Jochen Mass

Jochen Mass
Mass at the 1982 Dutch Grand Prix
Born	Jochen Richard Mass (1946-09-30) 30 September 1946 (age 78) Dorfen, Bavaria, Germany
Formula One World Championship career
Nationality	West German
Active years	1973–1980, 1982
Teams	Surtees, McLaren, ATS, Arrows, March
Entries	114 (105 starts)
Championships	0
Wins	1
Podiums	8
Career points	71
Pole positions	0
Fastest laps	2
First entry	1973 British Grand Prix
First win	1975 Spanish Grand Prix
Last entry	1982 French Grand Prix
24 Hours of Le Mans career
Years	1972, 1978, 1981–1983, 1985–1989, 1991, 1995
Teams	Ford, Martini, Porsche, Sauber, Price
Best finish	1st (1989)
Class wins	1 (1989)

Jochen Richard Mass (German pronunciation: [ˈjɔ.χn̩ ˈʁɪ.çaɐ̯t maːs]; born 30 September 1946) is a German former racing driver and broadcaster, who competed in Formula One from 1973 to 1982. Mass won the 1975 Spanish Grand Prix with McLaren. In endurance racing, Mass won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1989 with Sauber.

Born and raised in Bavaria, Mass made appearances in Formula Super Vee, Formula Three and European Formula Two throughout his early career. He finished runner-up in the latter in 1973, having already taken victory at the 24 Hours of Spa alongside Hans-Joachim Stuck the year prior. Mass made his Formula One debut at the 1973 British Grand Prix with Surtees, making sporadic appearances before achieving a full-time seat in 1974. Mass moved to McLaren from the Canadian Grand Prix onwards, where he achieved his only race win at the curtailed 1975 Spanish Grand Prix. In his final season with McLaren in 1977, having taken several podiums with the team, Mass finished a career-best sixth in the World Drivers' Championship. After a non-classified championship finish in 1978 with ATS, Mass spent two seasons at Arrows. He was seriously injured at the 1980 Austrian Grand Prix, bruising his neck and fracturing vertebrae as his Arrows A3 rolled over during practice. After a year hiatus, Mass returned in 1982 with March. Following his crash with Mauro Baldi at the 1982 French Grand Prix—only two months after his involvement in the death of Gilles Villeneuve—Mass retired from Formula One, having achieved one win, two fastest laps and eight podiums.

Outside of Formula One, Mass entered 12 editions of the 24 Hours of Le Mans from 1972 to 1995, winning in 1989 alongside Manuel Reuter and Stanley Dickens, driving the Sauber C9, as well as finishing runner-up in the World Sportscar Championship, matching his result from 1984. He also finished runner-up at Le Mans in 1982 with Porsche. Mass was the champion of the Deutsche Rennsport Meisterschaft in 1985, as well as twice finishing runner-up in Interserie, all with Joest. Mass was also a race-winner in the British Saloon Car Championship. Upon retiring from motor racing, Mass became a commentator for RTL from 1994 to 1998. Since the 1990s, Mass has made frequent appearances at Goodwood events, including the Festival of Speed and the Revival. In popular culture, Mass appeared as himself in Rush (2013).

Jochen Richard Mass was born on 30 September 1946 in Dorfen, Bavaria.^[1] Mass participated in 114 Formula One World Championship Grands Prix, debuting on 14 July 1973 at the British Grand Prix. He won one GP race (1975 Spanish Grand Prix), secured no pole positions, achieved 8 podiums and scored a total of 71 championship points.

