Juan Manuel Fangio
In 1957 he returned to Maserati, who were still using the same iconic 250F which Fangio had driven at the start of 1954. Fangio started the season with a hat-trick of wins in Argentina, Monaco and France, before retiring with engine problems in Britain. At the next race, the German Grand Prix at the fearsome old Nürburgring circuit, Fangio needed to extend his lead by six points to claim the title with two races to spare. From pole position Fangio dropped to third behind the Ferraris of Hawthorn and Collins but managed to get past both by the end of the third lap. Fangio had started with half-full tanks since he expected that he would need new tyres half-way through the race. In the event Fangio pitted on lap 13 with a 30-second lead, but a disastrous stop left him back in third place and 50 seconds behind Collins and Hawthorn. Fangio came into his own, setting one fastest lap after another, culminating in a record-breaking time on lap 20 a full eleven seconds faster than the best the Ferraris could do. On the penultimate lap Fangio got back past both Collins and Hawthorn, and held on to take the win by just over three seconds. With Musso finishing down in fourth place, Fangio claimed his fifth title. This performance is often regarded as the greatest drive in Formula One history, but it was to be Fangio's last win.
After his series of back-to-back championships he retired in 1958, following the French Grand Prix. He won 24 World Championship Grands Prix from 51 starts, the best winning percentage in the sport's history.
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Later life and death
During the rest of his life after retiring from racing Fangio sold Mercedes-Benz cars, often driving his former race cars in demonstration laps. Even before he joined the Mercedes Formula One team, in the early 1950s, Fangio had acquired the Argentinian Mercedes concession. He was appointed President of Mercedes-Benz Argentina in 1974, and its Honorary President for Life in 1987.
Cuban rebels kidnapped him on February 23, 1958, but he was later released, and remained a good friend of his captors afterwards.
In 1990, he was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame.
Juan Manuel Fangio died in Buenos Aires in 1995, at the age of 84. He was buried in his home town of Balcarce in Argentina.
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Legacy
According to the official Formula One website, "Many consider him to be the greatest driver of all time."[4] Many later drivers, such as Jim Clark, Alain Prost, Ayrton Senna and Michael Schumacher, have been compared with Fangio. It is generally acknowledged that such comparisons are not realistic, as the qualities required for success, the levels of competition, and the rules have changed over time. In Fangio's era, for example, drivers were permitted to use multiple cars in the same race.
His record of 5 World Championship titles stood for 45 years until German driver Michael Schumacher took his sixth title in 2003. Schumacher said, "Fangio is on a level much higher than I see myself. What he did stands alone and what we have achieved is also unique. I have such respect for what he achieved. You can't take a personality like Fangio and compare him with what has happened today. There is not even the slightest comparison."[5][6]
In his home country, Argentina, Fangio is revered as one of the greatest sportsmen the nation has ever produced. Argentinians often referred to him as The Maestro,[7][8] and a poll of sports journalists and commentators placed him as the second best Argentine sportsman of the 20th century, behind only Diego Maradona.
His nephew, Juan Manuel Fangio II, was also a successful racing driver.
Six statues of Fangio, sculpted by Catalan artist Joaquim Ros Sabaté, are erected around the world: at Puerto Madero, Buenos Aires; Monte Carlo, Monaco; Montmeló, Spain; Nürburgring, Germany; Stuttgart-Untertürkheim, Germany; and Monza, Italy.
As an homage to him, Argentina's former national oil and gas company, Repsol YPF, launched the "Fangio XXI" gas brand. In 2005, the Zonda 2005 C12 F was named after him due to the endorsement from Fangio for Pagani (a belated honoring, as the Zonda was originally intended to be named "Fangio F1," but was changed out of respect after his death). In 2007 Maserati created a special website to commemorate the 50th anniversary of his fifth and final world championship triumph.[9]
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Formula One World Championship results
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)
* Shared drive. † Car ran with streamlined, full-width bodywork.
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References
- ^ a b Up until 1990, not all points scored by a driver contributed to their final World Championship tally (see list of pointscoring systems for more information). Numbers without parentheses are Championship points; numbers in parentheses are total points scored.
- ^ The Official Formula 1 Website
- ^ a b c Rendall, Ivan [1993] (1995). The Chequered Flag: 100 years of motor racing. Weidenfeld & Nicolson, pp. 166. ISBN 0-297-83550-5.
- ^ "The Official Formula 1 Website - Juan Manuel Fangio", formula1.com. Retrieved on 2006-10-16.
- ^ "Schumi: Fangio was greater than me", BBC. Retrieved on 2006-09-29.
- ^ "Champion Schumacher Rejects Comparisons To Fangio", usgpindy.com. Retrieved on 2006-09-29.
- ^ "Juan Manuel Fangio", f1-grandprix.com. Retrieved on 2006-09-22.
- ^ "Discovery Channel - Guide Car", discoverychannelasia.com. Retrieved on 2006-09-22.
- ^ "Maserati commemorates Fangio anniversary", F1Fanatic.co.uk. Retrieved on 2007-08-09.
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External links
- Grand Prix History - Hall of Fame, Juan-Manuel Fangio
- Juan Manuel Fangio's statistics
- Juan Manuel Fangio Website
- Juan Manuel Fangio Museum
- Maserati Celebrates Fangio
- Fangio the greatest racecar driver
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| Persondata | |
|---|---|
| NAME | Fangio, Juan Manuel |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | |
| SHORT DESCRIPTION | race car driver from Argentina, who dominated the first decade of Formula One racing |
| DATE OF BIRTH | June 24, 1911 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Balcarce, Argentina |
| DATE OF DEATH | July 17, 1995 |
| PLACE OF DEATH | Buenos Aires, Argentina |
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