The Evolution Of Silverstone, by Leasing Options

Now that the future of Silverstone as a Formula 1 track has been assured, it’s a perfect time to look back at how the track has changed since 1948.

Leasing Options has created an animation to show all of the many changes that Silverstone has undergone since racing began on the track, explained what the key changes were and listed our top five Silverstone Formula 1 moments.

The evolution of the Silverstone track

Key dates in Silverstone’s history
1948 - The First Grand Prix
The first grand prix at Silverstone took place in 1948, but the course was somewhat different and more terrifying than it is today.

New Motorsport Week article: F1’s curious history of the first finisher not finishing first

By Martin Lee - https://www.flickr.com/photos/kartingnord/
17196205826/in/photostream/, CC BY-SA 2.0, https://
commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=45664772

A race is a simple concept. You get to the end before anyone else, you win. Right?

Well, this being Formula 1, things aren't necessarily that simple. Herein, as Sebastian Vettel just found out in the Canadian Grand Prix, the first finisher doesn't always finish first. Such a shift has happened a good few times before, and for a good few reasons.

In my latest for Motorsport Week I look through the other times in F1 history this has happened.

You can have a read here: https://www.motorsportweek.com/news/id/23221

Inside Line F1 Podcast - The James Hunt Exclusive

The Inside Line F1 Podcast returns after a sunny summer break from the beaches of Greece. In this week's episode, we commemorate 25 years since James Hunt's death and who better than his son Freddie to narrate stories, incidents and the passion of the 1976 Formula 1 World Champion.

Did Rush add to Hunt's popularity? And what if social media existed back in the Hunt-Lauda era? Know more in our Hunt exclusive episode.

We also talk to Freddie about his racing career, plans to follow his famous father into commentary and the impact of having a name as famous as 'Hunt' in the world of Motorsport. Tune in!

(Season 2018, Episode 26)
Subscribe to the Inside Line F1 Podcast on iTunes and on audioBoom (RSS feed) for your weekly dose of Formula 1 humour

Why the mystery of F1's greatest ever hasn't been answered - not even by science

So, that's that settled then. The sport's biggest and most ubiquitous bone of contention. Done. That one of who is the best driver ever, over and above the equipment they had access to. That one we thought near unsolvable given everything. All by a team of academics from the Universities of Sheffield and Bristol, and using statistical analysis.

According to the statistical study,
Juan Manuel Fangio's 
F1's best of all time
By Unknown - Museo Juan Manuel
 Fangio, reimpreso en "La fotografía
en la historia argentina", Tomo I,
Clarín, ISBN 950-782-643-2,
Public Domain, https://commons.
wikimedia.org/w/index.php?
curid=3934090

And when its news release announcing this was published just over a week ago it caused quite the stir. All seemed rather monumental indeed. Underlining the view even the (not necessarily always science-loving) Daily Mail proclaimed in its headline that what we had revealed before us was "the best Formula One driver of all time according to SCIENCE". Yes it actually capitalised the word. It was as if we were getting something irrefutable.

The first few on the study's all-time driver ranking - Juan Manuel Fangio top, followed by Alain Prost, Fernando Alonso, Jim Clark and Jackie Stewart - are hardly hideous. Michael Schumacher appeared low in ninth but when he was considered from before his first retirement in 2006 only he shot up to third, which again looked fair enough (as an aside, a curiosity about the reporting of this study is that there is more than one list floating about, in addition to the pre/post Schumi lists the one presented in the academic paper has Alonso sixth rather than his widely-reported placing of third, and it's not explained by the Schumi shift apparently as the Daily Mail article at least shows Alonso fourth when Schumi from 2006 and before only is considered).

But then it gets patchy. Stirling Moss is but 35th in the ranking (some 12 places behind Marc Surer) while the likes of Niki Lauda, Nigel Mansell, Alberto Ascari, Jochen Rindt and Gilles Villeneuve are simply nowhere to be seen in the top 50. It all gets, um, a little more interesting too as Christian Fittipaldi is in the elevated position of 12th best driver ever while the luminary that is Louis Rosier is placed 19th. And unless this pair were against just about all assessments in fact secret F1 geniuses never given their break in a good car - in addition to the drivers listed above being actually vastly over-rated, again contrary most assessments - it would seem the study has some shortcomings.

