What was Stirling Moss' Net Worth?
Stirling Moss was a British Formula One racing driver who had a net worth of $20 million at the time of his death. Stirling Moss has been referred to as the "greatest driver never to win the Formula One World Championship." During a seven-year span between 1955 and 1961, Moss finished in second place four times and third place three times.
Early Life
Sir Stirling Craufurd Moss was born on September 17, 1929, in West Kensington in London, England, to amateur racing drivers Alfred and Aileen Moss. Stirling and his younger sister, Pat, grew up as gifted horse riders, and she went on to become a successful rally driver. Stirling attended Shrewsbury House School, Clewer Manor Junior School, and Haileybury and Imperial Service College where he did not get good grades. He was often bullied for his Jewish roots and disliked school in general. At nine years old, Moss received his first car, an Austin 7, from his father and drove it around the fields. He got his license at 15 and then purchased his own vehicle.
Racing Career
Stirling Moss competed from 1948 to 1962 in 529 races and was part of teams for Mercedes-Benz, Vanwall, Maserati, Lotus, Rob Walker Cooper, and HWM. Moss had 212 wins during his career and set several speed records. Moss competed in as many as 62 races in one year and drove 84 different makes of cars over the course of his career. But he always drove British cars. "It is better to lose honorably in a British car than to win in a foreign one," he would say. His record of 16 Formula One Grands Prix victories stood until 1991 when Nigel Mansell overtook him.
Stirling Moss was also a color commentator for Wide World of Sports on ABC. British police officers have been known to use the line "Who do you think you are, Stirling Moss?" when pulling over speeding motorists.
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He made a comeback to racing to compete in the 1974 London-Sahara-Munich World Cup Rally. He returned to regular competition in 1980 in the British Saloon Car Championship with Audi. And in June 2011 during qualifying for the Le Mans Legends race, Moss announced on Radio Le Mans that he was finally retiring from racing for good after scaring himself that afternoon. He was 81 years old.
Moss was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 1990 and was made a Knight Bachelor for his services to motor racing in the New Year Honours 2000 List. He was knighted by Prince Charles and stopped by a palace guard driving his Mercedes away from Buckingham Palace who used the popular line on him.
Personal Life
Stirling Moss was married three times; His first wife was Katie Molson, an heir to the Molson Canadian brewing company. His second wife was American public-relations executive Elaine Barbarino, and they had a daughter named Allison together. His third wife, Susie Paine, was the daughter of an old friend. They were married from 1980 until his death in 2020. They had a son, Elliot, who was born in 1980. Susie died in March 2023 at the age of 69.
Moss passed away in his home in Mayfair, London, on April 12, 2020, at the age of 90 after a battle with a long illness.
