Over 635 colour photographs
Over 24 illustrations

• Landmark events in the history of Grand Prix racing, from the early days of the motor car, and the start of the World Drivers' Championship, up to the 2008 season



• A to Z guide to the constructors looks at the teams and supertechnology that drive Formula One



• Profiles on the legendary drivers, including Juan Manuel Fangio, Enzo Ferrari, Jack Brabham, Graham Hill, Jim Clark, Stirling Moss, Jackie Stewart, James Hunt, Niki Lauda, Alain Prost, Ayrton Senna, Nigel Mansell, Mika Häkkinen, Michael Schumacher and Lewis Hamilton



• Up-to-date guide to the World Championship Grand Prix circuits, with full-colour annotated track plans



• Complete statistical record of the Formula One World Drivers' and Constructors' Championships with driver and team performances from 1950 to the present day

Formula One racing is motorsport at its highest level. Combining technological brilliance with glamour and extreme danger, it is the stuff of dreams and legend.

This is the definitive guide to Formula One racing. Starting with how it all began, the book traces the story of the world's richest and most powerful sport back to the first true car race in 1895, and spans the landmark events from the inauguration of the World Drivers' Championship in 1950, right up to the 2008 season.

Next, in a line-up of the legendary teams and drivers the book profiles the talents and personalities whose influence on the sport has made it so addictive to its worldwide audience. There are profiles, too, of the Grand Prix circuits - scenes of triumph and tragedy, which are imbued with an aura unlike anything else in the sporting world. Finally, a statistical round-up records the fastest and the greatest over six decades of the sport.

Written by one of Formula One's top writers, and illustrated on every page with colour photographs and original archive material, this comprehensive volume is the ultimate reference guide to Grand Prix racing.

About the Authors

Mark Hughes - Author

Mark Hughes, the author, raced cars long before he ever began to write about them, competing in karting and Formula Ford in the 1980s. He began his journalistic career at motorsport weekly Motoring News in 1988, where he worked for five years, becoming International Racing Editor. After a foray into road car journalism, he returned to his first love of racing when he became freelance in 1996. In this capacity he was commissioned by Britain's motorsport bible, Autosport, to be its Grand Prix Editor at Large. He has fulfilled this role since 2000. He has immersed himself in the history of the sport since childhood, and his depth of knowledge stretches back as far as the sport itself - to 1895. He brings a technical understanding to his work as well as a real feel for the romance of the sport. His insights into the techniques and psychology of racing have been honed on the race track, where he has performed with distinction - including the 1994 season racing for Nigel Mansell's TVR Tuscan team. One of his lap records from 1995 still stands. He has also test-driven Formula One cars for March, Arrows and Williams.