James Hunt: Girls, Beer and Victory - A photo exhibition in London

© Phipps/Sutton Images Collection

James Hunt, even now several decades on from his sporting heyday, does not lack popularity or recognition among F1 fans. Perhaps he doesn't lack them beyond F1 fans either. Few drivers - possibly few sports people - have embodied their age like Hunt did. Many today just like then are attracted to his devil-may-care persona and to his vibrant lifestyle. It may all have particular resonance today given its contrast to the tepid modern age. It shouldn't be forgotten in among all of this that Hunt wasn't at all short of talent behind the wheel either.

Many of a subsequent generation got to know Hunt as a forthright and insightful BBC TV commentator. While perhaps a few of the generation after that were introduced to him by the Rush film that tracked his celebrated rivalry with Niki Lauda culminating in the 1976 championship showdown in Fuji in which Hunt bagged the F1 world title.

© Phipps/Sutton Images Collection

Marking all of this and more Proud Galleries on 11th February (that's Thursday next week) is launching a photo exhibition in London titled James Hunt: Girls, Beer and Victory. It celebrates the 40th anniversary this year of Hunt's world title mentioned, and the photos gathered will cover Hunt from his time in F3 through to his scaling the high peak of the F1 world championship in Fuji's rain. It also will include images from on track as well as some candid moments from behind the scenes at the circuit and away from it, covering his highs and lows. And as if this all isn't enough it's free to get in too.

© Phipps/Sutton Images Collection

The photos were captured by David Phipps and were put together for the exhibition in partnership with Sutton Images. If you're in or near London in the next few weeks and months it sounds like you'd be well worth checking this exhibition out.

Here are a few details:

When? The exhibition will be open from 11 February to 3 April 2016. It'll be open Monday to Saturday 10am to 7pm; 10am to 6pm on Sundays.

Where? Proud Chelsea, 161 King's Road, London, SW3 5XP (see the map below)

Entry? Free :)

More details: On the Proud website: https://www.proudonline.co.uk/

Gimme some space

Let us rewind 37 years to the day. To the 1977 Dutch Grand Prix at fast flowing Zandvoort.

As was often so in that campaign the pace-setters were James Hunt in the McLaren and Mario Andretti in the Lotus, the latter especially. Andretti started from pole, but Hunt took the lead off the line. Andretti nevertheless looked easily the faster and swiftly was on Hunt's tail.

James Hunt - his view prevails today it seems
Credit: Gillfoto / CC

At Zandvoort the notorious banked hairpin Tarzan bend at the end of the pit straight was about the only realistic passing point, but each time through there Hunt blocked the inside. So fifth time around Andretti stuck it around the outside, getting alongside his rival. But as far as Hunt was concerned that wasn't on and he took his line on the exit like the American didn't exist. The inevitable followed, the pair collided, and Hunt was out on the spot while Andretti continued for a few more laps somehow unscathed before an engine failure put him out too.

Hunt seethed, with steam almost as visible from his ears as it was from the broken water pipe of his stricken McLaren he told Andretti later 'in Formula One you're not expected to pass on the outside'. It was a claim met with general incredulity, not least by the American who retorted: 'where I come from you pass wherever you can...I deserve that piece of real estate as much as you do, and so you have to drive accordingly'. He later added: 'He ignored me, drove right into me and is trying to blame me because I wasn't supposed to be there. I had him and he didn't accept it.'

But all these years on it seems that despite its apparent absurdity it is in fact Hunt's take that has prevailed. And we had our latest dollop of evidence in the Belgian Grand Prix just passed.

Criminal records? Why just about all F1 records are problematic

The Japanese Grand Prix of 2013 was an important one. Or at least it was for the statisticians, as an all-time F1 record dropped. One that for much of history has been considered a highly valued mark.

