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He was a god.

He couldn't be any better.

When you're a kid, you need an idol,

you need someone to inspire you.

And Fangio has inspired millions of people

who wanted to become racers.

You just had to watch him driving.
It was as if he drove in slow motion

because of his class,
his intelligence, and his focus.

He didn't make mistakes.

I think... my life is divided
into several phases.

Since I was a boy in school,
I wanted to be the best.

My father wanted me to work with him,

but I told him,
"I want to learn mechanics."

Nobody would teach you back then,

you had to learn on your own
watching others.

That's why for my first race,
I was the co-driver.

I was... 18 years old.

I participated in that race
without my father's permission, even.

And I felt that the car was alive!

Little by little,
he stepped into his passion...

car racing.

And then in the 40s, something new
called road racing came about.

Since we had no assistance on the road
and there were few repair shops around...

there were almost no repair shops,

so we would carry spare parts inside
the car in case something broke down,

and gasoline. We'd take
250 liters of gas with us in the car.

The car weighed
about 1,700 or 1,800 kilos,

so it needed some heavy reinforcement.

In these kinds of races, out of 150 cars
that crossed the starting line,

around 20 cars would make it to the end.

He won the championships
of 1940 and 1941,

but what made him popular
was the Buenos Aires-Lima race.

It was a long-distance race
where they drove for days,

and it was very representative
of those days' road racing.

During World War II,

I had to scrape out an existence.

Tires were scarce back then,

so I would buy trucks for their tires,
keep the trucks and sell the tires.

I traveled Argentina's south provinces,
the entire Patagonia,

buying trucks... just for their tires!

When the war was over, I went back
to those places to sell trucks,

because I knew they didn't have any.

And I returned to the races in 47.

During that time,
we had 4 different races in Argentina,

and due to our good performance,

the Argentine Automobile Club awarded
Galvez, Puopolo and me

a trip to Europe.

GALLIATE, ITALY

When I raced in Europe,

my center was a town called Galliate,
in the Novara province,

30 kilometers from Milan.

Mr. Varzi let me live
in his house for free.

Varzi was already famous
in Argentina since 1947 or 1948,

and he invited the entire team
to visit his town, Galliate,

and to stay in his house in Galliate,
where he wanted to establish

the team's base of operations.

But then Varzi had to travel to Berna,

to Switzerland, and in Berna

he participated in the Swiss Grand Prix.

On Thursday afternoon,

while Varzi was trying out the circuit,

he had an accident and died.

When Achille died, I was in Berna,
so I went to his funeral.

And I hired his mechanic.

Then Mr. Varzi,
Mr. Menotti Varzi, his father,

offered me his house for me to live in.

So I named the Argentinian team
Achille Varzi Argentinian Team,

to honor Varzi.

The entire Argentinian team was there.

There were many Argentinian racers
in the Varzi Villa,

he had let them stay in his house.

Then they would go out to the bar at night

and meet my husband and other people.

I don't think there's anyone of them left.

I'm the last one.
The rest of them passed away.

Every year, he would come in May.

He would come to Galliate
to visit his old friends.

Well, I have so many memories.

Some are good, some are bad.

But the good ones compensate
for the bad ones.

Except for an accident I had,
my first accident, in Peru,

where my co-driver,
which was my friend, died.

1948 - GRAND PRIX OF SOUTH AMERICA
ROAD RACING

In the premises
of the Argentine Automobile Club,

we'll hold the raffle
for the Grand Prix of South America.

Veteran Ernesto Blanco
draws ball number one,

with Fangio holding the first position,

and the second,
his friend, Domingo Marimon.

From Buenos Aires to Caracas,
the drivers will join efforts

with the most diverse topographies
in the most difficult race in the world.

We had several problems.

There were these regulations that said

that the starting positions
in each stage of the race

would vary depending
on the general classification.

I had some issues in the first stage.

The pinion and crown gear were worn away,
and that cost me a lot of time.

I was one of the last ones to reach Salta.

The next stage was Salta to La Quiaca,
in the border with Bolivia.