Mass is perhaps best known for his on-track incident with Gilles Villeneuve which led to the latter's death. On 8 May 1982, with only 10 minutes left until the end of the qualifying session for the 1982 Belgian Grand Prix at Zolder, Villeneuve collided with Mass while attempting to overtake him. As Villeneuve came up behind Mass exiting a super-fast left turn, Mass moved to the right hand side of the track to let Villeneuve through. Villeneuve had already committed to the right hand side and the two cars touched wheels, launching the Canadian skyward. Villeneuve's car hit the ground nose-first and was then torn apart in a series of violent cartwheels. His seat was dislodged and he was flung from his car, landing heavily among the catch fencing at the opposite side of the track. Mass stopped his car, jumped out and ran back to Villeneuve's wrecked car. Villeneuve was flown to hospital and taken off life-support later that evening.

After leaving the Formula One circuit, Mass enjoyed great success in sports car racing, gaining international prominence with his performance during the European Touring Car Championship in the early 1970s. In 1972, he teamed up with Hans-Joachim Stuck to drive a Ford Capri RS2600 to victory at the Spa 24 Hours endurance race in Belgium. He went on to win that year's World Sportscar Championship. He finished second to Clay Regazzoni and Arturo Merzario in a November 1972 9-hour race at the Kyalami Circuit, in Johannesburg, South Africa. Mass' co-driver in a Chevron B-21 was Gerry Birrell.^[2] Mass, driving a Surtees TS-15, tied with Jean Pierre Beltoise in qualifying for the Jim Clark Memorial Formula Two auto race in April 1973 held at Hockenheim, both drivers recording times of 2 minutes, 2.8 seconds, for an average of 124.3 miles per hour.^[3]

Mass placed second to Jean-Pierre Jarier in a Formula Two race at Nivelles, in June 1973. He had finished second in the first heat and third in the second.^[4] He completed his first Formula One race at the 1973 German Grand Prix at the Nürburgring. Mass came in seventh in a Surtees.^[5] He drove a McLaren-Ford to third place in the 1975 Brazilian Grand Prix at Interlagos.^[6]

Mass won the 1975 Spanish Grand Prix after leader, Rolf Stommelen's car hit a protective barrier, exploded into flames and catapulted into the crowd at the Montjuich circuit. Four spectators were killed and twelve were injured. Stommelen suffered multiple fractures and was in a critical condition after the accident. Mass was declared the winner in his Texaco McLaren-Ford, when the race was stopped immediately after the accident.^[7]

Merzario and Mass led an Alfa Romeo sweep of the first two positions in the 1975 Coppa Florio manufacturers championship automobile race at Pergusa.^[8] Mass was third in the 1975 French Grand Prix at Le Castellet. On lap 44 he broke the record set by Denny Hulme, clocking a time of 1:50.60 over the 3.61-mile circuit.^[9] Mass and Jacky Ickx teamed in a Porsche to claim victory in the Dijon Six-Hour Race.^[10] Mass won the eighth and final race of the 1976 World Sports Car Championship series. He completed the 4.2 kilometre, Salzburg course in 1 hour, 28 minutes, 25.24 seconds, with an average speed of 125 m.p.h.^[11]

Mass and Ickx drove a Porsche 935 in the 1977 24 Hours of Daytona endurance race. Mass was clocked at 126.477 m.p.h. around the 3.84 mile Daytona road course.^[12] Mass won both 20-lap heats of the 1977 Jim Clark Memorial race in Hockenheim. He drove a March-BMW.^[13] Mass' Arrows turned over several times at the 1980 Austrian Grand Prix at Zeltweg. He bruised his neck and wrenched a vertebra but was able to leave the hospital.^[14]

Mass was convinced to stop racing Formula One cars after an accident with Mauro Baldi at the 1982 French Grand Prix at Paul Ricard. His March and the Arrows of Baldi touched at maximum speeds, both cars flying off the track and through a containment fence. Mass's car continued, hitting a tyre-lined guardrail. The March finally came to rest upside down and on fire, almost halfway into a spectator area. Amazingly he escaped with light burns only, and Baldi was uninjured.^[15]

Among his many victories, in 1985 he won the Circuito del Mugello 1,000 km race in Italy driving a Porsche 962C and in 1987 partnered with Bobby Rahal to claim victory at the 1987 12 Hours of Sebring race. Mass and Bobby Rahal combined to win the Champion Spark Plug Grand Prix at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio. Driving a Porsche 962, they inherited the lead 18 laps from the end.^[16] Mass won the most prestigious endurance race of all, the 24 Hours of Le Mans, in 1989 driving a Sauber Mercedes C9. It was the second triumph for Mercedes-Benz at Le Mans, their previous win having come in 1952.

