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Bruce McLaren
Bruce McLaren | |
|---|---|
 McLaren in 1966 | |
| Born | Bruce Leslie McLaren 30 August 1937 Auckland, New Zealand |
| Died | 2 June 1970 (aged 32) Goodwood Circuit, Sussex, England |
| Cause of death | Injuries sustained whilst testing the McLaren M8D |
| Spouse |
Patricia Broad (m. 1961) |
| Children | 1 |
| Formula One World Championship career | |
| Nationality |  New Zealander |
| Active years | 1958–1970 |
| Teams | Cooper, McLaren, Eagle |
| Entries | 104 (100 starts) |
| Championships | 0 |
| Wins | 4 |
| Podiums | 27 |
| Career points | 188.5 (196.5)[a] |
| Pole positions | 0 |
| Fastest laps | 3 |
| First entry | 1958 German Grand Prix |
| First win | 1959 United States Grand Prix |
| Last win | 1968 Belgian Grand Prix |
| Last entry | 1970 Monaco Grand Prix |
| 24 Hours of Le Mans career | |
| Years | 1959, 1961–1967, 1969 |
| Teams | Cooper Car Company, Maserati, Aston Martin, Ford, Shelby, McLaren |
| Best finish | 1st (1966) |
| Class wins | 1 (1966) |
Bruce Leslie McLaren (30 August 1937 – 2 June 1970) was a New Zealand racing driver, automotive designer, engineer and motorsport executive, who competed in Formula One from 1958 to 1970. McLaren was runner-up in the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in 1960 with Cooper, and won four Grands Prix across 13 seasons. In endurance racing, McLaren won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1966 with Ford. He founded McLaren in 1963, who have since won nine World Constructors' Championship titles and remain the only team to have completed the Triple Crown of Motorsport.[b]
Born and raised in Auckland, McLaren initially studied engineering at the University of Auckland before dropping out to focus on his motor racing career. Having entered his first hillclimbing event aged 14, he progressed to Formula Two in 1957, winning the New Zealand Championship the following year. His performance at the New Zealand Grand Prix attracted the attention of Jack Brabham, with whom he partnered at Cooper in 1959 having already debuted at the 1958 German Grand Prix, where he finished fifth in his Formula Two machinery. Aged 22, McLaren took his maiden win at the United States Grand Prix, becoming the then-youngest driver to win a Formula One Grand Prix, a record which stood for 44 years. Remaining at Cooper for 1960, McLaren took a further win in Argentina—amongst several podiums—as he finished championship runner-up to teammate Brabham. After a winless 1961 season for Cooper, Brabham won the 1962 Monaco Grand Prix, finishing third in the championship to Graham Hill and Jim Clark. Cooper struggled for performance from 1963 to 1965 as Lotus, BRM and Ferrari dominated the championship, prompting McLaren to enter Formula One with his own team. McLaren founded Bruce McLaren Motor Racing in 1963, with whom he competed from 1966 until his death in 1970. With the team, he won the Belgian Grand Prix in 1968 and finished third in the 1969 World Drivers' Championship. In June 1970, he died whilst testing the McLaren M8D at Goodwood, having achieved four wins, three fastest laps and 27 podiums in Formula One.
Outside of Formula One, McLaren competed in nine editions of the 24 Hours of Le Mans from 1959 to 1969, winning in 1966 alongside Chris Amon in the Ford GT40 Mk II. He was also a two-time champion of the Canadian-American Challenge Cup in 1967 and 1969, driving his own M6A and M8B, and won the Tasman Series in 1964. His legacy has been cemented with the McLaren Group, whose achievements have included winning nine World Constructors' Championships, two Indianapolis 500s,[c] and the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1995. McLaren was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 1991.
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