John Fitch (racing Driver) - Racing Career

Racing Career

After the war, Fitch opened an MG car dealership and also began racing MG-TCs at tracks like Bridgehampton, New York, Watkins Glen, and Thompson, Connecticut.

In 1950 Fitch raced his Ford Flathead engined Fiat 1100, which he soon modified into the "Fitch Model B", and ended the year by driving a Jaguar XK120 in the first 12 Hours of Sebring. In 1951 in addition to campaigning in his Fitch-Whitmore, he won the Buenos Aires Grand Prix in his Cadillac-Allard, drove a Cunningham C-2 for the Briggs Cunningham team at several races including the 1951 24 Hours of Le Mans, and became the first Sports Car Club of America national champion. In 1952, Fitch continued to race the Fitch-Whitmore as well as a Chrysler-engined Cunningham C4R for the Cunningham team at several races (once again including Le Mans), a works Sunbeam at the Alpine Rally, a Porsche 356 at a Porsche race at Nürburgring, and a Mercedes-Benz 300 SL for in the Carrera Panamericana.

In his most notable year, 1953, Fitch competed in many European races and was named "Sports Car Driver of the Year" by Speed Age magazine. That year, in addition to again racing a Cunningham C4R and Cunningham C5R for the Cunningham team, competing in European rallies in a Sunbeam-Talbot for the Sunbeam team, and racing a Porsche 356 at Nürburgring, he also competed in the Mille Miglia in a Nash-Healey for the factory team, the Aix-les-Bains Grand Prix in a Cooper Monaco for the Cooper team, the RAC Tourist Trophy race in a works Frazer Nash, the Italian Grand Prix in a HWM-Alta, and took his rookie test for the Indy 500 in a Kurtis-Kraft-Offy but did not qualify for the race. His win at Sebring with co-driver Phil Walters, defeating the powerful Aston Martin team under John Wyer, was the first win at that track for American drivers in an American car.

In 1954, Fitch drove for Cunningham in a Cunningham C4R, and also Ferraris and again a Mercedes-Benz 300 SL. In 1955, in addition to driving a Maserati 250F in the 1955 Italian Grand Prix, Fitch raced for the Mercedes-Benz sports car team along with Juan Manuel Fangio, Karl Kling, and Stirling Moss, arguably the most formidable racing team ever, dominating all levels of competition from Formula One to diesel-engined production cars. That year, Fitch won the production class at the Mille Miglia in a Mercedes-Benz 300 SL, coming in fifth overall behind his teammates Moss and Fangio in their Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR racers. He also won the Tourist Trophy at the Dundrod Circuit in Northern Ireland. He found the narrow circuit to be dangerous and unfit for motor racing, as did other drivers; and the Tourist Trophy moved to the Goodwood Circuit in England.

For the 1955 24 Hours of Le Mans, Fitch was paired with Pierre Levegh in a 300 SLR; while it was Levegh driving at the time of the 1955 Le Mans disaster, the initial confusion had his family in the United States notified he had crashed, when it was Levegh; Fitch was in the pits awaiting his turn. The incident sparked his lifelong interest in safety innovations for racing and highways.

In 1956 Fitch returned from Europe and was chosen by Chevrolet Chief Engineer Ed Cole to head the new eight driver Chevrolet Corvette racing team for two years. Although the Corvette was at that point widely panned in the racing community as more style than substance, under Fitch's management the year began with setting a class land speed record for production cars at Daytona Beach of 145.543 mph, followed by two class wins and a team win at Sebring. During this period, Fitch continued to race successfully with the Cunningham team, which was now competing around the United States in Jaguar D-types. By the end of 1957, Fitch had begun racing in Maseratis, which he continued to race in 1958, mostly at the new Lime Rock Park, where he had been instrumental in the promotion of the track and where he was circuit director. In 1959 he drove a RSK for Porsche at Sebring, a Lister Jaguar for Cunningham, a Corvette for Chevrolet's Bill Mitchell, and a Cooper Monaco.

In 1960, Fitch joined the Briggs Cunningham team to race once again at Sebring and Le Mans. The Fitch-Grossman #3 race prepared production white and blue Corvette of the Cunningham team placed 1st in GT and 8th Overall, a Corvette record which stood for over 40 years. The twin wide dark blue racing stripes on white of the Cunningham team (using the U.S.A. International racing colors of white and navy blue) were adopted by the Carroll Shelby racing team for his famous 1965 Mustang GT350 R both for the track and street. After that, they teamed to race a two liter Maserati at endurance events at Sebring and Road America through 1962, and a Jaguar E-type at Sebring in 1963. Fitch also raced a Genie BMC in 1963, then returned with Cunningham to drive a Porsche 904 at Sebring in 1965 and 1966. By this time, both were no longer enthusiastic about competing to win; according to Fitch, "I think we were there because we just liked to drive. And at Sebring we could, for 12 hours! Besides, it was the best place to watch the race." So, when a valve broke on the car in 1966, it marked the end of their racing careers for both of them.

Fitch continued to drive in vintage racing events, particularly at Lime Rock Park, as well as at Goodwood Festival of Speed and the Monterey Historic Automobile Races.

Fitch did, however, return to official automotive competition at 87 years of age in 2003 and again in 2005, when he was once again teamed up with a now 50 year old Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR owned by Bob Sirna, this time at Bonneville Salt Flats in an attempt to break the land speed record for the class, a novel venue for both car and driver. The attempts failed due to the fuel injection pump which limited the top speed to only 150 mph, but the team vowed to return the next year. With characteristic self-deprecating humor, Fitch noted that he had driven those cars faster than that in the rain, at night, on a road with 60 other cars. The extraordinary event is documented in a film Gullwing at Twilight: The Bonneville Ride of John Fitch, which is occasionally airing in HD on PBS .