Maurer Motorsport

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Maurer Motorsport was a German motorsport team that competed in the Formula 2 European Championship between 1979 and 1983 with vehicles they had designed themselves . The team was founded by the industrialist Willy Maurer; Most of the cars were designed by Gustav Brunner . Most of them were painted black and in the first few years they had advertising stickers for “ Mampe Halb und Halb ”, a herbal liqueur manufactured by one of Maurer's companies.

The German entrepreneur Willy Maurer had occasionally driven circuit races in the early 1970s. After finishing his active career, he initially supported some German teams in the sports car sector. From 1979 onwards, Maurer had a works team that was present in the Formula 2 European Championship for five years and achieved some successes.

Maurer as a sponsor in motorsport

In the late 1970s, Maurer initially supported the Zakspeed team with his “Mampe Halb und Halb” brand , which included a Ford Capri a . a. campaigned for Hans Heyer in the German racing championship . Occasionally the Kremer Racing team , for which Klaus Ludwig drove , was also promoted .

History of the racing team

Willy Maurer first came into contact with Formula 2 in the summer of 1978. At that time, Maurer promoted the racing driver Armin Hahne , who had previously mainly competed in the German racing championship and was now looking to enter formula racing. Maurer's attempt to give Hahne a Formula 2 cockpit at Chevron failed because of the different financial ideas of those involved. Shortly afterwards, Maurer Hahne made a test drive possible for Manfred Cassani's German Formula 2 team. Cassani, however, used used racing cars whose competitiveness was limited from the start.

Together with the Austrian engineer Gustav Brunner, Maurer decided to set up his own racing team, which - unusual for this racing class - was to use racing cars he had designed himself.

In the unsuccessful first season in 1979, Maurer Motorsport operated from a base in Germany. At the turn of the year 1979/80 Maurer took over the factory buildings and part of the equipment of the insolvent British racing car manufacturer Chevron in Bolton . Over the next three and a half years, Maurer's own racing cars were manufactured there, and the works team's racing operations were also prepared in Bolton. In the last year of his Formula 2 involvement, Maurer relocated the company back to Germany.

1979

Maurer Motorsport first appeared in the 1979 Formula 2 season . The team used the MM1 , a racing car designed by Gustav Brunner. The car was manufactured in Great Britain by John Thompson, which also supplied Formula 1 teams. The MM1 was wide and had an unusual rear wing supported by two outer struts. A BMW engine prepared by Erich Baier served as the drive . Armin Hahne was signed as the only driver in the team.

Maurer Motorsport's first season was unsuccessful. The team made its debut at the fourth championship run of the season, the ADAC Eifelrennen at the Nürburgring , but withdrew before qualifying because the MM1 was not yet ready for use at the time. Maurer only started regularly at the following event in Rome. Overall, Hahne only took part in a single race in 1979; at all other events he either missed qualification or the team withdrew prematurely due to technical problems. Hahne qualified for the first time at the last run of the season in Donington. However, he had to finish the race on lap 58 after an accident.

1980

Maurer relocated to the UK for the next season. The new car, the Maurer MM80, was also a development by Gustav Brunner. The car was slimmer and had conventional lines. The BMW engine was prepared by Maurer himself.

Eje Elgh and Markus Höttinger were signed up as drivers . However, Höttinger was only able to start twice for Maurer. In the second race of the year, the Jim Clark Memorial Race in Hockenheim , he had a fatal accident. During the race he was killed by a rear wheel of the previously injured Derek Warwick whirling through the air . Höttinger died at the scene of the accident. Helmut Henzler later took over the second Maurer cockpit. He finished three times in eight attempts; his best result was eighth place in the Mugello race.

Swede Eje Elgh drove Maurer's second car in the first four races of the year, but never crossed the finish line. He was replaced for two races by Patrick Gaillard , who also never saw the finish; then Beppe Gabbiani took over the car for the rest of the season. Gabbiani came in sixth at the Grote Prijs von Zandvoort, where Hans-Georg Bürger had a fatal accident in a Tiga team car . He scored the first championship point for a driver with a bricklayer.

