Thomas Bridger (24 June 1934 – 30 July 1991) was a British

racing driver Auto racing (also known as car racing, motor racing, or automobile racing) is a motorsport involving the racing of automobiles for competition. In North America, the term is commonly used to describe all forms of automobile sport including non ...

from England. He participated in one

Formula One Formula One (F1) is the highest class of worldwide racing for open-wheel single-seater formula Auto racing, racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The FIA Formula One World Championship has been one ...

World Championship Grand Prix, on 19 October 1958, scoring no championship points. His greatest success came in Formula Three, where he won 15 races.

Career

Born in

Woolmer Green Woolmer Green is a small village and civil parish in Hertfordshire, England. The 2011 census figure for the population (from the Office for National Statistics) is 661 people. History Situated between the villages of Welwyn and Knebworth, Wool ...

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is a ceremonial county in the East of England and one of the home counties. It borders Bedfordshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the north-east, Essex to the east, Greater London to the ...

, Bridger started racing in

Formula Three Formula Three (F3) is a third-tier class of open-wheel formula racing. The various championships held in Europe, Australia, South America and Asia form an important step for many prospective Formula One drivers. History Formula Three (adop ...

in 1953, initially competing minor events in a Kieft- Norton before moving to a

Cooper Cooper, Cooper's, Coopers and similar may refer to: * Cooper (profession), a maker of wooden casks and other staved vessels Arts and entertainment * Cooper (producers), an alias of Dutch producers Klubbheads * "Cooper", a song by Roxette from ...

to compete full-time in Formula Three in 1957. He achieved some success racing with Jim Russell, one of the more successful drivers in the category. He moved up to

Formula Two Formula Two (F2) is a type of Open-wheel car, open-wheel formula racing category first codified in 1948. It was replaced in 1985 by Formula 3000, but revived by the FIA from 2009 FIA Formula Two Championship season, 2009 to 2012 FIA Formula Two C ...

in 1958, finishing second in the

Crystal Palace Trophy A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituents (such as atoms, molecules, or ions) are arranged in a highly ordered microscopic structure, forming a crystal lattice that extends in all directions. In addition, macrosco ...

race, and eighth in the Coupe de Vitesse at

Reims Reims ( ; ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French Departments of France, department of Marne (department), Marne, and the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, 12th most populous city in Fran ...

. Bridger raced in the

1958 Moroccan Grand Prix The 1958 Moroccan Grand Prix, formally the VII Grand Prix International Automobile du Maroc, was a one-off Formula One motor race held at Ain-Diab Circuit, Casablanca on 19 October 1958, after a six-week break following the Italian Grand Prix. It ...

with

British Racing Partnership British Racing Partnership (BRP) was a racing team, and latterly constructor, from the United Kingdom. It was established by Alfred Moss and Ken Gregory – Stirling Moss's father and former manager, respectively – in 1957 to run cars for Sti ...

, driving a Formula Two-class

Cooper T45 The Cooper T45 was an Open-wheel car, open-wheel formula racing car, developed and built by the Cooper Car Company in 1958, and designed by Owen Maddock. It competed in Formula 2 racing as well as in Formula One racing, where it won one World Cha ...

. He qualified in 22nd place, and Bridger got up to 14th before his race was ended by a collision on lap 30. The crash involved three vehicles, but Bridger emerged unharmed. He returned to Formula Three in 1959 with the Cooper-Norton car, winning four races throughout the year. In 1960, he raced in

Formula Junior Formula Junior was an international single-seater auto racing, motor racing category that existed between 1958 and 1963. Devised by Italian motorsport promoter Count Giovanni "Johnny" Giovanni Lurani, Lurani, the formula was created as an ac ...

, competing in a works Lotus at the

British Grand Prix The British Grand Prix is a Grand Prix motor racing event organised in the United Kingdom by Motorsport UK. First held by the Royal Automobile Club (RAC) in 1926 British Grand Prix, 1926, the British Grand Prix has been held annually since 1948 ...

. Bridger died at Logie Coldstone,

Aberdeenshire Aberdeenshire (; ) is one of the 32 Subdivisions of Scotland#council areas of Scotland, council areas of Scotland. It takes its name from the Shires of Scotland, historic county of Aberdeenshire (historic), Aberdeenshire, which had substantial ...

in 1991 at the age of 57 years.

Racing record

Complete Formula One World Championship results

( key)

Complete British Saloon Car Championship results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap.) † Events with 2 races staged for the different classes. ‡ Event with 3 races staged for the different classes.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bridger, Tom 1934 births People from Welwyn Hatfield (district) 1991 deaths English racing drivers English Formula One drivers British Racing Partnership Formula One drivers 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers World Sportscar Championship drivers 20th-century English sportsmen