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This Sunday sees us compete in our 700th world championship Grand Prix and in the lead up to the race we'll be taking a look at our history through the cars that appeared at race 100, 200, 300, 400, 500, 600 and 700. To mark the occasion and start us off, we asked legendary F1 writer Alan Henry for his assessment of the team.
"At Sunday’s Korean Grand Prix, McLaren will reach another memorable milestone when Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button compete in the team’s 700th world championship Grands Prix - some 45-years since Bruce himself made his debut through the streets of Monte Carlo in the first of the M2B contenders. In between, there has been much in the way of cutting edge technical achievement and epic racing on the part of the organisation which now prides itself on being Britain’s leading F1 team.
"Putting together a succession of journalistic snapshots to catch the mood of McLaren’s achievement over the decades is easier said than done. Making a choice from the myriad memories becomes an intensely subjective process. But for me the moment which stands out in my mind – the day we suspected that McLaren might be something ‘different’ – was the 1968 Race of Champions at Brands Hatch where Bruce won commandingly in the spruce orange liveried M7.
"It wasn’t the fact that here was a victory for that rarest of F1 breeds – the owner driver of a fully fledged constructors’ team - but just how economically efficient and beautifully integrated the design of the M7 really was. It looked, to my eyes at least, tautly efficient in a coolly understated fashion. In a sense, the M7 set the philosophical design benchmark for all the McLaren F1 cars which followed; ‘enough and no more.’
I never knew Bruce; he was killed during the summer of 1970 only weeks after I joined the editorial staff of Motoring News. But he was, and remains, one of that handful of F1 insiders about whom nothing critical is ever said. Yet it is much to the credit of Teddy Mayer – and later Ron Dennis – that the qualities which the New Zealander brought to bear on his fledgling company have been sustained through to this very day. We live in a time in F1 which is much more hard-edged than it was when Bruce was alive. But McLaren as a team continues to garner respect in the most fundamental way possible; through its achievements on the track.
"The team has a diverse history. In 1970, not only was McLaren an emergent F1 force, but they were also taking on Indianapolis oval racing and building Can-Am sports cars. They had to wait until 1974 before the first world F1 world championship came the team’s way with Emerson Fittipaldi and the remarkably effective, functionally elegant M23, an achievement that would be repeated by James Hunt in 1976.
"Meanwhile Texan Johnny Rutherford -“Lone Star JR” – would deliver McLaren victories in the Indy 500 in 1975 and 77 while privateer Mark Donohue’s Penske McLaren won the most famous American motor race in 1972.
"The late 70s were a difficult time for the team as they dropped from the F1 high wire, seemingly bemused and befuddled by the technical intricacies of ground effect aerodynamics. The main sponsor became progressively less amused by this failure to get a grip, but eventually a takeover was brokered which would see perfectionist Ron Dennis take over at the helm. Aided initially by talented designer John Barnard, who produced F1’s first carbon-fibre composite chassis for the team in 1981, McLaren went up a gear. And never really looked back.
"Speeding through the 1980s and 90s there is a dazzling kalaidescope of trackside images which bear witness to just what McLaren has achieved. The long-lived partnership with TAG and Mansour Ojjeh; the remarkable Ayrton Senna; the hugely popular Mika Hakkinen; the loyal, stoic David Coulthard; Niki Lauda and John Watson; Honda and Mercedes-Benz as engine suppliers; the emergence of Lewis Hamilton as the team’s youngest ever protege. The resilient and gifted Jenson Button; so the list seems endless.
"So what is the underlying message we can discern from all this high octane achievement? Firstly, that McLaren are almost always there, at or near the front, pushing, pressing, chivvying away to discover and capitalise on the slightest technical advantage. Secondly, their standards of presentation, whether in pure engineering terms, or the way in which they tackle the fog of war operating on the track or in the pit lane, are always immaculate.
"It’s been a pleasure watching from the touchlines this past 40 years!"
* Official photo and details courtesy of VODAFONE MCLAREN MERCEDES *
Copyright © 2011, Mercedes-Benz-Blog. All rights reserved.
