“When you hit a bridge at 160 [mph] where you take off, that’s pretty scary. Because there’s nothing you can do; you land where the thing lets you land.” That’s legendary racing driver Stirling Moss, recalling just one of the many intense moments that defined his record-breaking and still unbeaten 1955 Mille Miglia victory. Only 25 years old at the time, Moss famously piloted the Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR #722 to the podium in a record-setting time of ten hours and seven minutes, averaging 98.53 mph over the 992-mile circuit.
Moss’s record survived the 1956 running of the Mille Miglia unscathed, but a tragic accident at the 1957 race, which brought a swift end to tradition of running of races on public roads in Italy, helped to ensure his record would stand uncontested for decades.
To help celebrate the sixtieth anniversary of his epic achievement, Moss reunited with the race-wining Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR #722, the reunion captured by the skilled photographers of Petrolicious. Any concerns that Moss’s love for #722 may have waned over the past sixty years will be erased by the trademark bemused grin he displays as he fires up the restored car for a nostalgic romp. A fleeting moment, it speaks volumes about man and machine.
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