He Lived It Fully
James Hunt made a name for himself in two places: on the race track and in the bedroom. He lived a hedonistic life that many people would love to replicate. But when middle age came creeping in, Hunt needed a nudge. Advice came from the most unlikely source—but it may have been too late.
1. He Started Slow
James Hunt was born in Surry, England on August 29, 1947. When the family went on holiday to the countryside, Hunt had the opportunity to drive his first vehicle. This wasn’t a race car but rather a slow-moving tractor. Hunt wasn’t even strong enough to shift gears.
But it wouldn’t be long until Hunt discovered his need for speed.
2. He Was Ready To Go
Back at home, Hunt didn’t waste any time getting his driver’s permit. He got it exactly one week after he reached the driving age in the UK, which is 17. Hunt later said that with his license in his hand, his life really began.
3. He Wanted To Know More
Besides driving, Hunt's other passions were skiing and playing tennis. One day, at his tennis partner’s house, he saw the brother of the family tinkering with a car. Watching the guy tinkering with his car piqued Hunt’s interest.
He needed to know more.
4. They Saw His Passion
It turned out that Hunt’s tennis partner’s brother was working on a Mini. And he wasn’t just going to drive it around, he was going to race it. The family saw that Hunt was curious, so they took him along to watch their son race. Everything in Hunt’s life was about to change.
5. He Was Irregular
Hunt must have liked what he saw at the racing track that day, as he soon joined in. He put together his own Mini and went to the track ready to compete. But there was just one hitch. Sadly, the judges told him that his Mini had too many irregularities.
To fix this, Hunt was going to need something he lacked: money.
6. He Had To Work
Hunt needed money for his Mini, so he got a job with the phone company. Before long, had a Mini that was suitable for racing, and he participated in three events. Mini racing was a huge thrill, but not enough for Hunt.
He had to push it to the next level.
7. He Took The Next Step
In 1968, Hunt took the next step from racing Minis. This was Formula Ford and Hunt got his hands on a Russell-Alexis Mark 14 vehicle, which he paid for in installments. In his first race, Hunt took a reasonable fifth place. As it turned out, he could have done better.
8. He Had A Problem
The reason Hunt came in fifth in his first race was that his car had a problem. Hunt had set the engine incorrectly, and it caused him to lose a very valuable 15 horsepower. But once he’d fixed that, there was no stopping him.
9. He Set A Record
With his engine set correctly, Hunt took a win at Lydden Hill Race Circuit. He then moved on to Brand Hatch, where he set a new record for short circuit. Clearly, Hunt was going to become something big.
10. He Made A Name
In 1969, Hunt made another move, this time to Formula Three. To fund this move, he looked to a car sales company which provided him with a Merlyn Mark 11A. Hunt used this vehicle to win a few races and get some high-place finishes.
The auto racing world couldn’t help but take notice.
11. He Was One Of Three
The British Guild of Motoring Writers noticed Hunt’s accomplishments, and they thought he showed tremendous promise. That year, they gave three young drivers the Grovewood Award and Hunt was one of them. But controversy was soon to follow.
12. It Was A Battle
On October 3, 1970, Hunt was racing in the Formula Three Daily Express Trophy race. At one point in the race, he had “banged wheels” with Dave Morgan. Near the end of the race, Hunt was battling with Morgan for second place. At a heated moment, Morgan tried to pass Hunt.
The result was a disaster.
13. He Collided
When Morgan tried to pass Hunt, the two cars collided. The impact sent both cars out of the race, and Hunt found himself sitting in a car with two wheels missing. He was furious—and about to lose his cool.
14. He Lost It
When the dust settled, Hunt saw what Morgan’s dangerous move had done. He climbed out of his vehicle and stormed over to where Morgan's vehicle was. Hunt reached Morgan and shoved to the ground. In the world of auto racing, this is a huge no-no.
15. He Got Off
After the incident at the Formula Three Daily Express Trophy race, both Hunt and Morgan had to face a Royal Automobile Club (RAC) tribunal, which would dole out their punishment. Even though it was Hunt who got violent, it was Morgan who they punished. He received a suspension of 12 months.
Hunt liked the taste of this kind of justice, and he got even deeper into racing.
16. It Took Over
As far as romance went, Hunt had been in a relationship since he was 15 years old. This was with Taormina Rieck. In 1971, the two separated and Hunt took the breakup one step further: he stopped seeing many of his friends and even his family. Clearly, racing cars was taking over his life completely.
17. It Was Deja Vu
In 1972, Hunt joined the March team. When he took the third place prize at Mallory Park, he got a rude awakening. Just like with his Mini, the officials told Hunt that his vehicle didn’t follow regulations, and he lost his third-place prize. This was bad news for Hunt, and even worse news was coming.