In that stage, I made third place.
I passed 60 cars on the road.

But in the general classification,
I was in 50-something,

so the next day,
I had to start from the back again.

I had to drive on dirt roads
and pass the other cars,

and that was hard on the car, because
every day I'd break something different.

And that's how we reached Lima.

We were about to go to bed
when we were summoned

to tell us that we had to start the race
that same night, at 10:00 p.m.,

because a revolutionary attack
was imminent,

they feared something would happen,

so they sent us out there without knowing
the circuit, with no sleep at all.

In Lima, I was in the lead

when I took a curve faster than I should,

so I... I didn't faint,

so while the car was spinning and falling,
I felt like it was a huge disaster,

as if we were falling off a cliff,
especially because my co-driver

was thrown off the car
along with the car door.

That was my first accident.

I thought I would never race again.

Urrutia's death...
I caused that accident.

Fangio, there's a lot of talk
about your health.

In order to bring some peace of mind
to all car racing fans,

could you tell us how you feel?

I'm perfectly well.

I'm just waiting for my chance
to face new and brave opponents.

And whether I win or lose,
I'll dedicate all my efforts

to my good friend Urrutia,
my brother through thick and thin.

I speak for all of us here
when I say thank you very much.

There's an old saying that goes,
"There's no substitute for experience."

I was almost 37
when I started racing in Europe,

and I kept doing it until I was
an old man, 47 years old.

SHEFFIELD UNIVERSITY
SHEFFIELD, ENGLAND

STUDY ON WHO WAS
THE BEST RACER OF ALL TIMES

When you compare
the cars from the 50s with today's cars,

I'm talking about competition cars,

the first point is the comfort.

These cars weren't comfortable.

It sounds obvious, right?

But back then, they were
more interested in having a fast car.

The gearboxes were difficult to maneuver,
the clutch was stiff, um...

You had to be an expert
to drive a race car in the 50s.

Today, the cars are built
with carbon fiber

and composite materials,
and they're heavily tested.

The category is much safer,
and the tracks are also safer,

and that's something
that's definitely changed.

If you want to be efficient
in today's cars, you need precision.

If you wanted to be efficient
in the cars from the 50s, you needed art.

Now, like I always say,

if you add precision
to the art from the 50s,

the result is a world champion.

And if you add art to today's precision,

the result is also a world champion.

So what we need to do
is to add to each period

what that period was missing.

One of the things
that was certainly helpful

was my knowledge of mechanics,

knowing how to properly use a car.

When I started to race with them,
I'd ask the mechanic

what's the maximum power for the cars,

and I never exceeded that maximum.

MODENA, ITALY

Today's pilots aren't familiar
with the technical aspects of racing,

like the pilots in Fangio's time were.

These days,
the car is driven by the pilot,

but everything else
is handled in the boxes

by dozens of engineers
that control the car remotely

and tell the driver, "Do this or that,"
and the driver does it.

That's why I've always appreciated
the work of the mechanics.

They're the real heroes of the races.

You always mention the pilots,
but never the mechanics.

Without them, you can't win a race.

They're the ones that handle
those tiny little details

that can make you lose a race.

BRACKLEY, ENGLAND

1949 - SAN REMO GRAND PRIX, ITALY
OSPEDALETTI CIRCUIT

In 1949

he began his international campaign
in the San Remo circuit.

He started having problems
with his Maserati, mechanical problems,

and his team leader, Amadeo Viñani,

advised him not to race.

They were used to work
under any kind of conditions,

something they brought with them
from their road racing days,

so he decided to dismantle the engine

and stayed up all night until 1:00 a.m.
polishing the crankshaft

to give the bearings a proper alignment
and make everything perfect

so that, once that work was done,
the mechanics would be able

to put the engine back together
while he got some sleep

before the start of the race.

That was his first race in Europe.

Welcome to the Ospedaletti circuit,
home of the San Remo Grand Prix.

Argentinian Juan Manuel Fangio,
in his European debut,

has won first place in the table,
outdoing his teammate Prince Bira.