A third car for Mario Ketterer was registered for the race in Hockenheim, but it did not start. In the last race of the season, Eje Elgh drove the third bricklayer; he qualified, but did not finish.

1981

The third Formula 2 season was a successful year for Maurer Motorsport. The team reported the MM81, a new design by Gustav Brunner, which triggered protests from competitors even before the first race. It was suspected that the MM81 was designed for ground effect and that it had movable side parts contrary to the rules. After examining the cars, the FIA ​​declared the car to be compliant. The car was powered by a BMW engine prepared by Mader .

In 1981, Maurer regularly ran two cars, and a third vehicle was used in individual races. One of the regular drivers was Roberto Guerrero . He could only finish six of twelve championship races, but achieved the first victory for the Maurer team in the third race of the year, at the "BARC 200" in Thruxton. His lead over second-placed Riccardo Paletti , who drove a March for Team Onyx , which has almost factory status , was 41 seconds. Two fourth places in Enna and Misano earned Guerrero further points.

The second regular driver was Eje Elgh. He also competed in every race and, with one exception, always crossed the finish line. He also won once (at the Gran Premio di Roma in Vallelunga) and also finished second in Thruxton and on the Nürburgring. In addition, he achieved a third place at the Grand Prix de F2 Belgique in Spa-Francorchamps as well as several fourth and fifth places. Elgh was third in the championship with 37 points behind Geoff Lees in the Ralt factory team (51 points) and Thierry Boutsen in the March factory team (37 points).

Manfred Winkelhock drove a third Maurer MM81 at two events . He finished fifth at Spa and third in the subsequent race at Donington. In this race he was the best Maurer pilot.

1982

In 1982, Maurer dominated the Formula 2 European Championship for a time. This year the Maurer works team fielded three cars and also supplied the private Bertram Schäfer Racing team with two more cars.

The team competed with the MM82 throughout the year. A special feature of the car were double spring units, which were suitable for establishing contact between the aprons and the road surface as soon as the car was in motion. The works cars were powered by powerful BMW engines prepared by Heidegger.

Maurer's first driver was Stefan Bellof , who contested his first season in Formula 2. Bellof first tested a Formula 2 car for Maurer in October 1981. Willy Maurer took over the management of the Giessen racing driver in 1982 and supported him financially and organizationally. Bellof also received support from BMW. Mediated by Dieter Stappert , he brought the team three free engines for the coming season. Bellof's debut in Formula 2 was successful. He won the first two races of the season - his first Formula 2 races - with superiority. As a result, as well as a second place in Enna, a third in Hockenheim and a fifth place each at the Nürburgring and Misano, Bellof scored a total of 33 points, so that he finished the season fourth in the Formula 2 European Championship and the reputation of the "coming man." in German motorsport ”.

The second bricklayer was driven by Beppe Gabbiani. The Italian crossed the finish line eight times and was fifth behind Bellof with 26 points.

The third Maurer was driven in the first three races of the year by Peter Schindler , who crossed the finish line twice far outside the points. At the ADAC Eifel race on the Nürburgring he was replaced by Eje Elgh, who finished 17th. Then Jean-Louis Schlesser took over the car for the rest of the season. Schlesser crossed the finish line six times, but didn't get any points. At the Rheinpokal at the Hockenheimring he was replaced once by Alain Ferté , who had to break the suspension.

The private team Bertram Schäfer Racing used two Maurer MM82s in 1982. Regular driver was Frank Jelinski , whose best result was fourth place in the race in Pau. There he joined the team in front of the Maurer works car. Schäfer's second car was mostly driven by Pierre Chauvet ; Occasionally Mike Thackwell or Wolfgang Klein started instead of him .

1983

In the 1983 season, Maurer competed again with Stefan Bellof as a top driver in Formula 2. However, Willy Maurer's attention to his team was reduced; His main focus this year was on the goal of enabling Bellof to compete in Formula 1 .

Maurer reported the MM83 for the 1983 season, a further development of the previous year's car, which differed from the MM82 primarily through a monocoque made of carbon fiber-reinforced plastic and a modified suspension. After Gustav Brunner moved to Alfa Romeo's Formula 1 team in 1982 , the MM83 was designed by Paul Brown. The BMW engines were prepared by Max Heidegger . At the beginning of the season there were differences about the payment of the engines. Because of allegedly unpaid bills, Heidegger had Bellof and Alain Ferté's cars seized at the second race of the season.