18. They Dropped Him
Hunt continued to race with the March team, but then in May 1972, something bizarre happened. March announced that on their STP-March Formula 3 team, they were replacing Hunt with another driver. Hunt tried to ask March why, but the people at March clammed up.
Hunt had to do something drastic.
19. He Did It Anyway
Hunt had had it with the March team, so he decided to race at Monaco with a different team. The March team’s director told Hunt that this was a bad idea, but he went ahead. Hunt was quickly getting a reputation as a racer who didn’t follow the rules.
20. He Joined The Party
In 1973, Hunt joined up with team Hesketh, which had bought a March 731 chassis. Most saw Hesketh as not a very serious team. This was due to their party, party, party attitude. In fact, “Party” was pretty much Hunt’s middle name.
21. He Met A Model
Life was certainly a party for Hunt and in 1974, he met model Suzy Miller. Hunt had a strong reaction to Miller and couldn’t help himself. He proposed just weeks after meeting her. The thing was, this wasn’t exactly a fairy tale story.
22. He Had Some Shocking News
Hunt and Miller had an engagement party, and there among the guests was his ex and high school sweetheart Rieck. When Hunt got Rieck alone, he told her something shocking. He said he didn’t want to marry Miller at all.
23. It Was More Than Cold Feet
Hunt had concluded that he wouldn’t give up other women just because he had a wife. But he did have a reason for this marriage. Hunt knew that it would look good for his image to have a woman like Miller by his side. Sadly, he had no intention of sticking to any wedding vows.
24. He Wanted More
At his engagement party, Hunt had a lot to get off his chest. He told Rieck that he had been cheating on Miller almost from when they first got together. He said that when they were intimate, it was over too quickly, and he wanted it to last a long time. The truth was, Hunt had an addiction.
This looked like a good time to call the wedding off. But that didn’t quite happen.
25. He Tried To Deal
Hunt wasn’t ready for marriage and so, to deal with his upcoming wedding, he turned to drinking. This was not normal drinking behavior for a man about to walk down a church aisle. In fact, he wasn’t sober for four full days before the wedding. And when the wedding day came, it just got worse.
26. He Could Barely Walk
Hunt’s marriage to Miller was not some small wedding. Some called it the “society wedding of the year”. Hunt kicked off the morning of the ceremony with a few lagers, which he followed with Bloody Marys. Now it was time to walk down the aisle—or at least try to.
27. She Hoped For The Best
Of course, Hunt’s bride could easily see the intoxication of her handsome groom. Miller smiled her way through the ceremony and just hoped that all this craziness would be behind them once they were husband and wife. The wedding was a bust, and all she could hope for was a nice honeymoon.
Well, Hunt didn’t give her that either.
28. He Brought A Friend
When Hunt and Miller were heading to Antigua for their honeymoon, Hunt mentioned that he’d invited someone to join them. This was team manager Anthony “Bubbles” Horsley who had his new bride in tow. So, the guys hung out while the women were left with each other. Not exactly the honeymoon either had expected.
29. He Was A Dud
Sadly, things for Hunt and Miller were no better once they were back at home. Hunt was pretty much an absent husband, and Miller was quickly realizing that he was a dud. When she turned to her new mother-in-law for advice, she got a surprising answer.
30. He Was Limited
Hunt’s mother loved her son, but she was well aware of his limitations as a spouse. In fact, she said that she would never want Hunt as a husband. But Miller didn’t want to give up, she still had hope that Hunt would turn his life around.
31. He Met His Match
At the end of 1975, Hunt and Miller went to spend Christmas in Gstaad, Switzerland. This was a place for the rich and famous and as it happened, another skirt chaser was there. This was Richard Burton who was there with his wife Elizabeth Taylor—which turned out to be a recipe for disaster.
32. He Was In the Way
Burton caught a glimpse of Miller on the ski hill and was soon in pursuit mode. It didn’t matter that his wife was there too, he had to have Miller. Of course, Hunt was also present which would make it hard for Burton to have his way.
And then things took a shocking turn.
33. He Had To Leave Her
Hunt was due in Brazil for the 1976 Grand Prix and had to leave Miller on her own. It didn’t take long for Burton to begin his seduction of Miller. While in Brazil, Hunt got a shocking call from Miller. She told him that she was having an affair with Burton.
Hunt's response was out of this world.
34. He Didn’t Mind
Over the phone, Miller told Hunt that Burton had invited her to go to New York with him. Hunt’s stunning reply was, “Fine, off you go”. Miller did go and soon both Hunt’s and Burton’s marriages were heading for divorce.
But that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing for Hunt.