Jochen Mass now drives the Mercedes-Benz museum's historic cars. In the 2004 Mille Miglia, he drove the original Mercedes-Benz 300 SLR that Stirling Moss had driven to victory in the 1955 race. To raise money for charity, the passenger seat next to him was auctioned off to the highest bidder.

From 1994 to 1998, he also announced the Formula One races for German broadcaster RTL.

Mass played himself in Ron Howard's 2013 film Rush.

This list is incomplete; you can help by adding missing items. (December 2021)

Season	Series	Team	Races	Wins	Poles	F/Laps	Podiums	Points	Position
1971	European Formula Super Vee		?	?	?	?	?	15	6th
	European Touring Car Championship		?	?	?	?	?	13	14th
	Shellsport National British Formula Three		3	0	0	0	1	16	5th
1972	European Formula Two	STP March Racing Team	4	0	0	0	0	1	27th
	24 Hours of Le Mans	Ford Motor Company Deutschland	1	0	0	0	0	N/A	DNF
	British Saloon Car Championship	Ford Köln	1	1	0	0	1	9	28th
	British Saloon Car Championship - Class D		1	1	0	0	1	9	7th
1973	European Formula Two	Team Surtees	13	2	2	3	6	42	2nd
	Formula One		3	0	0	0	0	N/A	NC
	British Saloon Car Championship	Ford Köln	2	0	0	1	1	6	29th
	British Saloon Car Championship - Class D		2	0	0	1	1	6	8th
1974	Formula One	Team Surtees	10	0	0	0	0	0	NC
		Yardley McLaren	2	0	0	0	0
1975	Formula One	Marlboro Team Texaco	14	1	0	1	4	20	8th
1976	Formula One	Marlboro Team McLaren	16	0	0	1	2	19	9th
	European Formula Two	Project Four Racing	0	0	0	0	0	0	NC‡
		Willi Kauhsen Racing Team	1	0	0	0	0
		Fred Opert Racing	1	0	0	0	0
1977	Formula One	Marlboro Team McLaren	17	0	0	0	2	25	6th
	European Formula Two	March Racing Ltd Yardley	2	2	1	1	2	0	NC‡
1978	Formula One	ATS Racing	10	0	0	0	0	0	NC
	European Formula Two	ICI Chevron Cars	3	0	0	0	0	0	NC
	24 Hours of Le Mans	Martini Racing Porsche System	1	0	0	0	0	N/A	DNF
1979	Formula One	Warsteiner Arrows	13	0	0	0	0	3	18th
1980	Formula One	Warsteiner Arrows	11	0	0	0	0	4	17th
1981	24 Hours of Le Mans	Porsche System	1	0	0	0	0	N/A	12th
1982	Formula One	March Grand Prix	9	0	0	0	0	0	NC
	24 Hours of Le Mans	Rothmans Porsche	1	0	0	0	1	N/A	2nd
1983	24 Hours of Le Mans	Rothmans Porsche	1	0	0	0	0	N/A	DNF
1985	24 Hours of Le Mans	Rothmans Porsche	1	0	0	0	0	N/A	10th
1986	24 Hours of Le Mans	Rothmans Porsche	1	0	0	0	0	N/A	DNF
1987	24 Hours of Le Mans	Rothmans Porsche AG	1	0	0	0	0	N/A	DNF
1988	24 Hours of Le Mans	Team Sauber Mercedes	0	0	0	0	0	N/A	DNS
1989	24 Hours of Le Mans	Team Sauber Mercedes	1	0	0	0	1	N/A	1st
1991	24 Hours of Le Mans	Team Sauber Mercedes	1	0	0	0	0	N/A	DNF
1995	24 Hours of Le Mans	West Competition / David Price Racing	1	0	0	0	0	N/A	DNF

