Mike Hawthorn

Did You Know?

• Hawthorn was educated at Ardingly College, West Sussex, followed by studies at Chelsea technical college and an apprenticeship with a commercial vehicle manufacturer.
• He never married but fathered a son, Arnaud Michael Delaunay, born 1954, with Jacqueline Delaunay.
• At the time of his death he was engaged to fashion model Jean Howarth, who later married racing driver Innes Ireland in 1993.

Racing career

Hawthorn made his competition debut on 2 September 1950 in a 1934 Riley Ulster Imp, winning the 1,100 cc sports car class at the Brighton Speed Trials. In 1951, driving a 1 1/2-litre T.T. Riley, he won the Motor Sport Brooklands Memorial Trophy by one point, along with the Ulster Trophy Handicap and the Leinster Trophy. By 1952 he had switched to single-seaters, winning his first race in a Formula Two Cooper-Bristol T20 at Goodwood. Enzo Ferrari offered him a works drive, and Hawthorn made his Formula One debut at the 1952 Grote Prijs van Belgie, finishing fourth.

That season he secured his first podium with a third place at the RAC British Grand Prix. At Scuderia Ferrari in 1953, he won the French Grand Prix at Reims in what was called 'the race of the century', with the top four finishing within five seconds. He ended the season fourth overall and also won the BRDC International Trophy, the Ulster Trophy, and the 24 Heures de Spa Francorchamps with Giuseppe Farina. After a crash at the Gran Premio di Siracusa caused serious burns, he finished the year with three second places and a victory in the season finale in Spain, placing third in the Drivers' Championship. Following his father's death, Hawthorn left Ferrari for Vanwall but returned after two races.

Rivalry with Luigi Musso

Fiamma Breschi, Musso's girlfriend at the time of his death, stated in a television documentary that the rivalry between Musso and the two English drivers, Hawthorn and Peter Collins, encouraged all three to take more risks. According to Breschi, Hawthorn and Collins had an agreement to share winnings equally, uniting them against Musso. She said this antagonism was favourable to Ferrari because faster driving increased the likelihood of a Ferrari win.

Breschi related that Musso was in debt and the money from winning the 1958 French Grand Prix was all-important to him. After visiting the mortally injured Musso in hospital, Breschi returned to her hotel, where the team manager informed them that Musso had died. Breschi said she could not suppress a feeling of release, having hated them both, because she was aware of certain facts and because she found them laughing and playing football with an empty beer can outside the hotel after she left the hospital.

Death

On 22 January 1959, three months after retiring, Hawthorn died in a car accident on the A3 Guildford bypass near Onslow Village while driving his modified 1958 Jaguar 3.4-litre saloon VDU 881 to London. The road was wet and had been the scene of 15 serious accidents, two fatal, in the previous two years. Driving at an estimated 80 mph, Hawthorn overtook a Mercedes-Benz 300SL driven by Rob Walker. On entering a right-hand bend, he clipped a 'Keep Left' bollard, lost control, glanced an oncoming Bedford lorry, and hit a roadside tree, suffering fatal head injuries.

Speculation that the two were racing was fuelled by Walker's refusal at the inquest to estimate his own speed; in 1988 Walker admitted they had been racing but said a police officer advised him not to mention it. Possible causes include driver error, a blackout, or mechanical failure, though no fault was found in the wreck. Hawthorn had lost one kidney to infection by 1955 and was expected to live only three more years. The inquest jury returned a verdict of accidental death. He was buried in West Street Cemetery in Farnham.

Eponymy

In Farnham, where Hawthorn lived, a street is named Mike Hawthorn Drive. The Tourist Trophy Garage he ran still exists and is named after him. A hill and corner at Brands Hatch, a corner at Croft racing circuit, and Hawthorn Drive in Towcester near Silverstone are named after him. A statue at Goodwood Circuit commemorates him as the UK's first Formula One World Champion.