Mercedes-Benz, the world’s oldest luxury car manufacturer, has been involved in motorsport for almost 130 years. From Formula One to rally events, drivers are on the road under the sign of the three-pointed star. This chapter in the company’s history is correspondingly diverse. Here a brief summary of some of the important anniversaries and milestones from motorsport history.
- 1903: Victory in the Nice-La Turbie hill climb with Mercedes-Simplex 60 hp (120 years)
- 1998: Triple victory for the Mercedes-Benz CLK-GTR at Oschersleben (25 years)
- 1963: Eugen Böhringer’s second victory at the Acropolis Rally (60 years)
- 1903: Victory in the Gordon Bennett Race with Mercedes-Simplex 60 hp (120 years)
- Birthdays: Luigi Fagioli, Dieter Glemser, Ernes Merck, Kurt Thiim and Bruno Spengler
1 April 1903 – 120 years ago
Victory in the Nice–La Turbie hill climb with the Mercedes Simplex 60 hp
- Otto Hieronimus/Wilhelm Werner achieve an average of 64.4 km/h
- Triumph of the first modern automobile
- Top engine of the Mercedes-Simplex model family in 1903
Following wins in 1901 and 1902, 1903 also saw a Mercedes win the prestigious hill climb from Nice to La Turbie as part of the “Nice Week” motorsport event. The commune of La Turbie is situated in the mountains above the Principality of Monaco. On 1 April 1903, Otto Hieronimus and Wilhelm Werner in the Mercedes-Simplex 60 hp set a new record, with an average speed of 64.4 km/h over the 15.5-kilometre course. The progress was clear: in 1901, at the first start of the Mercedes 35 hp, Werner had driven at an average speed of 54.1 km/h. He won other competitions during Nice Week at the time, too. With its long wheelbase, low centre of gravity and high-performance engine complete with honeycomb radiator, the Mercedes 35 PS designed by Wilhelm Maybach of the Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft (DMG) is considered the first modern automobile ever: it was systematically designed for performance, weight savings and safety. In 1902, after a series of improvements to various details, the Mercedes-Simplex family of models was born. The suffix was a reference to how easy the car was to operate, by the standards of the time. For the 1903 model year, Maybach designed three new Mercedes-Simplex models. The top engine variant was the Mercedes-Simplex 60 hp. Its four-cylinder engine, with a displacement of 9,235 cubic centimetres, produced
44 kW (60 hp) at 1,600 rpm.
12 April 1998 – 25 years ago
Triple victory for the Mercedes-Benz CLK-GTR at Oschersleben
- Future champions Klaus Ludwig and Ricardo Zonta triumph in the opening race of the season
- First successes achieved in 1998 with the previous year’s model
- FIA GT Championship season ends with drivers’ and brand titles for AMG-Mercedes
AMG-Mercedes began the 1998 FIA GT Championship with a triple victory for the Mercedes-Benz CLK-GTR: in the inaugural race on the circuit in the Oschersleben Motor Park, which had only been opened the previous year, Klaus Ludwig/Ricardo Zonta won on 12 April 1998 ahead of Marcel Tiemann/Jean-Marc Gounon and Bernd Schneider (previous year’s champion)/Mark Webber. This dominance was particularly impressive in the face of strong competition. Furthermore, Mercedes-AMG used the car from the previous year in the first races of the season: this CLK-GTR was developed in the space of just a few months following the end of the popular touring car series DTM/ITC of 1996 for the 1997 FIA GT Championship. On 21 December 1996, the
464 kW (631 hp) V12 engine ran on the test bench for the first time. It proved to be extremely stable; in not one race did a CLK-GTR fail with engine damage. At the beginning of the 1998 season, the racing sports car once again proved impressive with its speed and outstanding reliability. After the one-two-three at Oschersleben, Schneider/Webber also finished first in a CLK-GTR at Silverstone (Great Britain) on 17 May 1998. The CLK-LM with V8 engine then replaced the CLK-GTR. On 25 October 1998, Ludwig/Zonta secured the drivers’ championship at Laguna Seca (United States of America) and the team championship went to AMG-Mercedes once again. It was an extremely successful year for Mercedes-Benz: just one week later, on 1 November 1998, Mika Häkkinen won the Formula One World Championship in Suzuka (Japan) with the McLaren-Mercedes MP4-13.
