Damon Hill reveals that his father's death helped him become an F1 driver

  • Published on 23 Sep 2016 14:32
  • comments 0
  • By: Dominik Wilde

Damon Hill has revealed that his father's death made him want to follow in his footsteps and become a Formula One driver.

The 1996 world champion, speaking to The Guardian, said that after being prepared for his father Graham's death during his double world championship winning career, when he died in a plane crash just months after after retiring in 1975, the news came as a shock.

I was 15 when my father died," said former Williams driver Hill. "His death was an emotional nuclear bomb. It was so out of the blue – he’d just retired and so my mum, my sisters and I had let our guard down, after being prepared for the worst for many years."

"It caught us so hard. There was a void – a crater – where he had been. I dealt with things by telling myself it was no good feeling sorry for myself. We were lucky to have had the time we had with him."

However, Hill said that after wanting to emulate his father for a number of years, his passing allowed him to become his own man.

I absolutely worshipped my father, but when he died, the spotlight was turned off and I had the chance to be myself," said Hill, the only second generation driver to date to win the championship after his father did. "There was this sense of relief. I didn’t have to worry about whether my dad approved of what I was doing. It was a complicated feeling of freedom, at the cost of his life."

While Damon Hill admits that he doesn't miss racing, he said that his racing career helped him understand his father much more.

My father’s death made me want to follow in his footsteps and start racing. I hadn’t expressed any desire to race cars before he died and I might not have felt any motivation to race if he’d lived – I honestly don’t know," Hill revealed. "I do know I haven’t missed it that much since I stopped. By racing, I was resurrecting my dad. My performances were mine, but they inevitably contained some legacy of my dad’s racing career and honoured his memory."

"In some senses, it was a way of getting to know him as an adult that I couldn’t have done any other way. Knowing what he went through, I did get closer to understanding him," he added. "But it’s a very difficult thing to carry on in the same profession as your parents if they have been successful."

Replies (0)

Login to reply

BE Grand Prix of Belgium

Local time 02:39

BEGrand Prix of Belgium

Local time 02:39

World Championship standings 2025

Show full world champion standings

Test calendar

See full test schedule

Related news

Give your opinion!

Will Bottas challenge Hamilton for the world championship in 2020?

Formula 1 Calendar - 2025

Date
Grand Prix
Circuit
-
Bahrain
14 - Mar 16
Australia
21 - Mar 23
China
4 - Apr 6
Japan
11 - Apr 13
Bahrain
18 - Apr 20
Saudi Arabia
2 - May 4
United States of America
16 - May 18
Italy
23 - May 25
Monaco
30 - Jun 1
Spain
13 - Jun 15
Canada
27 - Jun 29
Austria
4 - Jul 6
United Kingdom
25 - Jul 27
Belgium
1 - Aug 3
Hungary
29 - Aug 31
Netherlands
5 - Sep 7
Italy
19 - Sep 21
Azerbaijan
3 - Oct 5
Singapore
17 - Oct 19
United States of America
24 - Oct 26
Mexico
7 - Nov 9
Brazil
21 - Nov 23
United States of America
28 - Nov 30
Qatar
5 - Dec 7
United Arab Emirates
See full schedule

Formula 1 Calendar - 2025

Date
Grand Prix & Circuit
14 - Mar 16
Australia Albert Park
21 - Mar 23
4 - Apr 6
11 - Apr 13
18 - Apr 20
Saudi Arabia Jeddah Street Circuit
2 - May 4
United States of America Miami International Autodrome
16 - May 18
23 - May 25
Monaco Monte Carlo
30 - Jun 1
13 - Jun 15
27 - Jun 29
Austria Red Bull Ring
4 - Jul 6
United Kingdom Silverstone
25 - Jul 27
1 - Aug 3
Hungary Hungaroring
29 - Aug 31
Netherlands Circuit Zandvoort
5 - Sep 7
Italy Monza
19 - Sep 21
Azerbaijan Baku City Circuit
3 - Oct 5
17 - Oct 19
United States of America Circuit of the Americas
24 - Oct 26
7 - Nov 9
Brazil Interlagos
21 - Nov 23
United States of America Las Vegas Street Circuit
28 - Nov 30
5 - Dec 7
United Arab Emirates Yas Marina Circuit
See full schedule

Team profile

Show full profile
show sidebar