AIN DIAB, MOROCCO  G. P.

By Emilio J. Lezcano / carsNtravel 

This 4.724 mile circuit was situated in the new public roads of the Ain-Diab suburb  of Casablanca, Morocco, the desert road towards Azemour and the coast road through the Sidi Abderhaman forest and two races were held between 1957 and 1958.

Automobile Club du Maroc

The first "Grand Prix du Maroc" was a non championship Formula One race won by the french driver Jean Behra in a Maserati.

The 1958 race being a word championship Grand Prix was won by Stirling Moss (Vanwall VW5) at 116.227 mph.  Moss also set the lap record at 2:m.22.5 (119.3543mph).

As a French colony, it is perhaps not surprising that Morocco should have staged a Grand Prix before World War II.  The race returned for a non-championship race in 1957 when European racing was threatened as a result of the Suez Canal Crisis.  In six weeks, with the full blessing and financial support of King Mohammed V, the Royal Automobile Club of Morocco designed a course utilizing the public roads of Ain Diab.

At the end of the season the dusty North African track was transformed into the scene of a championship showdown of 1958 between Stirling Moss and Mike Hawthorn. Moss was obviously going for it and as the green flag fell he blasted past Hawthorn, who had claimed the pole position in his Dino Ferrari with a blistering run the day before.

Ain Diab, Morocco

To help his Vanwall team mate Tony Brooks rode fast for Moss therefore forcing Hawthorn to do all the work.  For just over haft the race Brooks held the second place and the title came closer to Stirling Moss.  The disaster struck when Brooks' Vanwall blew its engine and Hawthorne (with the help of Phil Hill) simply sailed past him and into the record books as the first Britain Formula One World Champion.

There was some consolation for Vanwall team when they were awarded the first Constructor Championship but even that was overshadowed by an accident that cost Stuart Lewis-Evans life.  Lewis-Evans, the third driver of the Vamwall team, spun out and crashed out.  His car burst into flames leaving him very badly burned.  Six days later he succumbed to his injuries.

This accident damaged Casablanca track's and the Royal Automobile Club of Morocco has decided not to hold Grand Prix races.