The earliest motor races were held on public roads in France, the first being between Paris and Rouen in 1894 with 102 contestants.

The following year the race was from Paris to Bordeaux and back. The car's braking systems were most inadequate and members of the public were a serious hazard to the drivers and themselves !

First Grand Prix
The first Grand Prix was in 1906 on a 64 mile (103 km) circuit near Le Mans in France. Racing cars had huge engines of up to twenty litres and by 1908 capable of being driven at 90 mph.

Racing Teams and Manufacturers
By the mid 1920s, power output doubled and speeds of 130 mph could be attained. The great teams at this time were Alfa Romeo, FIAT, Sunbeam, Delage and Bugatti. In the 1930s Italians and Germans dominated with Mercedes and Auto Union capable of speeds up to 200 mph.

In the 1950s, while the Italian manufacturers Alfa Romeo, Ferrari and Maserati dominated the decade, British Racing Motors (BRM); a joint venture by many British car manufacturers including Cooper and Lotus was established by Raymond Mays at Silverstone revolutionising racing car design.

British racing car legends from this era included Stirling Moss and Jack Brabham. Mike Hawthorn became the first British World Champion in 1958 for Ferrari. Graham Hill started a run of British world champions in 1962, followed by Jim Clark in 1963, John Surtees in 1964 and Clark again in 1965.

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There have been many changes to the fabric of Formula 1 since the first World Championship at Silverstone in 1950. The racing circuits, largely at the behest of Jackie Stewart in the 1970s, who while winning 27 Grand Prix, had grown tired of seeing his contemporaries, including Ayrton Senna crashing with fatal consequences have been made safer. Niki Lauda was horribly burned in a crash but survived. Constant rule changes and technical progress have made Formula 1 much safer. The earliest racing drivers simply donned a cap, all today's drivers wear protective suits and helmets and life support systems.

Since the 1980s Nelson Piquet and Alain Prost from the 1980s and the financial stakes have risen and Formula 1 is no longer only a sport, it is big business, so Grand Prix cars are covered in extensive advertising. In the 1950s, the colour of racing cars was picked to show the country of origin. Lotus bore the racing green colour of England.

During the last twenty years there's been Nelson Piquet and Alain Prost from the 1980s; Ayrton Senna, Nigel Mansell and Michael Schumacher from the 1990s. The one thing that has not changed at all is the will of the drivers to win, particularly demonstrated by Nigel Mansell's fight to be champion finally came good after six years, sending Formula 1's popularity through the roof.

The 'Indy' car race
Indianapolis 500 dates back to 1908. The track was established in 1911 and has become the richest race in the world

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