Looks like there's trouble
with Righetti's Ferrari.

Meanwhile, Fangio takes the lead
at the Ponticello curve.

Perfect job by Fangio,
winning both heats of the race,

showing the world
that the new Argentinian Formula 1 team

is here to fight for the top.

I was lucky to win that time.

But you have to take those compliments
with a grain of salt,

otherwise you might end up believing
that you're the best.

Trying to be the best in everything?
I agree with that.

But never believe you're the best.

MODENA, ITALY

My name is Adolfo Orsi,
I was born in 1951.

My family bought Maserati in 1937.

It stayed in the family until 1969.

Maserati has been one
of the most important teams

in Formula 1 during the 1950s,

because it developed the 250F
not only for the official team,

but also for the private racers

that, in those times,
made up a significant part

of the Formula 1 starting grid.

My name is Ermmano Cozza.

I was born in Modena in 1933.

When I finished technical school,
my love for engines drove me to Maserati.

I would say that, for Maserati, Fangio,

in the entire history of Maserati,

was its most important pilot

and, in my opinion, the best.

And he was the best not only for Maserati;

for Mercedes in 1954/55,
he was also the best.

Maserati was a family business,

it was run by the Orsi family,

and I was good friends with
their chief mechanic, Guerino Bertocchi,

and with his brother.

I was very comfortable with them,

I even raced for them
without signing any contracts.

And the car ran wonderfully.

I was fortunate to win 6 races in Europe:

San Remo, Pau, Perpignan,

Marseille, Albi.

The Pau Grand Prix begins.

Argentinian Fangio and Graffenried
are head to head.

Argentinian Juan Manuel Fangio
has won three races this year alone.

Welcome to Marseille.

Fangio is making
every racer's dream come true,

winning over his Italian teammates
in their own home

in the Mecca of car racing,
Monza's historical circuit.

Racing in Monza was, for any pilot
that was starting racing in Europe,

a dream come true.

Fangio is now in the home stretch.

There's the checkered flag,
and Fangio wins his sixth race this year.

The Argentinian won!
The victory goes to Fangio!

From the years 49 to 50,

Alfa Romeo returns to the races.

They invited me to a race.

Mr. Alessio, the president of Alfa Romeo
back in those days,

had seen me won the previous year
in San Remo.

The return of Alfa Romeo
was a highly publicized event.

ALFA ROMEO MUSEUM
ARESE, ITALY

When World War II ended,

Alfa Romeo began
a period of reconstruction.

Their buildings
had been destroyed by bombings.

Italy in its entirety needed
to be rebuilt,

so they didn't have
an automobile market.

There was a pause, but in 1950,

when the first Formula 1
world championship started,

a new world was born.

And Alfa Romeo shows up

with a perfectly fine-tuned
and evolved car,

and with a team of champions,
the so-called three Fs team.

There was Farina, the last Italian
champion from the pre-war era,

Luigi Fagioli,
who had the most experience,

and a young Fangio that showed us all
that he's one of the best.

1950 - SAN REMO GRAND PRIX, ITALY
OSPEDALETTI CIRCUIT

In San Remo, we had two cars in the race.

Before it began, Farina hurt his arm,

so the team decided
to withdraw from the race

because all they had left was
some unknown racer.

The people that had put the money
for the publicity complained about this,

and they started arguing.

So I intervened, I said,
"Gentlemen, what's the problem here?

If I lose, only some unknown racer
will lose, not Alfa Romeo.

Now, if I win, Alfa Romeo wins,
no matter who's driving."

The San Remo race has started.

One of the Alfa Romeos
seems to have skidded at the start.

It's the Argentinian rookie Fangio,
who's losing several positions.

It's lap number 32,

Ascari went off the course
and withdrew his car.

The Argentinian Fangio
makes a stunning come back

and Froilan Gonzalez and his Maserati
abandon the race.

Fangio leaves his compatriot Pian
behind with a spectacular maneuver.

And Fangio does it.

The checkered flag falls
in front of the Alfetta.