35. He Made Some Cash
Eventually, Burton thought the right thing to do was to talk to Hunt. Hunt assured the actor that there were no hard feelings. But Burton thought he owed Hunt something, so he offered to pay a divorce settlement of $1 million. Certainly, Hunt would not agree to this rude offer, right?
36. He Thanked Him
Hunt did agree, and in the end, Burton had basically paid to take Miller from him. Strangely, Hunt had no problem with it and thanked Burton for taking Miller from him. Hunt was free and had a big wad of cash, but he was struggling on the race track.
37. He Couldn’t Finish
In auto racing parlance, “a retirement” is when a driver withdraws from a race. Hunt had retirements in Brazil, South Africa, Spain, and Monaco. What Hunt needed was to actually finish a race—and a big chance was ahead of him at the 1975 Dutch Grand Prix.
38. There Was Bad Weather
The 1975 Dutch Grand Prix had weather issues, and drivers were operating their vehicles on “wet tires”. Hunt was early to switch to his “dry tires” and quickly got in the lead. When Hunt crossed the finish line first, the crowd went crazy. They called it “one of the greatest underdog victories in Formula One history”.
39. He Had To Switch
Hunt had won his first Grand Prix, so you’d think he was set. But that wasn’t true. Hesketh had run out of money, and Hunt needed to look elsewhere. He found a position at the McLaren racing team and was ready to see what he could do with them.
40. He Let It Out
During his first year with McLaren, Hunt won an astonishing six Grand Prixes. Tokyo was up next, and Hunt was on top of the world. He was now ready to let his true—and outrageous—personality shine. It would be a shocker.
41. He Had A Buddy
Around this time, Hunt was partying with motorcycle champion Barry Sheene. In Tokyo, the two drank and enjoyed recreational drug use during the days leading up to Hunt’s big race. But there were other things that Hunt wanted to do before a race.
42. He Didn’t Hold Back
Some racers prepare for an event by abstaining from any carnal behavior. Clearly, Hunt didn’t follow this train of thought. His hotel of choice was the Tokyo Hilton and every morning the lobby was full of flight attendants from British Airways. Hunt soon started up a new routine.
43. He Knew Their Schedule
Hunt knew when the flight attendants would be in the lobby of his hotel, and he got down there just at the right time. His method was to simply ask any of the British Airways employees to accompany him to his room. Apparently, they always said yes.
44. He Joined Right In
If his buddy Sheene was around when the flight attendants came up to Hunt’s room, it wasn’t a problem. Sheene just joined right in with the bedroom festivities. But this behavior wasn’t only at the hotel. Hunt took it to the race track as well.
45. He Dropped His Pants
While at the circuit in Japan, Hunt had the need to relieve himself. Instead of finding the nearest men’s room, he just dropped his pants right there at the circuit. An audience full of binocular holders soon turned their attention to Hunt. Apparently, they applauded when he had finished.
46. He Got Caught In The Pit
When a young car designer walked into Hunt’s pit by mistake, he had the shock of his life. Once again, Hunt’s racing overalls were around his ankles, but this time he wasn’t alone. He had a Japanese girl with him, and they weren’t exactly checking the air pressure of the tires.
Hunt had just one more thing to do before getting behind the wheel.
47. He Had Strange Pre-Race Rituals
After dispatching the Japanese girl, Hunt had to do one more thing before getting in his vehicle. He had to vomit. This was, apparently, due to his nerves and all his indulgences. With that done, Hunt was ready to race. With his bizarre pre-race rituals, you’d think he had no chance of winning.
48. He Beat The Odds
Miraculously, Hunt managed to win the 1976 world championship, and more than 30 million people watched it on TV. Hunt was now an even bigger star. In 24 hours, he’d make his triumphant return to Britain. There was just enough time for one more drinking spree.
49. He Was Too Far Gone
Hunt continued drinking right up until he had to attend a reception at the British Embassy in Tokyo. The ambassador took one look at Hunt and had to question whether to let the obviously inebriated Hunt into his own party. But the fun didn’t stop there.
50. It Was A Long Party
The flight back to London was chock-a-block full of other racers and people associated with racing. What ensued was a party that lasted the duration of the flight—12 hours—and completely emptied the plane of all those little bottles of booze. Now all Hunt had to do was land and greet his fans.
51. He Staggered
By the time the plane touched down at Heathrow, Hunt was in no condition to greet anyone. That didn’t bother the 2,000 fans that showed up to congratulate him. He shakily made his way down the airplane steps and found his mom and girlfriend waiting for him. They had the unenviable task of holding him up.
52. He Got A Trophy
As the 1977 season of racing began, Hunt was at a formal gala where they awarded him with the Tarmac Trophy. On hand to deliver the prestigious award was the Duke of Kent. While his acceptance speech went over well with the regal crowd, his outfit of jeans and a T-shirt didn’t.
