martin horrocks
TEXT: MARTIN HORROCKS, J. ROMAGOSA / PHOTOS: UNAI ONA
Stirling Moss (1929-2020) it was quite a phenomenon, the prototype of the professional pilot of the postwar period. As such, he was key in the vanguard transforming British pilots into front-line aces. Aside from his incredible talent behind the wheel, Stirling Moss was Mr Motor Racing, always ready to promote motorsport. With his lifestyle inserted in the international jet set of the 50s and 60s, he was also a celebrity.
Son of a wealthy dentist who had run in Brooklands and Indianapolis before World War II, Stirling Moss and his sister Pat They were two teenage stars. To talk briefly about her, we'll just say that she drove for the Austin-Healey, Lancia and Saab official teams, and married Erik Carsson, among other things. She was a true rally queen.
In 1948, with the help of his family, Stirling Moss bought one of the first 500cc Cooper-JAPs. He was competitive from his first uphill race at Prescott, starting and winning his first track race at Brough Airfield as well. He finished the season with 11 wins from 15 races, quite a debut.
Stirling Moss: Ascension
Thanks to the accumulated experience, and to a new Cooper, in 1949 he rose a step in the ranks. He started racing in more important events, such as those held at Goodwood, Silverstone, Lake Garda in Italy or the Zandvoort circuit in the Netherlands. By 1950 he was already winning in the 500cc class that accompanied the UK and Monaco Grand Prix. He was about to take the big leap.
Soon the first victory came at the controls of a proper car, not a Jaguar XK120. He drove it through the rain to beat the big shots in the Northern Irish RAC Tourist Trophy, held on conventional roads. It also did excellently well in F2 with an HWM; Among all, that year he deserved to win the BRDC Gold Star, award for the most successful driver of the season.
And so came the top-notch racing in sports cars, as part of the official Jaguar team. Stirling Moss He raced the 24 Hours, the Thousand Miles, Reims... first at the wheel of a Jaguar C between 1951 and 1953, and then a D in 1954. He also drove for the official team of the Roots Sunbeam Group, achieving three consecutive Gold stars in the Rallyes. Alpines of 1951-53. All this only demonstrated the versatility and work ethic of the young pilot.
Even with his youth, was already firmly established as one of the best professionals of his time, ready to race where the car and its fees deserve it.
Step to Maserati and Mercedes
Stirling Moss He always preferred to race with English cars, but the terrible BRM V16 (in his own words, the worst machine he had ever driven), ERA G and the underpowered Connaught F1 convinced him that the best thing for the 1954 season was to get a Maserati 250F. He bought it out of pocket at a significant financial risk.
Fortunately, its good positions at the Belgian and German GPs proved that it was a good investment. So much so that Maserati would buy back the car and hire him as the official team driver for the rest of the season. Although it was not especially good, Mercedes noticed him and offered him a position for the following year.
Talk about Mercedes in the first half of the 50s is to do it of a colossal force. Of course, even after the devastation of the war, it dominated the F1 and sport categories. And Moss came in as a companion of Fangio to drive the legendary W196. He first could match the times of the second, but in the race the crook it was superior. Moss could only beat the Argentine in the British GP, although it has always been suspected that it was a generous gift between greats.
Even though they were 20 years old, the two respected each other a lot throughout their lives. Moss played with a certain advantage in sports cars, proving unbeatable in the 300 SLR. Together with his co-pilot Denis Jenkinson he became in the first and only Englishman to win the Thousand Miles. This is considered today as his greatest achievement.
Adventures at the controls of English
Unfortunately, the victory at Le Mans eluded him due to the horrific accident of his teammate Pierre Levegh, whose car took the lives of 84 people and forced the withdrawal of Mercedes from the competition. But just before the retreat of the race mark at around 2am, the Moss / Fangio 300 SLR was three laps ahead. Namely, it is reasonable to think that they would have won.
With the star's mark out of competition, Stirling Moss became part of Vanwall, a new English team very well financed and with an excellent F1 car. And in the sport category he returned to Maserati. The results were mixed: The Vanwalls showed great promise but were often still nothing more than that. Regarding the Maseratis, they were fast but not always reliable like the Ferraris, which were both things.
