1902 Circuit des Ardennes – The Great Races
Introduction
James Gordon Bennett arrived in Paris in 1887 and had established a Continental edition of his father’s New York daily, The Herald. This being the same Bennett that sent Stanley in search of Livingstone had an eye for publicity. In July 1899 he established a series of races that bore his name. The six international motor races held between 1900 and 1905 came to be known as the Gordon Bennett Cup Race but within the pages of the New York Herald and its Paris offshoot it was always referred to as the Coupe International. Gordon Bennett himself never drove a motor car and in fact never witnessed any of his races. The trophy created by the silversmith, Andrè Aucoc was described as ‘a valuable object d’art’, and depicted a racing Panhard steered by the Genius of Progress with the Goddess of Victory upright upon the seat.
The Cup was to be a competition between recognized national automobile clubs initially representing France, Germany, Great Britain, Belgium, Austria, Switzerland, the United States and Italy. Any club wishing to take part in the race was required to deposit the sum of 3,000 francs with the A.C.F. before 1 January 1900. The actual race to be held sometime between 15 May and 15 August. The race distance would be not less than 550 nor more than 650 kilometers. The cost of race organization would be divided amongst each of the participating clubs.
The regulations covering the cars were family simple. Two side-by-side seats occupied at all times with driver and mechanic weighing no less than 60 kg. apiece and a minimum empty weight of 400 kg for the vehicle. Any means or propulsion was allowed though electric cars never took part in the race and steam entrants were never able to get beyond the French elimination trials of 1904.
Each nation would be allowed to select a team of three cars with the drivers being members of the respective club and the cars themselves had to be made in their entirety in the country whose colors they wore. It was these last rules that would cause constant contention. France’s automobile industry dwarfed the other countries when it came to mortorsport competition.
1900
The initial race would run from Paris to Lyons but as an International competition it was anything but. The French team was selected through secret ballot. The Chevalier René de Knyff, Fernand Charron and Léonce Girardot would perform the driving duties while the cars would come from Panhard et Levassor. Their cars would be powered by 5.3-litre (325 cu in) four-cylinder engines producing 24 hp. This led to accusations from the Mors company of favoritism. Threats from other French drivers joining the Belgian Automobile Club never materialized and the A.C.F. held fast.
A recent accident at the Paris-Roubaix motor-tricycle race had raised anti-motoring fever such that it was not known until the last moment if a race would even be allowed by the authorities. It finally came but greatly effected the level of participation and in the end there were only seven entrants in the initial race with two not starting including the German Benz of Eugen Benz and the American Winton of Anthony L. Riker. The Winton driven by Alexander Winton, who had previously boasted of its qualities was hopelessly underpowered compared to its competitors, with a one-cylinder 3.7-litre (226 cu in) engine producing 16 bhp (12 kW) located under its driver, it still featured tiller steering rather than a proper steering wheel. Jenatzy drove a Snoeck-Bolide, a French Bolide licensed and built by the Belgian Snoeck company.
The racers were sent off from the start line in Ville-d’Avray at 3:14 am with all five cars setting off together and as expected the three Panhards took the early lead. At Chartres de Knyff lost top gear and his top speed was limited to 30 mph though still 10 mph faster than the American Winton. Winton had been very outspoken prior to the event regarding the qualities of his car – sadly it was only talk. Jenatzy was involved in the slaughter of no less than six dogs before he finally retired at Moulins. The Winton retired soon after that and the race was between Charron and Girardot in the remaining Panhards. The race was won by Fernand Charron, whom the critics felt least deserving a seat prior to the race, driving a Panhard-Levassor at an average speed of 38.6 mph. He was followed by his teammate, Girardot who was the only other driver to finish.
The American periodical The Horseless Age wrote at the time “it is the impression (in the USA) that the race was very badly organized, that insufficient preparations had been made for it and that it must be looked upon as a failure”. It should be noted however that the periodical was not a big proponent of motor racing. In a bid to address these concerns, the next two Gordon Bennett Cup races would be run in conjunction with one of the city-to-city event.