^‡ Graded drivers not eligible for European Formula Two Championship points

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Entrant	Chassis	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	Pos.	Pts
1972	STP March Racing Team	March 722	Ford BDA	MAL	THR	HOC Ret	PAU Ret	PAL 8	HOC	ROU Ret	ÖST	IMO	MAN	PER	SAL	ALB	HOC				27th	1
1973	Team Surtees FINA	Surtees TS15	Ford BDA	MAL Ret	HOC Ret	THR DSQ	NÜR Ret	PAU	KIN 1	NIV 2	HOC 1	ROU 2	MNZ Ret	MAN 2	KAR	PER 3	SAL	NOR	ALB 6	VAL Ret	2nd	42
1976	Project Four Racing	March 762	Lancia-Ferrari	HOC DNQ	THR	VAL	SAL	PAU													NC	0‡
	Willi Kauhsen Racing Team	March 762	Hart						HOC Ret	ROU	MUG	PER	EST	NOG
	Fred Opert Racing	Chevron B40	BMW												HOC 6
1977	March Racing Ltd Yardley	March 772P	BMW	SIL	THR	HOC 1	NÜR 1	VAL	PAU	MUG	ROU	NOG	PER	MIS	EST	DON					NC	0‡
1978	ICI Chevron Cars	Chevron B42	Hart	THR 12	HOC 7	NÜR 8	PAU	MUG	VAL	ROU	DON	NOG	PER	MIS	HOC						NC	0

^‡ Graded drivers not eligible for European Formula Two Championship points

Year	Team	Co-Drivers	Car	Class	Laps	Pos.	Class Pos.
1972	Ford Motor Company Deutschland	Hans-Joachim Stuck	Ford Capri 2600RS	S 3.0	152	DNF	DNF
1978	Martini Racing Porsche System	Jacky Ickx Henri Pescarolo	Porsche 936/78	S +2.0	255	DNF	DNF
1981	Porsche System	Vern Schuppan Hurley Haywood	Porsche 936	S +2.0	312	12th	2nd
1982	Rothmans Porsche System	Vern Schuppan	Porsche 956	C	356	2nd	2nd
1983	Rothmans Porsche	Stefan Bellof	Porsche 956	C	281	DNF	DNF
1985	Rothmans Porsche	Jacky Ickx	Porsche 962C	C1	348	10th	10th
1986	Rothmans Porsche	Bob Wollek Vern Schuppan	Porsche 962C	C1	180	DNF	DNF
1987	Rothmans Porsche AG	Bob Wollek Vern Schuppan	Porsche 962C	C1	16	DNF	DNF
1988	Team Sauber Mercedes	Mauro Baldi James Weaver	Sauber C9-Mercedes-Benz	C1	–	DNS	DNS
1989	Team Sauber Mercedes	Manuel Reuter Stanley Dickens	Sauber C9-Mercedes-Benz	C1	389	1st	1st
1991	Team Sauber Mercedes	Jean-Louis Schlesser Alain Ferté	Mercedes-Benz C11	C2	319	DNF	DNF
1995	West Competition David Price Racing	John Nielsen Dr. Thomas Bscher	McLaren F1 GTR	GT1	131	DNF	DNF

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap.)

