Finally, he is also the second American to win the Formula 1 World Championship. He achieved success at Indianapolis and at the Daytona 500, took top spoils at the Daytona and Sebring endurance events, conquering several championships and titles along the way. He triumphed on dirt tracks, speedways, clockwise and counter clockwise courses, and on the mighty climb to Pikes Peak. On the other hand, assessing this living legend’s legacy is easy.Īs the greatest all-around driver in the history of the sport, Mario Andretti won in midgets, sprint cars, stock cars, sports cars, Indy cars and Grand Prix machines. It would probably be easier to sum up the Old Testament on the back of a postcard than to write a one page summary of Mario Andretti’s extraordinary achievements in motor racing. More than two decades of hard work and sweat later, Andretti would be crowned the 1978 Formula One World Champion at that very same track. Mario Andretti’s love of racing began as a young boy while watching the 1954 Italian Grand Prix in Monza, Italy. This was Lotus’s great innovation of the era and all rivals either sought to emulate, or outlaw it.The following is an excerpt from the book, The American Legacy in Formula 1, by Phillip van Osten. Pairing enormous side pods, sprawling venturis and sliding skirts, the 79 weaponized the air that passed through and underneath it as it raced, with downforce only increasing as the speed grew.

Those looks are what delivered the 79 its performance, with the car’s bodywork and dimensions dictated by the pursuit of ground effect aerodynamics. The car of course owes its ‘Black Beauty’ nickname to its distinctive looks and unmistakable black and gold John Player Special racing livery. All in it racked up an incredible four one-two finishes, its absolutely prodigious performance earning it the title of most dominant F1 car since Mercedes' ‘Silver Arrows’ of the mid-1950s. It also scored five fastest laps, of which two were set by Andretti.

Known better and more affectionately by its nickname ‘Black Beauty’, the car surely was a beauty to drive, with six wins and five podium places at the 11 grands prix it started.

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