The 1910 American Grand Prize was a Grand Prix

Grand Prix motor racing

Grand Prix motor racing has its roots in organised automobile racing that began in France as far back as 1894. It quickly evolved from a simple road race from one town to the next, to endurance tests for car and driver...

 auto race held on closed public roads outside Savannah, Georgia

Savannah, Georgia

Savannah is the largest city and the county seat of Chatham County, in the U.S. state of Georgia. Established in 1733, the city of Savannah was the colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later the first state capital of Georgia. Today Savannah is an industrial center and an important...

 on November 12, 1910. It was the second edition of the Automobile Club of America's American Grand Prize. The race was won by American David Bruce-Brown in a Benz.

Summary

After a successful race in 1908, the Automobile Club of America made plans with the rival American Automobile Association

American Automobile Association

AAA , formerly known as the American Automobile Association, is a federation of 51 independently operated motor clubs throughout North America. AAA is a not-for-profit member service organization with more than 51 million members. AAA provides services to its members such as travel, automotive,...

 to hold the Grand Prize and Vanderbilt Cup

Vanderbilt Cup

The Vanderbilt Cup was the first major trophy in American auto racing.-History:An international event, it was founded by William Kissam Vanderbilt II in 1904 and first held at a course set out in Nassau County on Long Island, New York. The announcement that the race was to be held caused...

 together on the Long Island Motor Parkway

Long Island Motor Parkway

The Long Island Motor Parkway , also known as the Vanderbilt Parkway and Motor Parkway, was the first roadway designed for automobile use only. It was privately built by William Kissam Vanderbilt with overpasses and bridges to remove intersections...

 in 1909. However, only the Vanderbilt race was held, and the Grand Prize pushed back to 1910. After the 1910 Vanderbilt Cup saw the deaths of 2 riding mechanics and several serious spectator injuries, the Grand Prize was cancelled once again. A last-minute request by the Savannah Automobile Club saved the race for the year, but only gave one month to prepare the course. A shorter 17-mile (27 km) course was laid out, but due to the short notice, many European teams were not able to make the trip; only 6 European cars entered the event, down from 14 two years ago.

The race began at 9 AM, with cars leaving the start line at 30-second intervals. Victor Hémery

Victor Hémery

Victor Hémery was a champion driver of early Grand Prix motor racing who was born in Sillé-le-Guillaume, France, Sarthe, France. In 1904 he joined Automobiles Darracq S.A. as their chief tester and helped prepare cars to compete in that year's Gordon Bennett Cup...

, driving a Benz, led early. Arthur Chevrolet

Arthur Chevrolet

Arthur Chevrolet, was a Swiss American racecar driver and automobile manufacturer.Born in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Neuchatel, Switzerland, Arthur was the middle brother of Louis and Gaston Chevrolet...

 was second after lap 1, but would eventually be overtaken by the factory Benzes and Fiat

Fiat

FIAT, an acronym for Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino , is an Italian automobile manufacturer, engine manufacturer, financial, and industrial group based in Turin in the Italian region of Piedmont. Fiat was founded in 1899 by a group of investors including Giovanni Agnelli...

s before falling out of the race on lap 9. Felice Nazzaro

Felice Nazzaro

Felice Nazzaro was an Italian racecar driver, a native of Turin. He won the Kaiserpreis in 1907 as well as the French Grand Prix in 1907 and 1922 and Targa Florio in 1907 and 1913. His European wins in 1907 resulted in an invitation to compete in the 1908 American Grand Prize in Savannah, Georgia,...

 took over second place and pushed hard to catch Hémery. After setting the lap record on lap 7, Nazzaro slid off the road into a ditch, bending his rear axle; he would retire a few laps later. Wagner assumed the lead, but he too would leave the road and strike a tree on lap 17. He resumed, but front axle damage later sent him into a cartwheel at speed, ending his race.

