Motorsport People Profiles
The World's Greatest Drivers, Owners, Engineers & Personalities
Profiles of past and present automotive personalities. The drivers who risked their lives in the early days to the engineers who creatively changed the world of automobiles, this is a celebration of the people who played a major role in the world we love.
Pantheon of Speed: Legends of Motorsports
Dive into a captivating collection of profiles and exclusive interviews with the greatest names in motorsports history – the drivers who defied limits, the engineers who pushed boundaries, the designers who shaped iconic machines, and the visionaries who built racing empires. From the daredevils of early Grand Prix racing to the modern masters of Formula 1, we celebrate the men and women who have etched their names into the annals of motorsport legend.
It had been a long, hard ride from winning masses of kart races when he was a kid to winning the 2009 Formula One World Championship. But, like so many other kart stars of the last 30 years or so, Jenson Button did it, with a lot of team changes...
Over the course of nearly seven decades of Formula One history, only three men have ever won a World Championship Grand Prix race in a car of their own construction. Of course, none of them actually designed or built their cars all by themselves, they simply conceived, established, directed, managed...
If the name Jean Pierre Kunstle came up in a conversation about sports car racing, it wouldn’t be surprising if it didn’t sound familiar. He was sort of a “mystery man” since not much was written about him personally, virtually all reports were about his racing success on the track. ...
Dr. Elio Zagato passed away in Milan, Italy, on September 15. The son of Ugo Zagato, founder of the famed Milanese coachbuilder, Elio played a significant role in both automotive design and the Gran Turismo racing scene in the post-war era. Having first raced in 1947 with a rebodied Fiat...
In a world where the value of words is often diminished by over-use and misapplication, there is absolutely no doubt that the word “icon” applies to Carroll Shelby, who passed away on May 10. The charismatic Texan may be known primarily as the chicken farmer who created the Cobra, but...
A grand American figure in motor racing history has quietly left the scene. After battling Parkinson’s Disease for a decade, Teddy Mayer, cofounder of Team McLaren, passed away unexpectedly as he slept at his English home in late January at the age of 73. Born Edward Everett Mayer in Scranton,...
Rudolf Caracciola [dropcap]A[/dropcap]t Monaco, the first significant race of the 1933 season, a new Grand Prix team made its debut: Scuderia CC, with Rudi Caracciola and Louis Chiron as its principals. Two of the finest, most successful drivers in the world, they each had broken away from their established works...
Not only was the Australian motor sport community deeply saddened by the death of F.A.O. “Tony” Gaze on July 29 at the age of 93, but also those around the world who remembered him fondly. The Earl of March said: “All of us at Goodwood are deeply saddened to learn...
One of the men who figured prominently in our tribute to Dan Gurney in last month’s issue, veteran Indycar mechanic Wayne Leary, has died following a decade’s battle with cancer. Leary worked for a number of teams during his years in the sport, but his greatest success was achieved during...
Vittorio Jano Biography Born on April 22, 1891 as Viktor János in San Giorgio Canavese to Hungarian immigrants, Vittorio Jano was the son of the Technical Director at one of Turin’s two arsenals. At 18, after completing instruction at the Instituto Professionale Operaio in Turin he took a job as...
We’re spectating on a rally special stage. The Monte Carlo, Britain’s RAC, the Acropolis in Greece. Anywhere, it doesn’t matter which. We’re halfway up a gentle roadside embankment stamping our almost numb feet and rubbing shoulders with dozens of other rally fans, waiting. It’s dark, cold, the bottle of whiskey...
Vittorio Jano Biography Born on April 22, 1891 as Viktor János in San Giorgio Canavese to Hungarian immigrants, Vittorio Jano was the son of the Technical Director at one of Turin’s two arsenals. At 18, after completing instruction at the Instituto Professionale Operaio in Turin he took a job as...
Martin Swig is a San Francisco-based vintage racer, car collector and founder of the California Mille vintage car rally. Winding Road recently profiled the “Free Spirit of California Motoring” for their online magazine. The Free Spirit of California Motoring – A Profile of Martin Swig The view from Martin Swig’s...
