James Simon Wallis Hunt (29 August 1947 15 June 1993)

[1]
was a British racing
driver who won the Formula One World Championship in1976. After retiring from racing
in 1979, Hunt became a mediacommentator and businessman.
Beginning his racing career in touring car racing, Hunt progressed intoFormula
Three where he attracted the attention of the Hesketh Racingteam and was soon taken
under their wing. Hunt's often action-packed exploits on track earned him the nickname
"Hunt the Shunt". Hunt entered Formula One in 1973, driving a March 731 entered by
the Hesketh Racing team. He went on to win for Hesketh, driving their own Hesketh
308 car, in both World Championship and non-Championship races, before joining
theMcLaren team at the end of 1975. In his first year with McLaren, Hunt won the 1976
World Drivers' Championship, and he remained with the team for a further two years,
although with less success, before moving to the Wolfteam in early 1979. Following a
string of races in which he failed to finish, Hunt retired from driving halfway through the
1979 season.
After retiring from motor racing, he established a career commenting on Grands Prix for
the BBC. He was known for his knowledge, insights, dry sense of humour and his
criticism of drivers who, he believed, were not trying hard enough, which in the process
brought him a whole new fanbase.
Hunt died from a heart attack aged 45. He was inducted into the Motor Sport Hall of
Fame on January 29, 2014.
[2]

Contents
[hide]
1 Early life
2 Early career
o 2.1 Mini racing
o 2.2 Formula Ford
o 2.3 Formula Three
3 Formula One career
o 3.1 1973-1975: Hesketh
o 3.2 1976-1978: McLaren
o 3.3 1979: Wolf
4 Later career (19791993)
o 4.1 Commentary career
o 4.2 Attempted comebacks
o 4.3 Other projects
5 Private life
o 5.1 Public image
o 5.2 Personal life and relationships
6 Death
7 Legacy
8 Helmet
9 In popular culture
10 Racing record
o 10.1 Complete Formula One World Championship results
o 10.2 Formula One non-championship results
11 References
o 11.1 Notes
o 11.2 Bibliography
12 External links
Early life[edit]
James Hunt was born in Belmont, Sutton, Surrey, as the second child of Sue and Wallis
Hunt, a successful stockbroker. His parents were brought up in strict Victorian
environments and worked hard to maintain discipline in the family. He had an elder
sister, Sally, three younger brothers, Peter, Timothy and David, and one young sister,
Georgina.
[3]
Hunt's family lived in a flat in Cheam, Surrey, moved to Sutton when he was
11 and then to a larger home in Belmont.
[4]
Before his 5th birthday, Hunt was enrolled at
a nursery class at Ambleside. He was then educated at Westerleigh School
in Hastings, East Sussexfrom 1955, and later at Wellington
College in Crowthorne, Berkshire.
As a youngster, Hunt became a proficient sportsman. He played for the Westerleigh
School cricket team, and played in goal at football for two years. At the age of 12 he
entered an under-17s tennis tournament, and lost to a 16-year-old in the final. Rather
than congratulate himself, he instead cried for hours. He later competed at Junior
Wimbledon, and also became a keen squash player and golfer.
As a child, Hunt was fascinated with animals and birds, and professed an intention of
becoming a doctor, which his family supported. However, he had a persistently
rebellious personality; for example, his parents believed that he had started smoking
from the age of 10, a habit he continued into adulthood, despite their attempts to
persuade him to stop. He was prone to violent tantrums; as an adult, he acknowledged
that he was quick tempered.
Hunt first learned to drive on a tractor on a farm in Pembrokeshire, Wales while on a
family holiday, with instruction from the farm's owner, but he found changing gears
frustrating because he lacked the required strength.
[5]
Hunt passed his driving test one
week after his 17th birthday, at which point he said his life "really began".
[6]
Hunt also
took up skiing in 1965 in Scotland and made plans for further ski trips. Before his 18th
birthday, he went to the home of Chris Ridge, his tennis doubles partner. Ridge's
brother Simon, who raced Minis, was preparing his car for a race at Silverstone that
weekend. The Ridges took Hunt to see the race, which began his obsession with motor
racing.
[7]

Early career[edit]
Mini racing[edit]
Hunt's own racing career started off in a racing Mini. His first race entered was at
Snetterton but he was prevented from competing by race scrutineers as the Mini was
deemed to have many irregularites with the car which left Hunt upset. Hunt later brought
the necessary funding from working as a trainee manager of a telephone company to
enter three events.
[8]

