Alain de Cadenet
Alain de Cadenet (born on
November 27,
1945 in
London) is an on-air personality for the
SPEED Channel. The
British-born de Cadenet has hosted many shows on SPEED, including
Legends of Motorsport, as well as the network's coverage of the
Goodwood Festival of Speed.
Currently, de Cadenet hosts
Victory By Design, in which he drives
vintage race cars, and talks about their
history. He is also a
reporter for SPEED's live coverage of the
Barrett-Jackson Auto Show from
Scottsdale, Arizona.
De Cadenet is praised for having a classy hosting style on his shows, and has been tabbed by many viewers to be a good enough fit to
anchor SPEED's live
Formula 1 coverage.
Alain de Cadenet made his reputation building and driving his own sports racing cars, taking-on the full ‘works' factory teams and, at times, even beating them. In 1976 he came third overall at Le Mans, which made his mark â€" and in 1980, won two rounds of the World Sports Car Championship (Monza 1000k and Silverstone 6-Hours). At that time, this was considered a major achievement in an era of increasing professionalism, when it was unheard of for a self-funded privateer to take-on the ‘big boys' and win.
Alain is also one of the most respected and accomplished racers of classic and vintage cars â€" and, during the course of his driving career, has owned and raced some truly important machines, particular in the marque of Alfa Romeo. As the Host of six productions of the television show "Victory by Design" (which features Classic Marques of automobiles), it's probably safe to say that Alain has driven more different and important racing cars than any other person in history.
In addition to his passion for cars, Alain is also an avid collector of motor cycles and airplanes (including a WW2 Spitfire). For many years he was also a collector and authority on George V stamps, even advising the British Postal Service on their collection.
He is divorced from his wife, Anna, but remains in contact with their children, Alexander and
Amanda de Cadenet.
