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Home , ADAC, Bernd Rosemeyer, Carel Godin de Beaufort, Christian Danner, European Grand Prix, Gerhard Mitter

STAGES ...... 16

MILESTONES ...... 18

News in the : Early History and Opening ...... 24 From the south side of the slope: Opening of the new racetrack . . 34

KEY RACES ...... 36

Prague impressions: 1927 ...... 38 LIKE ARROWS SHOT FROM A BOW: 1934 RACE ...... 42 Bitter laurels: 1937 German Grand Prix ...... 50 RETURN OF THE : 1954 GERMAN GRAND PRIX ...... 58 SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST: 1957 1,000-KILOMETRE RACE ...... 64 HAIL THE KING: 1957 GERMAN GRAND PRIX ...... 66 STROKE OF GENIUS: 1961 ...... 68 GALA IN THE WETLANDS: 1968 GERMAN GRAND PRIX ...... 70 BITTER ENDING: 1976 GERMAN GRAND PRIX ...... 74 THE DUEL: 1980 GERMAN GRAND PRIX...... 78

MICHAEL TURNER

POETRY IN MOTION ...... 80

CHAMPIONS ...... 88

a gerMaN ICON: ...... 90 WouNded hero: ...... 94 aLL-tiMe great: ...... 98 MoNuMeNt oF hiMseLF: sir ...... 102 MaN oF MaNY hats: John ...... 108 the KiLted eVaNgeList: sir ...... 114 Master iN the raiN: ...... 122 oNCe burNt, tWiCe Cautious . or Not? ...... 126 reLuCtaNt ’riNgMaster: Toni Mang...... 130

4 MEMORIES ...... 134

Kurt Ahrens ...... 136 Rudi Altig...... 140 Derek Bell...... 142 Rainer Braun ...... 144 Tony Brooks...... 146 ...... 150 Helmut Dähne...... 152 ...... 156 Max Deubel ...... 158 Divina Galica ...... 162 ...... 164 ...... 168 ...... 170 Jacky Ickx...... 174 ...... 176 Hartmut Lehbrink ...... 178 ...... 184 Toni Mang ...... 188 ...... 192 Bernd Mayländer...... 196 Moko ...... 198 ...... 200 Sir Stirling Moss...... 202 ...... 204 Walter Röhrl ...... 206 Sir Jackie Stewart...... 210 Martin Stretton...... 214 ...... 216 Michael Turner...... 220 Ewy Baronin von Korff-Rosqvist ...... 222 Sir Frank Williams ...... 226 ...... 228

SPÄTLESE ...... 230

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT, CREDITS ...... 240

5 Elbow room: Seconds after the start of the 2009 German Grand Prix, in the Brawn Mercedes takes polesitter and eventual winner (Red Bull) by surprise. uses his KERS system for one of his famous lightning starts, this time from the third row. in the second Red Bull lurks behind Barrichello and scores second at his home race.

12

More than just a road

Sometimes names transcend into something bigger. They leave traces of emotion in the slipstream of their essence – love and passion, aversion and hatred, perhaps even fear and pity, as venerated in the ancient Greek dramas.

