It was reported this morning that John Surtees, the only man to win championships on both two and four wheels, passed away peacefully after a short illness, aged 83.
The Ferrari team, with whom he won the F1 World Championship back in 1964, has expressed their deep sadness at the news of the passing of the British legend and have sent condolences to his family…
“Ferrari has lost one of its greatest drivers. John Surtees has passed away in his native England at the age of 83. Born in Tatsfield on February 11 1934,” they said in a statement. “Big John, as he was fondly known, won the Formula 1 World Championship in 1964 with Ferrari, becoming the only driver in history to claim both the F1 and motorcycle grand prix world titles.”
“Surtees raced in 111 Formula 1 Grand Prix, 30 with the Scuderia Ferrari, delivering six victories, four of which were with the Maranello team between 1963 and 1966. Aside from his outstanding Formula 1 performance, Surtees contributed several victories to Ferrari’s success in the 1963 and 1965 World Sportscar Championship. All at Ferrari send their heartfelt condolences to his family at this sad time.”
Having learned the news of the death of John Surtees, current Ferrari driver, Kimi Raikkonen, wanted to remember him like this...
“I met him a few times, he was very easy-going and it was very easy to get on with him. And you could tell that he had passion for racing in his blood. So this is sad news and my thoughts are with his family.”