I was fortunate to win that race.

The only Alfa in the race.

That night, we had a meeting
to discuss the contract.

I told them,
"You fill it and I'll sign it."

I had a chance to race with the best car
in existence at that time.

And I didn't have to pay money
or anything,

I just put my body to their service.

I think that helped build
a strong friendship

with the Alfa Romeo team.

1950 - BRITISH GRAND PRIX
SILVERSTONE CIRCUIT

Before the start, we're a little nervous,
until we sit inside the car.

Once you're in the car,

everything else disappears.

You become somebody else.

In Fangio's first racing season in 1950,

the Alfetta wins 11 out of 11.

Despite this superiority
and, in a certain way,

the rivalry between the three teammates,

their relationship inside the team
was always very positive.

In some races, the drivers
would make a close formation

to wait for their teammate to catch up,

or they would slow down
to warn them about some danger.

That was a sign that the camaraderie
in those teams was wonderful,

and that was a time when,
at almost 300 km/h,

they were risking their lives
in the tracks.

Back in those days, we had to be careful
not to overwork the cars.

Otherwise, we would overheat
and exert the engine,

so as a pilot, it was very useful to me

to be familiar
with the mechanics of the car.

STUTTGART, GERMANY

Fangio had the special ability

of being prepared

both physically and emotionally,

and also mechanically,

he knew the engine, the clutch,
the brakes, everything about his cars.

The mechanics used to say that,

had he taken 3 or 4 more laps,

the engine would've died.

He felt like he was making
the most out of himself

and of the machine

in order to reach their peak.

Despite the heavy rain,
Fangio wins this difficult race

and takes the first place
in the world championship

with 9 points in his favor.

1950 - MONACO GRAND PRIX
MONTECARLO CIRCUIT

Montecarlo was very interesting.

The day before the race,

I was at the Montecarlo Automobile Club
looking at some pictures

when I came across a picture
of an accident from before the war.

There was this curve called
"The Tabaccaio" that had a tall wall

and you couldn't see
what was on the other side,

and in the picture you could see
several cars piled up against it.

One of the cars spun around
and the ones behind it

crashed into it.

I had a very good car,
so when the race started,

I took the lead and, in the second lap,

I see a yellow flag waving at us.

It didn't mean we had to stop.
A yellow flag means precaution.

Still, that picture came to mind,

and when I reached the curve,
I saw the cars piled up in a heap.

So I drove by them very slowly,

and that gave me the chance to go on,

because the cars behind me
could do the same thing I did.

Eight cars were involved in that accident.

Fangio makes history in Monaco
and wins his first race

in the top category.

The Argentinian is now
among the best pilots in the world.

I was happy because it was
my first world championship.

I never thought I'd win.

GENOLIER, SWITZERLAND

In 1951, Fangio started
his second season with Alfa Romeo.

He won second place behind Farina
the previous year,

and this time he needed
to beat team Ferrari

with his teammate
and friend Froilan Gonzalez.

Another driver that was very important
in those times was Ascari.

That was an important year

because he had made a name for himself,

but he needed to prove
that he could also win a championship.

1951 - SPANISH GRAND PRIX, BARCELONA
PEDRALBES CIRCUIT

In this race,
they had several problems in Alfa.

They made a car with a de Dion tube
and two lateral tanks,

to have the other team believe

that we wouldn't stop
for the entirety of the race,

which wasn't true.

That was Ferrari's mistake.

To match my speed,

they had to overexert themselves
and the tires would fray,

so they had to change them
for smaller tires.

They tried to follow my lead,
and they were left behind.

I managed to stop, change the tires,
and still maintain the lead position.

The only two accidents
I had in my entire life

were due to the same reason:
physical exhaustion.

If you're tired, you shouldn't drive.

1952 - ULSTER TOURIST TROPHY
NON-CHAMPIONSHIP CATEGORY

That Saturday, I raced in Ireland.

And I had promised I would race
in Monza on Sunday.

Prince Bira had offered his private jet

to take me there, to Monza.

