I ought to introduce a disclaimer. I am by no means an historian, and Meerkat Musings is a personal blog, not an academic site. Do not take what is written here as gospel! I do what research I can, but my little history of motor racing is likely to be full of holes and errors. If you are presenting any kind of formal work on the subject, please carefully consider whether or not you use this material!
It did not take too long between the development of the combustion engine, the establishment of the motor car, and the advent of people deciding to race. Considering the first marketable vehicle first appeared on the scene in 1885 (please check out this link to see the Benz-1), it was only two years later that people were starting to organise races. The first organised contest was held in France, on the 28th of April 1887, albeit only one competitor showed up! On the 22nd of July 1894, 69 cars turned up for a race from Paris to the town of Rouen, some 127 kilometres (79 miles) away. After a vetting race, 25 cars were allowed to compete. In these early days the European scene was dominated by the French, in more ways than one, with a lot of races travelling through France. These events arguably had more in common with rally racing than wheel-to-wheel formulas, and took place on open roads. This practice came to an abrupt stop when Marcel Renault, co-founder of the car manufacturer, was killed in a race from Paris to Madrid. A total of nine fatalities during this event led to the French authorities pulling the plug on open road races.
In the 1900s, purpose-built race tracks began to appear all over the world. Australia claims the title of being the first location of the first circuit, the Aspendale Racecourse. Between the two world wars, car manufacturers continued to develop their machinery, and more and more tracks were built. Gradually, the manufacturers built cars devoted to racing, and gradually, rules and regulations were devised to ensure healthy competition.
This came to a head with the advent of the first official set of racing regulations, and the first Formula 1 race, back in 1946, was held in Turin. It is worth noting that this did not mark the birth of the world championship. These days, Formula 1 and the world championship are one and the same, but the first world champion race held under Formula 1 rules did not take place until 1950.
Lights Out…
Silverstone, a converted RAF base, would play host to the inaugural Formula 1 World Championship. 70 laps around the track saw many cars fail to reach the finish line, due to a host of mechanical faults, including running out of fuel, transmission, gearbox, engine and oil problems! It can certainly be said that early F1 cars could not always be relied upon! There were a total of seven races in that first championship season (a far cry from today’s 24 grands prix!), and the first ever world champion was Italian Giuseppe Farina. This was to be his only world title, and shortly thereafter, Formula 1 would encounter its first dominant driver.
Juan Manuel Fangio still holds the record for the highest win percentage of any Formula 1 driver. He won 24 of his 52 races, a quite incredible feat, a percentage of 46 percent. He won five world championships in a career that spanned from 1950 to 1958, and therefore set the bar very high, very early on. In fact, his record of five championships would not be broken until Michael Schumacher won the sixth of his seven titles, in 2003.
Down the years, there have been many names who have become legendary. Sir Stirling Moss never won a championship, but fought hard with Fangio, to the degree that Fangio held Moss in tremendous esteem. The likes of Jim Clark and Graham Hill ferociously competed with one another in the 1960s, in cars that were growing increasingly sophisticated, and increasingly dangerous. Sir Jackie Stewart would become a three-time world champion in the 1970s, and the story of 1975 world champion Niki Lauda, who suffered horrific burns at the 1976 German Grand Prix, only to recover to become champion twice more, is an inspiring tale.
In the 80s, Formula 1 would see some epic rivalries, tense duels, some incredible bad luck, and further tragedy. Gilles Villeneuve was known for being a super-talented racing driver, who sadly never won a championship, but lit up the field with his aggressive and fast driving. He died after an accident a the 1982 Belgian Grand Prix, an accident that underscored how Formula 1 is a dangerous profession. Brazilian Nelson Piquet would win three world titles in a spell from 1981 to 1987, whilst French legend Alain Prost was making a name for himself as the Professor, winning the 1985, 1986, 1989 and 1993 world championships.
I will touch upon this in more detail elsewhere, but the battles between Prost and another Brazilian superstar, Ayrton Senna, would transcend the sport. The pair would push each other to new heights, but also to some astonishing lows, in the battle to be considered the very best. Senna was killed at the 1994 San Marino Grand Prix, a weekend that remains among the most dreadful in Formula 1 history.
In the wake of Senna’s death, and the retirements of 80s legends like Prost, Piquet and Nigel Mansell, the baton passed to a new generation. Michael Schumacher would go on to win seven world championships, interspersed with championships for Damon Hill (son of Graham Hill), Jacques Villeneuve, and Mika Häkkinen.
It was Schumacher who wove his name into the history books with a run of five consecutive titles from 2000 to 2004, whilst driving for the famous Ferrari team. His run of success was brought to an end by Fernando Alonso, who won the championship in 2005 and 2006. From there, Schumacher would retire, and Alonso would find himself facing a young upstart in the form of Lewis Hamilton. Before long, another young upstart, Sebastian Vettel, would leave an indelible mark on the sport, and a few years later, Max Verstappen would be making history as the youngest driver in Formula 1 history.
These are all names that will feature heavily across the Formula 1 section of Meerkat Musings, and with good reason. All I offer though, are my personal thoughts and memories, which I hope you will enjoy.