Driven EXPORT

by Kevin Eason

Formula One is speed, glamour, danger - and eye-watering wealth. The Men Who Made Formula One tells how a small group of extraordinary men transformed Formula One from a niche sport played out on primitive tracks surrounded by hay bales and grass verges into a £1 billion circus performing in vast theatres of entertainment all over the world. Led by Bernie Ecclestone, the billionaire ringmaster, this clique started by scraping a living to go racing and ended up creating space-age cars, turning drivers from amateur gladiators into multimillion-pound superstars, like Ayrton Senna and Lewis Hamilton, while the names of Ferrari, McLaren and Williams are now as familiar around the world as Manchester United or Real Madrid. For 20 years, Kevin Eason watched how these men operated like a sporting Mafia, protecting each other while squabbling over the vast wealth pouring into the sport. As motor racing correspondent for The Times and then with The Sunday Times , Eason was privileged to have a ringside seat as this cabal of wealthy characters ruled and then were pushed out of the sport they created. This colourful and compelling account of the extraordinary flourishing of Formula One explores the quirks and extravagances of the men who converged - in one generation - to shape their sport; disparate characters with a common they were racers - and they were driven.

Genres: Nonfiction, Sports, History

416 pages, Paperback

Published November 1, 2018

Reviews

[Carolien · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very readable account of the team managers and owners who created Formula 1, through sheer grit and stubbornness. A homage to the early engineers and ragtag teams of mostly men who would do what it took to get a car on a track and in the early days, a driver alive at the end of the race. This book made me realise how grateful I should be that my interest in the sport spanned the 1980's until the death of Ayrton Senna, a period when the independent teams could compete, massive technical developments took place and car safety had improved significantly before the arrival of big money which has reduced the competitiveness of the sport and the characters involved. Well worth the read if you have any interest in the sport.

[Ricardo Motti · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not as fast as a F1 book should be (see what i did), but exciting at times. 2.5 stars.

[Frank Shi · Rating 5 out of 5]

This paperback book was sold for 20 CAD from the local bookstore. This was the kind of money demanded by hardcover versions of fiction, but it was worth every penny.

My favourite part of this book was the tributes to Bernie. I began following F1 in 2018 and caught up with F1 history by watching documentaries and past races, so I knew people like Enzo, Chapman, Tyrrell, Dennis, Williams, Senna, Prost, Schumi and so on, but it wasn't until this book that I realized the works of the group of Ecclestone, Mosley, and Montezemolo. The backstage stories like how Montezemolo transformed Ferrari by a all-or-nothing investment on Schumi, bringing in Todt, or the mischief and secrecy of Ecclestone's reign of F1, or the many many anecdotes that you wouldn't read in the news, made knowing F1 as a whole package much more enjoyable than simply watching the races and following the drivers.

A good thing about this one is that it is still fairly current. Published in 2018, the only F1 drama it missed was the 2019 season. 2019 was a good season, but compared to almost 70 years of F1 history packed into this book, it is not a major piece to miss.

The reader needs to be an F1 follower to enjoy this book as it follows no chronological order. The anecdotes are organized by theme. It is perhaps a good thing that this was written by a journalist, i.e. someone who writes for a living. The reader may not know who Kevin Eason is, but compared to a book written by a big name in F1 who is not necessarily good at writing, this book was more readable.

[Sarah Reason · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a lapsed F1 aficionado (I was lured away by the greater excitements of MotoGP), I found this book packed to the gunwales with insights and touching anecdotes. With eminently readable prose, Kevin guides you through the adrenaline-fuelled history of the sport, but not in a predictable, linear way. Rather, he introduces you to the many and varied characters without whom we would not have Formula One as it is today. I would thoroughly recommend this to F1 fans old and new, especially if you wish to fill in gaps in knowof the history of the sport.

I should declare an interest: I was lucky enough in years gone by to meet a few of those portrayed within its pages, and I can include the author among my acquaintances.

[Alexandru · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great book for those that watched Formula 1 for 30 or more years, like me. Great memories and a lot of info that was kept secret. The author had the opportunity to meet the main heroes of his book. My only issue was with the fact that the books focuses the most on Bernie Ecclestone and I was more hoping to read about the drivers. But certainly the stories in the book are very surprising and new for me, even though I am a F1 fan from 1985. A recommended read for old F1 fans that still miss the good old days.