14 » Nordschleife« and »Nürburgring« evoke such emotions, but nothing it is forever a challenge, the ultimate test of courage, quite compares to the portent of the »Green Hell«, coined by three- an adventure playground. And it is precisely this that time World Champion Jackie Stewart. Looked at rhetorically, it is a makes it so alluring. paradox with rather blurry contours. »Green« can mean many things. The verdant surroundings of the Eifel region during the motor racing Alas, after 1976, the »Green Hell« lost its most important season, the way in which the leafy foliage is perceived as it flies past clientele. Niki Lauda’s fire accident is merely a symbol, at breakneck speed. Or perhaps a hint of chill – not uncommon in albeit a dramatic one. The dogs still bark while the this part of the country even in August. Grand Prix circus moves on to new high-tech pastures. After the opening of the modern Grand Prix circuit in »Hell«, however, leaves no doubt. Since its inception, the ’Ring has 1984, it ­resides in the Eifel again willingly – despite the always demanded sacrifices. These casualties were well-known faces in ­appearance of sun-trapped spots like Abu Dhabi with its the racing scene; like the Prague banker and gentleman driver Vinzenz Arabian Nights tale, with a balmy starry night sky above Junek (1928), the young Argentinian Onofre Marimón (1954), the dutch the mystically illuminated Yas Island on the shores of Earl and amateur racer (1964), British drivers the Persian Gulf. Nowhere in the world is there a starker Peter Collins (1958) and John Taylor (1966) after only his fourth Grand contrast to the Eifel course – a sentiment also shared by Prix, ’s in 1969 in a Formula 2 car, and the Jackie Stewart – no trace of »hell« let alone »green«. well-known Swiss Sportscar pro Herbert (»Stumpen-Herbie«) Müller (1981). Or on the same April day in 1961 during a motor bike race on And in attempting to bring the Nürburgring into line the Südschleife: Englishman Dickie Dale and Alfred Wohlgemuth with modernity, devastating mistakes have been made. from Heidelburg, seated in the sidecar alongside Helmut Fath, with Like so many things that seemed sacrosanct, Germany’s whom he won the World Championship the previous year. showcase racetrack has also fallen into disrepute.

And then there are the lesser-known victims, as well as the many Still, the legend lives on. nameless, who were driven by demons out of the cage of strictly regulated road traffic into an environment where they were simply not up to the task.

The Nürburgring was always the Belle et Bête, Beauty and Beast. How should one handle such a perilous beauty? With admiration, of course, and a cer- tain controlled frenzy, but also with respect, behind which barely concealed trepidation sometimes hides. The ’Ring separates the wheat from the chaff,

15 Survival of the Fittest: 1957 1,000-kilometre race

The ADAC 1,000-kilometre race on May 26, 1957, ends with a double blast under sunny skies and icy wind. The winner is a lanky young Briton with a university degree in dentistry, driving a stable vehicle that handles well but is not particularly fast. »David triumphs over the Goliaths,« reports a gaggle of correspondents with a tendency toward pithy blanket statements.

ot quite. Already during practice, 25-year-old Tony Brooks, supported the depths of the Spider. Ugolini, however, is not prepa- N in the race by Noёl Cunningham-Reid – 2 years his senior and com- red to stand down two of the best drivers in the world. pletely unknown in Germany – is only 5 seconds slower in his Aston In position 12, an entire 20 minutes behind the leading Martin DBR1/2 than the obvious favourites Stirling Moss and Juan Tony Brooks, is the privately-run 300S of the Manuel Fangio in their Maserati 450S, a roaring yet temperamental Spanish/British duo Francesco Godia and Horace Gould. beast with 8 cylinders and 400 horsepower. This second-hand car with a colourful past and plenty of At 9am, as the 66 drivers sprint to their cars Le Mans-style, onlookers patina now faces an unexpected tour de force. At Ugolini’s fully expect Moss to put in one of his famed lightning starts. But Brooks behest, Fangio and Moss step on it. At the wheel of the old immediately grabs the lead, while the Maserati’s starter motor is all Modena battleship, the wiry Briton is only two seconds noise and no action. Moss’s charge through almost the entire field per lap slower than the 450S. Repeating his performance costs him a great deal of time. To the delight of the 120,000 fans at of the first laps, he again picks off one opponent after the track, he puts in an astonishing display of perfection to emerge the other and is running in sixth when he hands the at the front of the pack in lap 8, promptly leaving the rest in his car off to Fangio for the final stint. Again in great form dust – and in lap 10 (of 44) fails to return. At the entrance to Schwal- this season, the Argentinean doesn’t mess around and benschwanz, the red machine has lost a wheel, skidded wildly and promptly chases down the second of Roy spun to a standstill. Moss keeps his cool, springs out of the car and hitches a Salvadori and Les Leston, overtakes it and brings home ride back to the pits with a sympathetic British MG driver. In the meantime, fifth overall. Maserati race director Nello Ugolini has called the second 450S in to the pits and swaps the miffed Harry Schell with Fangio. Fans are treated to a show packed with thrilling enter- tainment over more than seven-and-a-half hours. The car is beautiful but not exactly up-to-the-minute and by no means prepa- red for the rigours of the Nordschleife. Fangio stops in lap 17. The mechanics labour for 19 minutes to repair the oil mounts. Moss takes over, but after just one more lap, pulls back into the pits and retires. Oil drips from

