Silverstone

Italian ace Giuseppe 'Nino' Farina made history when winning the first ever official FIA Grand Prix, which was staged at Silverstone - the birthplace of modern F1 - on 13 May, 1950. He also had the honour of being crowned the first ever FIA World Champion in the same year when his all-conquering Alfa Romeo team dominated the inaugural series. After surviving numerous racing accidents, it was ironic Farina should lose his life in a road crash when travelling to the Italian Grand Prix in 1966.

Nicknamed the 'Pampas Bull' on account of his fulsome frame and fearless driving style, Frolian Gonzales was a surprisingly strong racing driver and sportsman for a man of his physique. The Argentine ace was rewarded with a Ferrari works drive after defeating the mighty Mercedes factory team on home ground in Buenos Aires and furthered his reputation when beating the fancied Alfa Romeo squad to win his first Grand Prix at Silverstone in 1951. His only other Grand Prix win also came at his beloved Silverstone with Ferrari three years later.

Alberto Ascari remains the only Italian to have been crowned World Champion. Born the son of a famous racing driver - his father Antonio was killed competing France when Alberto was just seven - it was perhaps inevitable that the young Ascari would take to the tracks. Racing for Ferrari, the brilliant Italian scored his first British Grand Prix win at Silverstone in 1952 and remained unbeaten throughout the season. The following year he won again at Silverstone on the way to back-to-back titles. Two years later, Ascari lost his life when testing a Ferrari sportscar at Monza just days after surviving a spectacular crash into the harbour during the Monaco Grand Prix.

To many Juan Manuel Fangio will always be the world's greatest racing driver. His remarkable records have certainly stood the test of time - five World Championships and 24 wins from just 51 starts. Silverstone, though, wasn't one of the South American maestro's happiest hunting grounds. In total he contested five British Grands Prix at Silverstone winning only once for Lancia-Ferrari in 1956.

Born in Kidderminster, Peter Collins was one of the most popular British racing drivers in the fifties. His handsome looks, fun-loving spirit and all-round ability won him many admirers both on and off the track. Underlining his versatility Collins won many of the world's top sportscar races with Aston Martin and Ferrari as well as three Grands Prix. His final F1™ victory was perhaps his greatest achievement. It came on home soil after a wonderful performance at Silverstone. Two weeks later, Collins lost his life in an accident at the Nürburgring when dicing for the lead of the German Grand Prix.

Jack Brabham remains the only man to have lifted the World Championship in a car bearing his own name. However the first two of the Australian's three titles came much earlier in his career with Cooper in 1959 and 1960. In total 'Black Jack' won 14 Grands Prix including three British GP successes at three different circuits: Aintree, Silverstone and Brands Hatch. His victory at Silverstone came after a dominant display for Cooper in 1960. Brabham's finest hour came when winning the title in one of his Brabham-Repcos in 1966 - the following year's title went to team-mate Denny Hulme.

Born the son of a Scottish farmer, Jim Clark was one of motor racing's most supreme natural talents of any era. On the track only Ayrton Senna and Michael Schumacher in recent times can compare. At the time of his death in a relatively minor F2 race at Hockenheim in 1968, he was the most successful of all Formula 1™ drivers with 25 Grands Prix victories and two World Championship titles. Three of those wins came at Silverstone in 1963, 1966 and 1967.

With 27 wins from his 99 Grands Prix starts and three World Championship crowns, Jackie Stewart was a more than worthy successor to his fellow Scot Jim Clark. Having seen so many of his friends lose their lives on the race track, Stewart was also the driving force behind the transformation of Formula 1 from a sport where death was almost routine into the relatively safe spectacle we see today. He competed in five British Grands Prix at Silverstone, winning his 'home' event twice in 1969 and 1971.

Despite being born into the mega-rich family behind the Revlon cosmetics empire, Revson had to make his own way in motor sport. Having raced a variety of different sportscars at home in the States he came to international prominence in the brutal North American-based Can-Am series. Impressed by his championship winning performances in 1971, McLaren signed him to contest both Can-Am and F1 Championships in 1972. Revson did a great job and was retained for the following season when he achieved his long-held ambition of winning a Grand Prix and establishing himself as a credible driver rather than just a rich-kid. In fact he won twice in 1973 at Silverstone and Mosport in Canada. Despite these victories, McLaren hired Emerson Fittipaldi for 1974 and Revson moved to the Shadow team. Just three races into his new career, Revson lost his life when his car suffered suspension failure during practice for the South African Grand Prix.

