Remembering Britain's first F1 world champion - Mike Hawthorn

©TheCahierArchive

On this day in 1959, Britain lost its first Formula 1 world champion when 29-year-old Mike Hawthorn was killed in a road accident.

Hawthorn had clinched the 1958 world title just a few months earlier, driving for Ferrari.

In the picture here-above taken that year at Zandvoort, Mike is sitting on the grid at the Dutch GP patiently waiting for the start and smiling to his friend and photographer Bernard Cahier.

It had been a traumatic season however for the Brit who, following the deaths of Scuderia team mates Luigi Musso and Peter Collins, had decided to leave the sport at the end of the year.

Sadly, just three months into retirement, Hawthorn met his own fate on a wet Thursday morning on a Guilford bypass near London.

Phillip van Osten

Motor racing was a backdrop from the outset in Phillip van Osten's life. Born in Southern California, Phillip grew up with the sights and sounds of fast cars thanks to his father, Dick van Osten, an editor and writer for Auto Speed and Sport and Motor Trend. Phillip's passion for racing grew even more when his family moved to Europe and he became acquainted with the extraordinary world of Grand Prix racing. He was an early contributor to the monthly French F1i Magazine, often providing a historic or business perspective on Formula 1's affairs. In 2012, he co-authored along with fellow journalist Pierre Van Vliet the English-language adaptation of a limited edition book devoted to the great Belgian driver Jacky Ickx. He also authored "The American Legacy in Formula 1", a book which recounts the trials and tribulations of American drivers in Grand Prix racing. Phillip is also a commentator for Belgian broadcaster Be.TV for the US Indycar series.