75 Years Ago: F1 Releases Colorized Footage of First Ever Grand Prix

Formula 1 has released colorized footage of its very first world championship race, which took place 75 years ago at Silverstone.

On May 13, 1950, 21 cars started the British Grand Prix—also named the European Grand Prix—featuring dominant Alfa Romeos, Maseratis, and French Talbot-Lagos, with British Alta and ERA cars also present.

Ferrari did not participate. Some reports suggest Enzo Ferrari was unhappy with the race organizers' prize money, while others believe he felt his cars weren't competitive enough against the powerful Alfas. Ferrari instead focused on the Monaco race the following weekend.

Alfa Romeo achieved a dominant qualifying result, securing a 1-2-3-4 grid lockout with Giuseppe Farina, Luigi Fagioli, Juan Manuel Fangio, and Reg Parnell. Their average age was a remarkable 43.

The Italian manufacturer continued its dominance in the race, with Farina, Fagioli, and Parnell occupying the top three podium spots. Talbot-Lagos of Yves Giraud-Cantabous and Louis Rosier finished fourth and fifth, two laps down but still scoring points. Fangio retired due to a broken oil pipe.

The new footage was restored and colorized using "advanced AI software, reference imagery, and manual painting techniques." F1's press release stated that "specific elements such as the sky, grass, cars, and faces are electronically painted manually to truly bring the scene to life."