Slinfold author writes the official history of Formula 1

Formula 1 took the world by storm when it launched 70 years ago.
Slinfold author Maurice HamiltonSlinfold author Maurice Hamilton
Slinfold author Maurice Hamilton

Slinfold author Maurice Hamilton tells its story in Formula 1: The Official History, an illustrated chronicle of the sport, tracing the Drivers’ World Championship decade by decade, through all 70 editions ( Welbeck Publishing, £25).

From the first race in 1950, Formula 1 has captivated fans around the world and now attracts a total TV audience of 1.92 billion with more than 500 million fans worldwide. Few sports have changed as dramatically as Formula 1 motor racing although it essentially remains the same, a high-speed race in cars constructed to the highest technical performance level possible. Maurice charts the championship, highlighting the racing heroes. He also explores the growth and diversity of each season and title races. The book marks the arrival and departure of manufacturers and key moments as well as major improvements in all aspects of safety. It also contains special features on the greatest drivers and teams, important personnel, famous and infamous incidents and key changes to the rules of safety, design and competitiveness.

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Maurice explains: “The book was prompted by 2020 being the 70th anniversary of the birth of Formula 1 World Championship. The first World Championship Grand Prix (as opposed to Grands Prix during the previous four decades which had not been run in any world championship) was the British Grand Prix at Silverstone in May 1950.

“This was a singular honour for Britain, given that there were longer established and better known Grands Prix in France, Monaco and elsewhere.

“Formula 1 and its parent company, Liberty Media, (the owners of F1 since 2017) wished to mark the landmark in a number of ways, one of which was the publication of a book outlining the history of the F1 World Championship.

“As an author, I had to devise a means of doing this in a manner that would appeal to casual followers of the sport as well as its more ardent enthusiasts. It was agreed that the most effective way was to break down the content into seven chapters, one for each decade.

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“Rather than catalogue each event and season, I chose to use each chapter to show how F1 had changed technically and socially during each decade. Significant events and developments were woven together with the intention of providing a story line that is informative, entertaining – and readable. Throughout, of course, the famous drivers and main players form the colourful core of the narrative stretching across 70 years of extraordinary change. Formula 1 and today’s trappings are totally unrecognisable from an amateurish period that was continuing to emerge from the privations of World War II.”

In many ways, the book has been a personal journey for Maurice: “Having been fortunate and old enough to have witnessed racing as a fan and then a professional writer in each of the seven eras, I was able to call upon memories and landmarks that stood out as key formative moments in a captivating sport that is fast-moving in every sense.

“As such, it was a pleasure to write; a selfish piece of story-telling, if you like! Regarding the starting point, once the chapter content had been established, the starting point could be none other than the first Grand Prix at Silverstone and events leading up to it.”

Maurice has written more than 30 books, predominantly on motor racing and rallying.

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“The first was in 1987, covering the history of the RAC Rally of Great Britain. Since then, I have written biographies on world champions such as Ayrton Senna and James Hunt, fly-on-the-wall diaries of F1 teams and ghosted autobiographies for Damon Hill, Martin Brundle and other F1 personalities.”

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