Jochen Mass
Jochen Mass from the Palatinate region, who was born in Dorfen near Munich, had a varied motorsport career beginning in 1968 in a touring car for Alfa Romeo. This was followed by an engagement as a works driver for Ford, during which he won the German Automobile Circuit Championship in 1971 in a Ford Capri.
At the same time, Mass competed in a number of Formula 3 races in 1971 and 1972 and for Team Surtees in the Formula 2 European Championship in 1972. With two wins, three second places, one third place and one fifth place, he was in second place overall and proved to his team manager that he was capable of greater achievements.
Starting in 1973, he initially competed for Surtees in three rounds of the Formula One World Championship, then drove for McLaren from 1975 to 1977, for ATS in 1978, for Arrows in 1979 and 1980 and for March in 1982 in a total of 102 further Grands Prix. His only victory, at Montjuich in Barcelona in 1975, was spoiled by the race being abandoned early due to a bad accident involving Rolf Stommelen and the points score being halved.
With the title of German Sports Car Champion in 1985 and a very respectable record as a Porsche works driver until 1987 in his portfolio, Mass joined Team Sauber-Mercedes as a works driver the following year. There he drove the Group C racing cars C 9, C 11 and C 291 until 1991, valued for his calmness, consistency and his pedagogical skills as a mentor for his teammates, some of whom were much younger.
His own successes during this time were impressive. Mass claimed 11 victories, including the legendary 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1989 in the Sauber-Mercedes C 9 together with Stanley Dickens and Manuel Reuter, as well as numerous second places and other top rankings. At the end of 1989, these results culminated in second place overall in the Sports Car World Championship – a success he was able to repeat in 1990 in the Mercedes-Benz C 11.
After the expiry of the Group C regulations and the withdrawal of Mercedes-Benz from prototype racing, Mass nevertheless remained loyal to the brand and in 1992 moved to the management of his new Mercedes-Benz DTM team, run together with Günter Schons. To this day, he is still associated with the company and occasionally competes in historical events, mostly in a Mercedes-Benz.