'Emmo' was crowned as the youngest-ever World Champion when he won the first of his two titles at 25 in 1972 - a record now, of course, held by Fernando Alonso. After a meteoric rise through the junior formulae in Britain, the Brazilian was snapped up by Colin Chapman's Lotus team mid-way through 1970. Two years later he was the man to beat. And again with McLaren two years after that. Fittipaldi's final F1 win came at Silverstone in 1975, the South American keeping his car on the straight and narrow in a rainstorm while those around were spinning off. At the end of that season, Fittipaldi dropped a bomb when announcing he was to join his own Copersucar team and although the results dried up in F1, later in life he won the Indy 500 twice.

Son of a Surrey stock-broker, James Hunt became the archetypal playboy F1 driver in the mid-seventies. Overcoming his 'Hunt the Shunt' nickname he confounded his critics to lift the World Championship in 1976. Despite his roller-coaster personal lifestyle, on his day Hunt was unbeatable. His big breakthrough came when winning the 1974 Silverstone International Trophy for the locally-based Hesketh team. He then won the British Grand Prix at Silverstone in 1977 after an epic-dual with John Watson.

Always branded as something of a braveheart, Regazzoni won five Grands Prix over a long F1 career that spanned 11 years. His first win came during 1970 in just his fifth GP start with Ferrari at Monza - the ultimate prize for any Ferrari driver. His final success came nine years later at Silverstone when the swashbuckling Swiss driver gave Williams its first-ever GP win. Early the next year, though, disaster struck when his brake pedal broke during the US Grand Prix at Long Beach sending his Ensign crashing into the parked car of a rival of unabated speed. Although 'Regga' survived the accident, he suffered serious spinal injuries and has been confined to a wheelchair ever since.

After cutting his teeth racing in his native Northern Ireland, John Watson first hit the F1 headlines as an impressive privateer in the mid-seventies. His plucky efforts were rewarded with Surtees and then Penske factory drives. Wattie won in Austria in 1976 to give the American team its only F1 victory and then spent two frustrating years with coming close to further glory with Brabham-Alfa. 'Wattie's' career then really took off at McLaren where he spent five reasonably successful seasons. His victory at Silverstone in 1981 may have come after the demise of Rene Arnoux's leading Renault but was no less popular with the home supporters. Today Watson earns his crust as a well-informed motor sport TV commentator.

Second only to Michael Schumacher in the all-time Grand Prix wins list, Alain Prost's record of 51 victories from 199 starts and four World Championships speaks for itself. The mercurial little Frenchman may not have been the most flamboyant of drivers but his methodical approach earned him many admirers as well as his famous 'professor' nickname. His smooth precise style certainly suited the superfast nature of Silverstone where he won no fewer than five British Grands Prix from nine starts between 1983 and 1993.

No-one's stirring never-say-never efforts caught the imagination of the fans at Silverstone more than those of Nigel Mansell. The gritty British bulldog's determination to overcome endless adversity and to reward his fervent followers with success resulted in the rapturous 'Mansell-mania' phenomenon. The atmosphere reached fever-pitch when 'Our Nige' raised the roof when winning in 1987, 1991 and 1993, prompting soccer-style crowds to spill onto the circuit to celebrate their conquering hero's rousing victories.

Ayrton Senna is considered one of the best drivers of all times. The feted Brazilian was a spectacularly talented racer yet a complex character who fascinated motor sport fans the world over. His death aged 34 while leading the San Marino Grand Prix at Imola in 1994 almost certainly robbed him of becoming the most successful Formula 1 driver of all eras. As it was, he amassed 41 Grand Prix wins and three World Championship titles. Senna's record at Silverstone, though, was limited to one British Grand Prix win, which came in 1988.

Born the son of two times World Champion Graham Hill, Damon won 22 Grands Prix, many against fearsome opposition from his nemesis Michael Schumacher. He also achieved something his father never managed - to win the British Grand Prix. His victory came at Silverstone in 1994. Damon still has strong links with the circuit today. In early 2006, he was nominated to succeed Jackie Stewart as President of the British Racing Drivers Club, the exclusive and celebrated club of former racing drivers that owns Silverstone.

Romford's finest was tipped to be Britian's next World Champion but a serious accident at Brands Hatch in 1988 almost ended his F1 career before it started. Despite suffering serious leg injuries, the ever jovial Herbert recovered to win three Grands Prix and the Le Mans 24 Hours for Mazda in 1991. Herbert's maiden F1 win came with Benetton at Silverstone in 1995 when he was in the right place to pick up the pieces when Michael Schumacher and Damon Hill had one of their many on-track disputes. He won again at Monza later in the same year and thereafter gave the Stewart Grand Prix its only victory at a rainy Nurburgring.