Maurer Motorsport fielded four factory vehicles this year, Bertram Schäfer Racing brought two more Maurer to the start.

Maurer's regular driver Bellof was registered for ten races, but only competed seven times, because in the same year he drove factory sports car races for Porsche and there were repeated deadlines. Bellof only crossed the finish line three times in 1983; his best result was second place in the race in Madrid. He dropped out three times due to technical defects, in Pau he - like his teammate Alain Ferté - was disqualified because the car was underweight, in Misano Bellof was not allowed to start because of allegedly illegal aprons on his car. Bellof finished the season in ninth.

The second car was driven by Pierre Petit , who crossed the finish line five times but did not score any championship points. Alain Ferté in the third car finished fifth at the International Eifel Race at the Nürburgring and in Madrid. The fourth mason was reported for Kenny Acheson . He crossed the finish line regularly and came second in Pau. At the team’s last race in Limbourg, Frank Jelinski took his place.

In the 1983 season, Bertram Schäder Racing again used two private masons MM82. The regular driver was the Swede Tomas Kaiser , the second car was driven alternately by Frank Jelinski, Bartl Stadler and Henning Hagenbauer . Jelinski achieved the best result of the private team with sixth place in Pau.

Maurer Motorsport did not participate in the last race of the year in Mugello. The team was disbanded. After Bellof had received a Formula 1 cockpit at Tyrrell for 1984 , Willy Maurer concentrated on the management of Bellof in the following year and a half. A promotion of his own team to Formula 1, which Maurer and Gustav Brunner had repeatedly thought about in early 1982, was not realized.

literature

  • David Hodges: Racing Cars from A to Z after 1945 . 1st edition Stuttgart (Motorbuch Verlag) 1994, ISBN 3-613-01477-7 .
  • Jochen von Osterroth: Formula 1 “Half and Half” . Overview of the history of Maurer Motorsport on the 25th anniversary of the racing team in: Motorsport aktuell , issue 14/2004, p. 14 f.
  • Rainer Braun, Ferdi Kräling: Stefan Bellof: a German miracle . In: Motorsport aktuell , issue 33/2004, p. 6 f.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Formula 2 was dominated by the British manufacturers March , Ralt and Chevron, who supplied most of the private teams with vehicles. The teams that manufactured their own cars in 1979 and used them permanently included Osella and AGS . Other constructions were the Pilbeam MP42 by Team Onyx , the Mirage M1 by Sergio Mingotti and the AMS 279 by Piero Necchi; however, these cars only appeared in individual championship races and were clearly inferior.
  2. ↑ a b c d e David Hodges: Racing Cars from A to Z after 1945 . 1st edition Stuttgart (Motorbuch Verlag) 1994, ISBN 3-613-01477-7 , p. 178 f.
  3. ↑ In the 1970s, Formula 2 cars usually had rear wings that were attached to a central support. This also applies to the March 792, the most successful car of the 1979 F2 season.
  4. ↑ a b Motorsport aktuell, issue 14/2004, p. 14 f.
  5. ↑ The assignment of the third car is controversial. In some cases this car is seen as another works car - for example by Jean-Louis Schlesser -; other sources (e.g. Hodges, p. 179) report on the other hand that the third car was used by an independent team under the direction of Paul Owens. On the Formula 2 Register statistics page ( Memento of the original from October 11, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was automatically inserted and not yet checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. all three cars are assigned to the “Maurer Motorsport” team. @1@ 2Template: Webachiv / IABot / www.formula2.net
  6. ↑ Motorsport aktuell, issue 33/2004, p. 6
  7. ↑ In the course of the year there were contacts between Willy Maurer and Arrows , which intensified in December 1983; Ultimately, however, Arrows signed the Belgian Thierry Boutsen for the 1984 Formula 1 season, who in 1983 was only two points more than Bellof, but was runner-up in Formula 2 in 1981. Bellof received a cockpit from Tyrrell in 1984.