But then Prince Bira's car broke down

in the middle of a storm,

so when I finished the race in Ireland,
Prince Bira was already gone.

So a group of us bought plane tickets
to London, and among us was Rosier.

In London, I asked if there was some way
to go to Italy from there,

but there was none, so we went to Paris.

We arrived in Paris at midnight,
so there were no trains to Italy.

Rosier lent me his car
to complete the trip.

Back in those days,
the tunnel didn't exist yet,

so I had to climb the Moncenisio mountain,

and arrived in Monza
that Sunday at 2:00 p.m.

The race was set to start at 2:30 p.m.

1952 - ITALIAN GRAND PRIX
MONZA CIRCUIT

The drivers are ready.
In the first line,

the Ferraris of Farina and Andre Simon.
The current champion, Juan Manuel Fangio,

will be in the last position
because he didn't participate

in the classification.

I started the race from the last position

and in my second or third lap,

I was overcoming cars
at a very high speed.

Fangio, at full speed,
keeps trying to win positions.

He's on the Lesmo curve,
but his inner side touches the rail.

The car is out of control.

When I woke up, I was in the hospital.

I woke up
maybe three hours after the accident.

Back in our time, in Formula 1,

according to the statistics

by "Auto motor und sport,"

65 Formula 1 drivers died
during that period.

65.

Three, four, five every year.

Each year.

I thought it was very easy
to die without realizing it

and between life and death
there's nothing.

So when you get back to your senses,

back to reality,

you realize that dying is not so terrible,

you don't have time to think.

The 1953 season begins,
it's a difficult season,

it's hard coming back
from an accident,

going back to the competition rhythm

and it didn't help that in Argentina,
Holland and Belgium,

he had problems with his car
and can't finish the competition.

Then his luck changes.

He has three second positions
in France, England and Germany.

And he closes the season
in the most conflictive place: Monza,

where he had that serious accident.

He had to prove to himself
and everybody else

that his ability was intact.

Autodromo di Monza.

1953.

One hundred thousand people came
to the most prestigious race of the year

the Italian Grand Prix.

On the starting line, on the front row,

the ex world champion,
Farina, with number 6,

Fangio, number 50,
another ex world champion,

and champion Alberto Ascari,
with number 4.

ITALIAN GRAND PRIX
MONZA CIRCUIT

I first met Fangio in Monza

in September 1953 at the Grand Prix.

I was in the boxes and...

it was Fangio, Marimon,
who was Fangio's young apprentice,

Menditeguy and Mieres.

And for many laps
they kept going past each other.

In one lap, Fangio was ahead,
another lap Ascari was ahead.

In the last lap, Ascari was ahead,

but he took a bend badly
because Fangio was pressuring him.

He got off track,
Fangio went past him and won.

This bend decided the race.

And I thought,

"If I manage to keep close
instead of going wide,

maybe I won't get past,

my car is stronger when going straight.

I'll do it in the last lap,

it's less risky and least expected.

I tried, I did it, and I won.

Going for the last lap, Ascari,

followed by Fangio,
who looks stronger for the straight.

Fangio went past Ascari.
He's going to beat him.

Fangio is coming in first.
The speed, the power!

Fangio won, the champion is back!

WORLD DRIVERS' CHAMPIONS

I got along with everyone.

I never had a rivalry,

a personal rivalry with anyone.

The only rivalry was during the race,
not outside the race.

In the year 1954,

Mercedes Benz came back

in the history of that race

with the famous manager Neubauer.

And for Neubauer,
there were two drivers:

one was obviously the best driver,

Juan Manuel Fangio,

and Karl Kling.

Those two had established themselves.

And me.

MERCEDES BENZ MUSEUM
STUTTGART, GERMANY

FRENCH GRAND PRIX
REIMS CIRCUIT

With Mercedes we did things differently.

There were three mechanics
for one driver.

They were exclusive,
not interchangeable.

Three for me, three for Kling,
three for Hermann.

We were a force unit.

