Graham Hill(1929-1975)

Universally popular, Graham Hill was the epitome of the Grand Prix racing driver. Hill started out his racing career as a mechanic, trading in his services as a mechanic for a drive. He made his mark in sports cars before getting the call to the internationally famous Formula 1 Grand Prix series in 1958. His first few years in Formula 1 were without much success until he recorded his first win in 1962, at the Dutch Grand Prix. That first win opened up the floodgates as he won three more times that season and won his first World Championship. He was a consistent winner throughout the 1960s in a variety of races series, including sports cars and the 1966 Indianapolis 500. Hill raced against several of the sport's greatest stars including Jim Clark, Jackie Stewart, Dan Gurney and Jack Brabham. Hill won his second and last World Championship in 1968, and his final Formula 1 race at Monaco, the following year. His last big win was at Le Mans, in 1972, but Hill's final three seasons in racing were fruitless. Hill started his own Grand Prix team in 1973, and initially the prospects of a winning team were promising, however Hill, his racing protected Tony Brise, and four other team members were killed when Hill, piloting his own plane, clipped the tree tops in a dense fog, and crashed short of the Elstree Airport. Grand Prix racing had lost one of its greatest racing figures. In 1996, Hill's only son Damon won the World Championship, making them the first father-son combination to accomplish the feat.