AMELIA ISLAND CONCOURS PRESENTS JAPAN'S FIRST FORMULA 1 WINNER, HONDA'S RA272

The car that changed Formula 1 racing and put Japan on the international motorsport map will make its international concours debut at the 22nd annual Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance.

On October 24, 1965 the world of motorsport felt a strong, fresh wind blowing from the east when the Formula 1 Honda RA272 won the Mexican Grand Prix.

Honda was still enjoying the benefits from victory in the iconic Isle of Man TT motorcycles races when they decided in 1963 to go Formula 1 racing. It was a bold decision, typical of the iconoclastic Soichiro Honda. He was a racer in word and deed.

'If Honda does not race, there is no Honda.' -- Soichiro Honda

In 1961 Honda won the Isle of Man TT in the 125cc and 250cc displacement classes. They reasoned that an exotic 1.5 liter V-12 Formula 1 engine displacing 125cc per cylinder would be a fine starting point for proclaiming Honda's entry into the automobile business. Car production began one year later as plans were laid to assault Formula 1. The new F1 Honda's gestation period took a bit more than a year. The final race of the 1965 F1 season and the 1.5 liter formula marked Honda's emergence as a world automotive power.

American racer Richie Ginther in the number-eleven Honda RA272 blasted off the second row of the grid and simply ran away from the field of the Mexican Grand Prix. That gold-plated field included three Formula 1 World Champions, two Le Mans and one Indy 500 winner.

Designed by Honda's Yoshio Nakamura, the Honda RA272 is a 91 cubic inch (1495 cc) 230 horsepower masterpiece and a pivotal part of Formula 1's modern history.

'The RA272 is a jewel and a technological tour de force,' said Bill Warner, founder and Chairman of the Amelia Island Concours d'Elegance. 'It's the only 12-cylinder car to win a race in the entire 1.5 liter Formula (1961 through '65) and the first F1 car in history to win a World Championship Grand Prix with a transversely mounted engine. And it's the first to win a Grand Prix on Goodyear tires. Honda broke a lot of ground in a hurry with the RA272.'

Less than two years later Honda struck Formula 1 gold again winning the Italian Grand Prix in the first race of their new three-liter V-12 RA300. They were still at it two decades later when Honda won their first F1 World Championship title.

'We're honored that we'll have not only Honda's first Grand Prix winner, the RA 272 at 'The Amelia',' said Warner. 'We'll also display Alexander Rossi's Honda-powered 2016 Indy 500-winner. We've got the alpha and omega -- a half century -- of Honda racing power and their international commitment to motorsport excellence.'