South America was enjoying the intense heat of summer when the annual series of races were held in Buenos Aires. The first event was held on January 13th and was the Grand Prix of the Argentine, counting in the World Championship series. The two Italian teams were out in full force, and in fact no other nation was represented mechanically in this first important event of 1957.
The Maserati team took three new cars, more or less as used during 1956, but combining ideas from the normal 250/F1 cars and the special “Monza” models of last year, the result being lighter and lower cars, but not using the offset prop.-shaft principle of obtaining a low driving seat. These new cars were driven by Fangio, Behra and Moss, while 1956-type cars were driven by Menditeguy and Bonnier. To support these five works cars there were the semi-works models of Schell and Piotti.
The Scuderia Ferrari had five of their V8 Lancia/Ferrari models competing. Collins, Hawthorn and Castellotti on new ones and Musso and Perdisa on old ones, and standing in as reserve drivers for this array of Ferrari talent were de Portago and von Trips. To make up the number of starters to a round fourteen there was de Tomaso with an old four-cylinder Ferrari.
