rain.

In retrospect:
About the timekeepers - Charles Faroux wrote on 30th of March in the Paris L'Auto about timing issues: "We must return today to the Grand Prix de Provence and the curious incidents that the Hartford Cup has given rise to. Already, you know the changes of the final ranking. The official timekeepers first announced: Segrave first, Williams second, Moriceau third. An hour later, after various complaints, we received the real ranking: Segrave first, Moriceau second, Williams third. The mistakes of our official timekeepers are repeated in every race. We inevitably walk into a sporting scandal and one day there will be a trial where the responsibility of the A.C.F. will be seriously jeopardized.
"We look forward to the years when we respectfully gain the AFC leaders' attention, but they do not want to hear from us. On several occasions, we have pointed out that the most remarkable timekeeping course in the entire world, in which German, English or American students flocked, was the course of the eminent M. Andrade, professed at the Paris Sorbonne. Admit that it is curious to see that my chronometer is bad in France. Let's hope that the A.C.F. wishes to hear from us one day. But you also know the spirit of the A.C.F., who never wants to listen to a council or take an opinion, and who gradually are ignorant to general mockery.
"We will say what happened yesterday, how displeasing it is to speak of oneself. When the start of the final is given to the sixteen cars, three official timekeepers operate surrounded by many aids, and they have several displays, I can believe that everything will go perfectly. I have this mania to do, too, of the timing, and after the first five laps, I climb discreetly to these gentlemen, comparing their times with mine. Everything is fine. I'm getting ready to go to take braking and acceleration times.
"At this moment, I meet Coatalen, who tells me: "Do not go to the pits. We know that you are there and that there will be no mistake; do not leave control." Above all, we're joking around. I have the pleasure to greet Mrs. Coatalen and after a few minutes, I go back to the timekeepers. It was already too late. Lehoux appeared first, while Segrave and Bourlier had never been passed. It is necessary to search, which is not without difficulty, because the passages succeed one another quickly.
"After a lot of twists and turns, I'm going to tell you what appears to have happened: on one side, official truth, the Talbot in the lead with two laps ahead of the first Bugatti and the true truth Segrave first, followed by Williams at two or three hundred meters, in the Bugatti. The Talbot, not feeling alarmed, was driving about and, for a little while, was beaten up by the inaccuracy of official information. Who was the culprit? I do not have the power to make the decision or the blame, but I have also my duty to fulfill. The organization is bad, and it was Mr. Carpe who was responsible. Again, I say it as I think, the system used was bad. Mr. Audistère, for example, worked very well. But the method of Mr. Carpe is to be rejected. It is certainly the method that is bad, since these gentlemen were three and had many helpers.
"I was alone, with two watches, giving a report and it was finally my time and my ranking that was good. One man is worth another. My method is better. Well, that's understood, the A.C. F. does not want my services. I ask them therefore to take a student of the course of Andrade (the Sorbonne professor) to direct their Grand Prix.
"If, in a great race where considerable and respectable interests are at stake, there is certainty about time and classification, it is the end of everything. We have the principle that the fault of the subordinate always originates from a serious fault of the boss: it is not, all in all, Mr. Carpe who is the greatest offender, it is those who let him operate without control. Don't you think it's unusual to know that in Sicily, where it's an amateur, the Tasca Marquis, who operates alone and with what skill, or in San Sebastian, where they are officials, everything is still going wonderfully, while in France, Strasbourg, Le Mans, Lyon, Miramas or elsewhere, it is always mistakes on top of errors.
"For sure, we have some excellent timekeepers; as if by chance, they are the ones who operate the least often. For 20 years we have made a record of all the errors which are the responsibility of the French official timekeepers; I assure you that it is frightening, and we are wondering here, as in many other questions, where common sense has finally triumphed: until when the A.C.F. will thus compromise its authority?" - C. Faroux

