Between 1958 to 1960, John Surtees, whose father was a motorcycle salesman, largely dominated motorcycle competitions with 32 victories and three podium finishes in 39 races. In 49 starts over his career, the Brit - seven-time World Champion in two classes - won 38 victories. In 1960, at 26 years of age, John Surtees, who had nothing left to prove in motorcycle competition, turned to car racing and in only his second race, and on British soil, he finished second. Four years later in 1964, he became F1 World Champion with Ferrari. The same year, still with the Italian manufacturer, he claimed the third step on the podium at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Earlier, in 1963, John Surtees won the 12 Hours of Sebring at his very first endurance race with Ferrari, clocking the best lap despite some hiccups: "Throughout my contract, Ferrari entrusted me with handling the testing of its cars. For the 12 Hours of Sebring, we were short on time and one of the cars going to the NART team was not fully tested. When I arrived in the U.S., the team manager had changed the allocation of the cars, and my teammate Ludovico Scarfiotti  and I were given that car. During the race, smoke penetrated the cockpit because the hood was not correctly sealed. It made us sick and we had to get off the podium quickly!"

Despite his love of the podium, as long as he reached the top step, at Le Mans he had to settle for third place unfortunately: "Twenty-four hours is a long time! So we enjoyed reaching the podium, but it was frustrating to be on the third step because the car was running perfectly and would could have easily won if a fuel hose had not broken within a few hours of the finish. Up until the checkered flag, at each refuelling, we could only fill up halfway!"

John Surtees, Commander of the Order of the British Empire since 2016, had competitive spirit to spare, and plenty of character: "I went to Le Mans three times with Ferrari and every time I could have won. In 1966, after having clocked the best time during the free practice, I went to the circuit, but then had a disagreement with the team manager, and left the circuit on the spot." The disagreement had to do with the choice of his teammate. It was expected John Surtees would share his Ferrari 330 with Mike Parkes, but when the Brit arrived at Le Mans, he realized Ludovico Scarfiotti had replaced Mike Parkes. John Surtees, who reproached Ferrari for having dismissed him after his terrible accident in Mosport in 1965 to the benefit of Lorenzo Bandini, closed the door on the Italian manufacturer. The Ferrari adventure was over.

His affair with the 24 Hours of Le Mans continued another year with a Lola powered by Aston Martin entered by his own team, but without success due to lack of funding. He retired from competition in 1972 and continued to take care of his own F1 team until 1978. He remained involved in motorsports until the death of his son Henry in a race in 2009. Since then, he had dedicated himself to the Henry Surtees Foundation.

The last word goes to John Surtees: "Unfortunately, I was never able to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans."

The Automobile Club de l'Ouest offers its sincerest condolences to John Surtees' family and loved ones.

An online condolence book is available online on the Henry Surtees Foundation website here.

Photo (Copyright - Louis Monnier): John Surtees at the 2015 Goodwood gathering of vintage cars.