Peter Revson

Interesting facts

Revson's middle name, 'Revlon,' nodded to his family's cosmetics empire: his uncle Charles Revson and his father Martin co-founded Revlon before splitting from the business in 1958. Alongside Dan Gurney, he was one of only two drivers to win races in Formula One, IndyCar, Can-Am and Trans-Am. At the 1970 Sebring 12 Hours he shared a Porsche 908/02 with actor Steve McQueen, and the pair finished second overall. His champagne-soaked victory celebrations earned him the nickname 'Champagne Peter'; his younger brother Doug died in a racing accident in Denmark in 1967. At the time of his death he was engaged to Marjorie Wallace, the 1973 Miss World, who had recently been stripped of her title over an affair with singer Tom Jones. He died on 22 March 1974 during a test session at Kyalami in South Africa ahead of the Grand Prix, when his Shadow DN3's front suspension failed at Barbecue Bend and the car slammed into the barrier and caught fire; designer Tony Southgate later traced the cause to a poorly machined titanium ball joint. Peter Revson made his Formula 1 debut in 1964 and raced until 1974, 5 seasons in total as an American driver. He scored a total of 61 championship points over his career.