Philip Hill: Formula One's Reclusive World Champion
Born on 20th April, 1927, in Florida, U.S.A. into a well-known household, Philip Toll Hill, Jr. was a reclusive youngster with feelings of mediocrity. Not especially attached to his parents, little Philip made few acquaintances and dreaded losing at schoolboy sports and being taunted. Young Philip sought refuge in music, which became an escape for him, and mastered the piano before becoming captivated by cars. At the age of 12, an adoring aunt gifted the future Formula One World Champion his first car, a Model T Ford. The curious young Philip dissected the Ford’s many components more than once to fathom its intricate secrets, and learnt to drive the treasure courtesy of his aunt’s chauffeur. The teenager’s ever-expanding automotive knowhow boosted his self-esteem, but he still felt somewhat directionless and remained socially stiff.
Business education at the University of California failed to inspire him, and he abandoned the degree to become a mechanic’s apprentice at a Los Angeles car stall owned by a novice motor racer. Phil himself began racing in 1947, after purchasing an MG TC make and remodelling it into race-worthy shape on his own. Although Phil proved his winning mettle instantly, he was so tormented by insecurity that he almost always attributed his success to the vehicle. In 1951, he got his hands on a 2.6-litre Ferrari, an acquisition made possible by the legacy that had come down to him following his parents’ death. Hill thrived in his latest acquisition, but his persistent anxiety over the hazards of his chosen profession left him bedridden with acute stomach ulcers that at one point compromised eight months of his racing time. Stuffed with large spoonfuls of tranquilisers, the American reoccupied himself with racing. After recording a series of impressive triumphs on a string of Ferrari’s thrown into contestation by affluent owners, Hill had by the 1950s assumed the mantle of America’s most talented motor racer.
In 1955, Hill made an appearance at the year’s Le Mans endurance race following an offer from Ferrari. Here the American witnessed to his great distress the deaths of nearly a 100 spectators in motorsport’s most violent catastrophe. Although Hill would subsequently go on to triumph at Le Mans three times, his Formula One breakthrough was a rather belated affair because Enzo Ferrari remained sceptical of the American’s suitability to Formula One tracks. Following the deaths of both Luigi Musso and Peter Collins from on-circuit mishaps, Hill was enlisted to spearhead Ferrari’s Formula One campaign in 1958. After assisting teammate Mike Hawthorn in securing the 1958 World Championship title, Hill landed his very first Formula One championship win at the 1960 Italian event.
Formula One driving helped Phil shove off his lifelong preoccupation with inferiority, but the utter ruthlessness of his favoured vocation still troubled him incessantly. Although motor racing had become an avenue for self–articulation, the American still harboured doubts over the appropriateness of many of the game’s inescapable elements.
The 1961 Formula One season began with new rules in play, and the V6 “Sharknose” Ferrari 156 makes took tracks worldwide by storm. As the year’s campaign came to a close, Hill and his upper-class Ferrari partner, Count Wolfgang Von Trips, found one another head-to-head in the battle for the driver’s title. The two teammates’ championship struggle climaxed at the ill-omened Italian event at Monza. Midway through the second lap, von Trips’ vehicle collided with Jim Clark’s Lotus and somersaulted into the stands. Hill went on to win the competition, beating his ravaged teammate by only a point to the title and becoming the lone American ever to have lifted the Formula One World Championship trophy. The American had won the ultimate trophy in motorsport, but the tragic circumstances that had ensued made it a dispirited victory. Hill said about the triumph: “I never in my life experienced anything so mournful.”
From then on, Hill’s Formula One journey took on a less glorious path. The American finally bid farewell to sport in 1964 after undistinguished spells at ATS (Automobili Turismo e Sport) and Cooper following his release from Ferrari at the close of the 1962 run. Phil returned home to the U.S. where he embarked on a thriving business involving car restoration and settled down to start a family. Hill died in 2008 at the age of 81 after succumbing to Parkinson’s disease.
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