Austria , Formula One Legends Series - 3

When it comes to collecting Formula One themed stamps , Austria would be my first choice. Austria post in the recent years from 2007 to 2009 have issued a series of stamps on "Formula One Legends". 2009 series had a set of 4 stamps which features the portraits of Wolfgang von Trips, Gilles Villeneuve, James Hunt &  Bernie Ecclestone.

Wolfgang von Trips was a German racing driver.  He started his Formula One career in 1956 and his career spanned till 1961. In 1961 he died in a fatal accident during the Italian Grand Prix race.

Gilles Villeneuve was a Canadian racing driver. He also had a tragic end to his life during the 1982 Belgian Grand Prix.

James Hunt was an English racing driver from 1973 to 1979. He won the Formula One Championship in 1976.

In the racing world , Bernie Ecclestone and Formula One are synonymous. Often controversial he is the man behind the Formula One. He is commonly called as "F1 Supremo" and he literally controls the Formula One through his authority as well as through his companies.

South African Grand Prix

Not many countries in the African continent has hosted the Formula One Grand prix races when compared to other continents. There could be many reasons such as popularity , facilities , economic conditions and more importantly Bernie Ecclestone's blessings. Morocco and South Africa are the only two countries that has hosted Formula One Grand prix races. The last Formula One Grand prix held in the African continent was in South Africa in 1993 at the Kyalami Circuit. South Africa has hosted 22 Formula One Grand prix races starting from 1962 till 1993. Between this period around 8 years there were no races due to war , apartheid.

In 1992 South African post issued stamps on Motor Sports and one of the stamp luckily is on Formula One. The stamp features the image of Formula One cars racing around the track.

As Formula One goes to new places every year especially to Asia , Europe the possibility of having another race in the African continent might be a distant reality.

70th Monaco Grand Prix Race

Yet again another blog post on a Monaco stamp , remember the previous blog post is also on a Monaco stamp,  but the difference is ,  this one is new and it smells fresh. Yes , my search for a new stamp for the year 2012 related to Formula One yielded a result finally. Monaco post issued a commemorative stamp to celebrate the 70th Monaco Grand prix race. 

It is officially not the 70th Formula One Monaco Grand prix but Monaco Grand prix has been on the Formula One calender regularly from 1950 except few years due to world wars. The first Monaco Grand prix started in the year 1929 and it was inaugurated by Prince Pierre. All the credit goes to Anthony Noghes who was the founder of the Monaco Grand Prix. The 2012 Formula One Monaco Grand prix race marks the 70th race which is definitely a huge milestone considering the current economic conditions prevailing in Europe where country in the Europe is struggling with the economic crisis.

Anthony Noghès - Founder of the Monaco Grand Prix

Organisers play a huge role in the success of any sport , ironically they don't get much fame and popularity as the sports person. Monaco grand prix is one of the oldest and famous grand prix races in the history of Formula one racing. All the credit goes to Anthony Noghès who was the founder of the Monaco grand prix. It was his idea to conduct a grand prix race around the streets of Monaco and the first race held during the year 1929. From then ( i.e from 1950 ) Monaco grand prix appeared on almost every year in the Formula one racing calendar except for few years due to the world wars. 

 

Monaco post issued a stamp to commemorate the birth centenary of Anthony Noghès in the year 1990. The stamp carries a portrait of Anthony Noghès and a racing car in the background. Virage Antony Noghes is the name of a corner in the racing track which is named after him. Thanks Ebay , I bagged this one...

Ferrari Champions 1999 - 2004

I wanted my 25th blog post to be really very very special , to blog on something which I adore the most. Browsing through my collection I picked this one without even having a second thought. Yes , it's none other than Ferrari. What else it can be ?

