Bob Bondurant, a racing driver and founder of the driving school, died in Paradise Valley (Arizona) on Friday at the age 88. RacerIt has been learned.
Bondurant, the son of a car dealer was born in Corvette racing on the West Coast. When he was a teenager, he switched his loyalty to Carroll Shelby and Ford. He won the GT class in 1964 24 Hours of Le Mans with a Cobra Daytona Coupe. Bondurant was part the Shelby team that won the FIA Sports Car Manufacturers’ Championship.
Bondurant competed for Ferrari, BRM and his American friend Dan Gurney in Formula One. He was driving for BRM at the 1966 Monaco Grand Prix and his best F1 result was 4.
Bob Bondurant School of High Performance Driving
Bondurant quit F1 to pursue the Can-Am series. However, a Can-Am race at Watkins Glen in 1967 saw him crash and ended his career as a driver. The Bob Bondurant School of High Performance Driving was born.
On February 14, 1968 at Orange County International Raceway, near Los Angeles, the school was opened. It was eventually moved to Arizona. The school hosted many famous people, such as Paul Newman. He attended the school for preparation of the 1969 film “Winning” and hundreds of thousands more ordinary fans.
Bondurant’s family and a few investors purchased the driving school after Bondurant filed for bankruptcy in 2018. Radford Driving school was established in his honor. The name is derived from Jenson Button, the F1 champion and 75-year-old British coachbuilder. Bondurant’s legacy is to be continued by Bondurant’s new owners. They plan to open the school’s doors for many more years.
