Motorsport is an extremely specialist, bespoke type of competition, which means that drivers, teams and especially manufacturers will often design technologies for specific competitions and racing disciplines, which can affect everything from the gearbox to the level of body roll.
This is part of the reason why the most prestigious achievement in all of motorsport is the Triple Crown, achieved by winning three of the most prestigious races on the motor racing calendar.
There are various definitions of the Triple Crown, but the most popular one that is used is that a driver must win three specific races:
- Indianapolis 500, the most prestigious oval race in the United States.
- 24 Hours of Le Mans, overall victory at the most prestigious endurance race in the world.
- Monaco Grand Prix, the most famous race of the Formula One World Championship.
Some definitions replace Monaco with winning the entire F1 Driver’s Championship, but in either case, there has only ever been one driver and one team that has ever managed to complete the Triple Crown, both of which have completed it in both popular permutations.
Primarily an F1 driver, Graham Hill, father of later world champion Damon, won the Monaco Grand Prix five times (1963, 1964,1965,1968 and 1969), the F1 World Championship twice (1962,1968), the Indianapolis 500 in 1966 and the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1972.
Other than Mr Hill, nobody has completed all three, although 13 drivers have completed two of the three. Jacques Villeneuve, Juan Pablo Montoya and Fernando Alonso have all completed two of the three parts, and Mr Montoya even has a class victory at Le Mans, although that does not count for the Triple Crown.
Outside of individuals, Mercedes (as a chassis and engine builder), McLaren (as a team and chassis builder) and Ford (as an engine maker) have all won the Triple Crown.