[Tom Rubython]Rush to Glory : Formula 1 Racing's Greatest Rivalry(epub){Zzzzz}

The greatest duel in FORMULA 1 history: the 1976 season between Austrian Niki Lauda and Britain's James Hunt. As the '75 season ended, Hunt was out of FORMULA 1 racing while Lauda was world champion and the odds-on favorite for ’76 with a year’s contract ahead of him and Enzo Ferrari begging him to sign a multi-year deal. James Hunt, without a drive until Emerson Fittipaldi broke his McLaren contract, grabbed the McLaren drive with both hands and the help of friend John Hogan and Marlboro cigarettes. The result? Two drivers in an epic sixteen-race battle across the globe for the '76 title, ultimately decided by a single point. Fame, wealth, drugs, sex, and the rest of globetrotting 1970s FORMULA 1 racing are encompassed in the Lauda vs. Hunt duel. At the '76 German Grand Prix, Lauda nearly died in a fiery crash, only to emerge six weeks later, severe burns on his face and head, to pursue his rivalry with Hunt. It all came down to the last race, a rain-soaked affair in Japan, where Hunt won the championship by the slimmest possible margin. The book is a study in contrasts during an era of Brut aftershave and disco sex parties. James Hunt, legendary philanderer and FORMULA 1 rock star, versus supernatural racer Niki Lauda, who in '75 set the first sub-seven minute lap around the Ring.

Publisher: Lyons Press; Reprint edition (August 6, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0762791977
ISBN-13: 978-0762791972

Editorial Reviews
Review
"With Formula 1's glamorous international stage as a backdrop, this production is a seductive glimpse of the beautifully flawed people who gravitate to international racing. It's an audio that will provoke many listeners to listen more than once." ---AudioFile --This text refers to the Audio CD edition.
About the Author

Tom Rubython is the former editor of F1 Magazine, Business F1, SportsPro and most recently Spectator Business Magazine. Throughout his 30 year career he has also been involved in many newspaper and magazine launches. He is best known as the author of the biography, The Life of Senna. Before founding The Myrtle Press he was involved in the publishing of nine previous books.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

A very detailed look at an interesting season
By James Pernikoff on October 3, 2013
First, I should point out that this book is not new; it is a paperback edition of a book first published in 2011 as "In the Name of Glory", cleverly renamed to tie in with the new movie on substantially the same topic.

The book rather reads like a movie script, but it appears that that is purely coincidental, and the movie team appears not to have consulted the book in the writing of the actual movie script.

This is a very detailed look at the 1976 Grand Prix season, with particular emphasis, of course, on the rivalry between James Hunt and Niki Lauda. A considerable number of sources are listed in the Acknowledgements, and as a result we find out much about the two drivers' relationships with each other, with their families, their teammates, their team bosses and owners, their women and the press.

I lived through this period, and saw both men win races at Watkins Glen (Lauda in 1975 and Hunt in 1976). Compared with the information available in the motoring press back then, this book adds a lot of substance "between the lines" and I found some of it quite unexpected.

A bonus is the marvelous insert of color photos of the season by the noted photographer Rainer Schlegelmilch, and there is an appendix showing detailed race-by-race results, and a very detailed index.

Now, should you read the book before or after you see the movie? I'd say, both! That's what I did, and the two complement each other quite well. There may be more books released as a result of the movie, but this one is a great start.

Worth the Purchase
By Justinwr on December 26, 2013
Bottom line: This is a very entertaining story, and I can’t help but recommend buying this book. The real star of the show is the remarkably eventful season itself, as opposed to the writing.
The good:
• A shocking amount of drama unfolds throughout the 1976 Formula 1 season, way too much to be captured by a 2 hour movie. This book gives the reader a more complete picture than Ron Howard’s Rush.
• James Hunt’s antics will have you laughing out loud.
• Great insight into the chaotic, corrupt, unsafe, and altogether political early (relatively) days of F1.
• It’s a short, easy read written in a very journalistic style that never wastes a word.

The bad:
• The writing leaves a little to be desired. The author’s tone is VERY British. There’s nothing wrong with that, of course, but it can be a little off-putting for an American reader such as myself.
• The book is short and rushed. There’s no other way to put it. It doesn’t feel incomplete exactly, but I find myself still curious about the subject matter, and will probably read other related books, starting with Nikki Lauda’s autobiography.