Paris-Lyons
14 June 1900 – 565 km
| 1st | Fernand Charron | Panhard |
9h 09m 00s (61.11kph avg)
|
| 2nd | Léonce Girardot | Panhard | 10h 36m 23s |
| Ret | Camille Jenatzy | Snoeck-Bolide | Accident |
| Ret | Alexander Winton | Winton | Wheel |
| Ret | René de Knyff | Panhard | Transmission |
1901
For 1901 the Gordon Bennett Cup, the race was to be run concurrently with the ‘open’ Paris-Bordeaux race and ended at Tours. This resulted in a much better organized race. In deference to the Cup’s international status, their entrants would be dispatched before the open entrants. The French participants consisted of two Panhards driven by Charron and Girardot and a Mors driven by Alfred “Levegh” Velghe.
Australian, Selwyn Francis Edge entered a 920 c.i. (17 liter) two-ton monster which he was only able to test en route to the race as it had been finished only four days before the event. Edge remarked on the car that “it was though a powerful pump had been attached to a smaller car, ad had been blown out”. Montague Napier served as his riding mechanic. During the trip to the race the British Dunlop tires failed miserably and Edge was forced to mount new French rubber. This led to the team’s disqualification, since the rules stated that tires must originate in same country as the entry. Napier having traveled so far decided to enter the open race to Bordeaux instead but was forced to retire with clutch trouble.
The Automobilclub von Deutschland (AvD) planned to host an elimination trial between three Mercedes cars, a Benz and a Canello-Durkopp out of Bielefeld to determine their three entries. Following Mercedes victory in the Nice-Salon-Nice race they were automatically awarded two places by the AvD. This left Benz and Canello-Durkopp to compete in the trials for the third entry. However, neither competitor showed up at the eliminating trial, and the Mercedes were withdrawn as both cars that had been built with the required all-German parts had been sold, and the manufacturer determined there was insufficient time to build any more cars.
The Cup would only have the three French cars as starters. Charron, last year’s winner was the first car sent off but had to stop almost immediately with valve trouble allowing Levegh to pass his rival. Eventually Charron was forced to retire due to “tyre troubles” and the Cup match was left to Levegh and Girardot.
At various sections of the course spare parts, fuel and lubricating oil were guarded by the various teams. Edge however was “serviced” by his cousin Cecil who could only provide champagne and gâteau d’éponge (sponge cake). Any replacements for his car would need to be purchased. Levegh was eliminated at Sainte Maure when he damaged his car on one of the notorious caniveaux (drainage ditch) that crossed the road and the Cup was won by Girardot at an average speed of 37 mph. By contrast the winner of the open race, Henri Fournier had averaged 53mph, and Girardot’s time saw him placed tenth overall.
Paris-Bordeaux Results
29 May 1901 – 527.1 km
| 1st | Léonce Girardot | Panhard |
8h 50m 59s (59.53kph avg)
|
| Ret | Fernand Charron | Panhard | Tires |
| Ret | Alfred “Levegh” Velghe | Mors | Accident |
1902
The name Napier made its mark on history by winning the 1902 Gordon Bennett in the hands of an Australian, Selwyn Francis Edge. This was a tremendous victory for Great Britain, which till that time had always trailed the French in international motoring. This victory was especially sweat for Edge who had been racing the green Napiers at various events since 1900. He had entered a monstrous 17,157 cc four-cylinder for the 1901 Gordon Bennett only to see his car disqualified for running foreign made tires. This colossus produced 103 bhp but weighed more than two tons. The following year Edge went the other direction and built a 6.5-liter car that was rated to produce 30 bhp but actually delivered approximately 45 bhp.
The race involved the Paris-Innsbruck section of the Paris-Vienna city-to-city race. Still there was a dearth of entries for the Cup with only 6 for the former as opposed to 213 for the latter. Still the French fielded a strong team time comprised from three different manufacturers with last years winner Girardot driving a Charron, Girardot et Voigt (C.G.V.), rising star Fournier driving a Mors, and De Knyff driving a Panhard. The British entries were comprised of the aforementioned Edge along two Wolseleys driven by Montague Grahame-White and Arthur Callan.