I wrote a book together with Carozzo

and I dedicated a whole chapter
to luck or fate.

Undoubtedly, you have to help fate,
fate can do it on its own.

If you sit back, it won't come to you.

But I do believe we all have

a delineated path.

GERMAN GRAND PRIX
NURBURGRING CIRCUIT

Onofre Marimon, son of Domingo Marimon,
Fangio's great friend,

was his apprentice
in the European tracks.

And in Nurburgring circuit,

an extremely difficult circuit

because of the elevations,
the amount of bends, the length,

Juan asked Onofre to wait for him

to check out some useful details.

He was an obsessive man,
he'd go to the circuit

two, three days before.

If it was a three, four-mile circuit,
he'd do it on his bike.

If it was 7, 9 miles, like Spa,

or 14 like Nurburgring,
he'd do it on his motorbike.

He wanted to memorize the track,

where he'd place his car,

what the race-deciding spot was.

He'd study it days before.

And he expected his colleague
to do the same.

Unfortunately,
when Fangio got to the circuit,

Onofre was already in his car

and on a downgrade

he gets off track and dies.

Marimon was a young man,

a cheerful man full of life.

A very likeable fellow, always smiling.

He was Fangio and Gonzalez's protégé.

They were his mentors.

I have a photograph, after his death,

of Fangio and Gonzalez
holding each other in tears.

For them, it was a real tragedy.

I believe in predestination.

No one dies before his time.

WORLD DRIVERS' CHAMPIONS

He left for the old continent in 1949

heading the first international
auto racing Argentine team.

His past and present success
in the highest auto racing category

is undeniable.

Juan Manuel Fangio is
like no other driver.

He has dominated every circuit.

Today we can be sure he'll go down
in our country sports history.

He has achieved
his second championship

this time with Mercedes Benz.

Argentineans have gathered
to welcome him this afternoon,

moved by the Balcarce driver's
achievements

and excited for the 1955 new season,

whose first stop
will take place right here.

Ladies and gentlemen,
welcome to Argentina Grand Prix.

ARGENTINA GRAND PRIX
BUENOS AIRES CIRCUIT

All eyes are on Buenos Aires.

The racing aces will battle
at 17 de Octubre Circuit

for the third Argentina Grand Prix

and get points for the World Champions.

Here's the famous Mercedes Benz team,

with Fangio, the 1954 world champion.

In Buenos Aires,

the team was made up of Fangio, Kling,

Stirling Moss and me.

When I first saw Stirling Moss racing,

I felt great admiration for the guy.

He was fighting with the best.

And over the races, we became friends.

I consider him one of my best friends.

We had four racing cars.

And even for Argentina

the intense hot weather was unusual,

I think it was in January.

I started to feel

I was getting a heatstroke.

The champion's serenity
can be seen at every bend.

His strong car and the strong heat
have taken many out.

It's 151ºF where the wheels
touch the track.

What happened to Moss

is that he stopped on the track,

not in the boxes.

I felt I had to make it
to the boxes at least.

I got there,
but couldn't get out of the car.

I was so weak I had to be taken out.

Karl Kling was thrown of his car.

Fortunately, nothing happened to him.

I just remembered
something else that happened.

During that race,

he went directly to the boxes

and, who knows why,

a bottle of water
was poured on his head,

and he was put back on the track.

The great Argentine driver
handles his car marvelously

displaying admirable physical condition.

Together with Mieres, he's the only one
racing the full three hours.

Fangio wins! The great champion
wins Argentina Grand Prix!

Fangio had to be taken
to the hospital afterwards

due to serious burns on his legs
because of the hot weather.

Conditions are different now.

But just as Fangio raced
with burns on his leg,

I remember a race at Baren in 2009,

where a radiator tube came off

in the direction of the cockpit,
of my seat,

I got burns on my back
and I got severely dehydrated

due the burns
and the heat in the cockpit.

Different levels, different circumstances,

but in auto racing

drivers still face extreme conditions.

But it's safer now, thankfully.