Fernando Alonso, as has been anticipated for a while, beat the haughty Michael Schumacher's record for most points scored in F1 ever, now having a total of 1,571 compared with Schumi's 1,566. And yet with it has come a conspicuous round of guffawing. The points total doesn't mean anything, they said; the systems have changed so much over time so as to make comparisons meaningless. Alonso himself however - albeit with something of a glint in his eye - declared it 'great' to set the new mark.

Fernando Alonso claimed F1's
all-time points record in Japan
Photo: Octane Photography

But really, is it so unreasonable for Alonso to be pleased with this one? Or, to flip the question around, could such charges of non-comparability be laid before just about any F1 record? Don't they all at least somewhere involve imperfect comparisons? Is it not the case that they all require qualification?

All sports evolve over time of course, so just about any sporting record necessarily involves an element of imperfect comparison. But I struggle to think of another activity that has changed as much as F1 has from generation to generation, and therefore is so apt for the numbers and historical marks to be taken with not so much a pinch of salt but rather a trailer-load of it.

New F1 Times article: Rush 2 - What happened next for Lauda and Hunt

Some of you might have noticed this by now, but in case you didn't I made my debut over at The F1 Times the other day, writing about a possible Rush 2. In other words, I looked at what happened to James Hunt and Niki Lauda after the Rush film leaves us, at the dramatic conclusion of the 1976 season with the two protagonists on top of the world.

And it's perhaps not a tale you'd expect, as within three years both drivers had walked away from the sport without a backwards glance (pretty much literally), having become also-rans. I look what happened and how; the article can be read here.

I'm particularly proud of it, if I'm allowed to comment on such things...

Rush UK release: new features

After what seemed like interminable waiting, the Rush film - which follows the famous James Hunt-Niki Lauda rivalry of the 1976 F1 season - was released in the UK today. And to celebrate this StudioCanal has make available two new behind the scenes featurettes as well as a new clip.

And here they are. First of all here below is a clip from the film of Lauda and Hunt answering press questions prior to the season-ending Japanese Grand Prix.



Here's a featurette about putting the film's amazing on-track scenes together, specifically the wet race of Fuji in Japan (though you'll note that they filmed it at Snetterton!)

Rush Review - 1976 and all that

If history is any sort of guide, then making a motor racing film is a perilous task. The pitfalls are many and considerable, perhaps even obvious, but no less hard to avoid for that. The main ones include that one has to come up with something plausible and accurate to the motor racing aficionado, but entertaining enough to transcend the boundaries and appeal to more of a mass market. If it's based on actual events then you're even more constrained, as the same motor sport nerds will delight in pointing out any major departures from what actually happened. It's also necessary to both create convincing on-track scenes as well as have a compelling off-track plot.

And achieving these seems easier said than done. Some have tried, but arguably none have ticked all of the boxes. John Frakenheimer's Grand Prix from 1966 emphatically ticks the on-track footage box, which was wonderful, but its plot away from the track is rather porous (though perhaps not quite as bad as some like to claim). Le Mans of 1971 equally has wonderful and convincing footage, but hardly an off-track plot at all. Driven fails on both counts, and thus the less that is said about it the better. While Senna got around many of the problems (such as those of realism and creating convincing action) by being a documentary which used original footage from on and off the track as well as, let's be frank, carried a narrative that only really gave one side of that particular story.

Thus, Ron Howard's Rush - tracking the James Hunt/Niki Lauda rivalry in the 1976 F1 season - had much to contend with, lots of traps to fall into. But, do you know what? He's only gone and nailed it. It could well be that motor sport now has a new number one film ever. Certainly it has its leading non-documentary.

New Rush features to mark the world premiere

As you're probably aware by now, the world premiere of the much-anticipated Rush film is happening today in London's Leicester Square. And to mark this as well as to whet all of our appetites further, Studio Canal has released two new behind the scenes featurettes as well as a new clip. You can watch them below.

And my review of the Rush film, given I was lucky enough to see an advance screening of it last week, will be live on this site at 9pm UK time this evening, when the embargo lifts. So do look out for that.

