22 March: Today in Racing

Starting as always with Formula 1, Nigel Mansell powered his Williams to 1992 Mexican Grand Prix victory ahead of teammate Riccardo Patrese. Perhaps more significant was the man in third — it was Benetton youngster Michael Schumacher who took his first ever F1 podium — a place he would become quite acquainted to over the following fifteen or so years.

In other non-championship F1 action, Emmanuel de Graffenried won the 1953 Syracuse Grand Prix in a Maserati A6CGM, Jackie Stewart drove his March 701 to win 1970 Brands Hatch Race of Champions and Ian Scheckter took his Tyrrell 007 to 1975 Goldfields 100 to victory in a South African F1 championship round at Welkom in the Orange Free State.  

World Rally Champion Colin McRae meanwhile announced in 1998 that he was considering a move to F1, starting with a test for fellow Scot Jackie Stewart's team. Sticking with the WRC, Raffaele Pinto and Arnaldo Bernacchini won the 1974 Rally Portugal in a Fiat Abarth 124 Rally and  Didier Auriol and Denis Giraudet took their Peugeot 206 to the 2001 WRC Catalunya win on this day.

Sportscar action saw Jan Lammers and John Watson steer their Jaguar XJR-8 to 1987 World Championship Jarama 6-hour victory, but it was the Sebring  12-hour that stole most 22 March race headlines, starting with Phil Hill and Peter Collins’ 1958 win in a Ferrari 250 TR 58 before Mike Parkes and Umberto Maglioli took a Ferrari 275 P to '64 honours. 

Bruce Leven, Hurley Haywood and Al Holbert's Porsche 935/80 won in ’81, Juan Manuel Fangio II and Andy Wallace Eagle-Toyota in ‘92 and Didier Theys, Mauro Baldi and Gianpiero Moretti’s Ferrari 333 SP took the 1998 win.

Staying in the US, AJ Foyt won the 1964 USAC Champ Car Phoenix 100, Johnny Rutherford and Emerson Fittipaldi took the respective 1981 and ’92 CART Indy Car wins and Scott Sharp  the ’98 Indy200. Moving on to US tin-top racing, 

Johnny Beauchamp led every lap of the ’59 Lakewood Grand National and other 22 March NASCAR winners were Fred Lorenzen in ’64, Dale Jarrett in ’98, Kyle Busch in 2009 and Brad Keselowski in ’15. Allan Moffat, Dick Johnson, Marcos Ambrose and Jamie Whincup meanwhile all won Australian Touring Car races on this day.

Other 22 March highlights include  Sir Malcolm Campbell setting a new 440km/h World Land Speed Record in his Campbell Special at Daytona Beach in 1933, despite believing he would die when the massive car hit a bump and became airborne during his run along the 30km long beach. “It was a terrible tussle to get her straight again,” Campbell frowned on the same day that Kiwi hillclimber Rod Millen was born in 1951 and F1 hopeful Mick Schumacher in 1999.

There will however always be a dark racing shadow over 22 March for it was on this day that Gastone Brilli-Peri was killed at age 36 when he crashed in practice for the Tripoli Grand Prix at age 36 in 1930. Brilli-Peri won the 1925 Italian Grand Prix to secure the inaugural World Manufacturers' Championship for Alfa Romeo P2 and in 1929 won the Circuit of Cremona and the Tripoli Grand Prix, also in an Alfa Romeo P2.

22 March was also the day that Peter Revson died aged 35 when his Shadow crashed and burst into flames in a 1974 F1 test at Kyalami in South Africa. 

The Revlon Cosmetics heir had won the British and Canadian Grands Prix in 1973 to top an illustrious race career that included finishing second in the 1970 12 Hours of Sebring alongside with Steve McQueen, becoming the first American to win the illustrious Can-Am title in ’71 and racing to second in the1972  Indianapolis 500, among several other significant racing results.  (Photo: Motorsport Images)