Year	Team	Car	Class	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	Pos.	Pts	Class
1972	Ford Köln	Ford Capri RS2600	D	BRH	OUL	THR	SIL	CRY	BRH	OUL	SIL 1	MAL	BRH	28th	9	7th
1973	Ford Köln	Ford Capri RS2600	D	BRH	SIL	THR	THR	SIL	ING	BRH	SIL 2	BRH		29th	6	8th
Source:[17]

(key) (races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Entrant	Chassis	Engine	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	WDC	Points
1973	Team Surtees	Surtees TS14A	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	ARG	BRA	RSA	ESP	BEL	MON	SWE	FRA	GBR Ret	NED	GER 7	AUT	ITA	CAN	USA Ret			NC	0
1974	Team Surtees	Surtees TS16	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	ARG Ret	BRA 17	RSA Ret	ESP Ret	BEL Ret	MON DNS	SWE Ret	NED Ret	FRA Ret	GBR 14	GER Ret	AUT	ITA					NC	0
	Yardley McLaren	McLaren M23															CAN 16	USA 7
1975	Marlboro Team Texaco	McLaren M23	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	ARG 14	BRA 3	RSA 6	ESP 1‡	MON 6	BEL Ret	SWE Ret	NED Ret	FRA 3	GBR 7	GER Ret	AUT 4‡	ITA Ret	USA 3				8th	20
1976	Marlboro Team McLaren	McLaren M23	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	BRA 6	RSA 3	USW 5	ESP Ret	BEL 6	MON 5	SWE 11	FRA 15	GBR Ret	GER 3	AUT 7		ITA Ret	CAN 5	USA 4	JPN Ret		9th	19
		McLaren M26													NED 9
1977	Marlboro Team McLaren	McLaren M23	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	ARG Ret	BRA Ret	RSA 5	USW Ret	ESP 4	MON 4	BEL Ret	SWE 2	FRA 9									6th	25
		McLaren M26											GBR 4	GER Ret	AUT 6	NED Ret	ITA 4	USA Ret	CAN 3	JPN Ret
1978	ATS Racing	ATS HS1	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	ARG 11	BRA 7	RSA Ret	USW Ret	MON DNQ	BEL 11	ESP 9	SWE 13	FRA 13	GBR NC	GER Ret	AUT DNQ	NED DNQ	ITA	USA	CAN		NC	0
1979	Warsteiner Arrows	Arrows A1	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	ARG 8	BRA 7	RSA 12	USW 9	ESP 8	BEL Ret	MON 6											18th	3
		Arrows A2									FRA 15	GBR Ret	GER 6	AUT Ret	NED 6	ITA Ret	CAN DNQ	USA DNQ
1980	Warsteiner Arrows	Arrows A3	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	ARG Ret	BRA 10	RSA 6	USW 7	BEL Ret	MON 4	FRA 10	GBR 13	GER 8	AUT DNQ	NED DNS	ITA	CAN 11	USA Ret				17th	4
1982	March Grand Prix	March 821	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	RSA 12	BRA 8	USW 8	SMR	BEL Ret	MON DNQ	DET 7	CAN 11	NED Ret	GBR 10	FRA Ret	GER	AUT	SUI	ITA	CPL		NC	0

^‡ Half points awarded as less than 75% of race distance was completed.

(key)

Year	Entrant	Chassis	Engine	1	2	3
1974	Team Surtees	Surtees TS16	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	PRE 4	ROC DNS	INT 2
1975	Marlboro Team Texaco	McLaren M23	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	ROC Ret	INT	SUI 3
1979	Warsteiner Arrows	Arrows A1	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	ROC 4	GNM	DIN
1980	Warsteiner Arrows	Arrows A3	Ford Cosworth DFV 3.0 V8	ESP 2
Source:[18]

• Formula One drivers from Germany

Sporting positions
Preceded by Dieter Glemser	European Touring Car Champion 1972	Succeeded by Toine Hezemans
Preceded by Stefan Bellof	Deutsche Rennsport Meisterschaft Champion 1985	Succeeded by End series
Preceded by Jan Lammers Johnny Dumfries Andy Wallace	Winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans 1989 With: Manuel Reuter & Stanley Dickens	Succeeded by John Nielsen Price Cobb Martin Brundle