New Rush clips to mark James Hunt's birthday

The much-anticipated UK release of Rush, the epic true-life drama directed by Ron Howard focussing on James Hunt’s exhilarating rivalry with Niki Lauda in the 1976 Formula 1 season, edges ever closer. And in celebration of legend James Hunt on what would have been his birthday, StudioCanal have today released a photo of Hunt (see right) as well as a new clip and featurette from Rush.

Here's a behind the scenes featurette below, including the thoughts of Ron Howard:

Rush: New pictures

The UK release of the Rush film - that which tells the story of the classic Niki Lauda/James Hunt battle in the 1976 F1 season - continues to approach, 13 September being the date. And as of last Friday pre-order for booking cinema tickets for Rush opened at most cinemas.

And as the film's release approaches a few more images from it have been released. To whet your appetite yet further, here they are below.

Furthermore, if you want to find out where the nearest cinema is to you that's showing Rush, as well as pre-order your tickets, you can via the film's Facebook page here.

James Hunt's McLaren M23, in the rain

Niki Lauda - played by Daniel Bruhl -
prepares for a race start

James Hunt - played by Chris Hemsworth - and Niki Lauda
 - played by Daniel Bruhl - check out a BRM

Some BRM sketches

Carlos Pace's Brabham-Alfa Romeo BT45

Patrick Depailler's classic Tyrrell P34,
complete with six wheels

RUSH: Latest trailer

The 1976 F1 season, and the James Hunt vs. Niki Lauda rivalry therein, is one that has gone into the sport's folklore. And as you're probably aware by now, its story has been given the Hollywood treatment, by Ron Howard in the forthcoming RUSH film. Below is the latest trailer, featuring footage from on and off the track that certainly I hadn't seen before, as well as an intro from Howard. If nothing else, it seems that both Hunt and Lauda have been captured perfectly by actors Chris Hemsworth and Daniel Bruhl respectively.



It's out in UK cinemas on September the 13th. I for one can't wait.

Bloggers' British Grand Prix Heroes with MoneySupermarket.com

In advance of the forthcoming British Grand Prix, MoneySupermarket.com asked several F1 bloggers, including yours truly, to vote for who in their view are the best British F1 drivers from history.

Britain isn't short of great drivers, and as such picking out the very best isn't a straightforward task. The result of ranking the bloggers' ratings of the top three are below in the infographic. You'll also see there's a lovely quote from little old me:


Image source: MoneySupermarket Car Insurance

The vote found a worthy winner: Jim Clark is also by my reckoning Britain's best ever, possibly the best ever full stop. Jackie Stewart was a close second in the rankings, and the people's champion Nigel Mansell completed the podium. Personally, I'd have liked to see Stirling Moss a bit higher (I placed him second behind Clark), and given all of his recent focus including via the Rush film I'm a little surprised that James Hunt is only tenth. But in my view the top ten is a pretty credible one. Maybe it shows that there is collective wisdom among F1 bloggers after all(!)

There are more details on it all here: http://www.moneysupermarket.com/car-insurance/infographics/british-gp-heroes-results/

Further thoughts on the Bahrain Grand Prix

Here comes Bahrain again
And thus F1 has endured its second weekend in Bahrain since the Arab Spring, and its second which afterwards private exhalations of relief may be had that the event just about went off without problems. Admittedly, there appeared a slightly lower level of background issues for the F1 bubble this time compared with what there was last year: no protesters died in the course of the weekend (as far as we know), and no members of the F1 fraternity were caught up in clashes as they were then.