64 Looking for answers: the Aston Martin DBR1/2 during a . The duel: 1980 German Motorcycle Grand Prix

Nürburgring, August 24, 1980: the sixth and final round of the World Championship for the 350cc machines. Tied for points, the two favourites, Bavarian Toni Mang and (born 1946), a South African with a German licence, share the first row. Mang seems to hold a slight advantage – he returns nine seconds faster from his best qualifying lap.

lthough they have many traits in common, not least when it comes spectators are treated to a duel they will very likely never A to their driving style, the two are not particularly enamoured with forget. Only a second or 44 metres is all that stands be­ each other. But the dance at the limit doesn’t leave much room for tween victory and defeat. The Yamaha scorches over the play, anyway. Both are competing on private , Mang on a finish line after 137 kilometres of hot pursuit through Kawasaki, Ekerold on the -Yahama of his Sindelfingen sponsor the »Green Hell«. That represents about the same amount Gregory Paflik, tuned by Günter Seufert at the lawnmower manufac- of time a rider can lose through misfiring, missing a turer, Solo. Their rides, around 70 hp and reaching 240 kilometres braking point or being just one hand’s width off the an hour at Döttinger Höhe, have already notched up many race kilo­ racing line. In vain, historians look for other precedents metres. Mang and his faithful liege Sepp Schlögl constantly tweak for this heart-stopping finale. the Kawasaki to the latest spec, and to do this they burn plenty of midnight oil. Game, set and match to Jon Ekerold, the new title winner. The battle between the pair has proved so fierce that the Without exchanging a word, Mang and Schlögl glance at each other in com- subsequent big-league classes with , Jean- plete understanding. Ekerold’s wife, Sandy, holding his four-month-old son, François Baldé and Gregg Hansford are virtually humilia- Tony, throws her arms around her husband and wipes tears from her eyes. ted with a one-and-a-half minute gap. Mang picks himself She doesn’t like Jon’s job. There is dead silence before the motorbikes, right up and has already shaken off the disappointment. His on cue at the dramatic signal from the track announcer, blare off trailed sights are already set on the next season, new games at by toxic fumes. This discipline is not Mang’s forte, but it is for Ekerold, and the limit, new fortunes. he’s off. In an instant, Ekerold leads by 200 metres, but Mang has sliced 70 off after the first of 6 laps, and eats away the gap with his rival centimetre And in fact, Toni Mang is crowned world champion in the by centimetre to finally slip into the top spot in the third lap. 350cc class in 1981 and 1982. With his second champi- onship under his belt, the 350cc category is laid to rest. Ekerold follows in the slipstream, and on the long straight eats up the ad- vantage Mang has eked out on the twisty passages. Ekerold already knows he can grab Mang at the Döttinger Höhe in the final lap. Mang knows this too, and is unable to prevent it when it happens – new, untested sparkplugs cost him the decisive revs in sixth gear. One hundred and twenty thousand

78 Adversaries on and off the track: Toni Mang (4) and Jon Ekerold. Master in the rain Jacky Ickx

They call him Jacky Nationale for all sorts of reasons. There is, for instance, the Belgians’ deeply rooted longing for a hero, intensified by a lengthy period of doing without. But whenever the hungry public reached out to embrace Ickx as a hero, he would become standoffish, retiring into an aloof courteousness. He’s simply different; he holds mere mortals at arm’s length.

