You could have been forgiven if you thought the racing world were coming to an end on April 12th. That was the day it was announced that two-time Formula One World Champion Fernando Alonso would be forgoing this year’s Monaco Grand Prix, to make an attempt at the Indy 500, with Andretti Autosports instead. Whether...
Louis Delage may have been born to a humble assistant station master and his wife in Cognac, France, in 1874, but he rose to become a dominator of world motor sport. Yet he died in poverty, in 1947, at the age of 73, bankrupt, swamped by mountainous debts and destitute. I don’t use the term...
This year’s Formula One World Championship commenced without the reigning champion in the field, something that has not happened since 1993 when Alain Prost quit the Williams team. So, how many times have we been without the current champion? The easy answer is four, but it depends on the precise question. If we ask how...
There is a certain indescribable thrill associated with the resurrection of a long lost automobile. It’s often more than the joy of the find and the journey of returning a special car to its former state of glory through restoration. Sometimes the process includes rediscovery of forgotten history and reassembling individuals who were involved with...
If you read my column this month on the other side of the magazine, you’ll see I take a little, personal look back at the strange treatment that the Datsun 240Z has received over the past 30 years in the classic car and historic racing world. Considered a virtual pariah in the ’80s and ’90s,...
Bob Wollek was a champion many times over before he even got into motor racing. He won no fewer than three gold and two silver medals in the World University Games—second only to the Olympics—in downhill, slalom and combined skiing events in 1966 and 1968. When he exploded onto the motor sport scene it looked...
It is an unfortunate fact of life that as we age, so we lose more and more friends to the ravages of time. As I sat in the church at the funeral of John Surtees—listening to the wonderful tributes from his daughters Leonora and Edwina, as well as a most moving eulogy from one of...
Hot Rods are more than just auto-mobiles. They define a culture; a way of life. And at their best, they are an art form—muscular and powerful, yet at the same time stylish. Some rods were street cruisers, a way to have fun, grab attention and, of course, girls. Others were racing weapons, and those that...
As you’ll read in this month’s news—and likely learned from our web site back on March 10—multi-time motorcycle and Formula One World Champion John Surtees has passed away at the age of 83. While we make mention of his passing in this issue, next month we will feature a unique tribute and look back at...
Major Anthony Peter Roylance Rolt, Military Cross and Bar, had a philosophy. After surviving the Second World War, in which he almost died several times and won two Military Crosses, one of Britain’s highest awards for bravery, he reasoned that the rest of his life would be a bonus. So, he put his bonus to...