Bahrain Grand Prix - a focus for protesters
Credit: Hamel Alrayeh / CC

And yet I'm no nearer to understanding why exactly the sport's decision-makers think going to Bahrain right now is a good idea. Yes, I'm aware that there are (reportedly) 50 million reasons for the fraternity to turn up, and Bernie/CVC are conspicuously wont to follow the money. But even still I cannot fathom why anyone at the top of the sport thinks that this credit outweighs the rather obvious debit. The debit being that F1 is being used as a country PR exercise by a regime (and by extension a PR exercise for the regime itself) at the same time that the regime has a criticised human rights record and faces daily protests and unrest from its citizens demanding democracy and reform (for whom the F1 race is a clear focus of discontent, unsurprising given the regime's closeness to the event and desire to derive prestige from it). And this unrest is prone to descend into violence from both sides. At best the sport appears uncaring, at worst that it's siding with oppression. And the broad perception was that matters in Bahrain hadn't moved on much since F1's last visit 12 months ago.

As outlined on this site before the race, it represents a toxic mix of two of the sport's most notorious vices: taking short term financial gain in return for longer term and less immediately tangible pain, as well as a disregard for how it's viewed more widely and why this is important. The sport relies on the world around it in a number of ways, most notably that's where it gets its fans from. It's also where it gets its sponsorship and technical involvement, and all three of these groups have plenty of options of where to invest their time and money. F1 is inviting peril by disregarding this.

Looking back: Montjuïc - a street track like out of your dreams

Reality bites in F1. Organisers of both of F1's Spanish races, the Spanish Grand Prix in Montmelo near Barcelona and the European Grand Prix on the Valencia street circuit, have made it known in recent weeks that they'll need less costly deals if the events are to continue. This is not surprising given the state of the world economy, which has hit Spain harder than many. A deal will be done presumably to ensure Spain continues on the F1 calendar - you'd think it would have to given Alonso-mania - though it's hard to see how two Spanish events can prevail, especially in an age where Bernie's keen to reduce the European presence on the calendar and with many countries queuing to get on it.

Spain's history of hosting F1 races is a long one, the first ever Spanish Grand Prix in the formula was in 1951. But the latest threats to the Spanish races continues the rather hit-and-miss and nomadic existence of Spanish F1 venues over the decades.

Six different circuits in Spain have hosted F1 Grands Prix (including Valencia, which has always had the 'European GP' moniker). The first venue used was the attractive Pedralbes track, run through wide open avenues in Barcelona's suburbs. It was used twice in total (the other race there was in 1954), before the Le Mans disaster the next year, and its fallout vis-a-vis circuit safety, did for it. The Spanish Grand Prix then disappeared from the calendar all the way through to 1968, when it resurfaced at the rather torturous, twisty and unpopular Jarama track near Madrid. That venue held the race on and off until 1981, with its final appearance that year giving witness to the classic and lauded win under pressure by Gilles Villeneuve.

The Spanish race then disappeared again for a while, until 1986 when the Jerez circuit in the south of the country became its host. It was an impressive facility, arguably the first of the 'modern' F1 venues that populate the calendar so heavily these days. Similar to Jarama it was known for being tight and twisty, but its main problem was that it never began to pull in a crowd, due in large part to being situated rather remotely, far away from Spain's major population centres. It lost the race eventually in 1991, though made a couple of further appearances in the 1990s as a last minute replacement for drop-outs elsewhere, and it continues to be used as an F1 test venue. Jerez was replaced by the Montmelo track near Barcelona, and it seemed that finally the Spanish round had found a permanent home. This was further cemented later by Spain finally uneartheding a top-level driver of their own in Fernando Alonso. And this was a lot of the reason why Barcelona was joined on the calendar by the Valencia street circuit in 2008. The Valencia track hasn't won any popularity contests though, not helped by the fact that it has been dogged by undiverting races in its short existence.

But there was one Spanish Grand Prix venue in history that was a real hit. It was a street track like out of your dreams. Faster, more varied and more challenging than Monaco, more picturesque as well. That track was Montjuïc.

Looking back: the time F1 drivers banned one of their own

In the build up to last week's Japanese Grand Prix the Italian magazine Autosprint reported that some F1 drivers wanted Lewis Hamilton's driving to be raised as a matter for discussion at that event's drivers' briefing.