Formula Ford[edit]
He graduated to Formula Ford in 1968. He drove a Russell-Alexis Mk 14 car which was
bought from a hire purchase scheme. In his first race at Snetterton, Hunt had lost 15 hp
from an incorrect engine ignition setting but managed to finish 5th. Hunt took his first
win at Lydden Hill and also set the lap record on the Brands Hatch short circuit.
[9]

Formula Three[edit]


James Hunt driving a Brabham BT21 in the Guards Trophy F3 race atBrands Hatch, 1969.
Hunt later raced in Formula Three in 1969 from a budget conceived by Gowrings of
Reading which brought a Meryln Mk11A. Gowrings had a view to run the car in the final
two races of 1968.
[9]
Hunt won several races and constant high placed finishes which
was evaluated by the British Guild of Motoring Writers which awarded Hunt a
Grovewood Award as one of the three drivers to have promising careers.
[10]

Hunt was involved in a controversial incident with Dave Morgan during a battle for
second position in the Formula Three Daily Express Trophy race at Crystal Palaceon 3
October 1970. Having banged wheels earlier in a very closely fought race, Morgan
attempted to pass Hunt on the outside of South Tower Corner on the final lap, but
instead the cars collided and crashed out of the race. Hunt's car came to rest in the
middle of the track, minus two wheels. Hunt got out, ran over to Morgan and furiously
pushed him to the ground,
[11]
which earned him severe official disapproval. Both men
were summoned by the RAC and after hearing evidence from other drivers, Hunt was
cleared by a tribunal but Morgan was given a 12-month suspension of his racing
licence. Hunt later met with John Hogan and racing driver Gerry Birrell to obtain
sponsorship from Coca-Cola.
[12]

Hunt's career continued in the works March team for 1972. His first race at Mallory Park
saw him finish 3rd but was told by race officials he was able to exclude himself from the
results when it was discovered that his engine was outside the regulations but had
passed scrutineering tests at the next two races in Brands Hatch. In these races, Hunt
finished 4th and 5th respectively. He collided with two cars at Oulton Park but finished
3rd at Mallory Park after a long duel with Roger Williamson. The cars did not appear
at Zandvoort with Hunt still attending the race, but as a spectator.
[13]

In May 1972 it was announced by the team that he had been dropped from the STP-
March Formula 3 team and replaced byJochen Mass. When Hunt attempted to contact
March, he was unable to get any response from his employers. Hunt decided to consult
Chris Marshall, his former team manager who explained that a spare car was
available.
[13]
This followed a period characterized by a series of mechanical failures, and
which culminated in a decision by Hunt, against the express instructions of March
director Max Mosley, to race at Monaco in a March from a different team, unexpectedly
vacated by driver Jean-Claude Alzerat, after Hunt's own March had first broken down
and then been hit by another competitor in a practice lap.
[14]

After the termination of his racing relationship with STP-March, Hunt joined
the Hesketh team, where he was seen as a kindred spirit. The team initially entered
Hunt in Formula Two with little success but Lord Hesketh announced that they might as
well fail in F1 as in F2, as it wasn't significantly more expensive.
Formula One career[edit]
1973-1975: Hesketh[edit]


Hunt's Hesketh 308 from 1975being driven by his son, Freddie, in 2007
1973
Hesketh purchased a March 731 chassis, and it was developed by Harvey
Postlethwaite. The team was initially not taken seriously by rivals, who saw the Hesketh
team as party goers enjoying the glamour of Formula One. However, the Hesketh
March proved much more competitive than the works March cars, and their best result
was second place at the 1973 United States Grand Prix. Hunt also made a brief venture
into sports car racing at the 1973 Kyalami Nine Hours, driving aMirage M6 along
with Derek Bell, finishing second.
[15]

After the season's end, Hunt was awarded with the Campbell Trophy from the RAC
marking his performance in Formula One as the best for a British driver.
[16]

1974
For the 1974 season Hesketh Racing built a car, inspired by the March, called
the Hesketh 308, but an accompanying V12 engine never materialised. Hunt's first test
of the car came at Silverstone and found it more stable than its predecessor, the March
731. Hunt was retained on a 15,000 salary.
[17]
The Hesketh team captured the public
imagination as a car without sponsors' markings, a teddy-bear badge and a devil-may-
care team ethos, which belied the fact that their engineers were highly competent
professionals. In Argentina, Hunt qualified 5th and led briefly before being overtaken
by Ronnie Petersonbefore Hunt spun off the track and eventually retired due to engine
failure.
[18]
In South Africa, Hunt retired from 5th place from a broken driveshaft.
[19]
Hunt's
season highlight was a victory at the BRDC International Trophy non-Championship
race at Silverstone, against the majority of the regular F1 field.
1975