No way did Elisabeth Junek look like a racing driver. She was, well, a woman to begin with, and there were not many of them hefting potent racing cars around in the 1920s. And she was petite, her fair hair framing a kind, gently smiling face. Even when she raced...
Several thousand people attended three days of events over the weekend of April 6-8 to commemorate the 50thanniversary of Jim Clark’s death. It is testimony to the brilliant Scot’s enduring legacy that visitors travelled from New Zealand, Australia, Brazil and Japan to the Scottish Borders to pay homage. The weekend...
Destiny often has a hard time happening, seldom more so than in the case of Zora Arkus-Duntov, the champion of the Chevrolet Corvette. He made his way from Brussels to Detroit via Leningrad, the Russian revolution, Berlin, Nazi persecution, along an escape route through Marseilles and Lisbon to New York,...
Michael Argetsinger has lost his battle with cancer, passing away July 7 at his home in Chicago at the age of 70. Michael grew up in motor sports, the son of United States Grand Prix organizer Cameron Argetsinger, and early on naturally became involved in various aspects of the event’s...
Luigi Villoresi Biography Luigi Villoresi was born in Milan, Italy on May 16th, 1909. Nicknamed “Gigi” he came from a prosperous family and began competing in local rallies at the age of twenty-two with a Lancia Lambda and a few years later acquired a Fiat Balilla, which was very popular...
The truth is, I might have missed him amongst Moss, Brabham, Trintignant, Shelby, Ward and all the other motor racing luminaries at Monterey if someone hadn’t pointed him out. “That’s Norman Dewis,” my friend said, pointing to an amazingly spry white-haired man of small stature holding court with an enthralled...
Surtees qualified his Ferrari 158 5th for the 1964 British Grand Prix at Brands Hatch and drove up to finish 3rd behind Jim Clark and Graham Hill. How do you get to be the only man to have won both the motorcycle and Formula One World Championships in a single...
On May 9th, 1992, Roberto Guerrero earned the pole position for the 76th running of the Indianapolis 500-mile race. Piloting a Buick-powered Lola T92/00 for King Motorsports, the 33-year-old Colombian became the first man in Speedway history to officially break the 230-mph barrier as he set new track records for...
Today almost exclusively remembered as the genius behind the competition cars named for a road-running bird in the southwest, Jim Hall did not get the inspiration for his innovative designs overnight. Although he grew into an accomplished engineer, an excellent mechanic, and a top driver, it took Hall almost seven...
Having been born within earshot of the Le Mans 24-hour race in France, that François Migault took to motor racing was no surprise. He was one of those drivers who showed great early promise, especially in Formula Three where he won the Volant Shell trophy, and in Formula Two where...
Dan Gurney Biography He drove in the last great era of Grand Prix racing before the advent of tobacco advertising and aerodynamic devices changed the sport forever. Is adversaries were some of the greatest names in Grand Prix history, Jack Brabham, John Surtees, Graham Hill and perhaps the greatest of...
Former F1 driver and constructor Guy Ligier has died at the age of 85. Although he contested only a dozen races during his three seasons as an F1 driver, posting a best finish of 6th in the 1967 German Grand Prix at the Nürburgring, Ligier subsequently founded the team that...
He was known as “the Silver Fox,” “the Racing Grandfather,” and “Merle the Magician.” These nicknames might indicate a gentlemanly racer, older than most of his peers, who raced for fun. His silver hair, glasses and relaxed demeanor fit the nicknames, but underneath that calm exterior beat the heart of...
As I sat quietly in a pleasant house in Woking, England, in the winter of 1970, I watched and listened. My friend Brian Robbins, editor of BBC TV’s motoring programs at the time, was interviewing an 81-year-old man about his illustrious career. The little man was obviously ill, as he...
If he lasted long enough—that is, if he didn’t get killed in the process—canny observers thought this young South African could become a Formula One World Champion. Not even their crystal ball, though, could have predicted how: it was when driving a Ferrari 312T4 at Monza, the holiest of holies...
If you think you’re a “real racer” or dedicated fan to the sport, ponder this: just moments after getting married, Frank William’s best friend David Brodie offered to pay for a celebratory lunch. Frank declined the offer and left his newlywed and friends to celebrate on their own; after all,...
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