In 2009, 18-year-old Henry Surtees died from injuries sustained in a crash in a Formula 2 race at the Brands Hatch circuit in England. In the aftermath, Surtees’ father, the only person to win world motorcycle and Formula 1 racing championships, established the Henry Surtees Foundation.
The foundation’s goal is “to assist people with brain or physical injuries caused by accident to return to community living by the provision of support for equipment and facilities.”
John Surtees died recently at age 83, but the work of the foundation continues, and on July 11, Bonhams will host a fund-raising auction at Mercedes-Benz World in Surrey, UK.
Earlier in the day, the annual Henry Surtees Foundation Karting Challenge will take place with 130 go-kart racers competing in a two-hour, 35-team endurance race.
Also taking place that day at M-B World is a Surtees-themed exhibition that will feature:
- One of the last Mercedes-Been 300SL “gullwings” produced.
- A 1973 Team Surtees TS 14-04 F1 car that set lap records in the German and Austrian Grands Prix and was raced by Mike Hailwood and Carlos Pace.
- A Vincent Black Lighting with an engine built by John Surtees using parts from his father’s 1949 Black Lightning.
- One of the last 1953 500cc Works Norton competition motorcycles produced, featuring a short-stroke engine and outside flywheel.
The event will include demonstration runs of two- and four-wheel vehicles with celebrity drivers and riders in and on motorcycles and cars raced by John Surtees.
Auction lots include the No. 1 of a limited-edition Omologato watch designed in collaboration with the Surtees family, a pair of Sebastian Vettel’s 2016 racing gloves, factory tours of the Red Bull and Mercedes AMG Petronas F1 team facilities, and the weekend loan of a Ferrari California T.
