Adrian Campos, the former Formula 1 grand prix driver and founder of the Campos Racing team, has died aged 60.
A statement was released by the team in the early hours of Thursday morning which confirmed the Spaniard’s passing.
“Today is the saddest day in the history of Campos Racing,” the statement read.
“Our President and founder, Adrián Campos Suñer, has left us.
“His heart stopped beating, but his memory will be the engine that will keep us all fighting to continue his legacy. Rest in Peace.”
Campos’ racing career in F1 was largely unsuccessful, as he entered 21 races across 1987 and 1988 with Minardi, failing to walk away with any Championship points.
However after hanging up his racing helmet, Campos found his calling in team management, establishing Campos Racing (then Campos Motorsport) in 1997.
In its early karting years, Campos spotted an exciting talent going by the name of Fernando Alonso, with the eventual two-time F1 World Champion making his single-seater debut with the team in 1999 at the Euro Open by Nissan, emerging as the series’ Champion.
As Campos continued to expand his outfit, the mid-2000s saw him join the GP2 grid with relative success, as in 2008, Campos claimed the Teams’ Championship title.
Not long after, Campos had his mind set on joining the F1 grid, and moved to establish the team that eventually became known as HRT, which raced from 2010 to 2012.
Campos Racing currently competes in the Formula 2 and Formula 3 Championships, taking its most recent race victory in 2019 with Jack Aitken in F2.
On behalf of MotorsportWeek.com, our thoughts are with the Campos family and those affected by Adrian’s passing.
