Formula 1 All the Races: The 100 Greatest Races - Hardcover

Smith, Roger

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1836440588 ISBN 13: 9781836440581

Publisher: Veloce, 2025

Synopsis

Formula 1’s 75th anniversary on May 13, 2025, marks a landmark in motorsport history—a celebration of speed, innovation, and the relentless pursuit of greatness. From the inaugural race at Silverstone in 1950 to today, F1 has hosted 1,131 Grand Prix events, crowned 34 World Champions, and delivered countless unforgettable moments.

The 100 Greatest Races captures the essence of F1’s unparalleled legacy. This exhilarating collection dives into the most iconic battles, from edge-of-your-seat photo finishes and masterful drives in the rain to heroic comebacks and shocking upsets. Each race is a tribute to the courage, precision, and brilliance that define the sport.

Penned by leading F1 experts Roger Smith and Kevin Turner, with a foreword by former F1 driver and expert pundit Karun Chandhok, this unofficial chronicle curated by experts presents the ultimate top 100 races. Using a meticulous rating system, the authors sift through over 1,000 Grand Prix events, organizing them into ten captivating themes. Each chapter crowns its top three races before culminating in the definitive ranking of Formula 1’s all-time greatest.

Enriched with breathtaking photography and compelling narratives, The 100 Greatest Races takes fans on a thrilling journey through the highs, lows, and timeless magic of F1. Relive the glory, feel the passion, and celebrate the races that have shaped the sport into the global phenomenon it is today.

About this title

About the Author

Roger Smith is a lifetime fan and student of Formula 1, and has attended over 100 F1 races across five continents. Prior to becoming an author, Roger worked for a leading business information company. His successful 40-year career spanned several international roles and his research findings were published throughout Europe.

Following retirement from business life, Roger pursued his aspiration to write. His first book, Analysing Formula 1, published in 2008, was a stepping stone to a more ambitious project. Inspired by a gap on his own personal F1 bookshelf, he set out to create a single volume incorporating an informative historical storyline race-by-race. Formula 1: All The Races, first published in 2012, sold out within four months and was shortlisted for the British Sports Book Awards. To celebrate 75 years of F1, the fifth edition in the series is set to bring the F1 story bang up to date.

Roger lives in Oxford and Chichester with his wife, and is a member of The Guild of Motoring Writers.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Thrillers

Late drama, tight finishes

Few moments in Formula 1 rival the sheer thrill of a race decided in its closing stages, whether through a dramatic last-lap overtake or an agonisingly close finish. These unforgettable edge-of-your-seat spectacles are the ultimate crowd pleasers, and no one circuit has staged them more often than Monza: the temple of speed.
In this collection of Formula 1’s greatest thrillers, the Autodromo Nazionale di Monza features no fewer than four times. For nearly 30 seasons, before chicanes and ‘dirty’ air diminished the noble art of slipstreaming, Monza’s long straights and flowing corners provided the ultimate battleground for such duels. A driver could latch onto the car ahead, let it do all the work of punching a hole in the air, and so get towed along in its wake before darting out to seize the advantage. At Monza, this frequently led to multi-car battles, drivers ducking and diving in close company for lap after lap and victory decided in one final mad dash to the finish line.
A close climax always raises the pulses but, in the split-second world of Formula 1, even one second isn’t that close. A Grand Prix finish isn’t utterly electrifying until the gap is measured in tenths – about one car-length on a typical circuit. And if it’s less than 0.1 seconds, the cars will be side-by-side, wheel-to-wheel as they scream past the chequered flag. Monza holds the record for the closest finish in history: a scarcely believable 0.010 seconds!
Monza may have set the standard for heart-stopping finishes, but it is far from the only stage for late drama and tight finishes. Across the decades, Formula 1 has delivered heart-stopping thrillers at circuits around the world.
Few moments in Formula 1 are as electrifying as a final-lap overtake for the lead, a breathtaking climax for both driver and crowd. Yet, such feats are rare. Across more than 1000 Grands Prix, victory has been snatched on the last lap just 26 times. Many resulted from fuel miscalculations or mechanical failure, but a select few were decided purely in the heat of battle – a relentless chase to the flag. Would the leader keep their nerve and defend to the bitter end, or would the chaser force a mistake in sight of glory? This chapter revisits the races where the tension never let up as the battles raged to the very last lap.

10: Hamilton passed Rosberg for a sensational last lap victory

Race 944 2016 Austrian GP

On the final lap, Hamilton got a run on leader Rosberg to attempt a wide outside pass around turn 2. From the inside line, Rosberg left his turn-in so late that he crashed into his teammate, shunting Lewis off-track. Not only was he penalised for the affray, but Rosberg’s car was also badly damaged too, passed by winner Hamilton and by Verstappen and Räikkönen. Until he lost his head, Nico had driven well from a gearbox-penalised P6 grid slot. His two-stop plan had proved superior to Hamilton’s one-stop, a strategy forced on Lewis by the one-stopping Ferraris. But after leader Sebastian Vettel’s right rear tyre exploded on lap 26, Rosberg led Hamilton. At their second stops, Hamilton failed to undercut Rosberg, leaving him 16 laps to make the pass, doing so at turn 2 on that final, frenetic lap.

Edition details

• Publisher: Veloce
• Publication date: 2025
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1836440588
• ISBN 13: 9781836440581
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 160