Yes, Yankees, Juan Manuel Fangio once came to Connecticut! Here at the then-new Thompson road course early in 1954 he shows off a 2.0-liter Maserati for importer Tony Pompeo. Note the world champion is properly attired in coat and tie.
Photo: Ozzie Lyons - www.petelyons.com
Fifty-one years after winning his fifth and final world championship, Juan Manuel Fangio is still my favorite F1 driver. Never mind that I never actually saw him race an F1 car, not for real. But I believe I know what I would have seen.
That’s because I grew up feasting on stories about him. Though I lacked the luck to witness any of his Grands Prix (I did see him win at Sebring in a sports car), it was my fortune to discover racing in the years when everyone who knew anything about my new passion deemed Fangio was the best.
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