In memoriam: Bruce McLaren

There are a few past events in motorsport that simply cannot be allowed to pass by without noting. And one of those falls on June 2, when we remember one of the biggest talents and personalities in the history of the sport.

Bruce McLaren was the first driver from New Zealand to drive in Formula 1. He made his début with the Cooper team in the 1958 German Grand Prix at the Nurburging.

He went on to make 100 starts, and finished on the podium 27 times. he was just 21 years, 322 days old when he finished third in the 1959 British Grand Prix - the youngest driver to step on the podium to date.

He subsequently claimed four race wins, with the first at Sebring in 1959. He won again in Argentina (1960), Monaco (1962) and Belgium (1968).

He never won the championship, although he was runner-up in 1960 and third in 1962 and 1969. Instead, his enduring fame comes from the business he set up in 1963 as a constructor.

McLaren F1 still one of the sport's most famous marques. While it may be going through some lean times at present, in five decades the team has claimed 182 victories, 12 drivers championships and eight constructors titles.

During McLaren's lifetime the team was actually more successful in the Can-Am Series than F1. In 1969 the team won all 11 races, including two races where they finished 1-2-3 led by McLaren himself along with Denny Hulme and Mark Donohue.

McLaren was also a Le Mans 24 Hour winner, taking victory in 1966 with co-driver Chris Amon in a Ford GT40.

Sadly, McLaren lost his life in an accident at Goodwood on June 2, 1970 when he was just 32 years old. He had been testing the new M8D Can-Am car when some rear bodywork detached at speed. The loss of aerodynamic downforce resulted in a spin on the Lavant Straight just before Woodcote. McLaren died when the car hit a bunker used as a flag station.

Years before, McLaren had penned some thoughts on the untimely death of teammate Timmy Mayer, which proved remarkably apt for McLaren himself:

"To do something well is so worthwhile that to die trying to do it better cannot be foolhardy," he wrote in 1964. "It would be a waste of life to do nothing with one's ability, for I feel that life is measured in achievement, not in years alone."

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