FORMULA ONE: THE CHAMPIONS: 75 years of legendary F1 drivers

FORMULA ONE: THE CHAMPIONS: 75 years of legendary F1 drivers
MAURICE HAMILTON (photography by Bernard Cahier & Paul-Henri Cahier;foreword by Damon Hill)
Ivy Press (non-affiliate Bookshop.org link)
$46.00 all editions, available now

Rating: 5* of five

The Publisher Says: Bask in Formula One glory with this 75th Anniversary edition of The Champions, featuring exhilarating photography and expert commentary.

Since the Grand Prix’s start in 1950, just 34 men have achieved the accolade of F1 World Champion. For the first time, legendary F1 commentator Maurice Hamilton and award-winning photographers Bernard and Paul-Henri Cahier bring the heroes of this iconic sport together, in a stunning photographic portrayal of the poise, skill and winning mindset that separates the fast from the furious, the elite from the talented.

Formula One and its champions are brought to life

An exquisitely written profile of each of the 34 F1 World Champions, with key details from the driver’s life and F1 career

Stunning photography of the drivers and their cars, both on and off the track

Historic interviews with the sport’s lost heroes, including James Hunt and Ayrton Senna

Exclusive quotes from icons such as Max Verstappen, Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg

A brand new foreword by Damon Hill, former F1 World Champion.

Debate has raged over which driver is the best of the best. It is impossible to say. But that will not deter energetic and informed discussion, usually predicated on a personal preference swayed by affection. Each of these champions will have experienced and delivered pulse-raising performances many times over.

Fully revised and updated for the 75th Anniversary and with a new foreword by F1 legend Damon Hill, this handsome homage to the most ferocious of sports and the incredible sportsmen who drive at the edge in pursuit of greatness, it is time to choose your favorite F1 Champion.

I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA EDELWEISS+. THANK YOU.

My Review: Formula One and my oldest sister are the same age!

I need a lie-down.

This sport has become far more visible in the US during the 2020s, with Netflix shows and social media chatter...but anyone who read Autoweek (me) knew of its stars, its dramas, and the like from the day Denise McCluggage started the magazine. I recognized some names:

...from days of yore. Quite a lot of modern Formula One has changed with the unbelievable sprint to the future its technology has made over the decades. Things once deemed impossible, personal endurance feats, longevity of components, speeds attained...all have occurred because the sport is so hugely popular in most of the world that the money's been there to support it.

Among the modern era's amazing drivers is the legendary Max Verstappen, all of 28 years old, who's won 71 Grands Prix across 11 seasons.

A book like this is a shoo-in to be your racing enthusiast giftee's most favorite object ever. It's well worth the price, featuring as it does some of the most remarkable sports/action photography by the father/son duo the Cahiers, whose racing photography resides in their still-privately-owned archive. It is hard to imagine anyone looking at their images...the father's more reportage, the son's clearly artistic...and not feel their pulse rate increase from the immediacy and the velocity each image coonveys. I can't picture (!) F1 racing except through their images.

Certainly reserved for a very special someone at this price, the book is something I think will be a life-long treasure for its recipient.