The competitors strongest test came just before the end when the cars had to cross the Murderous Arlberg pass described in The Automotor Journal in these forbidding tones:
There were gutters you could bury a man in, hundreds of them crossing the road at right angles: it would be a trial of springs as well as motors. Ridges, too, that lent more than a suggestion of the steeplechase, reared their crests across the way. For scores of miles, particularly in the high Arlberg country, six thousand feet above sea level, the road hung on the brink of fearsome precipices. Ruts and loose stones abounded in the Austrian section of the course.
This relatively light car was the sole survivor in its class able to reach Innsbruck and so claim the trophy. Its green color henceforth became known as “British Racing Green”.
It took more than two decades before Great Britain was once again on the top rung of international motoring with the victory by Segrave in the French Grand Prix of 1923. Edge besides being the winning drive was Napier’s sole agent and would later remark that his two largest contracts, one from America and one from France for napier cars were absolutely the direct result of winning the Gordon Bennett race. Annual output at the factory at Lambeth increased from 100 to 250 cars requiring a new factory being built in Acton.
Paris-Innsbruck Results
26-28 June 1902 – 565.60 km
| 1st | Selwyn F.Edge | Napier |
11h 02m 52.6s (51.17 kph avg)
|
| Ret | René De Knyff | Panhard | Differential |
| Ret | Montague Grahame White | Wolseley | Crankshaft |
| Ret | Henri Fournier | Mors | Clutch |
| Ret | Léonce Girardot | C.G.V | Split Fuel Tank |
| Arthur Callan | Wolseley | Unclassified |
1903
With the unexpected victory by Edge in his Napier and the disaster at the 1903 Paris-Madrid city to city race the Gordon Bennett Cup races had finally captured the imagination of the public if not the manufacturers.
At the 1903 Gordon Bennett Cup race in Ireland, Camille Jenatzy would find himself driving for Mercedes.. Ironically he was not originally selected to drive for Mercedes but was a last minute replacement for the original driver who was not considered a proper gentleman by the Deutsche Automobil Club and only gentlemen could take part in the Gordon Bennett. The face that Jenatzy was not actually German was quietly forgotten. The Mercedes cars he and his teammates drove were not originally intended for the race having been requisitioned from customers after the original cars were destroyed in a fire back at the factory.
I
reland itself had organized a number of motoring contests throughout the length and breath of the country around the Cup. Many thousands of visitors came by boat to view the race while some 1,500 brought their cars with the intention of touring the countryside while here. As the total number of cars in Ireland was only around 300 at the time this was a huge influx and provided many Irish people with their first opportunity to see a motor car. The chosen route was a figure eight course centered on Athy in the Irish midlands. The cars would complete three laps of the eastern circuit and four of the longer western circuit giving a total distance of 524km (327.5 miles). Some 7,000 policemen were drafted to marshal the course.
The French team sailed to Ireland on the French ship the SS Ferdinand de Lesseps and docked at Dublin Bay. They would use this ship as a floating hotel. On several occasions some of the French team members ventured on shore to eat at one of the restaurants in Dublin, not overly impressed by Gallic culinary standards. It was said that they refused to drink any Irish whiskey un less its bottle was opened in front of their eyes.This caused a local scribe to comment: “Herein the French were unnecessarily fussy, because whatever is wrong with Irish cooking, you can always gamble on the whiskey being drinkable!” No sooner was it reported that excessive compensation for chickens being run over during reconnaissance was being exacted, that the team faced a plague of chicken’s being martyred on the circuit.
