(Motorsport-Total.com) – Anyone who has worked in Formula 1 as long as Roger Benoit has experienced almost everything. Daniel Leu has now captured these experiences in a profound book. The name says it all: “Formula Madness” as a “small homage to a great journalist” (as stated in the foreword by Blick publisher Michael Ringier) evokes a variety of emotions while reading. A selection.
Read more Lewis Hamilton in GTA? Social media video recalls Rockstar classic
Amazement: Roger Benoit was naturally already known to me as a long-time editor. But to be honest, I did not know that he has been active in Formula 1 since 1970. He is a “veteran,” that much was clear to me.
His 53 (!) race visits to the Italian Grand Prix in Monza speak volumes. In total, he has attended more than 800 Grands Prix on site. That alone justifies the book title, but there is so much more on a total of 268 pages – in words and pictures. (Click here to order the book on Amazon!)
Admiration: As a journalist for the Swiss Blick, Roger Benoit has seen about two-thirds of Formula 1 history with his own eyes. Such a connection to the subject over so many decades is unique. A special lifetime achievement.
This is also reflected in how many – very prominent – companions have contributed to this book. It already starts with the foreword: It was written by “Mr. Formula 1” Bernie Ecclestone himself. Roger Benoit has a particularly good connection to the former series boss. Ecclestone says: “I talk to him about God and the world.”
The 10 most bizarre Formula 1 ideas from Bernie Ecclestone
Further back in the book, world champions like Emerson Fittipaldi, Jackie Stewart, Sebastian Vettel, and Max Verstappen also write about Roger Benoit and the marks he has left on their careers. Former colleagues also report. And Toto Wolff describes him as a “journalist at heart.”
You don’t read this about every Formula 1 reporter, especially not in such detail. Not everyone is on a first-name basis with the biggest names in the Grand Prix scene. Hardly anyone today has such a network. These contributions are therefore a special appreciation for someone who is one of a kind.
Or as Roger Benoit himself puts it: “Let’s put it this way: I don’t walk around the paddock as a nobody, and certain people occasionally listen to my voice.”
Enthusiasm: Roger Benoit naturally has many opportunities to speak for himself in “his” book. And what he says is inspiring: Probably no one else was present at so many decisive moments. Or regularly sat with Michael Schumacher after races – for a beer and a cigar. “That was a tradition,” says Roger Benoit.
It commands my enormous respect to learn how intensely involved he has been (and remains) over so many years. I had to tell myself several times while reading: “I only know this from stories or books, but he experienced it himself!”
Read more Downward spiral at Audi? Allan McNish sees no reason to panic
Nostalgia: With so many accounts from (long) past days, a certain wistfulness always arises in me: Formula 1 used to be simpler, more accessible, more down-to-earth. Not the billion-dollar circus with a high-tech playground for engineers that it is today, but more familial, natural, human. Less driven.
The biggest Formula 1 fails of all time
I must confess openly: I regret not having experienced this time myself. All the more, I appreciate that Roger Benoit shares many of his memories of this past with us. Not everything – he emphasizes this several times in the book, but enough to recognize: Having had such access was something special.
But it was not necessarily always “good” or “beautiful” in Formula 1: Roger Benoit has experienced how close triumph and tragedy can be. When a Ferrari won the day after Jochen Rindt’s fatal accident in Monza in 1970 and the spectators cheered with joy, “that’s when I understood how brutal this sport is,” explains Roger Benoit.
Compassion: In all these accounts of and about Roger Benoit, I feel not only admiration but also the impression of what side effects all this can have. Because anyone who constantly packs their suitcase and travels from one race weekend to the next inevitably leaves their private life behind.
This special lifestyle has affected Roger Benoit. He admits this openly and also provides candid information in the book about the somewhat darker moments in his life.
My conclusion
Anyone interested in Formula 1’s past will be thrilled by this book. It is an entertaining yet profound journey through Grand Prix history(ies) as Roger Benoit himself experienced and partly shaped them – as a reporter for the Swiss Blick. Afterwards, you understand “Formula Madness” a little better. And also the man Roger Benoit.
Transparency note: A review copy of the book was provided to us free of charge by the author. There was no influence from the author on the article.
This article contains Amazon affiliate links through which products can be purchased. If a purchase is made via such a link, we receive a commission. There are no additional costs for you.
Read more Carlos Sainz: Formula 1 qualifying remains a cause for concern