Needless to say , Ferrari is one of the most successful competitors in the history of Formula One racing , they had won 16 constructor championship titles till last season. The other teams that comes close to this record are Williams ( 9 ) , Mclaren ( 8 ) & Lotus ( 7 ). From 1999 to 2004 , it's one way and all the way for Ferrari , they  won a straight 6 constructor championship titles,  a first in the history of Formula One racing , thanks to Ross Brawn - Jean Todt - Michael Schumacher for their excellent team work and their very effective racing strategies.

Bridgestone , Ferrari's official tyre supplier and their reliability during these years was also one of the main factors behind Ferrari's championship titles. During these 6 years Michael Schumacher broke as well as set many new records which made him one of the best drivers in the history of Formula One racing. ( that's where I made cricket my ex game )

In 2004 Gibraltar post released "a collectable issue - a Ferrari official licensed product" ( that sounds amazing right )  called as "Ferrari Champions" to celebrate Ferrari's 6 straight constructor championship titles. A miniature sheet comprising 6 stamps,  each stamp depicting the respective years Ferrari F1 car design.

The designs ( years ) are  - F399  ( 1999  ), F1-2000 ( 2000 ), F2001 ( 2001 ),  F2002 ( 2002 ), F2003 GA ( 2003 ) &  F2004 ( 2004 ).

Other than the miniature sheet the other items that were part of this special commemorative collection are presentation pack, individual sheetlets , first day covers and stamp sets.

Which one do you have ?

Lewis Hamilton - 2008 Formula One World Champion

I made this blog post ready last week but was still refining the content and was hopeful to post at-least this week. After looking at the Malaysian F1 Grand Prix 2012 qualifying results where Lewis Hamilton qualified for P1 with Jenson button by side with P2 , I was dreaming this post will be a tribute to him ( at-least from my side ) if Lewis Hamilton wins the Malaysian F1 Grand Prix at the Sepang Circuit. Well , sometimes things don't go the way we anticipate. It was a stunning race , Fernando Alonso crossed the chequered flag first winning the 2012 Malaysian F1 Grand Prix ( finished 9th in the qualifying ) with Lewis Hamilton finishing second. Not a bad race though for Lewis Hamilton but still a win would have made a huge difference.

In 2008 Austria post issued a stamp on Lewis Hamilton honoring his 2008 F1 World Championship as part of the Formula One Legends Series. Lewis Hamilton's 2008 Formula One Championship ended a 8 year domination by Ferrari/Renault. The 2008 championship went down to the wire to the extent the drivers title was decided in the last lap of the last race.  Lewis Hamilton won the title by a point and became the youngest driver to win the drivers championship. Sebastian Vettel replaced Lewis Hamilton as the youngest driver to win the driver championship when he won the 2010 title.

Felise Massa crossed the chequered flag winning the last race of the 2008 season and he was the 2008 champion for a brief moment , but it didn't last longer when Lewis Hamilton overtake Timo Glock securing Hamilton the one point lead over Felipe Massa. I still remember this race , I was watching live on a very early monday morning and jumping around celebrating Ferrari's Felipe Massa victory. But within seconds everything changed and Lewis Hamilton became the 2008 Formula One Champion.

Mario Andretti

I did enough of google but still it doesn't look like another Formula 1 related stamp will be released anytime soon. It's already March and Formula 1 2012 season is on the way. Last year we had the first Formula 1 Indian Grand Prix , guess who is the newcomer this season ? Yes , Formula One returns to United States and this time it is in Austin, Texas. Circuit of the Americas, a brand new racing track will host the 19^th race of the 2012 season.

Let's look at one of the greatest drivers US has ever produced - Mario Andretti. He owns the rare feat of winning all the major racing championships such as Formula One World Championship ( 1978 ) , Indianapolis 500 (1969), Daytona 500 (1967). He is also the last American to win a Formula One race , 1978 Dutch Grand Prix.

St. Vincent and the Grenadines issued a commemorative stamp to honor this greatest driver in the auto racing history. This stamp has the caption “Greatest Sportsmen of the 20th Century” , well who can deny it.