17 Facts About Phil Hill

1.

Phil Hill was one of two American drivers to win the Formula One World Drivers' Championship, and the only one who was born in the United States.

2.

Phil Hill scored three wins at each of the 24 Hours of Le Mans and 12 Hours of Sebring sports car races.

3.

Phil Hill studied business administration at the University of Southern California from 1945 to 1947, where he was a member of the Kappa Sigma fraternity.

4.

Phil Hill left early to pursue auto racing, working as a mechanic on other drivers' cars.

5.

Phil Hill began racing cars at an early age, going to England as a Jaguar trainee in 1949 and signing with Enzo Ferrari's team in 1956.

6.

Phil Hill made his debut in the French Grand Prix at Reims France in 1958 driving a Maserati.

7.

That same year, paired with Belgian teammate Olivier Gendebien, Phil Hill became the first American-born winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans with Phil Hill driving most of the night in horrific rainy conditions.

8.

Phil Hill began driving full-time for the Ferrari Formula One team in 1959, earning three podium finishes and fourth place in the Drivers' Championship.

9.

Phil Hill won the race and clinched the championship but the triumph was bittersweet.

10.

In 1964 Phil Hill continued in Formula One, driving for the Cooper Formula One Team before retiring from single-seaters at the end of the season and limiting his future driving to sports car racing with Ford Motor Company and the Chaparral Cars of Jim Hall.

11.

Phil Hill has the distinction of having won the first and last races of his driving career, the final victory driving for Chaparral in the BOAC 500 at Brands Hatch in England in 1967.

12.

Phil Hill drove an experimental MG, EX-181, at Bonneville Salt Flats.

13.

Phil Hill appeared as himself on the December 11,1961, episode of the game show To Tell the Truth.

14.

Phil Hill worked as a television commentator for ABC's Wide World of Sports.

15.

Phil Hill wrote several articles for them, including road tests and retrospective articles on historic cars and races.

16.

Phil Hill was married to Alma, and had three children: Derek, Vanessa and Jennifer.

17.

Derek raced in International Formula 3000 in 2001,2002 and 2003, but was forced to retire when Phil Hill became ill with Parkinson's disease.