Surtees: The Official Website

A Tribute to Henry Surtees
From Jonathan Palmer

Henry Surtees died on Sunday 19 July 2009 following a tragic accident at Brands Hatch whilst competing in round eight of the 2009 FIA Formula Two Championship. Henry’s cruel death robbed the sport of a delightful, honest and popular young man whose talent suggested a bright career lay ahead of him. In just four events Henry had established himself as the leading British driver, with two brilliant highlights of a pole at Brno and his first podium with a third at Brands Hatch the day before his death. Possessing a maturity and talent that belied his eighteen young years, Henry Surtees and his father John had every reason to believe F1 was a realistic destination.
Born on 18 February 1991, it was perhaps inevitable that Henry would fall in love with motorsport at an early age. His father John, who inherited his passion for the sport from his own father, remains the only man to have ever won world championships on two and four wheels, having added the 1964 Formula One title with Ferrari to his seven motorcycle world championships.
John’s absolute passion for the sport undoubtedly inspired Henry, who raced simply for the pure and genuine love of it, always with the close support of his father. From the age of eight, when he first raced a kart at Blackbushe, Henry discovered an instant ability and love of being behind the wheel and his passion for motor racing thereafter never faltered.
He soon flourished, graduating through the karting ranks and winning the Rye House Club Winter Championship in 2000 at the age of nine. In 2005 he then claimed the Junior Gearbox Championship, prompting his graduation into car racing when he entered the Ginetta Junior Championship a year later. Success again followed; Henry finished third overall in his first season, winning three races and collecting six podiums.
In 2007, at the age of 16, Henry made the move into single seaters, competing in the Formula BMW UK Championship with Carlin Motorsport. He finished fifth overall, with one victory, one pole position and eight podiums to his credit. He also contested select races in the Formula Renault 2.0 UK series – again with Carlin – Formula BMW ADAC, and later the Formula Renault 2.0 UK Winter Series.
Henry remained in Formula Renault 2.0 UK in 2008, taking 12th in the final standings, before finishing runner-up in the Winter Series with one victory and three podiums from the four races. He also contested two races in the British Formula 3 National Class, racing alongside F1 rookie Jaime Alguersuari at Carlin Motorsport, and took one victory and one podium from the two races.
Having established himself as one of the UK’s best young prospects, Henry joined the FIA Formula Two Championship in 2009. Despite being one of the youngest competitors on the grid success again followed, with Henry setting the fastest time of anybody in the final pre-season test at Silverstone. He then claimed seventh in the opening race of the season at Valencia, before grabbing pole position in the opening race in Brno, Czech Republic – an achievement he ranked as one of the highlights of his career.
John was a great mentor to Henry and the pair enjoyed an incredibly close relationship that was testament to the family atmosphere in which Henry was raised. As he clambered out of his car following his maiden pole position in Brno, Henry’s only concern was finding his father. And John, out of an intense fatherly pride, stayed back and let Henry have the spotlight, at least until they found a quiet time to discuss the session together.
When it came to motorsport, Henry was not one to hide his emotions. In the Brno press conference immediately after his pole he spoke for much of the time without using his microphone: in his excitement he had not realised it was there. As he paused he noticed, and after sparing a bashful grin, carried on unabated.
Henry also understood the balance between racing and school, and in between races he was busy revising for his final A-Level examinations. It was with great relish and excitement that he finished his final exam before Brands Hatch, which promised him the chance to devote all his efforts to his dream of a career in motorsport. It was fitting, perhaps, that Henry collected his maiden F2 podium – the first for any British driver – in race one at Brands Hatch, which spoke volumes of his growing belief, potential and maturity.
The tributes that flowed in following Henry’s tragic death are an enormous testament to his character and standing among his peers. Through the immense shock and sadness, people from across the motorsport world paid their respects to an incredibly popular, passionate and determined young man who, as his father John commented, “had shown himself to be one with the possibilities of reaching the very top.”
Ferrari driver Felipe Massa paid his respects, just a week before suffering a serious injury in a similar freak accident in Hungary. “When I heard about Henry’s death it really moved me a lot,” Massa said. “I’m so sorry for this tragedy and I’m close to his family in this great moment of sorrow. These things remind us how much safety has to remain the priority on the track and in all the other places of motorsport. Over the last years much has been done, but we can’t be inattentive.”
Tributes also came from Jamie Alguersuari, who dedicated his record-breaking F1 debut to Henry’s memory, whilst former team Carlin raced with commemorative nosecones in Formula 3. Triple World Touring Car Champion Andy Priaulx, Ferrari chairman Luca di Montezemolo and many of his fellow F2 drivers were among those moved to pay their respects to Henry.
MotorSport Vision Chief Executive Jonathan Palmer was deeply affected by the tragedy, saying: “This is the saddest time in my 35 years of motor racing. Not only was Henry immensely talented but he was also a very popular member of the whole Formula Two team, earning enormous respect everywhere. My deepest sympathies are with father John, mother Jane and their daughters Edwina and Leonora, together with other family and friends.”
Henry will perhaps best be remembered through his father John’s moving epitaph: “Henry had followed his heart from the first time he sat in a kart. He treated seriously the balance between motorsport and school, having just finished his A-Levels. The world beckoned and he was thriving on the freedom to concentrate on his motorsport.
“Despite his young age he had shown maturity, technical understanding and speed. Most importantly he was a nice person and a loving son. He will be deeply missed.”

Jonathan Palmer
Chief Executive
MotorSport Vision
22 December 2009