Communist guerrillas in Havana, Cuba, one day before the second Havana Grand Prix, kidnapped Argentine racing champion Juan Manuel Fangio


Sunday 23rd February 1958

Communist guerrillas in Havana, Cuba, one day before the second Havana Grand Prix, kidnapped Argentine racing champion Juan Manuel Fangio. Revolutionary Manuel Uziel, holding a revolver, approached Fangio in the lobby of his hotel and ordered the race-car driver to identify himself. Fangio reportedly thought it was a joke until Uziel was joined by a group of men carrying submachine guns. Fangio reacted calmly as the kidnappers explained to him their intention to keep him only until the race was over. After his release to the Argentine Embassy, Fangio revealed a fondness for his kidnappers, refusing to help identify them and relaying their explanation that the kidnapping was a political statement.


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