53. They Searched Him
On his way to the South African Grand Prix, the people at the customs office had a bad feeling about Hunt and decided to take a close look at his luggage. Likely, they were looking for illicit substances, but what they found certainly made them stop.
54. It Was Obscene
What customs officials in South Africa found in Hunt’s luggage was not something you ingest, it was something you just looked at. This was a girly magazine full of obscene photos. In South Africa, this was far from legal. They detained Hunt and then let him go.
Hunt’s next problem came in Canada.
55. He Hit One Of His Own
At the Canadian Grand Prix, Hunt was battling it out with Mario Andretti when he suffered a collision. Sadly, this was with his own teammate, Jochen Mass. What happened next was another blow to Hunt's already-bad reputation.
56. He Got Very, Very Angry
After having a collision with his own teammate, Hunt was furious. He got out of his car and punched one of the marshals. Even though he immediately tried to apologize, it was too late. Hunt was going to have to face the music.
57. He Had To Pay
For hitting the marshal, they fined Hunt $2,000. His other offense was walking to his pit lane when it clearly wasn’t safe to do so. This resulted in a fine of $750. But Hunt’s next incident would cost him more than cash—it would cause severe emotional damage.
58. It Started With A Crash
In 1978, the Italian Grand Prix started off with a bang. It was a crash that left racer Ronnie Peterson’s car engulfed in flames. Seeing his friend in trouble, Hunt—along with two other drivers—pulled Peterson out of the fiery car. Things did not look good for Peterson.
59. He Needed A Change
Even though Hunt had pulled his friend out of his car, Peterson succumbed to his injuries the next day in the hospital. This loss affected Hunt deeply, and he had to question what he was doing in racing. Clearly, he needed a change.
60. He Went Back To His Roots
In 1978, Hunt joined Walter Wolf Racing, which had only one car. Because it was a small team, it would feel closer to the first team Hunt had been with. Hunt was planning to return to his old glory. Sadly, that didn’t happen.
61. He Had A Bad Year
While driving for Walter Wolf Racing, Hunt had to retire from the races in Argentina, Monaco, and Spain. In Belgium it was worse: he crashed. Things were not looking good for Hunt. In 1979, he announced that he was retiring from the profession.
Now, Hunt had to figure out his post-retirement plan.
62. He Popped A Cork
It didn’t take long for Hunt to be back in the spotlight. BBC Two wanted him as a commentator, but his life on the air was almost as controversial as his life behind the wheel. During his first broadcast, he popped a couple of corks and drank two full bottles of red. It seemed that Hunt would not change his lifestyle at all—and his next marriage proved it.
63. He Was Late
In 1982, Hunt met Sarah Lomax and on December 17, 1983, they tied the knot. Hunt was embarrassingly late for his wedding and showed up with no tie. The wedding finally went ahead when Hunt’s brother arrived with the missing tie.
This marriage was not starting out well.
64. He Lost A Fortune
Hunt and Lomax didn’t last, and he soon found himself in debt. You see, his investments in Lloyd’s of London went sour and he’d actually lost the equivalent of over $200,000. That‘s when Hunt turned to an old friend for advice.
65. They Were Rivals
During his racing career, Hunt had a rivalry with racer Niki Lauda. The public loved this rivalry, but in truth, they were good friends. Lauda, the much more serious of the two, took one look at Hunt’s lifestyle and told him to get his act together. He said that his survival depended on it. As it turned out, Lauda was right.
66. He Found Someone New
Hunt seemed to heed Lauda’s advice and he started dating someone sensible. This was a waitress in Wimbledon named Helen Dyson. Hunt improved his health, he bought a bicycle and his two sons made him happy. It looked like life was going to be smooth sailing from here.
67. He Had Exciting News
On June 14, 1993, Hunt called Dyson with some exciting news. He wanted her as his wife. Sadly, this marriage was not meant to be. The very next day, Hunt tragically passed in his sleep, the result of a heart attack. He was just 45 years old.
68. He Hit the Big Screen
Hunt’s life—especially his rivalry with Austrian racer Niki Lauda—got the Hollywood treatment from Ron Howard. Thor actor Chris Hemsworth campaigned for the part even though he had never heard of Hunt. Rush was a massive box office success.
69. The Number Was 5,000
As we look back at Hunt’s many accomplishments, one number seems to stick out. He said that he had bedded 5,000 women. Did I say ”bedded”? According to some, with Hunt, there was usually no time to find an actual bed. But there was more to Hunt than skirt chasing.
70. He Had Two Sides
One person who saw a different side of Hunt was his son Tom. While most of us may remember Hunt for his wild antics, Tom said that Hunt had a serious devotion to raising his kids and spent hours with them. He also said that his dad had “a very gentle, compassionate, loving side”.