Tributes have been paid to John Surtees, who died on Friday. He was an acknowledged great of the motor sport world and the only racer to have won world championships on motorbikes and in Formula One.

Surtees, who was 83 years old, was admitted to hospital in February with an existing respiratory condition and after a short period in intensive care died peacefully. He was much admired among his contemporaries, and by subsequent generations of drivers and fans, and had remained involved in motor sport after his retirement from competitive racing in 1972.

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Surtees won the 500cc motorcycle world championship in 1956, 1958, 1959 and 1960 with the MV Agusta factory team, for whom he scored 22 wins at the top level before switching to cars, making his debut for Lotus and winning the Formula One title for Ferrari in 1964, which included a remarkable win at the Nürburgring and one at Monza.

It was an achievement made all the more impressive given the level of competition he faced, beating Graham Hill and Jim Clark into second and third places. During the 12 years he raced in F1 he won six races from 111 starts. He also took a third place for Ferrari at Le Mans in 1964.

He left the scuderia having been at odds with the then manager in 1966, a decision Enzo Ferrari, who hugely admired the British driver to the extent that he invited him to join the team twice – something unheard of at the time – believed was a mistake for both parties and cost them a further championship.

Lewis Hamilton said: “I just heard about John Surtees. To end the day with that kind of news is very sad. He was a legend of the sport – a lovely guy who did so much. It’s a shock to everyone. My thoughts and prayers go out to his family.”

Hill’s son, Damon, posted on Twitter: “Such a lovely man. We have lost a true great motorsport legend. RIP John.” Ferrari also acknowledged the part he had played for the scuderia, tweeting: “John Surtees, Motorsport legend and 1964 World Champion with Ferrari, passed away. Our thoughts are with his family.”

The team went on to describe him as “The Great Surtees” and said “Ferrari has lost one of its greatest drivers” in a commemoration on their website.

Jenson Button posted: “Today we lost one of the all time greats on two and four wheels. We will miss you John... ripjohnsurtees.” The former driver and commentator Martin Brundle tweeted: “Rest in Peace John Surtees, a great champion in every respect. Sadly he’ll never get the Knighthood he deserved. Condolences to the family.”

Facebook Twitter Pinterest John Surtees practicing at Monza in 1957. Photograph: Keystone/Getty Images

In 1966, he also won the CanAm Championship in a Team Surtees Lola, again notable for the level of competition in a field that included Bruce McLaren, Dan Gurney and Phil Hill.

During his time on bikes he won the Isle of Man Senior TT four times, becoming the first man to win it three times in succession between 1958 and 1960. During the 1970s he ran his own team, the Surtees Racing Organisation, but although he was appointed MBE, OBE and CBE, many were disappointed he was never recognised with a knighthood.

Surtees was a gentleman on and off the track from a different era of motor sport, when socialising with competitors was the norm, something he enjoyed enormously and with a ready wit, bewitching smile and a wealth of entertaining stories he went on to continue to charm everyone he had contact with subsequently.

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He was equally unafraid to speak to his mind, often allied to a steely stare and face criticism in defence of his views. That single-mindedness was reflected on the track, where his skill and natural talent were matched by the seriousness with which he took the task and the bravery and effort he put into it. Colin Chapman identified this when originally bringing him to Lotus but Surtees opted to drive for Cooper in 1961 and Lola in 1962.

He always maintained his driving style was centred around having feel for the machine beneath him. “You try and go along and become part of it,” he said in 2015: “Through the seat of your pants and the way your hands are on the steering wheel, you get that essence of what the car is telling you and that is how you decide how close to the limit you can go and what the limit is.”

It was something he displayed with aplomb when guiding his Ferrari to what he described as his most satisfying victory on the formidable and dangerous challenge of the old Spa circuit in 1966.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Surtees at the Goodwood Revival in 2016. Photograph: Split Second/Corbis via Getty Images

Surtees suffered a life-threatening accident in a Lola at Mosport, Canada, in 1965, from which he recovered to continue racing but he and his family were struck by tragedy in 2009 when his son Henry was killed in an unusual accident at Brands Hatch after being struck on the head by an errant wheel.

He created the Henry Surtees Foundation to raise funds for accident care, community support and promote the development of skills through racing for young people, a cause to which he threw himself into for the rest of his life. But it had not dampened his enthusiasm for the sport. Commenting on Formula One in 2012, he proclaimed: “If I could I would still have a go.”