Racing History

F1 Retro October 1999 With January tending to be more about off-road antics than Formula 1, now is an appropriate time to look back on an expert all-rounder who appeared…

Back in the day, when life was in Technicolor and major companies were queueing to sponsor Formula 1 teams, Jackie Stewart used every January to organise a charity clay pigeon…

The older head rested on the younger shoulders in the neck-and-neck Formula 1 showdown of October 1974. Emerson Fittipaldi was 27 and Clay Regazzoni 34 when they arrived – equal…

The Mercedes 300 SLR '722' steered to victory in the 1955 Mille Miglia by Stirling Moss was given one final blast through London to the home of its pilot

Sir Frank Williams 1942-2021 Frank Williams. Has there ever lived a man so immersed, so desperately enthralled and in love with motor racing? He didn’t have a plan, he had…

Offenhauser engines powered Indy 500 winners for an incredible 18-consecutive races. Lawrence Butcher looks at the story behind all the success

Peugeot's pre-war engineering creativity brought huge gains. Lawrence Butcher gets into the details of how the French recipe for success came about

For more than 135 years, the internal combustion engine has powered the modern world, bringing momentum to personal and public transport, goods movement and, of course, motor racing. Ever since…

February 18, 1979. Notionally the focus should have been on Richard Petty as he extended his Daytona 500 victory tally to six in the first full NASCAR race broadcast live…

He is both an expression of disbelief and a name on a racing trophy, but in our world we don’t hear much more about the man called Gordon Bennett. This…

F1 Retro January 2001 These days the idea of an F1 underdog upset is a junior driver from a massive multinational manufacturer-backed team winning for a slightly less good multinational…

Today, the thorny question of fossil-fuel replacement is justifiably at the forefront of our thoughts. By 1901 a number of competitions and trials had already been held with the object…

Remember when the Formula 1 season used to finish in October? It wasn’t that long ago. In fact it was the norm in the 2000s, before the date began slipping…

The families of Gilles Villeneuve and Didier Pironi are working together on a new documentary into the Ferrari team-mates' controversial, tragic 1982 season. Due for release next year, forty years…

"It was a great club. I’m amazed somebody hasn’t restarted it.” That’s Sir Jackie Stewart’s take on the Steering Wheel Club, Mayfair home from home for racing drivers. In the…

Shortly after the death of his father, Rick Jackson was sifting through some old photographs when he came across a few that dad Len – who had raced in the…

To anyone other than an extremely well-informed observer, it is just a sparkplug. A Bosch sparkplug, not that you’re asking. It’s a little bit oily and while in obviously perfect…