However, Stirling Moss he was close to winning the 1958 world championship, which was eventually won by Mike Howthorne. There were three victories against one but Hawthorne was more linear and also had the help of his teammate Phil Hill, who allowed him to enter second in the Moroccan GP giving him the additional point he needed for victory.
It is curious how Stirling Moss defended his compatriot due to the threat of being disqualified at the Portuguese GP. If Hawthorn had not imposed his criteria with his support, the result of the championship could have been different. But Moss never regretted doing the right thing. They were different times where sportsmanship came first.
In fact, at that time he had to deal with much worse things. His young teammate Stuart Lewis-Evans died in the aforementioned Moroccan GP, thus losing not only the championship, but also a good friend. Another one.
After the death of Lewis-Evans Vanwall was disbanded, but Moss continued his career cast in Rob Walker's private team (yes, from Johnny Walker), which was wildly competitive then. The good tune existed since our protagonist won one of Walker's Cooper-Clix in the Argentine GP (Vanwall was not stopped to cross the pond so he allowed him to drive for another).
The new Cooper-Climax for 1959 it was unreliable, but improvements during the season gave Moss a chance at the last Grand Prix, held in Sebring. The rival to beat was nothing more and nothing less than Jack Brabham, he was driving for the official Cooper team. The Cooper-Climax did not hold and, unfortunately, the crown went to the head of the Australian.
For 1960-61 Walker and Moss switched to Lotus, specifically to an 18. Those were glory days, with the groundbreaking British brand's first victory at Monaco, but a lack of reliability due to the fragile design of their cars (one of his recurring sins at the time) compromised his success. This affected Moss closely, which suffered an accident at the Belgian GP That put him out of action for two months. Once again, Brabham led the cat into the water.
Stirling Moss and his antipathy towards Ferrari
1961 arrived and with it a change in regulations that limited the displacement to 1,5 liters. For Ferrari, with its sharknose, it was a triumphant ride that was crowned by American Phil Hill. In part it was because the British teams did not have competitive engines. The victory tasted like glory to Enzo Ferrari, who felt that he was finally defeating the 'garagiste' that had forced him to abandon his beloved mechanical forward disposition.
Since the time of Mercedes Stirling Moss he had driven everything worthwhile. Won with Aston-Martin, Maserati, Jaguar, Lister, Austin-Healey, Porsche. The name that is missed on the list is precisely Ferrari. He did not achieve great achievements with the Maranello brand. Most notable is a first place at the helm of a 250 GT SWB at the Goodwood Tourist Trophy, apparently while listening to the radio.
Throughout his career, Moss always wanted to beat the horses What was the reason for this confrontation? Apparently, in 1951, at the age of 20, he was invited by Enzo Ferrari to test an F2 in southern Italy. When did he arrive at the circuit The Commendator He informed her that he had changed his mind, that the car was for Taruffi. Moss never forgot this insult.
The passing of the years showed his mistake to Ferrari, who finally decided to heal the wound with a gesture on his part. For the 1962 season the factory built a 156 in Rob Walker livery especially for Stirling Moss. Ironically, he never got to drive it. Our driver had a very serious accident during Easter at Goodwood with an F1 Lotus That left him in a coma for a month. Moss saved his life, but with lifelong sequelae.
The end of his sports career
His career was about to end. When he got behind the wheel again a year later to test drive a Lotus 19, again at Goodwood, he thought he realized that he was no longer the same. Therefore, he chose to withdraw, although afterwards he thought that perhaps he had made this decision too lightly.
At 32, Stirling Moss embarked on the new adventure to be Stirling Moss. He was a great celebrity, a very powerful figure in the press and advertising and a great ambassador for motorsports around the world. Active in classic races and events, named Sir in 2000, this second career lasted 56 years, until he contracted the disease that forced his retirement from public life at 87 years of age and his death at 90.
As a pilot, nobody doubts that he was one of the best; and without a doubt the best non-champion in the world. Those who knew him remember a person who was always active, creative and competitive, and also courteous and professional. He was fortunate to have survived a long career in a sport that claimed the lives of so many teammates and friends, and to have enjoyed countless subsequent adventures.
His wife dismissed him with the right words: "It was one lap too many, he just closed his eyes." D.E.P
