Auto racing
Brief history of auto racing
Auto racing began almost immediately after the construction of the first successful petrol-fuelled autos. In 1894, the first contest was organized by Paris magazine Le Petit Journal, a reliability test to determine best performance. A year later the first real race was staged in France, from Paris to Bordeaux. First over the line was Émile Levassor but he was disqualified because his car was not a required four-seater. The 1930s saw the radical differentiation of racing vehicles from high-priced road cars, with Delage, Auto Union, Mercedes-Benz, Delahaye and Bugatti constructing streamlined vehicles with engines producing up to 450 kW(612HP) with the aid of multiple superchargers.
Dirt track auto racing
Prior to World War I, auto racing featured expensive machines and teams financed by auto factories. The teams toured the country, and most of the races were held in large cities.
Dirt track auto racing, 1919-1941
Fairmount Park Motor Races
For four years, early in the last century, the Fairmount Park Motor Races were run on an eight-mile course in Philadelphia's West Fairmount Park. They drew half a million spectators the first year.
Fairmount Park Motor Races, 1908-1911
Michael Schumacher
When Michael Schumacher won the 2001 World Championship he became the most successful driver in Formula 1 history. Christopher Hilton, author of a number of driver biographies, examines the German driver's place in F1 history, reflecting on his brilliance with other F1 drivers and team principals, also looking at how he brought glory back to Ferrari.
Michael Schumacher: The Greatest of All
Formula One
Ayrton Senna is widely regarded as the best driver ever. Although he has only been World Champion three times (versus four times for Prost and five times for Fangio and Schumacher), he still holds the world record for pole-positions (65), a true example of his extreme style.
Formula One: The Autobiography
