James Hunt

James Simon Wallis Hunt (29 August 1947 – 15 June 1993) was a British racing driver and broadcaster who competed in Formula One from 1973 to 1979. Nicknamed "the Shunt", Hunt won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in 1976 with McLaren and won 10 Grands Prix across seven seasons.

Born and raised in Surrey, Hunt began his racing career in touring cars before progressing to Formula Three in 1969, where he attracted the attention of Lord Hesketh, founder of Hesketh Racing. Hunt earned notoriety throughout his early career for his reckless and action-packed exploits on track, along with his playboy lifestyle off it. He signed for Hesketh in 1973—driving a March 731 chassis designed by Harvey Postlethwaite—making his Formula One debut at the Monaco Grand Prix; he took podiums in his rookie season at the Dutch and United States Grands Prix. Hesketh entered their own 308 chassis in 1974, in which Hunt achieved several podiums and won the non-championship BRDC International Trophy.

Retaining his seat the following season, Hunt took his maiden victory with Hesketh at the Dutch Grand Prix, widely regarded as one of the greatest underdog victories in Formula One history. The team was left without sponsorship at the end of the season, leading Hunt to join McLaren for his 1976 campaign. Amidst a fierce title battle with Niki Lauda, Hunt won the World Drivers' Championship by a single point in his debut season with McLaren. He won several further races in 1977, dropping to fifth in the standings amidst reliability issues. After a winless 1978 season for McLaren, Hunt moved to Wolf in 1979 and retired after the Monaco Grand Prix, having achieved 10 race wins, 14 pole positions, eight fastest laps, and 23 podiums in Formula One.

Upon retiring from motor racing, Hunt established a career as a commentator and pundit for the BBC, as well as a columnist for The Independent. Through Marlboro, he also mentored two-time World Drivers' Champion Mika Häkkinen. He died from a heart attack at his home in Wimbledon, aged 45.