Hunt in the Hesketh in 1975
Hunt scored a 6th in Brazil and retired with an engine failure in South Africa. In Spain,
Hunt led the first six laps before colliding with a barrier with the same cause of
retirement in Monaco. He had a further two retirements in Belgium and Sweden which
were both down to mechanical failures.
[20]
Hunt's first win came in the 1975 Dutch
Grand Prix at Zandvoort. He finished fourth in the Championship that year, but Lord
Hesketh had run out of funds and could not find a sponsor for his team. With little time
left before the 1976 season, Hunt was desperately looking for a drive untilEmerson
Fittipaldi left McLaren and joined his brother's Copersucar-Fittipaldi outfit. With no other
top drivers available, the team management signed Hunt to McLaren - in a deal
brokered by Marlboro's John Hogan - for the next season on a $200,000
contract.
[21]
Hunt immediately caused a stir by refusing to sign a clause in his contract
which stipulated he wore suits to sponsor functions. Hunt wore t-shirt and jeans and
was often barefoot for sponsor-led functions with world leaders, chairmen of businesses
and media moguls.
1976-1978: McLaren[edit]


Hunt leading John Watson in the 1976 Dutch Grand Prix
1976
1976 was Hunt's best year; the season proved to be one of the most dramatic and
controversial on record. While Hunt's performances in the Hesketh had drawn
considerable praise, there was some conjecture as to whether he could really sustain a
championship challenge. Now a works McLaren driver, he dispelled many doubters at
the first race in Brazil, where, in a hastily rebuilt McLaren M23, he landed pole position
in the last minutes of qualifying. Over the course of the year he would drive the McLaren
M23 to six Grands Prix wins, but with superior reliability, reigning world champion and
main rival Niki Lauda pulled out a substantial points lead in the first few races of the
season. Hunt's first race win of 1976, at the fourth race of the season, the Spanish
Grand Prix, resulted in disqualification for driving a car adjudged to be 1.8 cm too wide.
The win was later reinstated upon appeal, but it set the tone for an extraordinarily
volatile season. At the British Grand Prix, Hunt was involved in a first corner incident on
the first lap with Lauda which led to the race being stopped and restarted. Hunt initially
attempted to take a spare car, however this was disallowed, and during this time the
original race car was repaired, eventually winning the restarted race.
[22]
Hunt's victory
was disallowed on 24 September by a ruling from the FIA after Ferrari complained that
Hunt was not legally allowed to restart the race.
[23]

Lauda sustained near-fatal injuries in an accident at the following round, the German
Grand Prix at the Nrburgring. Hunt dominated the restarted Nrburgring race, building
an immediate lead and remaining unchallenged to the chequered flag.
Lauda's injuries kept him out of the following two races, allowing Hunt to close the gap
in the championship chase. AtZandvoort, Hunt overtook Ronnie Peterson on the 12th
lap and resisted pressure from John Watson to win.
[24]
At the Italian Grand Prix, the big
story was Lauda's miraculous return from his Nrburgring accident. At a circuit that
should have suited Hunt's car, the Texaco fuel McLaren were using was tested and
although apparently legal, their cars and also those of thePenske team, were judged to
contain a higher octane level than allowed. Subsequently both teams were forced to
start from the rear of the grid. While trying to make his way up the field, Hunt spun off,
while a returning Lauda finished fourth. However, at the penultimate round in the United
States, Hunt started from pole and took victory after a close battle with Jody
Scheckter.
[25]

This set the stage for the final round in Japan. Hunt's late season charge pulled him to
just three points behind Lauda. The sliding scale of points for the top six finishers meant
that Hunt needed to finish third (4-points) or better to overtake Lauda coupled with
Lauda earning too few points to stay ahead. McLaren team manager Alastair Caldwell
had taken advantage of the gap between the final two races to hire the Fuji circuit - a
track hosting its first Grand Prix and therefore unknown to all the teams - for an
exclusive McLaren test. After a few laps the gearbox seized, bringing the test to a
premature close, but the team had had the advantage of acclimatising themselves to
the new circuit. Conditions for the race itself were torrentially wet. Lauda retired early on
in the race, unable to blink because of facial burns from his accident in
Germany.
[26]
After leading most of the race Hunt suffered a puncture, then had a
delayed pitstop and finally received mixed pit signals from his team. But he managed to
finish in third place, scoring four points, enough for him to win the World Championship
by one point.
[27]
Hunt was the last British Formula One champion until Nigel
Mansell won the 1992 championship for Williams.
[28]
He was one of the relatively
cheapest F1 World Champions ever, having signed at the last minute for $200,000 a
scenario similar to that of 1982 Champion Keke Rosberg.
1977
Before the start of 1977, Hunt attended a gala function at the Europa Hotel in London
where he was awarded the Tarmac Trophy along with a two cheques which were for
2000 and 500 respectively, a magnum of champagne and other awards. The
presentation was made by HRH the Duke of Kent. Hunt made an acceptance speech
after the event which was considered "suitably gracious and glamorous". The media
became critical of Hunt as he attended the event dressed in jeans, t-shirt and a decrepit
windbreaker.
[29]