On a cool and cloudy day, July 2, 1903, twelve cars were being prepared for the start which would come at 7:00 am with last year’s winner Edge leading off with the rest of the field following at seven minute intervals. After the first lap the early leader was the Mercedes not of Jenatzy but James Foxall-Keene. Jenatzy complained of being held up by the Winton of Percy Owen, vowing that if the American did not get out of his way “there would be bloodshed”. Jenatzy finally was able to pass the Winton with two wheels in the gutter. Jenatzy drove the race of his life on a track riddled with curves and bumps and was soon in the lead. At the wheel of a car that was inferior in terms of horse power he tailored his spectacular driving style by late braking and accelerating out of the curves. Réne de Knyff in the Panhard was now in second place but steadily losing ground. Both Wintons occupied the tail end of the field, Winton suffering from fuel starvation and Owen with overheating. By the end of the fourth lap of seven Jenatzy’s lead was now ten minutes. Farman in another Panhard was now third, two minutes in arrears.
A fellow participant marveled: “Throughout the seemingly endless series of curves, Jenatzy kept his foot to the floor. He skidded at breakneck speed around the corners, often only narrowly missing the bordering walls in the process, as was shown by his skid marks that were everywhere to be seen. I could not imagine that he could keep up this daredevil driving style for very long.” By the time the race was over the Gordon Bennett Cup was headed back to Germany.
Jenatzy describing the sensation of racing described in words that would be repeated by other drivers in other years more than a century later:
“The car in which you travel seems to leave the ground and hurl itself forward like a projectile ricocheting along the ground. As for the driver, the muscles of his body and neck become rigid resisting the pressure of the air; his stare is steadfastly fixed about two hundred yards ahead; his senses are on the alert to detect the slightest abnormal signs.”
“When in the distance a cloud of dust proclaims that another car is being overtaken, a delightful feeling of triumph comes over you. This is the time when you need to recall all that you know of the features of the landscape, for then begins a real journey into darkness. The cloud of dust, at first light, thickens gradually till the only objects which can be distinguished are the treetops on the edge of the road. When you finally emerge, you see the rival car only a few yards ahead, and the dust cloud changes into a trail of flints and pebbles. If the other competitor sees you he will draw aside, but usually he does not heed your signals. There seems to be no room to pass, yet you pass all the same …”
The Panhards of Knyff and Farman came in second and third, Knyff, eleven minutes behind the winner. Jenatzy for his efforts was awarded $25,000 from Mercedes, a new car worth $17,000 and a further $8,000 from the tire manufacturer for a princely total of $50,000 which would be approximately equivalent to $2.3 million in 2014!
Athy, Ireland Circuit Results
2 July 1903 – 527 km (64 km x 3 laps + 83.5 km x 4 laps)
| 1st | Camille Jenatzy | Mercedes |
6h 39m 00s (49.2mph avg)
|
| 2nd | Réne de Knyff | Panhard | 6h 50m 40s |
| 3rd | Henri Farman | Panhard | 6h 51m 44s |
| 4th | Fernand Gabriel | Mors | 7h 11m 33s |
| Ret | Baron Pierre de Caters | Mercedes | Rear Axle |
| Ret | Percy Owen | Winton | Overheating |
| Ret | Alexander Winton | Winton | Fuel Starvation |
| Ret | James Foxhall-Keene | Mercedes | Rear Axle |
| Ret | Louis Mooers | Peerless | Tires |
| Ret | Charles Jarrott | Napier | Accident |
| Ret | J. Stocks | Napier | Accident |
| DNF | Selwyn Francis Edge | Napier | Disqualified |
1904
Hotchkiss called motor racing “automotive’s curse”. If you wanted to promote our cars you had to be seen racing or at least talking about it. With city to city racing banned due to the disaster at the Paris-Madrid race the Gordon Bennett Cup took greater prominence.
Both France and Great Britain found it necessary to conduct trials to handle the new manufactures who wanted to take part in that year’s Cup. In Great Britain the trials were run on the isle of Man in May. The French elimination trials saw a battle amongst cars from Richard-Brasier, Mors, Turcat et Méry, de Dietrich, Renault, Serpollet, Panhard, Clement-Bayard, Darracq, Gobron-Brillié and the reluctant Hotchkiss. The steam driven Serpollet driven by Hubert le Blon finished as high as 5th in one of the trials which was won by Léon Théry driving a Richard-Brasier. The shock of the trials was that the Panhards would not qualify for racing in the Cup.