[Hannah · Rating 1 out of 5]

Would not recommed to anyone.
From the bad structure, timeline and writting to the ignorance towards important issues in Formula 1 to the celebration and sympathy to two bad men.

The only thing I enjoy about this is the new knowledge I'm gaining the rest is bad. You would find something just like this or maybe better on Wikipedia.

Why is everyone still celebrating Bernie Ecclestone, he told The Times, he respected Hitler, that's just a bit concerning.
The moment women are brought up the blame on why we don't have enough women as F1 drivers is put on women not being good enough, no other reason. What about the Glass Ceiling, Glass gliff and in general the unwelcoming environment of Formula 1, which is dominanted by privilidged men.

The structure of this book is terrible, we are jumping from decade to decade in a illogical forme. The story telling is bad. This is not suppose to be about only Ecclestone.

Kevin Eason shows a lot of sympathy for two men who have caused a lot of harm and don't deserve to be as celebrated as they are.

[Masha N · Rating 4 out of 5]

Oft I find it so difficult to separate the quality of the book and the writing from the people the book is about. The book is about what it says on the cover: not the cars, not the technology, it's about people, and, in my opinion, Kevin Eason is really great at describing that second, more private layer of those who made the sport. He clearly knows them and shares this intimate relationship with us.

What annoyed me more (and that's my fault for expecting the book to be about different stuff) is that this is a book about a bunch of thieving ego-maniacs and how this boys club of creeps, manipulators and tax evaders got to make billions on thieving, evading tax and screwing people over. I just don't think that these men were worth my time and I don't find their stories inspiring in any sense.

[Norma · Rating 5 out of 5]

( Format : Audiobook )
"They just go round and round."
Kevin Eason reads his own book of, essentially, anecdotes about the people who have driven the world of Formula I from it's early inception to 2019. With Bernie Eccleston taking central stage, Eason travels around the big names of influence in a non linear fashion which is far more informative than a straight forward history of the sport.
Fascinating and fabulous, this is a must for all fans of Formula I.

[Sabīne · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5*: Slightly outdated, but excellent collection of behind-the-scenes F1 stories that allows to gain a perspective how far the sport has come and how much the passion of every person involved defines the path and also the outcome. Makes one wonder what new stories of the last 6-7 years would author add to this collection.
Brilliant read. Highly recommended to every F1 fan - be it a new or seasoned motorsport racing fan.

[Serhat Tas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Formula 1’i Formula 1 yapan insanlar hakkinda harika bir kitap. Kapaginda Autosport’un “Surukleyici ve elden birakmasi zor” tanimi cok yerinde. F1’in basindan bu yana icinde olan karakterli, takim sahiplerini, onemli olaylari ve tabi Bernie’yi anlatiyor. F1 severlerin mutlaka okumasi gereken bir kitap diye dusunuyorum.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

Whilst it doesn't go too deep, it's a brilliantly readable book full of some lovely and previously unseen (at least by me) anecdotes. It's a book of short stories really, but it is enjoyable and certainly a very easy read.

[Ciaran Flanagan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eason has had an incredible insight and access to the F1 paddock over many years and this book is a comprehensive collection of stories from a bygone era. A truly excellent read for an F1 fan.

[Barns Howe · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very interesting yet slightly dense

[elise joy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Was very good and educational but the chapters were quite lengthy.

[Will Hohorst · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best book for an overview of F1 History

[Alfie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Eason certainly knows his F1. Walked away yearning to meet Bernie Ecclestone, the man who made F1 what it is today.

[seni · Rating 5 out of 5]

THIS BOOK IS SO GOOD. I was so sad when it ended. I don’t really know much about ‘classic’ f1 and I’m so excited to reread it after I’ve accumulated more knowledge since this book is so fact-packed that it’s genuinely impossible to take everything in. Such interesting insights and recount of events. Probably one of my fav books

[Simona Stamate · Rating 5 out of 5]

A kind of Formula 1 encyclopedia. A good read for all Formula 1 enthusiast.