Ralph De Palma, Bruce-Brown, and Hémery took over the first three positions, within two minutes of each other. On the penultimate lap, De Palma cracked a cylinder in the last of the Fiat

Fiat

FIAT, an acronym for Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino , is an Italian automobile manufacturer, engine manufacturer, financial, and industrial group based in Turin in the Italian region of Piedmont. Fiat was founded in 1899 by a group of investors including Giovanni Agnelli...

s. At the finish, Hémery crossed the line first due to the staggered start, and as in 1908 was forced to wait for the next car to cross the line. In the end, Bruce-Brown finished just 1.42 seconds faster than Hémery.

Classification

Pos	No	Driver	Car	Laps	Time/Retired
1	15	David Bruce-Brown	Benz	24	5:53:05.35
2	9	Victor Hémery Victor Hémery Victor Hémery was a champion driver of early Grand Prix motor racing who was born in Sillé-le-Guillaume, France, Sarthe, France. In 1904 he joined Automobiles Darracq S.A. as their chief tester and helped prepare cars to compete in that year's Gordon Bennett Cup...	Benz	24	+ 1.42
3	17	Bob Burman Bob Burman Bob Burman was an American racecar driver active in the formative years of auto racing.-Biography:He was born on April 23, 1884 in Imlay City, Michigan. He was the winner of the Prest-O-Lite Trophy Race in 1909. He competed at the inaugural Indianapolis 500 in 1911...	Marquette Marquette (automobile) The name Marquette was first used for an automobile when the Berwick Auto Car Company of Grand Rapids, Michigan, frequently took it as a model designation for their electric car in 1904.... -Buick Buick Buick is a premium brand of General Motors . Buick models are sold in the United States, Canada, Mexico, China, Taiwan, and Israel, with China being its largest market. Buick holds the distinction as the oldest active American make...	24	+ 18:18.14
4	4	Ralph Mulford Ralph Mulford Ralph Mulford was an American racecar driver active during the formative years of the auto racing....	Lozier Lozier The Lozier Motor Company was a brass era producer of automobiles in the United States of America. The company produced luxury automobiles from 1900 to 1915, with a factory at 3703 Mack Avenue, Detroit, Michigan....	24	+ 33:07.33
5	12	Joe Horan Joe Horan Joe Horan was an American racecar driver.-Indy 500 results:...	Lozier 6 Lozier The Lozier Motor Company was a brass era producer of automobiles in the United States of America. The company produced luxury automobiles from 1900 to 1915, with a factory at 3703 Mack Avenue, Detroit, Michigan....	24	+ 36:57.37
6	14	Ray Harroun Ray Harroun Ray Harroun was an American racecar driver, born in Spartansburg, Pennsylvania.-Early driving:As noted in the Columbia Car webpages, Harroun participated in the original setting of the record from Chicago to New York in 1903, and the re-taking of that record in 1904... Joe Dawson Joe Dawson Joe Dawson is a character from the fictional universe of the Highlander franchise. A mortal Watcher, he is portrayed by actor Jim Byrnes.-Appearances:...	Marmon	24	+ 37:16.87
Ret	19	Ralph DePalma Ralph DePalma Ralph De Palma was an Italian-American racecar driving champion, most notably winner of the 1915 Indianapolis 500. His entry at the International Motorsports Hall of Fame estimates that he won about 2000 races...	Fiat Fiat FIAT, an acronym for Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino , is an Italian automobile manufacturer, engine manufacturer, financial, and industrial group based in Turin in the Italian region of Piedmont. Fiat was founded in 1899 by a group of investors including Giovanni Agnelli...	23	Cylinder
Ret	10	Felice Nazzaro Felice Nazzaro Felice Nazzaro was an Italian racecar driver, a native of Turin. He won the Kaiserpreis in 1907 as well as the French Grand Prix in 1907 and 1922 and Targa Florio in 1907 and 1913. His European wins in 1907 resulted in an invitation to compete in the 1908 American Grand Prize in Savannah, Georgia,...	Fiat Fiat FIAT, an acronym for Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino , is an Italian automobile manufacturer, engine manufacturer, financial, and industrial group based in Turin in the Italian region of Piedmont. Fiat was founded in 1899 by a group of investors including Giovanni Agnelli...	19	Rear axle