The 1904 Gordon Bennett’s cup was held in Germany’s Taunus Forest at the suggestion of Kaiser William II and drew entries from eight countries. At the time it was considered the single most important race in the world. The course stretched over 550 km in the pine forest, consisting of four laps that started from the ancient Roman bastion of Saalburg heading north to Usingen, where there was a control point (an inhabited or built up area where the cars had to travel slowly under the supervision of course officials).
Other control points were established at Grävenwiesbach to Weilburg, then past Allendorf and Obertiefenbach to Limburg. The last section was reported to be the best part of the course for high speed and in practice some cars traveled at 150 km/h. After Limburg the course ran through Kirberg to Neuhof, Idstein then ran through Glashütten to Königstein,via Friedrichshof and Oberursel to Homburg and back to Saalburg where they arrayed spectacular grandstands fit for a Kaiser.
There were 18 entrants including teams from France, Belgium, Italy Great Britain, Austria and Germany. The last two team all drove five Mercedes and one Opel race cars. The Opel was driven by Friedrich Franz Opel who had studied engineering at the Technikum in Mittweida, Saxony was chief designer at Opel. France was represented by cars from Mors, Richard-Brasier and Turcat et Méry, a partnership of Alphonse Méry of Marseille, his younger brother Simon Méry and his brother in law Léon Turcat. The Richard-Brasier was driven by Leon Théry also known as “Mort aux Vaches” (the cow killer) after an accident in the Ardennes ace of 1903. The Belgians and the Italians were represented by Compagnie Belge de Construction Automobiles (Pipe) and Fiat respectivly. The British contingent consisted of two Wolseleys and Edge’s Napier.
The first car started from Saalburg at 7 a.m. When the racing was over Jenatzy in his Mercedes was the first to reach the finish but where was Théry? Communications along the course had broken down and no one knew what was happening behind Jenatzy. After Jenatzy had taken the flag Théry had some twenty-eight minutes to reach the finish to win the race. These were nervous minutes for the French fans but Théry did not fail them. With some eleven minutes to spare the Richard-Brasier driver appeared at the finish to take the Gordon Bennett Cup back to “where it belonged”.
Henri Rougier driving the Turcat-Méry was third. The only British competitor placed was Sidney Girling driving the 96 hp Wolseley “Beetle”. Australia’s Selwyn Edge, the 1902 winner who again drove a Napier, was disqualified on lap three after receiving outside assistance due to tyre problems. Ironically he was charged and absolved from similar charges in 1902. With each of Théry’s laps within 3 minutes of the other he had earned the new nickname of the “Chronometer”. His car, featuring a 4-cylinder engine of 9896 cc it was the only car of the 1904 race with an engine volume less that ten litres.
Charles-Henri Brasier was personally congratulated by Kaiser Wilhelm II, while Prince Henry of Prussia greeted and tired and thirsty Théry who took a huge draught of champagne, his first drink since the morning, for his friends feared that he might be poisoned prior to the race. Henry, who was keenly interested in motor cars was claimed to have invented the windshield washer. 
For Brasier, success on the track was not matched with harmony in the boardroom. Relations had deteriorated between Brasier and Georges Richard. During the year Brasier had himself appointed (sole or senior) executive director (dirigeant et administrateur), and gave notice to Richard terminating the agreement between them, while purporting to retain both the factory at Ivry-Port and the “four-leaf clover” trade mark which Richard had recently registered for the business. There followed a bitter litigation battle between the partners which ended in Richard’s favor. Georges Richard went on to establish the Société anonyme des Automobiles “UNIC”, based at Puteaux in 1905 that in 1938 switched its focus from passenger cars to commercial vehicles.
