24h Le Mans
Deceased in 1970 at the young age of 32, this year Bruce McLaren would have celebrated his 80th birthday. In a nearly two-decade career cut short way too early, he was one of the most accomplished talents of his era: driver, engineer, constructor and winner of some of the top races in the world such as the Grand Prix of Monaco (1962) and the 24 Hours of Le Mans (1966).
Born on August 30, 1937 in Auckland, New Zealand, Bruce McLaren was as assertive as he was brilliant. He made his first appearance in competition at the age of 14 in a hillclimb race in 1952.
Noticed in 1958 by Australian Jack Brabham, he was the first to benefit from a support program for young drivers in his country, which allowed him to make the move to Europe and join his mentor with Cooper. He remained loyal to the British constructor until 1965, winning three of his four victories in Formula 1.
Bruce McLaren didn't take long to make his mark. On December 12, 1959, he scored his first win at the first Grand Prix of the U.S., counted in the championship. He thereby became, at the age of 22 years and 104 days, the youngest winner in the history of Formula 1 at the time. The record held nearly 44 years before being beaten by Fernando Alonso (2003), then Sebastian Vettel (2008) and Max Verstappen (2016).
1959 was also the year of his first appearance at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The Cooper Monaco he shared with Jim Russell (founder of the first competition driving school in 1956) sported the number...24, but the New Zealander and the Brit were forced to retire. Bruce McLaren returned to Le Mans two years later but fared no better in a Maserati (1961 and 1962) then an Aston Martin (1963).
But in 1964, with Phil Hill, Masten Gregory, Richie Ginther, Jo Schlesser and Richard Attwood, he was one of the first six drivers recruited by Ford to drive the GT40 in the American marque's first offensive against Ferrari at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
His qualities as a driver and his technical know-how were particularly appreciated by Anglo-American engineer Roy Lunn, father of the GT40, and quickly made him indispensable. Bruce McLaren stayed with Ford until 1967, the end of the American manufacturer's official involvement at Le Mans.
But that is another story...for the next installment of this series!
Photo: Among the cars driven at the 24 Hours of Le Mans by Bruce McLaren figures the stunning Maserati Tipo 151, with whom he shared the wheel in 1962 with American driver Walter Hansgen.
