European motorcycle championship 1938

For the first time in history, the titles of the European Motorcycle Championship in 1938 were awarded to the racing drivers who scored the most points in their cubic capacity class at the European Grand Prix. Previously have been since 1924 , the European champion driver that the discharged annually as part of a national Grand Prix each Grand Prize of the FICM won in the various engine sizes.

Eight races were held in all classes.

useful information

• The Swedish Grand Prix was originally intended to be a European Championship run, but the race was canceled.
• At the Belgian Grand Prix there was also a 175 cm³ run, which was not included in the European Championship. The Belgian Léon Neumann won on DKW .
• At the Swiss Grand Prix , a race for 600 cc teams was held, which was also not part of the European Championship. The British duo Arthur Horton / Les Seals won on Norton .
• At the UMF Grand Prix there was also a 175 race that was not part of the European championship and was won by Bernhard Petruschke on a DKW.
• The venues for the French Grand Prix, which was held as the UMF Grand Prix at that time, changed annually. In 1938 it was held for the first time on the Circuit de la Promenade des Anglais in Nice .

Deaths

• The 29-year-old Briton Jack Moore was killed in the 350 cc race of the Tourist Trophy. On the third lap, shortly after Ramsey, while overtaking in a left turn, he went off the track, hit a concrete pillar and was thrown back onto the road. Moore was dead on the spot.

Distribution of points

Scoring
space	1	2	3	4th	5	6th
Points	6th	5	4th	3	2	1

All the results achieved were included in the evaluation.

500 cc class

European champion Georg Meier in 1989 on the Isle of Man in a BMW 255 compressor .

Season course

The half-liter class saw a thrilling battle between the British Norton - factory rider Harold Daniell and the German Georg Meier , who for BMW launched.

The first race of the season, the Tourist Trophy on the Isle of Man , was won by the 27-year-old Harold Daniell from London , who had succeeded Jimmie Guthrie , who died in 1937, on the Norton works team . At the following Belgian Grand Prix in Spa-Francorchamps , BMW works driver “Schorsch” Meier celebrated his first Grand Prix victory. The Swiss Grand Prix saw Daniell as the winner again.

After the works teams failed to compete in France and Norton was also absent from Assen , where Meier won, due to financial disagreements with the organizer, Daniell's lead over Bayern in the overall standings fell to three points. At the German Grand Prix at the Sachsenring , the "cast iron" , as Meier was also called, won again in front of around 300,000 spectators. At the finish he was about two minutes ahead of Harold Daniell, who nevertheless defended his EM lead.

When Ulster Grand Prix in Northern Ireland , the German and launched Italian factory teams do not. Harold Daniell could not capitalize on it. He retired because of a damaged wheel bearing on the rear wheel of his machine. As in the previous year, Jock West won with a BMW.

At the Italian Grand Prix in Monza again was missing Norton, which is why "Schorsch" Meier fifth place would have been enough to win the title. The Bavarian won ahead of his team-mate “Wiggerl” Kraus and was crowned 500 cc European champion in 1938. He is the only German half-liter European champion in history.

Race results

	date	run	route	1st place	place 2	place 3
1	June 13-17	XXVII. Isle of Man TT	Mountain Course	Harold Daniell	Stanley Woods	Freddie Frith
2	26.06.	XVIII. Belgian GP	Spa Francorchamps	Georg Meier	Freddie Frith	Jock West
3	07/17	XV. Swiss GP	Geneva	Harold Daniell	Freddie Frith	Georges Cordey
4th	07/24	16ème Grand Prix de l'UMF	Nice	Georges Cordey	"Cora" 1	Roger Fouminet
5	07/30	XIV. Dutch TT	Aces	Georg Meier	Bertus van Hamersveld	Dorino Serafini
6th	07.08.	XIII. GP of Germany	Sachsenring	Georg Meier	Harold Daniell	Freddie Frith
7th	08/20	XVII. Ulster GP	Clady	Jock West	Ginger Wood	David Whitworth
8th	25.09.	5th Italian GP	Monza	Georg Meier	Ludwig Kraus	Silvio Vailati

Driver ranking

1  Georg Meier BMW 24 2  Harold Daniell Norton 20th 3  Freddie Frith Norton 18th 4th  Jock West BMW 12 5  Georges Cordey Norton 10 6th  Ludwig Kraus BMW 8th 7th  Stanley Woods Velocette 5  Bertus van Hamersveld BMW 5  "Cora" 1 Velocette 5  Ginger Wood Velocette 5 11  Dorino Serafini Gilera 4th  Roger Fouminet Saroléa 4th  David Whitworth Velocette 4th  Silvio Vailati Gilera 4th 15th  Hans Bock Norton 4th

16  John White Norton 3  "Grizzly" 2 Saroléa 3  Franz Vaasen Norton 3  Georges Berthier Saroléa 3  Ron Mead Norton 3  Carlo Fumagalli Gilera 3 22nd  Noel Pope Norton 2  Wilhelm Herz DKW 2 "Walter" 3 2  Roy Evans BSA 2 26th  Ted Mellors Velocette 1  Auguste Goffin Rudge 1  Theo Zwolle Norton 1  Hans Lommel DKW 1  Jock McCredie Rudge 1

350 cm³ class

Season course

Ted Mellors from Chesterfield secured the title in the 350 cm³ class . The Englishman won three of the eight races, achieved a total of five podium places and was crowned European champion in the penultimate run, the Ulster Grand Prix . Vice was Norton - factory rider John "Crasher" White .

