Mike Hawthorn: “Le Papillon” – 1/2

Mike Hawthorn was born in Mexborough, England, on 10 April 1929. Like many professional drivers he was introduced to racing by his father, Leslie, who bought a garage near the Brooklands circuit just two years after Mike's birth. The child grew up among the motorbikes and cars that passed in the family garage, and the climate and proximity to the circuit led him to decide at the age of nine – almost every child's dream – to become a driver.

While Mike studied at school and then at college (obviously with a technical-mechanical focus) his father provided him with motorbikes and cars with which to train on the track. His life was that of a young boy like everyone else, who loved speed, girls and enjoying a beer with friends.

In 1950 Mike decided to start getting serious. So he entered the Brighton Speed ​​Trial race in the 1.100cc sports class category and won the race aboard his 1934 Riley Ulster Imp KV 9475. The following year he entered the Motor Sport Brooklands Memorial Trophy, competing with his 1½-litre TT Riley. He won the championship held at Goodwood by just one point over his closest rival. The same year he took part in and won two further trophies: the Ulster Trophy Handicap and the Leinster Trophy. The moment of revelation, however, was at the Eastern Trophy held at Goodwood in 1952. It was the first time Mike raced in a single-seater, specifically a Two Cooper-Bristol, which was provided to him by a family friend. Mike scored two incredible victories in the Formula 2 and Formula Libre races, and finished in second place in the race dedicated to Formula 1 cars. He fought on equal terms with opponents such as Fangio and Gonzales, driving that small car in a very strange way, from which, at 188 centimetres, he stood out with his entire torso. Furthermore, for the occasion, Mike, who usually competed in his normal clothes, which very often fluttered and ended up in his face, bought a white tracksuit, but added his touch of style, also wearing a bow tie, a custom which he did not abandon for the rest of his career.

For the same year, Mike, always followed by his father, decided to join Cooper-Bristol for the rest of the Formula 1 championship, taking part in five of the eight races on the calendar, obtaining excellent results such as two fourth places in Belgium and Holland and even a podium on the bottom step at the British Grand Prix at Silverstone. These results allowed him to gain 10 points in the standings, finishing the championship in fourth place. At the last round of the season, Enzo Ferrari decided to give the young Englishman an opportunity by letting him test one of the Ferraris in the race. On the Modena circuit - a race not valid for the F1 championship - Mike's performance was nothing exceptional but despite everything the Commendatore was convinced and signed the young Englishman for the 1953 season.

The following year Mike's performances became consistent and notable. He finished fourth in Argentina and Holland, sixth in Belgium, fifth in England and third in Germany and Switzerland. But his best race was the one that gave him his first victory in the Formula 1 championship: the French Grand Prix. After a duel with Fangio that lasted 30 laps, Mike prevailed right at the finish line by less than a second, becoming the first English driver to win a race in Formula 1, as well as, at 24 years old, the youngest winner of a Grand Prix. Mike became a hero. On the podium when the English anthem was played, he burst into liberating tears, allowing himself to be consoled by Fangio next to him.

“A nice young man, always in a good mood” [Juan Manuel Fangio on Mike Hawthorn]

go on…

Matteo Bramati.