24 HOURS OF LE MANS, FRANCE
WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP FOR MAKES

The accident at Le Mans happened
in front of me.

It was the time for the swap.

Hawthorn, in the heat of the moment,

got into the boxes a bit too fast

and Mackling swerved out from behind,

at that moment,
Levegh swerved to go past,

he went over Mackling's wheels,

killing many people.

I held tight waiting for the crash,
but the path cleared.

After I went past,
Mackling's car crashed into the box

and killed the people in the box.

Everybody thought
I had caused the accident.

We were all going very fast.

Way too fast. Hawthorn too.

WORLD DRIVERS' CHAMPIONS

In 1956,

when Mercedes retired

from motor racing,

I knew Ferrari or Maserati
would want me.

So I talked with Neubauer
and asked for his advice,

"If Ferrari and Maserati want me,
which one should I pick?"

"Ferrari," he said.

FRENCH GRAND PRIX
REIMS CIRCUIT

When I raced for Ferrari,
some problems cropped up.

Ferrari's system was different.

You didn't have an exclusive mechanic.

Every mechanic work on every car.

Castellotti got mad at that race.

He wasn't satisfied with his car.

He said, "I'm going to quit."

And I said, "If you're the only one
quitting, nothing will change."

So, in solidarity with Castellotti,

who was my friend, I quit, too.

For any driver
in the history of the sport,

the goal has always been
racing for Ferrari.

Ferrari is Formula 1, it's the myth.

The most incredible thing in Formula 1.

You watch a Formula 1 race,
and 70%, 80% of the audience

is wearing the red cap with the horse
on the yellow background.

Fangio was the only one
who said no to Ferrari.

Ferrari wouldn't let me go.

So I set one condition.

I wanted a mechanic

exclusively for my car

because all the mechanics work
on all the cars.

There wasn't one person in charge.

Ferrari accepted and gave me
a mechanic in charge of my car.

And I was able to win
the following races.

ITALIAN GRAND PRIX
MONZA CIRCUIT

In the tough hellish Monza circuit,

the best drivers of the world
will battle for the prize.

For our compatriot Fangio
his result here will be key.

A new world title depends on it.

That day in Monza,
if Fangio came out third or fourth,

he'd get enough points
to win the championship.

He even said to his teammates,
Muzzi and Castellotti,

that they shouldn't worry about the race.

He wasn't going to fight
for the first positions.

At one moment in the race,
he began having difficulty holding.

And he detected a problem
in one of his front wheels.

They managed to find

a crack in the steering column.

They ask Musso for his car
so that Fangio could finish the race

and get the points
to win the championship.

Musso refuses to do it,
but moments later,

Peter Collins,
who saw what was going on,

got out of his car and gave it to him.

In the 35th lap, a surprise.

Collins, with a big gesture,
gives his car to Fangio,

and El Chueco gets the second position

behind Stirling Moss,
enough to become

world champion for the fourth time.

WORLD DRIVERS' CHAMPIONS

Fangio was a true gentleman,
a kind, polite man,

but he was distrustful.

He suggested
how the car should be built,

how it should be prepared,

the right connections.

He'd drive around the circuit

and suggest changing
some connections.

And Ferrari didn't listen
to drivers' instructions, like his.

There was never a good understanding
between them.

So when his contract was over,
he came back to Maserati.

He always said he was
most comfortable with Maserati,

more than with any other maker.

In 1957, Maserati debuted the 250F

with a 12-cylinder engine,

a more powerful engine

than the 6-cylinder 250F.

The 12-cylinder was stronger

but heavier,

so it used up a lot of fuel

and wear out the tires.

Finally, Fangio said he preferred
driving the 6-cylinder

and he'll get that half a second
difference himself.

I wasn't an extraordinary driver.

I worked within my means

and calculated my rival's strength.

At that time, I had to do things
I may have never done.

GERMAN GRAND PRIX
NURBURGRING CIRCUIT

The stakes were against me.

My car wore out the tires
unlike the opposing team's.

So I said, "Add less fuel,

I'll be able to go faster."

