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Henry Surtees, personal recollections

Henry Surtees, the 18-year-old son of 1964 F1 world champion John Surtees, was killed in a Formula 2 accident at Brand Hatch last weekend. Steven English shares his memories of Henry

The first thing that struck you about Henry was the handshake. Anyone who was fortunate enough to meet him will relate to that. For those who never had the privilege, it was like being on the end of a hand-to-hand combat technique - you were at his mercy before you'd finish introducing yourself!

I think it's fair to say that a lot of people didn't fully understand Henry in their first dealings with him. There was an element of a defensive barrier, which inevitably comes from growing up in the thick of a sport in which his father is a legend. He was wary of people at first, particularly inside the motorsport world, which made him cautious and that caution could be wrongly interpreted by those who didn't get to know him well. He was not a guarded person by nature, but it was very much up to him how much he let people see of him. It took time to earn his trust.

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