nd then there’s his face with its cheeky winner’s grin – and his name. Something in Ickx’s character induced his colleagues A Both unmistakeable. He surname is a letter in the alphabet. And of to call him »Pierino the Terrible«. Enzo says he all letters, it is the one that, from time immemorial, has stood for understood this about Ickx. Through the rain of Rouen in mystery, for an enigmatic prediction of the future. Then there’s his July 1968, the racer from drove the red Scuderia given name, shortened to Jacky rather than the unwieldy Jacques to their first grand prix win since Monza 1966. In his book Bernard, a kind of Gallic adversary to the two other Jackies: Stewart Piloti, che gente – a rather blatant toxic settling of a score and Oliver. Ickx’s relationship with both was one of constructive ten- with his drivers – the old man from Maranello wrote: sion: with the Scotsman because he was the measure of all things in »This boy who was growing up too fast, impressed me those years; and latterly with the Briton, when the two joined forces deeply with his fine and fearless drives on wet circuits.« in ’s highly successful squad in 1969, to hone their skills through the natural friction and competitive spirit that Indeed, like , whom Ferrari valued and exists between team mates. ranked on a par with Ickx, the Belgian skipped a few important years between adolescence and adulthood. As part of Wyer’s outfit, Ickx enjoyed an undisputed number one status Like Villeneuve, he at first came across as a youngster in every sense of the word. This suited his personality – he wasn’t inte- whose scooter had been taken away from him much too rested in turning colleagues into buddies. For the 1968 Nürburgring early to be replaced with a much more dangerous toy. and Montlhéry 1,000-kilometre races, John Wyer teamed Ickx with There’s a boy in every man, and Jacky Ickx’s home was Paul Hawkins from Australia. Hawkins’s verdict on the Belgian: he’s filled with pinball machines and one-armed bandits that about as approachable as a statue of a horse. he hoarded like electronic treasures from the German Niblung, like a boy’s colourful dreams turned into reality. It was in May of that year when his reputation as a rain specialist crystal- And also like Villeneuve, he had his hands full trying to lised into fame. The way he pushed the Gulf-Ford GT40 through dark swaths survive at a time when death thinned out the ranks of of water, grey-green curtains of rain and walls of spray on his home turf drivers with merciless fury and randomness. at Spa-Francorchamps seemed unreal; earthbound acrobatics at their very best. And yet it’s curious: Ickx, as always, stood in the limelight and made Those who were there will never forget the scene: it’s headlines, while his equally talented teammate , who shared 1967, the second year of the new three-litre formula. the cockpit during this 1,000-kilometre race, remained in the background, The meagre grid of GP cars at the German Grand Prix unassuming and humble. has been bolstered with Formula 2 single-seaters. With the little Matra of lumber merchant , the

122 »

Portrait of a maestro: For a long time, Jacky Ickx enjoys a reputation as a prodigy, coupled with the anxious question, how can one survive such a driving style. In , not necessarily known as a hotbed of champion drivers, he is idolised. Although he is denied a Formula 1 World Championship, he is still top dog in other motor racing disciplines. And he survives. Jacky Ickx

Big moment: The beaming winner of the 1972 German Grand Prix, with Ferrari. Even his teammate, Regazzoni (left) on the second podium step, congratulates him, whilst March pilot bows his head in humility. In the back- ground (wearing sunglasses), AvD President Paul Fürst Metternich joins in the celebrations.

innocent-looking youngster scores third in qualifying, beaten only by icons and . From the ten notorious slings around the Nürburgring, he barrels along at the craziest angles and over the longest stretches – an unbelievable display of low-level flying that rushes straight into the hearts of the spectators. In the race, accompanied by the cheering crowds around the track, he charges through the field to fourth place to run amongst the formidable giants, when the suspension of his tormented blue car collapses. The ’Ring is his stage. Those who win two Grands Prix here, like Jacky Ickx in 1969 and 1972, are regarded as true virtuosos of the sport.

nlike Gilles Villeneuve, however, he still walks U amongst us. Naturally, when Ickx grew older, he stripped off some of his old habits. In the later years of his 116 Grands Prix and 49 races in the World Championship for Makes, wisdom and necessity turned the daredevil into a driver with immaculate circumspection. His spectacular win over Hans Herrmann at Le Mans in 1969 is still today regarded as one of the great legends of mo- torsport history. Five more victories at La Sarthe were a feat of solid craftsmanship, rolling wins off the assembly line night and day at 360 kilo- metres per hour; through darkness and fog and with the nonchalance of a postman on his daily rounds through the neighbourhood.