Homburg Circuit Results
17 June 1904 – 511.532 km (127.883 km x 4 laps)
| 1st | Leon Théry | Richard-Brasier |
5h 50m 01.4s (87.69 kph avg)
|
| 2nd | Camille Jenatzy | Mercedes | 6h 01m 29.4s |
| 3rd | Henri Rougier | Turcat-Mery | 6h 47m 09.8s |
| 4th | Baron Pierre de Caters | Mercedes | 6h 47m 30.0s |
| 5th | Edgar Braun | Mercedes | 6h 59m 47.8s |
| 6th | Lucien Hautvast | Pipe | 7h 02m 35.0s |
| 7th | Jacques Salleron | Mors | 7h 15m 14.2s |
| 8th | Vincenzo Lancia | FIAT | 7h 17m 51.6s |
| 9th | Sidney Girling | Wolseley | 7h 22m 53.2s |
| 10th | Alessandro Cagno | FIAT | 7h 23m 34.6s |
| 11th | Christian Werner | Mercedes | 7h 32m 13.2s |
| 12th | Charles Jarrott | Wolseley | 7h 36m 50.6s |
| Ret | Selwyn Francis Edge | Napier | Overheating |
| Ret | Baron Pierre de Crawhez | Pipe | |
| Ret | Luigi Storero | FIAT | |
| Ret | John Warden | Mercedes | |
| Ret | Augières | Pipe | |
| Ret | Fritz Opel | Opel-Darracq | Universal Joint |
1905
Since the winner is given the privilege of hosting the next race and thus France announced that whatever the results of the 1905 Gordon Bennett event would be they wouldn’t support any 1906 “Coupe Internationale”. That announcement meant the end of the Gordon Bennett races and the birth of Grand Prix racing.
While the Germans had selected the location of their event for its accessibility and good infrastructure, the French chose to ignore those things and instead tried to find the most demanding terrain available. They found what they were looking for in the ancient volcanic hills of Puy-de-Dome, west of Clermont Ferrand. The Auvergne course as it would be called was 137km of undulating terrain that included some 3000 corners, the tightest of them even demanding the drivers to use their reverse gear.
The French team consisted of two Richard-Brasiers driven by last year’s winner Léon Théry and Gustave Caillois in addition to a De Dietrich driven by Arthur Duray. Italy’s team consisted of three Fiats driven by Felice Nazzaro, Alessandro Cagno and Vincenzo Lancia. There were a total of seven Mercedes spread between the German and Austrian teams. The drivers were Christian Werner, Pierre de Caters and Camille Jenatzy for Germany and Edgar Braun, Burton and Otto Hieronymus for Austria. The Americans were represented by Joe Tracy driving a Locomobile and two Pope-Toledos driven by Herbert Lyttle and Bert Dingley. The Pope Manufacturing Company was founded by Albert Augustus Pope around 1876 in Boston, Massachusetts, and incorporated in Connecticut in 1877.
From The Automobile – July 20, 1905:
France again holds the Gordon Bennett Cup. Such is the outcome of the sixth. the most exciting, the most keenly contested. and the most surprising of all the races yet held for this much valued trophy. Not only does France hold the Cup, but the previous year’s winner is again the victor. This is a record for never before has the race been won twice by the same man. Théry must be, indeed, “a proud man the day”. But the most important feature of the day is not the victory of France, but the remarkable performance of Italy and the collapse of the Mercedes competitors. When the race began it was thought by all – and feared by France – that the victor would be from amongst one of the six Mercedes car present. And amongst this formidable set of men Jenatzy was generally regarded as the most likely winner. Less than an hour had to elapse to show the French that their fears were ill founded and at the end of the first round they discovered that the struggle was to lay between them and Italy – one of the latest arrivals to automobitism.
Lancia’s Fiat car made the most remarkable performance of the day. When the second round was finished he was leading on Théry by thirteen minutes, and during the third round this lead was still further increased. Whilst going very fast, and at a moment when victory seemed almost certain, a stone from the road struck the lower part of the radiator, and started a leak that allowed the cooling water to quickly escape. As a consequence the motor became overheated and the car was brought to a standstill. Thus by the merest chance the race was made secure for France.
