In 90 A.D., ancient Rome played host to a sporting spectacle that attracted crowds three times the size of the Colosseum’s gladiator games: chariot racing. Every week, 150,000 fans packed the massive Circus Maximus, not just to cheer on the speed, fury, and danger of the races, but to witness the champion charioteer, Flavius Scorpus. Examine his improbable rise from young slave to arguably the most successful competitor in the sport’s history.
