Fangio: A Pirelli Album [Hardcover]

Stirling Moss (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1991

Juan Manuel Fangio is, quite simply, the most successful Grand Prix racing driver that has ever lived. Not only because he won a record five Formula One World Championships - two more than any other man - but also because his iron will, computer-like driving precision and uncanny ability to take calculated risks that always paid off, combined to produce a dominant driving ability that was both feared and admired by his contemporaries. In motor racing terms, Fangio was already an old man when, in 1949 he came to Europe with his three car racing team sponsored by the Auto Club of Argentina. At 37 he had already become a superstar in his own country, where he had won many of the hair-raising long distance races of up to 5000 kms each, which typified motor sport in Argentina before and immediately after the Second World War. But he was completely untried on the Grand Prix circuits of Europe. That he would become the greatest Grand Prix racer of all time never entered his own head. He was, after all, just a mechanic from the potato-growing town of Balcarce. But in just over a decade, this mechanic won the Formula One World Championship of 1951 in an Alfa Romeo, 1954 in a Maserati and Mercedes Benz (he switched teams in mid season), 1955 in a Mercedes, 1956 for Enzo Ferrari and 1957 in a Maserati. Fangio's score of five world titles will, probably never be equalled, much less beaten. When the winning was over, Juan Manuel Fangio became a successful businessman and property owner and, to this day, is still Honourary President of Mercedes Benz in Argentina. In his homeland, Fangio is treated like royalty, a potential embarrassment he handles with great dignity and understanding. He is feted all over the world, whether at a modern Grand Prix to drive one of his old cars in front of millions or attending a reunion of old racing drivers at a small track in the middle of France. Stirling Moss, himself the winner of 16 Grand Prix and four time runner-up in the Formula One World Championship, competed against Fangio for much of his racing career and the two men were the all-conquering Mercedes Benz team of 1955. He tells what it was like to have Fangio as an opponent, team-mate and friend.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 168 pages
• Publisher: Motorbooks Intl (June 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0879385219
• ISBN-13: 978-0879385217
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,675,664 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4.0 out of 5 stars The Gentleman Champion, September 30, 2005

By 

Ignacio Salas Humara (Comfort, TX USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Fangio: A Pirelli Album (Paperback)

It was the golden age of gentlemen racers. They wore street clothes and polo helmets, and wore no seat belts. They thought it was safer to be thrown from the car then to be strapped inside of it in an accident. It is difficult nowadays to fathom how dangerous the sport was back then. The tracks were not ringed by great big runoff areas and armco barriers; back then it was concrete curbs, telephone poles, fire hydrants, trees, and spectators. They truly risked their lives each time they went out. The danger is what made it exciting both to the drivers as well as the spectators. The drivers were heroic figures to me, like fighter pilots going out on a mission.

This book captures not only the life of Fangio, but of his times. Moss, one of the very greats, was the perfect person to write an autobiography of Fangio, his friend and rival, the only driver better then him. Their battles on the track are legendary. A haunting tribute to the best driver who ever lived.

5.0 out of 5 stars A touching hommage, February 6, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Fangio: A Pirelli Album (Hardcover)

This is one of the best Fangio books available.
Stirling Moss, one of the greatest drivers ever, shows his admiration for the Maestro. This is not just a book by a fan. It is a book by a specialist that actually ran against Fangio and knew what he was capable of. Moss is not a man to demean himself and he describes the fights against Fangio, justlty proud of when he beat him (mainly in sports cars).
It is touching that so great a driver as Moss really is capable of such humility in the face of the one which was, perhaps, the greatest driver ever.
There are many features of interest, on Fangio the man and his incredible combination of competitiveness and goodwill and good sportsmanship, on his racing tactics and on his early and later years. The pictures are interesting.
There is also a Video to match which also is a must.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent history of Fangio, as detailed by Moss himself, April 1, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Fangio: A Pirelli Album (Hardcover)

A must read for anyone with the slightest interest in motor racing history and the men who made it great. Fangio's life, his achievements and his spirit is presented in intimate detail by his greatest rival and friend, Stirling Moss.

Beginning with his early racing throughout Latin America, this book chronicles the successes - and tragedies - that made Fangio a living legend. The insights and personal notes by Moss bring the entire book alive.