That 1976 season, which unfolded as Hunt’s finest – from the standpoint of racing achievements, anyway – is chronicled in the 2013 movie, “Rush”. A smile from James was usually enough to win forgiveness for the most outrageous behavior. And he was accompanied by an apparently intoxicated (as was Hunt) young blond in short-shorts and a dirty t-shirt, who he introduced as “Miss Hot Loins.” Hearty applause ensued. I remember a disheveled-looking Hunt showing up very late for a mayor’s recognition luncheon he was wearing a hat that said “Airport Limousine” on it. The result earned Hunt recognition, for the first time, that he was a force to be reckoned with in grand prix racing.Īs my beat was confined mostly to the Americas, I saw little of Hunt again until (I believe) April 1976 at the new Long Beach Grand Prix. 688 of a second behind winner Ronnie Peterson, in the race. Hunt, who had to be at least somewhat hung over that next morning, went on to finish an astounding second in an uncompetitive car, just. But the door to the bar was boarded up in the morning. I believe the fight continued for some time, and I don’t recall any police intervention. I left shortly after Regazzoni jammed the head of one bar patron through the glass cover of the jukebox.
![sarah lomax sarah lomax](https://fabwags.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/James-Hunt-suzy-miller-photo.png)
Sarah lomax drivers#
Hunt, Clay Regazzoni and several others became involved in a huge fight with two men who came into the bar and started to engage in displays of affection to which the drivers objected. Most of the drivers were staying at that popular motel, which had a busy bar downstairs. My first meeting with Hunt personally was at the Glen Motor Court in Watkins Glen, N.Y., on the eve of the 1973 United States Grand Prix there. He crashed so frequently that he earned the nickname “Hunt the Shunt.”īut his off-track shenanigans with fashion models, beauty queens, waitresses, secretaries, stewardesses and many other available and unavailable women (by his estimate more than 5,000!) gave him a well-deserved reputation as a larger-than-life playboy. He left behind an illustrious driving career that included 10 victories over 93 starts, and the 1976 World Championship.
Sarah lomax driver#
Hunt, beset much of his career by blinding headaches and stomach-wretching nausea, finally retired as a driver in mid-1979. In the final months of his life, Hunt drove around in a battered van, instead of the luxurious limos and sports cars to which he had become accustomed during his salad days on the grand prix tour. Hunt himself lost at least 200,000 pounds – most of his nest egg. Far from squandering his wealth – as might have been expected, given his helter-skelter lifestyle – Hunt had thought he’d been responsible investing his money with the prestigious insurer, Lloyd’s of London.īut Hunt, along with many other Lloyd’s investors in the late 1980s and early 1990s, were swindled out of more than 21 billion British pounds. He had given up his worst vices some years before, and was newly devoted to living a healthy, sober life.ĭespite having earned millions driving racing cars for Hesketh, McLaren, Wolf and others, Hunt was in dire financial straits when he died.
![sarah lomax sarah lomax](https://images.findagrave.com/photos250/photos/2008/289/30622658_122418078291.jpg)
He had just proposed, on the phone, to his girlfriend Helen Dyson, who was vacationing in Greece. Signs are that Hunt – still boyish looking, Greek god handsome, with long blond locks – died at peace with the world. There were no traces of drugs or alcohol in his system. It was determined he had died sometime in the night. Apparently, around midnight, Hunt experienced chest pains which prompted him to telephone for medical help while on the phone, he seemed to recover, and rang off.ĭennet, who had gone to bed, discovered Hunt, lifeless, the next morning. He was still in the dressing gown he had worn while playing snooker for several hours the night before with his friend and housemate Mike Dennet. Hunt was found on the floor next to his bed. In contrast to the drug-, alcohol- and adrenalin-fueled life he had led as a racing driver, Hunt died clean and sober. James Hunt, who lived life at 200 miles an hour, died in June 1993 after a quiet evening of playing snooker in his home here. James Hunt’s aggressive driving style earned him the nickname “Hunt the Shunt”