Before the South African Grand Prix, Hunt was confronted by customs officials who
searched his luggage, finding no illegal substances except a publication that
contravened the strict obscenity laws of South Africa. Hunt was later released, and
tested at Kyalami where his McLaren M26 suffered a loose brake caliper which cut a
hole in one of the tyres. He recovered and put the car on pole position and the race saw
Hunt suffer a collision with Jody Schekter's Wolf and another collision with Patrick
Depailler's Tyrrell but still managed to finish 4th.
[30]

The season did not start well for Hunt. The McLaren M26 was problematic in the early
part of the season, during which Niki Lauda, Mario Andretti and Jody Scheckter took a
considerable lead in the Drivers' Championship. Towards the end of the year Hunt and
the McLaren M26 were quicker than any rival combination other than Mario Andretti and
the Lotus 78. Hunt won in Silverstone after trailing the Brabham of John Watson for 25
laps.
[31]
He then took a further victory at Watkins Glen. At the Canadian Grand Prix,
Hunt retired after a collision with team-mate Jochen Mass and was fined $2000 for
assaulting a marshal and $750 for walking back to the pit lane in an "unsafe
manner".
[32]
In Fuji, Hunt won the race but did not attend the podium
ceremony
[33]
resulting in a fine for $20,000.
[34]
He finished fifth in the World Drivers'
Championship.


Hunt in the 1978 British Grand Prixat Brands Hatch with McLaren M26.
1978
Before the 1978 season Hunt had high hopes to win a second world championship;
however, in this season he scored only eight world championship points. Lotus had
developed effective ground effect aerodynamics with their Lotus 79 car and McLaren
were slow to respond. The M26 was revised as a ground effect car midway through the
season but it did not work, and without a test driver to solve the car's problems, Hunt's
motivation was low. His inexperienced new team-mate Patrick Tambay even
outqualified Hunt at one race. In Germany, Hunt was disqualified for taking a shortcut to
allow for a tyre change.
[35]

Hunt was also greatly affected by Ronnie Peterson's fatal crash in the 1978 Italian
Grand Prix. At the start of the race there was a huge accident going into the first corner.
Peterson's Lotus was pushed into the barriers and burst into flames. Hunt, together
with Patrick Depailler and Clay Regazzoni, rescued Peterson from the car, but Peterson
died one day later in hospital. Hunt took his friend's death particularly hard and for years
afterwards blamed Riccardo Patrese for the accident.
[36]
Video evidence of the crash
has since shown that Patrese did not touch Hunt or Peterson's cars, nor did he cause
any other car to do so.
[37]
Hunt believed that it was Patrese's muscling past that caused
the McLaren and Lotus to touch, but Patrese argues that he was already well ahead of
the pair before the accident took place.
[37]

1979: Wolf[edit]
For 1979 Hunt had resolved to leave the McLaren team. Despite his poor season in
1978 he was still very much in demand. He was offered a deal to drive for Ferrari in
1979, but wary of the potentially complicated political environment at the Italian team,
he opted to move instead to the initially very successful Walter Wolf Racing team. Again
he had high hopes to win races and compete for the world championship in what would
be his last, and ultimately brief, Formula One season. The team's ground effect car was
uncompetitive and Hunt soon lost any enthusiasm for racing.
[38]
Hunt could only watch
as Jody Scheckter won the World Driver's championship that year driving the Ferrari
312T4.
At the first race in Argentina, he felt the car was difficult to handle and on a fast lap, the
front wing became detached, narrowly striking his helmet. In the race, Hunt retired due
to an electrical fault. In Brazil, he retired on lap 6 due to instability under braking caused
by a loose steering rack. During qualifying in South Africa, the brakes on his car failed.
He managed not to collide with the wall, but only finished 8th in the race. He retired at
the Spanish Grand Prix after 26 laps. At Zolder, a new Wolf WR8 was raced but Hunt
crashed into a barrier hard enough to bounce back onto the track. After failing to finish
the 1979 Monaco Grand Prix, the race where six years previously he had made his
debut, Hunt made a statement on 8 June 1979 to the press announcing his immediate
retirement and walked away from F1 competition citing his situation in the
championship.
[39]
Despite going into retirement, he continued to work to