What bitter irony: On September 1, 1985, young lost his life at Spa’s Eau Rouge while duelling with Jacky Ickx. Bellof, a young hotspur, like the Belgian in his early days. This sport gives and takes like no other.

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larly thrilled. And earning a living with it was out of the Reluctant ’Ringmaster question.« On the contrary – in the late stages, he was delighted if someone donated fuel and tyres. And, »At Toni Mang the end of the year the motorbike had another 10,000 kilometres on the clock and was an old bike.«

The robust Bavarian is full of surprises. One of them is his attitude to the Nürburgring: cool and calm but re- luctant. Within the industry branch this is something very unusual. Ardent commitment to the »Green Hell« is something of a verbal duty. No one can deny the repu- tation of this Eiger north face of motor racing. Another They called him Mike the Bike – , of his surprising qualities: his career as a child actor in the latter half of the fifties. The four productions in one of the eternal heroes of the two-wheeler which the handsome villain Toni Mang appeared were fraternity. Those three syllables merge man all fairytales: »The Heinzelmännchen«, »The wolf and the seven little goats«, »Rübezahl – Herr der Berge« and »The and machine into a cyborg, into a bionic being – Bremen Town Musicians«. Due to difficulties in dubbing, this had something mystical about it. Hailwood an Irish fairy-tale film didn’t quite get off the ground.

was a centaur of 20th century technical, albeit Mang, however, was not discovered in a casting: »The an exceptionally human one. production company set up a giant hall not far from here. My father worked there as a foreman, and they needed a dwarf like me.« Because he was the smallest of the seven little goats, he was always banished to the clock cabi- net. And anyway, shooting films was always exhausting: »The spotlights throw out tremendous heat and it’s even oni the Bike doesn’t rhyme quite so nicely, but for the members of hotter under a mask. And we had to rehearse, rehearse, T Toni Mang’s huge fan club, the term is still synonymous, set in stone rehearse. The budget was miserly, the film material was by 34 pole positions, 42 victories, 5 world championships and an expensive. For this reason it took a long time to shoot one immensely popular personality. scene, sometimes an entire day.« Time and again he paid the company’s payroll office at Inning a visit to have a There is plenty of continuity in Mang’s life. For instance, he still lives word with the elderly spinster who took care of the cash very close to the town of Inning, where he was born in 1949. The flow: »You cannot imagine how tough and difficult this reasons? On the one hand, there is the famously stubborn Bavarian work was, and consequently: I definitely needed more down-to-earth approach. On the other hand, why would anyone want dough!« Sometimes she softened, and the money was to move away from this Garden of Eden near the picturesque shores rather generous for a young lad. Nevertheless, Hollywood of the Ammersee lake? had to do without Toni Mang. His life took off in a very different direction. He would never have left Inning had the mere name of the town not lured the weirder fans: »They rang our doorbell day and night. Eventually, of course The fact that he wouldn’t be content with a pittance that really gets on your nerves.« Even today, the persistent ones ferret out his underlines another facet of Mang: 1981 »Sportsman of rather inconspicuous home. They ring or knock unabashedly, pull out their the Year«: At the age of 16 he clinched the still relatively selfie sticks and stand grinning next to their idol as they snap the shot. »As new German Championship title in skibobbing, and a a rule«, he says shrugging his shoulders, »I’m nice to them.« His daughter junior European Championship in the same discipline. Vroni is more reserved. At 18 years old she has learned to come to terms with This leaning towards white slopes proved to be a warm- her »Babba’s« popularity. But sometimes it’s annoying. up to his magnificent ascent to two wheels. What they have in common: speed, corners, leaning in, and being It would be completely wrong to define Toni Mang solely by his career as a extremely physical. Two years later Toni Mang tackled racing driver. Things change, and even the motorcycle is no longer in the his first road race. His beginnings were truly humble: focus: »For me it was a piece of pure sporting equipment. I wouldn’t like to a 50cc machine made by hand with Kreidler parts. A drive it in today’s unpredictable traffic. « Two years ago he withdrew from »DIY« sort of guy. his job as an instructor at the ’Ring and other places, initially as part of the Toni Mang Training, later under the umbrella of Speer Racing: »Eventually, A hefty fall at the Yugoslavian Grand Prix in Rijeka in my concerns grew. We used our vacation for it. The girls were not particu- 1988 put a forceful full stop on Mang’s race. A prank at