It would have been totally understandable if the burden of expectation had simply overwhelmed Jacques Villeneuve. However the son of one of the most charismatic, defiant and best-loved racing drivers of all times has earned his right to join his father in the motor sport's 'Hall of Fame'. He remains one of only three drivers to have won Formula One and ChampCar titles as well as the Indianapolis 500. Villeneuve won his first two Grands Prix at Silverstone in 1996 and 1997 when racing for the all-conquering Williams-Renault outfit.

Although it's impossible to compare generations, the history books hail Michael Schumacher as the most successful racing driver of all time. He holds a great portion of all Formula One records, including most victories, most pole positions, most championship points and most famously, seven World Championship titles. He is also the first and only German to lift the coveted crown. Schumacher's record at Silverstone is distinctly mixed - to date he has savoured three British Grand Prix wins at the circuit but endured his worst F1 accident at the venue when crashing at Stowe Corner and breaking his leg in 1999 after suffering brake failure.

With the exception of Stirling Moss, no driver has won more Grands Prix than David Coulthard without lifting the title. The Scot's tally of 13 triumphs includes two Silverstone wins in 1999 and 2000. The first was somewhat fortunate and came after Michael Schumacher had crashed his Ferrari and broken a leg and a wheel had fallen off team-mate Mika Hakkinen's McLaren, the second was thoroughly deserved.

Mika Hakkinen had to wait for his final British Grand Prix in 2001 before adding a Silverstone victory to his CV. The Flying Finn failed to win the race in either of his World Championship winning campaigns but finally broke his Silverstone duck just months before he announced his retirement from premier league motor sport.

Although the Brazilian spent much of his time with Ferrari in Michael Schumacher's considerable shadow, Rubens Barrichello did score some notable F1™ victories during his six-year sojourn with the Prancing Horse. And few of those wins were better deserved or more dramatic than his British Grand Prix victory in 2003. In a race than was littered with incidents and Safety Car interventions, Barrichello never stopped charging back to the front.

While it's fair to say that Juan Pablo Montoya's F1 career never quite lived up to the Colombian's early promise, on his day he was unbeatable. After ruffling Michael Schumacher's feathers when with Williams, Montoya was snapped up by McLaren for the 2005 season. The partnership started badly when the South American broke his shoulder in a tennis accident. However, he bounced back to win three Grands Prix later in the season including a dominant performance at Silverstone in July.

Everybody wanted to know who would break Michael Schumacher's stranglehold on the World Championship - now we all know that man is Fernando Alonso. In 2005 the vastly talented Spaniard overcame Schumacher to become the youngest driver to lift motor sport's top title after displaying speed and maturity that belied his years. The Renault ace further underlined his brilliance with a dominant display in winning the 2006 British Grand Prix in June.

Hopes were high for a British win as home grown hero Lewis Hamilton stormed towards his first British pole position during 2007 qualifying. A troublesome pit stop and a less than ideal car setup led to the British rookie finishing in third place behind his team mate Alonso and Finnish barnstormer Kimi Raikkonen. Hamilton's troubles did not diminish the quality of Ferrari's number one driver, however, who drove a flawless race towards a highly convincing victory, notching up his second consecutive win of the 2007 season.

Lewis Hamilton became the first British driver in eight years to win his home Grand Prix at Silverstone on Sunday (6 July). Not since David Coulthard (in 2000) had a Brit celebrated on the top step of the F1 podium at Silverstone, and a passionate sell-out race day crowd of 90,000 were just as thrilled as the Vodafone McLaren F1 Team driver, after one of the most eventful and thrilling British Grand Prix in recent years.

Despite Jenson having strong support from the British crowd, Vettel stormed to victory and took his place as the youngest driver to secure a Grand Prix win at Silverstone. Working up a 55 second advantage over his nearest threat, teammate Mark Webber, Sebastian Vettel made history and carved his mark as the winner of the 2009 FORMULA 1 SANTANDER BRITISH GRAND PRIX and the 43rd F1™ winner at Silverstone!

As the F1™ drivers tackled the new Grand Prix Circuit for the first time, Webber’s sheer pace crowned him winner of the 2010 FORMULA 1 SANTANDER BRITISH GRAND PRIX. Taking the lead from second position on the grid, Webber won by 1.3 seconds over Hamilton in what proved to be a dramatic race. Over 105,000 fans turned out to enjoy the event, which proved to be one of Silverstone's best yet.