In 1953 Mercedes-Benz racing boss Alfred Neubauer had spoken to Moss's manager, Ken Gregory, about the possibility of Moss's joining Mercedes. Having seen him do well in a relatively uncompetitive car, and wanting to see how he would perform in a better one, Neubauer suggested that Moss buy a Maserati for the 1954 season. He bought a Maserati 250F, and although the car's unreliability prevented him from scoring high amounts of points in the 1954 Drivers' Championship, he qualified alongside the Mercedes front runners several times and performed well in the races. He achieved his first Formula One victory when he won the Oulton Park International Gold Cup.
