Lewis Hamilton's record-breaking achievements in F1 are the latest successes in a glorious motor sport record for Mercedes and Benz that stretches back to the very first races in the 1890s. For the first time, this book tells the story of Mercedes in motor sport from the very beginning, with those pioneers of the 19th century, right through to today's hybrid F1 cars. It covers the triumphs and disasters, from the early Grand Prix machines and the extraordinarily advanced and massively powerful racers of the 1930s to the highs of F1, Le Mans and Mille Miglia glory and the sorrow of the 1955 Le Mans disaster. The story is brought right up to date, tracing Mercedes victories in sports car racing, Indycar, F1 and Formula E - and this book celebrates the achievements of some of the world's greatest drivers, from Caracciola, Fangio and Moss to Hakkinen, Unser and Hamilton. AUTHOR: Andrew Noakes graduated from Loughborough University with a degree in automotive engineering and became technical editor of Fast Car magazine. He was founder editor and later editor-in-chief of Classics before turning freelance, and has since worked for a wide range of automotive magazines and websites. He has written more than twenty books including several previous Crowood titles. He is a past chairman of the Guild of Motoring Writers and alongside his writing he is course director of the unique Masters degree in Automotive Journalism at Coventry University. 285 colour photographs