Henry Segrave had his book The Lure of Speed published in 1928. Attached some quotes of interest:
"...Meanwhile the three Talbot-Darracq cars had been entered again for the Grand Prix de Provence, or Hartford Cup race, at the Miramas track, so immediately after Southport I left for Marseilles.
"Upon arrival at the works at Suresnes I took a touring car and, in company with Mr. Bertarione, the engineer of the French Talbot Company, I drove down to Marseilles.
"The other drivers besides myself were to be Bourlier, a promising young Frenchman, and Moriceau, my oldest mechanic of 1921. Both were given cars in the race, which was not of first importance, in order to see how they shaped as drivers. The cars were as entered the previous year, with the exception that they were fitted with superchargers, as these were allowed under the new regulations.
"...These eliminating trials are really rather a farce, because the best cars may often be put out of the final, and a good race spoilt, by such things as punctures. The slightest thing going wrong with the car over such a small distance as this will suffice to put it out of the running.
"In the race my car did not function particularly well at the start for some unknown reason, and I was lying third or fourth after about six laps when she decided to wake up, and, after spurting for a few laps, I took the lead, which I managed to keep to the end of the race.
"Towards the finish I began to be rather worried by the signals I was receiving from the pits. Every time I passed them, I was signaled to go slower and slower. With still ten miles to go, I was coming out of the hairpin corner in the far side of the track -taking things very easily- when I heard the roar of a car's exhaust just behind me. Looking round I saw that it was one of the supercharged Bugattis which, though it was running second, I had been leading by about six or seven minutes. Things looked pretty serious, and I stepped on everything and "turned all the taps on."
"As I passed the pits I made frantic signals to them to indicate the position, but, of course, had no time to see whether they understood. When I passed them a lap later, I was amused to see the entire pit crew, engineers, the "Patron," mechanics and tyre- fitters, all out on the track, waving every conceivable object they could lay their hand on to make me go all out. I needed no encouragement and was going as hard as I knew how, and crossed the finishing-line on the next lap, the winner, to find that the Bugatti had burst or gone over the edge or something, thus letting our third driver, Moriceau, into second place.
"When I got to the pits I found that the official timekeepers had made a mistake in the number of laps done as they sometimes do, and instead of my having seven minutes or so lead towards the end of the race as the pits thought, in reality I had something like seven seconds.
"I think the Miramas track is the coldest spot in Europe. There is always a mistral about this time of the year, and the country is so flat that the wind blows always at the same speed and seems to drill through you after a few days. I was always glad to be 'en route' for Paris. The crowd, too, invariably, got worked up to a feverish pitch of excitement, which is not pleasant from a driving point of view, as they are by no means well controlled and run all over the track among the cars as they are actually racing."

Footnote (by Leif Snellman):
Average speeds given by contemporary magazines, obviously being the official numbers, were all incorrectly calculated (assuming we got the times correct):
For the 3 litre category 115.796 km/h was given. That's the correct number for 26m10s. That might indicate that the timekeepers just looked up the closest time to the actual 26m12.6s they could find in a table. To then publish that number without corrections with three decimals is madness. But if we insist on using three decimals the correct speed for 26m12.6s should be 115.619 km/h.
For the 2 litre category 129.500 km/h was given (should be 129.432 km/h)
For the 1.5 litre category 119.700 km/h was given (should be 129.166 km/h)
For the 1.1 litre category 123.600 km/h was given (should be 123.371 km/h)
For the final 133.160 km/h was given (should be 131.670 km/h)

Primary sources researched for this article:
Allgemeine Automobil-Zeitung, Berlin
Allgemeine Automobil-Zeitung, Wien
Automobilia, Paris
AUTOMOBIL-REVUE, Bern
Automobil-Welt, Berlin
La Presse, Paris
La Vie Automobile, Paris
L'Auto, Paris
L'Echo de Paris, Paris
Le Figaro, Paris
Le Matin, Paris
Le Petit Marseillais, Marseille
MOTOR UND SPORT, Pössneck
Omnia, Paris
Special thanks to:
Jean-Maurice Gigleux
Michael Müller
Otto Grabe
Vladislav Shaikhnurov

TARGA FLORIO

Medio Circuito Madonie - Palermo (I), 25 April 1926.
1500 cc & over 1500cc: 5 laps x 108 km (67.1 mi) = 540 km (335.6 mi)
1100 cc: 3 laps x 108 km (67.1 mi) = 324 km (201.3 mi)

No.	Driver	Entrant	Car	Type	Engine

	Category II, 1500 cc
1	Edgar Morawitz	E. Morawitz	Bugatti	Brescia	1.5	S-4
2	Coccia	Coccia	Bugatti		1.5	S-4	DNA - did not arrive
3	Pietro Mucera	P. Mucera	Ceirano	N150	1.5	S-4
4	Silvio de Vitis	B. de Vitis	Bugatti	T22	1.5	S-4
5	Alfieri Maserati	Officine Alfieri Maserati	Maserati	26	1.5	S-8
6	Antonio Caliri	A. Caliri	Bugatti	T37	1.5	S-4
7	Nicolò Maraini	N. Maraini	Bugatti	Brescia	1.5	S-4
8	Pasquale Croce	P. Croce	Bugatti	T37	1.5	S-4

