Phil Hill in a Ferrari 156 F1 in 1962
Motor racing legend Phil Hill has died aged 81 years old. Hill was the only America-born Formula One world champion and won the title while driving a Ferrari in 1961.
He was born in Miami, Florida, on April 20th 1927 and was raised in Santa Monica. He was the first American to win the Le Mans 24 Hours, and would go on to win the race twice again. He won won the Sebring 12-hour race three times, among many other victories.
'It's a sad day,' Carroll Shelby, a close friend of Hill's told the LA Times. 'Phil was an excellent race-car driver with a unique feel for the car, and his real expertise was in long-distance racing.'
Shelby, who won Le Mans in 1959, said Hill was a man with 'multiple talents'. 'Phil tuned pianos, he could take anything apart and put it back together, and he loved opera,' Shelby told The Times.
After retiring, Hill spent devoted much of his time to classic cars, as well as his collection of player pianos and other antique musical instruments. He was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 1991.
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