And they'd change my tires
halfway into the race.

When they were off,

he let Hawthorn and Collins
with Ferrari go past him.

He let them stay ahead for two laps.

And they got better times
than their pole times,

he wanted his tires to get hotter.

After the second lap,
he started speeding up,

and improved his times:
9:38, 9:36, 9:34, etc.

By the time he stopped at the 12nd lap,

he was 23 seconds ahead.

If he changed his tires in 22 seconds

and was back on the race
first or second,

he'd go past his rivals in the next lap.

Everything went as planned.

Fangio got to the boxes
with some advantage.

He stopped.

Whiles his tires were being changed,

one of the wing nuts fell under the car.

So when the mechanic
had to let Fangio go,

realized there was missing nut.

This fell off under the car.

The chronometer kept going.

A new nut was brought.

But instead of 22 seconds,
he lost 58 or 59.

The race was a lost cause.

El Chueco zoomed back to get the lead.

He steps on the gas
and the gap gets shorter.

He gets closer by the second
and beats his rivals' resistance.

I started stepping up gears.

I moved from second into third gear.

From third to fourth gear.

And I gained a lot of time.

I started beating the records.

In the second-to-last lap,
I got passed Collins.

Then Collins got passed me.

And finally I got passed him again
and reached Hawthorn

at an upward bend.

When he swerved, I could sneak in.

And I could take the straight
without the cars suction.

I won the race by four seconds.

The nicest thing about it, though,

was that the two drivers came up
to hug me after the race.

As if I were their father.

Hawthorn and Collins, both of them.

I had won a practically impossible race.

WORLD DRIVERS' CHAMPIONS

REIMS, FRANCE

When you're in your prime,
it's very hard to retire

in any aspect of life.

I talked with the mechanic,
I said that if the car worked well

I'd do four races that year.

From the start, my car didn't hold well.

I asked why was that, and they said
they changed the absorbers.

"Why didn't you put the same?"

"Because these people pay more."

It was becoming more commercial.

And in the 15th lap,
my clutch pedal got broken.

I had no clutch pedal.

I strongly believe in fate.

And a lot had happened that year.

I'd been to Cuba and was kidnapped
and couldn't race.

In Indianapolis,
I got a car that didn't work.

So during a race, I started thinking

about my parents,
who were quite old by that time.

I thought, "I still have time to make up
for everything they went through

while I've been racing around the world,"
because your family suffers.

So a lot of things were piling up.

My plan was racing for one year
and I'd been racing for ten.

I grew tired of racing.

So during a race, I decided,
"When this is over, I'll retire."

And so I did.

Retirement for a sports person

or anyone with an extremely intense
activity,

especially one like this,

is the hardest part of their life.

Readapting

is the most difficult part.

He managed it well.

He went back to work,

always related with Mercedes Benz,
first as a car dealer,

and he kept an active life,

a life committed
to his past in the sports.

That car is perfect.

There's a book in Argentina

entitled, "When the man is bigger
than the myth."

I believe that book title

reflects perfectly well what Fangio is.

In my last book,

I mention all the drivers and friends,

Rodriguez, Linge...

And here we have

my very dear friend,
Juan Manuel Fangio.

Let me read a bit.

"Fangio was, to me, the driver

that thanks to his skills

and despite his humble origins,

had a radiant presence
whenever he came into a room,

you could tell he was someone special.

He was the best."

When I was a kid I read a book

in second grade, I think,
and there's a boy asking his granddad,

"Is it sad to grow old,
have white hair and wrinkles?"

And his granddad answers,
"Not if you did your duty."

And that's true.

You can't be afraid of death.

Death will come at the right time.
It's only natural.

If we realized
that one day we'd be gone,

we would all be nicer.

That's for sure.

LORETO FANGIO FAMILY

JUAN MANUEL FANGIO WON
5 WORLD CHAMPIONSHIPS

PARTICIPATED IN 51 RACES
GOT 29 POLES

GOT 23 FAST LAPS
GOT ON 35 PODIUMS

WON 24 VICTORIES

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