	Category III, 2000 cc
9	Supremo Montanari	S. Montanari	Bugatti	T35A	2.0	S-8
10	Mario Lepori	M. Lepori	Bugatti	T35	2.0	S-8
11	Lorenzo Messeri	L. Messeri	Bugatti	T30	2.0	S-8
12	Albert Divo	Automobiles Delage	Delage	2LCV	2.0	V-12
13	Giulio Masetti	Count G. Masetti	Delage	2LCV	2.0	V-12
14	René Thomas	Automobiles Delage	Delage	2LCV	2.0	V-12
15	André Dubonnet	A. Dubonnet	Bugatti	T35	2.0	S-8
16	Domenico Antonelli	D. Antonelli	Bugatti	T35	2.0	S-8	DNA - did not arrive
17	Robert Benoist	Automobiles Delage	Delage	2LCV	2.0	V-12

	Category IV, over 2000 cc
18	Jules Goux	Automobiles Ettore Bugatti	Bugatti	T35T	2.3	S-8
19	Emilio Materassi	E. Materassi	Itala Special		5.8	S-4
20	Diego de Sterlich	D. de Sterlich	Diatto	25 S	3.0	S-4
21	Ferdinando Minoia	Automobiles Ettore Bugatti	Bugatti	T35T	2.3	S-8
22	Louis Wagner	Automobiles Peugeot	Peugeot	174 S	3.9	S-4
23	Saverio Candrilli	S. Candrilli	Steyr	VI	4.9	S-6
24	André Boillot	Automobiles Peugeot	Peugeot	174 S	3.9	S-4
25	Renato Balestrero	R. Balestrero	OM	665	2.2	S-6
26	Giuseppe Vittoria	G. Vittoria	Diatto	25	3.0	S-4
27	Meo Costantini	Automobiles Ettore Bugatti	Bugatti	T35T	2.3	S-8
28	Amedeo Sillitti	A. Sillitti	Alfa Romeo	RL TF	3.6	S-6

	Category I, 1100 cc
29	Gino Geri	G. Geri	Salmson	GP	1.1	S-4
30	Ignazio Zubiaga	I. Zubiaga	Austin	Seven	0.7	S-4
31	Salvatore Casano	S. Casano	Amilcar		1.1	S-4
32	Ezio Rallo	E. Rallo	Salmson		1.1	S-4
33	Baconin Borzacchini	B. Borzacchini	Salmson	GP	1.1	S-4
34	Claudio Sandonnino	C. Sandonnino	Citroën		1.1	S-4
35	Francesco Starrabba	F. Starrabba	Amilcar		1.1	S-4
36	Salvatore Comella	S. Comella	Salmson		1.1	S-4

Costantini the Targa and Coppa winner, Borzacchini wins the 1100 class

by Hans Etzrodt

The Targa and Coppa ran simultaneously in 1926, both over five laps (540 km), yet at the Coppa only factory teams could participate while the Targa was also open to independent drivers. At the 17th Targa Florio 34 race cars started of which 12 were Bugattis of various types, including three of the latest 2300 works Bugattis. The Delage works team brought three 12-cylinder cars and another one was independently entered by the Italian count Giulio Masetti. Maserati entered the first of his own new cars and the Peugeot works entered two cars. The works Bugattis of Costantini Minoia and Goux dominated the race while the new Maserati led the 1500 category. Borzacchini's Salmson won the 1100cc category which comprised four Salmsons, two Amilcars, one Austin and a Citroën. After the first lap, four drivers were out of the running including the leading contender, the great Italian Giulio Masetti, who died in a crash with his Delage. His three teammates withdrew in mourning. The Battle was between Costantini, Minoia and Goux in works Bugattis and Materassi who defended the Italian colors with his Itala Special. They finished in that order ahead of Dubonnet (Bugatti), Wagner (Peugeot), Balestrero (OM), and the 1500 category winner Alfieri Maserati with his brand new design in eighth place. He was followed by the 1500 Bugattis of Croce and Caliri, Montanari's 2000 Bugatti and Candrilli (Steyr) who was last.