130 »

Keep your distance: The relationship between Toni Mang and Jon Ekerold is an excellent example of being close yet so far. Then again, it’s just like the Formula 1 greats, Senna and Prost. They need each other to fight and win against in or- der to fuel their own fame.

Toni Mang

Goodbye to a champion: In his last year of racing in 1988, Mang leaves the scene with a final in the 250cc class at the at Suzuka in late March. A massive fall four months later in Rijeka puts an emphatic halt to his career. Anyway, with 42 victories and 5 world cham- pionships to his credit, winning had become somewhat com- monplace.

the Grand Prix a year later, however, boosted his popularity towards me. But I couldn’t stop before I’d reached my two ratings. Chancellor Helmut Kohl was expected as the patron, and Toni Mang assistants otherwise we would have fallen off.« had been invited to turn a lap on his bike while holding a flag. In cahoots with two journalists, he decided to turn these two factors into something Acting no longer lured him, but in his capacity as a truly spectacular. He plotted to have the distinguished guest Herr Kohl hold trained toolmaker, Toni Mang somehow returned to his the flag in the wind – as a pillion on Mang’s production bike: »I had met origins. He had already put a lot of input into his racing him two years earlier at a festival for children. When he came into the room machines. His sophisticated system that accurately che- I noticed he filled the doorway.« cked the tightness of wastewater drains did not catch on (»actually exactly what the legislator prescribes«). He he affair had to be carefully planned: »I had a helmet custom made suspected this was probably because it could not be mani- T in an XXXL size, I got a BMW K1 for the big event and organised two pulated. Today, he works in Starnberg for a laser company accomplices who would heave Herr Kohl onto the bike – all in ut- that manufactures machines for cutting stents. Mang most secrecy.« A daring plan: for a week, he remembers, he couldn’t supplies the control units for the noble gas, which keeps sleep with excitement. The attempt was announced over the stadi- the welding seams clean, a secure financial endeavour. um loudspeaker, and Kohl’s quiet objection »Ah no, perhaps another time« was deliberately ignored. The masses on the grandstands hooted It takes extreme precision. The model of a Harley-David- with delight. In no time, the portly Chancellor of German Unity was son, with its little engine running, remains unfinished. introduced to the BMW – superb PR, because the model had just Completed, however, is the miniature Leopard tank, a been launched on the market. But the difficulties had just begun: »I tricky affair: »The commercially available assembly kit actually wanted to turn into the paddock at the end of the pit lane, was simply not enough. Each of the tank treads had 1,700 but the gate was closed.« The next chance: the shortcut though the parts that needed to riveted together under a magnifying crossover, but it was being used for parking. glass. But the turret and gun didn’t move. So I simply installed more engines.« »There was nothing left to do but take him on an entire lap«, he says, the entire scene playing before his eyes. He twisted around, flipped the visor on Kohl’s huge helmet down, and apologised: »I’m very sorry, Mr Chancellor, this is not part of the protocol, but there is no alternative.« Problems cropped up on the bends: both chicanes, the Ostkurve, and the actual Motodrom. They demanded smooth cooperation. But Kohn sat upright like the statue of the Commendatore in Mozart’s »Don Giovanni«: »With my flyweight I could barely compensate.« Indeed, the balance of the BMW was seriously disrupted, heavy at the rear, almost lifting off at the front. »A little more throttle and we would have done a backward roll.« One last fright waited in the stadium: »As I drove through the -Kurve, his bodyguards came sprinting