Lancia’s misfortune did not, however, destroy Italy’s position, for the two other cars were doing remarkably well and came in respectively second and third, with a lead of 7:57 1/5 and 5:43 4/5 on Caillois’ Richard-Brasier. Although Italy has not won the Cup, Fiat cars have obtained for it a victory no less important than that secured by Théry. Twelve of the eighteen cars were officially classified. Of these France has three, occupying first, fourth and sixth positions, and securing for it the Montagu prize for team classification; Italy, too, taking second and third place; England three, placed respectively eighth, ninth and eleventh; Germany two, in the fifth and seventh position; Austria one, placed tenth on the list, and America one, taking twelfth position.
Lytle performed the pluckiest feat of the day. Disheartened on the first round by an accident to his lubricator which would have caused most men to abandon immediately, with dogged determination he stuck to his task, and finally brought his car in to the finish. Afterward when they weighed in both Lytle and his mechanician Knipper were covered with a thick coating of grease, which rendered them unrecognizable, while the machine was aflood with oil. For the last three rounds they had been blinded by gallons of oil splashing into their faces. Knipper’s drab suit had changed to a shiny black under its coating of oil and dust.
America’s failure is due to the sending over of machines of too low horsepower, the Pope-Toledo engines only developing half the power of the French and German machines, and not sufficiently studying the special nature of the course over which the race had to be run. Nothing but praise is due to the French club for the admirable way in which the race was organized and carried out. The course was a most dangerous one, yet, thanks to the foresight of the officials and the careful way in which the road was guarded by troops, not a single accident or mishap of any kind marred the day.
The only defective portion of the arrangements was the inadequate accommodations for the representatives of the press. The small space allotted to their use was shared by the spectators, to the inconvenience of all. The Cup is no sooner won than the question has to be faced as to what will be done with it. By its resolution of a few days ago France cannot take part in next year’s race. It is probable that a meeting of delegates from all automobile clubs will meet in Paris very shortly, that the Cup will be given back to James Gordon Bennett and some decision reached as to future contests.
By 1906 Gordon Bennett’s interest had shifted to above the ground and he established the Gordon Bennett Cup in ballooning (Coupe Aéronautique Gordon Bennett) and three years later Bennett offered a trophy for the fastest speed on a closed circuit for airplanes.
A.C.F. in the mean time ran their own race at Le Mans, The French Grand Prix with a starting field of 32 automobiles. The Grand Prix name (“Great Prize”) referred to the prize of 45,000 French francs to the race winner. The franc was pegged to the gold at 0.290 grams per franc, which meant that the prize was worth 13 kg of gold.
Circuit d’Auvergne Results
5 July 1905 – 549.415 km (137.354 km x 4 laps)
| 1st | Leon Théry | Richard-Brasier |
7h 02m 42.6s (77.88 kph avg)
|
| 2nd | Felice Nazzaro | FIAT | 7h 10m 09.2s |
| 3rd | Alessandro Cagno | FIAT | 7h 21m 22.6s |
| 4th | Gustave Caillois | Richard-Brasier | 7h 27m 06.4s |
| 5th | Christian Werner | Mercedes | 8h 03m 30.0s |
| 6th | Arthur Duray | de Dietrich | 8h 05m 00.0s |
| 7th | Baron Pierre de Caters | Mercedes | 8h 07m 11.6s |
| 8th | Charles Rolls | Wolseley | 8h 26m 42.2s |
| 9th | Clifford Earp | Napier | 8h 27m 29.8s |
| 10th | Edgar Braun | Mercedes | 8h 33m 05.6s |
| 11th | Cecil Bianchi | Wolseley | 8h 38m 32.4s |
| 12th | Herbert Lyttle | Pope-Toledo | 9h 30m 32.0s |
| Ret | Vincenzo Lancia | FIAT | Seized Engine |
| Ret | Camille Jenatzy | Mercedes | Broken Front Spring |
| Ret | “Alexander Burton” | Mercedes | Tires |
| Ret | Joe Tracy | Locomobile | Engine/Clutch |
| Ret | Otto Hieronymus | Mercedes | Tires |
| Ret | Bert Dingley | Pope-Toledo | Oil Pipe |