16 to 19 May 1963 – 60 years ago
Eugen Böhringer wins the Acropolis Rally for the second time with the 300 SE
- Mercedes-Benz celebrates four victories in Greece between 1956 and 1963
- Stuttgart’s Eugen Böhringer is very successful in a short rally career
- One of the most demanding rallies in motorsport
The Acropolis Rally in Greece is one of the toughest rallies on the motorsport calendar. Unpaved, scree-strewn and dusty tracks, tight bends, steep stretches and often intense heat demand everything from drivers and cars. In the early 1960s, Mercedes-Benz rally driver Eugen Böhringer won this competition twice in a row. He achieved his second victory on 19 May 1963 with his co-driver Rolf Knoll in the Mercedes-Benz 300 SE (W 112) “Fintail” rally car. The previous year, the duo had won with the similarly successful 220 SE (W 111), and Böhringer became European Rally Champion 1962. Walter Schock/Rolf Moll were the first non-Greek team to triumph at the Acropolis Rally for the Stuttgart brand in 1956 with a 300 SL “Gullwing” (W 198). In 1960, they repeated the success with the 220 SE. The Acropolis Rally enjoys a high status in Greece and also has international appeal.
2 July 1903 – 120 years ago
Mercedes-Simplex 60 hp wins the Gordon Bennett race
- Sensational success for Mercedes in international motorsport
- Camille Jenatzy drives the race of his life
- A major fire at the Cannstatt plant destroys the intended Mercedes-Simplex 90 hp
The races for the Gordon Bennett Cup 120 years ago are regarded as the forerunners of the subsequent Grands Prix. Three weeks before the start of the race on 2 July 1903, a major fire at the Cannstatt factory of Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft (DMG) destroyed 90 vehicles that were almost finished or still under construction. The flames also destroyed three Mercedes Simplex 90 hp cars. They were scheduled to start in what was probably the most internationally renowned race at the time. American publisher and “New York Herald” editor Gordon Bennett gave his name to the competition. The 1903 edition took place in Ireland. Two circuits of 65 and 83 kilometres were to be driven alternately. In order to be able to contest the race despite the major fire, DMG borrowed and bought back three Mercedes-Simplex 60 hp from customers, one of them from American millionaire Clarence Gray Dinsmore. The three emergency stand-in vehicles make their way to Ireland. There, Belgian Camille Jenatzy (born 1868; died 1913) drove the race of his life: although Dinsmore’s car was inferior in terms of output, the competition stood no chance against it or Jenatzy’s fearless, spectacular driving style on that cool, cloudy day. He covered 592 race kilometres in 6:39 hours, corresponding to an average of 79.24 km/h. With this tremendous international success, the German Mercedes brand established itself in the circle of racing nations alongside England and France.
Birthdays
- 125 years ago – Luigi Fagioli, born 9 June 1898, Mercedes-Benz works driver 1934 to 1936. He died 20 June 1952.
- 85 years ago – Dieter Glemser, born 28 June 1938, Mercedes-Benz works driver 1963/1964 and Mercedes-Benz Classic brand ambassador.
- 125 years ago – Ernes Merck, born 2 July 1898, Mercedes-Benz racing driver 1927. She died on 25 November 1927.
- 65 years ago – Kurt Thiim, born 3 August 1958, Mercedes-Benz works driver from 1988 to 1996 and DTM runner-up in 1992 with AMG-Mercedes 190 E 2.5-16 Evolution II.
- 40 years ago – Bruno Spengler, born 23 August 1983, Mercedes-Benz works driver from 2005 to 2011 and DTM runner-up in 2006 with the AMG-Mercedes C-Class.
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