This year marks fifty years since the late James Hunt became world champion with McLaren. The world-famous playboy of Formula 1 fought an iconic title battle at the time with rival and opposite Niki Lauda. The contrasts between the spartan championship of the seventies and the modern premier class are enormous. Freddie Hunt, the son of the legendary champion, is convinced that the current regulations would have hardly pleased his father.
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In an interview with The Telegraph, Freddie Hunt makes a special confession. “I still remember his voice,” said the Brit. “Sometimes I watch old Grands Prix where he provided commentary, just to listen to him.” That can still make him emotional – almost 33 years after the sudden death of his father. “It depends on my mood. Sometimes I talk about my father and cry like a baby; then it affects me deeply. Other times not.”
Nonsensical regulation
After his world title, Hunt remained active in Formula 1 for another three years, in which he won three more Grands Prix. In 1979 he hung up his racing suit and started working as a commentator and analyst at the BBC. There he formed a close duo with the world-famous commentator Murray Walker. In 1993, Hunt died at the age of 45 from a heart attack.
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In the same interview, Freddie Hunt was asked what his father would have thought of modern Formula 1. He first gave his own blunt opinion. “It seems as if it is being run by artificial intelligence,” sighed the Brit disappointedly. “Those batteries make it bad enough already. I think he would say: ‘What nonsense is this,’ after which he would immediately quit.” Freddie Hunt himself also raced briefly. In 2007 he competed in the British Formula Ford and later in the ADAC Formel Masters in Germany. In addition, he raced in various brand cups and touring car races.
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