Damon Hill facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Damon Hill OBE
Hill in 2012
Born	Damon Graham Devereux Hill (1960-09-17) 17 September 1960 (age 64) Hampstead, London, England
Spouse(s)	Susan George ​ (m. 1988)​
Children	4, including Josh
Parent(s)	Graham Hill (father)
Formula One World Championship career
Nationality	British
Active years	1992–1999
Teams	Brabham, Williams, Arrows, Jordan
Entries	122 (115 starts)
Championships	1 (1996)
Wins	22
Podiums	42
Career points	360
Pole positions	20
Fastest laps	19
First entry	1992 Spanish Grand Prix
First win	1993 Hungarian Grand Prix
Last win	1998 Belgian Grand Prix
Last entry	1999 Japanese Grand Prix

Damon Graham Devereux Hill (born 17 September 1960) is a British former racing driver and broadcaster. He competed in Formula One from 1992 to 1999. Damon Hill won the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in 1996 with the Williams team. He also won 22 races during his eight seasons.

Damon is the son of Graham Hill, who was also a two-time Formula One World Champion. This makes Damon one of only two sons of a Formula One champion to win the title himself. He started racing motorbikes in 1981. After some success, he moved to racing cars. In 1992, he became a test driver for the Williams team. The next year, he joined the Williams race team. He got his first win at the 1993 Hungarian Grand Prix. In the mid-1990s, Damon Hill was Michael Schumacher's main rival. They often competed closely on and off the track. Their crash at the 1994 Australian Grand Prix led to Schumacher winning his first title by just one point. Hill became champion in 1996 with eight wins. He then drove for the Arrows and Jordan teams. In 1998, he gave Jordan their first-ever win.

Hill retired from racing after the 1999 season. In 2006, he became president of the British Racing Drivers' Club. He helped secure a long contract for Silverstone to host Formula One races. This allowed the circuit to be greatly improved. Hill also worked as a TV expert for Sky Sports F1.

About Damon Hill

Early Life and Family

Damon Hill was born in Hampstead, London. His father, Graham Hill, was a famous Formula One driver. Graham won the world championship in 1962 and 1968. The family lived comfortably until Graham died in a plane crash in 1975. Damon was 15 years old at the time. After this, Damon worked hard to support his family and his education. He worked as a laborer and a motorcycle courier.

Damon is married to Susan "Georgie" George. They have four children, including Joshua. One of his sons was born with Down syndrome. Damon and Georgie support the Down's Syndrome Association. Damon also supports St. Joseph's Specialist School and College. This school helps children with learning disabilities. Joshua, his son, also started racing in 2008 but retired in 2013. Damon is also a patron for Disability Africa, a charity that helps disabled children in Africa.

Damon's Racing Career

Before Formula One

Hill's helmet

Damon started his racing journey on motorbikes in 1981. He wore a helmet with a special design, just like his father's. It had eight white oar blades on a dark blue helmet. This design represents the London Rowing Club. Damon won a championship at the Brands Hatch circuit. He paid for his racing by working as a builder.

His mother was worried about the dangers of motorcycle racing. She convinced him to try car racing in France in 1983. He showed great talent but only raced cars sometimes until late 1984. In 1985, he raced in Formula Ford and won six races. He finished third in the 1985 Formula Ford Festival.

In 1986, Damon wanted to move up to British Formula Three. But he lost his sponsorship. He borrowed money to keep racing. He finished third in the 1988 championship. After Formula Three, drivers usually go to International Formula 3000 or Formula One. Damon didn't have enough money for Formula 3000 at first. He took a chance in the lower British F3000 championship. He also raced a Porsche 962 at Le Mans and in the British Touring Car Championship. In 1990, he got a chance to drive in Formula 3000. He earned three pole positions but didn't win a race in that series.

Formula One Racing

Brabham Team (1992)

Damon Hill started his Formula One career as a test driver for the Williams team in 1991. In 1992, he joined the Brabham team as a race driver. Brabham was a famous team but was having money problems. Damon joined after three races and managed to qualify for two races. These were the British and Hungarian Grands Prix. The Brabham team stopped racing after the Hungarian Grand Prix.

Williams Team (1993–1996)

Hill's FW16 (1994) and FW15C (1993) cars. He was one of only two drivers to race with the number "0".

In 1993, Damon was chosen to race for Williams alongside the famous Alain Prost. Because the previous champion wasn't racing, Damon got the number "0" on his car. He was only the second driver in F1 history to have this number.

1993 Season

The season started with some bad luck. But Damon soon showed his skill. He got his first podium finish in Brazil. He finished second behind Ayrton Senna in Europe. He also led races in San Marino and Spain before mechanical problems. After strong results in Monaco and Canada, he got his first pole position in France. He finally won his first race at the 1993 Hungarian Grand Prix. He then won two more races in a row, in Belgium and Italy. These wins helped Williams win the Constructors' Championship. Damon finished third in the Drivers' Championship.