The Targa and Coppa Florio were named after their founder, Count Vincenzo Florio. The 1926 race was one of the classic events of the year, although it was staged to free formula regulations. As in the year before, the entries were split into four classes. Category I was for cars up to 1100 cc, which had to do only three laps or 324 km, while category II from 1101 cc to 1500 cc, category III from1501 cc to 2000 cc and category IV over 2000cc had to complete five laps of the 108 km circuit equal to 540 km. The maximum time allowed was 10 hours for cars over 1100 cc and 8 hours for the cycle cars.
At the beginning of the year, the Peugeot Company which had won the Coppa outright in 1925, put up the Coppa Florio as a perpetual trophy under the condition that the race had to be staged alternately in Sicily and France. For 1926 Sicily was decided as the venue. The Coppa Florio was awarded to the competitor who spent the shortest time completing the five laps of the Circuito delle Madonie (540 km). Only competitors registered by a factory or works team could compete. The Florio Cup was retained for a year at the winning factory after the deposit of L. 30,000.
The Reale Automobile Club d'Italia and the Automobile Club di Sicilia offered prize money totaling 280,000 lire. The overall winner received 150,000 lire, the 1926 variant of the Targa Florio trophy, a gold medal donated by the King and the large gold medal of the A.C. di Sicilia; the driver in second place received 50,000 lire and a small gold medal and the third placed driver received 20,000 lire and a silver medal. The leading independent driver received 30,000 lire and a gold medal; second place 20,000 lire and a small gold medal and third place 10,000 lire and a silver medal. Besides the monetary awards there were also a variety of trophies.
Five laps around the Medium Madonie Circuit totaled 540 km. Having been in use since 1919, it included approximately 1400 corners per lap through the mountainous Madonie region of Sicily, making the Targa Florio a race of over 7000 corners. The narrow circuit with its steep gradients was a true measure of both driver and machine. The start and finish took place near the Cerda train station just a few meters above sea level. The road led several miles up to Cerda village at 273 meters altitude. From here the course twisted uphill to Caltavuturo at 640 meters. From this village the tight, twisting roads wound along the Madonie Mountains and turned back past a depot to refuel and change tires in the town of Polizzi, 917 meters above sea level. Tortuous hairpin bends followed next, snaking downhill through the mountain village of Collesano at 500 meters and then on to Campofelice, just 50 meters above sea level. From there it was downhill to the seven km fast coastal straight where it was possible to use top gear and pass other cars. Finally the circuit turned inland going back to the finish near the Cerda train station.

Entries:
The Bugatti works team arrived with their new Targa Florio model the T35T, the 8-cylinder 2300 Bugatti. The drivers were last year's winner Costantini, plus Goux and Minoia, both of whom had great experience of the circuit. The independent and wealthy Dubonnet drove an 8-cylinder 2000 Bugatti T35, as did the Italian Montanari, the Swiss Lepori, and the Italian Messeri. There were five 1500 Bugattis in private hands including the older 4-cylinder type Brescia from 1921 of Czechoslovakian Morawitz.
After long considerations at the Delage factory, it was decided to enter their 1925 race cars at the demanding Targa Florio because their new car for the 1500 cc formula was not yet ready. The Delage works entered their latest 12-cylinder 2-liter supercharged grand prix cars for their works drivers Divo, Thomas and Benoist. Another of these cars was raced independently and had been purchased by the famous Florentine Count Giulio Masetti, the 'Lion of the Targa Florio'. He was twice a winner of the Targa in 1921 and 1922 and had finished fourth in 1923 and second in 1924. But soon it would be learned that the Delages did not have the road-holding ability of the Bugattis. Peugeot was another French team who brought their older 3.9-liter 4-cylinder race cars for the experienced French drivers Boillot and Wagner. Amongst the group of large cars, the strongest independent contender was Materassi in his Itala Special with 5.8-Liter 4-cylinder Hispano engine. Balestrero's OM was works-assisted but self-entered. He was the OM Agent in Lucca, so racing cars were given to him under this arrangement. He entered in class 4, over 2000 cc, thereby avoiding having to race against a fleet of 2-litre s/c racing cars. This meant that his engine was either slightly re-bored (2001cc at Le Mans 1925) or had false papers. There were two 3-Liter Diattos entered by de Sterlich and Vittoria. A 3.6-Liter Alfa Romeo RLTF was entered by Silitti and a 4.9-Liter Steyr by Candrilli.
Besides the six 1500 Bugattis, Alfieri Maserati, the owner of the new Maserati works, entered a new 1500 car with supercharged 8-cylinder engine to be driven by himself. The last car in this category was the 1500 Ceirano driven by Mucera. The 1100 cc cars of category I comprised eight entries, the GP Salmsons of Geri and Borzacchini and two others driven by Rallo and Comella. There were also two Amilcars of Casano and Starrabba, Sandonnino's Citroën and the Austin Seven of Zubiaga. A complete list of entries is at the beginning of this report.

Race:
In the first hours of Sunday morning an enormous pilgrimage of local enthusiasts arrived by train, car and on foot. They came to take possession of the best viewpoints around the entire circuit before these places were overcrowded. The morning was cloudy, cool and windy with occasional sunshine. The race was well organized, and the spectators were informed of the latest developments through loudspeakers.
The individual start for the 34 cars began at 7:00 AM in order of their race numbers. The eight cars of the 1500 cc category, started first, followed by the twenty cars over 1500 cc at intervals of three minutes because of the dust from the dirt roads. Finally, the eight cars of the 1100 cc category started at intervals of only one minute. The starting times had been determined beforehand according to the race numbers. If a car did not appear at the start the next car was held to the predetermined time of departure.