Sportscar heaven - Aston Martin DBR1 vs Ferrari Testa Rossa
By Chris Nixon
ISBN 0 85184 067 1,
Published by Transport Bookman, £49.99
Heaven indeed if you love big front-engined sportscars, this lavish book features the three seasons which saw Aston loosen Ferrari’s hold on the championship in 1959.
Nixon’s scheme of focusing on two main rivals works well; the developments are explained as you switch back and forth through the racing, which interleaves with interviews and technical discourses.
He quotes designers (Forghieri, Cutting, Scaglietti) direcdy, and reunites driver, car and track —Tony Brooks is compelling on Spa, which he adored.
Stirling Moss compares the DBR1 with Merc’s 300SLR, while Phil Hill, Roy Salvadori, Dan Gurney et al contribute. In other words, it’s horse’s mouth stuff, generously illustrated, with cutaway drawings and detailed stats to boot. GC