Nationality ![]() |
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Formula One World Championship career | |
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Active years | 1952 - 1958 |
Teams | LD Hawthorn, AHM Bryde, Ferrari, Vanwall, BRM |
Races | 47 (45 starts) |
Championships | 1 (1958) |
Wins | 3 |
Podium finishes | 18 |
Career points | 112.64 (127.64)[1] |
Pole positions | 4 |
Fastest laps | 6 |
First race | 1952 Belgian Grand Prix |
First win | 1953 French Grand Prix |
Last win | 1958 French Grand Prix |
Last race | 1958 Moroccan Grand Prix |
24 Hours of Le Mans career | |
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Participating years | 1953, 1955 – 1958 |
Teams | Jaguar Cars Scuderia Ferrari |
Best finish | 1st (1955) |
Class wins | 1 (1955) |
John Michael Hawthorn (April 10, 1929 - January 22, 1959) was a racing driver, born in Mexborough, Yorkshire, England, and educated at Ardingly College, West Sussex.
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Hawthorn made his Formula One debut at the 1952 Belgian Grand Prix, finishing an impressive 4th place. He would later win his first Grand Prix, at only the 9th attempt, when he won the 1953 French Grand Prix at Reims.
In 1955, Hawthorn was the winner of the 24 hours of Le Mans race, despite being involved in the terrible crash that killed 82 spectators.
He was the winner of the 1958 Formula One Championship. With only one win that year against four wins of Stirling Moss, he benefited greatly from the gentlemanliness of Moss as shown at the Portuguese Grand Prix of Porto. Hawthorn was disqualified for pushing his car, against the rules, on the way to a second place finish. Moss interceded on Hawthorn's behalf and the decision was ultimately reversed. Those second place points at Porto contributed to Hawthorn winning the championship with a season total just one point more than that of Moss. After winning the title, Hawthorn immediately announced his retirement from Formula One.
A matter of only months later, on January 22, 1959, Hawthorn died in an automobile accident on the A3 Guildford bypass. He was driving his British Racing Green highly tuned Jaguar 3.4-litre sedan (now known as the 3.4 Mark 1 etc). What happened that day is still a mystery, suggested causes being driver error, mechanical failure, or blackout. The crash has been ascribed to combination of high speed, bad weather, competitiveness and impulsiveness. Rob Walker's 300 SL Mercedes was ahead of him. Perhaps Hawthorn pushed his car to pass Walker's. Hawthorn's Jaguar, nicknamed "the Merceater" was heavily modified for high power and speed. "No Kraut car could overtake or outaccelerate" Hawthorn's Jaguar (these are the words in his biography Challenge Me The Race) - a close relation had been killed in the war, hence his dislike of Germans.
There is now evidence that Hawthorn had recently become subject to blackouts that might well have caused the accident.[2]
In Farnham, the town where he lived up to the time of his death, there is a street named Mike Hawthorn Drive (off Dogflud Way). It was also in this town that Hawthorn ran The Tourist Trophy Garage. Jaguars, Rileys, Fiats and Ferraris were serviced and sold from there.
(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position)
Year | Entrant | Chassis | Engine | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | WDC | Pts.[1] |
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1952 | LD Hawthorn | Cooper T20 | Bristol I6 | SUI DNP |
500 DNP |
BEL 4 |
GBR 3 |
GER DNP |
NED 4 |
ITA Ret |
5th | 10 | ||||
AHM Bryde | Cooper T20 | Bristol I6 | FRA Ret |
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1953 | Scuderia Ferrari | Ferrari 500 | Ferrari I4 | ARG 4 |
500 DNP |
NED 4 |
BEL 6 |
FRA 1 |
GBR 5 |
GER 3 |
SUI 3 |
ITA 6 |
4th | 19 (27) | ||
1954 | Scuderia Ferrari | Ferrari 625 | Ferrari I4 | ARG DSQ |
500 DNP |
BEL 4* |
GBR 2 |
GER 2* |
SUI Ret |
ITA 2 |
3rd | 24.64 | ||||
Ferrari 553 | Ferrari I4 | FRA Ret |
ESP 1 |
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1955 | Vandervell Products Ltd. | Vanwall | Vanwall I4 | ARG DNP |
MON Ret |
500 DNP |
BEL Ret |
NC | 0 | |||||||
Scuderia Ferrari | Ferrari 555 | Ferrari I4 | NED 7 |
ITA 10 |
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Ferrari 625 | Ferrari I4 | GBR 6 |
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1956 | Owen Racing Organisation | Maserati 250F | Maserati I6 | ARG 3 |
BEL DNS |
12th | 4 | |||||||||
BRM P25 | BRM I4 | MON DNS |
500 DNP |
GBR Ret |
GER DNP |
ITA DNP |
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Vandervell Products Ltd. | Vanwall | Vanwall I4 | FRA 10 |
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1957 | Scuderia Ferrari | Lancia-Ferrari D50A | Lancia V8 | ARG Ret |
MON Ret |
500 DNP |
4th | 13 | ||||||||
Ferrari 801 | Lancia V8 | FRA 4 |
GBR 3 |
GER 2 |
PES DNP |
ITA 6 |
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1958 | Scuderia Ferrari | Ferrari Dino 246 | Ferrari V6 | ARG 3 |
MON Ret |
NED 5 |
500 DNP |
BEL 2 |
FRA 1 |
GBR 2 |
GER Ret |
POR 2 |
ITA 2 |
MOR 2 |
1st | 42 (49) |
* Indicates Shared Drive
The Hawthorn Memorial Trophy has been awarded to the most successful British or Commonwealth F1 driver every year since 1959.[3]
Sporting positions | ||
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Preceded by Lance Macklin |
BRDC International Trophy winner 1953 |
Succeeded by José Froilán González |
Preceded by José Froilán González Maurice Trintignant |
Winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans 1955 with: Ivor Bueb |
Succeeded by Ron Flockhart Ninian Sanderson |
Preceded by Juan Manuel Fangio |
Formula One World Champion 1958 |
Succeeded by Jack Brabham |
Records | ||
Preceded by Alberto Ascari 34 years, 16 days (1952 season) |
Youngest Formula One World Drivers' Champion 29 years, 192 days (1958 season) |
Succeeded by Jim Clark 27 years, 188 days (1963 season) |
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Persondata | |
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NAME | Hawthorn, Mike |
ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Hawthorn, John Michael |
SHORT DESCRIPTION | English racing driver |
DATE OF BIRTH | April 10, 1929 |
PLACE OF BIRTH | Mexborough, Yorkshire, England |
DATE OF DEATH | January 22, 1959 |
PLACE OF DEATH | A3 Guildford bypass |