133 Johnny Herbert

Johnny Herbert, born in June 1964, won three of the 161 Grands Prix he contested between 1989 and 2000. In 1991, he wrote a special chapter in racing history by winning the Le Mans 24 Hours in a Mazda with a Wankel-type rotary engine. Nowadays, viewers of the English TV station Sky Sports F1 reap the benefits of his years of racing experience and his articulate way with words.

became acquainted with the Nordschleife in 1999 on the occasion of The place literally breathes history, for example the huge I the European Grand Prix, which was held on the new circuit. Rubens board listing past winners when you come out of the Barrichello sat at the wheel of our rental car. We removed a wire fence, tunnel after the old paddock. My fascination goes well which was supposed to prevent us from getting out on the track, and back into the thirties with the legendary duels between we drove a lap. We were simply curious, particularly after Jackie Stewart had and Mercedes-Benz. What a performance that told us so much about this racetrack. I simply had to take a look at this play­ must have been. The brawny Auto Union rear-engine cars ground of illustrious names from the past. You can find a lot on the Internet, on their narrow tyres hurtling over the earlier version especially on YouTube. I always like to watch Stefan Bellof’s unbelievable of this track. To give me a realistic feel for how it was, I lap in the Rothmans during practice for the 1,000-kilometre race drive vintage racing cars whenever I get the chance, for of 1983. That was an incredible effort, driving such a big car on this narrow instance at the . Unfortunately, the track. What I like the most is that Bellof didn’t just take it on as a challenge, Silver Arrows are still missing from my resumé. he actually enjoyed it. If you look at Spa, there is one passage that seems almost In 2011, I had the immense pleasure of being able to contest a race on the identical to the terrifying circuit of old. The best example Nordschleife and, on this occasion, I learned to love it. , the motor- is Eau Rouge, arguably the most famous corner of all. But sport director at VW, invited me, along with , Patrick Bernhardt what remains today is only the name. Over the course of and René Rast, to drive the 24-hour race in a Golf24. It was a very special time the substance has completely changed, especially vehicle, a prototype with four-wheel drive and a turbocharged five-cylinder when it comes to safety. The Nordschleife, however, still engine that produced 440 hp. The race department built it in no time at all. pushes you mercilessly to your limits, where you experi- The car was unbelievably fast with a fantastic handling, but unfortunately ence your moment of truth. It’s the same for the material. it left us in the lurch with gearbox problems. At this stage my ’Ring experi- As Jackie Stewart once said to me, the racing cars were ence was still meagre, consisting of just a couple of laps with so frail in his time that he drove on the ’Ring only as fast in an A8. Pierre comes from the region and he knows the ’Ring like as was absolutely necessary. the back of his hand. The new Grand Prix circuit, with its interesting mix of Even just being a passenger was huge fun. I couldn’t believe the speed that corners, ascents and descents, deserves respect and gives was possible through some passages, especially because at first I didn’t al- me a good feel for speed. What’s more, it still benefits ways know what actually came next. Mark Blundell was cautious given the from the myth of the old track. There have been many obvious dangers that lay in wait on this track. changes since my first outing there in the mid-nineties, such as in the area of the Michael-Schumacher-S. Admit- The Nordschleife is basically a relic from a bygone era; a piece of road, a tedly, my victory there at the 1999 Grand Prix of Europe strip of grass, guardrails directly adjacent and at times bordered by a forest. in the Stewart came as something of a surprise after Essentially, your job as a racing driver is to simply stay on that strip of asphalt. starting from the seventh grid row. It was a chaotic race But the way you have to throw yourself into this, no holds barred, is like no under changeable weather conditions. Twelve competi- other racetrack in the world. And therein lies the attraction for me. Plus, of tors retired, including Heinz-Harald Frentzen, Giancarlo course, there’s the competition. Fisichella and David Coulthard, who had also led the field.

