Maurer Motorsport (Germany)

Maurer Motorsport was a German Formula Two racing car constructor and entrant, founded by Willy Maurer,[1] who had connections to the German, Mampe drinks company.[2] The team was notable for its involvement in the early careers of future Ferrari designer Gustav Brunner and Formula One driver Stefan Bellof.[2]

Maurer Motorsport
Founded1979
Folded1983
Team principal(s)Willy Maurer
Former seriesEuropean Formula Two
Noted driversStefan Bellof
Eje Elgh
Roberto Guerrero
Alain Ferté
Teams'
Championships
0
Drivers'
Championships
0

Racing history

Works and privateer Maurers competed in the European Formula Two Championship from 1979 to 1983.

Maurer, on behalf of Mampe, had sponsored the Ford-Zakspeed and Kremer-Porsche teams in the DRM German sportscar series, particularly for driver Armin Hahne,[2] and in 1979 entered him in European Formula Two in a chassis of the team's own design with BMW engines.[2] The car only achieved one race start, from which it retired, and Hahne left at the end of the season.

For 1980, Maurer recruited Eje Elgh, who had some experience of the series previously and Austrian driver Markus Höttinger.[2] Results did not initially improve and there were setbacks after Höttinger was killed at Hockenheim when he was hit by a wheel which had become detached from a crashed car[2] and Elgh broke an arm in a testing accident.[2] However, Elgh brought some technical staff from his previous team, Chevron, and by mid-season the car (designated MM80) was more competitive, driven by substitute drivers, Beppe Gabbiani and Helmut Henzler.

For 1981, Elgh continued with the team and was joined by future Formula One driver Roberto Guerrero. At the insistence of the former Chevron staff members, the team base was moved to England and Gustav Brunner joined on a full-time basis.[2] Results improved and Elgh took third place in the championship, with Guerrero seventh.

Towards the end of 1981, Brunner began work on a Cosworth-engined Formula One design for Maurer, but the project was abandoned after Stefan Bellof joined for 1982 and the team became more successful in Formula 2 again.[3]

In 1982, Elgh departed in the hope of a Formula One career and the team recruited Bellof and Gabbiani as the main drivers. Helped by a controversial system which locked the car down at high speed in a similar fashion to the Lotus 88 Formula One car,[2] Bellof won the first two races but a series of protests and reliability problems hampered the rest of the season.[2] Bellof and Gabbiani finished fourth and fifth in the championship respectively.

1983 was Maurer's last season as a motorsport entrant. The team re-located to Germany and Brunner left to join ATS. There were also engine supply problems and the team achieved no wins, although two victories were lost with last lap reliability issues and scrutineering failures respectively. The season ended with places of ninth and fifteenth in the championship for Bellof and Alain Ferté with a tenth place for Kenny Acheson who achieved one second-place finish for the team. The team folded shortly thereafter, in dispute with the British side of the operation[2] and Bellof moved to Tyrrell in Formula One partly with Willy Maurer's backing.[2]

Complete European Formula Two results

(key) (Results in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap.)

Year Chassis Engine(s) Drivers 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13
1979 Maurer MM1 BMW SIL HOC THR NÜR VAL MUG PAU HOC ZAN PER MIS DON
Armin Hahne DNS DNQ DNQ DNS DNQ Ret
1980 Maurer MM80 BMW THR HOC NÜR VAL PAU SIL ZOL MUG ZAN PER MIS HOC
Eje Elgh Ret Ret Ret Ret Ret
Patrick Gaillard Ret Ret
Beppe Gabbiani Ret 11 6 13 7 Ret
Markus Höttinger Ret Ret
Helmut Henzler Ret 10 Ret 8 13 Ret Ret Ret
1981 Maurer MM81 BMW SIL HOC THR NÜR VAL MUG PAU PER SPA DON MIS MAN
Eje Elgh 18 4 2 2 1 4 5 5 3 7 Ret 17
Roberto Guerrero Ret 10 1 Ret Ret 6 Ret 4 Ret Ret 4 Ret
Manfred Winkelhock 5 3
1982 Maurer MM82 BMW SIL HOC THR NÜR MUG VAL PAU SPA HOC DON MAN PER MIS
Stefan Bellof 1 1 Ret 5 7 Ret 9 Ret 3 6 Ret 2 5
Beppe Gabbiani 3 5 4 DNS Ret Ret Ret 8 2 4 3 Ret 3
Peter Schindler 8 Ret 18
Eje Elgh 17
Jean-Louis Schlesser 14 Ret 8 7 8 7 14 Ret
Alain Ferté Ret
1983 Maurer MM83 BMW SIL THR HOC NÜR VAL PAU JAR DON MIS PER ZOL MUG
Stefan Bellof 4 Ret DNS Ret DSQ 2 7 DNS Ret 7
Alain Ferté Ret 14 12 5 14 DSQ 5 Ret
Kenny Acheson Ret 10 10 9 11 2 Ret 8
Pierre Petit 8 12 Ret 10 12 Ret Ret Ret DNS Ret 8
Frank Jelinski Ret

References

  1. "Die Stefan Bellof Website". Retrieved 1 September 2011.
  2. Watkins, Gary (September 2004). "Young gifted and black". Motor Sport magazine. p. 86. Retrieved 8 June 2015.
  3. "Grand Prix cars that never raced". 8w.forix.com. 9 January 2013. Retrieved 30 August 2015.
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