The glittering motorsport history of the Mercedes-Benz brand is a big focus of Mercedes-Benz Classic. Participation in the ADAC Eifelrennen at the Nürburgring is one of the ways it is honouring this heritage: from 9 to 11 September 2011, drivers and fans will be joining together to celebrate a festival of historical motor racing, which is now in its fourth year in this format.The event will commemorate high points in the motorsport history of Mercedes-Benz: for example, when Rudolf Caracciola won the first Eifelrennen on 19 June 1927 in the category for sports cars with five-litre-plus engines, driving a Mercedes-Benz S-Type – a supercharged touring sports car. Or the birth of the Silver Arrows legend in 1934, when the Mercedes-Benz racing cars appeared at the Eifelrennen not in the usual white livery, but with their shiny aluminium bodywork exposed.
In 2008, the Eifelrennen was relaunched as a premium event for vintage vehicles. It is the perfect stage for showcasing some of the racing cars and sports cars in the Mercedes-Benz Classic stable. In 2011, the choice of classic vehicles has been guided largely by the triumphs of Juan Manuel Fangio at the Nürburgring.
The occasion for this special theme is the 100th anniversary of the birth of Fangio – Argentine-born and once the number one driver for Mercedes-Benz: at the Nürburgring, Fangio won the 1954 European Grand Prix in an open-wheel W 196 R racing car and also the 1955 Eifelrennen in a 300 SLR sports car. Besides that W 196 R with open-wheels one race transporter will be representing at this year’s Eifelrennen. Former Mercedes-Benz drivers Roland Asch, Dieter Glemser and Jochen Mass have also been lined up to appear as brand ambassadors.
Brand ambassadors Mercedes-Benz Classic at the 2011 Eifelrennen
Roland Asch
Born in Ammerbuch-Altingen, Germany, on 12 October 1950
A qualified car mechanic with his own successful car dealership in Ammerbuch near Tübingen, Asch has a passion not only for motorsport, but for the technology that makes motorsport possible in the first place. But he is no die-hard driver. Motorsport has always remained a hobby for him, albeit a time-consuming one.
Roland Asch began his career in slalom racing and hillclimbs (1976-1982), securing the title of German Hillclimbing Champion in 1981 before achieving further success as the overall winner of three Porsche 944 Turbo Cups (1987/88/89) and one Carrera Cup (1989), and as runner-up after moving to the German Touring Car Championship.
After starring in the German Racing Championship, he made his debut in the 1985 German Touring Car Championship. This was followed by engagements for the MS-Mercedes team in 1989, for the Snobeck-Mercedes team in 1990, for Zakspeed-Mercedes in 1991 and 1992, and for AMG-Mercedes in 1993. In 1992 (Eifelrennen, Hockenheim) and 1993 (Diepholz and twice at the Avus race in Berlin), he recorded five victories and a string of high-placed finishes. And in 1988 (Mercedes 190 E 2.3-16 for the BMK motorsport team) and 1993 (Mercedes 190 E 2.5-16 Evo II Class 1), he finished as runner-up with Mercedes-Benz in the German Touring Car Championship.
Since 1995 – after moving to the Super Touring Car Cup – he has driven for a wide range of other racing teams.
Dieter Glemser
Born in Kirchheim/Teck on 28 June 1938
Dieter Glemser’s career in the fast lane began with the Schorndorf Hill Climb race in 1960. Many classic racing triumphs followed in various mountain and circuit races on the Nürburgring.
Glemser began racing for Daimler-Benz AG in 1963, winning overall in a Mercedes 220 SE at the Poland Rally and taking second place in both the Germany Rally (including a class victory) and the Argentine Grand Prix. In the following year, too, Glemser participated in the triple victory of the teams Böhringer/Kaiser, Glemser/Braungart and Rosqvist/Falk at the Argentine Grand Prix.
