The driver who snuck into the 1977 GP to race

Of the 40 pilots vying for one of the 24 starting spots inXXXIX Grosser Place von Deutschland‘, he F1 German GP In 1977, one person was convinced there was no way he could miss this. to Hans Heyer (1943/3/16 – Mönchengladbach) must have crossed his mind.schadenfreude(A word only Germans have that can define the universal principle of rejoicing in the misfortune of others) clay regazzoni and alan jones They collided at the start of the race. Carrying a full tank of fuel, he hid behind a stewardess who had just left the track, waiting for a signal from one of the mechanics who had seen the chaos on the pit exit road, but took advantage of the chaos to join the group.

27th out of 24

gunter schmidtaluminum wheel manufacturer, establishes team ATS (Auto Technisches Spezialsbehor) was in charge of Penske PC4 and hired a professional pilot jean pierre jarier. schmidt I gave a second car to hockenheimentrusted to Hans HeyerDebuted with. formula 1 but very well known Germany And the same is true in the world of touring cars and endurance racing in general. All included hockenheim They all knew him, including the grill hostesses, and his big dream was to race in a Grand Prix.

At age 34, he drove in the touring car division and won. Ford, BMW, Mercedes And even more porschebut had only competed in one single-seater race ( formula 2to be exact) the year before that.

team ATS finished 12th in Jarier And on the 27th heyer Qualifications. 24 cars lined up on the starting grid, heyer That was not the case at this time. To participate, heyer And the other unclassified drivers could only hope that someone would retire and not be able to start from the grid. but heyer I didn’t feel like waiting.

9 laps of glory

This was the second time hockenheimring accommodated german grand prixfor the first time since the incident. Niki Lauda in Nürburgring In 1976, circuit judges were still not allowing entries from the pits. After seeing the crash that happened, they had other things to do. but heyer I was already on the track, but the first thing I noticed was a journalist. harry valerian of the channel ZDF It was broadcasting the race. heyer was completely focused on driving and was able to advance some positions thanks to some abandonments. The already described collision caused damage between the vehicles. second lieutenant of Regazzoni and shadow of jones Abandoned partner on first lap Jarier fifth, watson octave and January schecter Lap 9 On lap 9 to be exact, when the stewards had yet to find a way to stop him, the engine’s gear lever ATS It solved the organizational problem.

Author of the most daring operation ever seen formula 1 He was forced to stop back in the pit. However, the joy is heyer Because being able to play in the match far outweighs the disappointment of his withdrawal.

“Never give up”

His boldness earned him the title of “Unclassified, Not Finished, Not Disqualified” in the race, which also earned him a suspension from five F1 races. He became the only driver in history to be disqualified from a race. grand prize He didn’t deserve it.

However, while that is still on the record, it no longer mattered to him as he was clear that F1 was not the place for him. formula 1 as a participant in 1977 German GP.

After the accident, as expected, the race management demanded an explanation. but, hans He was not one of those who gave them. “I hope you don’t race for the rest of the season.”He said he was well aware of the penalties that would be imposed. His greatest achievements are already in history. He returned to touring car racing and won several titles like three titles. 24 hour spa or 12 hours of sebring I also tried my luck at rally raids. 2nd place in Paris-Dakar Rally Driving a truck in 1986.

“In motorsport, you never have to give up. You have to hang on and fight to protect your position.” He once said in an interview: And he continued to do so throughout his life. heyer He retired in 1989 after 999 races in a 30-year career.