Ret	6	Charlie Basle	Pope Hartford Pope Manufacturing Company Pope Manufacturing Company was founded by Albert Augustus Pope in Hartford, Connecticut. The company began with the introduction of the "Columbia High Wheeler" bicycle in 1878.-History:...	19	Piston
Ret	16	Louis Wagner Louis Wagner Louis Wagner was a French race car driver who won the first ever United States and British Grands Prix. Wagner was also a pioneer aviator.Wagner was born in Le Pré-Saint-Gervais, Seine-Saint-Denis...	Fiat Fiat FIAT, an acronym for Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino , is an Italian automobile manufacturer, engine manufacturer, financial, and industrial group based in Turin in the Italian region of Piedmont. Fiat was founded in 1899 by a group of investors including Giovanni Agnelli...	17	Crash
Ret	18	Willie Haupt Willie Haupt Willie Haupt was an American racecar driver.-Indy 500 results:...	Benz	13	Crash
Ret	7	Harry Grant Harry Grant Harry Grant was an American auto racing driver. Born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, driving an ALCO, Grant won the 1909 and 1910 Vanderbilt Cup on Long Island. He then competed in the Indianapolis 500 four times between 1911 and 1915. He had his best showing in 1915, finishing in 5th place...	Alco 6	11	Gears
Ret	3	Arthur Chevrolet Arthur Chevrolet Arthur Chevrolet, was a Swiss American racecar driver and automobile manufacturer.Born in La Chaux-de-Fonds, Neuchatel, Switzerland, Arthur was the middle brother of Louis and Gaston Chevrolet...	Marquette Marquette (automobile) The name Marquette was first used for an automobile when the Berwick Auto Car Company of Grand Rapids, Michigan, frequently took it as a model designation for their electric car in 1904.... -Buick Buick Buick is a premium brand of General Motors . Buick models are sold in the United States, Canada, Mexico, China, Taiwan, and Israel, with China being its largest market. Buick holds the distinction as the oldest active American make...	9	Crankshaft
Ret	13	Louis Disbrow Louis Disbrow Louis Disbrow was an American racecar driver.-Life:Louis Disbrow was born on March 24, 1888 in Indianapolis, Indiana.He died on July 9, 1939 in his home in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.-Indy 500 results:-References:...	Pope Hartford Pope Manufacturing Company Pope Manufacturing Company was founded by Albert Augustus Pope in Hartford, Connecticut. The company began with the introduction of the "Columbia High Wheeler" bicycle in 1878.-History:...	9	Cylinder
Ret	8	Joe Dawson Joe Dawson (racecar driver) Joe Dawson was an American race car driver.-Biography:Born in Odon, Indiana, Dawson competed in the Indianapolis 500 race three times, beginning in 1911 when he drove a Marmon to a fifth place finish. The following year, Dawson won after Ralph DePalma, who had led for 196 laps of the 200 lap race,...	Marmon	5	Crankshaft
DNS	1	Étienne Planche	Roebling-Planche
DNS	2	Harry Grant Harry Grant Harry Grant was an American auto racing driver. Born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, driving an ALCO, Grant won the 1909 and 1910 Vanderbilt Cup on Long Island. He then competed in the Indianapolis 500 four times between 1911 and 1915. He had his best showing in 1915, finishing in 5th place...	Alco
DNS	5	G. Armstrong	Mercedes Mercedes (car) Mercedes was a brand of the Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft . DMG which began to develop in 1900, after the death of its co-founder, Gottlieb Daimler...
DNS		W. H. Sharpe	Sharpe-Arrow Pierce-Arrow Pierce-Arrow was an American automobile manufacturer based in Buffalo, New York, which was active from 1901-1938. Although best known for its expensive luxury cars, Pierce-Arrow also manufactured commercial trucks, fire trucks, camp trailers, motorcycles, and bicycles.-Early history:The forerunner...		Fatal crash in practice
DNS		Joe Matson Joe Matson Joe Matson was an American racecar driver.-Indy 500 results:...	Simplex Crane-Simplex Not to be confused with American SimplexCrane-Simplex is a defunct car manufacturer, operating in New York City, USA at the beginning of the 20th century.-History:...		Engine in practice