1994 Season

In 1994, Ayrton Senna joined Damon at Williams. Damon kept his number "0". Sadly, Senna died in a crash at the San Marino Grand Prix. Damon suddenly became the lead driver for Williams. He won the next race in Spain, just four weeks after Senna's death.

Damon Hill at the 1995 French Grand Prix

Michael Schumacher was leading the championship by a lot. But Damon fought back. He won the British Grand Prix, a race his father had never won. Schumacher was banned from some races. Damon won four more races, which brought him close to Schumacher. The championship went down to the last race in Australia. There was a controversial crash between Hill and Schumacher. Both drivers had to retire, and Schumacher won the title by one point.

Damon's great season earned him the 1994 BBC Sports Personality of the Year award.

1995 Season

Damon was a favorite for the 1995 championship. He was the main driver for Williams. He started well with a pole position in Brazil and wins in the next two races. But Schumacher won many races that year and took his second title. Hill and Schumacher had several crashes during the season. Damon finished the season strong by winning the 1995 Australian Grand Prix.

1996 Season

Hill demonstrating his championship-winning Williams FW18 car in 2010

In 1996, the Williams car was very fast. Damon won the championship ahead of his teammate, Jacques Villeneuve. This made him the first son of a Formula One champion to win the title himself. He won eight races and always started from the front row. He led the Monaco Grand Prix, where his father had won many times, but his engine failed. At the final race in Japan, Damon took the lead and won the race and the championship.

Even though he won the title, Williams decided to replace him for the next season. Damon left Williams as their second most successful driver. He won his second BBC Sports Personality of the Year Award in 1996. He also received the Segrave Trophy for his achievements.

Arrows Team (1997)

At the British Grand Prix, Hill scored his first point for the Arrows team.

Damon Hill's Arrows A18 leading the Hungarian Grand Prix.

After winning the championship, Damon joined the Arrows team in 1997. Arrows had never won a race before. The car was not very competitive at first. Damon scored his first point for the team in July at the British Grand Prix. His best race was in Hungary. He qualified third and was leading the race by a lot. But a problem with his car slowed him down. He finished second, which was a great result for Arrows.

Jordan Team (1998–1999)

Damon joined the Jordan team for the 1998 season. His teammate was Ralf Schumacher, Michael's younger brother. The Jordan car improved during the season. At the Belgian Grand Prix, in very wet conditions, Damon won the race. This was Jordan's first-ever win in Formula One. Damon was leading, and his teammate Ralf was close behind. The team told Ralf to hold his position to secure a 1-2 finish. Damon finished the season strong, helping Jordan get fourth place in the Constructors' Championship.

Hill driving for Jordan at the 1999 British Grand Prix

Hopes were high for 1999, but Damon had a tough season. He struggled with the new four-grooved tires. After a crash in Canada, he announced he would retire at the end of the year. He considered quitting sooner, but Jordan convinced him to stay. He finished fifth at his home race in Britain. His best results for the rest of the year were two sixth-place finishes. His teammate, Heinz-Harald Frentzen, did very well. Damon's last race was in Japan, where he retired early.

After Racing

Hill in 2008

After retiring from racing, Damon stayed involved in motorsports. He became president of the British Racing Drivers' Club (BRDC) in 2006. He helped secure a long contract for Silverstone to host Formula One races. This led to big improvements at the circuit.

In 2009, he received an award from the University of Northampton. He has also appeared on many British TV shows. He has raced cars and motorcycles at the Goodwood Festival of Speed. In 2010, he was a driver representative at the 2010 Monaco Grand Prix. He helped decide to penalize his old rival Michael Schumacher. In 2012, he raced in the VW Scirocco R-Cup to raise money for charity. In 2018, he became President of the Brooklands Trust Members. He published his autobiography, Watching the Wheels, in 2016.

Broadcaster

Hill (left) working as a presenter for Sky Sports F1

Damon has often appeared in the British media. He was on the TV show Jim'll Fix It with his father in 1975. He has written articles for F1 Racing magazine. He also worked as a TV expert for Sky Sports F1 from 2012. He resigned from this role after the 2024 São Paulo Grand Prix.

Music Career

Damon loved music from a young age. He formed a punk band called "Hormones" in school. After becoming famous in Formula One, he played guitar with musicians like George Harrison. He even played on a song called "Demolition Man" by the band Def Leppard. He was proud of this, saying his guitar part fit well.

Damon also played music at the British Grand Prix with other F1 musicians. After retiring from racing, he spent more time on music. He played with celebrity bands and formed his own band, The Conrods. They played cover songs by famous bands like The Rolling Stones and The Beatles. Since becoming president of the BRDC in 2006, he says he plays guitar less often.

Racing Record

Career Summary

Complete Formula One Results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

^† Did not finish, but was classified as he had completed more than 90% of the race distance.