Formula 1 75 Years & The Circuits 2 Book Set

Celebrate 75 years of Formula 1 racing, from 1950 through the modern era, with this riveting pictorial history.

There is Formula 1, and then there are all other forms of motorsport. F1 is what every competition driver aspires to, whether they admit it or not. Top drivers, top teams, top racing cars, top tracks. It is the pinnacle of motor racing.

Formula 1 marks its 75th anniversary in 2025. Established as the top motorsport category in Europe in 1950, its grand-prix roots go back to the earliest days of the automobile. There was the first car, then there was the second car. The racing commenced shortly thereafter.

Written by top F1 journalists Stuart Codling and James Roberts, Formula 1 75 Years takes you on a thrilling ride through it all with: 

• A full history of the teams and their cars, from the return of pre-war greats like Alfa Romeo, Mercedes, and Lancia to the rise of new specialists like Ferrari, Lotus, and Cooper up through today’s top competitors like Red Bull, Williams, and McLaren
• Legendary drivers, including Juan Manuel Fangio, Jim Clark, Jackie Stewart, Niki Lauda, Ayrton Senna, Alain Prost, Michael Schumacher, Lewis Hamilton, Max Verstappen, and more
• Sidebars highlighting key events, behind-the-scenes machinations, legendary cars, and every champion
• Stunning historic and contemporary photography, with image selection and captions by top automotive photographer James Mann

This engaging and beautifully designed overview of the world’s greatest motorsport is a must-have for every fan’s collection.

Formula One: The Circuits Then & Now is unique and compelling history and guide to some of the classic grand prix tracks. By pairing vintage images with the same viewpoint today, readers can see how dramatically Formula One has changed over the years, from the cavalier attitude to danger of the past, to the sophisticated modern sport we see today.

In the 1950s, all that prevented cars from entering Monaco Harbour were some straw bales, there was no pitlane, and races weren’t stopped for burning cars. Today, Armco and catch-fencing line the harbourside, cranes winch cars to safety in seconds and Tecpro barriers protect the most dangerous corners. This book includes many historic aspects of F1 from the beautifully preserved pit buildings of Reims to the great temples of Speed at Monza and Spa-Francorchamps, three race venues from Formula 1’s debut season in 1950. At Monza, the lethal concrete banking has made way for a flat-out road track with chicanes, while Spa has cut the dangerous ‘Burnenville’ corner and moved its pit buildings and startline. Reims’ stopped hosting races in the 1960s and the infamous Muzon corner now lies under a farmer’s field.

Other legendary circuits, such as the Nürburgring’s ‘Green Hell’, are pictured before they became too dangerous to race on, along with Pescara, an F1 race through the Abruzzo Hills, given special permission to run by the Italian government after the Mille Miglia tragedy of 1957. Compare the old Österreichring before it was cut down to size as the Red Bull Ring, and see Silverstone complete with the hangar that gave rise to the ‘Hangar Straight’. In the United States, there is the original Long Beach circuit, Watkins Glen with its flamboyant race starter, the Las Vegas grand prix that lasted only two years, along with F1’s ill-fated Indianapolis adventure.