Can-Am vocation

Denny Hulme (1936-1992) was a racing car driver born in Nelson, New-Zealand. Like journalist Andrew Frankel wrote in Motorsport Magazine, his Formula One career was ‘more successful than stellar’, providing eight wins, one pole position and nine fastest laps in 112 starts over a total of 10 seasons.

But he not only claimed the 1967 World F1 Championship, but did so when Jim Clark was at the height of his powers, with Jack Brabham as his team-mate, and opposition that included Graham Hill, John Surtees, Jackie Stewart and Dan Gurney.

But it was in Can-Am that Denny found his vocation. The facts are these: in six seasons he took 22 wins, set 26 lap records and claimed pole position 22 times – none could match him.

“Denny could really turn it on when he wanted to,” said Tyler Alexander, his engineer who joined the McLaren team in 1964. “He was really bloody good, very determined. He loved Can-Am, all that power in a car that was the class of the field. He was also a lovely guy, incredibly loyal to the team and a real team player.”

Interesting statistic: during the six seasons (1967-1972) Denny Hulme spent in Can-Am, he stood on the podium for 67% of the races! Picture below: Hulme leads team mate Revson in their McLaren at Road Atlanta in 1971.