I'm very glad that nothing came of that. Such a move would have been shameful, with the strong stench of a witch hunt. Furthermore, it would have been absolutely unnecessary. Yes, it can't be denied that Lewis Hamilton has been making contact with other cars too often over the last 12 months or so, but we're not talking about someone new on the scene, or someone unproven. Lewis Hamilton has been in F1 for close to to five years, and in that time proven beyond doubt that he's one of the sport's most accomplished performers. And up until the Italian race of last year (when his habit of tagging other cars began) he didn't make contact with other cars that often. It's very hard to think of occasions before that wherein he was involved in an incident with another car that was unequivocally his own fault. Hitting Kimi Raikkonen in the pitlane in Canada in 2008 is arguably the only one, and he's far from the only one to be caught out by that pit exit. Not bad for someone who in that time firmed himself up as F1's most exciting and willing racer and overtaker.

F1 does have a previous when it comes to egregious behaviour by some drivers towards one of their own. One time before a few 'senior' drivers effectively banned one of their fellow number from a Grand Prix. This they did by coercing the organisers of a race, on pain of them withdrawing and forcing the event to be cancelled, not to accept that driver's race entry. The year was 1978 and the banned driver was Riccardo Patrese.

Looking back: 'A typical English summer's day', the 1975 British Grand Prix

Rain and the British Grand Prix are reasonably familiar acquaintances. This has been the case this weekend, with each session for the F1 cars being disrupted by rain showers to some extent. However, whatever happens this weekend, or indeed at any other F1 race, it's very hard to imagine any being as rain-affected as the British Grand Prix of 1975, which was then as now at Silverstone.

After two days of rain-interjected practice, the race pivoted on two rain separate storms sweeping over the circuit. The second of which was of such force that it accounted for thirteen cars (compare that to the six that left the track via the Nurburgring river in 2007), leaving only six cars running as the race was terminated ten laps ahead of time. In between, the drivers did their best to put on a diverting motor race, with seven different leaders, and nine changes of lead, and a top order that swayed this way and that.

The F1 circus gathered at Silverstone for the 1975 race, and the large and enthusiastic crowd present across the three days (practice was Thursday and Friday, and the race on the Saturday - not unusual at the time), and the fact that everyone who was anyone in British motorsport was in attendance it seemed, ensured a jamboree atmosphere. This was despite the persistently iffy weather, storms intermingling with bright sunshine throughout.

Ronnie Peterson prepares for the start
Credit:  Lawson Speedway

The 1975 British Grand Prix was also one of watersheds (perhaps appropriate given the weather). First of all, Graham Hill had finally announced his retirement from driving, after a then record 176 starts, to concentrate on running his F1 team. I say 'finally' partly as the decision wasn't exactly unexpected, his previous attempt to qualify an F1 car was back in the Monaco event over two months earlier, but also because his performances had been far short of his former majesty for a number of years. Still, Hill threatened to bring the house down when he did a demonstration lap just before the race start, smiling, waving and minus a crash helmet, in one of his latest Hill GH1s.

Looking back: F1's first foray with the safety car

The safety car is very much the part of the fabric of F1 these days. Indeed, it led 24 laps of the 55 laps of the Korean race last weekend, and has led 78 F1 race laps this season. That's more than double that of Felipe Massa!

Having been an integral part of the racing scene in the USA since the year dot, the safety car was introduced to F1 in its current form midway through the 1992 season. Minimising disruption of TV schedules from race stoppages was part of the reason for the move, though a desire to potentially 'spice up the show' in a season in which the Williams FW14Bs (more to the point, Mansell's FW14B) were running away with virtually every race also concentrated minds.

Less well known is that there was an earlier attempt at bringing the safety car, or 'pace car' as it was known then, to F1 races. Given their experience, it's little wonder that the idea was abandoned for almost two decades subsequently.

The year was 1973, and up until that point stopping races wasn't the done thing. Races continued unabated pretty much no matter what, even in incidents of extreme horror such as Lorenzo Bandini's fiery and fatal accident in Monaco in 1967.  Not including the 1950 Indy 500 (technically part of the F1 world championship at the time), the first F1 race to be stopped ahead of time was the 1971 Canadian Grand Prix, which ended a few laps early because of rain and mist.