Bruce McLaren: The founder of McLaren Racing who died in a McLaren

Bruce McLaren had one of the most remarkable careers in motor racing, and his namesake is still flying high today after winning the Constructors' Championship in Formula 1.

McLaren was born in Auckland, New Zealand, on August 30th, 1937. His parents ran a service station, so baby Bruce was surrounded by cars and mechanics from an early age, stoking his fire for racing and car building.

He started racing in 1952 at 14 and, by the mid-1950s, was racing a Formula Two Cooper-Climax on the Cooper team. After customizing his vehicle himself, he won runner-up in the New Zealand National Champion Series.

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Despite mounting gearbox trouble at the F1 New Zealand Grand Prix in 1958, McLaren joined the race half a minute behind the pack and fought until the car couldn't take it anymore, retiring with four laps to go. His performance earned him a more consistent shot in F1.

According to Brittanica, McLaren raced for Charles Cooper, a British racing car designer and builder, in Formula 1 from 1959 until 1965. He created a lasting impact on the sport from that point forward.

In 1959, at 22, McLaren became the youngest driver to win a Formula 1 race at the United States Grand Prix. His record stood for 44 years until the 2003 Hungarian Grand Prix.

In 1960, McLaren won the Argentinian Grand Prix and had multiple podiums, finishing second in the Drivers' Championship to teammate Jack Brabham. After a winless 1961 campaign, Brabham won the 1962 Monaco Grand Prix and finished third to Graham Hill and Jim Clark in the championship.

Cooper Racing struggled to compete between 1963 and 1965 because of the dominance of Lotus, BRM, and Ferrari. It prompted McLaren to enter his race team in 1966, a project he had worked on since 1963.

McLaren, who had built cars since childhood and studied engineering at the University of Auckland, founded Bruce McLaren Motor Racing LTD in 1963. They were immediately respected for their speed and engineering prowess.

According to the Bruce McLaren Trust, the racing pioneer became the second driver to win a Formula 1 race in a car bearing his name, winning the 1968 Belgian Grand Prix and following in Jack Brabham's footsteps.

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In addition to Formula 1, McLaren took his brand to the North American Can-Am car Series, earning five successive titles between 1967 and 1971. Bruce won two in 1967 and 1969, while teammate Denny Hulme won the title in 1968 and 1970.

Following his F1 victory in Belgium, Hulme, his teammate in F1, racked up two wins in the McLaren during the 1968 season. Bruce was awarded the Ferodo Trophy for his ''tenacity of purpose in making and developing racing cars" in 1968.

According to the McLaren website, the business continued to grow on both sides of the Atlantic, including the early development of their road car business. With the growth of the business, McLaren promised to hang up his helmet in 1970 to focus on the company.

On June 2nd, 1970, while testing the team's new spectacular Can-Am car a fortnight before the new series began, Bruce lost control when the rear bodywork came loose. The vehicle crashed into a marshal's post, and Bruce died instantly on impact.

The racing world was shocked at his death, but the McLaren engineers picked up the pieces and sent a car to Canada for the season opener. As fate would have it, the team won.

Bruce McLaren was the epitome of motor racing. He competed in over 100 F1 races and won the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans, among many other titles. He was inducted into New Zealand, International Sports, and Indianapolis Hall of Fame.

One of his most famous quotes is, "To do something well is so worthwhile that to die trying to do it better cannot be foolhardy."

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