Race results

	date	run	route	1st place	place 2	place 3
1	June 13-17	XXVII. Isle of Man TT	Mountain Course	Stanley Woods	Ted Mellors	Freddie Frith
2	26.06.	XVIII. Belgian GP	Spa Francorchamps	John White	Ted Mellors	Siegfried wishes
3	07/17	XV. Swiss GP	Geneva	Harold Daniell	Freddie Frith	Siegfried wishes
4th	07/24	16ème Grand Prix de l'UMF	Nice	Roger Loyer	Robert Braccini	Miguel Simó
5	07/30	XIV. Dutch TT	Aces	Ted Mellors	Willy van Gent	Franz-Josef Binder
6th	07.08.	XIII. GP of Germany	Sachsenring	John White	Walfried Winkler	Siegfried wishes
7th	08/20	XVII. Ulster GP	Clady	Ted Mellors	Walter Rusk	Les Archer
8th	25.09.	5th Italian GP	Monza	Ted Mellors	"Cora"	Franz-Josef Binder

Driver ranking

1  Ted Mellors Velocette 34 2  John White Norton 15th 3  Siegfried wishes DKW 12 4th  Roger Loyer Velocette 10 5  Freddie Frith Norton 9 6th  Harold Daniell Norton 8th 7th  Franz-Josef Binder 4 Velocette 8th 8th  Stanley Woods Velocette 6th 9  Jimmy Little Velocette 6th 10  Willy van Gent Velocette 5  Walfried Winkler DKW 5  Robert Braccini Monet and Goyon 5  Walter Rusk Norton 5  "Cora" 1 Velocette 5 15th  Miguel Simó Terrot 4th

Les Archer Velocette 4th 17th  Karl stirring screw DKW 3  Ernst Pokora Norton 3 Bertoni 3  Bob Foster AJS 3 21st  Fergus Anderson NSU 2 22nd  Ernst Hänni Norton 2  Karl Bodmer NSU 2 Crossasso Magnate Debon 2 25th  David Whitworth Velocette 1  Bruno Ahlswede Velocette 1  Svend-Aage Sørensen Excelsior 1 W. Hentze NSU 1 R. Champetier Norton 1 L. Higgins Velocette 1

250 cc class

Season course

In the 250 cc class of the winning German DKW - factory rider Ewald Kluge on the ULD 250 superior to the title.

In the very first race, the Tourist Trophy on the Isle of Man , he clinched a superior victory. At the finish, Kluge had an eleven-minute lead over second-placed Ginger Wood on Excelsior . The Saxon became the first German TT winner in history and the first winner on a two-stroke engine since 1922. In the following Grand Prix, the Zschopau DKWs dominated at will. At the Grand Prix of Switzerland they took the first seven places.

In his home race, the German Grand Prix at the Sachsenring , the third last run of the season, Ewald Kluge crowned himself European champion in front of over 300,000 spectators who celebrated him frenetically. In the remaining two European Championship races, he no longer competed. Since the native of Lausa was the driver with the most points collected of the season in all three classes, Ewald Kluge was also awarded the title of Master of Masters at the end of the season .

Race results

	date	run	route	1st place	place 2	place 3
1	June 13-17	XXVII. Isle of Man TT	Mountain Course	Ewald Kluge	Ginger Wood	Henry Tyrell-Smith
2	26.06.	XVIII. Belgian GP	Spa Francorchamps	Ewald Kluge	Bernhard Petruschke	Hermann Gablenz
3	07/17	XV. Swiss GP	Geneva	Ewald Kluge	Bernhard Petruschke	Walfried Winkler
4th	07/24	16ème Grand Prix de l'UMF	Nice	Ewald Kluge	Bernhard Petruschke	Emilio Soprani
5	07/30	XIV. Dutch TT	Aces	Ewald Kluge	Bernhard Petruschke	Hermann Gablenz
6th	07.08.	XIII. GP of Germany	Sachsenring	Ewald Kluge	Bernhard Petruschke	Karl Lottes
7th	08/20	XVII. Ulster GP	Clady	Ernie Thomas	Henry Tyrell-Smith	Chris Tattersall
8th	25.09.	5th Italian GP	Monza	Emilio Soprani	Bruno Martelli	Amilcare Rossetti

Driver ranking

1  Ewald Kluge DKW 36 2  Bernhard Petruschke DKW 25th 3  Hermann Gablenz DKW 13 4th  Emilio Soprani Benelli 10 5  Henry Tyrell-Smith Excelsior 9 6th  Amilcare Rossetti Benelli 7th 7th  Ernie Thomas DKW 6th 8th  Otto Kohfink DKW 6th 9  Ginger Wood Excelsior 5  Bruno Martelli Benelli 5 11  Walfried Winkler DKW 4th  Karl Lottes DKW 4th  Chris Tattersall CTS 4th 14th  Alfred Hartmann DKW 4th

15th  Maurice Cann Excelsior 3  Piet van Dinter DKW 3  Frank Cadman Excelsior 3  Omobono Tenni Moto Guzzi 3 19th  Charlie Manders Excelsior 2  Hans Pätzold DKW 2  Walter Sontag DKW 2  Stanley Miller OK supreme 2  Guglielmo Sandri Moto Guzzi 2 24  Jock Forbes Excelsior 1  Léonard Notet DKW 1  Herbert Drews DKW 1 R. Hulme Excelsior 1  Nello Pagani Moto Guzzi 1

References

Remarks

¹actually Léon Corrand

²actually Gilbert de Rudder

³Nothing is known about the driver, "Walter" is probably a pseudonym .

^4thFranz-Josef Binder started with a Dutch license, but came from Austria . That is why he is listed as an Austrian in some statistics.

Web links

• Vincent Glon: L'Histoire de la course moto; 6ème partie: Les Championnats d'Europe (1938–1939). racingmemo.free, accessed April 27, 2010 (French). 

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Jack Moore. www.motorsportmemorial.org, accessed April 27, 2010 (English).