Glemser celebrated victory once again in 1971 with a European Champion title with Ford in the touring car championships and a win at the 24-hour Spa-Francorchamps event, and also held the title of German Motor Sport Champion in 1973 and 1974. However, following a severe accident caused by tyre damage at the Macau Touring Car Race, Southeast China, in November 1974, he decided to end his active motorsport career.
For ten years from 1990, Dieter Glemser was a member of the Mercedes-Benz Motorsport team, and as department manager was responsible for organisation. From 2001 to 2008, he worked on a freelance basis for Mercedes-AMG and Daimler AG for sport and driver safety training and at classic events. He continues to drive at Mercedes-Benz classic events to this day.
Jochen Mass
Born in Dorfen near Wolfratshausen/Munich on 30 September 1946
Jochen Mass, originally a trained seaman, began his richly varied motorsport career in 1968 racing touring cars for Alfa-Romeo and as a works team driver for Ford between 1970 and 1975. During this time, he won the 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps (1972). At the same time, he drove in Formula 2 (1973) and in 105 Formula 1 Grands Prix (1973/74 for Surtees; 1975-1977 for McLaren; 1978 for ATS; 1979/80 for Arrows; 1982 for March). With the 1985 German Sportscar Championship title and a stint as works driver at Porsche until 1987 under his belt, he was recruited for the Sauber-Mercedes team, also as a works driver.
He drove in Group C for this team until 1991. In the new Silver Arrow, the Sauber-Mercedes C 9, Jochen Mass won the 24 Hours of Le Mans together with Manuel Reuter and Stanley Dickens and finished runner-up in the 1989 World Championship. Three years later, Mass became involved in team management for the German Touring Car Championship.
Jochen Mass still represents Mercedes-Benz at historical racing events and at vintage super sports car events. Whether it’s a 40-horsepower Simplex from 1902 or a Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR from 1955 – Jochen Mass knows them all and drives them all.
Vehicles of Mercedes-Benz Classic at the 2011 Eifelrennen
Mercedes-Benz W 196 R (version with open wheels), 1955
In 1954, the Silver Arrows returned as Mercedes-Benz entered the Formula 1 fray with the W 196. The first race for this new 2.5-litre racing car, the French Grand Prix in July 1954, ended with a double victory for Juan Manuel Fangio and Karl Kling. The eye-catching ‘Streamliner’ proved to be the right choice for the high-speed track in Reims.
In most races in the 1954 and 1955 seasons, however, a classic open-wheel monoposto was used, which was better suited for race circuits with lots of bends. Three other victories were secured in the W 196 R in 1954; in the following season it was five; and in both years Fangio became the world champion.
Vehicle
Year of construction: 1955
Cylinder: R8
Engine size: 2496 cc
Performance: 290 hp (213 kW)
Maximum speed: approx. 300 km/h
Mercedes-Benz high-speed transporter, 1955
In 1955, Mercedes-Benz’s racing division created a high-speed transporter which incorporated the direct-injection, six-cylinder in-line engine of the 300 SL super sports car. Its job was to speedily transport broken-down racing cars to the workshop for repair, to bring in replacement cars as quickly as possible, and to transport others to test tracks with a minimum of fuss.
The 192 hp (141 kW) three-litre engine was fitted into the extended frame of a Mercedes-Benz 300 S luxury sports car. It could move the cab-over-engine truck, which weighed in at 2,100 kilograms, at an impressive 165 km/h. The range of the ‘express’ was around 600 kilometres, with fuel consumption of 25 litres per 100 kilometres – thanks to a 150-litre tank.
On the instruction of Rudolf Uhlenhaut, then head of passenger car development at Daimler-Benz AG, this one-off model was scrapped in December 1967. The Mercedes-Benz Classic Center spent several years building a replica of the transporter with its steel and aluminium body. This new edition of the express race transporter was finished in April 2001.
Vehicle
Year of construction: 1955
Cylinder: R6
Engine size: 2998 cc
Performance: 192 hp (141 kW)
Maximum speed: 170 km/h
Source: Daimler AG
Copyright © 2011, Mercedes-Benz-Blog. All rights reserved.