168 Johnny feels good: Victory at of Europe in 1999 comes unexpectedly. But it now stands in the chronicles.

And yet, uncertainties are part of motor racing: the weather, mechanical gremlins in the equipment we use, a weakness that ambushes you. At the »The Nordschleife is basically a end of the day, a win is a win. I’m proud that my name stands on the honours relic from a bygone era; a piece board at the tunnel exit behind the historic paddock, and that I am a part of the history of this great race track. of road, a strip of grass, guardrails directly adjacent, at times bordered by a forest.« Johnny Herbert

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Holy hell! A typical ’Ring perspective, as seen here from the days of the three- litre Formula from 1966, and shown in John Frankenheimer’s film »Grand Prix«. Today, no circuit bombards Grand Prix pilots with such wild rollercoaster rides, except perhaps Spa-Francorchamps, especially the notorious albeit now signi- ficantly tempered Eau Rouge.

239 Bibliographic information published by the Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Acknowledgements The Deutsche Nationalbibliothek lists this publication in the Deutsche Nationalbibliografie; detailed bibliographic data are available on the ­Internet at http://dnb.dnb.de. My sincere thanks to the many people who talked to me and supported me in this project with such ­openness, joy and sometimes even enthusiasm. In 1st edition ­particular, I want to thank Sir Frank Williams. These ISBN 978-3-667-10410-6 days he doesn’t usually give interviews of this kind, © Delius Klasing & Co. KG, Bielefeld (Germany) but he is someone who has my greatest admiration. I know he doesn’t like to hear this, but I’ll say it any- Translation: Kaye Mueller way. Editor: Alexander Failing Photo Credit: Stefan Bogner: U1, page 2; Getty Images/Ullstein Bild: And thank you to Maria Feifel and Uwe Heintzer from pages 4/5, 20/21, 69, 91–93, 109, 147, 171, 207; Getty Images/Rainer W. the »Mercedes-Benz Archive & Collection« as ­Schlegelmilch: pages 6/7, 8/9, 70–77, 111–129, 137-139, 151, 157, 165–169, well as Peter Frohnmeyer, who was a great help in 172–177, 185–187, 194/195, 201, 205, 211–213, 218/219, 230–233, 236/237; ­contacting champions on two and three wheels and Getty ­Images/AFP: pages 10/11; Daimler AG: pages 18, 26/27, 35, 36, ­43–63, Johannes Holzwarth from the auto motor und sport 95–101, 104, 223–225; Archiv Hartmut Lehbrink: pages 22/23, 25, 29, 31, archive 32/33, 38, 39, 40, 41, 66, 105, 140-141, 148, 149, 159-163, 179–183, 199, 217, 240; Getty Images/Klemantaski Collection: pages 65, 103, 203; Getty ­Images: page 67; Jon Ekerold: pages 79, 131; Michael Turner: pages 80–87; Getty Images/Popperfoto: pages 106/107; Lionel Derimais: pages 110, 221; Getty Images/Grand Prix Photo: page 143; Hans-Peter Seufert: page 145; Helmut Dähne: page 153; AUTO BILD/Aleksander Perkovic: page 154; ­Archiv T&T: page 189; imago/Norbert Schmidt: page 132; imago/HJS: page 190; imago/Ferdi Hartung: page 191; racecarpix/Matthias Nießen: ­page 193; Bernd Mayländer: page 197; AUTO BILD/S. Krieger: page 208; ­Tobias Schmitt: page 209; Jim Houlgrave: page 215; Getty Images/ Paul ­Gilham: page 227; Jim Hunter: page 229; Getty Images/GP Library: pages 234/235, 238/239. Should there be any discrepancies in these credits, we apologise and ask the bailees to contact us. Cover design and layout: Jörg Weusthoff, Weusthoff Noël, Hamburg Lithography: Mohn Media Mohndruck, Gütersloh Printed by: Firmengruppe APPL – aprinta druck, Wemding Printed in Germany 2016

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